Lexus876

r u 17 years old? i would die if my car had a hit like that

Well actually 18. It really isn't that bad considering he could have plowed into my car at 40 mph, which would have totaled it probably. I am getting a new Lexus probably in a year to reward myself for dealing with school. Now the decision is Lexus GS450h or RX hybrid :) Leaning towards the GS450h because it looks awesome! I'm saving my dream car (BMW M5) for when I get a real job.

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.

I made sure about that involving the paint match, besides the body shop is rated the best for color matching(I did my research online and from what the dealership said). They said my car's paint looks awesome even after 10 years :) And umm as to why I can't repair my front bumper right now, I also bought a laptop recently (Asus Lamborghini VX3-A1 in yellow with a real Lamborghini emblem meant for a car on the front of the laptop) before all this mess happened.

Ok I finally got my car back! It looks awesome :) The paint match is awesome, not noticable at all really. Now on to getting the front bumper fixed! Of course driving it today made me realize how powerful and fast my car is thanks to driving a sluggish F250 Superdiesel for a week and a half.

Well 16 when I bought my 1997 ES300. Of course I still like it when people see the car, then me and they are like Whoah! Now that I am 18, I realize I will have an even harder time of parting with my ES300 since it is so awesome ! But I am planning to get a new Lexus once I graduate from college!!!

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.

I made sure about that involving the paint match, besides the body shop is rated the best for color matching(I did my research online and from what the dealership said). They said my car's paint looks awesome even after 10 years :) And umm as to why I can't repair my front bumper right now, I also bought a laptop recently (Asus Lamborghini VX3-A1 in yellow with a real Lamborghini emblem meant for a car on the front of the laptop) before all this mess happened.

Ok came back from the body shop, where my car is now. Out of the three I went to, I chose the one recommended by the dealer because of paint match and repair quality. The repair estimate from this shop was $3,273.63. Turns out the metal on the bottom of the trunk was bent as a result of the collision, as well as well as a few other things, slight dent on the trunk lid near the emblem, frame rail also damaged upon further inspection. And something about the rear body panel, which I didn't understand. Estimate of repair length :1.5-2 weeks. Supposedly the best body shop for a Lexus, so we'll see.

Sad thing is rental car company won't rent the car out to me because of my age 18...... I understand, but hey having to drive a Ford F-250 V8 Superdiesel isn't that bad. That's my dad's car , he took the rental car since we reached an agreement with them that way. Imagine the looks on the road when they see a young person driving such a big car ;)

Here's the story : So I had just merged on the interstate into slow moving traffic, and then the car infront of me suddenly stops due to traffic infront of him. I managed to brake in time, but the guy behind me didn't and hit my car. The damage doesn't look bad, but upon closer inspection it really is apparently from what my dad said. All this only a few days after I partially knocked off my front bumper :( Why me? Well insurance people said they would only replace the rear end since that was the only part damaged by the accident, and the other part (front bumper) was my own fault. Getting a quote from the body shop tomorrow, so will update as to the cost. Here are some pics of the damage. The car that hit me was a Ford Van, the kind that transports supplies (work van). Of course he got the ticket for not paying attention, and surprise he was on his cellphone when it happened!

In picture 25, forgot to remove the carpet cover, the bottom of the trunk near the bumper is bent, thats why the carpet is pushed back. Dunno if you can see it but the trunk lining is pushed away from the bumper in picture 31!

Some sort of safety bar is bent?

This picture is where the trunk lining that meets the top of the bumper is pushed away from the bumper a little bit.

Lexus876,

Repair your existing lower engine bay covers. They are only on the car to clean up the air currents under the car at highway speeds. They don't have to be pretty to do that job, and if you wish, they don't even need to be on the car, as they affect its performance by only a small margin. Its your call. Use the plastic that quarts or 4 quart motor oil comes in, or margarine tubs. You might even use the plastic from black containers if you have any. Cut inch wide strips to go over the ripped areas of the cover, drill through the cover and the plastic repair piece, and pop rivet the the two together. Put the repair strips on the top of the cover (closest side to the bottom of the engine) to keep them from showing from under the car when its on a hoist. With enough rivets you can make a permanent repair that will cost you only your time and pop rivets. I've used this same method to repair plastic fan shrouds and even vandalized plastic mail boxes. If you use white plastic, a spray bomb of semi gloss black trim paint will hide the evidence from all but the very close inspection. Good Luck!

Thank you , thank you, thank you! Well I will do that after I get my car back from the repair shop. Someone rear ended me today, and the insurance company is only paying for the rear end. Sucks how bad things always happen after my birthday :(

Unless the bumper cover has been badly mangled, they can be repaired by any competent body shop. The deciding factor is the amount of repair time needed to get the bumper cover back to its "ready to paint" stage, versus the cost of a used bumper cover (found on eBay, or at a car recycling yard). At that point, its the cost of paint, the labour needed to prepare the cover for paint, and the actual painting labour. The paint, prep and painting will vary from shop to shop, but here where I call home I can get the job done by a small independent for $400 CDN or less. Good Luck!

Well I found out today that the undercoverings also need to be replaced, because the screws that held them in there, ripped through the plastic :( Body shop quoted me $865 (US). I figured I can do the repairs myself, but just need the bumper painted and the undercoverings to do so. All I am concerned about is that the paint color matches my car. Can't seem to find the undercoverings anywhere on an auto parts website. Does anyone know where I can find some undercoverings?? Bumper wasn't mangeld, just knocked off partially. Guess I should have taken pics before my dad and I fixed it temporarily( as in put some plastic ties in places to hold it in there, which works amazingly well).

Thanks for all the help!

I am considering buying a RX400h because of a new job that I got :) I was just curious about it and had some questions. The driving conditions where I am from ( Baton Rouge, Louisiana ) are fairly ok but I would say 65% of the time I drive in the city. Is the 400h specifically built for stop-and-go traffic and will it achieve better gas mileage in these conditions? I really want a Lexus again because it is the first car I ever had and because of the customer service. And I have to ask is the navigation add-on worth the extra money if I have an iPhone that I could use instead??

Part of the fun of owning the 400h is being able to see via the NAV screen what the battery status is and what the driveline is doing visually. You lose this by not having the NAV display plus the other visual's that I wouldn't want to give up like the speed dial for the phone, etc... I don't know if the ML is worth it in this vehicle, but if I had to do it again, I'd take the time to find one with it and listen to it. One of the shortcoming's in the 400h is the base radio isn't very good IMHO...

Sorry it took me so long to reply. I decided to wait to get one, mainly because the college kids where I live are very lousy drivers and I'd feel alot safer not having to drive it around campus for obvious reasons. And as to the job, just incase you are wondering how a college student can afford a car like this, I fix and install computers/ computer systems. Thanks for all of the help, I will definitely get a nav system now. Only complaint is that the smokey granite mica color doesn't allow an ivory leather interior :(

So I made the horrible mistake of forgetting about a particular blindspot while backing out of my driveway and knocked my front bumper partially off of the car. By partially I mean the left side (driver's) was detached but the right side (front passenger's) was still attached. The lights on the bottom were not disconnected from the car and still work fine. The only thing I need to replace is the front bumper.

How much will it cost to replace the front bumper approximately, does anyone know (including painting it and labor)? Would it be cheaper to buy the parts myself and let them fix it or what? I can fix it myself it's just the paint job I am concerned about. Any help is greatly appreciated, thank you.

Well we changed the timing belt on my '97 ES300 not too long ago, but we(my father and I) did it ourselves. Only cost us about $125 for all the parts and the labor was free! Of course it took us 2 days but its well worth saving all that money.

I would not buy the car.

Here's why, at some point down the line you're going to have to sell this car. You found this information about it being in LA during Katrina and so will whoever is looking at it then, and you're going to have the same problem this seller is having with you. Its stigmatized property.

PLENTY of nice ES330s out there, I'd travel for one vs buying one that concerns me.

I would have to agree as well. I'd find another one too personally.

I live in Louisiana and I bought my car from a Baton Rouge dealer, and it had been in Baton Rouge all of its life. On the carfax it showed up as an area where Katrina hit, even though all we had was heavy rain and wind and far away from all the real damage. That is what it will say for most cars in this area, even though most of them were never in the actual danger area. Check the flooded vehicle database, and please just take it to a mechanic and get it inspected. it really is a good deal, don't pass it up!

I am considering buying a RX400h because of a new job that I got :) I was just curious about it and had some questions. The driving conditions where I am from ( Baton Rouge, Louisiana ) are fairly ok but I would say 65% of the time I drive in the city. Is the 400h specifically built for stop-and-go traffic and will it achieve better gas mileage in these conditions? I really want a Lexus again because it is the first car I ever had and because of the customer service. And I have to ask is the navigation add-on worth the extra money if I have an iPhone that I could use instead??

Is it possible to put 2000-2001 headlgihts for a Lexus ES300 in a 1997 Lexus ES300? I mean they look the same to me. But is that possible to do? Also, I have a few chips in the paint, and the touch up paint isn't doing any good, how much would a touchup paint job cost for the front bumper and parts of the hood? Thanks bye!

I have a 1997 Lexus ES300 and there is something weird going on with my radio. When I turn my car on, there a black blob on the LCD panel of my radio. The radio still works perfectly fine, but it's annoying to not see what station I am on or what track I am listening to when I am playing a CD. It stays there all day, and I was just curious if anyone knew what is happening, and how I can fix it. Any help is appreciated, thanks, bye!

I need some help finding a sunroof seal for a 1997 Lexus ES300. I have already contacted the delaer and its about $500 becuase it comes with the glass as well. If possibly anyone know where I can get just the seal or anyplace cheaper than $500? Any help is appreciated ebcuase I found out I need a new one after water leake dinto my car :( and yes the sunroof was closed all the way becuase I checked that. Thanks so much bye!

hmmm yea well all the seals work fine my dad checked them but we tightened the lights a little more and it stopped but after we sprayed water on it only about 2 droplets of water slid down in the area specified, we are gonna remove the bumper and see if there is anything wrong back there. But tightening the umm lights a little mroe helped alot. But there is another weird thing going on on the right side of the trunk between the spare tire space and the right compartment where the jack is. Moisture and a little water is there, but both of the compartments are dry. I think its coming from aroudn the lgiht but I'm gonna take it to Lexus to see if thats the cause. Hopefully it will work! :) For a first tiem car owner this is and was and still is making me nervous about purchasing used cars, but hopefully i can get it fixed soon. THANKS FOR ALL YOUR HELP EVERYONE :)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

1997 Lexus ES300

97k miles, purchased for $7500 from Lexus Dealer

1 previous owner

Oyster Pearl, all options except heated seats cause Louisiana is way too hot for that.

It's my first car so I think it's absolutely wonderful to drive and have.

Problems:

1)Drain clogged and was leaking water in fornt passenger mat, fixed it myself and works fine

2)Currently replacing timing belt and water pump - $230 for parts, installing self

3) water leak in trunk and no clue as to where it is coming from

Mods:

1)none like it just the way I got it

When I opened my trunk this morning to check the spare i found some water where the spare tire is and where the tools are not the jack compartment but the other one. Does anyone know how the water got there and what I can do to stop it? Any help is greatly appreciated.