Dbl400Trbl

Hey Good peeps:

I went ahead and bought an 00' with 42, 000 miles with the 2WD traction control, tow pkg., and snow mode truck vs. the AWD version. AWD would have been better, but with budgetary concerns, we figured since living in Northern VA with snow that isn't typically blizzard-like most winters, we didn't see this as too much a sacrifice for needing AWD over a solid truck that has FWD with traction control.

Anyone have the FWD version out in snow/bad weather and live to tell about the good, bad, or ugly?

parula

Congrats on your purchase! Ours is fine in snow, never had any problems, I personally believe all that hype about everyone needing 4wd to go to the store is ridiculous. 2wd is great, gets a little better mpg maybe 5% and is a bit quicker off the line supposedly - have fun! Also had a lot fewer TSBs than the 99 I think which means the car incororpates a lot of fixes for bugs, so much the better.

Dbl400Trbl

Appreciate the confidence vote. I've driven plenty of FWD cars lower to the ground in 6-8" of snow with little problem so should work out fine... Now all I need to do is get a cd changer for this truck (who orders these without?) as the head unit has CD labels on it without a player. I heard the changer can be installed after-the-fact and the deck is ready for plug-in, just hoping not to get raped by the Dealer in the process.

Lil4X

Congrats on your decision! I had a '00 AWD and loved it - 65K miles and no problems. The car's a tank. I currently have a FWD 330, and despite the curse of being an "early adopter", I've had no troubles with it either. In normal driving I appreciate the improved city fuel economy of the FWD, and not only is the RX a outstanding alternative to a large SUV as an urban vehicle, it is a long-distance tourer par excellance ! If it's been a while since you've taken a long driving vacation, try it this summer - you'll love it!

Parula's right on - for your purposes, you made the best choice. Buy the cleanest, best-maintained, lowest mileage car you can for the dollar. The extra performance, slightly higher final drive ratio (highway fuel economy), and reduced complexity of the FWD will be helpful! Try to track down the maintenance record of the car, just in case of future problems.

The only critical mod I would suggest is to get those crummy OEM tires off ASAP, if they haven't been replaced already. The consensus seems to be 225 or 235 Michelin Cross Terrains for smoothness, handling, comfort, and all-weather performance. Putting the 235 CT's on my 300 was the best decision I made. If your present tires are still in reasonably good shape, take your time shopping for the best deal. Try Sam's or Costco - watch for spring or fall sales to save $.

If you are looking for an OEM changer, you might try posting a "Wanted to Buy" on the RX Classifieds:

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx350-330-300-400h-450h-classifieds-37/

There might be a member out there who has done some audio mods and has a good one laying around (and might be able to give you some installation tips)!

Good luck!

Dbl400Trbl

Thanks for the feedback. I do like the truck - the color in Mineral Green is awesome. Despite the lack-o-options, just an all around dam nice purchase for the $$. (42,000 miles for $18.5K)

KeysRx300

You can find the changers on eBay all the time. Thers also a guy on eBay that rebuilds them.

LexusLimit

I notice the 99 RX 300 AWD have transmission issues as I searched through the web and threads in the forum that I found. However I did not find anything on the 2WD drive models. Do the 2WD models have transmission issues as well?

Dbl400Trbl

I have seen a few posts as well of some folks claiming issues with these transmissions going bad or having issues primarily in the AWD versions of these trucks in the 99-00 years. Many folks have claimed that buying these trucks with the tow package option due to it having a trans cooler to be a wise investment. I bought our FWD truck due in part to avoid AWD trans-related issues and was happy it had the tow package because of the cooler as well. Our trans did have some sluggish shifting patterns however and as std. new car purchase service, we had the fluid power flushed in this truck.

It cost $300 to do which ticked me off (16 qts of Toyota Type II fluid at $12/qt is expensive), but am now glad it's done as the trans seems to shift more crisply afterwards. Before, the trans seemed to take a little longer than necessary to shift into gears, semi dragging in between shifts. The power flush is the way to go and I'm not sure what Dealers do at the 45K service interval be it a flush or just drain and fill, so advise says unless you've owned the truck from the start, power flushing the trans with proper fluid first to alleviate any issues is a wise idea and investment in longevity.

HarrierAWD

I used to drive FWD cars until I bought my AWD RX300. Never a problem in snow with FWD unless it gets really deep. IMO it's more important to have good tires than AWD. In VA where winter is mild, buy all season tires with good snow and ice performance. The November 2004 issue of Consumer Reports has test results for 22 SUV tires. You can find it in your local library.

Tranny cooler is great if you tow something, or often drive long highway trips.

Dbl400Trbl

I appreciate the feedback. I felt like we got such a good deal on the truck for the money and the shape that we could do no wrong...I skimped on some options, including the AWD that I probably shouldn't have... I will opt for better tires as these have some GoodYear Integritys that are basic crap tires with good tread left. The ratings for these at just tires actually aren't as horrible as some of the personal opinions on this thread I've been hearing. So I'll opt for some Cross Terrain Michelins next year provided these get me through without too much regret...

The main thing we need here in Northern VA / Wash DC area in the winters, is to stay the hell off the roads avoiding the countless SUV morons who drive 20+ mph over the speed limits in the snow with no lights on. No AWD or better tires are going to help us avoid the inevitable jerks that drive around here, so anything over 3 inches will probably have ushome in the driveway anyways