2007 Lexus Is

The dashboard material has degraded into a sticky, high-gloss liquid state. In direct sunlight, this creates a severe reflective glare on the interior of the windshield, causing temporary blindness and significantly obscuring my view of the road, pedestrians, and traffic signals. This manufacturer defect makes the vehicle unsafe to operate under normal daytime driving conditions. While driving on March 26, 2026, the sun hit the degraded dashboard, creating a mirrored reflection on the windshield that completely obscured my view of the road/pedestrians. This is a recurring safety hazard caused by the material's chemical failure. I have contacted Lexus Headquarters (Case # 260327002525) and that they refused to mitigate this known safety hazard because their "Customer Support Program" (ZLZ) had expired.

I purchased a previously-owned Lexus IS 250 in 2017. At the time I was unaware of the "melting dashboard" issue that is associated with the make and model. As I begin to notice the sticky appearance of the dashboard, I began to conduct some research. During my research, I found that Toyota Corporation was aware of the situation and issued an extended warranty and that a recall has never been issued. Unfortunately, my complaints to Lexus other reiterated this decision. The melting dashboard has become a safety concern. When the sun shines on the dashboard, it produces a reflection that makes for poor visibility. (For the date this incident occurred, I am entering that date of filing this form).

MY DASHBOARD HAS A STICKY SUBSTANCE, CAUSING A GLARE ON MY WINDSHIELD AND BLOCKING MY ABILITY TO SEE OUT OF MY FRONT WINDOW. I RECENTLY LEARNED LEXUS HAS BEEN AWARE OF THIS ISSUE FOR YEARS, BUT ONLY CONSIDERED IT A "COSMETIC DEFECT." HOWEVER, PER THE PHOTOGRAPHS, THIS DEFECT IS CAUSING SIGNIFICANT IMPAIRMENT TO MY ABILITY TO SEE OUT. I HAVE HAD MY CAR SERVICED AT NALLEY LEXUS IN SMYRNA, GA SINCE I FIRST OWNED IT AND THE RECALL WAS NEVER BROUGHT TO MY ATTENTION BECAUSE THEY DEEMED IT "COSMETIC." I HAVE SENT PICTURES TO LEXUS'S CORPORATE OFFICES SHOWING THE BLOCKED VISIBILITY - THE SAME PICTURES I AM ATTACHING TO THIS CLAIM. THEY OFFERED ME $400 TOWARDS THE $2000-2500 REPLACEMENT COST. I AM UNSURE OF THE EXACT DATE WHICH THE ISSUE STARTED. IT HAS PROGRESSIVELY WORSENED. ONLY IN THE PAST MONTH DID I BEGIN SEARCHING ONLINE FOR SOLUTIONS AND FOUND THIS IS A WELL-KNOWN LEXUS/TOYOTA DEFECT. LEXUS SHOULD BE REQUIRED TO NOTIFY CUSTOMERS OF ANY DEFECT AT THEIR DEALERS, NOT JUST ONES THEY DEEM AS SAFETY.

THE INTERIOR DASHBOARD BECOMES STICKY AND HAS FORMED SPOTS OF SMOOTH AREAS THAT DANGEROUSLY REFLECT SUNLIGHT INTO THE DRIVER'S EYES. THE DASHBOARD HAS STARTED TO PIT AND CRACK LEAVING PIECES OF MELTED DASH ON THE INTERIOR OF THE CAR. THE DOOR PANELS SEEM TO BE MADE OF THE SAME MATERIAL AS THE DASH, AS THEY TOO ARE PITTING AND CRACKING.

DASHBOARD HAS MELTED WITH A LIQUID APPEARANCE. WHEN THE SUN IS HIGH IN THE SKY, A REFLECTION CAUSES A SEVERE GLARE ON THE WINDSHIELD. OFTEN IT IS NECESSARY TO MOVE MY HEAD OVER AROUND THE GLARE TO SEE WHATS DIRECTLY IN FRONT. THE DEALER SO FAR HAS JUST STATED WE SHOULD GET THE DASH REPLACED AT OUR EXPENSE, BUT THIS DOES NOT SEEM LIKE SOMETHING THAT SHOULD HAVE TO BE REPLACED ON A LUXURY CAR AFTER ONLY 5 OR 6 YEARS. WE MAY BE FORCED TO DO THIS TO KEEP THE CAR SAFE. WE HAVE HEARD THERE ARE SOME CLASS ACTION LAWSUITS STARTING IN SOME STATES. WE MAY BE INTERESTED IN PARTICIPATING IN ONE OF THESE TO GET THE DASH REPLACED. *TR