Check Engine Light Continually Comes On

[2000esplat]

Ok, here is the problem I am having. I will give you the complete history.

I bought my 2000 ES 300 in October. I did not buy it from a Lexus dealer. A week after I got it the Check engine light came on. I took it to a Lexus dealer who said that the timing belt needed to be replaced. The car was fine for two months. I took it to my private mechanic to have the oil changed. A week later the check engine light came on, took it back to the Lexus dealer. They said that the oxygen sensor needed to be replaced and that probably the oil change had nothing to do with it.

Six days later the light came back on, took it back to the same Lexus dealer (that was a mistake). Supposedly the gas cap was causing the problem- now I did not believe them, because when I first got the car and the light came on I replaced the cap myself. How can a cap go bad in a matter of two months? On top of that just to replace the gas cap, they charged me $84.00.

I'm driving to work this morning, guess what happens. Check engine light came back on. I called a different Lexus dealer and they are going to look at the car Thurs morning. I know that the check engine light can be caused by a number of things. My car works great, it's just that this light continues to come on. Has anyone else had this problem or heard of this happening? I have almost resigned myself to the fact that I may have to live with this :( .

[chubyball]

Stop taking it to the dealer at first time see the light ON, take it to Autozone and have them check Engine code. Autozone won't charge you a cent. After got the code, then you can bring it to the dealer, or list the code error that you have in the forum.

[2000esplat]

Thanks for the advice chubyball. I'll post back with a response when I find the cause of the issue.

[jbrubaker]

Just a personal experiaince -

after the timing belt in my lexus was changed, the crank sensor wire was put on the incorrect side of the alternator bracket, and was partially rubbed through by the alternator belt. the result was poor perfomrance (coughing), but only occasionally), and a check engine light, with the code being the crank sensor.

Actually, I think this is why the car I now own was sold, they could not find the problem.

the error code set by the computer was a crank sensor error. Mine is a 1994 ES300.

[JPI]

What is the code?

JPI

[SKperformance]

like jpi said

no codes ,no idea

it could be a faulty egr like alot of es owners have and it is only intermittent.

[Lexusfreak]

Keep us posted 2000esplat, I'm courious what the root cause of the problem is, as well as the solution.

[2000esplat]

Thank you Jbrubaker, JPI, and skperformance for all the advice and helpful comments. I am also very curious LexusFreak as to what is causing this. My car works perfectly otherwise. I am going to take your comments with me to the dealer and hopefully they will resolve it. I am going to a different dealer, just from talking to the service dept over the phone, they seem more professional. I'll let every know the outcome.

[JPI]

Remember ask them for the code. I can't beleive there are clueless dealership outhere.

JPI

[Lexusfreak]

A lot more dealers than we think I'm sorry to say JPI. :(

[lexusk8]

Hope I'm not too late to feed in my input... ;)

I used to have that CEL problem with my '01 ES within a few months after I purchased it last year. However my TRAC OFF light also comes on at the same time, so that kind of narrowed the source of the problem. In any case, I brought it to the dealership, ran through the codes and told me that the charcoal canister is shot and needs to be replaced. It may be due to the fact that I had been filling up my ES with premium fuel when before it used to take the low-grade kind. My extended warranty wouldn't take the $550 job, so I ended up bargaining the dealership to do it for half the price and with an overnight loaner. Got that all fixed up, and since then I haven't had any problems with the CEL.

You may want to look into checking out the charcoal canister for your ES if you haven't already. Good luck.

[2000esplat]

Lexususk8, you were right on the money. I couldn't get off from work, so I had my dad take the car to a different Lexus dealership. The one that I had earlier mentioned seemed more professional over the phone. The Technician did a check of the system and excluded the charcoal canister, no errors were found. When he included the canister in the check, an error came up. That seemed to be the problem. Since he replaced it, I have not yet had any problems. I'll have to wait and see though, usually it would take a week before the light would come back on. My dad showed the tech, my receipts from the other Lexus dealer and he could not understand why they did what they did.

If I had the time on my hands, I would probably go back to the original Lexus dealer and give them a piece of my mind :chairshot: . Thanks for all the helpful comments. The lesson I learned is that you must be careful about which Lexus dealer you choose to have your car serviced at.

[lexusk8]

Lexususk8, you were right on the money. I couldn't get off from work, so I had my dad take the car to a different Lexus dealership. The one that I had earlier mentioned seemed more professional over the phone. The Technician did a check of the system and excluded the charcoal canister, no errors were found. When he included the canister in the check, an error came up. That seemed to be the problem. Since he replaced it, I have not yet had any problems. I'll have to wait and see though, usually it would take a week before the light would come back on. My dad showed the tech, my receipts from the other Lexus dealer and he could not understand why they did what they did.

If I had the time on my hands, I would probably go back to the original Lexus dealer and give them a piece of my mind :chairshot: . Thanks for all the helpful comments. The lesson I learned is that you must be careful about which Lexus dealer you choose to have your car serviced at.

2000esplat, I'm glad to hear that worked out for you :) It is a big lesson to learn that not all dealerships work under the same "frame of mind", and it really comes down to who you know in the service dept. When you get varying opinions, that's when you have to make the tough decision of choosing which dealership you rely on. For instance, I have 2 Lexus dealerships (Westport and Greenwich) within a 25-mile radius from my town that I go to for parts, service, etc. I personally know 2-3 people at Greenwich, but there's almost always a wait for the car to get checked on. In Westport, it's not as busy as Greenwich, so I like being able to get serviced right away.

Let us know if there are any more problems (I don't imagine there will be since the technician seems very honest and reliable).

[lexusk8]

Lexususk8, you were right on the money. I couldn't get off from work, so I had my dad take the car to a different Lexus dealership. The one that I had earlier mentioned seemed more professional over the phone. The Technician did a check of the system and excluded the charcoal canister, no errors were found. When he included the canister in the check, an error came up. That seemed to be the problem. Since he replaced it, I have not yet had any problems. I'll have to wait and see though, usually it would take a week before the light would come back on. My dad showed the tech, my receipts from the other Lexus dealer and he could not understand why they did what they did.

If I had the time on my hands, I would probably go back to the original Lexus dealer and give them a piece of my mind :chairshot: . Thanks for all the helpful comments. The lesson I learned is that you must be careful about which Lexus dealer you choose to have your car serviced at.

2000esplat, I'm glad to hear that worked out for you :) It is a big lesson to learn that not all dealerships work under the same "frame of mind", and it really comes down to who you know in the service dept. When you get varying opinions, that's when you have to make the tough decision of choosing which dealership you rely on. For instance, I have 2 Lexus dealerships (Westport and Greenwich) within a 25-mile radius from my town that I go to for parts, service, etc. I personally know 2-3 people at Greenwich, but there's almost always a wait for the car to get checked on. In Westport, it's not as busy as Greenwich, so I like being able to get serviced right away.

Let us know if there are any more problems (I don't imagine there will be since the technician seems very honest and reliable).

[SKperformance]

i would call the other dealer and request your money back if they charged you then follow up with lexus head office.

[steviej]

i would call the other dealer and request your money back if they charged you then follow up with lexus head office.

absolutely!!!!!!!

[2000esplat]

I am going to definitely do that.