General Car Conversation 2024 - part 1
#2026
Lexus Fanatic
lol, no timing belt! Oil is changed and I got it washed. It leaks a little lol. Still good and tight though, transmission shifts firm and solid, got it up to 80 on the highway…she’s a little scary at 80 haha, original struts!
Headlights need help, and the paint is failing in a couple places but all in all for as old
as it is and as neglected as it has been the last 10-12 years it’s in pretty good shape. I definitely got my moneys worth out of that car.
Seriously it’s been years since the oil was changed…
Headlights need help, and the paint is failing in a couple places but all in all for as old
as it is and as neglected as it has been the last 10-12 years it’s in pretty good shape. I definitely got my moneys worth out of that car.
Seriously it’s been years since the oil was changed…
Last edited by SW17LS; 03-03-24 at 02:04 PM.
#2027
Lexus Champion
You probably don’t think so because you drive new 6 figure cars and don’t let them ever get dirty, etc. but that ES has at least double the mileage it has on it left.
I wouldn’t get rid of it.
I haven’t like studied the pictures but that interior looks perfectly nice!
I wouldn’t get rid of it.
I haven’t like studied the pictures but that interior looks perfectly nice!
#2028
Lexus Fanatic
Specialty Motor Cars in MA, they sell a lot of cool low mileage Town Cars and old Cadillacs and they have a YT channel, they have a 2006 ES330 with 96k miles for $7,900 I almost bought for her to replace this one…it’s a Michigan car though and has a lot of undercarriage rust or I seriously might have.
Last edited by SW17LS; 03-03-24 at 02:25 PM.
#2031
Lexus Fanatic
It doesn’t look like new outside lol. Wheels are all peeling, headlights are yellow and opaque, and the paint on the hood, roof and trunk is faded. It could be brought back though
#2032
Beater with just faded paint sounds like the perfect moment to whip out a single stage compound/polish job. That + cquartz lite = forget about it. PPF on the headlights after they're done.
#2033
Lexus Fanatic
Yeah I don't have the energy for that lol. I might take it and have it polished out and detailed. I also just looked up the headlights, $580 for the pair and I can replace them, I'd buy a new set of HID bulbs too so they're fresh and the same color.
Last edited by SW17LS; 03-03-24 at 04:08 PM.
#2034
Lexus Fanatic
This is the 2006 one that is $7,900 I was talking about, already sold no surprise.
#2035
Ugh that orange woodgrain with the gray interior is a TERRIBLE pairing! I like the 2003s darker woodgrain better. But at least the ES 330 has ventilated seats.
#2036
Lexus Fanatic
Yep, no ventilated seats in mine!
#2037
Yep, that gray interior needed black or dark red woodgrain. Ventilated seats, Rain sensing wipers, Rear sunshade. ES 330 had lots of big car luxury features at a more moderate price.
#2038
Lexus Fanatic
And the rear sunshade still works! The navigation system was also state of the art too at the time
The one thing I really wished it had was a power tilt/telescoping steering wheel...the next generation got that
The one thing I really wished it had was a power tilt/telescoping steering wheel...the next generation got that
#2040
Lexus Fanatic
Even with awkward-looking headlights, questionable wood-trim colors inside, and the lack of a couple of features that Steve mentioned, I still say, to this day, that the 330 version was best ES version ever done. IMO, noticeable cost-cutting in the design was done in several areas in the versions after that.
I say the 330 was the best version, because the 300 (3.0L V6) before that, in the same generation, was stuck with that infamous oil-passage-system that was inadequate and cooked/gelled the oil over time unless you were religious in keeping the oil changed. The 300 also had electronic quirks in the engine/transmission ECU which sometimes screwed up the throttle response at low speeds....they were difficult to address, even with factory re-flashes.
I say the 330 was the best version, because the 300 (3.0L V6) before that, in the same generation, was stuck with that infamous oil-passage-system that was inadequate and cooked/gelled the oil over time unless you were religious in keeping the oil changed. The 300 also had electronic quirks in the engine/transmission ECU which sometimes screwed up the throttle response at low speeds....they were difficult to address, even with factory re-flashes.
Last edited by mmarshall; 03-03-24 at 05:24 PM.