DKRC-2003

There was a discusssion on the LS forum about which lexus engines are non-interference motors (i.e pistons will not hit valves if timing belt breaks) I have a 94 ES 300. If I understand correctly, my 3.0L 188HP 4-cam 24-valve V6 Engine (with EFI) is a non-interference design. Is this a correct statement? The only Lexus engines that I saw that suffer from the interference design are the 4.0L DOHC and the 4.7L DOHC. BTW, yes I am a moron when looking under the hood of my car :chairshot: In case y'all haven't figured that out yet about me.

Welcome fellow newbie!

OH, getting in and out of my ES can be a b---h....once i'm in i'm okay and it is very comfortable. I do, however have the seat almost all the way back and somewhat tilted. And the sunroof cover is almost always back (for the extra headroom). Only one sitting behind me is the baby car seat though... After driving the wife's Ford Contour (which I sold when I upgraded to the ES), this car seems roomier. :D If I actually had to "commute" to work, I would have definitely bought the LS over the ES.

Am using Time Warner Road Runner (Fiber optic) cable service and am very pleased. DSL is OK as long as you are close to the CO. otherwise it is not worth the trouble. was a beta tester with cable back in the days when you could see all of your neighbors' computers on the same line Oddly enough, all the wi-Fi networks that are out now these days...most everyone runs them unencrypted and broacasting their SSID's...I can see (and connect) to over 6 home networks from the second floor of my house right now....makes me wonder how many people have WI-FI cards that are borrowing internet services from their neighbors...

Keep in mind that gas companies "tweak" the additives that they place in fuels not only in different parts of the country, but during differnet parts of the year as well. I do not know for sure, but with all the other regulations that Callie places on motor vehicles, I'd be willing to bet that the fuel additives in CA are drastically different than elsewhere. All makes for many different sets of variables on why engines run differently...

Damn, if I had known the power that this simple question could provoke... I have only been a member here less than a month, so I will follow, um, how did my dad phrase it? "Never underestimate the power of keeping your mouth shut." RX in NC and SW03ES, my apologies. My main question stemmed from the fact that a "well maintained" RX 300 with less than 80K miles probably cannot be found for $13K for another 18-24 months or so when the 1999 models depreciate enough. (anybody care to comment how they think the introduction of the hybrid model will affect this--if any?) The magic number of $13K stems from the probable selling price of my 1999 Chevy Silverado LT that I would be using to finance this purchase. Right now, I figure that in order to find a decent 1999-2000 RX 300 in good shape, under 80K miles, with a documented service history will probably run me around 18K +/- 2K here in Texas. That leaves me with a 3K-7K delta. However, while I was browsing used car ads last week, I saw several LX 450s that were more in the 11-13K price range. Until then, I had never considered that model. Other than it looking like a Land Cruiser (and deducing that it was a Land Cruiser), I know absolutely nothing about them. The vehicle is for my wife. We have a 11-month old son. Loading that pickup with the kiddo and the stroller and all the other stuff through the side extended cab doors in a parking lot sucks. I do not want a minivan 4WD/AWD would not be a requirement (snow in Central Texas???). It would be like heated seats, nice to have once every 3-5 years. Did they even make a 2WD LX 450? The extra room of the LX would probably be nice (I am 6'-6", my wife is 5-10, god only knows how tall my son will end up being), maybe more kids later...Consumer Reports has asterisks for most of the 90's model years (I guess that means not enough models sold to form an accurate opinion). Barring another oil embargo and $4/gal prices, MPG should not be much of a factor as we both do not usually drive more than 4-5K miles a year tops. The RX (other than the tranny issue when not properly PM'ed) appears to be a rock solid vehicle according to most everyone, and it looks great. Just a little smaller that I would like IF I was driving it everyday. No offense to Honda or Chrysler owners, but for now I'm sticking with Lexus. Anyways, thanks to all for your input so far. Looking forward to your thoughts.

Thanks TOG for the insight...will have to see if I can find the CD2 here locally.

Got any pics of the wheel?

I just bought a 1994 ES 300 with 95K miles on it. Owner had not done the 90k service or replaced the timing belt either, although every other scheduled service had been completed on the vehicle by Lexus of Austin. I posted my quote from the dealer on getting both the 90K and the timing belt/water pump changed here: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...showtopic=14474 As far as mileage, I am getting around 18-19 mph in the "city". Keep in mind that I have a short 3-5 minute drive to and from work (where I use my car mostly) and hardly take it on any highway trips. I have run Chevron Plus grade (89 octane) since I bought it in Sept. I have idled the car somewhat in the past few weeks (adjusting headlights, running heaters when conditioning leather seats, etc...) so that is probably going to be a low MPG figure.

This is a copy of what Lexus of Austin quoted me for both the 90K service on my 1994 ES 300 ($299) and for replacing the timing belt/water pump ($1042): TIMING BELT $57.80 WATERPUMP $100.84 COOLANT $16.21 SEALS $8.27 BELT $20.11 BELT $14.39 TENSIONER $49.49 TOTAL PARTS $267.11 LABOR $753.67 TAX $22.04 TOTAL COST TIMING BELT PACKAGE $1042.82 90K SERVICE (OIL CHANGE, COOLANT SERVICE,AIR FILTER, BRAKE FLUID FLUSH, DRAIN AND FILL TRANSMISSION AND DIFFERENTIAL, TIRE ROTATION, BRAKE INSPECTION, INSPECTION OF SUSPENSION, FUEL SYSTEM, STEERING LINKAGES, CAR WASH, LOANER CAR, TEST DRIVE) TOTAL COST $299.95

Do you both just spray on a light coat and call it done or do you wipe off any excess with a cloth?

One of my lenses was yellow when I bought the car. I used Meguiars cleaner/wax on the lenses about three times (making sure that the wax dried before taking it off) and they both pretty much look brand new now.

If you had around $13K to burn, would you buy a used RX 300 or a LX 450 SUV?

Did a stint in the US Navy for a few years; when I left I took a job as a consultant for Northrup Grumman (actually Logicon before we were bought out). I was a network architect and program manager designing enterprise networks for the government, mostly with the federal Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) and the DEA. Left that and worked for a .com until I could retired from high tech completely in 2001. (and damn good timing I might add!) Today, I am fufilling a life long dream of being a firefighter, and am learning how to be a dad (my first son was born 11 months ago!) I hope that my 1994 ES 300 will last long enough to give to my son when he is old enough to buy it from me.

Was told by a friend that he heard that car dealers often use WD-40 to clean the engine compartments up. I had never heard this before...anyone heard or done this?

The vehicle maintenance schedule for my 94 ES only goes to 60K... I took it to the dealer this week and got a copy of all the service records (I bought the car last month), it has had all the recommended service done that was listed in the book through 60K and appears to have had all the service done from 60K through 85K (in 5K increments). The vehicle was sold with 91K on the odo with an oil change and I had the oil changed this week with 96K. It does not appear to have had the 90K service completed. Does anyone have a service manual for this year model w/ the recommended PM? from deducing from my VMS, i am estimating that I will need the following for 90K: Check & Adjust Valve Cleareance REPLACE Timing Belt REPLACE Drive Belt Change Oil / Filter Change Engine Coolant Inspect Exhaust Pipes & Mountings REPLACE Air Filter Inspect Fuel Lines & Connections REPLACE Fuel Tank Cap Gasket <<at 90K or 120K? was last done @ 60K REPLACE Spark Plugs <<at 90K or 120K? SAA Inspect Charcoal Canister Inspect Brake Linings/Drums Inspect Brake Pads/Discs REPLACE Brake Fluid Inspect Brake Line Pipes & Hoses Inspect Steering Gear Box (Leakage) Inspect Steering Linkage Inspect Ball Joints & Dust Covers Inspect Drive Shaft Boots REPLACE ATF Fluid (filter also?) REPLACE Differential Fluid Inspect Nuts/Bolts on Chassis Inspect Body Road Test Inspect Battery Set Tire Pressure Rotate Tires Also, from reading other posts, I take it that replacing the water pump is also a good idea. The Lexus dealer told me that the 90K service is around $1,300. Your thoughts, opinions, experiences? Thanks!

It was a 1996 Contour SE, V6, fully loaded, every option except auto tranny and ABS (it had the 5-sp manual). It was a great car. Bought it for my wife, when we had our son, I traded cars with her (I had a 99 Silverado LT) so that they would have some more sheetmetal around them. I'm 6'-6" and was a little cramped in the car so I sold it and bought my Lexus.

I agree, but in many states its the law. ← Yessir...when they give you two, they expect you to use two... <_<

Nice Car! I just sold my Ford Contour and bought a 94 ES 300, lol about ditching your contour for a lexus... So what if it is an older model...I took mine to the dealership on Monday to get the oil changed and see if I could get a copy of the maintenance history (11 pages...almost all PM! only major probs were dead batteries (2) and a leaking transmission pan @ 60k!)...there must have been 35 cars there for service that morining, and mine was the oldest one there! It was funny though b/c everybody thought that I was the original owner and kept asking me questions about how well it was holding up and how great it still looks LOL....

Texas just made it illegal last year to have a license plate frame (or any other object) that blocks any portion of your license plate...The cops love this law b/c almost every vehicle on the road has one and it gives them easy PC to pull you over. I've always thought that license plates on the front of vehicles are ugly...especially when the vehicle was not designed to have one (and you have to add a kit to install it).

First time Lexus owner! Purchased 1994 ES 300 last month. Never owned a foreign car before (unless you count the VW beetle-baja that I owned for 2 weeks as a teenager...) Champagne exterior with tan leather interior. 95K miles. 2.5 Owners (first owner traded it in to dealership, second owner bought it with intention of letting their son drive it. Once they determined that cost of insurance + cost of loan >$800/month, they had his license revoked and I bought the car from them 35 days after they bought it...they put less than 300 miles on it) Paid $6,700 for it (right at KBB). Only probs with it are two burned out needles (speedo and temp), one of the headlights was yellowed out/dirty, and both license plate lights are burned out. everything else works perfectly! Not a ding on it, the paint is perfect, interior looks brand new...feels like I just bought a brand new car! Nobody I know that has looked at it can believe that this is an eleven year old car... Clean CARFAX history, took it to three mechanics before I bought it (ok im paranoid...Caveat Emptor), appears that the dealership replaced all the brakes and all hoses were brand new, no mechanical issues whatsoever...only thing was that the coolant was somewhat "brown". This car has the quietest running motor ever...while I was test driving it I tried to start the engine twice while it was running... Am planning on taking it to the lexus dealer to get the oil changed and the coolant flushed. Am hoping to get a copy of the service history at that time also (should had done that before I bought it but they were closed the day that I bought the car). Will let the lexus dealer service the vehicle as long as I can afford it... Cleaned the headlights with Meguiars car cleaner-wax about three times and that took the yellow almost completely out of the lens...thanks for that idea...saved me from trying to bake those lights and disassemble. Replaced all the headlights with Sylvania Silverstars...again thanks for that idea & recommendation. Still researching the needles and how I want to fix that. The taillights...looks like I will take both of them completely apart and replace every bulb in them. Does anyone have a good lead on replacing these bulbs with LEDs? Otherwise, I simply plan on keeping the car 100% stock. BTW, I bought the car simply to drive to and from work. I am a firefighter and live only 5 minutes from my station. Will probably only put 4,000 miles/year on this car. Lives in my garage on my days off...I joke that I will let my 10-month old son have the car when he turns 16...well see if it makes it that far. I'm 35 years old and I'm paying $688/year for full coverage. Anyways, been using the site extensively to research and fix any of the little issues and look for potential issues. Thanks for all your input! Hope that I will be of help here in the years to come. Plan on replacing my 1999 Chevy Silverado LT for a Lexus RX300 next year for my wife... DKRC-2003 http://us.lexusownersclub.com/gallery/ES/IMG_9613 http://us.lexusownersclub.com/gallery/ES/IMG_9612 http://us.lexusownersclub.com/gallery/ES/IMG_9608 http://us.lexusownersclub.com/gallery/ES/IMG_9617