Electrical complaints by model year
Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (battery, alternator, wiring, ignition, instrument cluster, infotainment).
Mileage when the problem started
What owners report
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 Lexus ES300. While driving at an unknown speed, smoke was noticed coming from the engine compartment. The contact managed to pull the vehicle over as it was stalling. The contact exited the vehicle, lifted the hood, and noticed flames coming from the battery. The contact called the fire department who extinguished the fire. The contact mentioned that the fire department cut the battery cord and informed the contact that the vehicle was unsafe to drive. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. The dealer and manufacturer were not notified of the failure. An independent mechanic diagnosed that the battery needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 156,000.
Our 2003 Lexus es 300 engine area caught in fire when my wife parked in the parking lot. According to the witness, parking lot security, he saw the smoke came out from the engine area for about a minute and then fire. He said it looks like something is short in the electrical/engine and caught the fire. When the fire department arrived to put out the fire which damaged and burned half of the car, a lead fire man commented that he has seen several incidents that the Lexus sedans were suddenly caught in fire while parking. With this unfortunate tragedy occurred to our Lexus car, we are very concerned with the safety for all Lexus sedan especially es 300 driving by consumers out there. Fortunately, my wife left the car few minutes before the car caught in fire, but mentally she was still in shock with it. …
Lexus es 300 year 2002, I was pulling into a parking space, traveling at slow speed, 5-8 miles an hour, when the car would not stop, despite applying the brake. The car engine appeared to have a low hum and appeared to be in overdrive. The car jumped over a concrete divider, over a sidewalk, through a brick wall and plate glass window. The car was in a furniture store. The front of the car was extensively damaged. I ( the driver) hit my head ( left side) and the left side of my body hit the side of the car. The accident was reported to Lexus. They had access to evaluate the car and said that the brakes were fine. This type of accident has happened to other drivers of this make and year of car. I hope it will be evaluated carefully. I have suffered as a result of this accident. Just because Lexus could not find a problem , does not mean that it does not exist. …
Optitron instrumentation: not easy to read in broad daylight. When driving, it's important to keep your eyes on the road. Under normal daylight conditions, instrument readings are virtually invisible. Current speed necessary to set cruise control. Poor design: at night, or under low ambient light conditions (dusk, heavy shade, rain, etc.) instrument lighting is exceptional: all elements of the instrument cluster are very clear, very visible. Under normal daylight conditions (with sun overhead - not shining directly on the panel) the illumination level within the cluster is insufficient to provide easy visibility. (staring intently will yield results - a definite safety issue in a moving vehicle.) in order to set the cruise control, it is necessary to know exactly what speed the vehicle is at: very difficult to see in broad daylight. …
Car surged out of control-stopped by a fire hydrant and lawn bushes =car was totaled- bags did not open-problem with sensors replaced 2 and the\immediately before crash- run away check engine light plus another light came on.
I was driving on a busy road, and my 2000 Lexus ES300 RPM went down to 0 and shut off in the middle of busy traffic. I was almost hit from behind and could have caused a major pileup with injuries. I had to be pushed out of traffiic car wouldn't start. After, getting the car to the mechanic they determined that it was the idle air control valve, it is costly to replace and a problem with that make and model 2000 Lexus ES300. This is a serious electrical problem and I found out a faulty iac valve can cause your car to stall anywhere at anytime. I am thankful no one, as well as myself was injured, but I do not know about the next person this May happen to. The part cost about 200 dollars and the labor is approximately 300 dollars. This happened on wed. 08/10/2011 and the part has to be ordered due to cost. As a result, no repairs have been made because of expense. …
The day before the accident happened all the tail light were off and I found the fuse for tail light was blew. So I replaced the fuse. Next day,when I turned on headlight while driving on highway 680, the "r" indicator on the dashboard became on as well -- now both "d" and "r" were on. It puzzled me for awhile so I decided to turn off the headlight. As soon as the headlight was turned off , the car "hesitated" on freeway. I took the car to dealer for service who claimed they have never seen this before. After 3 days of services, they said some wires were crossed and charged $581 for replacing those faulty wires and one controller. The car is only 13 year old and about 100 k miles. I would definitely classify this accident as a defect by manufacture. I want to file this compliant to see any other ES300 owners have experienced such problem.
Headlights turn off by themselves intermittently while driving. This also occurs intermittently when you use the directional signals to signal for a right or left turn. This electrical failure makes this car unsafe to drive at night at any speed. Driving at night without headlights on could result in an accident with bodily injury or death to the occupants of this vehicle or other vehicles and/or property damage. The jm Lexus' service department diagnosed this problem as a defective wiper switch assembly.
Frequently asked questions
Which Lexus ES300 years have electrical problems?
By NHTSA complaints, the 2002 (11), 2003 (10), 1995 (9), 2000 (6) and 1996 (5) model years. Electrical complaints make up 7% of all complaints for the 2002.
Is there a recall for Lexus ES300 electrical problems?
No. NHTSA lists no electrical system recall for any Lexus ES300 model year. A widespread problem may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin, so ask a dealer.
At what mileage do Lexus ES300 electrical problems start?
Across all years, half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 74,000 miles; 29% happened before 50,000 miles.
What part fails most often?
Owners most often name the 12v/24v/48v battery (9 mentions), followed by the wiring › interior/under dash (7).
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.