I'm still shopping around trying to find the right ES. I test drove a very clean 2008 today save for 2 things. The interior smelled a little stale. Can't figure out if it was cleaning solvents that were used or if it's a cleaning product mixed with light smoker smell. That was the only thing I noticed initially until I got in for a quick test drive and closed the drivers door.

When I closed the drivers door it had a hollow gong-like sound, like if you hit a big empty metal barrel. A 'buunng' sound. I haven't noticed this on other ES's I've checked out. You can kind of pick out the noise on the passenger door on this car, but it's very muted. The passenger door sounds like it's supposed to sound. It sounds solid, more 'chunk'. You could pick out the slight 'bung' if you were listening for it, but normally, all you hear is 'chunk'. But, there's no missing it in the drivers door. There's no rattle in the door or the car in general. Initially, I thought maybe the speaker was loose, but nothing is moving in the door, it just 'buungs' when you close it. Maybe it's out of alignment? It looked straight.

Is there sound proofing in the door that could be missing or loose from a repair? Anybody have the door panels off before and have any ideas what would cause this?

I plan to get it inspected before purchase, if I like it after a second look and long test drive.

Thanks for the responses.

 

There are two possibilities that i can think of. It's most likely 1.

1. Someone took the door panel off at some point and there is either a screw missing or one of the many plastic push fasteners are broken/missing somehow.
2. Door has been damaged in an accident and outer shell has been repaired. There are pieces of factory sound deadening on the top and bottom of the door. If it was replaced it would have them as there are no aftermarket pieces available.

 

I would pass on this car. Probably a smoker and the door / driver side was hit an repaired.

 

Thanks for the responses!

My gut was telling me the same things. Except if the door was repaired, there's no evidence of a respray or over spray, but that doesn't rule out repair completely. It looked original, but I suppose a reskin done a few years back wouldn't stick out.

I have to say, whoever did smoke in it or cleaned it afterwards did an excellent job, save for the slight lingering odor. The interior was immaculate otherwise. No stains. Almost as clean as new, save for the light wear on the drivers footwell.

Thanks again. Back to the hunt.

 

I had the same kind of noise when closing the drivers door. It turned out to be driver's side mirror. The internal "guts" of the power mirror were broken/failing. Try closing the door with your hand pressing against the mirror glass. Thats how found where my noise was coming from. Good luck...........

 

Thanks for the tip jkeller. I'm planning to look at it again to make a final decision. If it is just the mirror somehow causing the resonating 'buung' sound when the door is closed, I could probably live with that or fix it. If it's unreported accident damage, I don't want to deal with it. And, the other factor is the smell. If that odor hasn't dissipated, there's no way I'm going to buy it. It didn't come out of the vents when the A/C was running, but was lingering in the car. Not as bad as most smoker cars I've come across, but not something I want to deal with.

On another note, I was trying to find the cost of a satellite module to install for the stereo and in my Google search, I stumbled upon how much a new Navigation unit costs from Sewell. Wow! The complete unit (navigation, radio etc.) is $13k at Sewell. Maybe having the Nav isn't such a great idea. I wanted it for the backup camera and access to settings, but maybe I should live without those.

 

clublexus.com/forums/es350-2007-2012/702336-extended-warranty.html

The steering wheel buttons went from just fine to delaminating/bubbling very quickly(2 months) I too would probably pass on a car that's been smoked in.