Left home to go to grocery store. As I entered a major road near my home the car lost power almost causing an accident. I was able to limp home. The repair shop diagnosed a faulty transmission and commented that they see many rx300's with transmission problems. The transmission was rebuilt at a cost of $3214.00. This car has been well taken care of, including recommended transmission fluid replacement. I feel that the transmission failure was very premature. Judging by the number of similar reports at or around the same mileage, I feel that the transmission was not engineered properly and lexus did nothing to correct the problem.
Lexus RX300 loss of power problems
15 of the 722 owner complaints about the Lexus RX300 describe sudden loss of power, most of them for the 1999 model year.
- owner complaints
- 15
- worst model year
- 1999
- typical mileage
- 113,440
Is there a fix? No recall or service bulletin covers this area of the car yet.
By model year
Often reported together
Transmission failure 7Stalling 4Check engine light 3Won't shift 2Slipping 2Jerking 1Hesitation 1
What owners say
Tl* the contact owns a 2001 lexus rx300. The contact stated that when attempting to shift, the shifter would delay. In addition while driving at 35 MPH, the vehicle lost power and failed to accelerate. The contact attempted to restart the vehicle and after multiple attempts, the vehicle was able to restart but the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who stated that the transmission needed to be flushed. The vehicle was repaired but the failure recurred. In addition, the vehicle failed to reverse after the repairs. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 192,000.
Car can only be driven at <5mile for 10 second. Loss power at higher gear.
138,000 used vehicle. Upon purchase did timing belt, water pump and all belts. Then had a transmission flush. Went on a 500 mile round trip and upon returning lost overdrive. Made it home then next day a severe lose of power and trans would not shift. After restarting would shift but no overdrive. After investigating found hundreds of similar incidents when you query lexus transmission failure. I can understand losing a transmission but reading all these complainants it is clear that this product is defective.
Vehicle started losing power while going 35-45 MPH and eventually stalled. Was able to start vehicle but won't go pass 25 MPH. When stopped, and shifted on drive, vehicle won't move forward. Won't go into reverse either when engaged in reverse. I believe this was a transmission failure.
During normal driving, with no signs of failure, the vehicle suddenly would lose power when pressed on gas, it acted as if it were in neutral---engine revs up, but car does not move. Then when switched to second gear or l, transmission still would not engage. Had it towed to a local transmission shop, it turned out to be the planetary gear broke. Searched online lexus forum, found out very many people reported the same failure in transmission.
About one week ago, I noticed a tinny/humming noise coming from somewhere under the hood of my rx300. I took it to several mechanics to have them tell me what was wrong with it, but by the time I got there the engine was operating at normal temperatures and the noise was practically non-existent. Yesterday morning, while traveling at highway speeds, it would suddenly lose power and the tachometer would show the rpms raising suddenly, as if it was in neutral. It would do this for several seconds or more before deciding to apply power to the wheels again when it wanted to. This has caused me to have to creep along at times, unsure of what it might do next. Not being in control of when (or where for that matter) my vehicle will go is a safety concern. Will it poop out on me when I'm needing to pass somebody or trying to turn left across oncoming traffic? Will it lunge me forward on its own at an unpredictable moment? Yesterday afternoon my "check engine" light came on, my mechanic told me the code rang up as "shift solenoid." this car has always been taken care of according to manual specs. My last tranny fluid change was about three months ago. The car also appears to have a rear engine leak at the gasket between the engine and tranny. This "quality" lexus car has less than 114k miles on it! My sister just had her rear engine seal replaced and her transmission rebuilt for $4400 and hers has just 125k miles on it. What a joke! I will never by a toyota again. I've always gotten better safety and longevity out of fords. Poo on you lexus. I am scheduling a time to have my mechanic repair this; still waiting on a quote though. I expect a min of $400, but once he opens the tranny up he may advise me to rebuild the thing (another $4-$5k). Lexus either believes in safety, in which case they should fess up to poor engineering and fix their mistake, or they don't! Deaths/injuries:? = not yet.
I have experienced several problems with my 1999 lexus rx300. I have notice via the internet that these are wide spread problems but no recalls have been occurring. These are the incidences that I have problems with: * debris can get into the idle air control valve that allows air into the engine causing the engine to have a low idle speed, or stall when it is cold. (this occurred in the past, perhaps 2004. Lexus eventually replaced my engine in 2005.) * sludge can build up in the engine. I routinely have to have the sludge cleaned out to avoid engine problems. * the 'check engine' light comes on because the mass air flow sensor sends incorrect information to the engine's computer. This can cause a loss of power on acceleration. (this started occurring on december 11, 2008.) * the 'check engine' light comes on because a component of the oxygen sensor stops working, and the car is unable to determine the proper ratio of air to fuel for the engine. (this has occurred in the past, perhaps 2005. We had to pay for new air flow sensors.) * light bulbs frequently burn out in the taillights. * the front suspension makes very loud noises when going over bumps or rough roads. The support bushing for the suspension needs to be replaced. (this began happening in december 2007. Lexus told us we need new struts.) * a throbbing wind noise from the moonroof. One cannot have the moonroof open at the same time as the windows or ones ear drums experience severe pain. (this has existed from purchase.) I believe the 1999 lexus rx 300 might very well be a good candidate for the lemon laws, yet we're not seeing problems being addressed with recalls.
Tl*the contact owns a 2001 lexus rx300. While driving uphill at 70 MPH, the contact's vehicle lost power when she swerved to avoid another vehicle. She depressed the accelerator pedal, but the vehicle failed to move; however, the engine revved. The contact was able to pull to the side of the road. She feels that this is a serious safety issue because she and her family could have been involved in a serious crash. The current and failure mileages were 85,000. Updated 08/15/08. *lj the consumer stated the transmission began to slip and hesitate when she would attempt to accelerate. At one point, the consumer put the gear in park with the engine running and the vehicle suddenly lurched forward. The dealership replaced the transmission, however it was the same transmission that was removed from the vehicle. Updated 08/15/08
Tl*the contact owns a 2000 lexus rx300. While driving 55 MPH, the transmission began losing power and slipping out of gear. Eventually, the vehicle would not move at all and had to be towed. The diagnosis was transmission failure. The failure mileage was 110,000.
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the Lexus RX300 loss of power
Which Lexus RX300 years have sudden loss of power problems?
The model years with the most reports are 1999 (5 complaints), 2001 (5 complaints) and 2000 (4 complaints).
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