Problems with 1999 Lexus RX 300 POWER TRAIN

Tl*the contact owns a 1999 lexus rx300. the contact stated that the vehicle would not move and the engine revved while attempting to accelerate from a stop. the vehicle was towed to the dealer and they replaced the transmission, which had only 90,000 miles. the repair was not covered under warranty. she paid for her new transmission, but after 6,000 miles, the vehicle involuntarily accelerates. she will return to the dealer to have the vehicle inspected. the speed and mileage information were unknown.

I have a lexus rx300 awd and just found out that the transmission needs to be replaced at 120,000 miles. i was very shocked when i took my vehicle in for scheduled maintenance and was told that the transmission is going out and it would be $5720 to repair it. i am very disgusted with this because i started researching the issue and have found that there are several problems with this "so called luxury vehicle" that is suppose to last you to 250,000 miles or more. *nm

Tl* the contact owns a 1999 lexus rx 300. while shifting in reverse or second gear the vehicle hesitated. the local mechanic on 02/11/07 stated that the transmission and the planetary assembly needed to be replaced. the current and failure mileage was 87,000. *ak update 4/9 *tr

No events leading to transmission failure needs replacing. *nm

At 67,000, my transmission would not shift. fortunately, this occurred in my driveway and not on the road. no warning, just no transmission. after replacing transmission, check engine light stuck on. replaced a broken sensor. i am out $4,000.00 for a defect that i believe lexus is very aware of. *jb

Hi, i am owner of lexus rx300 awd. the rx300 transmission broken down at 115k miles. i was on highway going 60 mph without any warning the transmission broken. i did some research and found out that rx300 has a very high rate failure on transmission. *jb

In november 2006, the transmission on my 1999 rx300 unexpectedly failed. while traveling home, the car started to rev up, but would not move - as if in neutral. i had the rx towed to local lexus dealer, and was told that it was the transmission and i could probably save money by going to a transmission rebuilder. i had the work done - around $5000. my rx has been regularly serviced and had 130k miles on it at the time of the event. now, i'm hearing that this may be a common problem.

Dt*: the contact stated while traveling 75 mph, the vehicle began to coast to a stop without warning. the vehicle was pulled over, allowed to cool down, then proceeded 100 miles. this cycle recurred until arriving at the contact's residence. the vehicle was taken to an independent repair shop which determined the planet pinion gear failed. the vehicle was being towed to the dealership to have to transmission replaced.

Even though having all major service performed by the lexus dealer, plus having the transmission fluid and filter changed twice, the transmission failed and needs replacing at a high cost. i am aware of hundreds of others who have had similar problems with the rx300. *jb

When starting my 1999 lexus rx 300 after work, i noticed a "whining" sound coming from the engine. my commute home is about 15 miles. i noticed when driving that it would "jerk" when trying to change gears. it made me think back to a couple of months back when i was in a parking space and put the car into reverse and started to ease out of the parking space when it felt like someone has hit me or i had hit something. i got out, but nothing? i then got back into the car and started to leave and the car would go into reverse, but when applying the gas the car would not move. i tried again and the car finally "caught" into gear and made a terrible sound. i noticed in the weeks leading up to the day of failure that the car would have a hard time changing into second gear. it would "wind out" before catching. now, the day of the failure, i was leaving work and i noticed a "whining" sound in the engine and in my commute home it got worse. the car started jumping back and forth and the rpms were randomly jumping. even while coasting down a hill the rmps would jump and accelerate and slow down the car making it jerk. at times it would act as if it was in neutral and i was traveling at 45 miles per hour. when this would happen, the rmps wouldn't move? my car has approximately 78k miles on it. i immediately told my husband, we called lexus and took it straight to them. i had to get a rental car. i got a call the next day to tell me that the pump failed and the transmission fluid was black and the transmission was gone. it's going to cost $4,600.00 to repair. there are many other cases exactly like mine. this should be a recall! *nm

Lexus 1999 rx 300 awd transmission failed - marked drop of acceleration power on freeway. since original purchase of new vehicle, it has received regular service maintenance through the dealership. last service included a flush of the transmission. problem experienced at 74,000 miles. dealership advised that lexus no longer offers a transmission rebuild and that i needed to take it to a transmission repair shop (found out later that's not entirely true). transmission has been rebuilt including solenoids, planetaries, torque converter, sun gear) at cost of over $4,200. i've since discovered that several '99 rx300 owners have experienced transmission failure or issues at relatively low odometer mileages, and lexus customer service has acknowledged this as well. *nm

First failure happened during a left turn at a busy multi-lane intersection. transmission dropped out of gear instead of shifting leaving me powerless at a very vulnerable time. the vehicle had sufficient momentum that i managed to drift up and over an adjacent curb. i was at the mercy of alert drivers in the intersection at the time. a lexus rebuilt transmission was installed by a toyota mechanic. after 12 months and many attempts at getting the engine light to remain extinguished i was advised today by lexus of calgary that the second transmission is now failing. the first transmission and now this one are failing to shift when required most, recently while attempting to accelerate during a lane change. it is dangerous to not have power when you need it most. *nm

My 99 lexus rx300 had a transmission failure @ 82000 miles. after being serviced properly on a regular basis by authorized repair specialists. *jb

Jan 2004-vehicle was taken to an independent garage to determine cause of gear failure between 2nd and 3rd. failure could not be determined. mar 2004-vehicle was taken in again to independent garage to determine cause of gear failure between 2nd and 3rd. failure could not be determined. septembe r 2004-vehicle was towed to dealer after gear failure in reverse and shudder in forward. failure could not be determined.*ak nov2004--vehicle was again towed to dealer after shudder while in drive and then gear failure in reverse and forward. diagnosis need complete transmission assembly.

After having my transmission replaced by lexus of roseville, california the remanufactured transmission from lexus dropped out of gear during moving traffic, endangering my family with the loss of drive in heavy traffic. *ak

Catastrophic failure of transmission due to fatigue of internal part resulting in total failure. *la

At 68k miles, i took to independent garage in january & march 2004 with problem of vehicle hesitating to shift from 2nd to 3rd. garage could not duplicate problem and changed transmission fluid. i let vehicle warm up 2 minutes to avoid the shifting problem. in september & october with 72k miles, i took to dealer with additional problem of failing to engage the reverse gear and shuddering in forward gear. dealer could not duplicate and changed the transmission fluid. in november 2004, the transmission dropped completely out of gear while driving on the street. this time dealer found metal shavings in the transmission fluid and said i needed $4250 to replace with a remanufactured transmission warranted for only 12 months. lexus should have paid to replace their defective transmission instead of hiding their head in the sand. *jb

While driving, the gear shift will go into neutral, if bumped. also i've noticed the car jerking while driving. i've taken it to an authorized dealership, but they never observed the problem and thus was never able to fix it.*ak

I own 1999 lexus rx300, since february of the last year, i had numerous problems with the car's engine (it has sludge), transmission, emission system, and over use of gas per mile. first problem started during the first month of my ownership and since that time the vehicle has spent weeks in auto repair shops. lexus dealer and others charged me lavish fees but never fixed the problems and lexus dealers even never admitted that serious problems existed. *jb

Transmission failure with 1999 rx300. my transmission is shot. we only have 85,000 miles on the car. the dealership is telling me that we should have changed the transmission oil more frequently. however, we were never approached with this recommendation during service visits. the vehicle has always been a little sluggish. we bought the vehicle in ca and two years ago moved to nc. during one of our first service visits, we asked them about the performance. the service staff at the time told us it was inherent to the design. even worst, we bought the pre-own vehicle in ca. we were told that it was throughly inspected. they even presented a inspection certification certificate. we i presented this certificate to the dealer in nc, they are telling me that it does not match the vin for my vehicle. also, they can not track any information of this inspection in their internal network. now i have a castistrophic failure on a vehicle that i bought for $30,000 with only 85,000 miles!?!? please help with any recommendations. thanks.

The right rear wheel axle sheared in two, causing the wheel to fall off. the vehicle became violent, then completely rolled over. none of the airbags deployed. we would like a complete investigation.

Contact person: kevin ezratty service manger, bob baker lexus el cajon,ca 92020 (619) 440 5398 car overheats and stalls when towing a 2500 lb r/v trailer rx300 specs 3500lb. when towing in mountain terrain with ambient temperature around 100 degrees and going up hill, the car temp indicator will approach the red zone and will lose all power and stall. there is no warning or time to pull off the road, traffic mostly trucks makes it very scary and dangerous. the transmission was replaced and the car driven 1000 miles and it happened again, with no place to pull off. i returned the car to dealer, they have no idea if they are looking for a mechanical or electrical problem, ther is no history of any lexus rx300 with this type of failure. their suggestions are don't drive in the mountains, don't drive in the desert, don't use the air conditioner, don't tow the r/v trailer, don't drive with any wind. they also requested that they be allowed to take my personal property, the r/v trailer and tow it around the mountains and desert and see if they can make it fail again. i asked if anyone in the facility had ever pulled a trailer, the answer was no one, so i declined. (i have $55,000 invested) i purchased this vehicle for the sole purpose of towing this trailer , now they tell me that just because the car is certified to tow 3500 lbs doesn't mean that it can. at this time we are at a stand still, they can't repair the car and i travel a lot and don't feel safe driving it. without the trailer it seems to be fine, it is equipped with the trailer towing package. the transmission oil temp indicator does not light up, so i think the engine is becoming hot and shutting the car down, see page 208 owners manual. your help and suggestions are appreciated. thank you.

Ongoing problem with erratic jerking. also, front wheel would commence to spin, and tracking light would come on. vehicle been in dealer shop on four occasions, and problem still reoccurring. please feel free to provide further details. *ak