Nickyee

I am very new in this forum and im glad to be here. I have some issues and i believe it can be resolved in this forum.1) I have lexus RX 300, it has been showing check engine light on the dash board, i tried clearing it by removed the negative head of my battery, it still came up. Please help me. 2) . I saw today on my dashboard O/D OFF on the dashboard can someone explain what it means!!! 3) . I see oil drops on the Floor of my packing space, it shows at the front tyre of the Passenger side of my car. My lexus is a left hand drive. This makes my engine oil reduce gradually. And i see white spoke from the exhaust when i start the car after five to eight hours. Please can anyone help me... I will greatly appreciate your suggestions.

thaeleelyr

If your check engine light is flashing, STOP driving it as that indicates a serious problem. I suspect it is on solid, which means there is a problem but it isn't as serious as a flashing check engine light (CEL). If you can either buy a simple OBD-II reader (I got mine from Amazon for about $25), you can check what codes are being thrown by the computer. It could be anything from a bad O2 sensor to a loose gas cap. You can disconnect the battery to clear it, but it usually takes at least 15 minutes to clear all the charge and it wouldn't really help; in about 10-15 minutes of driving the car, it'll come back on.

The O/D Off light is telling you that your overdrive gear is set to off. To turn it back on, push in the little button that is on the gear shifter. It's right below where your thumb presses to shift into gear. If you look carefully, you should be able to see the button with "O/D" stamped on it. It's easy to accidentally press this little button. You wan O/D ON for regular driving. The only time you may want it off is if you are towing something.

You could have a few problems with the engine oil/ white smoke issue. There are other members who are much more experienced and I'm sure will chime in. It depends where the oil leak is coming from. You could have an engine oil leak that is traveling to that side or it could be from the power steering pump, which is also on that side. It would be helpful if you tried to trace where the oil is coming from exactly.

Do you get a lot of white smoke or just a little?

trhs75

Also, make sure it's oil by the front wheel and not brake fluid, just so you know for sure which one's leaking out.

salimshah

Welcome to Club Lexus.

Please read the sticky 'having problems start here Mega thread'.

Talking about sticky threads, you should read them all along with the the owners' manual.

Right hand drive and wrong hand drive just changes position of the parts [and you need to match the proper part number]. Other than that the machines are the same.

Salim

bigboss

first of all congrats on the RX300, its a very solid car

1) If the check light comes back on again after a reset, something is trigger the CEL. you need to get a OBD 2 code scanner or go to auto shop and it get retrieve to figure out the problem. If you car is usually maintenance well, most of the time it's your O2 Sensor or air mixture sensor gone bad.

2) the O/D Off means you turn off overdrive mode. on your shift ****, there is two buttons, the big main one for shifting and the small one which is to turn on or off overdrive.

3)Get a cardboard and lay it on the ground underneath the car. come back and check every 1 hour to see where its dripping. It its indeed oil, best to take to the shop and let them figure where its leaking. oil leaking can come from any of the engine gasket. most dealers use a uv dye to figure it out.

Best of luck to you

bigboss

smoke after a cold start can either broken head gasket or worn valves gasket.

sktn77a

iTrader: (2)

Two common causes of the CEL light coming on are ignition coil problems and 02 sensor problems. May times these will also disengage the electronic overdrive on your car. White smoke from the exhaust can mean anything from a bad PCV to worn valves. If you're not mechanically inclined, you should take your car to a dealer/mechanic to have these issues diagnosed properly.

PrisyCrisy

White smoke from exhaust, in my experience, has always been an issue with the head... Could be a bad gasket, could be a bad seal, cracked head...
Is the car running hot?

Nickyee

Many thanks for your reply.. the car is not running hot. but when i start the car in the morning, i notice white smoke for like a minute.. then it will stop, also when the car engine is off for 3 to 4 hours, it will also bring out smoke when i start the car.

Nickyee

Thanks for your help.. i don't have Mechanical experience at all, that was why i contacted a mechanic and he worked on the engine, the white smoke stopped for 3 days, then it started coming out. Since you suggested that the fault might be as a result of the PCV to worn valve, what should i do now?
I will buy the OBD II and diagnose the cause of the check light, then post it here for interpretations.
I greatly appreciate your time and response to my questions.