rlx101

found a good deal for clean 02 es 300, 115kmiles service history from lexus dealer, t-belt done at 90kmiles, price around 7500 ... but then i found out about transimssion problems, asked the owner , he says car shifts perfectly fine ... were all cars affected by this problem? i have not test driven it yet ... but this transmisson issue kinda scares me..

any advice? stay away from 02-05 ES 300? or go ahead and check it out? what are my chances of experiencing shifting problems down the road if even though now it shifts fine?

hoonami

i would go ahead and check it out and see it in person and get the feel of it. see how it drives, if you feel good driving it get it! i think it's a good buy as long as car is in decent shape(in/out). i have 02 es300, 2nd owner since 2006 put about 50k miles on it. odometer reads about same 113k and have done same maintanence and my car drives nicely, i just do tranny drain/refill every 15k miles.

tinkertoc

Transmission drain/refill is good advice indeed!
This is a complex 5 speed and the manual says change at 100+K miles. No good for a closed system with lots of parts interacting.
Also good to change the power steering fluid at a similar frequency.

rlx101

got some more details. the car is driven 2-3 times a week long distance 150 miles round trip. garaged. maintained by the book at the dealer. im hoping that the tranny is fine. will check it out tomorrow.

how long does suspension on this thing last? with all highway miles it shouldnt be worn too much.

question: does 02 es300 share drive train with camry, are transmission and engine identical?

i heard camrys had some really bad transmission problems in early 2000's.

thanks.

steviej

iTrader: (1)

I absolutely loved my 2002 ES.

The tranny issue is really not an issue per say. It is more a matter of getting used to. I liked the car better after I had the revised (4/05) ECU reflash. Some people hated it, some didn't mind it and alot didn't notice it or think anything was wrong with it. As a matter of fact, there is a huge pinned thread starting back in 2003 that disusses it to death. Best thing to do is go drive it around for a while in all kinds of situations.

I sold my 2002 ES last April with 108k miles on it. Never had any problems with suspension nor did I have to replace anything on my own. One strut was replaced at 24k miles due to a rattle but it was covered under warranty.

steviej

rlx101

looks like drive train in the 2002 ES 300 was different from the same year Camry:

3.0-liter V6 with 210 horsepower and 220 pound-feet of torque in the ES
five-speed automatic transmission in the ES
192 hp and 209 lb-ft engine and four-speed automatic transmission in the Camry.

Also, Lexus could be fitted with optional adaptive shock absorbers. Was the standard suspension the same as in Camry though?

rlx101

Guys are there any good detailed DIY manuals for '02 ES300? like there is pretty good pdf searchable for earlier ES's.

Megafast13

That car is amazing. Mine is perfect.

the only issue that I have ever ever known is the computer shifts at unusual times when going from a stop to accelerating. this can be fixed at the dealer with a quick software update.

This is an amazing car and I wouldn't think twice about buying one.

steviej

iTrader: (1)

Toyota Camry,Avalon,Solara,Lexus ES300/330 Repair Manual 2002-2005 (Haynes Repair Manuals) (Paperback) <$20 an amazon.com.

here is a link.

steviej

Bdub215

iTrader: (1)

the only difference (that i know of) was that the camry wasn't fitted with varible valve timing (VVT-I) until 2003 but it is the same engine. idk if they were using the 4speed auto still or the 5spd auto