Reliability
Lexus

RX (AL10)

2010-2015 · Midsize SUV ยท 3 engines
494 NHTSA Complaints
4 Recalls
20 Fire Reports
102 Crash Reports
Data covers 5 NHTSA model names
RX 351RX330RX350RX450HRX450H HYBRID
View all 5 generations of the Lexus RX → ๐Ÿ“‹ Inspection checklist

Owner Complaints Compared With Similar Vehicles

Fewer complaints than similar vehicles

About 88% fewer owner complaints than a typical midsize SUV of the same age.

Owners filed 135 powertrain complaints. A typical midsize SUV fleet of this size and age would have drawn about 1,151.

Last three years: about 87% fewer owner complaints Fewer complaints than similar vehicles

By model year
  • 2010: Fewer complaints than similar vehicles
  • 2011: Fewer complaints than similar vehicles
  • 2012: Fewer complaints than similar vehicles
  • 2013: Fewer complaints than similar vehicles
  • 2014: Fewer complaints than similar vehicles
  • 2015: Fewer complaints than similar vehicles

Similar vehicles are others in the same class, compared at the same age and in the same years. The figure counts complaints owners filed with NHTSA about the engine, transmission or drivetrain, per vehicle built, which is different from the share of vehicles that fail. How this is worked out

By engine

3.5L 6-cyl Fewer complaints than similar vehicles
About 49% fewer owner complaints than the 3.5L 6-cyl hybrid, per vehicle built. On its own: about 90% fewer owner complaints than a typical midsize SUV of the same age. (101 complaints, about 580,000 built)
3.5L 6-cyl hybrid Fewer complaints than similar vehicles
About twice as many owner complaints as the 3.5L 6-cyl, per vehicle built. On its own: about 79% fewer owner complaints than a typical midsize SUV of the same age. (26 complaints, about 75,000 built)

A complaint counts toward an engine only when its VIN names the engine. Each badge is that engine on its own against similar vehicles.

What the complaints describe

Engine or transmission failed or replaced: Fewer complaints than similar vehicles 26 complaints against about 219 for a typical midsize SUV fleet of this size and age.

Oil consumption or overheating: Fewer complaints than similar vehicles 8 complaints against about 95 for a typical midsize SUV fleet of this size and age.

On the record

No serious powertrain recall covering 5% or more of this generation and no escalated investigation in NHTSA's files. Warranty extensions and settlements have not been researched.

Complaints by Engine Code

2GR-FE

3.5L 6-cyl / 275 hp
355 complaints 59.2 per year Gasoline
17 fire reports 2 fatalities
View details

2GR-FXE, 4JM + 2FM

3.5L 6-cyl / 270 hp
99 complaints 12.2 per year Gasoline
3 fire reports
View details

Complaint Breakdown

brakes
32
engine
18
electrical
17
other
13
safety systems
10

Known Issues

Brakes Issues (32 complaints)
Engine Issues (18 complaints)
Electrical System Issues (17 complaints)

Lexus RX Unidentified Engine

39 complaints 6.5 per year
1 fatality
View details

Complaint Breakdown

brakes
12
electrical
8
other
8
safety systems
4
body
4

Known Issues

Brakes Issues (12 complaints)
Electrical System Issues (8 complaints)
Safety Systems Issues (4 complaints)
Show 1 additional engine variant with limited data
These engines appear in fewer than 10 owner complaints. A low count can mean a clean record, and it can also be a VIN-decode anomaly in NHTSA's data.

1UR-FE

4.6L 8-cyl / 301 hp
1 complaint 1.0 per year Gasoline
View details

Complaint Breakdown

engine
1
cooling
1

Known Issues

Engine Issues (1 complaints)
Cooling System Issues (1 complaints)

Battery & Propulsion Reliability

Hybrid (HEV)

Battery & propulsion complaint analysis for the 2010-2015 Lexus RX

16 battery-related complaints 3.2 per year 0 battery-related recalls

That's below the typical rate for hybrids in this dataset (median 7.0 per year). Battery & propulsion complaints are lower than peer average for this category.

1 fire report

What kind of battery complaint?

Among the 16 battery-related complaints, here's the type mix. These percentages describe what the complaints are about โ€” not how reliable the vehicle is overall.

Hybrid Drivetrain 14 (88%)

Hybrid system warnings, eCVT, motor-generator, hybrid transaxle.

Thermal Events 2 (13%)

Battery fires, smoke, thermal runaway. Includes any complaint with fire reported.

Electric Propulsion 2 (13%)

Loss of power, drive unit, inverter, traction motor, DC-DC converter.

Sample complaint excerpts
Hybrid Drivetrain
  • [2010] The hybrid transmission failed at 146k and the light went on. When we took it to the dealership, they said that there was metal bits. The owner of the vehicle when into the dealership asking the dealership to set tire pressures and inspect floor mats for proper installation, they performed an inspection and inflated the tires. The owner went in and stated that the check hybrid system warning light
  • [2010] MY RX450H ' CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM' LIGHT CAME ON WHILE DRIVING 70 MPH ON I95. ONCE THE LIGHT CAME ON I NO LONGER WAS ABLE TO GIVE MY CAR ANY GAS OR ACCELERATE AND SLOWLY MY CAR STARTED DECREASING IT'S SPEED. ATTEMPTING TO PULL OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE HIGHWAY ALL MY LIGHTS ON MY DASH BOARD CAME ON AND THE CAR SHUT DOWN. AFTER TURNING OFF MY CAR AND LETTING IT SIT FOR A FEW MINUTES I WAS ABLE TO TURN
  • [2010] TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2010 LEXUS RX450H. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 55 MPH, THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO UNINTENTIONALLY DECELERATE. DURING THE FAILURE THE CHECK ENGINE, ALL WHEEL DRIVE AND HYBRID SYSTEM LIGHTS WERE ILLUMINATING. THE VEHICLE WAS THEN TOWED TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER WHERE THEY WERE IN THE PROCESS OF DIAGNOSING THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 1
Thermal Events
  • [2011] On Saturday July 15, 2023, at between about 8:00 and 8:30 a.m. CDST the vehicle was parked overnight in a garage, spontaneously caught fire and burned and was a total loss. There was a smell I would associate with an electrical fire. People reported hearing a car alarm and a "popping sound" before the fire. The fire department extinguished the fire and had the car towed out of the garage of a cond
  • [2010] VEHICLE SAT IN MY DRIVEWAY OVERNIGHT DURING A HEAVY RAIN THAT TURNED INTO FREEZING RAIN. THE NEXT MORNING WHEN I WENT TO START THE CAR A WARNING CAME ON TO CHECK THE HYBRID SYSTEM. WHEN CALLED, LEXUS SAID THE VEHICLE HAD TO BE TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP FOR INSPECTION/REPAIR. AFTER VEHICLE WAS TOWED BY FLATBED CARRIER TO THE DEALERSHIP FOR INSPECTION/REPAIR AND UNLOADED AT THE DEALERSHIP, THE VEHI
Electric Propulsion
  • [2013] MY 2013 RX450H' ABS LIGHT SUDDENLY TURNED ON WHILE I WAS DRIVING IN A LOCAL ROAD. ALONG WITH THE ABS LIGHT, THERE WERE BRAKE WARNING LIGHT, MASTER MAINTENANCE WARNING LIGHT, SLIP LIGHT ON ALONG WITH "CHECK ABS" "BRAKE SYSTEM MALFUNCTION" WARNING MESSAGES APPEARING ON THE DASH BOARD. VERY UNSETTLING. I TOOK THE CAR TO A LEXUS DEALERSHIP AND THEY RETRIEVED ERROR CODE AS "C1391, ABNORMAL LEAK IN AC
  • [2010] IN OCTOBER MY WIFE WAS RETURNING FROM A 9.5 HOURS TRIP WITH 1 FUEL STOP APPROX 4 HOURS FROM HOME. EXITING I95 THE CAR HAD NUMEROUS WARNING LIGHTS WITH A COMPLETE LOSS OF POWER (VSC, CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM, AWD SYSTEM AND OTHERS). SHE COASTED THE CAR TO A PARKING LOT, ATTEMPTED TO TURN IT OFF AND BACK ON, BUT THERE WAS STILL NO ENGINE OR DRIVE POWER. ALL DASH LIGHTS WORKING. WE HAD THE CAR TOWED

Source: classified from NHTSA complaint and recall data. "Battery-related" includes high-voltage propulsion battery, charging system, hybrid drivetrain, electric propulsion, regenerative braking, 12V auxiliary battery, and thermal-event complaints. Other complaints (suspension, steering, brakes, infotainment) appear in the engine and vehicle-level sections. Rates are absolute counts, not normalized per-VIN โ€” high-volume models naturally produce more raw complaints than low-volume ones. Self-reported death and injury counts are capped per complaint to limit form abuse.

Vehicle-Level Issues

These issues affect the Lexus RX regardless of engine variant.

Engine Issues (93 complaints)
engine critical
Brakes Issues (90 complaints)
brakes critical
Electrical System Issues (74 complaints)
electrical critical
Safety Systems Issues (63 complaints)
safety_systems critical
Body/Trim Issues (46 complaints)
body critical

Recalls (4)

14V576000Sep 19, 2014serious
Fuel System

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2014 Toyota Avalon, Camry, Sienna, and Highlander and model year 2015 Lexus RX350 vehicles. Fuel may leak from the one of the fuel delivery pipes in the engine compartment.

14V054000Feb 12, 2014serious
Service Brakes

Toyota is recalling certain model year 2012 and 2013 Toyota Tacoma and Lexus RX350 vehicles and certain model year 2012 Toyota Rav4 vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the brake system contains a brake actuator that adjusts the fluid pressure of each wheel cylinder. An electrical component within the actuator may experience an increased resistance resulting in the illumination of various warning lights, including those for the Vehicle Stability Control (VSC) system, Antilock Brake System (ABS), and Traction Control system.

12V305000Jun 29, 2012critical
Vehicle Speed Control

Toyota is recalling certain model year 2010 Lexus RX350 and RX450h vehicles, manufactured from November 28, 2008, through September 1, 2010, and model year 2008 through 2011 Toyota Land Cruiser vehicles manufactured from September 1, 2007, through September 5, 2011. In July 2012, Toyota filed a defect report to recall certain model year 2010 Lexus RX350 and RX450h vehicles. In November 2012, Toyota informed the agency that it was including an additional 10,565 vehicles including certain model year 2008 through 2011 Toyota Land Cruiser vehicles. The total number of vehicles being recalled is now 164,601. The accelerator pedal can get stuck in the wide open position due to its being trapped by an unsecured or incompatible driver's floor mat.

11V377000Jul 26, 2011serious
Service Brakes

TOYOTA IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2011 LEXUS RX350 PASSENGER CARS MANUFACTURED FROM AUGUST 30, 2010, THROUGH MAY 18, 2011, AND EQUIPPED WITH VEHICLE DYNAMICS INTEGRATED MANAGEMENT (VDIM). THE CALIBRATION FOR THE HYDRAULIC CONTROL VALVES IS INCORRECT. DUE TO THIS CONDITION, THERE IS A POSSIBILITY THAT THE RIGHT FRONT WHEEL MAY NOT BE CONTROLLED PROPERLY DURING ABS (ANTILOCK BRAKE SYSTEM) OR VSC (VEHICLE STABILITY CONTROL) ACTUATION.

Alternatives in Midsize SUV

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the most common 2010-2015 Lexus RX problems?

The 2010-2015 Lexus RX has accumulated 494 NHTSA complaints. The most frequently reported problem areas are Engine, Brakes, Electrical System. As with any used vehicle, an inspection before buying and a vehicle history report are recommended.

Is the 2010-2015 Lexus RX a good used car?

The 2010-2015 Lexus RX can be a sound used car depending on trim, mileage, and maintenance history. With 494 total NHTSA complaints on record, prospective buyers should review the known problem areas and check for open recalls before buying.

How many NHTSA complaints does the 2010-2015 Lexus RX have?

The 2010-2015 Lexus RX has 494 complaints filed with NHTSA as of our latest data pull. Complaint counts reflect owner-reported issues and do not necessarily indicate defects or safety risks on their own.

What recalls affect the 2010-2015 Lexus RX?

There are 4 NHTSA recalls affecting some 2010-2015 Lexus RX vehicles. Recall status varies by VIN โ€” check the NHTSA recall database at recalls.nhtsa.dot.gov with your specific VIN to confirm which campaigns apply.

What should I check before buying a used Lexus RX?

Before buying a used Lexus RX, verify all open recalls are completed via the NHTSA VIN lookup tool. Pay particular attention to Engine, Brakes, Electrical System, which are the most commonly reported problem areas. Request maintenance records, have an independent mechanic inspect the vehicle, and run a vehicle history report to check for prior accidents or title issues.

Does the RX have NHTSA crash test ratings?

NHTSA has not published crash test ratings for the 2010-2015 Lexus RX. Not all vehicles are tested each year. For the latest NHTSA safety information, visit nhtsa.gov/ratings.

Data from NHTSA federal complaints database. 494 complaints analyzed. Data confidence: high. Last updated: 2026-10-11.

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