Welcome to Club Lexus, sweiler.

While you probably will not get away scot-free without any major problems, any repair costs going forward will much less than any set of new payments you might have to make on another vehicle. As long as you properly maintain your RX it should easily give you 200K.

Some of the big ticket items you can look forward to:

* Spark Plugs -- at 120K
* Water Pump -- whenever it starts to leak and may last you quite a long time. is a bear to change though.
* Timing Belt -- got you... there is no timing belt. you have a timing chain so no worries here.
* Tires -- as needed
* Struts -- as needed. around 120K you would more than likely notice a difference in ride and handling with a new set all around.

Until then you can start asking around about prices and budget out these items for when they come around.

 

We are 0n 97,000 on 2003. Touch wood all running well.

 

Actually this is not true. The engine in the rx300 is not an interference engine like the ones in the 330 and 350. The engine will quit running but no damage should occur, just a tow to the shop.

 

Not true, it is indeed interference, everything since the CVTT technology on Toyota V6 is interference. This has been discussed over and over, trust me. By the way my old RX300 had 188k miles before I sold it, and my new RX400h now has 144k miles, Great cars, real cruzers..

 

+1, the RX300 is interference because it does have VVT-I.

 

Hardly possible to predict how many miles a guy will get out of his RX or any car for that matter. Is he going to tow a horse box on a bad gravel road or is he just going to fetch the newspaper in it a couple of blocks away from where he stays in LA. Then there's the question of climate. As far as I can gather, you can't wear shorts in Canada every day of the year and I'm told that the guys in the Australian Outback must be forced at gunpoint to wear full length trousers to a funeral. So, sort of opposites and both climates can have an influence on a car's life expectancy.

Point is, it is not only maintenance that plays a role, you need to know where and how this car will be used.
It also doesn't say much to claim a car has done a million miles, if not a single part on it hasn't been replaced at least twice. So the person asking the question should qualify it by something like: Apart from rebuilding the car in total, what mileage can I expect.

 

I have 234K on mine. Replaced a lot of things, partly as preventative maintenance and some out of need.

Engine runs great still.

 

While you have replaced/updated/changed a number of items on your RX, I am sure the costs were less than a series of new car payments.

 

RX, very much so. I might have spent 3-5K on replacement parts etc. The power steering rack, tranny, and catalytic converters/muffler are about the only major items I haven't replaced. No major brake components replaced other than rotors and pads. Replaced most everything else I think. Some things I replaced as I had it apart changing another item as preventative maintenance.

All and all even if I spent 7K, that's a lot cheaper than a 500 dollar car payment for 60 months etc etc.

 

I still have a 1999 Dodge Caravan that I drive on a regular basis at 208K miles. The ONLY things I've changed are the regular wear and tear items. Still the original alternator, water pump, fuel pump, starter, transmission, etc. And the worse thing about it is that I've neglected regular maintenance like oil changes the past two years....yet she still runs like a champ. This is why I'm loathe to let her go despite her age, because she's been so dependable for me.

I expect the Lexus to do better. If not, I'll be sorely disappointed. It would be a shame if a Lexus can't outlast a Dodge Caravan.

 

I had my days as a younger guy of packing old crates with new parts just to keep them running. Of course that can also be misleading. If you should buy the parts of a car to build it yourself, it will be enormously more expensive than what the factory assembled car is. You can end up throwing good money after bad. Usually when you sell, good ol' faithful and you throw a lot of invoices in of your recent brake and engine rebuilds, the guy still offers the market value, hardly listening to your stories.
My contention is that a car should be maintained well and without using it for what it was not intended, it might give you outstanding mileage, but as soon as the guy at the spare parts shop starts calling out: "Oh here's my good friend again", sell it!
I'm of course a bit upset that my dad sold his '53 Buick in 1959 for a mere 150 Pound, cause now I could've got a small fortune, for it was the very last batch of straight eights, but even if he did bubble wrap it, it would've cost a pretty penny in storage fees over a time span North of fifty years.
Which brings us to the real issue: Has good financial sense anything to do with cars? No!!! Anyway has the value of that Buick to me, nothing to do with money and if had it today, I'll happily die from hunger, before selling it. So if the old rattle trap makes you happy, keep it. Rationalise it as a good financial
decision? Don't think so.

 

My wife traded in her 2000 RX300 with 225K on it about a month ago and the ONLY reason is as a 2nd owner of the car, I think the first owner used it to put boats in the ocean, as the back end was complelty rotted out (almost a line of rust). The front end was perfect. Even the K-Member has holes in it where it was almost unsafe to drive. We were getting estimates of around $3500-5000 to fix the entire back end and the car booked for under $8500, it was just not worth it.. If ths was not like this, I would not be shocked if she got 500K out of it....

The motor ran perfect and the car itself looked really good but, the body was falling apart because of the past owner...

My 2001 LS...241K...daily driver, runs perfect...

The timing chain broke in my wife's RX (never heard of that before), $250 with OEM parts and it was back on the road in a few hours...

 

Do you do a transmission drain and fill or a transmission flush...thanks

 

This car really is built like a beast- it's essentially a Camry on stilts which means the reliability is high. Only out of service check engine light I got was an O2 sensor going bad and a bad ignition coil.

 

Update, just did second timing belt, and replaced all struts, control arms, and ball joints. I now have 196k miles...hope to reach 300k. Everything is completely functional.