TunedRX300

It is sludge for sure, right after I treated my RX300 with Auto-RX. I used the same Auto-RX treatment on my mom's 98 Accord. For 120K, she used cheap dino bulk oil and never a single drop of fuel or oil additive. Yet when I cut open the oil filter after 1500 miles of Auto-RX, nothing but clean oil filter media. If Auto-RX were to clean carbon build-up, her car would be the perfect candidate. I am with you on how ARX is marketed, most people can't separate products with the way they are marketed. Many hate Amsoil for its MLM marketing scheme, even though Amsoil makes great oil. I was skeptical about ARX in the beginning but decided to give it a try after reading independent owners' feedbacks. ARX's $ back warranty helps too. Why 6K? Because that is the TBN limit of M1 5w30 posted at BITOG, if you can find me a UOA of dino that last 5K on 1mz-fe or 3mz-fe that has sufficient TBN, I would be the first to extend OCI. But like you, I am no dino fan. Now I hope GC + ARX will give me longer OCI than 6K, but until I have done an UOA, I won't do so since I have no desire to have sludge build-up again. BITOG does not have many GC UOAs for 1mz-fe, none > 6K, there is one UOA with no TBN. Benchmarking of my GC+ARX will compare wear metals with comparable oil miles. I will post back my finding in couple month, why don't you post back yours so findings can be shared with the rest?

Nope, no sludge in my sludge prone 1MZ and am doing 10 to 12K drains. There are a few pictures on this forum. I even pulled the valve cover to be sure. Clean as can be! I again an not knocking any product but I still have yet to find anything in my filters. Good for you! LC20 + Amsol is pretty good combo. As for me, I will give German Castrol + 3 oz of Auto-RX maintenance a try in the future, best yet, I will take a UOA after 6000 miles to verify everything is cool. SW03ES, Yes, I have learned not to trust Lexus' oil change recommendation, just unfortunately not early enough. My pictures are posted here for those who want to give Auto-RX a try, just another solution if someone's sludge warranty expired or just want to do preventative maintenance themselves. Peace!

This is the best picture I could manage to take with one hand, you can see black particles trapped in one groove of filter media. I used the smallest Allen wrench to scrap what is trapped there and the result is what you have seen in the first picture.

No sludge in your 1mz-fe? If you don't pull off the valve cover, how can one be sure? I never let my Mobil 1 last more than 8K and I don't operate in special operating conditions as defined in RX300's Supplement Owners Manual. And I was dead sure that sludge won't happen to me. I was surprised to found fine sludge particles near the bottom of the pan, after I drain off the oil trapped inside the now cut-open filter. Those aren't sands from our beautiful California beaches...

Gary, It is perfectly OK to doubt something and ask for scientific data. IMHO it is better than the "It is brand X so it must work" attitude. Additive package in engine oil clean engine to a certain extent, they don't work on sludge already baked on the metal. Would you use Windex to clean BBQ grills after a nice 4th of July backyard party, even though Windex is a good cleaner? I used Auto-RX recently to stop a leak. Before using Auto-RX I can find couple of dime sized oil drops marked on the driveway. I am currently in the rinse phase of 2nd cycle, which is 5600 miles after I first started treatment, the leak is so tiny that no visible drop is found. Will it stop my leak? I will find out in 2 weeks. I have been feeding my RX300 with Mobil 1 synthetic oil ever since its 3rd oil change, you would think the cleaning ability of M1 synthetic oil should be sufficient for 1mz-fe, any junk would be gone after 80K of continue usage of a top notch synthetic oil right? After I changed oil and cut open the filter first cleaning phase, which is 1500 miles after I put 10 oz of Auto-RX with a fresh dino oil change w/ filter, I found fine sandy sludge particles trapped in the filter element. BTW, I cut open the BOSCH oil filter used just before Auto-RX treatment, no sludge is ever found. It is clear minor sludge started to form on the engine, Mobil 1 5w-30 could not do the job that Auto-RX did: clean that hard deposit off the metal engine parts safely. I still have 1100 miles left in rinse phase to be finished with Auto-RX treatment, so I can't say my leak is 100% stopped, but I know it cleaned off the sludge fur sure. Now back to doubting Thomas, would you be also open minded when proofs are presented, or be perpetually doubting because "There is just no way additive Y works because it is not supported by brand X?" Aren't you the one who made an excellent comment that you want "OEM quality" but not necessary "OEM parts"?

Just remove the intake throttle body to make more room.

I plan to go under the hood again this weekend... Im going to clean the throttle body and change the plugs.. Is there a way to visually inspect the coils to see which if any are bad?? Swap a bad coil with a good one and read the code again.

Cleaning IACV can also be a simple DIY. http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...showtopic=30723 I doubt MAF and IACV can be both clogged at the same time, most likely they are side affects of bad coils.

That is why CEL code needs to be read, did you go to Autozone?

Go to Autozone and get a free read for CEL code, sounds like you may have a bad coil.

GWELEX, Great to hear that Toyota picked up the repair. Even though you will keep oil change receipts, I recommend you to use a Group IV based true synthetic oil for better oxidation protection and oil flow during Alaska's extreme cold winters. Consumer Report noted that 3400 sludge engines reported by Toyota is not updated since 2002. Toyota knows actual number of sludged engines, it just has not release an updated figures for five years.

What is your oil change interval and what kind of oil did you use?

Knowing the hassle you had to put up with RX300's tranny, why not take a sample of the tranny fluid of the Rx330 and send it to a lab for analysis? Just like any physical exams that we (humans) go through, outside look are important, but a clean bill of health should pass internal analysis. I am not talking about color-of-the-ATF exam. How does one know how much metal particles in ppm suspended and the Ph balance of the ATF by looking at the color the dye (which is used for leak detection, not diagnosis to determine condition of the fluid and tranny)? 3mz-fe is equally harsh on oil as 1mz-fe, if maintenace record says Toyota bulk dino oil for every 5K, I would demand the seller to pull the engine cover to remove any doubt about sludge. For anyone who says 3mz-fe is not sludge prone, I recommend to check out this thread, if you don't believe it, search for Used Oil Analysis reports posted at BITOG from independent 3mz-fe owners. http://theoildrop.server101.com/forums/sho...p;Number=206171 This is true, however I've seen a couple of sludge motor since then. One of them was a 04 sienna with a 3MZ-FE and 7.5k oci's. I recomended a couple of Dino's and 1 syn. I do 3k oci's with Castrol GTX in my grandma's 94 Camry V6 (Early 1MZ-FE)with no problems, Though I still prefer the added protection of Syn in that engine especially with a 5k oci. ps. I live in Salem, NH and have been to Durham many times to visit friends

I went over to Bobtheoilguy and I can't find hardly any posts that say LubeControls LC20 is an effective cleaner. I did however see that the most popular cleaner seams to be Autorx. Do you have any posts over on BITOG that I can lookup? Don't take offense to this Bro but if you think additves are "overpimped" why do you pimp for LC? I used Auto-RX and it worked for me, cut open filters and saw sandy particles between filter element pleats. mburnickas, you old pal "shelby" from BITOG posted that you are a troll that register under many names to bash Auto-RX. I respect your expertise on oil and your opinion, but if shelby is right, this is getting old...

We don't know what previous owner did, so let's not assume automatically that he did not change oil. FYI, there is a member,rx93, on the other forum who reported similiar abnormal, sudden increase of oil consumption with no substantial oil leak. I don't think it is allowed to put a URL link but this is a direct quote of rx93. From his detailed description of maintenance history, he is not an abusive owner, changed oil every 5K From UOAs and a few cases reported here, it is clear that skywagon's comment is correct, dino oil is not sufficient for this engine to have the margin of error in order to avoid sludge. Like SW03ES, I too use Mobil 1 since my third oil change and I have written down DIY oil changes in a log. But is it sufficient to claim sludge warranty? God knows and I don't plan to find out myself. In addition, if one believes Mobil 1 5w-30 will last 7500 miles under non-severe driving condition, search for UOAs in BITOG and you will find out it is not true. 1mz-fe is tough on oil, if owner does not shorten up oil change intervals, he may drive around thousands of miles with depleted oil per oil change. Whether the owner knowningly forgets oil change or unkowningly uses oil that is already spent, the result, unfortunately, is sludge formation.

I never said owners have no responsibility on following maintenance schedule, the fact is that many did follow the maintenace schedule and still have sludge developed. UOAs showed dino oil has no life left long before 5K is reached. Lexus never conditioned any warranties, powtrain or sludge, on usage of synthetic oil. The following opinion posted by you is wrong. mburnickas is using LC20 as a sacrificial additives to prolong host oil (synthetic Amsoil) life. The procedure calls for 1-2 oz of LC20 on every 1K of oil miles. http://www.lubecontrol.com/lube.htm At 10K, he has done 10 mini oil changes already. That is not proof, that is mburnickas trying to achieve his OCI goal by going way beyond what a normal Toyota oil change does. Interestingly, I asked for him to provide one UOA that showed dino oil that get past 5K and I am still waiting for mburnickas to come back with that data. If you really want to see actual cases of owners that have engine sludged despite religiously following Lexus' schedule, why not make this thread a sticky? Similiar to the tranny thread, as time goes on, many owners post their tranny failed prematurely even though Toyota never admit there is any tranny design issue. Also I do not believe you are affiliated with Toyota, I made the comments because others do. I respected you when you switched position on the tranny issue after doing your research. I just urge you to do the same with sludge issue. Time will tell and truth will eventually comes out. In addition, a Toyota spoke person did blame the owners see below comments. I think you gave Toyota too much benefit of doubts. See Times report copy and pasted by deepsquat in this thread http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...33245&st=30 direct quotes from the report

The issue is posters here giving out false information that if owners follow Lexus' maintenance schedule (5K or 7.5K), no sludge will ever occur. Replace a sludged engine with another one, without changing anything else, the same time bomb will start ticking again. How about Lexus admitting the maintenance schedule is inadequate for 1mz-fe? Okay, then where are the hoardes of Lexus owners swamping these forums and dealerships for sludge repairs on cars with perfect maintenance histories? Remember if your maintenance history is legit (or even if its not) Lexus will repair sludge for free. Whats the issue? Please read my post. To recap just for you. 1) 8 year sludge warranty does not cover financial injury of decreased resell value due to Toyota's design problem. 2) Length of warranty is below industry standard and Center for Auto Safety's recommendation 3) What about hassle of retaining maintenance receipt and burden to provide them to service managers, who will pay for time and gas spend going to the dealers? They've agreed to replace or repair the engines affected free of charge, they've redesigned the engine to fix the problem. What more can they do? Please read, to re-quote the link I posted above just for you. The fix does not solve the cause of the sludge. Also search UOAs on 3mz-fe on BITOG and you will be surprised to see how it chew up oil. Larry Parry, an independent repair technician in Orlando, Fla., and host of a radio auto-repair talk show, says Toyota's change to the oil baffles won't stop the sludge from building up. "There's nothing on top of the engine restricting the drain at all in that motor," he said. The internal temperatures are the problem, contends Parry. Parry said he has measured the temperature of the cylinder block and heads. He said the block runs at 190 to 210 degrees Fahrenheit, while the heads typically reach 260 to 270 degrees. Parry, who says he has repaired about 30 sludge-filled Toyota engines since 1998, contends the V-6's cylinder head temperature is too high because Toyota reduced the size of coolant passages in the head gaskets. He says that makes for a hotter, cleaner burn, but also causes sludge to build up because the oil gets too hot. Also, Parry says, sludge develops as the oil passes back into the block, which is running 60 to 70 degrees cooler. According to General Motors, the industry standard for temperature differences between the cylinder head and engine block is between 10 and 15 degrees. Does it even occur to you that sludge can slowly form over time, if you have scientific data that shows % or # of sludges reported will stay as 1mz-fe engines age, please post. Great, now "Love America or Leave" logical fallacy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_dilemma There are alternatives other than taking Toyota's sludge warranty or buy another brand. One option is keep the car and have Toyota step up the warranty to 10 years 100/120K and be honest about the cause of the sludge instead offering a "fix" that does not solve any problem. This is the very topic we are discussing in this thread, why do you want to eliminate it? Again what do you want them to do, give everyone updated engines? That would bankrupt them. Please read, Toyota needs to step up the warranty to 10 years 100/120K. Toyota has a design flaw, who is responsible for to find an acceptable solution? Owners? Yeah because Toyota has never concerned itself with quality. At least they volunteer to recall cars as opposed to other manufacturers who wait to be sued before they do it. Would like to see recall # decrease over the years instead of increasing, past quality reputation does not mean that reputation will sustain in the future. Don't assume. See NHTSA graph attached, reported by WSJ Waah waah waah. Thank you for posting a personal insult, isn't that against forum rules? Mr Management? Then why has sludge never been reported in a vehicle with the redesigned motor? If you're bothered by it, sell the car and buy something else. What does the whining get you? Ulcers. Check UOAs on BITOG on 3mz-fe and come back to discuss the redesigned engine. Are you sure no sludge will ever be found on the redesigned engine? I am not bothered, nor do I want to insult someone who posts a different view. I want to share data and fact for those who have no hidden motives and agenda. LOC is not a cult following of Toyota brand or a kiss you-know-what group to Lexus. Just like the tranny issue, talk to independent mechanics and shops, search for UOA independent lab reports, take off your Toyota/Lexus blinders, you will be amazed what you found out.

First 5K is not a maximum interval Toyota stated for oil change interval. 5K is for those with severe driving condition such as towing, taxi, driving exclusively on dusty roads, not every RX owner drives in severe conditions. Second, Used Oil Analyis reports, posted by independent car owners, show that even if owner change at 5K interval with dino oil, 1mz-fe used up the oil long before 5K. It is myth that no 1mz-fe get sludged if owner change oil at 5K. I don't understand where the myth originates from and why people helped to spread the myth. Here are Used Oil Analysis reports by independent labs, posted by independent owners to bust the myth. For example, this UOA showed viscosity of Toyota branded 5w-30 sheared to a 20 weight oil in <200 miles. The owner could not believe it, did a Virgin Oil Analysis, lab report confirmed the physical property change. TBN, the acid fighting additives, decrease from 7.2 to 3 after a mere 1500 miles. Cu also shot up to 12 ppm, Fe shot up to 18 ppm http://theoildrop.server101.com/forums/sho...p;Number=213737 A Camry V6 with dino fill, same 1mzfe engine with 3587 miles, TBN is 2.7, oil is already used up http://theoildrop.server101.com/forums/sho...p;Number=255160 Another Toyota V6 with Pennzoil dino, TBN is 0.7 after 2400 miles, Pb is 131 ppm, indicating high bearing wear. Switched to Chevron Supreme dino, not much better http://theoildrop.server101.com/forums/sho...p;Number=214899 RX300 is even more taxing on the engine than Camry sedan. With the same 1mz-fe engine, RX should chew up oil at a even faster rate due to the extra weight and payload. The above scientific lab reports indicates 5K oil change interval will not be enough to avoid sludge. Stop blaming the owners! That one engine covers Camry V6, Avalon, Solara, Sienna, Highlander, RX300, ES300, all best or volume sellers of its class. The impact of one flawed engine impact far more owners than all VW, Saab, Chrysler models combined. Ironically, many Toyota owners buys the brand because they want to avoid engine problem and repair worries and hassle in the first place. For both Toyota and owners, one engine with bad design is one too many. Here are ways Toyota can do. 1) Step up to Hyundai (did I just said that) power train warranty level. Toyota has a design flaw, it is reasonable to to step up to the level of warranty commitment of a fellow Asian competitor. 2) Stop using PR to blame owners and alienate itself from past, current, and future customers. 3) Stop giving out false information about sludge fix when the cause of the sludge is not fixed. 4) Focus on reliability and providing quality products, and be committed to sustain the level of quality excellence. In 2005 Toyota recalled more cars than it built, that is a shameful stats reported by NHTSA The buyer does not know which car is sludge free and which one is not, the entire resell market value reflects this worry, which can only be assured with long extended warranty. Try to explain to a potential buyer to disregards KBB resell value, Toyota's recall letter, and the settlement of sludge law suit with your maintenance record. Want to have above market value simply you did the oil change by the book? Good luck, and God helps all of us who do DIY oil changes. Redesign is a Toyota PR tool. A cheap patch up design saves Toyota from a costly redesign and serves the marketing purpose "Hey we did a redesign". According to this articles, it does NOT address the cause of the sludge. http://www.autosafety.org/article.php?scid=150&did=1090

You're ignoring what the tech in the very thread you linked to is saying about the issue, I'll quote it for you. If you're going to proport something to prove your point, you should check to make sure it doesn't actually disagree with you first, as this link does. I don't think theres any question that the engine is prone to sludging, but many engines are. With proper maintenance however you're going to be fine. This car may have only had 8700 miles, but it had never had ONE oil change (3700 miles overdue), and you have no idea how old the car was either. Was it 8700 miles and 12 months? Like I said, many engines have characteristics that make them prone to sludging, Cadillac's Northstar, several Saab motors, I could compile a list. Companies also settle things out of court all the time that they may not loose when they get to court just to save the hassle, negative PR, and time. Is there an issue? Yes. Is it abnormal? Not really. Is it overwhelmingly caused by owner neglect? Yes. Has Toyota stepped up to the plate and made every reasonable effort to support owners affected despite the fact that the issue is overhwelmingly caused by neglect? Absolutely. So, whats your point? My point: It is inaccurate to make a blanket statement that sludge is caused 100% by owners' neglect. I believe there is a strange, almost cult-like following of Toyota's PR line "It is not an Toyota design issue, it is owner's fault" by some members of LOC. Just because Toyota has a industry leading reliability reputation, it does not mean 1mz-fe is reliable and free of design flaw. Toyota's recall is all one needs to know Toyota's design is a major reason to cause 1mz-fe to sludge. It is also not logical to excuse it, by referring to other engines have similiar problems. Do we want Toyota/Lexus to be associated with the reliability level of Saab, VW, Chrysler, all second tier European and American brands? If ten other engines have design flaw, does it mean sludge is "normal", e.g. expected, to Toyota/Lexus owners? Has Toyota stepped the plate with a 8 year reactive warranty? Compare to Hyundai's proactive 10 year 100K powertrain warranty with no known engine problem, let alone CAS' recommendation of 10 year 120K http://www.autosafety.org/article.php?scid=150&did=566 ? No. Owners not only care about sludge repair bill during their ownership but also about the resell value. How much would you pay for a 8 year Rx300 with a known engine recall and unknown maintenance history, how much would you pay for one with 2 more year of warranty coverage on the engine?

Amsoil XL series' base stock is Group III. Other Amsoil oils are Group IV German Castrol is Group IV PAOs Mobil 1 used to be Group IV, now rumored to be Group III with some interesting discussions going on BITOG. For 1mzfe, I would run only PAOs based oil for better oxidation resistance, after I use up my current stash of M1 5w-20, GC 0w-30 will get the nod. Just in case GC will use a Group III like everyone else in the future, Pennzoil Platinum (Group III) + Auto-RX is my plan C. My Acura gets Amsoil 5w-20, j-series engine is bullet proof, group III with an good additive package is fine. Base stock is only part of the equation, in-oil additives are also important to make a good oil.

It was noted that the engine never had an oil change in the 8,700 miles (still using the original Toyota oil and filter). He does note in the last pic that he's never seen an engine with a problem that has had consistent 3-5K mile 3 month oil changes. Also interesting in that it's posted in a Honda/Accura forum. Nevertheless, an eye opener on the benefits of oil changes for this engine. Drivers forgot oil changes, not just Toyota owners, and most engines don't have sludge problem, Toyota do. The fact is Toyota issued a recall/warranty to address the sludge issue, flex its PR muscles and say it is a owner issue. Who is Toyota trying to fool? A mere 1200 miles past 1st oil change if the above engine is driven normal operating condition, aren't Toyota engines supposed to be bullet proof? wwest posted his view yesterday in another thread, I agree with him 100%

Here is one sludged up after mere 8700 miles, reported by a Toyota tech. http://www.tegger.com/hondafaq/sludge/cleaning_sludge.html I don't think there is any question here: It is Toyota that issued the sludge warranty, pretty much admitting an issue. The question is whether owners, especially who have made emotional and financially investment into Toyota/Lexus cars, willing to admit that fact. Last, show me one UOA on a dino oil that can last 5000 miles. I posted that request to mburnickas in a previous post and so far there is no response. I can tell you there are many UOAs on BITOG that showed 5w-30 sheared to a 20 weight oil in <200 miles of a fresh oil change, indicating abnormal physical property change. TBNs of dino oil completely depleted around 3000 miles, indicating abnormal chemical property change. All because 1mz-fe is harsh on oil due to Toyota's design.

Well yes they (amsoil) do. It is there Xl series. If you follow the manual, you will not have sludge. I think the sludge issue is WAY over blow. There are over 3,000,000 engines and a little over 3,000 sludge engines; that in percents is damn small. What does that say? Some do not follow the manual and make an issue. I am doing almost 2 times the drains WITHOUT LC and you see the pixs. I just started the LC about 6 months ago and only have one test. So far, people are crazy not to try it. Works wonders with a $6 per qt oil. If you use a SM rated oil and follow the "book, you will be fine. Toyota has issued a sludge recall/warranty, it is fair to say there is a design issue. BTW, I doubt anyone is naive to believe the above stats because 1) only Toyota knows the REAL stats 2) who can guarantee sludged # won't increase in % as engines age? LC20 is a great product, but few are willing to shell out major $ for additives, plus remembering adding 1-2 oz of LC20 every 1K. I use Amsoil 5w-20 in my Acura, however, many don't want to shell out premium $ for Amsoil, then throw extra $ and effort to dope it with LC20. If one needs to spend that kind of $ and effort to avoid sludge then something is wrong here. People just want oil 1) lubes engine so it won't break down before they sell 2) reasonably priced 3) relatively maintenace free. Personally, I believe it is crazy to go Amsoil + LC20 + "glue your eyes on the odo or you will miss the insulin shot". The engine is supposed to serve the driver, not the other way around. If one want to reach a personal goal of certain OCI interval, that is great, but that does not mean it is a personal goal for everyone here.

I disagree. I have been doing 10 to 12,000 miles on my Es300 using Amsoil and look nice.Only way to find out is oil test. I am now using LC20 and a blend (group 3) and then compare. If you have sludge with short drain I would look in other areas like PCV etc; not oil. Not bad for long drains in a sludge motor. Amsoil does not make dino oil, tmastres is making a statement about how long dino oil last in 1mz-fe, not synthetic oil + doping with 1 oz of LC20 every 1K. If you have UOAs of dino oil that goes past 5K with 1mz-fe, please post. With due respect to your personal experience, one 1mz-fe does not have sludge, it does not mean all 1mz-fe do not have sludge.

What brand of oil you used? dino or synthetic? Who changed the oil for you?