Lexus ES - Problems, Statistics, and Analysis

Lexus ES owners have reported a total of 839 problems for their cars built in the 30 model years listed in the chart below. The chart shows the number of problems reported across all service years for each given model year of the Lexus ES. The 2007 Lexus ES cars have the most problems reported (162 problems).

Table 1. Total number of problems by model year for Lexus ES

Model Year	Number of Problems
2025 ES	9
2024 ES	9
2023 ES	9
2022 ES	6
2021 ES	28
2020 ES	16
2019 ES	57
2018 ES	7
2017 ES	2
2016 ES	10
2015 ES	7
2014 ES	3
2013 ES	47
2012 ES	35
2011 ES	57
2010 ES	46
2009 ES	29
2008 ES	80
2007 ES	162
2006 ES	11
2005 ES	78
2004 ES	19
2003 ES	37
2002 ES	48
2001 ES	2
2000 ES	10
1999 ES	8
1998 ES	3
1997 ES	2
1996 ES	2

🔍 Common problems of Lexus ES

The following chart shows the 25 most common problems for Lexus ES cars. The number one most common problem is related to the vehicle's air bags (221 problems). The second most common problem is related to the vehicle's equipment (105 problems).

Table 2. Common problems of Lexus ES

Problem Category	Number of Problems
Air Bag	221
Equipment	105
Power Train	57
Electrical System	56
Structure	54
Vehicle Speed Control	51
Engine And Engine Cooling	51
Service Brakes	47
Visibility	41
Other Fuel System	29

Steering	23
Exterior Lighting	18
Suspension	14
Wheel	10
Forward Collision Avoidance	10
Unknown Or Other	9
Seats	7
Seat Belt	6
Back Over Prevention	6
Tire	6
Gasoline Fuel System	6
Electronic Stability Control	5
Lane Departure	4
Latches/locks/linkage	2
Child Seat	1

📉 Compare Reliability Across Model Years Using PPMY Index

It would not be fair to compare the Lexus ES of an older model year to newer model years since older vehicles have been in service longer and thus are expected to have more problems. In order to compare the reliability across ES model years, we use the PPMY index which is defined as the problems reported per thousand vehicles per Year. A smaller PPMY index indicates greater reliability of the given model year cars.

PPMY = P / S / Y * 1000,

where P = total problems reported during the life of a Lexus ES model year; S = total units sold of the model year; Y = years since the debut of the model year (the age of the vehicle).

The results are shown in Table 3.

Table 3. Use PPMY Index to Compare Reliability Across ES Model Years

ES Model Year	Problems	Sales [1]	Vehicle Age	PPMY Index
2022	6	29,229	4	0.05
2021	28	34,702	5	0.16
2020	16	30,262	6	0.09
2019	57	51,167	7	0.16
2018	7	37,522	8	0.02
2017	2	47,991	9	0.00
2016	10	56,863	10	0.02
2015	7	49,323	11	0.01
2014	3	56,138	12	0.00
2013	47	68,545	13	0.05
2012	35	32,739	14	0.08
2011	57	44,249	15	0.09
2010	46	54,394	16	0.05
2009	29	42,833	17	0.04
2008	80	79,585	18	0.06
2007	162	121,579	19	0.07
2006	11	30,761	20	0.02
2005	78	80,735	21	0.05
2004	19	70,774	22	0.01
2003	37	61,546	23	0.03
2002	48	70,517	24	0.03
2001	2	35,282	25	0.00
2000	10	45,885	26	0.01

📊 Number of Problems Reported During the First Year

Another way to measure the reliability across the model years of the Lexus ES is to use the total number of problems reported during the vehicle's first year in service, as shown in the Table 4.

Table 4. Number of problems in vehicle's; first service year

Model Year	Problems Reported
2025 ES	3
2024 ES	4
2023 ES	2
2022 ES	1
2019 ES	7
2018 ES	1
2013 ES	4
2011 ES	7
2008 ES	2
2007 ES	2
2005 ES	24
2002 ES	2

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