bison

Hi. Recently purchased a 2011 RX and got service records for it by the dealer but only had service up to 90,000 km and the car currently has 1200,000 km. Dont know what was done past that as they took it to another shop. Up until then they had regular service done on it with oil changes every 9000 km. I am thinking of doing a rear differential and transfer case fluid change along with a transmission change as well. The inspection I got done on it said things were okay. Would that be a good place to start? I know a guy who works at a toyota dealer that said they can do the transmission change at the temp that is required by toyota . Is that any better than just doing it cold? they would also do the other 2 items I want to do as well.
Also is it worth exploring bleeding the brakes to help brake feel? I feel like there is a lot of travel in the pedal but dont know since I have nothing to compare to.
thanks for any help.

salimshah

You should have the warranty and service book [thin one]. It lists service items at the suggested service interval. Just look up the items in the service span you think may have not been performed and simply catch up.
There is a dedicated thread on transmission fluid, please read up there and make up your mind what you want to do or want to get done.

When the right foot is firmly pressing the brake pedal. can you slip your left toe underneath the pedal and pull it out? If yes then you do not have an issue. [This is a simple test, and the exact + margin distances are listed in the service manual.

Salim

heshamos

Welcome to the forum, Bison!
Answering the first part of your question regarding transmission oil change: I personally would recommed changing the tranny oil because of the mileage and age. Tranny oil doesn't entirely drain when you remove the plug. You only get a little more than 2 quarts and you refill with fresh fluid. You will have to repeat this every 20,000-30,000km to get more fluid replaced.
What your mechanic suggested is more precise as the oil level is measured at a specific temperature (as per Lexus standard procedure.) Some people, however, do mesure the drained oil and put back the same which is good enough in my opinion but there's always a possibility that one mis-measure the drained volume properly. The other possibility would be that the initial tranny fluid volume was a bit higher or lower and thus you can't rely on the drained volume to determine the amount you need to put back.

Cheers!

bison

I guess I am just hesitant going ahead with the transmission change as it seems more involved to get a proper level than my old Accord. Well just bite the bullet and see what happens. I do notice when under heavy acceleration that if I let off before 6000 RPM sometimes it hangs there for a second then jerks and downshifts. wondering if changing the fluid will help with that along with just downshifting in general isnt as smooth as I expected it to be.
With the brake pedal I can not slip my toe under the pedal. Probably air somewhere. Will do a brake bleed as well.
Also is there anything I can look into to help fuel economy?

heshamos

Answering the part regarding the tranny oil change, actually after what you said about the transmission behavior, I think it's a good idea to proceed with the oil change at least for the first drain. This way, you get an idea of how the fluid looks like. Also, forgot to say that your ex-Toyota mechanic can repeat this process 4 times within 24 hours with using the car in between and that would be considered as a full change.

As for fuel economy, it depends on a few factors. City driving vs highway driving, Climate, your driving style, your tires and even the type of fuel.
I change the air filter once a year and use Mobil 1 synthetic oil. I purchase it when it goes on sale in Walmart or Canadian Tire. I use 87 octane fuel. I get 27mpg in Summer time and 24 mpg in winter (it reaches -30 here)

If anything else please ask ..

salimshah

I am not touching the trans-fluid (better left for discussion in the other on going thread).
Vehicle these days have 'memory' ... sort of trained behavior based on driving. Please investigate that before trying to clear as you may loose more than the trained history. Just give it a few weeks and it becomes truly yours.
Brake issue is or can be serious. With ABS equipped vehicles, the bleeding can be difficult without electronic test equipment. At minimum your vehicle "as is" doesn't not meet safety standards. Please have it looked into. If you purchased the RX from a car dealer, you can lean on them and have it repaired as they should not sell a vehicle that does not meet safety standard.

Salim

PS: There is an adjustment for pedal travel, but that should be touched ONLY when the booster is replaced. If everything is the same then the issue is most likely some where else. More questions come to mind as to why there is air in the hydraulics.

bison

I would say I typically drive 80 city and 20 highway. I knew going into this that the mileage would not be amazing but am only getting about 17-19mpg. I am using premium as I noticed a slight bump from mid grade. Might just come down to my driving style more than anything.



In regards to the memory of the car, that is something a dealer would have to reset or something that happens over time? I have owned it now 5 weeks.
With the brakes what comes to mind is that maybe when the previous owner had the fluid changed some air might have got trapped in a line somewhere as the fluid looks fairly new.

salimshah

Memory learning: I think by now your driving style would be baked in. Assuming you have maintained the style. In any case the computer just keeps averaging information.

I hope that your assessment of the brakes is correct. But please have the issue traced and repaired.

Salim