Toyota Stalking, er...um, SPOTTING with Charlie™ (Cars, vans, SUVs, Lexus, Scion, and brochures)!

Here is the 2000GT in question, which can be seen in the background of at least one Supra pic...

 

I think the 300s are FWD only, which may not be true. I think the RXs are nice SUVs nothing about them stands out to, or excites me about them. It is a Lexus, so it's got that going for it. I prefer them in the gold/beige/champagne color.

I guess the RX300 is a 3.0L ?

My initial thought would be the RX is an up market version of a Highlander.

 

Not true, except for the engine displacement...

My grandma's 2002 was FWD, but this green one is AWD; The RX300 is based on the JDM Toyota Harrier.

 

This is a Toyota Harrier (picture from Wikipedia), which was first released as a 1997 model; The RX debuted in North America, in 1998, as a 1999 model...

 

The XU10 (above) and XU10 (below; also from Wikipedia) were the only versions of the Toyota Harrier rebadged as the Lexus RX...

 

I might have been thinking of the later generations, as I think the 300 was the top of the line for the 1st gen. I think I have seen later generation 350 s, and even 400h s in FWD as well. I was surprised that there are that many FWD RXs on the road. The current generation might all be AWD.

 

My grandma bought hers new in Florida; It was FWD and lacked heated seats...

 

I really like them. Would spring for the RX330 if it were me. I owned a Lexus ES330 (same motor) and it was a smooth car to drive. Sold it to my friend and he still daily drives it with 200k miles.

 

Yeah I figure the FWDs would have originally sold in Florida, or on the West Coast.

 

And now it's in Kentucky; My dad's friend bought it for like five grand with less than 90K miles back in 2019, and just recently hit 100K...

 

The RX300 is based on a 1 gen Highlander. Pretty solid vehicles. A couple things to consider though. The MZ engines have a timing belt. Toyota recommends a belt change at 90k or 8 year intervals. This is important because the MZs are interference engines. The belt snaps and you have a 4k pound paper weight.

Also....the water pump is driven by the timing belt. At that age and mileage it's prudent to replace it when the timing belt is replaced.

 

@batacoma

Here are some pictures of my Grandma's FWD RX300 in the beige/gold color you like...

 

I prefer timing belt motors. Both my trucks have the 4.7L Toyota V8 and are timing belt. Luckily I'm a mechanic so free labor. AISIN timing belt kit is $200 including a new water pump and bearings.

 

Really? Maybe they shared an engine and underpinnings, but the RX was based on the Toyota Harrier which was released in 1997; The Lexus RX was released in 1998 as a 1999 model in North America. The Highlander was released in 2000 as a 2001 model, so wouldn't the Highlander be based on the RX?

 

Also, this is what's being done on my friend Gwyn's 2004 Tacoma with the 3.4L; For $470, my mechanic is replacing the timing belt, serpentine belt, and water pump!

 

That's a good price. I usually charge $450 for that. It is very time consuming.

 

Looks nice I forgot the RX had the Alteza tail lights.

 

That's why I love my mechanic; He charged me $400 for a front brake job including new calipers, new pads, new rotors, bleeding the system, and new brake fluid! He also put an engine in the same friend's Subaru for $4,300!

 

The Highlander and RX share the same platform and drivetrain.....still do to this day. Which came 1st....the chicken or the egg isn't important. At the end of the day....all Lexus vehicles are Toyotas