2003 Lexus Es300: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 147 complaints
147
Total Complaints
31,000mi
Median Mileage
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Top Issue
52
Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

2,600 25th Percentile
31,000 Median Mileage
78,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
43
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
19
AIR BAGS
9
POWER TRAIN
7
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL:ACCELERATOR PEDAL
6
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
6
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE
5
ENGINE
5
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE
4
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
4

Severity Assessment

52
Crashes
6
Fires
20
Injuries
2
Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"WHILE DRIVING AT HIGHWAY SPEED THE VEHICLE JERKS AND DRAGS, CONTACTED THE DEALER THEY SAID THAT LEXUS WAS DOING SOME SORT OF COMPUTER PROGRAM UPDATE THAT RELATES TO HER VEHICLE. PLEASE ADD ANY ADDITIONAL INFORMATION. MR"
"WHEN ACCELERATING OUT OF A SLOW TURN(USUALLY A U-TURN) THE CAR WILL DELAY APPROX 1 SECOND BEFORE TRANSMISSION ENGAGES. WHEN SLOWING TO STOP BUT NOT COMPLETELY STOPPING THE TRANSMISSION FEELS LIKE IT IS SLIPPING WHEN ACCELERATING. *JB"
"THE VEHICLE HAD PROBLEMS PICKING UP SPEED, WHEN THE ACCELERATOR WAS PRESSED THE VEHICLE DID NOT RESPOND, IT SOUNDED AS THOUGH SOMETHING WAS TICKING INSIDE THE VEHICLE. THE CONSUMER CONTACTED THE LEXUS MANUFACTURE AND WAS TOLD THEY WERE AWARE OF THE PROBLEM WHICH WAS CALLED " THE HAZARD COMPUTER MOD..."

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28