I took my '04 RX into the dealer today for the carpet recall (and the free gas), and also because I had been hearing some strange noises from the right rear of the car at various times.
They said that the "heat shield" had come lose, and so they removed it because it had fallen free from the bolts, and they gave me two options. One is to keep on going with no heat shield, and they said that should have no adverse consequences, which raises (not "begs," but raises) the question as to what the heat shield is there for in the first place.
My second option is to have the part ordered, plus some new bolts (about $85.00) and have it installed (about $200 to $400, depending on how much time they have to spend getting the old bolts out). So far I have spent nothing on it, as there was no charge for the work done yesterday in finding the source of the noise. (Maybe they were just embarrassed that a part had practically fallen off their swell, highly-regarded car.)
My inclination, of course, is to go commando.
My question is whether anyone else here is driving heat-shieldless.
I did not get a good look at the part, but my search here indicates a few cases of the heat shield pictured below (and discussed here: https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...ix-shield.html among other threads) of causing a rattle, which was fixed by various methods. I can find no reports of anyone simply taking the shield off and leaving it off.
I would hate to have unshielded heat cause my car to burst into flames, or am I catastrophising? The service dept. sent me out onto the highways of the world without apparent concern.
Also, I would hate to dump up to 500 extra bucks into replacing a totally optional, marginally useful part that is prone to cause rattles.
What do you suggest as my best course of action?
Thanks.

 

Without delay, call them and try to recover the old heat shield.

Once you have the old shield back you can go to muffler shops and have the old one reattached or refabricated.

If you have one refabricated, check that each bend is reformed, else it will vibrate.

Salim

 

Salim:
Thanks. That's a good tip, and I just did that; service will call back if they still have it, which I was led to believe they still do (I left there yesterday at 4PM).
Also, I have a client who has an auto repair shop. It's way out on the outskirts of town, so I don't take my cars there on a regular basis, but he is always glad to pay off my bill in services, so if I can get the shield, perhaps he can re-affix it for me.
Still, I don't know really what is being shielded from the heat. Is it the spare tire compartment?

 

Most protection seems to be for the spare.

I would drill the old rivets out and use a stainless steel nut and bolt with large stainless steel washer(s) and add a stainless steel lock washer.

Pair of ramps to create more room and drill is all that is needed.

Salim

 

It has been installed to "protect" the spare tire cover which is plastic. The combustion tempertaure of plastic is high. Nothing will happen to the spare tire cover with or with out the shield. Salim has the best suggestion, if you want it, somebody can fabricate one for you, much less the $450 they want.

Go commando!

 

Here's an update.
One: they don't have it any more, and Two: it's not that heat shield. The service girl said it's further up toward the middle of the car and protects the passenger compartment from excess heat.
I'll have to get under there sometime and see what they are talking about.
She did add that no one in the shop thinks driving without it will be any kind of a problem.
We shall see.

 

Weird...what shield are they referring to? Go to Sewell and go find out if you can trace the "shield) through their part drop down menu.

 

I will track that down. I know now I should not only have asked for the part, I should have gone into the shop and have them show me what they were talking about while looking at an RX that was up on a lift (there is usually at least one).
I'll see what else I can find out from the parts lists at Sewell.
Thanks for the suggestion.

 

It probably doesn't much matter and to the small extent it might I think it would come into play if you were sitting idling for a really long period of time. In motion I would suppose that there is plenty of air flow to keep things from getting too hot.

But if you can figure out where it is, go have a look what is nearby that could (hypothetically) be harmed from heat like in the photo of the wrong shield it would have been the plastic spare tire cover. If it's just the floor pan of the car you might just decide not to worry about it.

 

For the time being, my plan is to not worry about it, as I tend not to spend time in long traffic waits; in fact, I don't put too many miles on this car in a year anyway.
Should I smell smoke, however, I am going to bail out fast.

 

There is more to it than what meets the eye ..

After you are done driving and shut the engine off, is when the worst damage is done. The rubber will most likely not catch fire, but it will develop a bad spot and give you trouble when you install the spare.

The part has been engineered in the design and imho is not an optional part.

Salim

 

Anybody willing to jack their RX up and take a pick for tfischer? Wish I was scheduled for an oil change, I will gladly do it for you.

 

Here's another update. I looked through the Sewell diagrams of exhaust system parts, etc., and can't find a heat shield listed or shown.
I'm going to try to look under the car today and see what I can.
Full report to follow.

 

I don't think so. I asked that question to the service associate, since I know that Cat Converters can get real hot, and she said not it was not. If it's not the one at the back of the car, pictured above, I'm still not sure where it came from.
I may have to go back over there and get some clear answers.

 

Here's an update.
I looked under the car, and can report the following. The missing heat shield is not the one above the Cat Converter, nor is it the one at the rear of the car between the rear muffler and the spare.
Below is a photo which is about the best I can do under the circumstances. There is a large muffler in the center of the car that runs, on the right side of the car, from about the center of the rear door to the front of the rear tire. The photo shows a bolt and holder that appear to be used to hold a shield in place; there is another unused bolt in the vicinity that also appears to be holding nothing. Above the muffler is a large black plastic box. Things that are not wires run into this box from the front, but I can't see well enough there to figure out what that box does. It looks like the heat shield would go above the muffler and below this box.
I cannot find any of the heat shields on the Sewell parts graphics or in its "search" function, nor do I see this box which sits above this muffler.
Maybe I need to call my service manager and ask him what's in that box, as it seems to be the only thing that would be protected by the shield.
Also, now that you know where to look, you should see three heat shields along your exhaust system: above the cat converter, between the rear small muffler and the spare, and this missing one which sits pretty much at the back door opening.
If anyone knows what is in that black box or what its function is, I would be glad to know. (You can see the beam from my flashlight on the bottom of the black box; the silver at the bottom of the photo is the muffler.)
Thanks.