homemechanic

i don't know what you are thinking man. who in the world would let you take their car to go get an atf filter/fluid change and then drive for a long trip before paying for it. may be you are the only one would do this. rebuild is not so bad. why don't you get an estimate from the outside to see how much the rebuild would costs. you need an estimate for complete rebuild vs. just the soft parts (seals, gaskets, torque converter). if you don't want to pay the rebuild costs down the road, don't even buy it. Hi, In regards to the transmission really you wont know until it happens but I can safely say the repairs on tranny are not as bad as you may think. I can share with you my wife's 1994 lexus es300 had 189,000 miles on the tranny when it began to exhibit a slight hesitation that got worse each day until it just wouldnt shift to 2nd anymore. (2nd gear Clutch failure= rebuild). I rebuilt it myself for less than $500.00 as I am mechanically inclined and had more time than money LOL!!! What I suggest is if you like to the car, go ahead and have the mech do a filter change on it and inspect the interior of the tranny. Then test drive it taking it on a long trip. If you satisfied with the car then buy it. As with any uesd vehicle anything could break at anytime but I doubt it would be during the inspection period. Depending on mileage as a rule of thumb if it was over 150,000 for a 97 I would not buy it. If it was less than 100,000 I would depending on its price. My tow cents worth........ (tow.... get it LOL)

I do atf change every 50K miles. i use amsoil oil + atf. oil + filter good for 25K miles and atf is good for 50K miles. both atf + oil still fairly clean at the change interval. since change oil + atf in such long interval, remember to check and top off if needed. the engine does burn just a bit of oil, which is normal.

Yes. visit a junkyard yourself. I got mine for $20. Don't go for the ones here on this site. they are just ripping people off selling a 10+ yrs old unit for $100 - $175. cmon how much an old unit is really worth. . pathetic people here. i think the 98, 99, 00 models have the same pioneer unit.

If no such thing existed in the car all these years, don't need to worry about it. such a bs mechanic. btw, what's the main for?

sometimes these tranny codes don't really point you to the right direction. changed the solenoids + sensor and still not working. perhaps might not be the sensor and solenoids. this could mean the valves or accumulator or other parts inside the tranny is bad. i don't think you need to tear down the tranny completely to have an idea what the problems are. you might need to remove the filter and valve assembly to check the problems. another word. . see a tranny doctor.

Suggest 89 or 91. you get knocking on this high mileage vehicle. same car. . . has knocking using regular. . need to go to 89 or 91. since cheapo costco sells 87 or 91, have to buy 91.

my tranny went out around 115K miles. . i guess the previous owner never really changed the tranny fluid and tranny got screwed. Anyway, the 99 ES300 has two models of tranny. you need to figure out what you have first or they will quote you the higher price for the wrong tranny. can't exactly remember the tranny model #'s when i had it rebuilt 2 yrs ago. they have the U140 and may be the E140. U140 is the newer model. when you ask for rebuilt prices, they should quote you two prices: 1. soft rebuilt 2. hard rebuilt soft rebuilt = gaskets, seals, torque converter. . .etc (no gears) hard rebuilt = everything including the gears i had a hard rebuilt + two sensors for $2400 (it means the previous owner really screwed it). Soft rebuilt is probably $1800 or so when they quote you the soft rebuilt and had to revise to hard rebuilt, don't be surprised. some will quote you the smaller price to get your car in. i guess the rest of you here can debate rebuilt vs. used tranny from japan. the price is not much difference between rebuilt vs. used tranny. unless you know how to install a tranny, then i would go for a used one.

i don't think it matters. the valve is open/close by an automatic electric pulse, and it will figure things out by itself.

Order your key from a Lexus dealer. don't try buying a blank key and have it cut somewhere. you will be spending hours trying to locate someone to cut for you. the inner cut requires a special machine and typical hardware stores wouldn't have it.

I have a 99 ES300 myself. I don't know why you need to buy a keyless entry. All Lexus come with that. As for the key, a NEW master key can be made, even you don't have one. Contact Sewell Lexus. I think they are in Texas or somewhere there. I have them made a master key for me before because I only had one key when I bought my car from someone. All you need to do is call them and fax them your car registration and driver license to show proof of ownership. It was like $50 + shipping. Tell them you want a master key, not a valet key. Ask for programming the key, look for the instructions on this forum. I found the instructions here before, and they worked without the master key. It involves with pressing the gas pedal, press the door lock release and turn the key a few times in some sort of sequences. It was like 10 min programming, not 2 hours + $200 labor! Some of these dealers should be jailed or executed for charging people like this.

A lot of the polishes sold in the store do work for a short time. They will make the headlights look somewhat new again, but the polish comes off in the rain. The problem here is the clear coat got oxidized and sun damage over the years. To have a permanent fix, the existing clear coat must be remove and new clear coat applied. Use the sanding method I indicated in the previous replies. Note. .minor error in the 3rd step should be 2000 grid paper, not 200 grid. zockslexus posted some nice pictures using this sand paper method.

try just searching for the window motor itself. you might not need the whole assembly (motor + the metal rack). most of the time it's just the motor went out. open up the door and see first. buying the motor new or from boneyard is much cheaper than the whole thing.

If you suspect water gets into the tank, you need to locate the leak or crack. Otherwise, water will just keep going to the tank. If you put in a bottle of isopropylene or water remover from fuel and problem didn't come back, you are probably ok. Gasoline does absorb water and the water builds up in the tank over time. Eventually leads to fuel line freeze during the winter.

I had the above codes and a winding noise. The overdrive band was out and bad solenoids. the whole tranny had to be rebuilt. if you don't have the winding noise, may be just the solenoids? good luck

i don't mean to a be hard a$$ here. If you can't figure out where and/or differentiate the oil drain plug, oil filter and tranny drain plug, i highly recommend you stop and take the car to a shop for these services. these are the simplest things one would do w/o much of help at home. your post is also indicative of a not a good doing it yourself kind of guy.

That estimate sounds about right. Did you try to negotiate w/them about paying in cash? Sometimes they can give you a break and fix the front end at no charged when paid in cash. If you do the front at the same time, you can save the paint matching costs because the rear paint is the same as the front. About the rear panel (aka quarter panel), the paint job is going to be extensive work. After fixing the part under the rear lights, it must be painted from the rear up to the sunroof. If you just slap the paint below the rear lights, the color will not match the rest of the panel. One way to lessen the color difference is employing a color/paint blending process, which paint from the rear up to the sunroof while lightening the color as painting forward. Make sure the insurance is paying for the blending. Sometimes insurance will rid people off and you stuck with that ugly color match. There is just no way of having perfect color match, so blending is necessary. However, don't expect a good color match between the bumper and the metal parts. It's always hard to match.

Anyone have an idea how to remove the CD player under the passenger airbag? Do I need to dis-arm the airbag first? Need to inspect the player to see why it doesn't work when the interior is hot, like leaving from work in the evening. Works fine in the morning. 99 ES300. Thanks!

Anyone come across this problem where the CD changer is not recognizing the CDs? It works fine in the morning when the inside of the car is cool. However, it would not recognize the CDs when the inside is hot, like leaving from work.

You can buy a complete set of 4 locks and 1 key from Kragen Auto Parts, if you are in the west coast. I bought a set for $25+tax.

136,000 miles = 220,000km. . that's not much of miles. i would not change the transmission fluid because the new fluid acts like a detergent and will degrade the parts inside the transmission if the fluid was never changed before. if the fluid was changed regularly, then it's ok to change.

It is most likely NOT a head gasket problem. If you have lost a good amount of coolant and you don't see coolant mixing w/engine oil or excessive smoke from the pipe, a head gasket problem is not the cause. It's very likely you have a coolant leak somewhere. Replacing the engine might not solve your problem. I recommend you fill up the coolant again, turn the car on after parked overnight and just let it idle for 20-30 min. Watch for coolant leaks on the ground or where the smoke is coming from. You can also try one of those coolant pressure testing gauge from parts store for $10-15. The problem could be simply old radiator leak, hoses leak or back thermostat.

sounded like a jam in the CD cassette case, not the changer that is broken. try remove all the cassettes, except #1. Play w/just one CD and one cassette inside the holder.

same answer as another post. .. 3/8" ratchet w/the proper length of extension. no flex head needed.

3/8" ratchet with the proper length of extension, don't need flex head

It's either the ball joint or parts inside the rack & pinion. The easiest way to check is lift up the car and have one person underneath hearing/looking @ the steering system while another turning the steering wheel.