Drcoffee

I'm looking for a used rx300 for my daughter. Its a little troubling when thread after thread talks about transmission problems. So I found a 1999 for $4,500 with a fairly complete service history at lexus right up to 136,000 miles. It now has 156,000 miles. So there is a gap in history of 20,000. A bunch of things have been repaired by lexus already just since 90,000 miles:

Transmission failed at 136,000
AC compressor seized
Timing belt water pump changed
Spark plugs
Starter
O2 sensors x2
MAF
Strut mounts - front

So, this is all great news to me. Have you seen the movie "Life according to Garp" Robin Williams? He is looking to buy a home and while standing outside the house, a small plane crashes into it. He says, I'll take it! Its been pre-destroyed. What are the chances another plane will hit it? LOL

So that's my thinking. Whatever can go wrong, has gone wrong. But he can't provide a receipt from 3 years ago to show who or if the work was done on the transmission. I do know it wasn't Lexus. He tells me his mechanic used a local transmission shop to rebuild the original transmission. Its been 20,000 miles since the rebuild. There's really no way to know by driving it or looking at if it was done right. It comes down to who did the work and do you trust them? I have a code reader to check it out.

What should I do? Any ideas on how to test it while driving it? Suggestions would be helpful.

Where are the VINs on the rx300? Is there anyway to check that the vin in the window is actually the correct vin for that car and not some flood car with a false identity?

Pzindy

On my 1999 there is a sticker on the edge of the door. It has the vin number, build date, color codes as well

I paid about the same 3 years ago for a 1999 with about the same mileage and a much less complete service history.

No transmission issues yet. We have about 198k on it now. I had timing belt done, and did knock sensors when it would not shift into o/d. Fighting broken tone ring on rear axle, and an evaporate issue. But overall I cannot complain

fastnoypi

compare the vin in the window to the one in the driver side door jamb. I like to test used cars on less than optimal roads...patched blacktop and some little pot holes..and some access road to highway surfaces to observe shifting. Anything that would eventually rattle and squeak will come out to your attention.

For the price and age, i wouldn't expect it to be tight as brand new, but feel around for excessive looseness in steering and brake related noises or vibration. If all checks out, it should make up its value just driving it for a year or so. Good luck!

Drcoffee

Thanks. Any advice on the transmission?

salimshah

I would like to remind that we are talking about a machine and are trying to guess what can go wrong. In a bigger picture we can talk about the brand and model yr and talk about strong and weak points. When we are talking about milage more than 2 times what the manufacturer stood behind, we really need to look how the vehicle has been treated.

My 2c would be if on every bump you keep thinking that is the transmission giving way, then why would you want to buy it. The purchase would weigh heavy on you.

Service, parts and repairs are not cheap for Lexus. You are thinking about 17yr old vehicle.

If you do decide to buy it, make sure you inspect the vehicle from below.

I am not trying to talk you out of the purchase, I love mine and can state that is has been one of the best vehicle that I have owned. My comment is specific to my machine.

Salim

Drcoffee

Thanks Salim,

A little background on me. Im 51 yo and have personally owned 25+ vehicles and do my own maintenance. I currently have:
Lexus IS300 2001 with 177,000 (owned since 2008)
Toyota sienna 2008 with 134,000 (owned since 56,000)
Toyota 4runner 1999 with 205,000 (owned since 155,000)
Toyota Rav4 2000 with 150,000 (owned since 105,000)

I am replacing the rav4 because I made a cardinal mistake when I bought it and bought it knowing it had been in an accident and broke my primary rule in car buying. So 3 years later the front subframe is rusting out and the frame where the subframe bolts up on the passengers side where the accident occured is half rusted through. Im pissed at myself because I should never have bought it. Otherwise the rav4 would still be running strong.

My point is, Im not affraid of years or mileage. Just of recurrance of known problems like the transmission. What is the failure rate of rebuilt transmissions? How do I check for oil sludge without pulling the valve covers?

The PO says he just put new tires on last month. Do people invest in new tires before selling? Red flag? I dont know.

fastnoypi

There probably are little statistics of people with failed rebuilt transmissions. Too many variables such as who rebuilt the transmission and their QC process to keep tolerances to factory spec. Used transmissions can be found from $800-1900 entirely depending on a core exchange or not.

you can't really check for oil sludge without pulling the valve covers. The only place that you may isolate some sludge is by remove the OCV sensors and checking the screens.

People who sell used cars know the better the tread available, the more they can hold out for the car. A car with worn out tires typically does not feel great at all during a test drive. It is not a tell tale sign that something is wrong.

The 2 things that stand out to me on the '99 rx300 is the 1st generation style rear valve cover with push style pcv and the exhaust manifolds that are prone to cracking . Both easily replaceable if they need attention.

Drcoffee

I seem to see cracked manifolds a lot in service records. What years did they start getting better and would they fit a 1999?

fastnoypi

I rarely see them cracked or reported cracked from 2001-2003. They fit all the same. I'm assuming the crack prone foundry casting run finished distributing their stock in mid 2000. Depending on the severity of the crack, welding might also be an option if you run into the issue.

sktn77a

iTrader: (2)

You should be able to track down "his mechanic" and, in turn, the transmission shop that did the work. If you can't, then assume it wasn't done. All of the other things, with the exception of the AC compressor, are typical. The AC sounds like bad luck.

Just remember, this is a 17 year old car. You are going to have things wear out and break down. Being a Toyota/Lexus, this will likely happen less than most other brands.

Drcoffee

Let me just say, I'm not ignoring any of your posts if it takes me a while to respond. The forum does not email me on my subscribed threads. I appreciate your insight.

I looked at the RX300 on thursday and could not believe the condition it was in. It had some flaws like the drivers seat side panel was cracked like many are. But the truck has little to no rust on the body or underneath. Very well maintained. Yesterday I crawled under it to see what I needed to address. So, there was motor oil on the passenger side of the steering rack, timing belt tensioner, valve cover seal. Im not sure if its coming from the cam seals or valve cover, the middle bolts on the valve cover were loose so I snugged them down. I will change the cam seals when I do the timing belt next year. The TB has 60,000 miles on it, done at Lexus. The transmission is overfilled. I will correct that when I install the new trans cooler. I will also be replacing the radiator at the same time with the thermostat once the parts arrive. A 17 year old radiator is a problem waiting to happen. If the internal trans cooler inside the radiator fails, the transmission is ruined. (Search strawberry milkshake). Also, a new radiator will be more efficient and this rx300 is headed to Oklahoma where its ungodly hot.

I use Engine Link on my iPhone to monitor the engine. I noticed by the time I drove an hour home, the transmission was 192* (ambient temp 78*). Thats too hot for daily driving IMO. I bought a new B&M 70264 cooler to help cool the tranny down to 170*. I also have a Magnefine filter to add to the cooler line. I will do a write-up for the cooler install and total fluid replacement so members can see how easy it is to DIY.

I also noticed while driving that the dash coolant temp meter was showing a rise and fall in temp about an 1/8" which is odd to me as the coolant temp should not be fluctuating that much. It was still in the normal range so Im leaning towards a failing T-stat. That will be replaced when I do the radiator.

Let me toss this out there. At 70mph the front end shakes slightly and the steering wheel moves left and right slightly. The tires are new and an alignment was done at the same time. Is this common? Whats more likely the issue? Ball joints or tie rods. I may take it back to firestone who did the work and have them look at the tires. It almost feels like a front tire tread is not straight if that makes sense.

My last observation while driving is MPG. It seems to be around 15mpg. Im down to half a tank at 150 miles driven. Spark plugs were done 60,000 miles ago at lexus. I doubt thats the problem. I did pop out the PCV valve and it was clogged. I gave it a bath on brake cleaner until it was clean and rattled again. Not sure why it gets replaced when cleaning it is easy and convenient, but whatever. After seeing that, I assume the VVTi valves and filters look just as bad. I ordered two new Dorman OCVs from rockauto for $39ea and will clean the screens at the same time. I hope this helps with MPG. It would be nice to see 20 hwy.

What should the normal O2 voltage reading be at idle? Mine were .65v. Is that normal?

More to follow.

Drcoffee

Just as I suspected, the Thermostat is weak. Drove around doing errands this morning for about an hour and my OBD2 engine link shows the coolant never rose above 167*F (72C). The t-stat is 180*F (82C). The trans temp was steady at 158-165*F. The upstream O2 sensors were averaging 0.65v both bank 1&2. Very comparable the whole time.

Salim, would the coolant temp at 165*F have a negative impact on gas mileage?

fastnoypi

per your observations, i'd say your rear valve cover gasket is fried from age and heat causing those leaks.
PCV cleaning with that 1st generation style cover won't help the air flow, the problem is in the design of the internal baffle it plugs into that gets gunked up. Consider a 3rd generation style rear valve cover found on the rx330 which is a much better design or clean up a 2nd generation style cover with the screw in type metal pcv valve.

Your assessment regarding your steering is correct..could be ball joints or tie rods. Ball joints might be easier to determine.

your cold coolant temp is causing your poor mpg if all the other sensors are fine. Most modern ecus have cold start fueling tables that are generally rich for ignition purposes and lean out when the coolant temp hits 180*.

Drcoffee

So either 2nd gen or 3rd gen will fit? Does it use the same gasket?

fastnoypi

same gasket, the baffle designs differ and you will need a small section of hose for the pcv. You may try to remove and clean out the baffle with your first gen valve cover..but i think it will eventually gunk up sooner than the newer designs.