I've been tasked with looking over a 2004 Lexus RX330 with 195k miles. It's one owner, babied and dealer serviced since new coming with a folder of receipts. I don't know much about these other than they were during Lexus's good years and they hold their value. This will either end up living with one of my wife's co-workers or with Deucekid#1 and either way it would be good of me to be able to look it over well.
It's just a fancy Highlander, nothing too special about it mechanically. They're pretty solid from everything I know and have seen.
Those are pretty close to a high water mark for reliability. I think the main thing that gave them problems was lack of oil maintenance clogging some tiny passages in the head for the variable valve timing or something like that. If that one has been well maintained i wouldn't give it a second thought. They do need a timing belt, though, and at that mileage it's possible it's been coasting on the same timing belt that got replaced at the first 100k which might have been 10+ years ago, so it'd be good to check.
In reply to Vigo :
Thanks, I'll do a records check on it.
My step mother owns one. It's boring. She wanted a reliable car that made her feel "safe" which apparently means SUV so she can see through traffic. Of course everything on the road is the same height now so that doesn't seem like much of an advantage. It's dull. But it's been reliable for her and she's a late 60's retired teacher who takes the car to the dealer for maintenance. I'm not sure she has ever popped the hood on the thing.
In reply to KyAllroad (Jeremy) :
The car is going to end up with one or the other of two teen girls who are basically 60 year old women in much younger shells. Boring with no need to pop the hood is ideal. I did learn that these came with first gen stability control and that makes me happy.
I drove many years ago and I still remember how slow it was. At the time I DD'd a 91 miata so I was pretty well acquainted with the concept 
I guess that bodes well for the intended users.
My MIL has a 3rd generation (The 04 is a second gen). It is the perfect appliance for a person who needs safe, reliable transportation in extreme comfort.
I hate driving the damn thing--easily the most boring vehicle I've ever driven--but isn't that kind of the point?
FYI: It shares a platform with the Camry, Solara, Avalon, Highlander, Sienna, ES, etc. All of those are good, reliable snoozmobiles. This one is probably the snooziest of the entire lineup.
This thing is a damn spaceship for 2004. Backup camera and touch screen controls for the HVAC and Nav. More to come. I washed it. Mrs. Duece was thrilled that every other car is dirty and I jumped right up to wash this one.
There are a billion of them in this area, and every single one is driven conservatively by a middle-age woman. I've never seen one broken down, or even dirty for that matter. They are the step-up car from Highlanders in the suburban caste system ;)
My in-laws have one and it has almost 300K miles on it and it keeps on chugging. They are the millionaire nextdoor type, so they refuse to get something else until it dies. Slightly morbid, but I wouldn't be surprised if they go before the car.
I had one, it was an anvil, only failure in 125,000 was a weeping radiator end tank, just a honest, nice, comfy suv. Mark levinson audio was awesome once i added a sub. I removed the roof rack and it was quieter wind noise wise and looked sleeker. They look cool with a little drop. Say boring all you want but it was faster down any road than my buddy’s bolt on’d answer so ;-p’
irish44j said:There are a billion of them in this area, and every single one is driven conservatively by a middle-age woman. I've never seen one broken down, or even dirty for that matter. They are the step-up car from Highlanders in the suburban caste system ;)
Yep, I can't recall the last time I saw a male driving one. They are the ubiquitous suburban soccer mom transport. Camry based, reliable as grandpa's hammer and just about as exciting too.
Drove the kids to school in it this morning and then threw it on the lift. This is my report back to the involved parties.
I'll start with the mechanical stuff.
It needs a timing belt. When that happens it also needs a water pump as part of that job and to fix the valve cover gaskets while you're in there because they're leaking on both heads. The radiator has some weeping where the end tanks attach to the core so I'd replace that at the same time since the coolant will be out and a bunch of the car will be apart. Both accessory belts as well because they're cracking and you have to take them off to do the timing belt so you might as well put good ones back on.
Steering rack is leaking a bit, not a lot. I wouldn't change it now, but it has caused the passenger boot to fall apart so that needs to be replaced.
Rear differential is weeping at the drivers axle so that seal needs to be replaced.
All of the CV boots look good and the transmission and front differential look good. All of the suspension is tight, bushings are getting old but nothing is gone yet. It needs new front sway bar end links eventually as their dust boots are cracked. Shock boots are falling apart but the shocks themselves aren't leaking.
The piece of the undertray that covers the oil pan is missing.
The spare tire was a little loose on it's cable so I tightened that up and added 1/3 gallon of windshield washer fluid just to make sure the dash light worked and it was actually low. It was.
The side mirrors need to be replaced. As long as the not heated ones can be adapted to what's there those are $10 each, if the heated glass is required that's $50 each. Headlights need something done. They're HID's and those quite expensive to just replace so I'd attempt/pay to get them polished back to clear. There is a chance the non HID lights might just plug in and those are only $100 each. I'd have to check on that. They are bad enough it's a safety issue.
Tires are date coded 06-14 and they're starting to weather check. They have enough tread but they'll be properly aged out before they wear out and I'd replace them now, or at least soon.
The outside is getting rough. The dent on the passenger side and the minor scratches on the doors bring down the overall condition. On the inside the cracked dash and ripped rear armrest do the same. None of that affects the drivability at all.
I put the code reader on and there are no stored codes. That's always nice.
There is a flapping rattle in the dash associated with the blower fan. Might just be a leaf or something got sucked in, might be a door failing. I wouldn't take apart the dash to try and fix it, but it's there.
The car drives wonderfully. It's 95% of what a new Lexus would be. I have no doubt that with a timing belt it's good for another 100k miles driving just how it does now. These seem to be very well liked by Lexus people and hold their value well compared to a similar Toyota with the same chassis. The only long term issues I can see are the steering rack if it continues to wear. Changing that is a significant job.
mazdeuce - Seth said:
There is a flapping rattle in the dash associated with the blower fan. Might just be a leaf or something got sucked in, might be a door failing. I wouldn't take apart the dash to try and fix it, but it's there.
That might be a failing climate control actuator. My 2001 GS430 had that, made a kind of motorized hard drive seeking noise. They're not terrible to replace, just a bit tedious with tight clearances in the space around the glove box.
These are pretty bulletproof. Rear wheel bearings, faded door handles compared to the body. And a occasional harsh shift for some drivers depending on driving style. There were updates for the later, but it never really fixed it. On the plus side, the trans wont ever break.
Blower motor noise is likely contaminate in the blower motor. Mouse or otherwise.
Some of the servos for the blend doors loose thiwr memory and constantly search for the right position, making a clicking type rattle. Adjust temperature and mode until it stops. That's the faulty servo. Some are easy, remove glove box replacement. Some are hard. Remove dash.
Front "transfer cases" leak trans fluid on the passenger side. Fix is a pain.
Radiators were pretty much crap in this vintage. Replace with latest part number at timing belt replacement. White dust on the dash is the evaporator. Known issue tsb. As is the dash rattle. Twofer repair.
mazdeuce - Seth said:Drove the kids to school in it this morning and then threw it on the lift. This is my report back to the involved parties.
I'll start with the mechanical stuff.
It needs a timing belt. When that happens it also needs a water pump as part of that job and to fix the valve cover gaskets while you're in there because they're leaking on both heads. The radiator has some weeping where the end tanks attach to the core so I'd replace that at the same time since the coolant will be out and a bunch of the car will be apart. Both accessory belts as well because they're cracking and you have to take them off to do the timing belt so you might as well put good ones back on.
Steering rack is leaking a bit, not a lot. I wouldn't change it now, but it has caused the passenger boot to fall apart so that needs to be replaced.
Rear differential is weeping at the drivers axle so that seal needs to be replaced.
All of the CV boots look good and the transmission and front differential look good. All of the suspension is tight, bushings are getting old but nothing is gone yet. It needs new front sway bar end links eventually as their dust boots are cracked. Shock boots are falling apart but the shocks themselves aren't leaking.
The piece of the undertray that covers the oil pan is missing.
The spare tire was a little loose on it's cable so I tightened that up and added 1/3 gallon of windshield washer fluid just to make sure the dash light worked and it was actually low. It was.
The side mirrors need to be replaced. As long as the not heated ones can be adapted to what's there those are $10 each, if the heated glass is required that's $50 each. Headlights need something done. They're HID's and those quite expensive to just replace so I'd attempt/pay to get them polished back to clear. There is a chance the non HID lights might just plug in and those are only $100 each. I'd have to check on that. They are bad enough it's a safety issue.
Tires are date coded 06-14 and they're starting to weather check. They have enough tread but they'll be properly aged out before they wear out and I'd replace them now, or at least soon.
The outside is getting rough. The dent on the passenger side and the minor scratches on the doors bring down the overall condition. On the inside the cracked dash and ripped rear armrest do the same. None of that affects the drivability at all.
I put the code reader on and there are no stored codes. That's always nice.
There is a flapping rattle in the dash associated with the blower fan. Might just be a leaf or something got sucked in, might be a door failing. I wouldn't take apart the dash to try and fix it, but it's there.
The car drives wonderfully. It's 95% of what a new Lexus would be. I have no doubt that with a timing belt it's good for another 100k miles driving just how it does now. These seem to be very well liked by Lexus people and hold their value well compared to a similar Toyota with the same chassis. The only long term issues I can see are the steering rack if it continues to wear. Changing that is a significant job.
Doesnt sound too bad given the age and miles.
How much is the asking price?
sounds like a known quantity, like Garage Gorilla says, what's the asking price? It's all a question of total cost, but anything under $4k i'd think this is a reasonable deal with your ability to knock out the repairs it needs and what they'll cost..
I thought wear was about right for the car as well, it's just at the point in it's like where it either gets a big infusion of work or it goes to die. Not sure on price yet, that was part of checking it out. I'm second in line on it. First in line has a daughter that needs back and forth college transportation that is reliable as a hammer. I think throwing $2500 at this will get it there, but I'm not sure what the general feeling is. For me, I would have to see something south of $3500. I know that's a silly bargain, but I don't want it bad enough to want to pay real money for it. For the costs involved I can put my daughter in a much newer Fit or something similar. My advice to the owner was to list it on Autotrader or similar for $4700, let someone talk him down to $4k and let everyone be happy.
Damn, just got rid of our Highlander and with it, the set of h&R lowering springs for it, which would have fit that RX. Oh well.
That will be a good rig, just keep the fluids in good shape and it will be good to the kiddo.
Ours was starting to have transmission problems at about 250k, so with the second kid, it was decided to move to a bigger vehicle and it was sold to a co-worker as a backup for their family.
My wife still misses it, she loved that car (I was always indifferent to it), but we did have a lot of adventures in it so there are good memories attached.
mazdeuce - Seth said:I thought wear was about right for the car as well, it's just at the point in it's like where it either gets a big infusion of work or it goes to die. Not sure on price yet, that was part of checking it out. I'm second in line on it. First in line has a daughter that needs back and forth college transportation that is reliable as a hammer. I think throwing $2500 at this will get it there, but I'm not sure what the general feeling is. For me, I would have to see something south of $3500. I know that's a silly bargain, but I don't want it bad enough to want to pay real money for it. For the costs involved I can put my daughter in a much newer Fit or something similar. My advice to the owner was to list it on Autotrader or similar for $4700, let someone talk him down to $4k and let everyone be happy.
When I was looking for a cute ute - $3500 seems to be most of the money around here for a 15 year old SUV in any decent shape.
I would be very hesitant to purchase something Lexus with cosmetic issues unless either they wont bother you or you want to drop a bunch of cash on one or there is a clean one in the wrecking yard. All those little bits add up really fast from the dealer.
A weeping steering rack can usually be addressed with some of Toyotas seal conditioner, there is probably a TSB out on them, all the 100 series Land Cruiser guys limp wet boots along with a stop leak treatment.
One thing that is tough with a premium brand a bunch of upcoming maintenance (radiator, t-belt and water pump, tires, a few seals, mirrors, headlights plus cosmetic issues) is its pretty easy to drop $2-3k additional into a $2500 car and be out all the money and labor and still be stuck with a $2500 car when you are done.
My recommendation would be if you do buy it to do absolutely no service and run it till it pops then go get another one, park this one in the back 40 for spare parts, or if you want something nice buy a $5000 vehicle with half the mileage that is up to date in service and not a lux brand.
In reply to 93gsxturbo :
I can do a timing belt/water pump/ratiator/valve cover seals and some other little stuff for maybe $600. If I could be in it with maintenance up to date for less than $4k I think it would be all right. It is a VERY nice place to spend time and the little bit of ugly isn't an issue with it going to live in a college parking lot. It will certainly get more ugly while it's there. I'm certainly not chasing it though, I don't like it that much.
93gsxturbo said:mazdeuce - Seth said:I thought wear was about right for the car as well, it's just at the point in it's like where it either gets a big infusion of work or it goes to die. Not sure on price yet, that was part of checking it out. I'm second in line on it. First in line has a daughter that needs back and forth college transportation that is reliable as a hammer. I think throwing $2500 at this will get it there, but I'm not sure what the general feeling is. For me, I would have to see something south of $3500. I know that's a silly bargain, but I don't want it bad enough to want to pay real money for it. For the costs involved I can put my daughter in a much newer Fit or something similar. My advice to the owner was to list it on Autotrader or similar for $4700, let someone talk him down to $4k and let everyone be happy.
My recommendation would be if you do buy it to do absolutely no service and run it till it pops then go get another one, park this one in the back 40 for spare parts, or if you want something nice buy a $5000 vehicle with half the mileage that is up to date in service and not a lux brand.
This is poor advice. The car is a essentially a Toyota highlander and everything on that list can be done with a average Joe and a decent set of tools - not to mention an amatuer Mercedes tech with a Maxjax. 
In reply to mazdeuce - Seth :
I would do tires, brakes, timing belt.. that's about it... Noone cares about those oil leaks.. they are minor.. keep it topped off and you have alteast another 100k of mileage to go...
In reply to Fueled by Caffeine :
I think it's just the valve cover gaskets on the motor itself. I have to take everything off the top of the motor anyway, so it seems silly to not hit 20 bolts and $12 in gaskets while I'm in there. But you're right about the rear diff weeping and the other minor stuff. My truck has more weeping stuff at 215k miles and I don't worry about any of that. I'd do the radiator. It's Houston, it gets hot, and it's been weeping at both ends of the radiator. That rad has lived a good life, it's time.
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