I'm considering replacing my '99 BMW 540i 6 sp with an '01 or '02 ES300. I love the driving characteristics and solid feel of my 540i (not a single rattle at 103K miles), and the manual tranny, but the repairs are coming frequently now and are very costly. I was under the impression that Lexus builds the most reliable car, but after reading these forums, I'm not so sure? Seems like many of you are going through the same issues I'm having with my BMW - 02 sensors, cats, leaking head gaskets, rear main seal, ABS control module etc.

I tried the search, but didn't find what I was looking for. I've read about the transmission issues on the '02+ cars. Did the '01's have this issue as well? Is the '01 the more reliable car being the last of its generation? Anyone with a good prepurchase inspection would be greatly appreciated.

 

They are very reliable.
Keep in mind, that what you're looking at is a rather biased view of mainly people that have a problem crop up, ask how to fix it, then dissipear.
Besides. There are a thousand BMW forums, and only 2 real ES forums, so we're doing all good.
Remember, this is based off the best selling car in america, 9 out of the last 10 years. Just built even better, with better parts!
540i, nice.
Normal mantenance. Sorry bud, but seals fail & o2 sensors have a limited lifespan. Normally around 100,000-150,000 miles.
Toyota/Lexus has no ABS, or ECU issues that I know of, minus a handful of gen1 priuses who's ECU would crash. Being Toyota, they recalled every last one they'd ever sold.
Maybe you mean wheel speed sensors. Yes. Every OEM I know of uses the same basic style sensor to determine wheel speed. Yes it is an accepted fact that those sensors can fail. They're generally exposed to:
Weather, the elements, mechanics etc.
Normally, if there is a problem, the wiring has rotted away from the weather, or been nudged during maintenence. The sensors themselves require very small adjustment. When there is aphysical (Not wiring) problem, the sensor has been bumped out of adjustment the majority of the time. Re-adjusting it will cure the problem.

Head gaskets were somewhat of an issue until '97, when Toyota moved the v6 platforms to Mult-layer steel gaskets that don't blow up. The gaskets that would blow up... Everyone selling in the US had that issue. In the late 80's the US Gov mandated a reduction of asbestos contained in head gskets & they got weaker.
My basic sentament, is that our v6's have no endagering problem that directly causes the head gaskets to blow (a sort-of older related truck v6 is notorious for it, which is where the stigma comes from). In a nutshell, if you have an 89-96 v6. If you don't drive it while it's overheating, it won't ever blow up.
(Toyota/Lexus extended a 10 year / 100,000 mile warrantee from the date of purchase if it blew up.)


Unfortunately, some things are simply chalked up to owning / maintaining a modern car. o2 sensors will always become slow to respond & then fail. Oil/coolant gaskets will always fail eventually.

It's more a problem of certain parts, regardless of who makes them, have a finite life span.







Now for all the problems on here, or LOC, with the Camry's on Toyota Nation, or Solara's on Solara guy. The vast majority fall under basic maintenance issues.









The transmision thing wouldn't scare me from owning one. If it were a problem, I'd get it flashed to the last update. That seemed to solve alot of issues from what I've read.

 

Thanks Phoenix - very imformative post. What is the other ES forum? This is the only one I could find.

What is the general consensus on here regarding the '01 gen vs '02 gen? Seems they are priced about the same - did they make a lot of improvements in the '02? Does the first model year issues outweight the improvements?

 

My general impressions of the es300 are positive. Only downside i can point out to is "wind-noise" at high speeds (65+). I had been led to believe that Lexus rides in general are super-quiet but that's not so. The sound system that's superb in street-driving is reduced to just adequate at higher speeds.

Having never driven a 5-series Beemer, I don't know if wind-noiose makes its appearance there as well (a 7-series I drove for a bit was amazingly devoid of wind-noise).

 

Interesting point - I would have also been led to believe that the Lexus would be super quiet. The 540i is very quiet on the highway - I routinely cruise at 80mph and zero wind noise. Maybe you have to step up to the LS to get the same?

 

01's did not have the hesitation issue as some reported in the 02's. The 02 was an all new 5-speed transmission that was fly-by-wire. The two cars are entirely different in how they handle and shift even though they have nearly the same engine. Whether or not it is an issue has been debated. I say, let yourself decide on a thorough test drive. You may have to drive it rigorously to sense the hesitation.

I'm not sure you'll be happy with the performance driving and shifting characteristics if you really enjoy your BMW 540.

The maintenance can be costly too, but like anything else, you can shop around for best price from a place you can trust. The most expensive maintenance for me was the 90K-timing belt, H20, fluids, drive belts, fluids, spark plugs. I have had Toyota O2 sensors go out too, as they are not designed to last a lifetime. I found that some independent places did not really know how much to estimate a particular job (timing belt/pulleys for instance), whereas the dealers knew exactly.

The stock 'premium' pioneer stereo in the 01 sounds better than me that the 02 onwards. No listening time on Nakamichi or ML. I also like the Harman Kardon I think your BMW has.

I occasionally drive an 04ES330 and it's quietness is on par with BMW 750, MB E320 and 528s I've rode in. The German vehicles are substantial and I think the doors have a lot of insulation/sealing. Because the 01 has frameless and lighter doors, I believe that is a contributing factor to higher noise.

Finally, I'd like to say that the Lexus brand has been the reliable. Although I had to fight the dealer at times to fix the car under warranty, they came through and so did Toyota corporate. That doesn't mean I won't switch to BMW in the future Good luck

 

miltonlin, great evaluation on the 01 and 02 models. I'm sure we can all learn from it

 

Thanks Miltonlin - good comparison of the '02 vs '01. I'm really torn right now - I test drove an '02 and while very nice, I felt much more at home when I returned to my 540i. It's much more planted and has that bank vault feel to it that the ES just didn't have. I thought I could live with an auto, but I think I may be keeping my 540i 6sp a bit longer now. Thanks for all of your help.