amaterasu

Hi guys, So I have has a 99 es300 for 8 years cant say enough about it, Great car.... So thinking about buying the wife a 400h im looking at an 08 with 103,000 on it seems a little high at 15900 but anyway my question is how reliable are these cars and besides timing belt what should I be asking about as far as must maintenance ? Is the 330 or 350 more dependable and less for overall costs ? thanks.....

SkiMe

Spark plugs are difficult to access (back 3) so will cost more to replace. You need to remove the intake to gain access. I think 125k is the replacement interval.
Lower control arm bushings
Wheel bearings (front and back)
Radiator leaks

These are the items I've looked at or will look at on our 07' 400h. I am at 167k right now and otherwise, a great car.

Ask about the radio too. Ours has turned off on it's own (very rare), and the backlight on the LCD display has gone out (then I pushed on it and the light came back on).

thomas1

I have the RX400h 2008 with all the bells and whistles. Yup radiator, and wheel bearings, but other than that just normal wear and tear. I have 185k miles bought at 89k miles. Timing belt due at 90k and spark plugs at 125k miles. Yup intake has to be removed for rear plugs. I changed front but still haven't done rears. However the iridium plugs are incredibly robust. I just changed all of the suspension stuff with KYB shocks and mounts, lower control arms with MOOG with ball joints. Car is an incredible machine, great road car. Over my RX300 everything is better other than the leather seats. Love the vehicle overall.

SkiMe

I've done most items but have not taken on the front bushings/bearings. Looks like the lower control arms are pretty easy but was doing the ball joints too easy? I want to be able to torque the ball joints properly. I'm also thinking about front bearings too while I'm there.

Also, when I did the rear plugs, found out that the coilpacs went bad too. Ended up removing the intake 3 or 4 times before full diagnose and then repair. Got it fixed finally!!

thomas1

Lower control arms are pain, you have to remove two motor mounts to get to the forward bolt on both control arms. That entails lifting the engine slightly to get them out....Just did it.