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Transmission problems with Lexus ES?

1381 messages,  Last post on Nov 26, 2009 at 12:56 PM

You are in the Lexus ES Forum. Your Hosts are pat & karens

What is this discussion about? Lexus ES 300, Lexus ES 330, Transmission, Sedan


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#481 of 1381
NHTSA by jragosta1
Jun 22, 2004 (3:32 am)
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Yes, I have an ES330.
 
You can't count the Camry in with the ES330 since they have different drive trains. The transmission problem doesn't seem to appear on the Camry.
 
Your numbers on the complaints are incomplete. First, you're only looking at the 04 - which is less than a year old. Second, as I've pointed out, many of the complaints are probably listed elsewhere. For example, Lexus keeps telling me that the problem is the drive by wire and not the transmission. So there are also some complaints listed under that category. You want to look at the complaints for unexplained hesitation on acceleration. THAT was my point - people should be consistent in their complaint so they all get tracked together. If you have 100 complaints and they're all assigned to a different category, it won't be noticed.
 
As I said, there are many, many more complaints on the 02 and 03 ES300 cars.
 
My gripe is that everyone I've talked to at Lexus is aware of the problem - and many, many dealers reported by readers here have also admitted to being aware of the problem. But Lexus refuses to acknowledge it. If they refer to it at all, it's a 'concern', not a 'problem'. When every Lexus employee I know is aware of the problem but they refuse to fix it, they need to be forced to fix it.
#482 of 1381
jragosta1 by motownusa
Jun 22, 2004 (5:38 am)
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The 2004 Camry SE shares the same 3.3L 225 Hp, and 240lb-ft of torque engine with the Lexus ES330. The Solara V6 also has the same 3.3L engine and 5 speed ECT-i (adaptive transmission) as the 330. The Camry, Solara, and the ES are based on the same platform and hence the same powertrain. All major companies share powertrain among multiple cars to save costs. The V6 versions of the LE and XLE Camrys still have the 3.0 engine as the outgoing Lexus ES300. The Avalon still has the same powertrain as the pre 2002 Lexus ES. The only reason NHTSA has not issued a recall is because the number of complaints is very small in proportion to the number of cars sold. But if this car has fallen short of your expectation, the next ES is coming out in less than a year with a 3.5L 275 hp engine.
#483 of 1381
Re: jragosta1 [motownusa #482] by davidz
Jun 22, 2004 (7:47 am)
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Replying to: motownusa (Jun 22, 2004 5:38 am)

Where did you get that tidbit about a 3.5/275 hp engine in the ES within a year? Everything I've read says that the '05 ES will have the same 3.3 as the '04.
#484 of 1381
Drive train by jragosta1
Jun 22, 2004 (7:50 am)
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Careful about your title - I didn't claim that they'd release a 3.5 next year - that was motownusa. I'm with you. I can't believe that they'd release a new one just a year after the old one.
 
Not to mention that it's irrelevant for me. I just bought an 04. Even if I could afford to replace the car after a year, there's no way Lexus is getting any more of my money the way they're handling this issue.
#485 of 1381
Drive train by jragosta1
Jun 22, 2004 (7:56 am)
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You can't read too much into the fact that the specs on the Toyota and Lexus engines are the same. For example, Lexus uses a drive by wire system that is at least part of the problem. Also, the transmission programming is apparently different. As evidence, consider the fact that it's been reported that Canadian 330s don't have the problem - because they're not certified as ULEV vehicles and have different transmission programming. I read that one person had demonstrated that they could fix the problem on a US 330 by installing the Canadian transmission logic - but this voids your warranty.
 
There's more to the drive train than just the specs.
#486 of 1381
Re: NHTSA / Texas83 [jragosta1 #479] by wjl
Jun 22, 2004 (9:37 am)
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Replying to: jragosta1 (Jun 21, 2004 12:56 pm)

Not sure if I'm looking at the http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/ site correctly or not, but.... for the 2002 ES300, I do see over 100 complaints as you mentioned, but most have to do with other items (gas cap, appearance of the gauges, etc). I also noticed quite a bit of duplication in entries (same tracking numbers). I went through all 107 entries and only came up with 20 that were definitely related to the shifting/trans problem. And perhaps another 15 that could be related (cruise control, etc)... which adds up to perhaps about 35 entries (not counting the duplicates). Also, Lexus sold about 20,000 ES300 or more in 2002.
#487 of 1381
jragosta1........... by georgeb7
Jun 22, 2004 (10:37 am)
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I believe you support your argument very well. Your posts are clear and back your assertions. I agree with what you have summarized. Lexus is not owning up to the problem. I have seen complaints from other web sites also.( I do not remember which ones they are on off the top of my head, but I will post them as I remember). I believe some Lexus owners are in denial. They do not want to admit they have made a bad purchase. Buyers remorse has turned into "Buyers Denial". I am not referring to anyone one specifically, just in general.
#488 of 1381
NHTSA by jragosta1
Jun 22, 2004 (11:31 am)
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There are many categories that can be linked to the problem. For example, 'Power Train', 'Automatic transmission', 'Vehicle speed control', and so on.
 
I don't remember the exact number, but I came up with over 100 for 2002, 2003, and 2004.
#490 of 1381
Re: jragosta1........... [georgeb7 #487] by igiban
Jun 22, 2004 (3:19 pm)
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Replying to: georgeb7 (Jun 22, 2004 10:37 am)

I've tagged in over 10K miles on my 03 ES and have not experienced any hesitation or surging. I don't drive aggressively but did have to floor the throttle a few times and it sped up just fine. I did sense some minor shuddering occasionally though when I gently press the gas pedal after coasting the car bit, kind of like it's driving over a mild uneven road. It does not happen a lot, and when it happens it does not bother me at all, as it's very gentle. Overall I am very pleased with ES smooth quiet ride. Not a sporty one for spirited driving for sure, but a very comfortable car. Just an ideal luxurious family sedan to me. That said, if I ever sense some jerking behavior I'll not be blind/quiet to it.

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