Transmission Noise problems of the 2001 Lexus RX300

While driving the car on city streets I attempted a u turn with the vehicle as I was completing the u turn the transmission made a weird noise and then there was nothing. No forward or reverse and when I put the vehicle in park it acted like it was in neutral. I had to put the emergency brake on to keep the car from rolling. Had to have the vehicle towed to my house 115 miles away. He car only has 145,000 miles on it. Car starts up and runs great but will not engage the transmission. The vehicle is still financed so I need to get it fixed however the cheapest rebuild I can find is $5,000. 00. I called Toyota and asked if I could trade it in on a new car and they said not with the transmission fixed because they would lose money on it. I feel Toyota should fix this due to the fact there are numerous complaints about this issue with other Lexus owners. I still owe $5,500. 00 on the loan and cant afford the cost of another transmission. I think Toyota should fix this since there are a lot of complaints about the drive train.

Transmission failure: started to make noise couple of days ago and finally failed while on the road. Engine is running good, but no gear engagement. All drive train position seems like the car is in natural. Excessive transmission failures was reported by other Rx300 owners. Cost to service re-build transmission is $3,551. 00.

I started hearing a noise when the car was cold and started it. The noise went away after I started driving it. After a while, I took it to a mechanic, who told me that the noise was that the transmission was failing and it will cost over $5,000 to replace. In searching about it, I was told that the company knew that the transmission on the 1999, 2000 and 2001's RX 300's were a problem, but they decided not to do anything because the troubles would start after the warranty is over. . . When I purchased my car, I was planning on having this car for a long, long time. I feel that the RX-300 was misrepresented to me, the company knew that the life of this car was going to be cut short and decided to do nothing about it.

2001 Lexus Rx300 transmission failure. I am one of hundreds (possibly thousands) that have had to have the transmission replaced at 88k miles. My car has been regularly maintained by the dealer. Noise - whining sound- began in engine without real performance problems; however, when I took it to the dealer I was told the transmission was failing and needed a complete replacement. Cost to repair is $3,888. 27 not including taxes.

1. Grinding noise. 2. Transmission failure. Car stopped moving. 3. Transmission replaced.

I own 2001 model year of Lexus Rx300 2wd, and I bought it pre-own certified by a Lexus dealer in northern California back in October, 2004. I strictly followed the maintenance procedures recommended by Lexus and changed defective parts at Lexus dealers, and kept all the documents in file. However, the transmission on July 16, 2008, with mileage of 77,450, failed functioning normal with a sharp whining noise. This was when car got started cold and pulled backward and moved forward in about 10 minutes. My car was diagnosed on July 15, 2008 by Lexus dealer who told me that the transmission is worn and the total cost for replacement will be some $6,500. A lot of such reports were listed in the auto clubs and blogs. I lawfully file this case for a recall and full repair by Lexus at no cost to me upon presence of proven track records of car maintenance. I hope this will be brought to the court for settlement in an earlier date no later than August 31, 2008.

After 101,000 miles the transmission on the 2001 Lexus Rx300 simply went out. I could not go in reverse or drive. I parked in a stall at my son's preschool and after dropping him off, I put the car in reverse to back out. At first the card didn't move, then a quick jolt and a clanking noise and that was it. I have regularly serviced the car, and just cleaned the transmission not more that 2 months ago. That was the third transmission flush I had done since 2001. My father owns a repair shop so maintenance has always been kept up.

A little over one year ago my car was making a noise and the check engine lights came on. I took it to my usual mechanic and they said it was the transmission. A friend of mine with the same make and model of vehicle had just recently experienced the same problem, so I called the dealership. When I told the representative at the dealership what the mechanic said, I didn't even have to tell him the year of my car. He knew immediately the year of my car and almost the exact mileage, and said yes it was the transmission. He said that it was a "normal" problem with this car since it was a car engine on a truck chassis. Since I was able to show proof that I did the maintenance on the vehicle he spoke with his manager and they paid for the parts ( a rebuilt transmission) and I paid for the labor. ($1400) while sitting in the lobby to pick up my car I overheard 2 other people picking up their cars with the same issue. I never followed up with it, but have since heard of 2 other people that had the same problem at the same approximate mileage (80,000- 85,000). I am now experiencing further issues with my vehicle that they can't seem to figure out, which has prompted me to follow through with a complaint. If nothing else I think this transmission needs to be recalled.