DKEAGLE

I have a 2002 ES300 with just under 75,000 miles. Have recently noticed a puff of blue smoke when starting at somewhat cold temperatures. That would be around 40 degrees here in Phoenix, AZ.

Took it to the Lexus shop here in Phoenix at Arrowhead Lexus. It has always been serviced at this Dealership and it's sister Dealership, Bell Lexus from day one. Oil changed every 5000 miles faithfully and all of the recommended services performed, even the 30,000 mile and the 50,000 big expensive ones have been done.

The Dealership is saying the valve retainers are hardening and causing oil seep and burning oil which causes the blue smoke problem. They are saying the engine will have to be removed to fix the problem and this involves about 22 hours labor and a grand total of $3200 worth of repairs.

Furthermore, they said had this been reported at 70,000 miles or less, it would have been covered by warranty.

Now, while I have always been satisfied at the service by Lexus, and have no reason to doubt their diagnosis, It is a lot of money to spend on a car that has been faithfully and regularly serviced. I am surprised and a little shocked at this point that a vehicle of this quality can develope such a problem with relatively few miles on it.

I have searched this forum to see if this is a common problem but can only find the oil sludge issue as anything close to the valve retainer problem and cannot necessarily connect them together.

Does anyone have any information on this topic that can be of help to me.

Thanks in advance for your consideration.

Don Keagle
Phoenix, Arizona

JSM1284

Its actually the valve seals that are leaking. Speak to the service manager at the dealership and ask if they will be able to try and have the repair "Goodwilled" as long as you can provide regular service history, they may be able to get Lexus to cover the repair.

Also, it only calls for 15.6 hours worth of labor per Motors Alldata repair estimator.

DKEAGLE

Thank you for your prompt reply. They actually say "valve retainers hardening cause oil seep and burn oil at first start" on the repair order.

It is my daughter's car, originally mine, but I wanted to do a little research before I contacted the Dealer.

Thank you for your help, it is very much appreciated!

Don

JSM1284

I'm not sure why they phrase it in that nature. The valve retainers are hardened steel, so they cant get any harder. The Valve guide seals are the issue. Over time, the heat from the engine causes the rubber seals to become brittle and not properly seal on the valve stem causing the oil to seep down the stem while the engine sits. Once the engine is started, the oil that has leaked down the valves enters the cylinder and gets burnt by the combustion, causing the puff of smoke until it is all burned away. This is quite common on the 1MZ engine,

Walnut

Failing that you should find a new shop which isn't into your pocket. Valve seals are about $1000 in labour and $50 in parts.

Synthetic oil can stop this from happening but can't reverse the damage.