CSR

Lexus · NHTSA safety record

2020 Lexus ES

Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.

Owners have filed 18 safety complaints about the 2020 Lexus ES with the US government. Of those, 3 describe a crash, 4 people were injured and no death is recorded. One recall campaign is open against it, covering the air bags.

The most complained-about system is the air bags, named in 8 complaints, 44% of the total.

Compiled from NHTSA's complaint, recall and investigation files · Covers September 2024 to August 2026 · How this is counted

What is on file

18 complaints on file

18

Complaints

3

Describe a crash

0

Mention fire

4

People injured

0

Deaths

A complaint is an unverified account by the person who filed it, not a finding of fault. One complaint is one ODI number, which is how NHTSA counts them.

A recall is the manufacturer conceding a defect, and the repair is free. Whether one covers your particular car is a question only its VIN can answer, because a campaign covers a production range rather than a model year.

Which system owners named

Complaints naming each system
AIR BAGS 8 · 44%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 4 · 22%
SERVICE BRAKES 3 · 17%
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 2 · 11%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 1 · 6%
ENGINE 1 · 6%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 · 6%
SUSPENSION 1 · 6%
0 4 8

Red marks a system with a recall campaign against it. One complaint can name several systems, so these add up to more than 18.

When the complaints arrived

By the year NHTSA received them

By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2024 at 7.

8 6 4 2
24 25 26

This is the year the complaint was filed, not the year the failure happened. The range runs from 2024 to 2026, the last of them a part year, which is why its column is drawn faint.

Crash test ratings

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program

NHTSA has not crash tested the 2020 Lexus ES. Its New Car Assessment Program tests a selection of each year's vehicles and does not reach motorcycles, heavy trucks, motorhomes or most low-volume models, so an absence here says nothing about how the vehicle would perform. It is not a low score.

What owners have reported about this vehicle is below, and it is a different question: a crash test measures what happens to the people inside in a controlled impact, while a complaint records what broke during ordinary use.

Recall campaigns

1 on file

AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION

23V865000 · December 20, 2023

The defect
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Avalon, Avalon Hybrid, Corolla, Highlander, Highlander Hybrid, RAV4, RAV4 Hybrid, Lexus ES350, Lexus RX350, Lexus RX450H, 2021 Sienna Hybrid, Lexus ES250, 2020-2022 Camry, Camry Hybrid, and ES300H vehicles. A short circuit may develop in the Occupant Classification System (OCS) sensor, preventing the front passenger air bag from deploying.
The risk
An air bag that does not deploy during a crash increases the risk of injury.
The remedy
Dealers will inspect and replace the sensor as necessary, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed in February 2024. Some final remedy owner letters were mailed October 31, 2024. Letters will continue to be mailed in phases through January 2026. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is 23TB15/23TA15 Lexus 23LB03/23LA03.

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing · up to 999,901 vehicles across all model years covered

In owners’ own words

Quoted from the complaint file

Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the people who filed them, not findings of fault.

SERVICE BRAKES

3 injured · crash · towed · 30,000 miles

The contact owns a 2020 Lexus ES 350. The contact stated that while his father was driving at 35-37 MPH down a hill, he applied the brake pedal, but the brakes failed to respond. The contact continued to pump the brake pedal. The driver moved the gear shifter, attempting to slow down the vehicle. The driver crashed into a 2016 Mazda 3, which crashed into a 2017 Honda Civic. There was an unknown brake indicator light displayed. The passenger occupant sustained extreme chest and neck pain. The driver and passenger were provided medical attention. Additionally, the two occupants of the Mazda sustained leg and neck pain but no medical attention was provided. The unknown occupant (s) of the

NHTSA complaint 11628965, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

1 injured · crash

Paring brake has been bucking backwards and forward for most of 2026 and finally it failed facing downhill on Feb 4, 2026 and rolled downhill until it stopped after hitting a sign.

NHTSA complaint 11717319. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE

crash · towed · 25,379 miles

The contact owned a 2020 Lexus ES 350. The contact stated while the contact's wife was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle independently pulled to the right. The contact's wife had no control of the steering wheel. The contact stated that the vehicle made a hard right turn. The contact stated that his wife tried everything to stop the vehicle, however the vehicle was uncontrollable. The contact stated that the vehicle traveled off the roadway, onto a concrete curve, down into a drainage area, and crashed into a tree. In addition, the contact stated that none of the air bags deployed. The contact stated that the paramedics and the County Sheriff's, however no police report was

NHTSA complaint 11623187, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SUSPENSION
Not sure if I have the right things checked. Starting about december 2022 i experienced the car "lunging" forward upon putting the car into drive, After having backed out of a parking space. It continued to do this off and on even through today. It seems to do it most after the car has been sitting for a good length of time.Perhaps overnight, or while i've been in a shopping mall 2-3 hours. I have four invoice tickets from the lexus dealer where I brought the car in specifically for this problem. They had someone to drive it with me in the car, and of course we were not able to duplicate it at that time. I left the car with them for 3 days on one occasion. And when I returned, they said

NHTSA complaint 11754220, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ENGINE
The front timing chain cover on the engine was leaking at 53k miles. This is a 2GR-FKS engine. We have had the car for 19k miles, and bought it as a Certified Pre-Owned. We're looking at spending over 10% of the purchase price of the car on a repair, after barely having it for three years.

NHTSA complaint 11749126. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SERVICE BRAKES
I was driving on a freeway. I had my adaptive cruise control turned on. The car in front of me slowed down. My adaptive cruise control did not slow me down so I applied the breaks. The breaks did not work. The breaks did not slow me down or stop me. My pre-collision system did not activate. I collided with the rear end of the car that was in front of me. I got displays on my car screen stating "Pre-Collision System Malfunction", "Breaking Power Low", and "Cruise Control Malfunction". The safety of ourselves and others definitely put the safety of ourselves and others at risk. We did not report this to the dealer. Our car was totaled. The vehicle components involved were not inspected to the

NHTSA complaint 11724316, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Car has been stalling, jerking and revving of the engine! Transmission service was done around 100,000 miles, about 30000 miles later, car was taken back to dealer and they were unable diagnose a problem. Issue got worse until it became undriveable. Car towed back to dealership only to be told I need a transmission on a pre owned certified car!

NHTSA complaint 11722630. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER
There was a recall listed for my car in 2023, and now it is September 2025 and there is still no remedy available for the recall. Manufacturer Recall Number: 23LB03 NHTSA Recall Number: 23V865 Recall Status: Recall Incomplete, remedy not yet available Summary: The subject vehicles have Occupant Classification System (OCS) sensors in the front passenger seat, that could have been improperly manufactured. Safety Risk: This would not allow the airbag system to properly classify the occupant’s weight, and the airbag may not deploy as designed in certain crashes, increasing the risk of injury..

NHTSA complaint 11690117. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the Lexus ES

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2025 5 1 —
2024 9 2 —
2023 10 2 —
2021 28 1 —
2019 34 1 —
2013 33 0 —
2012 31 0 —
2011 46 0 —
2010 41 0 —

Other 2020 Lexus models

RX 46

Complaints on file, same model year.

Every Lexus on this site — 91 vehicles.

If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. How many repair attempts it takes, and how long you have to file, is set by the state you bought in and by nothing on this page.

Where these numbers come from

A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.

Compiled and maintained by
Independent developer and analyst