Lexus IS - Problems, Statistics, and Analysis

Lexus IS owners have reported a total of 824 problems for their cars built in the 26 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 IS. The 2006 Lexus IS cars have the most problems reported (187 problems).

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

Model Year	Number of Problems
2025 IS	1
2024 IS	1
2023 IS	3
2022 IS	6
2021 IS	2
2020 IS	7
2019 IS	3
2018 IS	3
2017 IS	15
2016 IS	4
2015 IS	14
2014 IS	17
2013 IS	11
2012 IS	23
2011 IS	26
2010 IS	53
2009 IS	55
2008 IS	156
2007 IS	172
2006 IS	187
2005 IS	13
2004 IS	12
2003 IS	19
2002 IS	19
2001 IS	1
1999 IS	1

🔍 Common problems of Lexus IS

The following chart shows the 22 most common problems for Lexus IS cars. The number one most common problem is related to the vehicle's equipment (207 problems). The second most common problem is related to the vehicle's air bags (126 problems).

Table 2. Common problems of Lexus IS

Problem Category	Number of Problems
Equipment	207
Air Bag	126
Visibility	90
Engine And Engine Cooling	81
Structure	66
Electrical System	42
Steering	37
Other Fuel System	35
Power Train	28
Vehicle Speed Control	26

Service Brakes	20
Exterior Lighting	15
Suspension	12
Electronic Stability Control	10
Seats	7
Wheel	6
Seat Belt	5
Tire	4
Gasoline Fuel System	2
Unknown Or Other	2
Latches/locks/linkage	2
Parking Brake	1

📉 Compare Reliability Across Model Years Using PPMY Index

It would not be fair to compare the Lexus IS 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 IS 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 IS 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 IS Model Years

IS Model Year	Problems	Sales [1]	Vehicle Age	PPMY Index
2022	6	19,146	4	0.08
2021	2	23,813	5	0.02
2020	7	11,407	6	0.10
2019	3	17,088	7	0.03
2018	3	21,403	8	0.02
2017	15	27,575	9	0.06
2016	4	45,012	10	0.01
2015	14	54,702	11	0.02
2014	17	57,499	12	0.02
2013	11	13,082	13	0.06
2012	23	31,725	14	0.05
2011	26	30,809	15	0.06
2010	53	41,709	16	0.08
2009	55	31,875	17	0.10
2008	156	57,931	18	0.15
2007	172	57,055	19	0.16
2006	187	49,978	20	0.19
2005	13	6,364	21	0.10
2004	12	11,308	22	0.05
2003	19	14,452	23	0.06
2002	19	24,079	24	0.03
2001	1	30,959	25	0.00

📊 Number of Problems Reported During the First Year

Another way to measure the reliability across the model years of the Lexus IS 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 IS	1
2023 IS	1
2013 IS	3
2012 IS	1
2011 IS	4
2010 IS	5
2009 IS	8
2008 IS	4
2007 IS	5
2006 IS	1
2005 IS	1
2003 IS	3

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