hypervish

It's now been 3 years since I've owned this RX300, I've always been a toyota guy, but I am just extremely impressed with this one in particular.
In the 3 years that I've owned it I have only spent $800 on the car in total excluding Gas. $400 out of that $800 was just for tires. The other $400 was for oil (diy), filters(diy), ipod connection to stereo (best buy), brakes and rotors (diy), wheel locks(diy). The only repair and not maintenance item was when I overtightened the caliper bolt and it broke a few hours later and that was only roughly $60 because I had to have it drilled out. I've put roughly 14k miles per year, but I make many road trips out to Michigan.

How much do you guys spend per year or how much have you spent in your total ownership of the car?

4/10/13- UPDATE - 195k Mile Update


I'm now at 196k miles, it has been 50k miles since my last post. Since July 2010, I've spent $2970.

Maintenance
This includes 2 sets of tires, the majority of the cost. A timing belt job, which included wp, cam seals, crank seals, etc. Also had the struts done all around, with new strut mounts in the rear. Of course, I also changed the oil regularly, and did the brakes with new rotors. I consider everything above regular maintenance and wear and tear that all vehicles will experience. Also had two wheel alignments done. Keep in mind, I'm very proactive when it comes to changing oil, I change my engine oil every 4k miles, and transmission fluid every 10-15k miles. So my cost may be a bit higher considering I do oil changes frequently, and use a highly regarded oil. Had the spark plugs changed as well.

Repairs
I'm going to put these two things in the category of repairs, although some may consider the valve cover gasket a maintenance item/wear & tear since all cars will need it at some point. But, for repairs I needed to have the valve cover gasket done, as the rear was seeping oil. I also replaced two A/F sensors, one by the radiator, and one after the catalytic converter. These repairs were all relatively cheap, the total of all these repairs came out to about $477.

I had to replace the oil pan due to the pan getting stripped. I was teaching one of my younger nephews how to change the oil, and of course he strips the pan. No worries, you live and learn. I learned a $167 lesson, never teach your nephews on your own car, teach them on their parents!

Total 110k mile Ownership Cost
So if you include the mishap with the oil pan, I've spent $3,770.58. I could have saved some money if I didn't buy cheap tires, as the cheap tires that I put on didn't last very long. If you've noticed I'm actually on my 3rd set of tires in 110k miles. Hopefully this set lasts longer.

I personally think that's very good, considering that this vehicle is now 13 years old. I haven't had to do any real repairs, it's been very reliable and for which I am very grateful.

Next update will be at 225k miles, so keep your eye's peeled for that. I'm planning on keeping the RX till at least 300k miles.

99rx

iTrader: (6)

I have had mine since 2000. I bought it with 42,000 on it already, all interstate. I had no problems with the car up until about 2 or 3 years ago. I had to replace 2 of the o2 sensors which took a lot of time to figure out which ones... that was a total of about $225 for both sensors. Then i have done the regular oil changes every 3,500 miles and i only drive about 7,500 a year. I just recently did 2 Drain&Fills on the tranny which totaled about $40. And it wasn't dirty since i don't drive like a racer. And oil changes total probably cost about $300-$330. Then i had tires put on it recently at 83,000, which cost $450. And now i have 2 bad door lock actuators that are broke and need to be manually locked and i refuse to pay $500 dollars per door to have them fixed. So i live with it. And my drivers side door pin switch must be broke because the nothing lights up when i open the door. And now my fan speed on the A/C takes a million turns just to get it to turn the fan speed up and down a notch. And i can tell my Air mix servo is going because i will be driving and the air will start blowing from different locations on its own (feet, head, feet&head). But other than the little things, its been ok. But since i don't drive much, none of this bothers me. Its still been an awesome car over the years.

safetyman

I have had a jap import rx300 AKA toyota Harrier for a year now bought it with 82k kms on the clock done the timing belt 100k and just about to replace shocks drop links and ARB`s as i have a leaking shock so thought i ould do the lot while it was in the air. Its had four oil and filter changes during the year as i do a lot of motorway miles and i can not fault the car drives like a dream like driving an arm chair.

friscogal

I am soooo glad you asked this question!

I am interested in knowing about the maintanance repair costs AFTER 150K miles. I am now needed a transmission replacement at 165K but am really worried that its all going to be downhill for my RX300 (1999) from here on. I might be trading it in as is and trading up to a 330.

FYI - this will be the ONLY major repair this beloved car will have ever had and yearly maintanance costs (oil every 3000K, tires and belts, replacing a rear view mirror that fell off ...) have averaged only $200-250 a year.

hypervish

Only you can make the decision of if you want to repair it or not. But I will tell you this If it were me I would get it repaired I trust Toyota's and if you take a quick look at my signature you can see that I drive them till the wheels come flying off.
I read your other post about the dealer giving you $3000, and taking a 330 for 18k which isn't too bad. But, I think the $3000 for the RX300 is too low, I saw an RX with a blown tranny sell for $4500 on Craigslist. Maybe you should try posting your RX on craigslist for about $4800 and let the other person hackle the price down.

99rx

iTrader: (6)

nobody else on the costs of ownership?????

Bobk528

I own a 2000 RX300 and it currently has about 122,000 miles on it. Below are my maintenance costs excluding tire purchase. The expenses in 2010 include replacing the timing belt, drive belts, front brake pads and rotors, spark plugs, and several oil changes. The transmission fluid has been drained and refilled eight times.


2001 $393 *
2002 $694 *
2003 $687 *
2004 $574 * and front brake replacement
2005 $595
2006 $256
2007 $253
2008 $320
2009 $104
2010 $1,172

* = cost of Lexus checkup at 10k, 20k, 30k, 35k, 245k, and 50k

rx300mm

I bought the SUV in 2004, 3 years used, here is my total (I keep a spreadsheet for both my RX300 and ES350):

2004 - $65.00
2005 - $352.26
2006 - $584.56
2007 - $115.15
2008 - $673.50
2009 - $645.00
2010 - $3392.00 *

* (not final, the SUV is with garage this week getting the tranny and computer looked at but I was quoted $3000 so is added in)

rx300mm

Forget to add the above total includes, brakes chnaged twice, all rotors, one new set of tires

bearbrew

My RX300 is a 2000 model that I purchased new. So far we have put about 85,000 miles on it and had very little maintenance except for the normal oil and filter changes, a set of tires, a battery, radiator fluid changes, transmission fluid changes. These are all routine maintenance as far as I am concerned.

Other than routine maintenance I have replaced the antenna mast, about $60,00 for the mast, both A/F sensors, about $230.00 and I am now experiencing problems with the driver window not operating all the time. When I get to that problem I will then know the cost.

There has not been any other financial expenditures on the RX300. It has been a great vehicle to own.

Dadikins

I wish I was in many of your camps when it comes to cost of ownership.

It seems to me that just the maintenance schedule is hefty enough, but we've had to perform several brake jobs on our RX/300, as well as 2 sensors, water pump, etc.

We've had numerous items repaired under the extended warranty, including an exhaust gasket, loose electrical connection which caused "feedback" on the instrument cluster & failure of all rear lights.

For the past several years, we have been performing our service at a Toyota dealership.

Overall, the RX has been reliable, but when something breaks, and you're not mechanically inclined, the costs can really add up.

Carver

Stipulating normal maintenance, my costs over 4 years of ownership from 52K to 75K have been:

Pads and rotors 600.00
Tires 550.00
Antenna 108.00
O2 sensor 220.00

Two batteries have failed but were replaced under Lexus battery warranty. I have spent a bit on extracurricular items but that isn't the car's fault!

jbl-1985

I have had my parent's RX300 for about 8 months. While my dad still owned it about a year ago, it got new tires and rotors, flushed coolant, brake system, rear diff and xfer case oil change. All of that said and done was around $1000. Before that, it had O2 sensor problems back in 2002 and 2003 but since there have been no problems on that front, and they were replaced under the Lexus warranty. Beyond that, it has just been the routine stuff.

The only really bothersome thing is that the odometer has a mind of it's own. It freezes in position say, so that you can't switch between trip odometers, etc. Other times, it will freeze on one of the trip odometers and won't display the total mileage again for days, sometimes a week at a time. Has been a problem since 2000, and from the maintenance records I can see, the combination unit assembly had been replaced but to no avail. It's one of those things, that when I called Lexus and complained that it was never fixed, they told me they would pay half of the repair. Problem is one of those head units is $900. So, I live with it.

Love the car - has much sentimental value to me so it will be with me for many more years. It is also out in Arizona now, in a dry desert climate. No more east coast winters.

99rx

iTrader: (6)

$600 for pads and rotors?! wow.

sktn77a

iTrader: (2)

Timing belt and tensioners, V belts, mass airflow sensor, exhaust manifold, exhaust flex pipe, coil, cam seals, plugs, transmission fluid drains, LSD fluid drain, throttle position sensor, plus lots of other little things. The car has been quite expensive to maintain over the last 2-3 years ($2000/year in non-maintenance repairs at the Lexus dealership)