I got my 2001 RX 300 AWD back from the shop today. It was in the shop for 5 months. They pulled the engine and sent it out of town to be remanufactured. Apparently, AWD Long Blocks are different from the FWD ones. They are not readily available and so my long block was rebuilt. The reman engine had a problem with the VVT on the front cylinders which required an extra month to get straightened out. Total expense = $5462.70 at the shop, plus I spent about $360 for the reengineered valve covers. Hope it's worth it!

 

Wow-- I hope so too. Good luck; hope it runs like a top!

 

Wouch!

What made you go with a reman vs. swapping out one from a wreck? Most RX300s are AWD.

 

Yeah, why'd you go with a reman?

You could have saved $2k going with a salvage yard engine.

 

You spent lot of greens. Did you replace both (front & rear) valve covers with new one. How is the front valve cover and oil cap? What kind of engine oil cap you use now? Same twisted old one or new screw type?

 

SWMBO decided we should keep the car since for the most part it was in good shape. The reman engine has a 3 year warranty. When you buy a junk yard engine you never know what you are going to get. I didn't want to end up with another Toyota Sludge Engine.

The valve covers were changed to the newer design. The PCV valve is the screw-in type but the oil filler cap is the twist type. The RX so far is running good. I was getting 23 MPG on the expressway.

 

Good luck Jolomo.

 

Since no one asked the question, I guess I will - why did you have to replace the engine and how many miles?

 

I lost the #2 cylinder. Plug was oil fouled and the compression was 50 psi. The RX had 128,000 miles when I acquired it. I was experiencing the Disappearing Oil Phenomena. The PCV air intake was clogged but I didn't discover it until the check engine light came on and it started idling. It was too late at the point. I had put about 5,000 miles on the engine when it went.