2000 Lexus RX300 RX from North America - Comments

Nothing.

For my taste, the RX300 is the ideal. The ride is as smooth as any car made, yet you have the sense that in an emergency you could use it to climb a tree. Sits higher than a car, but doesn't feel like a truck. Doesn't feel like it will flip over on a sharp turn (not quite a race car though). Gas mileage isn't economy, but it's an SUV folks. At a respectable 220 HP, I don't wonder if I can get around a slowpoke in time.

I did my homework. I knew I wanted an RX300 after the RX330s came out (uglier). After scouring the Internet for months, I found a used one with low miles that had been a lease car in Miami. It was dinged over the right front tire, and the company that brought it up from Miami fixed that for me. I drove from Greensboro, NC to Durham to pick it up. As far as I can tell, I haven't even started to break the car in yet. I love it and have every intention of putting 250,000 miles on it so I can brag.

I treat it right. When I need to replace the tires, it'll be Michelin X-10s or better. I buy top of the line oil filters and change the oil on a regular schedule. Etc.

If anything does go wrong: No dealer is gonna mess up my car. If you don't have total trust in your dealer, DON'T take your car to them. There are plenty of good mechanics out there who are fair and honest. Find one and pay them fairly. If your key explodes (my key is fine) do what the other guy said and use the Internet to research and solve the issue. Only go to a dealer if you are armed with the facts.

The Lexus RX300 and RX330 can be great vehicles.. just take special care of the transmissions... no matter what the manual says and other so called mechanics out there change the fluid every 15000 miles and after 75000 miles if you begin to have slipping problems (acting like its in neutral) or clunking problems have the dealer clean he screen... probably clogged. I have also found a product called Transmatic that seems to work well with these transmissions and protects the clutches and torque converters well. I have an RX300 with 110k on it now and I was told 25k ago it needed a new trans at a cost of 4500 dollars...but by following the above steps I seem to still have a reliable vehicle that performs well.

Good luck.

Barry.