Hello, so I no longer have my 98 es300, it never let me down, it had 183k at the time i got rid of it, still riding like a champion!
I know have a 2003 ES300, 87k, and its lovely, inside and out, 2 owners, no flaws except some wear on the drivers seat.

I have a 6 month or 6,000 mile warranty but the dealership is 100 miles away.

Problem 1 the car didn't come with an owner's manual and there's a few questions I have. I've looked online for a copy of the 2003 manual for download but haven't found one.

My air conditioner only blows cold air when the car temp is set to cold, if I move the temp to say 67 or 68 it immediately starts blowing warm air, this is with the ac on. Same with the dual control. Is this a problem I need to take it back to the dealership for or is this a simple setting that I don't know about since I don't have the manual. I bought the car from a non Lexus dealer and the guy told me I can bring it back in but he believes it could be a climate control setting or something.

I've read post about transmission delays when starting off at red lights, i've experienced this, if I try to mash it, 3 times out of 7 its going to ride like a dodge neon, until I get up to 30 or 40mph. I still have never got that drop (where the car appears to drop and then take off) like I did with my Ac Legend. Is it possible? Don't get me wrong, I know this is a Lexus and not a Corvette, but sometimes I want to show out with a friend and take off fast. Not often, i'm a real laidback driver but its good to have that option. If its not possible that's cool, I wont try it anymore.

Another question with the shifting issues of the transmission can it cause the transmission to give out? Does this 02-05 ES300's have transmission problems. I researched here before I got it a little and people seem to say the start off and shifting problems wont screw the transmission, its just annoying and not expected from Lexus. Is that true? From what i've read, most are saying don't do the upgrade/flash thing, cool I WON'T. But, I just want to know that these inaccuracies in shifting won't eventually mess up the transmission especially since i'll be paying on this car for the next 3 years.....

I've also read some on here talking about manually shifting, what is this?? I thought the es300 didn't have manual shifting, I see the gears but all cars have that, usually for hills and stuff like that. I use to do that with this mazda when I was younger, it screwed up my transmission. Are things different with this car? Is it ok, during regular driving to use those gears? It's not gonna mess up the transmission or motor?

My 98 ES300 had 183k and was riding quiet and perfect, are these 2003 models built as well? I still had the original radiator, engine, transmission, timing belt and all in my 98 Lexus. If I get all my oil changes, tuneups and things are these 02-05 models as well built?

So far, after having for 2 weeks this car rides no better than my 98 until I get to like 50mph, that's when I see the speed and power increase, but before 50mph the speed is the same sometimes worse going from 0 to 30.

The 2003 didn't come with the kit for those blue looking lights correct? So if I wanted my lights to be blue i'd have to pay some hundreds for the kit, I couldn't just go to autozone and buy some blue lights? I bought some blue lights from autozone for my old Lexus and they weren't blue, I was later told I had to buy that kit.

Correct me if i'm wrong, my key has the panic button (which arms the car and locks the doors) the unlock button (press 1 time unlocks driver door, press twice unlocks all doors, hold down and the windows come down--is there a button for the windows to go up? lol) and the trunk button. So i'd have to buy another alarm or whatnot to have automatic start? That would be great for the winter.

Sorry for all these questions I had my 98 Lexus for 3 years and most things look the same in this one, but there are some differences and since I don't have an owners manual I have these questions. 1 last question, for now, lol, sorry.

This is currently my only car, I drive it every day to work. Like I said it has 87k on it. I went out of town last week, putting over 800 miles on it. Next week I have to go out of town for a friends wedding, roundtrip, that's about 800 miles. Next month for Thanksgiving I have to go out of town, I'll be putting about 800 miles then and and another 800 miles for Christmas. I generally don't do much driving, 25 miles round trip on working days. But we're looking at 3200 miles in the next 1.5 months, highway miles but still its mileage. Is that too much to put on this car or am I good to go?

Thanks for your time and advice!

 

What do you mean by original timing belt on your 98 ES??

 

Rather than reply to that essay, get on AIM or email me and I can help you out with everything regarding the 4ES generation.

AIM: Megafast13

megafast13@hotmail.com

 

unless the first owner did it before 90,000, it was the original, but I do know it still had the original radiator, engine and transmission. The only things I had to do to that car, was oil change, a few tuneups, valve cover, thermostat, radiator and transmission flushes, brakes, rotor, ignition coil. Everything was inexpensive except the valve cover for a leak and the coil.

 

Ok, I'll attempt at answering some of those questions lol

- The tranny shifting you're experiencing is common. It shouldn't **** up the transmission, it's just unpleasant. The dealer can apply an update that some have had success with while others don't notice much of a difference.

- Assuming there aren't any hidden issue's you aren't aware of with your car, you should be fine putting those miles on. As you always should with a new-to-you vehicle, keep an eye on fluids, change the oil, tire pressure, smells/noises/sounds etc.

- The performance is better on the 00-01 ES than the 02-03 ES through the spectrum you mentioned (0-40 mph), therefore it isn't surprising you find your previous 98 ES to be on par with the 02-03 ES which was before the 99 ES update to VVT. 60-120 the performance is better on the 02-03 ES.

- Blue Lights? You mean HID's? That was an option for your ES. No you can't but an HID kit at autozone. You could just drop an HID kit from online in your car, but you shouldn't. What you should do is source out a pair of OEM HID reflective (02-04 ES) or projector (05-06) housings. That'll run anywhere from $350 to $600.

 

thanks for your help. I think i'll be waiting a few months before I do the lights and i've read enough horror stories on upgrading the firmware, so I think i'll bypass that. The reason I was concerned with putting 3200k on this car in the next 2 months is...my old Lexus felt bullet proof, nothing major went wrong and it had 183k, still driving sweet! I was wondering if the 02-05 models have that longevity in them. I hear the engines easily go for 200k, haven't heard much on the life of the transmission, but 50,000 miles from now I want my Lexus to still ride quiet and smooth. My last Lexus was the only car out of about 8 in my life, that went over 150k and still rode like a new car. I had a Legend that was a winner but a wreck ended that at 120k.

thanks for all the responses, also thanks megafast!

 

yeah, that transmission issue is real annoying. i'm not even trying to go to the dealer to have it fixed because i know it's going to be overpriced.

i think you're looking to much into the mileage issue. it's a real good car. mine has 126k miles on it and i'm putting about 80 miles on it every day. like GoodRevs said, keep up with oil changes and all the fluids, tires, spark plugs, etc. all the basics

 

Why did you sell your 98?
My 98 has 290,000 miles on it now and except the oil leak it drives fine. I think a lot has to do with how the previous owners maintained the car but you should not worry too much. These cars are pretty reliable.

 

A 4 car accident, I wasn't at fault is the reason I know longer have the 98. Thanks to Megafast who gave me a link for the owners manual, most of my questions have now been answered. Looks like i have the base es300 no heated seats or anything. I don't even see the switch to turn off tracktion control, is there not one on the base? Also I don't see the suspension adjustment thing is that not on the base? There's a round **** below the steering wheel, it turns all the way to the right, I didn't see it in the owners manual, anybody knows what it is? It's well below the steering wheel, sort of in the middle of the steering wheel. Thanks for all the responses!