Hello everyone,
I’m new to forums but a friend of mine said this is the place to start if you want to learn more about your car.
Back Ground:
upgraded from my beat up 05 Elantra to a mint 09 es 350 with 139,000km and wanted to do some routine maintenance

first of how what type and how many quarts/litres of transmission fluid should I buy

secondly I wanted to upgrade the suspension but am completely lost when it comes to suspension jargon, I’m looking for a set up that’s gonna let me go at high speeds with a much higher stability

lastly I wanted to improve my handling and was told about bushings, what are they and what other cost effective upgrades can I make to have my es350 feel more sporty and responsive


ALSO my mechanic said I have a faulty tire pressure sensor, should I go about replacing all 4 sensors or is there a way to locate which one is faulty, I have the base model and looked up some videos on a tpms reset but didn’t have any luck

ps I live in Toronto so sites that deliver to Canada or have locations in Toronto would be optimal

thanks in advance to anyone who comments and leaves any info I greatly appreciate it

 

9 liters of Toyota WS for the tranny.
The tire sensor can be purchased online. I did that 1 week ago. Reprogram it and replace.

 

TPMS sucks. The car is great!

 

There is not much you can do to the ES to make it more sporty as that is not what Lexus is about. BMW is sporty. Lexus is comfortable and luxurious and quiet.
To restore it more to like new condition, first put a bottle of Techron Fuel System Cleaner in the gas tank to help clean the injectors and carbon off the intake valves etc.
Check the engine air cleaner is clean and maybe just replace it. This is inexpensive and you can do it by watching a youtube video. Same with the cabin air filter which is behind the glove box. Look at youtube. FYI the car care nut channel on youtube is great as he is a Toyota Master Tech with lots of great info and instruction on maintenance. His transmission video is in the 2nd link below.

Changing the transmission fluid is best done as a cold drain and fill. There is no dipstick. Measure how much is drained and put that much back in. Usually it is 2.25 quarts.
Any other method requires a complicated method to check the level and get it correct that is best done by an experienced shop. The transmission is very sensitive to the fluid level.
I like to do 3 cold drain and fills over 3 weekends when I get a used Lexus or Toyota with this 6 speed transmission.
See these threads: https://www.clublexus.com/forums/es-...with-pics.html
and

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/es-...d-flush-2.html

and

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/es-...000-miles.html



The mechanic can scan each tire to identify the bad tire pressure sensor. However, it may be time to replace all of them and there is often a full size spare with a sensor in the trunk that needs attention. Get prices from Canadian Tire and other tire shops. And your local shop if you have one you like. To program a new TPMS requires tools you do not have. You have to remove or partially remove the tire to replace the TPMS. A shop should do this work as you cannot take the tire off the rim youself.

Regarding suspension upgrades you should just replace the struts and probably the front strut mounts. Many use KYB brand. If using an independent shop talk to them as the ES is mechanically a twin to the Toyota Camry in the engine, transmission and most of the suspension. Every repair shop is familiar with working on these vehicles.
The struts are tuned differently than the Camry so have different part numbers.
Also check the front and rear sway bar bushings and end links. Often the front end links need to be replaced when the struts are replaced as the old ones have to be cut off due to rust.

You may want to have a shop inspect it to see if any other suspension parts are worn out such as tie rod ends, ball joints, CV joints etc.

Get you brake fluid changed and your brake caliper slide pins lubricated.

Change the coolant if it has not been done. It is needed every 10 years or 100,000 miles.

Do some searching on this forum for maintenance and also suspension or struts as there are many other threads with tips.

 

Clutchless is right on the money, I'd like to add that it's probably worth swapping out the power steering fluid as well.

 

It is worth contacting a Toyota dealer to see if they will do a transmission fluid change and their price. Ask if they offer package discounts if you bundle it with a coolant change, or brake fluid change or power steering fluid change etc. I have used our local Toyota dealer for these services on my Mother's 2010 ES350 as they were competitive and they are experts at working on these vehicles.
Do not let them do any other work on the car or pay attention to the other repairs they try to sell.

 

Regarding the TPMS, there are two TPMS buttons. One on the driver side under the steering wheel and one on the passenger side under the glove compartment. They are for two different sets of tires. In the case of the car I purchased recently one was for regular tires and one was for a set of winter tires that did not come with the 2010 ES 350 I purchased. It was set for the winter tires and when we pressed the button on the passenger side the TPMS light went out.

 

for the transmission fluid is it going to be 2.25 quarts every drain so a total of 6.75 quarts in total to replace or a total of 2.25 quarts to replace?

 

Every drain is about 2.25 quarts. The transmission total capacity is about 7 quarts, well a little over that. I would start with 3 drain and fills spaced a week or 2 apart so the new fluid has time to work on the transmission and avoid any shock to the system.
However, the amount drained may vary so it is best to measure how much you drain if doing this yourself. There are buckets with markings that show the amount in them located in the paint department at Home Depot, Lowes, Wal-Mart. I found 2.25 to be the amount that it worked best at. I had a 2013 Sienna (same transmission) got used wit 89,000 miles and it only drained 1.8 quarts and was sluggish until I did a drain and fill and putting in 2.25 quarts. Then it shifted much better and it improved acceleration throttle response from a stop.

Below is a link on how to do a drain and fill from the RX350 forum as it has the same transmission. Good info begins around post 50. It has photos and other links.
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...threads-4.html

I recommend Idemitsu TLS-LV full synthetic ATF over Toyota WS as it was designed as a direct synthetic replacement. I am running it in my 3 Lexus and Toyota vehicles. You can get a 5 quart jug at Amazon. Here is a link to the Idemitsu site. https://www.idemitsulubricants.com/p...tf-type-tls-lv

​​​​​​https://www.idemitsulubricants.com/d...ype-tls-lv.pdf

 

The only advice I would give you regarding maintenance that differs from Clutchless is regarding the interval on the coolant. I use the Toyota pink coolant and change it at 5 years/50K miles, as the recommended 10 year/100K miles is just too long for my peace of mind (you want to keep the water pump seal well lubed as it is a ***** to change the pump).