Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (accelerator pedal, throttle, sudden acceleration, cruise control).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2001 Lexus RX300 owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
When parking the vehicle, the vehicle suddenly accelerated while the driver was not pressing the accelerator. Despite the driver's efforts to stop the vehicle, the vehicle jumped over a curb and headed toward a head-on collision with traffic. In an attempt to avoid a possibly fatal collision, the driver swerved hard to the left intending to hit a pole to stop the vehicle. The vehicle missed the pole and hit a starbucks with the vehicle ending up completely inside the starbucks. Six people who were inside the starbucks were injured. The driver never pressed the accelerator during the entire incident.
Tl* the contact owns a 2001 Lexus RX300. While driving at approximately 55 MPH, the vehicle accelerated without warning. The brakes failed when the brake pedal was depressed. The vehicle was shifted into neutral and merged to the side of the road where the vehicle was turned off. The failure recurred once. The vehicle was towed to the contact's resident. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 200,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2001 Lexus RX300. The contact stated that while attempting to park, the vehicle suddenly accelerated forward and crashed into a brick wall. The air bags did not deploy. The vehicle sustained front end damage and the contact suffered minor injuries as her breast hit the steering wheel. The insurance company was not notified. Neither the dealer, nor the manufacturer, were made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 73,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2001 Lexus RX300. While the contact was backing into his parking spot the vehicle had suddenly surged in reverse causing the contact to crash into a nearby vehicle. No one was injured. A police report was filed for the incident. The vehicle had not been diagnosed by the dealership. The current and failure mileages were 78000.
While driving at a speed 40, I noticed lag in gear shift while trying to accelerate to 60 MPH. I noticed no pick in speed rather 40 MPH became 20 MPH, the more I press on the gas petal the only acceleration was notice on the RPM. I had to put on the hazards and pull over to let other cars pass.
2000 Lexus rx 300 (this is a Toyota camry engine in a Lexus body) car transmission would not change into high gears 3 & 4 for highway driving, preventing acceleration. Lexus of norwood, ma replaced the entire transmission under warranty. 5,000 miles later the new transmission was doing the same thing, after a week they finally gave it back to and said it was repaired but not what they had to fix and were very sketchy, it was still under warranty. Finally the repair technician told in low tones so not to be heard that it was computer software problem and that;s why they would not tell me. So they replaced an entire transmission at 48000 miles incorrectly when all they had to do was do a software bug fix. I think this is significant because the computer prevented acceleration but could probably also cause unintended acceleration. …
I was driving a Lexus rx 300 and had exited the freeway. I pressed the brake lightly to decrease my speed but instead, the car unexpectedly accelerated. I then stepped on the brake fully but the car continued to accelerate by itself. I tried to slow the car by shifting the gears...tried neutral, l1, l2, and even reverse but failed to slow down. I was going at high speeds, unable to stop, and very scared as I was on a street with many lights. After passing through a red light, I turned the car into the curb and dragged the wheels against the curb until the car came to a stop. I was very fortunate not to hit another car or people through two intersections. This occurrence happened at 3:55 pm, May 12, 2010. The vehicle was towed to the nearest Lexus dealership for inspection and at this time, it is still under evaluation. …
2001 Lexus RX300, 30degree outside temp, vehicle warmed up until heated seats worked, drove vehicle about 80 yards forward, vehicle put into reverse, sudden acceleration occured at full throttle, brakes did not function, unable to shift into drive position with vehicle in motion, RPM needle at redline 8000rpm, vehicle finally brought to screeching and shaking stop when shifted into park. Engine was shut off, when started again, rmp needle jumped up to redline again and stayed there. This repeated about 5 times. Acceleration was stuck at full throttle. No collision. Vehicle malfunction reported to dealership, vehicle towed for diagnosis and repairs. Noticed ticking sound coming from drivers side.
Throttle stuck wide open following routine acceleration going up hill. Engine continued at high revs. Control and braking were difficult as engine raced uncontrollably. Vehicle stopped by exiting into parking lot and being put in park. After 1 hour when vehicle restarted engine immediately red lined. It did the same the following day and at dealer after being towed in. Diagnosis from dealer- throttle control body stuck. Fortunately driver dealt with potentially fatal situation without injury or damage. Manufacturer unwilling to disclose similar episodes.
Tl contact owns a 2001 Lexus RX300. While driving 80 MPH with the cruise control engaged, then the vehicle accelerate on its own. She attempted to turn the cruise control off; however, after engaging the brakes the vehicle failed to stop and accelerated up to 100 MPH. The contact was forced to exit at an off ramp, down shift into park in order to stop the vehicle. The dealer stated that the throttle cable was stuck and frayed; however, he also stated that the cable exhibited normal wear and tear. The failure mileage was 80,000.
Acceleration complaints in other RX300 years
Frequently asked questions
How common are acceleration problems on the 2001 Lexus RX300?
NHTSA has 20 complaints about the speed control & acceleration of the 2001 Lexus RX300, 12% of the model year's 169 complaints. The component named most often is accelerator pedal (4 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2001 Lexus RX300 acceleration problems?
No. NHTSA lists no speed control & acceleration recall for the 2001 Lexus RX300. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2001 Lexus RX300 acceleration problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 73,000 miles, and 6% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 7 crashes, 0 fires and 8 injuries to speed control & acceleration problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
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.