Went to take a look at a 1999 RX300 today as a winter vehicle. Vehicle itself is in decent shape for the age. But i noticed that upon first start it seems a little hesitant before ti warms up.

pulling away for the test drive, around the first couple corners and ever at a stop sign it seemed like it would sputter almost like it was out of fuel. After about 10 min or so this went away all together.

Busted out my trusty bluetooth ODBII reader and found 2 codes.
P1663
P1656
OCV malfuction bank 1 and 2.

I'm new to lexus, can anyone tell me if i should be jumping on this vehicle as it is priced right, and doing a little in garage maintenance Seems like it is just a couple sensors to replace.

Or am I in for a nightmare with sludge issues or tranny replacements?

Thanks in advance

 

Welcome to Club Lexus!

I'd pass on this particular RX300. IMO, If it has a CEL and the owner hasn't bothered to fix it, who knows what else needs attention.

 

The OCV's are about 40 each at Rockauto. They are actually simple to replace..if indeed they are the problem.
1999 model year has the earlier rear valve cover so you would be taking a chance on the sludge issue.
I would only consider it if it was cheap enough to do that rear valve cover at a later date.

 

Would I not be able to run sea foam through it to minimize the sludge risk.

I can change the ocv's myself and could probably tackle most other issues in the garage.

 

I personally stay away from exotic treatments.

I would suggest get a maintenance history and inspect thoroughly. Then logically look at the issues you have to tackle (are they tip of the iceberg or you have the complete list). Then estimate the cost of repairs (your time or mechanics time) and then compare with the price of other RXs in market.

For me and many of the members the RX has proven worth the money we paid back then and all the maintenance costs we have incurred. I know the worth of this statement, but buying a used 12-15 yr old vehicle is a bit of gamble. Repairs through dealer are going to be expensive. OEM parts are not cheap.

Salim

 

Seafoam might do more damage than good if the sludge is excessive. The loosened debris can clog oil galleys. The fact that both ocv's appear faulty could be due to sludge buildup.

If there is still interest in this RX, you need to get a more descrptive history of it regarding the oil consumption and scheduled oil changes. At that point I would make my decision to decide to buy and have the valve covers off for sludge inspection and peace of mind.

 

Don't make the mistake I made and think just because the driver door unlocks remotely that they all will. Check them ALL out. Door actuators are expensive if they need replacing.

 

Do pull of the front valve cover. The rear is too much work. You can get a general idea if there is sludge in the front cover. There is a oil treatment, the name skips my mind that you leave in the engine for 6/8K miles that a lot of members have used here. But its not for HEAVY sludge. Someone will chime in.....?

But if you find sludge in the front cover.... Run Forest... RUN

 

Auto-RX, is that it?

 

I'm also thinking of buying a used Lexus. My choices have been narrowed down to (a) first generation RX300 (1999 and up) and (b) first generation LS400 (1998 and up). I was wondering if you folks could give your opinion on which of the two you think is generally 'less problematic' in terms of having issues? Thanks in advance