One problem related to catalytic convertor has been reported for the 2003 Lexus ES300. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
Strong sulfur smell inside car when stopping after brisk acceleration. A/c in normal setting. Lexus aware of this problem and there is even a service bulletin on sulfur complain smell. Odor is so strong that sometimes people get nauseated. I would have never bought this car have the dealer make me aware of this problem and they knew about this defect before I took delivery of car. Need NHTSA help since there are many Lexus owners complaining about sulfur smell and Lexus is ignoring us - I guess they have a major problem and do not know how to fix or correct problem. They even told me to use only amoco premium since they claim it has the lowest sulfur content. Also, if the sulfur smell is getting inside the car how about the carbon monoxide which is also getting out of the exhaust. All these fumes are being sucked in by the a/c system and I'm sure that in the long run somebody will get sick. - we, Lexus owners need our government to investigate this issue since Lexus is trying to ignore these problem for obvious reasons. Thank you.