code58

Just got my new Omega DS-2.1 door lock actuators. These are the ones that cost $10 vs $5 for the no-name brand. Except color and brand stamp, the Omegas look just like the no-name and both are made in Taiwan. However, the Omegas have a much smoother and robust action. I think they are definitely worth the extra $5. The Parts-Express catalogue lists the Omega DS-1, but they have been replaced by the DS-2.1. I actually smile when I see "made in Taiwan" on a part today- feel there is chance the quality may be a little better. How times have changed, huh? Though, as I have said, the motors in my DIL's 99RX say "made in China" ink stamped right on them- they never figured anyone would ever see that, with being electro- fused together. Always glad to hear a success story. :)

Sounds like it could be the infamous IACV. Which is about as good a problem to have as you could get. How many miles do you nave on the RX? Do you do any of your own work? Has the IACV ever been addressed in the past? If you do any of your own work (if a scan for TC's does indicate that), I would personally suggest taking it off to clean it rather than doing it on the car, I think it will last longer. If you take it to the dealer, they will most likely just replace it and it will probably run you $450.- $500. Cleaning almost always fixes the problem. Good luck and let us know what you found out. Also, it may be the Maf sensor- in which case that can also be cleaned quite easily. If either one are the case do a search and you'll find a ton of info on dealing with them (or on the other Lexus forum).

:lol: :lol:

Is that $650. labor to install the timing belt? If so, though I realize SJ is an expensive area to live in, that seems more than a little excessive. The local (So Cal.) Toyota dealer always advertises $189. for changing a timing belt on V-6 (belt AND labor). Thats probably true with the commercial but that is just that a ploy to get you in the door.. if you look at the fine print in any add...it didnt mention the hourly rate to be charged..what cars meet that requirement and the drive belts... in a country that sells bottled water and canned air being versed in getting someone in the door is always the first step... also I am sure if you call the people that had listen to the commercial it was never JUST $189.00. It might have been alil high but all and all personal thought was not much... and it was done by a certified toyota mechanic so it is going to be alil higher than the guy with a lower overhead and his two cousins...lol... :P No, that is in a flyer that I get in the mail on a regular basis from the local Toyota dealer. So Cal. is a pretty competitive market. And the dealer is a pretty straight shooter- they have given me discount prices on everything i bought, not just what was in the flyer. I absolutely believe they would deliver on that price. That is a V-6 in cars, not pick-ups- that's about $30.- $40. higher. They used to sell me the red anti-freeze for $12.95 a gallon and T-IV trans. fluid for $3.75 a qt. by the case when the Lexus dealer wanted $7. a qt. Original Toyota filters for $3.95 on the coupon. All of those prices have gone up in recent time (because of Toyota, not them).

Is that $650. labor to install the timing belt? If so, though I realize SJ is an expensive area to live in, that seems more than a little excessive. The local (So Cal.) Toyota dealer always advertises $189. for changing a timing belt on V-6 (belt AND labor).

Sounds to me like they had a rather large supply of crack because that whacked out, they've been hitting it pretty heavy for quite a while. :snoooorrrtttt:

Do you know anything about the history of the vehicle? Is there any possibility the trans. has already been worked on? What does the trans. oil look like? You didn't say whether it was FWD or AWD. The AWD seem to have the most problems. Gone 200k- 300k Mi. with no tranny work in an RX? Probably not (miracles still do happen, maybe you'll be the 1st.) I don't think there are very many of any brand of car that the trans. goes that far with NO work- that's probably not very realistic. Toss a coin in the air- it's your money. How reliable is this dealer? Will he still be around if the car actually lasts 18 mo. and then the tranny goes? If he has guaranteed to do it for $1400. flat will he shop around for a place that will agree to do it for that price, but it's a cheap job? ANY car with 133k mi. is a crap- shoot. You may get another 100k care free miles out of it or it may blow up on you a month from now. There is a reason they're called USED cars. People don't trade in a car with 133k mi. on it because they wake up on Sat. morning and decide I have nothing to do today, I'll go trade this like new car in that I think I'll get another 150k trouble free miles out of because I like people so well that I want to spread this good fortune around. Like I said, flip the coin- it's probably as sure a thing as anything else on a car with 133k mi. Good Luck on your decision. I get what you are saying, and my answer is I don't know. The shop has been around for 25 years and he does service/body work/sales. He seems like a good guy to me (the owner). I want this car but seriously I am not a guy who drops 20-30 grand on a car, so I have to get one with over 100K miles. I have no idea if the tranny was replaced. The car was bought at an auction (dealer auction) and he only buys the "best" so these don't come in often he said. I have the title with the previous owners name and address, I guess I could look them up and call them? As far as him being around in 18 months, I would say yes b/c he has been there 25 years, but it is possible he could shut his doors tomorrow I guess. And the quality of his fix, I have no idea, this is my first dealing with them but he is "packed" with customers so that says something to me. Also he is in perfect standing with the BBB with no complaints, that speaks volumes about an independent sales/service dealer. Question is, maybe I should just try to find an explorer or something, maybe I"m not the kinda guy that should own a lexus? Please anyone and everyone that can respond please do, I have a way out if I want it, honestly I love the car, but all these posts about problems have really scared me. Thanks, Jason Jason- thanks for answering the questions in an informed (as much as possible) way. Those of us who are detail people and want to help are frustrated when there are no details to work with. You have not left us to be frustrated. It sounds like this is probably a pretty solid situation. I think if I were in the situation I would strongly consider keeping the car, especially since you like it so well. The only suggestion I might make is to call the former owner and question them about the history, especially the transmission. Even though I drive a Ford (pickup) I probably would think twice about buying an Explorer. With 100k mi. or more I think your chances are a lot better at having trouble with it than the Lexus. Ford is a good vehicle but the Explorer has a history of quite a lot of problems. If I were in your shoes, I would probably take the chance- given the answers you have been able to provide. The forums are your friend- a lot of help here and on the other major Lexus forum. We're here to help! Good Luck. :)

Do you know anything about the history of the vehicle? Is there any possibility the trans. has already been worked on? What does the trans. oil look like? You didn't say whether it was FWD or AWD. The AWD seem to have the most problems. Gone 200k- 300k Mi. with no tranny work in an RX? Probably not (miracles still do happen, maybe you'll be the 1st.) I don't think there are very many of any brand of car that the trans. goes that far with NO work- that's probably not very realistic. Toss a coin in the air- it's your money. How reliable is this dealer? Will he still be around if the car actually lasts 18 mo. and then the tranny goes? If he has guaranteed to do it for $1400. flat will he shop around for a place that will agree to do it for that price, but it's a cheap job? ANY car with 133k mi. is a crap- shoot. You may get another 100k care free miles out of it or it may blow up on you a month from now. There is a reason they're called USED cars. People don't trade in a car with 133k mi. on it because they wake up on Sat. morning and decide I have nothing to do today, I'll go trade this like new car in that I think I'll get another 150k trouble free miles out of because I like people so well that I want to spread this good fortune around. Like I said, flip the coin- it's probably as sure a thing as anything else on a car with 133k mi. Good Luck on your decision.

Thanks Lenore. I think I solved my problem. The actuator is covered with a white plastic shroud. The door opening connecting rod passes through the shroud making it impossible to remove unless you either disconnect the door connecting rod or cut the plastic shroud. Indiana, who posted the most detailed description of this process, didn't mention the shroud but it was obviously removed in his pictures. I believe that removing the shroud will give me the visibility and access I need to do the repair. artbuc- you do have to remove the (I believe 3 screws) that hold the door lock (latching mechanism) in the door frame. On my DIL's 99RX there was an existing arm with a hole on that latching mechanism that was perfect for the aftermarket actuator rod to attach to (hole was not used, don't know what it was there for). It is really easy to bend the rod and mount the actuator with the supplied strap bracket and piggy-back onto the 2 wires that go to the factory actuator. You want to leave all the original stuff in place and just piggy-back onto those two wires. I didn't have it near as easy because I had to figure it all out on my own (found this forum after I had done all 4 doors). Also, I used 4 Crown Vic actuators (free) and their original brackets. The outside handle doesn't have to come off but I'm quite sure you won't be able to fit and install the rod with the latch in place. Thanks 58. Yes, you have to remove 3 torx screws holding the latch in the jamb, another torx screw on the inside panel, a bolt holding the actuator, a bolt holding the window track and a plastic barb. I also removed the exterior door handle so I could disconnect the two connecting rods (one for door key cylinder and the other for the door). Also I removed the bolt holding the inside door latch to create slack on the two wire cables. Finally I disconnected the two wiring harness connectors. This was the only way I could move the actuator around enough to see what I was doing. More later. Ok, the deed is done and all is well. As mentioned before, I bought the $5 actuator from Parts Express (#330-010). I found them on the Amazon storefront but you can buy directly from them at www.parts-express.com. The first one I installed was DOA. I smelled it burning on the first test. Luckily I had purchased two and the second is working fine, for now. Parts Express gave me a credit for the bad unit and 1/2 of the original shipping cost. I purchased two Omega actuators which have the blue body and cost $10 (#330-580). The cheap unit had 13 reviews which were pretty good except concern that the boots tended to dryrot. No mention of premature coil failure. The Omega's only had two reviews because, I guess, everybody buys the cheap ones. Considering the work involved, I would rather install a $10 name brand, than a $5 no-name brand. Now I have a couple spares ready to go. Now, a couple words of gratitude to those who have gone before me, especially to indiana, Code58, Lenore and the chap who did the superbly illustrated DIY on the door removal (ClubLexus). I could have never done this on my own! Always happy to help Artbuc. There are certainly those on here that are clever and jump at the chance to help those that would otherwise be on the road to a thinner wallet. The regulars here know who they are and I commend them. My experience is that the Chinese products are not all created equal but for the most part you were just unfortunate to get a bad one. If you shop on the web (as I do) you can pay 500% or more difference for the exact same brand. Depends on how much you dig. I cracked the original Lexus actuator lock modules open to see if i could repair the motor. (They're electrofused together as you probably noticed) The motors inside were stamped "made in China". Isn't everything in this day and age? I simply super-glued them back together when i realized the module had to be in place for all the other stuff it interacts with to work. I'm happy it worked for you- it'll be easier next time won't it? (There will be a next time) I went ahead and replaced all 4 on my DIL's because the drivers had failed and 2 more were intermittent. I couldn't afford the $1300. for the parts and was covering car expenses for my DIL while they were going through a medical crisis with our grandson. (Didn't turn out well) Have a great day and weekend! :)

Thanks Lenore. I think I solved my problem. The actuator is covered with a white plastic shroud. The door opening connecting rod passes through the shroud making it impossible to remove unless you either disconnect the door connecting rod or cut the plastic shroud. Indiana, who posted the most detailed description of this process, didn't mention the shroud but it was obviously removed in his pictures. I believe that removing the shroud will give me the visibility and access I need to do the repair. artbuc- you do have to remove the (I believe 3 screws) that hold the door lock (latching mechanism) in the door frame. On my DIL's 99RX there was an existing arm with a hole on that latching mechanism that was perfect for the aftermarket actuator rod to attach to (hole was not used, don't know what it was there for). It is really easy to bend the rod and mount the actuator with the supplied strap bracket and piggy-back onto the 2 wires that go to the factory actuator. You want to leave all the original stuff in place and just piggy-back onto those two wires. I didn't have it near as easy because I had to figure it all out on my own (found this forum after I had done all 4 doors). Also, I used 4 Crown Vic actuators (free) and their original brackets. The outside handle doesn't have to come off but I'm quite sure you won't be able to fit and install the rod with the latch in place.

Thanks Lenore. I think I solved my problem. The actuator is covered with a white plastic shroud. The door opening connecting rod passes through the shroud making it impossible to remove unless you either disconnect the door connecting rod or cut the plastic shroud. Indiana, who posted the most detailed description of this process, didn't mention the shroud but it was obviously removed in his pictures. I believe that removing the shroud will give me the visibility and access I need to do the repair. artbuc- you do have to remove the (I believe 3 screws) that hold the door lock (latching mechanism) in the door frame. On my DIL's 99RX there was an existing arm with a hole on that latching mechanism that was perfect for the aftermarket actuator rod to attach to (hole was not used, don't know what it was there for). It is really easy to bend the rod and mount the actuator with the supplied strap bracket and piggy-back onto the 2 wires that go to the factory actuator. You want to leave all the original stuff in place and just piggy-back onto those two wires. I didn't have it near as easy because I had to figure it all out on my own (found this forum after I had done all 4 doors). Also, I used 4 Crown Vic actuators (free) and their original brackets. The outside handle doesn't have to come off but I'm quite sure you won't be able to fit and install the rod with the latch in place.

What kind of belts (brand) did you use? I put a new Dayco Alt./ AC belt on my DIL's RX and it would squeal whenever you started it for about a half a second. The belt was definitely tight enough. i went crazy tearing stuff apart for almost a whole day. When i could find nothing to explain it I thought to put the old one back on. Squeal gone! I miced the belt and found it was a faintly different angle on the v-grooves than the original. I took it back and used Toyota/ Lexus belts and have had no problem since. To top it off the list price on the original belts was less than the aftermarket belts! Good Luck, hope this helps. P.S. I feel it is the alt. that is just enough of a drag on the belt until it is spun up to speed that is causing the problem. Even if the A/C is on, it is disabled in start position on the key so no drag is possible there. It only takes a half second to get the weight of the stator up to speed. If you didn't use original eq. belts I'm betting that is the problem. I didn't want to tighten the belts any tighter to stop the squeal because they were already tight enough and i knew that even though that would probably stop the squeal, it would be hard on the alt. bearings.

Good old American ingenuity Lenore- what did they do 50- 60 yrs. ago? They sure didn't have access to the finances or dealers to have done whatever needed to be fixed. My father never had the money to have a very new car and certainly none to have it worked on. Whatever it needed, he had to do it and that meant "fixing" (not replacing) whatever needed to be "fixed". All of us boys grew up doing the same thing from the time we had our 1st. bicycle. At least we're not totally at the mercy of the shop (hopefully not much). I took the responsibility of maintaining and repairing my son and DIL's rather high miles cars when they were fighting the fight of their life when their son had leukemia (a battle he unfortunately lost), but was greatful for the knowledge and ability to do it. Shade tree mechanic?, doesn't sound to me like a bad place to be.LOL We were in Yellowstone Park one year on vacation in our motorhome and came upon 4 young men with an old Datsun. They were in one of the parking lots that have a small greenbelt about 8 ft. wide between face to face parking. They had evidently had engine trouble because between the 4 of them they had unbolted the engine and lifted it (with no help from any hoist or engine lift) out of the car onto the green belt and were working on it there- now that gives new meaning to "shade tree mechanic" LOL. Need to get this book to the publishers. Have a great weekend all!

Still waiting for parts but thought you would be interested in my temporary repair. Plunger and motor side contacts were in pretty good shape so I just cleaned them up well with fine emery cloth. Battery side contact needed much more help. Cut a piece of copper pipe and flattened it into a roughly 1-1/4" square. Shaped one end to get a nice tight fit into the curved wear spot on the contact surface, then soldered it into place using regular copper pipe soldering techniques. Then removed excess copper and filed/sanded to get the right final dimensions. Repaired contact looked great. Reassembled and starter is working great. I will install new parts when I get them, but I don't see why this repair wouldn't last as long as a new contact. Artbuc- Many, many years ago (our younger son and his wife just celebrated their 19th wedding anniversary and it was when they were going together) our now DIL had starter failure on her Honda Prelude and I took it apart and found the exact thing you are talking about here. At 125k mi., the starter looked like new inside but the solenoid contacts were burned half away. Being one to always try to fix (love a challenge) things, I did the only thing I knew to do with what I readily available , I brought out the trusty acetelyne torch and brazed the erosion full and ground it down to the original dimensions. It still worked flawlessly when she sold the car a few years later. I recently had to do the same thing to her 99RX. The starter (brushes, armature and all looked like NEW at 123k mi.!) I don't believe it's possible to wear those brushes out- the solenoid contacts, now that's another story. Although I do feel that they do well for the # of times they've had to endure the arching load of the starter. I remember many years ago how common it was to have to service the GM starter solenoids. I've seen them need to be serviced at as low as in the 30k's. If she has it long enough to give problems again (I doubt that it will), I'll just grab the torch and do the same thing again- doesn't take any longer than going to the parts store. :) You, Lenore and I are definitely on the same page. I get alot of ribbing from family members who say I am a cheapskate. They don't believe me, but I fix things for the joy of it. If I save $$ great. Sometimes I make mistakes which cost me as much or more money than if I paid someone to fix it. Of course, everytime I have taken one of my vehicles to the dealer for warranty work, the dealer totally screwed things up. I guess there are some Toyota/Lexus dealers who fix things right the first time, but I haven't found one yet. Artbuc- It's not about being tight- I've never been tight, I just love a challenge. I come from a family of fabricators (5 boys and it was in all of our blood). I figure if man made it, I can fix it. I've been a tool freak all my life and have more tools and equipment than it should be legal for any man to have. And I use 'em! Fortunately my wife is very understanding (I have never smoked, drank or gambled in my life and I think she figures she's still way ahead. LOL).

Still waiting for parts but thought you would be interested in my temporary repair. Plunger and motor side contacts were in pretty good shape so I just cleaned them up well with fine emery cloth. Battery side contact needed much more help. Cut a piece of copper pipe and flattened it into a roughly 1-1/4" square. Shaped one end to get a nice tight fit into the curved wear spot on the contact surface, then soldered it into place using regular copper pipe soldering techniques. Then removed excess copper and filed/sanded to get the right final dimensions. Repaired contact looked great. Reassembled and starter is working great. I will install new parts when I get them, but I don't see why this repair wouldn't last as long as a new contact. Artbuc- Many, many years ago (our younger son and his wife just celebrated their 19th wedding anniversary and it was when they were going together) our now DIL had starter failure on her Honda Prelude and I took it apart and found the exact thing you are talking about here. At 125k mi., the starter looked like new inside but the solenoid contacts were burned half away. Being one to always try to fix (love a challenge) things, I did the only thing I knew to do with what I readily available , I brought out the trusty acetelyne torch and brazed the erosion full and ground it down to the original dimensions. It still worked flawlessly when she sold the car a few years later. I recently had to do the same thing to her 99RX. The starter (brushes, armature and all looked like NEW at 123k mi.!) I don't believe it's possible to wear those brushes out- the solenoid contacts, now that's another story. Although I do feel that they do well for the # of times they've had to endure the arching load of the starter. I remember many years ago how common it was to have to service the GM starter solenoids. I've seen them need to be serviced at as low as in the 30k's. If she has it long enough to give problems again (I doubt that it will), I'll just grab the torch and do the same thing again- doesn't take any longer than going to the parts store. :)

lahermano- I agree with the other poster- it would be EXTREMELY unusual for all 3 of those to go bad at once- they're expensive and not like engine oil- I wouldn't change them unless they are actually BAD. How many miles on the vehicle? How does it run? Unless it is running really bad, I would do a little more research , you might find out you spent all that money and effort for nothing. The 1st. codes that come up don't necessarily tell the story, sometimes not at all. Hate to see your pockets turned inside out by the parts fairy and still not solve the problem. Good Luck! Hi, Thanks for the response. Well, The car has 114000 miles on it and the symptoms that i see are 1. Very low gas mileage, it dropped ever since i started getting the CEL for couple of weeks, but the mileage dropped suddenly last week. I cleaned MAF meter 2, while driving like 40 mph is all fine, and if i start accelerating then i see some jerks, possibly a misfire or something. I am still driving that, and will check more. all the driving is local driving about 30 miles a day. 3. some kind of burn smell coming inside the car and also at the exhaust At this mileage, are these sensors to be replaced as a wear and tear parts ? or can they last more than that ? what is the usual scenario here. Will investigate more. Thanks I wouldn't consider them wear and tear. There are ways to test the sensors individually. I feel there is still more research that needs to be done. I would clear the codes and see what comes back up. (TC's) If the same codes come back up it still doesn't mean that it needs the 3 sensors- That would be extremely unusual. If you throw enough parts at it you may fix the problem but need a loan just to buy lunch by then. LOL Well, I cleared the codes 2 times and i still get the same codes. Lexus dealer told that oxygen sensor and the airfuel ratio sensors to be replaced. I think they just want to rip me off and may not have done proper diagnosis. They wanted $1200 to replace these. If i change these 3 parts it would cost only parts ($450) + labor. What a morons.... BTW, Airfuel sensors (what lexus refers to) and the upstream oxygen sensors (front cylinder head and rear cylinder as Hynes manual refers to) are the same ? That is affirmative. A lot of people still refer to them as oxygen sensors and even parts books do quite a bit so it gets very confusing. The 2 on bank 1 and bank 2 (just downstream of the exhaust manifolds) are in fact AIR/FUEL RATIO SENSORS. Very much different than an oxygen sensor. The 1 that is downstream (I believe just after the cat. convertor) is in fact an OXYGEN sensor. The rear A/F ratio sensor (B1 S1) is a little tougher to get to and the oxygen sensor MAY require removing the front seat (don't remember whether dr. or pass.), or maybe not- do a search, but is not worth that kind of labor. I have changed both A/F sensors and did not feel that was bad at all. It is a little hard to release the barb that holds the rear A/F sensor plug together. Be sure and soak the threads for a couple days before you try and take them out (with a good penetrant). A lot of people don't realize you can wipe the sensors out by using a silicone gasket sealer that is not "sensor safe". Good Luck!

Just in case you don't read the user manual thoroughly... I just replaced the battery on my 2005 RX330 and found that several things were no longer "set". Memory positions for seat. Control of "other" windows from driver's seat. Sun roof. All are easily reset, but are a surprise if you don't know to do it. UPDATE: Battery recovered, and shop thought it was good. Curiously, the labeled 600 CCA Duralast battery (made by Johnson Controls) was only 500 CCA. Shop thought that rather than being simply weakened, good chance that only 500 CCA from day 1. Said had seen identical thing from Duralast many times in past. Rear hatch wouldn't open by switch, key or manual. I locked/unlocked all doors and hatch back to normal. I'll read OM about resetting sunroof and other windows, but any quick tips? I would not be surprised at all about the CCA's. If I have the opportunity to test a battery 2 or 3 days after I have charged it I do. I have seen several times that a battery that charges up fine and load tests good (even repeatedly) may not be able to hold that charge in the long run. Admittedly, that is very rare but I only mention it because I have seen about every weird thing you can imagine sooner or later in charging and testing batteries. Good Luck with your battery, I hope it continues to do the job! :)

That's not good news- I'm not much of a fan of Interstate batteries. It's really tough these days to know what brand of battery to buy- if you get any real life out of one it's an aberration- not the norm. I don't know of a single battery today that you can pretty much take to the bank (count on to be the real deal). There are people that think that Optima is the real thing because they're so expensive- I have known of a lot of people that only got a year or two from them before going bad. In my working days I built a command vehicle for search and rescue- used 2 Optima Blue top (light blue), the most powerful battery they make- rated 900CCA and they both tested new at 1300CCA. I realize these are a deep cycle, was only making the point of how strong they were when new. In less than 3 yrs. they were so far gone they would not take any kind of charge much less hold one, and they were maintained and kept charged routinely. So much for $500. worth of batteries doing much if any better than the cheap ones. At a time when they have the knowledge and ability to build some of the best batteries ever built, they seem to be building some of the worst! :(

lahermano- I agree with the other poster- it would be EXTREMELY unusual for all 3 of those to go bad at once- they're expensive and not like engine oil- I wouldn't change them unless they are actually BAD. How many miles on the vehicle? How does it run? Unless it is running really bad, I would do a little more research , you might find out you spent all that money and effort for nothing. The 1st. codes that come up don't necessarily tell the story, sometimes not at all. Hate to see your pockets turned inside out by the parts fairy and still not solve the problem. Good Luck! Hi, Thanks for the response. Well, The car has 114000 miles on it and the symptoms that i see are 1. Very low gas mileage, it dropped ever since i started getting the CEL for couple of weeks, but the mileage dropped suddenly last week. I cleaned MAF meter 2, while driving like 40 mph is all fine, and if i start accelerating then i see some jerks, possibly a misfire or something. I am still driving that, and will check more. all the driving is local driving about 30 miles a day. 3. some kind of burn smell coming inside the car and also at the exhaust At this mileage, are these sensors to be replaced as a wear and tear parts ? or can they last more than that ? what is the usual scenario here. Will investigate more. Thanks I wouldn't consider them wear and tear. There are ways to test the sensors individually. I feel there is still more research that needs to be done. I would clear the codes and see what comes back up. (TC's) If the same codes come back up it still doesn't mean that it needs the 3 sensors- That would be extremely unusual. If you throw enough parts at it you may fix the problem but need a loan just to buy lunch by then. LOL

Excellent advice Gary. A lot of people think because a battery starts the car every time they turn the key, it's in good shape. It may be in it's death throes and start fine until the ultimate "click,click,click" Proper care is very important to the life of a battery- and FEW batteries get it. Because I don't drive my truck a lot with the price of gas up, I have mounted a solar charger on top of the dash and keep it plugged in all the time. (no, it doesn't look like Rube put it there, it actually looks like it belongs there)LOL

You lucked out on the battery recovering after a FULL discharge. That is even hard on a deep cycle battery and EXTREMELY hard on a starting battery. If it had set dead for a couple of weeks it probably wouldn't have recovered.

Thanks again. Battery is in shop overnight. They'll load test it this a.m.. I'll replace if at all questionable. Life's too short. And I'll buy a Smart Charger to have around next time I'm at Sam's. That Duralast (Autozone) battery has a 2 year warranty. I bought RX used in '07 so no help there. Person I bought from has an RX300. My guess is that he swapped the original 330 battery to his 300. Otherwise wouldn't battery have been covered under lexus warranty, so car would either have an original Lexus or replacement Lexus battery (or does Lexus use Duralast branded)? Re: drain, no glove box or other compartment left open that I know of. Is there anything else active full time , or on standby, with enough draw to drain over extended period? If not, seems like might be a warning to change out a weakening battery anyway. BTW, I left town for a 4000 mile roundtrip in my 16 year old Volvo 245 (holds much more stuff and weight, and more dependable/diagnosable if any trouble). Replaced an 8 year old battery before trip simply as a precaution (no trouble). Returned and my 20 year old Volvo with a 5 year old battery started immediately. You're probably right about him switching the batteries- no, Lexus would only use LEXUS batteries as warrantee replacement. I assume you meant the Duralast had a 2 yr. FREE replacement- I would hate to think in this day and age there was such a thing as a 2 yr. battery. I am sure the Lexus batteries cost more than most others but are probably a little better grade of battery- they are made in Mexico, so who can tell. One thing I can say, don't buy the battery at Sam's club (i have had experience with that as have others), and IF you do buy the charger at Sam's, I don't think you'll be dissapointed at all. I 1st bought a Schumaker "Smart charger" at WM and took it back. The Sam's Club is made by Vector (at least here in Cal.) and I absolutely love it. It's a 25A and does a ton of diagnoses in addition to just being a "Smart Charger". I'm not sure that you really need one but if you do that's 1 heck of a deal! My judgement is still that it shouldn't have drained with no abnormal drain and a reasonably strong battery.

Calvin- Your money- do whatever you want with it but Toyota uses some incredibly fine parts on their cars. To start with, you have no ign. wires, you have no coil- what it has is COP's (coil on plug). You have a coil on plug for each spark plug. They're pretty expensive and I wouldn't change them until you have a TC (trouble code) stating you have a bad one. If you want to do yourself a favor, put diaelectric grease on the inside of the COP's- it keeps it from arcing and taking out a COP. I also would check the paperwork to see if they installed new plugs when the short block was installed. If they have ever been changed and they used original Denso's or NGK Iridium's, they are good for a minimum of 100k mi., and probably a lot more. These do NOT wear out like regular plugs. The belts and hoses also do not wear out like you're used to on most cars. I do the work on my DIL's 99RX and just replaced the belts for the 1st. time at 123k and they still were in awfully good shape. The hoses are original and are in excellent shape. As I said, they put some outstanding parts on these things and I would check condition before I replaced anything. I replaced the plugs for the 1st time at 97k and they were original gap and showed virtually no sign of wear. I would use ORIGINAL TOYOTA PARTS for whatever you do replace. They are better than probably anything else you will find. Also, if you want this engine to last any longer than the last one you need to do a lot more than 3 oil changes in 50k mi.!

The only way to know is to PROPERLY charge it and load test it. How old is the battery? I have ruined more than 1 battery by accidently allowing a small drain for a period of time. Doesn't have to be much of a drain but 2 weeks, 24 hrs. a day will do it. The sad part is if the battery has any age at all a full discharge is often enough to kill the battery so that it can not successfully be brought back. To jump start a car and charge it with the alt. is not an adequate way to charge it. A lot of people think because they SEEM to have gotten away with it that is OK. Not so. Charge it with a slow charger (I personally use a "Smart charger" which does a good job- it truly has a pretty good brain in managing the charge). Then have it load tested and you'll have your answer. Good Luck! Thanks. Battery code is H6NK, which IIRC stands for 8th month of 2006. Duralast 600 CCA. I assume from your response that all the little lights, monitors etc. on the RX must be enough to drain a battery in a month. Unreal. Does the "Smart Charger" attach to battery on car, or is it necessary to remove from car? If remove, are there any precautions other than shutting off radio? I've been dealing with a top notch, honest, small battery shop for 15 years (never will sell me something if not needed), minimal charges for things like trickle charges. I could jump start again and drive it in for evaluation/trickle, or remove and just take it in. Alternative would be to buy a charger, but if battery shot...... The interesting thing is that starts or doesn't, and did start momentarily after driving. Did have enough juice to light up instrumentation (after driving) even when wouldn't start--a threshhold power requirement for starting, which if not met, wouldn't even attempt it. Maybe for safety of the electronics. Is this the case? Thanks again for tip on necessity of trickle charging. mccldwll- No, in my opinion, if you don't have anything added in the way of electrical or electronics, if the battery is in good shape, it shouldn't go dead in a month. So many batteries these days are junk that it is hard to recommend a GOOD battery. Though the battery is only 2 years old, a lot of them are already getting weak by then. You just don't know it when you drive it every day. It doesn't take a lot of amperage to start a car that is in good shape- then it runs on the alternator. The battery is pretty much just for starting. When run every day you won't realize it is getting very weak, but setting a few days, much less a month will reveal the truly weak battery. If it's only 2 years old, is there a chance it is still under a full replacement warrantee? A lot of batteries now have a 3 year free replacement warrantee before they start pro-ration period. Actually, the "smart charger" I spoke of is a really great charger- I bought it at Sam's Club for about $50. ( normally about $90.- $100. elsewhere) It senses the battery as it charges and regulates the charge (even shutting down very briefly if needed), so that there is never any overcharging or overheating as is sometimes the case with a standard charger. It is well named because it totally regulates the charge so that you can put the charger on and walk away and forget it without doing a trickle or any other special preparation or monitering. Yes, you can simply put the charger on in the car- no need to remove the battery. If you're not comfortable with that, simply remove the neg. (ground) cable while charging. If you have no other need for the charger, I wouldn't recommend one just for this case. Your battery needs to be charged and then load tested by someone that KNOWS what they're doing- sounds like that shop should fit the bill. My guess is the battery is bad. A battery in fairly good condition can be rendered junk when fully discharged. I have ruined more then 1 battery by accidently allowing a small drain for a couple of weeks when on vacation. A near new battery may be able to take it but a battery 2 or 3 years old will be pushed over the edge by it. Once charged, the battery will need to be load tested to tell it's true condition. Electronics are very fickle in current cars but my guess is the battery has bought itself the big dirt nap-(the permanent one-LOL). Good Luck!