Even if Lexus’ reliability and quality is better than the European cars, would you still call them money pits because they’re quite expensive and parts aren’t that easy and aren’t that cheap to find?
All OEM parts are expensive regardless of mfg. some are more expensive than others. Plus, any vehicle if not properly maintained and cared for even Toyota, Lexus, Honda, etc.... can be endless money-pits.
That's not a money pit is. They have expensive repairs but they don't breakdown like money pits.
I like Lexus, most of their cars are great,
but let's not forget that some of them do massively breakdown like the Lexus CT and some come with exotic JDM transmissions (like the A760, that one is rough) or engines that no one knows how to fix.
Not all Lexus are created equal. Also, see below for what a money pit really is:
https://carkiller.com/scottykilmer/qa/joey-berweiler/#post-105728
If you pick the right ones and do your research, you’re not going to constantly be piling in money to fix as it ages, but at the same it’s a luxury vehicle and you have to set aside a bigger chunk of money for repairs than a comparable Toyota especially on the V8’s (those are best to avoid in the long run). But you just plan for it going in, setting aside money for repairs, especially if you plan to keep for a long time. I wouldn't recommend a Lexus if you are a teenager, or poor, or cheap, and/or not willing to do some of the work yourself. But hopefully that increased expense is offset by getting the vehicle used and at significantly less money than brand new.
Money puts are cars that you have to continuously throw money at to keep on the road. When expensive repairs become the norm, the vehicle is a money pit.
Lexus vehicles do not have near the failure rates of comparable cars. So no, they are not money pits.
IMHO, endless money pit can take on two forms:
1) The car is of low quality, continually breaks and needs fixing, thus costing tons of money.
2) The car is of decent or high quality, but parts and labor for basic maintenance is extremely expensive, compared to other decent or high quality cars.
Some Lexus models have issues. All IS models have premature front tire wear. The inner part front tires wear down to the metal wiring in 10-15000 miles while the rest of tire looks fine. First, this is very dangerous and you have to replace the expensive front tire very frequently. You also cant even rotate the tires because the front an back rims/tires are different sizes.
Lexus says this is "normal", lol. A car that does not ride with the tires flat on the ground, is not normal in any way.
