Lexus car owners in the United States are now experiencing issues with their cars' navigation systems after receiving a software update.
The buggy software build reached Lexus vehicles nationwide via a wireless transmission, and a glitch in the code is wreaking havoc on the infotainment systems.
Following the update, Lexus drivers can no longer get navigation directions, digital radio or climate controls.
Lexus acknowledged the issue and promised to come up with a solution as soon as it can, but it remains to be seen just when that will be and what it will involve. For now, the company is still trying to figure things out.
Many of our owner's vehicle head units stopped working. We are working around the clock to find a solution. Stay tuned for more information
— Lexus (@Lexus) June 7, 2016
Complaints have already started to pile up on Reddit, where a Lexus Tech representative who goes by the username "effse7en" took the time to respond. While at first the rep said it was "strange," a follow-up post reckoned that it's actually a widespread issue and suggested a temporary fix.
"Update: this is a nationwide problem, we've had well over a dozen clients come in today complaining of this," says effse7en. "Our fix so far is a hard reset of the car by disconnecting the battery cables for a few minutes. We don't know what's going on any more than you do, and we don't know if the reset is going to really fix it in the long term."
The Lexus representative further mentions an email confirming that a vendor released a buggy update to all navigation systems from the ninth-generation, which is affecting "2016 models and up."
Reddit users, however, point out that the issue actually affects Lexus models from 2014 and newer. Also, the hard reset solution seems to be working only until you turn off the car, with the problem returning as soon as you turn it back on.
Lexus car owners affected by this issue also took to a Lexus forum to discuss the situation and some note that pulling the battery cable and leaving it unplugged for roughly 10 minutes does the trick, as it triggers a manual reset.
Needless to mention, this problem is a great inconvenience for all users affected. Most owners rely on their radios and navigation systems on a daily basis, and the issue is far from insignificant.
Moe Durand, a spokesperson for the luxury division at Lexus, tells Bloomberg that the automaker has yet to decide whether affected vehicles need to return to dealerships to fix the issue.
It remains to be seen when Lexus will come up with a reliable, permanent solution for the problem, but we'll keep you posted as soon as it does. In the meantime, you can try the temporary solutions to keep things going. If you've already tried a hard reset or the battery cable trick, drop by our comment section below and let us know if it worked.
