Hi Just purchased a 2008 8 Es 350. Drove great at dealership and at home. Sound great at dealer ship, but a little louder than expected when starting in the morning. Is this the norm for the ES series? I'm own an RX 300 (1999) and it's pretty quiet compared the the ES. Now the ES is quite when driving and feels like a Lexus, but I'm curious about the sound of the engine on start up.

 

I have an 08 ES as well. Yes, the engine is a little louder and coarse, than would be expected,when first started in the mornings and also when first driven after start up in colder weather. Once it warms up to normal operating temperature, it will return to the whisper quiet and butter smoothness that you expect. It is a great car! I've never kept a car for this long. Seems like the longer I have it, the better it drives. I've had zero problems in 6 1/2 years. Enjoy your car!

 

I had a 2007 for 6.5 years. It did the same thing. Never had a problem with it. This is normal for the car.

 

On mine, 09 350, we got out of the car at a cafe and I tried to lock the doors and the alarm went off and wouln't stop. I FINALLY figured out that the car was still running. LOL It was so quiet I forgot to shut it off. LOL

 

Yeah, something was changed in the 09 models - there's much less reports of engine noise; perhaps a redesigned cam/oiler profile etc. I do remember reading in my early ownership days (3 years ago) of a CPO 08 (still running strong) that 07s and 08s can have a ... sound coming from the engine before warm up. Mine has a slight ticking sound with the windows down in gear at a light. I did talk with Lexus and they state that's normal for the engine, and others on this site state that they have much higher milage than my 70k on the clock with ZERO issues. At this point, especially if you have a bank note on it - drive it; it will provide years of exceptional - if not slightly noisy - service.

 

I had an '07 that had a little of the ticking sound at idle when cold and quieted down after a few minutes. I then bought a 2010 and it was noticeably quieter with the same engine.

As mentioned, there doesn't appear to be any long term reliability issues with the early '07's and 08's.

 

Found the TSB if you're interested in pursuing it with a dealer under a warranty - which would be the extended for most now. Looks like 2007-2009 could be affected; Exhaust cams and VVTI.

 

yes they did my 07 under warranty a few years back per this TSB

 

I have been told that this is a known issue with many of the 07-12 models as the lifters are aluminum. It seems to be an issue with the climate that the vehicle is in if the TSB is not considered as appropriate diagnosis. Mine did not "qualify when under 70,000 miles". I now have 98,000 with no issues.