RX in NC

Anybody out there with any experience regarding the new Acura RDX crossover? Looks to be a ramped-up version of the Honda CRV with a turbocharged 4-cylinder 2.3 litre engine that supposedly is packing about 240 horses under the hood. I'm not sure about a 4-cylinder powerplant having to continually move a 3,950-pound vehicle, even with a turbo system that supposedly doesn't suffer from any lag whatsoever. I like the price point that Acura is MSRPing these things with and imagine that during the relatively slow holidays, one could get a decently-equipped RDX in the low $30s. Not sure about the legroom or headroom, but it wouldn't be my vehicle. Interested in any knowledgeable input, pro or con. We had a 1989 Acura Legend in our family for more than 13 years that started out as my wife's everyday vehicle for about 5 years, then I rotated it in with one of my Jeep Cherokees for another 4 years, and finally our daughter drove it for almost 5 years before I finally donated it to charity. Great car - well-engineered and quality-built. If the new RDX has the same toughness, I'd put my wife in one over another Lexus RX any day of the week....

Check the exhaust system as well. My wife's RX300 had a gasket go bad about a month ago and the vehicle began sounding like a go-cart, particularly at higher speeds. The gasket was located in the spring-loaded connection just in front of the catalytic converter. Keep us posted once you determine where the sound is coming from.

My wife's 2000 RX300 AWD has always run just fine on regular gas. She does a mixture of highway and around-town driving, and has always averaged between 18 and 20 mpg with 20 being the norm on the highway and 18 being the norm around town.

With a newly-adopted Greyhound fresh off a Florida racetrack as well as a new three-month old English Cocker puppy, we'll spend most of our Thanksgiving orienting these guys to the routines of our household. They're both glad to be here and are receiving plenty of love and attention from us as well as some of our friends and family. We've had Greyhounds in the past (what great family dogs they make) but this guy is the biggest chowhound I've ever seen....

Call Tao Auto in Raleigh, phone 832-0118. They specialize in Hondas and have been in business here for more than twenty years. When my daughter was a kid back in 1991, I bought her a 1986 CRX as her first car and they took care of some of the repairs that I couldn't or wouldn't do. They also answered a lot of my questions and didn't seem to mind giving me free advice. Indicate that you've been recommended to them by a former customer and that you're willing to bring the car to them for anything that you can't do. They may also be willing to recommend a website or two that can help you. Let me know if this solves your issue....

I received my oil gel class-action notice from Lexus in yesterday's mail. Had my wife's RX300 inspected at no charge by our Lexus dealership a year or so ago for the oil gel issue. They found no signs of the problem at that time. I tend to trust them because they've already had to perform over $9,000 worth of warranty repairs to this vehicle and they realize they will not be able to conceal an oil gel issue from me, nor would it be a smart move on their part because I would initiate legal action if they did. It would be far less expensive to fix an oil gel issue for me than for them to have to face a lawsuit for deceptive business practices....

Spend enough time searching this website and others like it and you will come to understand rather quickly that the early model RX300s suffer from abnormally frequent failures of the transmission (AWD models primarily), the exhaust manifold, the oxygen sensors, the rear main oil seal, and the strut mount rubber bushings. If these failures occur shortly after the normal warranty period for the vehicle, many Lexus dealerships will handle these failures under what is referred to as a "goodwill warranty". But the cutoff for this "goodwill" effort appears to be around 70,000 to 75,000 miles. With your particular vehicle showing 112,000 miles, you probably have little recourse for any failure except for the engine oil gel issue which Lexus is covering for eight years from the vehicle's first in-service date and unlimited mileage during that time. A number of us who own an RX300 have experienced most or all of these failures at some point, and all of our circumstances vary in terms of what Lexus was or was not willing to do for us. In our particular case, all of the above-mentioned failures struck my wife's vehicle (with the exception of the oil gel issue) between 45,000 and 80,000 miles and I forced our local Lexus service manager to cover the necessary repairs under warranty and then later the "goodwill warranty". My wife's vehicle has required over $9,000 of warranty work as a result, none of which we had to pay for. Although I certainly appreciate the fact that our local dealership fixed these various well-known problems on their dime as they arose, I despise this vehicle because of the many major flaws it has exhibited even though I've always taken meticulous care of it. As a result of our experiences, I would never recommend an RX300 to any interested buyer because too many very expensive and totally inexcusable failures occur regardless of how well you maintain it. With that being said, spend some time on this website researching the problems that some of us have experienced and what we've done as a result to achieve successful repair results. If you plan to keep your RX300 for a long time, research of this type will become crucial for you and your wallet. Learn to use the search features and you can become quite prepared to handle these conditions when they arise and be prepared for either handling the repairs yourself or knowing where to go and how much you'll have to spend if the required repairs are beyond your scope. Sorry you've had to learn such a costly lesson the hard way. Take some solace in the fact that a number of us have suffered from these failures long before you and are therefore able to offer our advice on what your best course of action may be....

Listen to the track called "Gypsies In The Palace" from Jimmy Buffett's 1985 album "Last Mango In Paris". Once you've heard that song, you'll understand why NC211 would have to be insane to invite a bunch of LOC strangers into his new home for a party....

SW03ES, Glad you enjoyed my little piece on Michael Jordan Nissan in Durham. Wish it was fiction, but it's not. Haven't been there in several years but you can rest assured that if I do decide to go over there again, I'll be wearin' my leopard-print trench coat and purple fedora with the ostrich feather just to make sure that everybody's down with me....

I concur. If you watch for the Tirerack.com sales you can catch incredible deals vs. buying locally. Plus, I can usually talk them into including something free with my order such as a set of lug nuts, tire gauges, etc. Standard shipping gets the tires here in a couple of days and I agree that their customer service is outstanding....

NC211, I feel your pain. Have you noticed that it's always the Nissan showrooms where the atmosphere and employee base is more of a hip-hop club than it is a car dealership? For an even more ridiculous experience than you had at Southern States, drive over to Michael Jordan Nissan in Durham. But I'll go ahead and warn you now that unless you pull in there with your bass boomin', your gold chains rattlin', your baseball cap about four sizes too big and turned squarely around, your britches draggin', and your 26-inch rims spinnin', you just ain't gonna fit in, mutha******....

The paperwork for the rear main oil seal replacement on my wife's vehicle shows a Lexus part number of 90080-31053. I know that we received the redesigned and improved version at that time (10/15/04), but Toyota has a tendency to revise their part numbers rather frequently and it's been more than two years since then. Call your local Lexus parts department, start with the part number I've provided above, and if it has been revised, write it down and ensure that your independent shop uses the latest version. Be aware that our RX300 is a 2000 model and you indicated that yours is a 1999 model. My guess is that they both use the same part number but be sure to confirm that when you talk to your Lexus parts department. I can tell you that since our main seal replacement, my wife has put almost 50,000 miles on her vehicle and there is no sign of a new leak. Of course, the original main seal didn't begin to leak until about 72,000 miles so it remains to be seen if the new design really fixes the problem. I happen to believe that it will because I had the Lexus technician show me the old seal once he removed it and compared it to the new seal before he installed it and I could both see and feel the difference in heft and design. The new seal is definitely an improvement. Good luck and let us know how it all turns out in the end.

I could fill a book with these types of stories, but in the interests of time I'll give you just one. My usual style of dress these days, even when I'm out and about, is shorts and a t-shirt (usually clean, but maybe not if I've been playing with or training my dogs that day or out hiking in a local state park). Other than for weddings or funerals, I haven't had to put on a business suit since 1997. When I walk into a showroom to have a look at a vehicle that I may be interested in learning about, I'm essentially ignored because the salespeople immediately assume that I'm there to wash windows or perhaps haul away the recycling. Although I could write a $250,000 check on the spot to buy practically any vehicle my heart desires, they automatically assume that I'm a blue-collar guy who isn't worth the time of day. I actually enjoy this situation, however, because it provides me with plenty of time to evaluate and learn about the vehicle without being pestered by some arrogant salesperson. There have been times when the vehicle I've been interested in has been locked up tight and I've had to approach someone to get the key and unlock it so I could get a closer look. As you said, they act like they're doing me a supreme favor instead of regarding me as a serious potential customer. I always make sure to tell them, "fella, you should treat every single person who walks in this showroom as if they will be the next person who signs your commission check because you have no way of knowing anything about them until you take the time to get to know them". Some change their attitudes immediately, and some do not. Those that don't, I simply walk away from and find someone else who chooses to treat me more professionally. I'm glad you have your NSX because I dearly wanted one in the early 1990s when they first arrived from Japan. My wife drove a rare 5-speed Legend as her primary vehicle at that time and our Acura salesperson called me excitedly when his dealership received their first one, and I was there within two hours. But at 6'7", I couldn't get into that cockpit even with a shoehorn and family-size jar of Vaseline. That is still the most disappointed I've ever been due to not being able to have a car that I really wanted in my stable. I think about that experience, now more than 15 years ago, every time I see an NSX on the road (which is now a rarer and rarer event)....

My experience with tires over the past decade or so has convinced me that while all tire manufacturers make and sell some lousy tire models, Goodyear has turned lousy tire models into their primary business model (particularly in their SUV/truck tire lines). For example, the Wrangler tire series is offered in at least a half-dozen models, and every single one of them suffers from lousy treadwear and horrible rain performance regardless of the tire care provided by the owner. If you're looking for overpriced tires that deliver short-lived and outright dangerous wet weather performance, you can't go wrong with Goodyear....

Tom - Look for black exhaust/carbon stains around the spring-loaded assembly where the manifold pipe feeds into the catalytic converter. That's what tipped off the Toyota shop foreman that the gasket was failing and causing the noise. He found it by putting the vehicle up on a hydraulic lift and inspecting that area closely. I had put the car up on jacks and crawled around looking for holes in the exhaust system but missed this because I wasn't aware of the fact that a gasket was even located in that area due to the unibody construction. Live and learn....

The local Toyota dealership had the necessary exhaust gasket in stock and the specialty bolts arrived from Lexus on Monday so the vehicle went in for repairs yesterday morning. The gasket was about $25, the bolts were about $10, and labor/shop materials came to about $145 for a total repair bill just under $180. Nothing but good things to say about the exhaust knowledge and quality of work exhibited by the Toyota shop foreman who performed the work. No loaner vehicle was provided, but they did pick me up at home and brought me to the dealership after notifying me that the vehicle was repaired and ready to go. For those of you in the Raleigh area, the dealership is Fred Anderson Toyota. I've used their parts department as long as we've owned the RX300 and I'm equally impressed with their service department after this initial experience with them. My guess is that the local Lexus dealership would have charged at least twice as much for this repair, although I must admit that I didn't bother to check with them. The vehicle is quiet once again and I intend to use this Toyota dealership in the future for other repairs that may be beyond my scope. They were happy to have our Lexus business and treated us just as well as the local Lexus dealership always does, minus a loaner vehicle....

Anyone else out there had a problem with the gasket failing between the exhaust manifold piping and the catalytic converter? My wife's RX300 began sounding like a go-cart this week and that's where we traced the problem to with some help from an exhaust-experienced Toyota shop foreman. The gasket is located in the area where the exhaust assembly is actually spring-loaded and can be slightly separated just by prying a screwdriver in there. We'll need a new gasket (supplied by Toyota) as well as four new bolts and nuts (which unfortunately must come from Lexus due to their custom shape and size) that hold the spring-loaded assembly in place. I'm probably looking at $200 or so once the parts arrive and the labor is done (sorry, I don't do exhaust work). The vehicle is now approaching 122,000 miles so any chance of getting this fixed through still another "goodwill" warranty is ancient history now....

Congrats on following up and not just caving in. Stay professional but firm and I'm willing to bet that you'll get at least some financial assistance from Lexus. Keep in mind that independent shops will do this job for less than half of what Lexus originally quoted you, so if Lexus is not willing to do better than that, you always have the option of going with the independent shop to do the work. Just ensure that they use the re-designed and improved rear main seal. Good luck.

There's no clearcut answer because so much depends upon the make and model of the tire, the vehicle it is mounted on, the driving style of the owner, and the seasonal conditions that the tire must perform in. On my wife's 2000 RX300 AWD, I'm currently running 225/70/16 Firestone Destination LE SUV tires. Maximum pressure is rated to be 44 psi but these tires seem to handle best at 37 to 38 psi so that's what I keep them at. They've been a great all-around tire for the money and currently have about 43,000 miles on them. I believe they'll get between 55,000 and 60,000 miles, so their 60K mileage rating will prove to be fairly accurate for this particular application. On my 1999 Dodge Ram pick-up, I'm currently running 275/70/16 Dunlop Radial Rover A/T truck tires. Maximum pressure is rated at 35 psi but these tires seem to handle best at 32 to 33 psi so that's what I keep them at. As a truck tire, I've loved the Radial Rover for many years and have used them on all of our previous Jeep Grand Cherokees as well as my previous Dodge Durango. My Ram tires currently have about 18,000 miles on them and they'll probably get about 40,000 to 45,000 miles. Keep in mind that my Ram is a 5.9 litre V8, extremely quick and fast, and it will therefore burn through a tire faster than most vehicles, even the heavy-duty truck tires like this particular set of Radial Rovers. So experiment with your pressures and determine what works best for you. Regardless of what pressure you settle on, the most important thing to do is to check your tire pressures every week, first thing in the morning before the vehicle has been driven. Keep your tire pressures up, rotate regularly, and your tires will last their intended lifespan for you.

I would also advise you not to give up. This is a known flaw and a common failure in these vehicles. Lexus realizes that and even went to another supplier for a better-designed rear main seal to correct this problem. You can contact Corporate Lexus at (800) 255-3987. If they attempt to blow you off on the phone, then send them a registered letter at their corporate address in California. Ask for it when you call. Your argument should continue to be that this is a known flaw, due to no negligence or fault on your part, and that you expect Lexus to make it right with the new, redesigned and better-made rear main seal. If you do opt to pay a local shop to do the job, insist that they use the redesigned seal. Check with Lexus to get the updated part number. Good luck and keep us posted.

Yep Tom, you guys did warn me, and I appreciate it. Glad it's done and over with now. Enjoy your autumn as well - gotta love this time of the year....

Changed the spark plugs yesterday. The three front plugs required about 10 minutes total, while the three rear plugs were every bit as difficult to get to and manipulate as everyone says they are. After removing the cruise control assembly and bracket along with the PCV hose, I spent 45 minutes changing the driver's side rear plug and could not manage the center rear plug or the passenger's side rear plug because my hands are simply way too large to get in there and still have room to work with the tools. Enlisted the help of my small mechanic friend in the neighborhood who was a tool-and-die engineer in a GM plant in New Jersey back in the 1970s and 80s. He was able to manipulate the socket wrench and extensions to get the final two rear plugs changed. It took him about an hour to get both old plugs out and then the new plugs in with me serving as spotter, tool boy, and flashlight holder. Glad I'll never have to do this again on this vehicle. By the end of the job, we were both ready to strangle the Japanese engineer who designed the placement of these three rear plugs.... Incidentally, those iridium-tipped plugs are really something. The original factory plugs were NGK, and they still look pretty good after 120,100 miles. The center electrodes were a bit rounded on the edges so the gap had increased slightly, but the plugs were all clean and intact. I believe that I could have easily left them in place for another 30,000 miles or so. I replaced them with the Denso iridium-tipped plugs that I ordered from drivewire.com about a month or so ago for less than $9 each. After about 50 miles of driving on the new plugs, my wife really hasn't noticed any difference in performance. I rarely drive this vehicle so it remains to be seen if I'll notice any difference myself. Any improvement in gas mileage will probably be slight. But new plugs are important for overall health and upkeep, so I'm glad this task is now behind me. Good luck to all of you tackling this job in the future. For those of you with large hands, make sure you have a small-handed helper close by along with an assortment of socket wrench extensions, especially ones that are 3, 4, and 6 inches. A universal swivel comes in handy, also.

I told our service manager that I expected Lexus Corporate to perform the sludge inspection at no cost to me. She agreed. Inspection took place shortly afterwards and no problem was found at that time. Be professional but firm and let your dealership know that you expect Lexus to perform the inspection at no cost to you because this is, after all, a known issue. Good luck to you.

Given all the failures we've experienced with my wife's 2000 RX300 AWD (including transmission failure at about 48,000 miles), I could never in good conscience recommend that anyone purchase an RX300, regardless of the model year. From a multiple component failure standpoint, it is by far the worst vehicle I've ever had in my garage in almost 37 years of driving.... The upside is that I've been able to convince our local Lexus service manager to cover all of these failures under the original factory warranty and then later under the little-known "goodwill" warranty program that Lexus service managers have the flexibility to offer to certain customers in certain circumstances. With over $9,000 worth of warranty repair work performed on my wife's RX300 thus far, that's the primary reason we continue to keep this thing. It is now approaching 120,000 miles and will be due for a major tune-up (which I'll do myself) when the odometer rolls over the 120K mark within the next 30 days.... Do your research carefully if you're going to make a recommendation to your neighbor, particularly if she knows very little about cars herself and is therefore trusting you to lead her to the right vehicle. That Honda S2000 is a nice vehicle even though it's terribly small. If she's comfortable with Honda, you may be better served by keeping her in the Honda family....

When my wife's 2000 RX300 threw a P1135 trouble code in August 2004, it did indeed point to a failing Air/Fuel Ratio Sensor. That sensor was replaced under a goodwill warranty by our local dealership and the problem was fixed and has not returned. To confirm your experience, know that I also had the trouble code read at AutoZone before I contacted the dealership and AutoZone's interpretation of the P1135 trouble code was as a "Pedal Position Sensor" issue, just as yours was. But it is well-known on this forum that trouble codes P1135 as well as P1130 both point directly to the Air/Fuel Ratio Sensor, which is also commonly called the Bank 1 Sensor. For further peace of mind before you proceed with repairs, you may want to call your local Lexus dealership, tell them that you've thrown a P1135 trouble code, and confirm that it does indeed indicate a failure associated with your Air/Fuel Ratio Sensor. Good luck and report back here with what you find out. I fully believe that replacing the Air/Fuel Ratio Sensor will fix your problem.