99custom

So I'm thinking of selling our 2002 es300 that is in great shape with 140k on her. The car literally has over 10k in maintenance done to it with receipts, you name it it's been replaced. My question is due to the crazy shifting of the transmission I'm worried people will think it's slipping or going bad. The Tranny has literally acted this way for the last 40k miles, basically ever since I have owned it. It has been reprogrammed by a dealer way before I bought it. I know many ES300 have complained about there factory transmissions due to the way it shifts. So my question is did any of you have a hard time selling your car. I keep thinking I will have to keep it as my beater because if makes an odd shift on a test drive it will scare people away.

It really only acts this way the first 1 minute of driving and sometimes after spending long distances on the freeway. It doesn't buck or jump like I've read about others. The Lexus Dealer has said twice that the car just shifts that t way and is mechanically sound.

hypervish

I felt the jerky shift as soon as I left the dealers lot when I test drove my 02' ES300 back in 2012. I wasn't very concerned as I was an educated buyer who had done research prior to showing up to drive it. So, if your buyer has done any research at all, he/she will be aware of the funky transmission shifting at times and will understand that all ES from this 2002-2006 exhibit this. The outstanding build quality and interior materials easily make up for the programming, and the fact that it has virtually no negative effect on the reliability of the transmission.

You may try disconnecting the battery and re-connecting to help the ECU re-learn driving habits. Perhaps it will behave better for the test drive, but it's probably better the potential buyer experience the shifting and understand what they are buying. But that may cost you the sale!

99custom

Hi, Thanks for the reply. I was also educated when we purchased the car a few years back for my wife. The car is basically programmed for her style of driving and only really acts up when I drive it ( I drive more aggressive). I'm pretty sure I'm just going to tell any potential buyer of the issue before they come out to see the car. It may take longer to sell this way but I don't want some one to buy it and then be unhappy with it and to think I was hiding issues. Thanks Again....

speedkar9

Generally the type of buyer for the ES will drive the car easily, and not hammer on it to confuse the transmission.

The person who bought my ES330 took it easy on the test drive. Since I know there's nothing wrong mechanically with the car, I didn't say anything about the transmission programming.