CaddyMatt

Hey all,

When I purchased my '02 ES earlier this year it had 76k miles on it, but no service history whatsoever (other than the CARFAX coming back clean). It runs well, no major issues - the only work I've performed is regular oil changes and a K&N. I am a little concerned the gas mileage is not what it should be, however.. my driving is about 75% highway and 25% city, and I get a combined 18mpg (I have larger wheels on the car now, but it was bone stock when I bought and it the mileage was only 19-ish). I run the car with 93 octane fuel and it is not driven hard.

The car now has 85,xxx. With all of this in mind, and not knowing exactly what's been done to the car, I figured it might be time for a tune-up but I had some questions...

1) The spark plugs are stock iridium, correct? The Denso website states they can last up to 120,000 miles, but recommends replacing them at 30k. Since I'm about halfway there, would I notice any gains by replacing the plugs or should I wait?

2) Cabin air filter.. this is listed on the service schedule at 85,000 and I will replace that for sure. My car still smells like brand new leather and I think it's due to the effectiveness of these filters.

3) O2 Sensor... it seems they have an average lifespan of 100k miles, and one of the first signs of a weak sensor is poor fuel economy. I am not noticing any driveability issues, however. Is this something I should look at replacing or should I look elsewhere?

4) PCV valve... what's the recommended interval for this and does it cause any issues if it malfunctions?

5) Air filter... I have a K&N filter that's fairly new so if necessary I will inspect and clean/oil it.

6) Brakes... thinking about getting some ceramic pads all the way around, had a great experience with them on my last vehicle. Pads seem to have more than half remaining so I might wait on this a bit.

7) Fuel filter... I read somewhere that this is inside the tank and designed not to be replaced, is this true and should I be concerned with it?

8) Are there any other things to look into as far as improving my fuel economy, or any other things to check/replace in a proactive tuneup like this? Thanks a million

Megafast13

Hey can we see some pics!!!

Honestly that's about the MPG I get. Disconnect the battery for about 60 seconds. Although YOU may not drive it hard, the previous owner may have so its RPM range is used to that person's style. If you reset it, and you drive it nursing the RPM's then it will shift sooner and suck up less gas.

At 85K you don't have to do everything you can think of haha.
Mine is at 65K and I have done the following:
Air Filter, Cabin Filter, Synthetic Oil, New Tranny Fluid, New Power Steering Fluid, New Brake Fluid, and have added treatments for transmission, fuel injectors, etc over the years.

I'd say belts will need replace soon for you too.

Sewell Parts actually has the maintenance kits with everything Lexus recommends/uses.

CaddyMatt

Hey megafast,

I'm glad you replied actually as you seem to be one of the few who's done some aftermarket work to the 4ES to dress it up, you have a really nice ride!! I took some of your tips from other threads to plan my future customizations

Anywho, good info on the battery trick I will have to try that. It resets the ECU right? Also, what are your driving habits like? I was expecting much better mileage Also, at what intervals do the power steering and tranny fluid need to be changed? When I took it to Midas for an oil change they listed those two fluids as a "caution" i.e. needs replacement in the near future. The drive belt on the car looks like a fairly new Gates belt. However, the timing belt needs to be changed at 100,000 according to the service specs right?

I'm sorry I know I might be a little over zealous with the part replacement right now.. I just remember all the little things that started going wrong on my 95 Caddy and I want to get a jump on everything before it starts going wrong, lol.

Megafast13

Ohhh this is no caddy. Nothing goes wrong with these cars haha. Rock solid.

What are your modding plans . I don't see to many plain silver ones.

hypervish

1) Don't worry about the spark plugs for a long time.

2) Change it, it's cheap.

3) An 02 sensor will set off a CEL, so If you don't have one now, leave it alone.

4) I suggest replacing it every 2 years, regardless of miles. It's cheap.

5) Don't put too much oil on it, because it may make the MAF sensor dirty

6) Why replace something that isn't broke , wait till they are worn out and then worry about it.

7) Yes, I believe it's in the fuel tank, attached to the fuel pump. Don't worry about it. Just run some fuel injector cleaner through the tank every other oil change.

8) Check the air pressure. Reset the ECU like already mentioned.

I've only recently got my ES300, so I can't tell you how much mpg I get in the city because most of my driving so far has been highway. I have only filled up four times so far.

On the highway, I got 31 mpg going to Philadelphia (141 miles roundtrip) , I was going about 75-80 mph. I bet I could have gotten more If I slowed down.

My average for my commute (lot's of traffic, with city and highway) is 23 mpg with A/C. I consider that decent, I'm a very aggressive driver and constantly on the throttle. My RX on the same commute get's 21mpg with A/C.

http://www.fuelly.com/driver/lexusvishal/es300

Hayk

iTrader: (1)

What tires (width, aspect ratio, diameter, and model) do you have and what is your tire pressure?

The biggest contributors of my fuel economy:
- clean MAF sensor
- new fuel filter
- correct tire pressure
- light foot

What you might find is that you K&N filter has contaminated your MAF sensor with oil, which in turn messed up your air/fuel ratio. Go out and buy yourself a can of MAF Sensor cleaner (it's made by CRC), remove the sensor and spray it down. Since you said that you had similar numbers before the filter, the sensor might have been already dirty from years of use.

The fuel filter should be located on the driver side of the engine bay. Unless they changed it with the fourth generation of the ES - you have the same engine as my 98.

CaddyMatt

Actually good sir, the car is Millenium Silver Metallic not the standard Silver Metallic lol, not a whole lot of difference but it's got more of a bronze tint to it than the regular silver cars. I eventually want to go black, though, as silver seems way too commonplace for me. As far as mods go, I have a laundry list!

*takes a deep breath* - Lower the car 2" on coilovers, 18" wheels, debadge, black projector lenses with angel eyes, custom headlight eyebrows, chrome or black mesh grille, black LED tails, fogged tails/headlights, painted calipers, lip kit, window deflectors, LED conversion, EL lighting accents, performance cat-back exhaust, paint job (black), and eventually... I was toying around with the idea of putting a TRD 1MZ-FE Supercharger on it

I want to start with the coilovers and wheels... I basically see everything happening in that order

I posted this pic in another thread but I LOVE how low this car is:



Thanks for the insights man. And that's killer mileage! I have yet to see that with this car: Before I put the wheels on, we took a trip from San Antonio to Corpus Christi (280 miles roundtrip). I reset the MPG, filled up on 93, and set cruise control on 70 the whole way... best I got was a little under 21MPG . My Caddy got about 18MPG city with it's massive V8... and a whopping 30MPG highway Go figure!

I just had a mechanic warn me of the same thing with oil clogging the MAF.. he said people tend to get oil-happy with the K&N's and instead of the recommended six drops they drench the thing in oil. I will certainly be careful with this.

The tires are 245/35/ZR20 and the make is Venezia, I keep the tire pressure at 35. From stock, the larger wheels have equated to an exact 1MPG loss. In the near future however I plan to downsize to 18's for both performance, mileage, and to allow lowering of the car.

Regarding the sensor, is it attached somewhere along the intake? Is it fairly easy to access from the top or is it necessary to remove the intake?

Thanks all

Hayk

iTrader: (1)

It should be right after the air fiter. On my 98, you can unscrew the sensor from the pipe and take it out, I don't know if they kept that design for later years.

CaddyMatt

Here you can see the tape line I laid out to get a feel for the headlight eyebrow shape... I think the teardrop headlights make the car look too "happy" so an aggressive swoop on the lens coupled with the eagle eyes should give the car a really mean look!! I plan to make them out of fiberglass.

Sorry the first pic is so honking huge.

Tape line:


"Eagle Eyes" as they call them - or 3/4 Angel Eyes


Here are the headlight assemblies:

CaddyMatt

MrBooby, I picked up that CRC MAF cleaner and gave the unit a good spray. One side of the temp probe was blackened a bit but the spray took it right off. The can mentioned not to use on Lexus vehicles though.. will it be ok?

Drove the car up and down the street and it seems smoother, will report back on the gas mileage.

Other than that I have been putting in Lucas injector cleaner every fill up. Good stuff!

Hayk

iTrader: (1)

CRC are referring to a certain type of sensor called the Karmen Vortex MAF sensor. Your ES300 does not have it, so you're good. In fact I found a DIY for the exact sensor that you have. Mine is a little different.

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...-cleaning.html

Let me know if you notice an improvement. The one time I cleaned it, I recorded my highest ever MPG (27.1). It has not been that high ever since, I think I need to clean it again.

CaddyMatt

Filled up the tank yesterday, poured in some Lucas, and went for a cruise - wow!! Since cleaning the sensor, the car has jumped from an average 18mpg up to 20.7 . It also shifts MUCH smoother. I can really feel the difference in the pedal after cleaning that MAF sensor.

Hayk

iTrader: (1)

That's an awesome feeling, isn't it? I'm glad I could help

You could also try cleaning your Throttle Body Butterfly Valve(s). I can't guarantee an instant improvement, but it is a maintenance item that should be done at around your mileage.
The valve gets coated with carbon gunk from exhaust gasses - completely normal. If it gets too dirty, it can start to stick and not operate as fast as it should.
To clean it, you need a can of Carburetor Cleaner and some paper towels. Remove the pipes going to it and then wipe the butterfly valve and the housing it's in.

CaddyMatt

True. Once I got past the sticker shock on the can of MAF cleaner But it was money well spent

Thanks for the tip on the throttle body, I have a can of carb cleaner laying around here somewhere I can put to good use!