2005 Lexus Is problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Structure (5) · Visibility:sun/Moon Roof Assembly (1) · Vehicle Speed Control (1)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Lexus Is model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
Safety recalls (0)
No recalls on record for this model year (campaigns announced since 2010).
Service bulletins (39)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Structure:body 2025-12-15 · L-SB-0030-24 Rev2 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some 2005 – 2026 lexus vehicles that have undergone water intrusion may exhibit a condition in which a musty odor is present. follow the procedures in this bulletin to remediate the odor and address this condition. the purpose of this service bulletin is to provide general guidelines and procedures
Structure:body 2024-07-29 · L-SB-0030-24 Rev1 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some 2005 – 2024 lexus vehicles that have undergone water intrusion may exhibit a condition in which a musty odor is present. follow the procedures in this bulletin to remediate the odor and address this condition. the purpose of this service bulletin is to provide general guidelines and procedures
Structure:body 2024-07-29 · L-SB-0030-24 Rev1 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some 2005 – 2024 lexus vehicles that have undergone water intrusion may exhibit a condition in which a musty odor is present. follow the procedures in this bulletin to remediate the odor and address this condition. the purpose of this service bulletin is to provide general guidelines and procedures
Structure:body 2024-06-21 · L-SB-0030-24 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some 2005 – 2024 lexus vehicles that have undergone water intrusion may exhibit a condition in which a musty smell is present. follow the procedures in this bulletin to remediate the odor and address this condition. the purpose of this service bulletin is to provide general guidelines and procedures
Structure:body 2024-06-21 · L-SB-0030-24 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some 2005 – 2024 lexus vehicles that have undergone water intrusion may exhibit a condition in which a musty smell is present. follow the procedures in this bulletin to remediate the odor and address this condition. the purpose of this service bulletin is to provide general guidelines and procedures
Structure:body 2024-04-19 · L-SB-0023-24 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
to prevent brake rotor rust from forming during transportation and storage, wheel film will be used instead of a cardboard type of anti-rust cover. the purpose of the wheel film is to shield the disc brake rotor from weather elements and initial rust before the vehicle is delivered to the customer.
Showing the 6 most recent of 39 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2021-10-31 · Service Brakes“as i prepared to make a right turn onto a busy street, i suddenly could not brake normally. instead, i was unable to press the brake down as a balloon like feeling pushed it back up, but it also did not return all the way up to its normal position. the result was i was moving with no way to slow down the car. fortunately, i was not moving at a high…”
2015-06-15 · Structure · 100,000 mi“this lexus has the sticky, melting dashboard issue common in many lexus vehicles located in southern states.…”
2014-07-30 · Structure“one day i just got into my car after cleaning it and the dash was very sticky, i thought someone split something in my car so i wiped it down but it did nothing. *tr…”
2014-07-17 · Structure · 70,000 mi“i have a 2005 is300 that is having a melting dashboard and panel issue. this is a well known issue in the lexus forums on the internet. the melting dashboard and panel issue is caused by the hot sun. lexus has not acknowledge this issue and also refusing to cover the cost of repairing/replacing the defective parts. *tr…”
2014-05-17 · Visibility:sun/Moon Roof Assembly · 140,000 mi“severe rusting of the sunroof. *js…”
2012-04-01 · Vehicle Speed Control · 47,000 mi“coasting into a parking spot , my foot not on the gas , the car took off. i had to slam my foot on the brake and with the help of the parking spot stopper the car stopped. the car felt like it was going to go over the stopper. *tr…”
2011-11-30 · Structure“on the dashboard, the square of material where the srs air bag is, on the passenger side, keeps melting when it's exposed to heat. the airbag decomposes over time due to an error in design/manufacturing, and that lexus is aware of the situation due to other customers that have had the same problem. i have safety concerns about the condition of the…”
2008-11-01 · Power Train:automatic Transmission · 10,100 mi · 💥 crash“i own lexus is300, year 2005. mileage approx 10,000 only. for approximately 1 year the gear shift selector lever sticks in park and requires that i press the shift lock override button. this has happened approximately 6 times. on the last occasion, when i was able to move the selector lever, the engine started racing, the car shot forward and resu…”
2007-02-04 · Suspension · 13,000 mi“the front tires are wearing out faster on the inside (camber) than the rest of the tire. the dealer lexus (is300) said that's the way the manufacturer made it .i was never told this would happen when i bought the vehicle. *nm…”
2005-11-29 · Power Train:clutch Assembly · 2,900 mi“lexus is300, 2005 5 speed. i bought this car brand new on june 2005. after 2900 miles the clutch had to be replaced by lexus. they claim that i drive with the foot on the clutch pedal (which i don't). i have driven stick shift since i was in college over 30 years ago. *jb…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.