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The 2004 is my third RX and I'm still loving every moment of driving it and I already know my next one is going to be the 400h. I'm sure every vehicle has its flaws but it all depends on what you can live with. The bottom line is: you will never find a perfect vehicle!
That's a little like going to the intensive care unit and asking if any of the patients are free of medical issues.
I suggest asking in Lexus RX 330. It will improve your chances of finding problem free owners quite significantly.
tidester, host
No biggie - we can move on.
tidester, host
Hope that helps.........
If you're expecting a silky-smooth, quiet "Lexus" ride, you wont get it here. Mabey I expected too much from an SUV, but Lexus did make the "perfection" claim regarding this vehicle. The Lexus cars ride much better and quieter, so it can be done! The 330 rides rough and has alot of wind and road noise.
One warning: don't squeeze into your wife's higher/closer seating position and put the key in the ignition--good way to break a femur--adjust that seat FIRST! Volvo takes care of this by adjusting the seat when the door is opened, automatically.
I just read your post. Would you mind reading mine #1356. I posted it about 2 hours after you posted yours. Could you please help me in the decision making process I am faced with. Any help would be appreciated.Many thanks!
Even though I did say my next car was going to be the 400h, now that the 350 is coming out, I'm teetering a bit!
All I can say to you is "best of luck!"
I thank you very much for your post and I have just a couple questions if I may. You mention 'Performance Package' Could you please explain more fully as I cannot find anything about 'Performance Package' options here in Los Angeles. Also, by using the term TSB's I assume you are speaking of Technical Service Bulletins. I went into the NHTSA web site and could find only a couple of Bulletins, and they were not that important in my mind. Thanks once again for answering my post. At this poiint every little bit helps me and my dealer called today to advise me the RX350 is due in his store on Tuesday March 1st and he is holding the particlular car I was looking for. I think I need to buy more lottery tickets is really the answer. Thanks again - Please feel free at anytime to email me directly if you so wish. My email is posted in my profile for easy viewing.
There is the STANDARD delay EVERYONE experiences at one time or another.
Toyota is very definitely, by their own admission, using the DBW, E-throttle system, to delay the onset of engine torque developement to "protect the drive train", give the transaxle downshift clutches time to fully and firmly seat. Not any different than any of us would do when downshifting a manual transmission, at least most of the time.
This "standard", normal delay, hesitation, is being noticed, noticeable, because prior to DBW our engines's torque began to rise the instant we depressed the accelerator. That's very likely also why the pre-04 RX series is enduring a serious number of premature transaxle failures. ASL= more frequent upshifts and downshifts, no DBW, NO delay = an inordinate level of clutch frictional surface wear.
Insofar as I can tell the new automatic transaxle shift logic recommended by Sierra Research in April of 1999 was adopted for the RX before my 2001 RX300 was built.
So, let's say that the "standard" delay is on the order of 200 to 500 milliseconds (2/10's to 1/2 a second). That's enough for everyone to take notice, especially those having previously, or still, driving older versions.
Now, lets assume that a very small number of accelerator pedal assemblies leave the factory with the "at rest", fully released, sensor output voltage on the high side of the acceptable tolerance, above 0.8 volts, as high as 1.1 volts.
First there is the fact that the factory manuals indicate that the low end of the accelerator pedal's "usable" range is with the sensor's output explicitly at 0.8 volts. It makes perfect sense that the designers would want some slack, tolerance, a "widow" (0.0xx to 0.8 volts) of voltage ranges that represent the idle, fully released, position.
But now we have some pedals in use by customers wherein the sensor never falls below 0.8005 volts.
Why would that matter?
Because the transaxle shift control design would not likely upshift if the pedal were fully released. Fully released would be assumed to mean "I wish to coastdown to a lower speed" and upshifting would not be conducsive to that.
On the other hand what if you just ease off the accelerator pedal slightly? The logic would be such that the system would assume "I want to just begin cruising along at about this speed", and an upshift would then be very appropriate.
And now.....
What if a part of the engine/transaxle ECU firmware, due to those flawed tolerances, just simply couldn't detect the difference between a partial accelerator pedal release and a full release.
Definitely would have a much greater propensity for upshifting, right?
And what other aspects might result from the firmware being "confused" (why is the driver on the gas and brakes at the same time?) in this manner?
Maybe a "watch-dog" timer master firmware reset?
In effect a engine/transaxle ECU firmware "reboot".
How many seconds might that take?
Also, there are several sites that you can check about TSBs. One of them, in particular, has been very helpful:
http://www.mycarstats.com/
Hope it helps!
The reason I ask is I notice the new RX350 has an external engine oil cooler as standard, much like the ATF cooler that comes with the towing option.
I have a 2004 RX330 AWD with 23000 miles.
I'm taking my car in for the headlamp data dots "recall" this weekend and want to make sure I'm covering everything else I might need to get done too.
When I'm driving >40Mph or so and hit the brakes, the whole front of the car shakes.
I've read a lot about this warped rotor problem, is that what's possibly going on? Should I push for them to replace the rotors and pads at no cost to me?
I've already had the booster go bad on me (very scary if you don't know what's going on) and they replaced that at no cost.
Anything else?
Thanks.
Disconnect the battery for about ten or 15 minutes. Make sure the accelerator pedal is fully released, no floor mats, etc, laying on it, during and for at least 30 seconds after reconencting the battery.
Now and forever after, DO NOT put your foot on the accelerator pedal until you have shifted from "park".
Undoubtedly when you get it back from service the accelerator pedal has just been initiallized, the engine/transaxle ECU has "learned" the sensor output voltage that equates, truly, to the pedal's fully released, idle, position.
I suspect something is happening, over time and multiple drive cycles, that is causing the ECU to "adjust" the previously learned pedal idle position sensor voltage.
One of the things that might cause it to do that is someone depressing, even ever so slightly, the accelerator pedal during a period of time that the original firmware designers would have not expected.
Working backwards from there it is certain that they would have expected accelerator depression, useage, once the transaxle is in gear.
The hestiation in the transmission that couldn't be fixed by a software update.
My Dashoard was never the same after they took it off for the COWL defect
They had FELT lining everywhere to cut down on the rattling. I just believe I spent too much money for a rattling glove box, dash board, rear cup holders,etc..
Seems some of these problems still haven't been corrected.
tidester, host
We're at 32,000 miles in my wife's RX330, and on our last routine service appointment they told me that the front brake pads will need replacement soon. That'll be the first real "problem" ours will have developed, but you can't complain too much about a wear item like brake pads (although the rear pads on my FX45 lasted until just under 50,000 miles, and the front pads are still OK).
Having grown up in the "old days" I have to say both of our vehicles have been pretty amazing, especially when you consider all of the gadgets that they have compared to what my first several cars came with (yes, they had seat belts, but I don't recall them having retractors!).
The enthusiastic shifting seems like a function of the "throttle by wire", I wonder if perhaps shifting too enthusiastically for maximum durability. My early model ('99) 2WD has always seemed a bit almost too quick on the draw, based on it's design. I've always wished it had the e-shift so I could "hold" gears. I think they were going for intuitive response at the expense of frictional wear.
The earliest models had a TSB to replace the valve body, but my dealer did not perform the service three times when I asked them to. Watch your dealer service folks. I suspected so, and it became a problem later when a different dealer took care of it and replaced the whole transmission. They replaced it three times before I got the car back (they said the other two rebuilt units had problems), finally with a brand new transmission from Kyushu. They did a fine job on making sure the problems with the first dealer weren't duplicated, and before the warrantee expired.
I believe one of your main points was that the earlier units like the one in my car that shift "enthusiastically" wear "the hell" out of themselves, as opposed to later units which "hesitate", one benefit of which is increased durability of friction surfaces.
I've noticed the RX300 beats transmission fluid even with multiple coolers, compared to other cars. It's easy enough to service it, and it will probably last a good long time, but I'm interested in your thoughts on extending the durability of your RX, with all that extra shifting going on.
Let me know. Thanks.
After putting a dvd in the rear ent. system I have been able to make the ipod work on the rear ent. headphones, but not through the speakers, the dvd plays through the speakers not my MP3 player. Does anyone have any suggestions or directions?
Is there a hack for this, so the MP3 player can be heard throught the speaks with line in quality?
Thanks.
Now my screen is full of restaurants... :confuse:
since I'm in NYC, its all over the screen...
Can someone tells me how to turn that off ?? I have tried the manual.... so far, not much help... Thanks.
http://www.vaistech.com/
All were attentive and especially polite, #1. However, just like with any other make, I've had varying degrees of luck with how well the requested warrantee service was performed, depending on which dealer I went to.
Never heard of such a thing...!
Just simply doesn't happen.
Good weekend everyone!
Steve, Host
Will MICHELIN PILOT 99V HXMXM4 (235/55/18) fit on my 2005 RX330 AWD?
Assume you meant 04 RX330 - the last year for the RX300 was 2003.
Have you gone through all your settings, to make sure you don't have some weird "balance" or "fader" setting that is decreasing your volume?