Sal's Dad

Thanks - I am open to any suggestions, and will look on ebay! Is this a standard unit, or a Toyota-specific model? (I think the label says Pioneer) DCFish, I received your earlier note, but you didn't provide an email, so have no way to contact you!

I posted this question on the electronics forum, but there's not much activity there... 2000 ES300, glove box mounted CD changer, 6 CD cartridge. Cartridge got stuck. I removed player from glove box, and front cover from player. Wound up forcibly prying the cartridge out (my wife had put 6 new CD's in, and wanted them out NOW!) Turns out cd slides were put in crooked. :whistles: CD changer now appears dead - no play, no eject. Is there hope? Or do I go off to Best Buy to get a replacement? I assume dealer isn't the first option. Any suggestions are welcome! Sal's Dad :chairshot:

I have a similar problem - 2000 ES300, glove box mounted changer. Cartridge got stuck. I removed player from glove box, and front cover from player. Wound up forcibly prying the cartridge out (my wife had put 6 new CD's in, and wanted them out NOW!) Turns out cd slides were put in crooked. CD changer now appears dead - no play, no eject. Is there hope? Or do I go off to Best Buy to get a replacement? I assume dealer isn't the first option. Thanks for any help!

When it's chilly (under 20F or so) my 2000 S300 will stall if I put it in gear without warming up for a couple minutes. Even then, it's a bit disconcerting driving local streets at 30mph, with the engine racing till it warms up... seems to do this even at warmer (like 40F) temperatures. Sal's Dad

My experience in this kind of driving, with a 92 Honda Civic, was that it was VERY hard on the exhaust system. Driving a mile or two at a time, it would warm up enough to allow significant condensation, but never get really hot. So there was always a lot of water in the exhaust, creating a rust problem. Seemed like as many exhaust repairs as oil changes

Well, I took it into the dealer (Lexus of Watertown MA). I asked for the basic $120 oil change/inspection service -- I really wanted them to inspect for signs of oil gelling. (They said that it would cost many hundreds of dollars to check this, and at any rate the special factory warranty on this defect was for 8 years or 80,000 miles, and so any inspection was irrelevent). In addition to requesting the basic service (Oil change, filter, top fluids, inspect belts etc, rotate tires, wash interior and exterior, "inspect all suspension components", road test, etc...) I noted the noise. Cute, well-dressed, smiling service rep came out to me, as I sat sipping my espresso in a leather armchair; she told me the problem was "suspension mounts" (as I recall - this would be the "strut mounts" mentioned above by lexusk8), and offered to replace them for about $200 materials and $3-400 labor. I declined to have the work done then. When the bill came, there was $45 (1/2 hour) for this problem. I asked what they had done, and they said "diagnosis". I pushed the issue a bit, they got a couple technicians out, who said they don't normally inspect this "hidden" component. And, oh yes! they had to road test the vehicle! I pointed out that the basic service included both these items, and they were charging me for providing an estimate on a problem they were being paid to find anyway. They basically said "tough", and so it wasn't until I informed them I would be calling my credit card company to refuse payment that a manager was consulted, and agreed to remove the charge "just this time". This was my first, and (I hope) last experience with this service department. This seems like the kind of problem my local "grease monkey" can handle. Sal's Dad

I posted this a while back on another forum: Here's what I got on-line: Brand New OEM Master Key for Ford F150 Super Cab Pickup 1999 $20.24 Refurbished Factory Remote Key for Lexus ES 300 Sedan 4D 2000 $80.00 Brand New After-Market Master Key for Lexus ES 300 Sedan 4D 2000 $23.00 Activation Services for Lexus ES 300 Sedan 4D 2000 $60.00 (Not that the activation procedure is all that difficult, it's probably possible to do this yourself. ) The "refurbished" key looks new, new shank, and maybe a new case too. I didn't shell out another $60 (or was it 80?) for "home service", so had to go to their local locksmith affiliate to have the keys cut and activated. Excellent service and follow-through; I recommend them; the local locksmith also had nice things to say about the company: 1.866.BUY.KEYS www.streetkeys.com Sal's Dad

Thanks! I'll check that out.

I've got an annoying problem, with a 2000 ES300, 95K miles. There's a "clunking" noise when going over bumps - at first I thought the passenger door was ajar, but passengers thought I was nuts, and the door was always closed tight. But that's just what it sounds like - much louder, sharper than the low "thump" of the suspension. Now I think perhaps the noise is in the passenger seat mounting (when I grab the seat at the headreast and shake hard, it moves a bit, and makes a similar, but lesser, noise), or perhaps in the dashboard area. I find myself deliberately aiming for potholes and rough areas, to try to pinpoint the sound. But it seems like a bad idea to swerve toward bumps while bending down so my ear is near the passenger floor area. And I don't usually hear it when my wife drives. Any suggestions? Should there be a bit of "give" in the passenger seat mounting? Thanks Sal's Dad

Here's what I got on-line: Brand New OEM Master Key for Ford F150 Super Cab Pickup 1999 $20.24 Refurbished Factory Remote Key for Lexus ES 300 Sedan 4D 2000 $80.00 Brand New After-Market Master Key for Lexus ES 300 Sedan 4D 2000 $23.00 Activation Services for Lexus ES 300 Sedan 4D 2000 $60.00 The "refurbished" key looks new, new shank, and maybe a new case too. I didn't shell out another $60 (or was it 80?) for "home service", so had to go to their local locksmith affiliate to have the keys cut and activated. Excellent service and follow-through; I recommend them; the local locksmith also had nice things to say about the company: 1.866.BUY.KEYS www.streetkeys.com Sal's Dad

I don't know about "average", but I paid $32,909 for my Mom at Lexus of Watertown, Mass yesterday. They told me MSRP was 35,709. So that's $2,800 off. Then add about $150 for documents, registration, and about $1650 sales tax here. I'm not a good negotiator, so I first took Mom in and picked out the car, color preferences, etc, and let them know we were buying within 14 days. I shopped the internet and got several "best" prices, and wrote them all down on a piece of paper. Then I wrote the price I would pay at the local dealer (a couple hundred higher than the best quote from 50 miles away). I went back to the sales guy, told him I had done my homework, and my "price" was written on the folded paper. He had one chance to give me a number. We would then look at the paper together, and I would either write a check, or walk and not look back. He came back, saying his manager didn't like this, but quoted $900 less than what I was willing to pay. I smiled as I wrote the check. :D I think this technique would work even better if you sent your spouse, with a sealed "bid" envelope and a check... make the salesguy write his price on the outside of the envelope...

Not to quibble, but if (as I recall) the car was bought about this time of year, it works out to about 18,600 miles a year. And only about 83,000 when the seal was done. We "average" about 13,000 miles a year - 25,000 on the '99 truck, and 1,000 on the '92 Civic (lots of problems with chipmunks living under the hood...) I guess I've just never had this kind of problem with any car (except, of course, the '85 Caravan - but that's another story...), and thought it might be an issue. I appreciate your insights. And the smileys are working for me now! :D

Thanks for the feedback - I guess smileys don't work in forum? Trying to understand what you've said - so the rear main seal problem IS common in this model? "Driven like hell?" - at least 80,000 of those miles were driven by a very conservative grandma - she may drive 75 on the highway, but it takes her 5 minutes to get to that speed. Sometimes it's been loaned to others, so I can't vouch for every mile, but certainly not abused. And only 20,000 miles a year... As to oil changes, I quickly went through receipts in the glove box. Major service at dealer (another multi-thousand item beside seal, but I forget details) and a bunch of Jiffy Lube visits. But I can't be certain of the intervals, and she may have forgotten. Certainly she tried to keep on top of it, though. I'll look through the archives to try to understand the gelling problem, what to watch for, what to do... Thanks again, Sal's Dad

Hello, I'm new to Lexus, and this forum. My Mom is getting a new ES330, and I'm buying her 2000 ES300 - dealer maintained, driven 93,000 miles by a little old lady ... I just have a few questions about the car, and potential issues. About 10,000 miles ago the dealer replaced (IIRC) the rear main seal, and did the full 90,000 mile $ervice. Presumably this was an oil leak? She hadn't told me about this, and I was floored when I came across the paperwork. Is this "normal"? What should I be on the lookout for? The seat heater switches have busted several times - I found dealer paperwork, and the last time I swapped the passenger switch for the fried driver's side switch, so there's a hole now. Is this a common problem, or is there an issue here? Keys- she has one master, and one valet. Are there alternatives to the dealer for replacing the master? Is there a "hide-a-key" available? Anyting else I should be on the lookout for? I can't piece together ALL the maintenance records, and it's possible she overlooked/delayed an oil change. Finally, should I get the dealer to give my wife and me their "buyer orientation" for this car? Sounds like there are a lot of nice features (remote opening of the moonrof?) Mom has forgotten, and we'd never find on our own. :whistles: