Hi,
I bought my 2008 ES350 in March of 2021 with 59,990 miles from my Toyota dealer. Currently, I have 64,100 miles as I do not drive much. I live in a northern state, there is no rust at all on the car. Once a month I run the vehicle through a touchless car wash in the winter, so that helps too. (The water pressure is not insane, so please don't worry about that... Lol) It has been serviced at the Lexus dealer by older people. Back in March, the Toyota dealer had replaced the two front axles and the wiper blades. They had informed me before I bought it that there is a steering wheel shake at 70ish MPH, which is noticeable and has gotten progressively worse. I need opinions on whether or not to fix the current issues or sell the vehicle and get something newer/new. The current issues are; Flashing tpms light, loud either squeaking/grinding noise on startup, tires could use replacing, braking performance is terrible, steering wheel shake from 1 or 2 wheels (It goes away once I get the tires rotated.)...
In April the TPMS light came on, I had gone to the dealer for an oil change as they never changed it before I bought it which was strange, the light magically had turned off and they could not figure it out. The light turned on about a week after that.
I had replaced my brakes at the Toyota dealer in December of 2021, they used Lexus parts. Now in January, the braking performance has gone back to how it used to be, and periodically they grind while braking. Toyota won't warranty them either...
The steering wheel shake is most likely a bent rim, as the first owner hit a pothole at 3,000 miles in 08 and reported a steering wheel shake/pulls to the right. My tires are dated back in 2016, so they aren't unbalanced.
If I were to get a new(er) vehicle, it would be either a current-gen Corolla, Mazda 3 hatch (as I do not want CD), current-gen accord 1.5 or 2.0t, 21'cx-30, 20' Rav4, or a 2021 Camry. I am weary of Honda with reliability, but Honda has been making turbo engines for years so they know what they're doing.
Any opinions would help me out big time, all the repairs come to a total of at least 1200, possibly even more... The vehicle (Private party) is worth 13-15K, trade-in 11-12.5K (With everything I have done to the vehicle, ceramic coating, leather/plastic/vinyl treatments, etc.) Thank you!
Honestly it sounds like basic maintenance. You have a belt making noise, need tires and a rim, and as for the brakes the dealer should offer to warranty it but if not, find another place to have the work done.
Fixing the car would be far cheaper than buying a replacement in the next 5 years with things as they are. I'd keep it.
Well, if you do decide to go with Honda. Don't go by the oil life monitor, or the "10k mile oil change", change it every 4-5k miles and you'll stay ahead of any oil dilution. And Rav4 & Camry are perennial favorites.
Can I talk you out of going to the dealer for all your repairs? It will cost you less if you find a reputable independant shop to fix your car. My local Toyota dealer flushed the transmission with 156k miles on my '07 ES350 and now it has a 3rd to 4th gear shift flare. I converted from Acura TL to Lexus ES because of the timing chain in the ES350 engine.
I know the transmission flare is basically in every Es350 from 07-09, I cannot speak on the refresh 10-12. It's also on the Camry V6 from 07-09. Some owners have had it flare so bad it acts as if the transmission is slipping badly. Apparently back in 07-2012 owners could have it reflashed apart of a TSB but my Lexus dealer charges 200 dollars for that, mine is not bad it's barely noticeable so I leave it.
I had slipping issues before the flare that turned out to be low fluid. My axle seals leaked bad enough that when the transmission slipped bad enough to barely move, it was time to add a pint. Replacing seals stopped it from needing fluid added every other month.
Toyota confirmed the flare when I brought it back to them after their flush. They said it was the torque converter clutch and want $5k to replace it. That diagnosis made no sense at all. The torque cluch is supposed to lock at cruising speed. I'm just putting up with it until it quits. What I can't figure out is it shifts fine usually after it's warmed up. Bad clutches will make it slip all the time. Lexus also had a TSB to replace the transmission valve body to resolve the flare problem.
https://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/topic/31300-tsib-update-es-350-transmission-3-4-gear-shift-flare/
We had the shift flare in our Lexus. We had a BG service done with the cleaner then new fluid and conditioner and the flare went away and has not come back. BG cleans the inside of the torque converter where the dirt loves to gather and the conditioner gets the flare gone. Repeat every 50k miles. Your tires sound bad. Get michelin or the top of the line goodyear touring tire on that car.
