2018 Lexus Ls problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Wheels (3) · Fuel/Propulsion System (2) · Engine And Engine Cooling (2)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Lexus Ls model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
Safety recalls (2)
Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification:front Passenger 2024-04-17 · campaign 24V275000 · 509 vehicles
Defect: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2018-2021 Lexus LS500 and 2018-2020 Lexus LS500 Hybrid vehicles equipped with the "Executive Package." The front passenger seat may have been assembled with interference between internal parts that can cause the Occupant Classification System (OCS) sensor to incorrectly detect the occupant. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 208, "Occupant Crash Prote
Risk: Incorrect detection of an occupant may result in improper air bag deployment during a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and repair the front passenger seat, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 7, 2024. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is 24LA03.
Tires:sidewall 2019-02-27 · campaign 19V134000 · 6,296 vehicles
Defect: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2018 Lexus LS vehicles equipped with run-flat tires with a sidewall reinforcement layer inside the tire. The tire-on-wheel assembly process may have caused the reinforcement layer to crack, possibly resulting in the tire tread layer separating from the tire.
Risk: If the tire tread layer separates from the vehicle, vehicle handling and stability may be affected, increasing the risk of crash.
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and Lexus dealers will replace the affected tires, free of charge. The recall began April 26, 2019. Owners may contact Lexus customer service at 1-800-255-3987. The Toyota number for this recall is KLC.
Service bulletins (60)
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.
Service Brakes 2026-09-30 · L-SB-0028-26 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some 2018 – 2023 model year lc 500, and lc 500h, 2021 – 2023 model year lc 500c, 2018 – 2023 model year ls 500, and ls 500h, 2015 model year rx 450h, and 2018 – 2022 model year rx 450h vehicles may exhibit a condition in which the brake, abs, and/or trac warning lights are on and/or a check vsc mess
Electrical System 2026-02-02 · L-SB-0057-22 Rev2 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
obsolete notice february 2, 2026: this bulletin is now obsolete. please see l-sb-0004-26.
Electrical System 2026-01-23 · L-SB-0004-26 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some 2018 – 2025 model year lexus vehicles equipped with the enform™ 2.0 navigation system, require a special service tool (sst) usb flash drive to update the map, points of interest, and system software.
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
Electrical System 2025-08-19 · L-TT-0326-23 Rev2 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some customers may experience operational difficulties with some telematics features which they cannot resolve on their own. these resources, in conjunction with the repair manual, are for dealership personnel to assist those customers with user issues, user errors, and compatibility issues with oth
Electrical System 2025-06-13 · L-SB-0043-23 Rev1 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
the air conditioning dye injection tool kit has been developed to aid in identifying the location of air conditioning refrigerant leaks. the procedures outlined in this service bulletin aid in locating, inspecting, and repairing refrigerant leaks.
Showing the 6 most recent of 60 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-10-11 · Engine“main rod bearing failure in the motor. no lights on the dash. pulling away from the traffic light, heard loud banging from the engine and loss of power. two blocks away from home, fortunately the car made it. 97,500 miles on the car. oil was changed at len stoler lexus 1,242 ago. service history of maintenance is superb. had the vehicle towed to pr…”
2026-07-20 · Engine“at 55,310 miles the car stalled without warning while driving at low speed. the car was towed to a lexus dealership and it was reported by the dealer after inspection that the engine had seized. the vehicle is available for inspection. the motor failed while driving the vehicle. the v35a-fts engine has numerous reports of main bearing failure a…”
2026-05-28 · Engine And Engine Cooling“see attached document for complaint.…”
2026-04-20 · Engine And Engine Cooling · 36,000 mi“the contact owns a 2018 lexus ls 500. the contact stated that while driving 50 mph, the vehicle stalled. the vehicle coasted and was steered over to the side of the road. the vehicle failed to restart. the vehicle was towed to the residence, where the oil was drained and the cap and filter were removed. the contact stated that there were metal shav…”
2025-10-28 · Fuel/Propulsion System“vin: [xxx] current mileage: 70,440 vehicle: 2018 lexus ls500 in november 2021, i purchased this vehicle with approximately 19,000 miles. routine maintenance was performed every 7,500 miles. at approximately 44,000 miles (in 2023), the vehicle experienced severe engine failure following warning lights for parking support brake malfunction, second…”
2025-01-01 · Seats“large lump/lumps on the lower left / bottom portion of the driver's seat, protruding from the seat bottom closest to the lower bolster. as a direct result my left leg loses its circulation, it causes numbness and muscle pain in thigh and groin due to this. regardless of seat adjustment the lump / imperfection in the seat cushion is present. this …”
2024-04-11 · Unknown Or Other“recently i purchased a cpo lexus 2018 ls 500. i realized i am not able to enter coordinate in the gps navigation system. lexus took away the most import tool (the coordinate entry) in navigation system away, this make the navigation system useless and easy to get lost when cell service not available especially in and around state and nation park …”
2024-01-14 · Wheels“all 4 tires have tread wear on the inner side. took it to lexus they said no remedy is available ended up selling the car. may cause slip and accident…”
2022-01-04 · Electrical System“the vehicle exhibited 3 episodes of premature battery failure. mileage of the vehicle is 6000 miles. without any warning the car would just not start from a gas pump or such locations in the middle of the road. this is a dangerous problem because there was no warning that the battery is running low or there is any problem. car runs 100 miles ev…”
2020-10-27 · Fuel/Propulsion System · 22,087 mi“vehicle hesitates while driving. recall announced to us 1/20/2020. have attempted numerous times to have dealership do the free recall repair. even while there for oil changes and regular services throughout this year. have been told each time they need to order the part and they will call me. 10 months of this now and car is unsafe- they keep stal…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.