'02 ES300 maintenance

[Falcon_LS]

Got an '02 Lexus ES300 on my hands, requiring some maintenance. Vehicle's currently approaching the 200,000 km (125,000 mile) mark and comes with the infamous 1MZ-FE, which believe it or not, never had any sludge issues here.

Anyhow, I've put together a list of items and I was wondering if any thing's been missed out, of if there's something in particular that requires attention on this model. List includes:

• Mobil 1 0W-40 and WIX 51348
• ATF (Toyota Type-IV?), gaskets and filter
• Power steering fluid (Dexron III)
• Coolant flush (Toyota pink coolant?)
• Brake fluid (Prestone DOT 3?)
• Denso air filter
• Denso fuel filter (going to be fun to change)
• Denso cabin air filter
• OEM PCV valve
• OEM rad cap and hoses
• OEM Thermostat
• OEM spark plugs

Pretty sure the brakes need attention as well. But there's also the timing belt replacement. I'm considering replacing the tensioner, water pump and timing belt cover gaskets along with it. Is there anything else that might need replacement with the timing belt out? Thanks!

 

[flanso]

I recently performed most of your list on my 95k mile 2001 ES300. I changed only the timing belt, no tensioner, water pump or belt cover gasket. I also changed the a/c belt as mine was squeaking a bit. The hoses and radiator cap looked fine so I left them unchanged. Do the hoses and thermostat fail on an ES? Incidentally, I used the "starter bump" method to dislodge the crankshaft pulley bolt and it worked easily.

 

[es350]

Originally Posted By: Falcon_LS
Got an '02 Lexus ES300 on my hands, requiring some maintenance. Vehicle's currently approaching the 200,000 km (125,000 mile) mark and comes with the infamous 1MZ-FE, which believe it or not, never had any sludge issues here.

Anyhow, I've put together a list of items and I was wondering if any thing's been missed out, of if there's something in particular that requires attention on this model. List includes:

• Mobil 1 0W-40 and WIX 51348
• ATF (Toyota Type-IV?), gaskets and filter
• Power steering fluid (Dexron III)
• Coolant flush (Toyota pink coolant?)
• Brake fluid (Prestone DOT 3?)
• Denso air filter
• Denso fuel filter (going to be fun to change)
• Denso cabin air filter
• OEM PCV valve
• OEM rad cap and hoses
• OEM Thermostat
• OEM spark plugs

Pretty sure the brakes need attention as well. But there's also the timing belt replacement. I'm considering replacing the tensioner, water pump and timing belt cover gaskets along with it. Is there anything else that might need replacement with the timing belt out? Thanks!

The Es's have lifetime fuel filters. The cabin filter from Denso are a rip off. Get a Wix or another brand. Same with the air filter. Rad cap and Thermo can go a lot longer then what you have. I would leave them since they do not fail often. Was the TB change at 90K miles? If not, do it now. I would do the water pump everyother TB change. I would do the cam/crank seals too. Tensioner I would leave alone and a dealer can check it.

Is coolant long life or Super long? You do NEED to use there fluid and have no cooling issues. Lastly, the sludge issues in these cars was overblown to start with.

Best thing I would do is clean the TB & IVAC. Change the PVC every 15K and you will not have sludge issues.

 

[Falcon_LS]

Thanks for the input! I've made a habit of changing the radiator cap, thermostat and hoses whenever I do a timing belt job. Our environment is rather harsh on cars, so I figure this is just cheap insurance to avoid any cooling-related problems. The hoses tend to harden and develop cracks by the time the the belt is due in most cases, anyway. Not necessarily on the ES, but in a general sense.

 

[Falcon_LS]

Originally Posted By: es350
The Es's have lifetime fuel filters. The cabin filter from Denso are a rip off. Get a Wix or another brand. Same with the air filter. Rad cap and Thermo can go a lot longer then what you have. I would leave them since they do not fail often. Was the TB change at 90K miles? If not, do it now. I would do the water pump everyother TB change. I would do the cam/crank seals too.

Is coolant long life or Super long? You do NEED to use there fluid and have no cooling issues. Lastly, the sludge issues in these cars was overblown to start with.

Best thing I would do is clean the TB & IVAC. Change the PVC every 15K and you will not have sludge issues.


Thanks for the info! The fuel filter is located in the tank, IIRC, and I've been told fuel pump failures are usually filter-related because they eventually become blocked with sand. Under these circumstances, would it still be alright to leave it unchanged until there's a failure? Figured changing the filter would prevent, or at worse, delay a pump-related issue.

I haven't done any maintenance on this vehicle before, but I believe the coolant used is Toyota Long Life, as this is what's most widely available. Lexus supply their own oil here, would be interesting to see if they have their own coolant.

As far as the timing belt goes, it's only had one replacement so far at 100,000 km (60,000 mile) and the water pump wasn't changed. I usually change the pump every second timing belt change, so I reckon its time has come.

Any idea what sort of ATF should be used for this application?

 

[VK56VD]

Xw-40 is the recommended weight in your parts of the world for these vehicles?

 

[Falcon_LS]

Yes. Lexus supply their own oil here, which is a 5W-40 synthetic.

 

[es350]

Originally Posted By: Falcon_LS
Originally Posted By: es350
The Es's have lifetime fuel filters. The cabin filter from Denso are a rip off. Get a Wix or another brand. Same with the air filter. Rad cap and Thermo can go a lot longer then what you have. I would leave them since they do not fail often. Was the TB change at 90K miles? If not, do it now. I would do the water pump everyother TB change. I would do the cam/crank seals too.

Is coolant long life or Super long? You do NEED to use there fluid and have no cooling issues. Lastly, the sludge issues in these cars was overblown to start with.

Best thing I would do is clean the TB & IVAC. Change the PVC every 15K and you will not have sludge issues.


Thanks for the info! The fuel filter is located in the tank, IIRC, and I've been told fuel pump failures are usually filter-related because they eventually become blocked with sand. Under these circumstances, would it still be alright to leave it unchanged until there's a failure? Figured changing the filter would prevent, or at worse, delay a pump-related issue.

I haven't done any maintenance on this vehicle before, but I believe the coolant used is Toyota Long Life, as this is what's most widely available. Lexus supply their own oil here, would be interesting to see if they have their own coolant.

As far as the timing belt goes, it's only had one replacement so far at 100,000 km (60,000 mile) and the water pump wasn't changed. I usually change the pump every second timing belt change, so I reckon its time has come.

Any idea what sort of ATF should be used for this application?


Up to you on the fuel filter. It takes about 20 mintues to replace. I use Amsoil ATF and change every 40K and comes out like new. Also the TB is too be change every 90K and not 60K.

 

[flanso]

The manual on my 2001 ES specified Toyota Type IV for the automatic transmission, so I used that. I have read some threads in BITOG where posters have said that some synthetic ATFs now meet the spec for Toyota Type IV. I am addressing your question about ATF and wanted to quote just that sentence in my reply. But I do not know how to quote just part of a previous post even though I have been lurking here for some years. Do you know how?

 

[ChiTDI]

You've pretty much covered all the bases. Good suggestions all through the posts.
My only addition would be to replace, not clean, the Air Idle Control Valve. They're electronic, and that is where the failure occurs, intermittent symptoms, no codes. Not fun.
There are some threads about it. Search under "Mokanic" since he is the Toyota tech that reported it. Sure helped my cause.

 

[Falcon_LS]

Thank you once again for all the help! I've added the cam seals and the IAC velve to the list.

Originally Posted By: es350

Up to you on the fuel filter. It takes about 20 mintues to replace. I use Amsoil ATF and change every 40K and comes out like new. Also the TB is too be change every 90K and not 60K.


Suppose a stitch in time saves nine, so I'll go ahead and replace the fuel filter if it's only 20 mins and only costs $20!

As far as the TB is concerned, maintenance requirements must be different in North America. The recommendation here is 100,000 km (60,000 miles).

Originally Posted By: flanso
The manual on my 2001 ES specified Toyota Type IV for the automatic transmission, so I used that. I have read some threads in BITOG where posters have said that some synthetic ATFs now meet the spec for Toyota Type IV. I am addressing your question about ATF and wanted to quote just that sentence in my reply. But I do not know how to quote just part of a previous post even though I have been lurking here for some years. Do you know how?


I'll probably end up using Toyota Type-IV ATF. Universal ATF is hard to come by here, and the only choices seem to be Mobil and Castrol. If Mobil meets the requirements, might as well go with that as a synthetic option, so long as it meets the recommended spec.

To quote a previous post, just hit the "Quote" or "Quick Quote" button on the bottom right hand corner of the post you wish to quote.

Originally Posted By: ChiTDI
You've pretty much covered all the bases. Good suggestions all through the posts.
My only addition would be to replace, not clean, the Air Idle Control Valve. They're electronic, and that is where the failure occurs, intermittent symptoms, no codes. Not fun.
There are some threads about it. Search under "Mokanic" since he is the Toyota tech that reported it. Sure helped my cause.


I'll do a quick search and see what I can find. Was it a difficult task to replace the IAC?

 

[ChiTDI]

Yeah it was on the underside of the throttle body. So it involved a little more than plug and play. Gave me an opportunity to clean the throttle plate as some else suggested, though.

 

[Built_Well]

Originally Posted By: Falcon_LS
I'll probably end up using Toyota Type-IV ATF. Universal ATF is hard to come by here, and the only choices seem to be Mobil and Castrol. If Mobil meets the requirements, might as well go with that as a synthetic option, so long as it meets the recommended spec.


I wonder why Amsoil's web site doesn't ship overseas. They seem to be cutting off a large market. Like you, I'm having a hard time deciding between Toyota T-IV ATF and Mobil Synthetic ATF.