1999 Lexus RX

No clear pattern

0% of complaints about the 1999 Lexus RX arrived in its first year of service. That is an unusual figure for a 1999 vehicle, but with only 41 complaints on record the sample is too small to call it a pattern — the margin of error covers the range where ordinary vehicles sit. The figures below are reported without a verdict. The most-reported system is power train (29 complaints), typically at 8.5 yr or about 104,000 miles.

Complaints: 41
Median age at failure: 8.4 yr
Median mileage: 104,000 n=36
Crash / fire / tow: 4.9% of reports
Safety recalls: 0

In owners’ own words

Power train 70,000 mi 7.6 yr in service

THE TRANSMISSION ON MY 1999 LEXUS RX 300 NEEDED TO BE REPLACED WITH ONLY 70,000 MILES ON THE CAR. I HAVE ALSO HAD TO REPLACE THE STRUTS, THE RADIO ANTENNA MOTOR AND HAVE A MAJOR OIL LEAK REPAIRED. *NM

Power train 80,228 mi 8.3 yr in service

WHILE DRIVING MY 1999 RX300 ON THE HIGHWAY, THE TRANSMISSION WENT OUT ON ME. I FELT I WAS LOSING POWER AND DECIDED TO PULL OVER ON THE SHOULDER. I THEN TRY TO TURN OFF MY ENGINE TO SEE IF RESTARTING IT BACK UP WILL RESOLVE THE ISSUE. WHEN I START THE CAR BACK UP AND PUT IT ON DRIVE, THE CAR WILL NOT MOVE. NEEDLESS TO SAY I HAD TO CALL A TOW TO TOW MY CAR BACK HOME. *NM

Power train mileage not reported 6.6 yr in service

MY TRANSMISSION ON MY 1999 RX300 COMPLETELY GAVE OUT ON ME AFTER MY CAR HAD BEEN SERVICED REGULARLY. IT WAS OUT OF WARRANTY AND I HAD TO PAY FOR HALF OF THE REPAIRS. AFTER RESEARCHING THIS ISSUE, I'VE FOUND TONS OF CUSTOMERS WHO EXPERIENCED THE SAME FAILURE WITH THE RX300. IT IS CRIMINAL THAT NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE ABOUT THIS SOONER. CHECK OUT SOME OF THESE CUSTOMERS' EXPERIENCES: HTTP://WWW.CARSURVEY.ORG/VIEWMORECOMMENTS_REVIEW_54694_1.HTML. *NM

Other RX model years

How to read this

This is what owners reported, not a reliability rating. People file with NHTSA about alarming failures, not routine ones, and complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold.
Failure ages come from the incident date on each complaint, populated on about 83% of records. Mileage is shown where reported — NHTSA’s 2021 system change cut mileage capture to roughly 15%, so it thins out sharply after MY2020.
Every rank compares this vehicle only against others of the same model year. A 2025 car has not had time to accumulate five-year failures, so comparing early-failure share across years is meaningless.
Fourteen make-months distorted by media storms and mass recalls — Toyota in February 2010 ran 11× normal volume across 33 models — are excluded.
Recalls are manufacturer actions and authoritative; complaints are not. A recall listed here may already have been performed on any individual car. Check a specific VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

1999 Lexus RX

When each system is reported — middle 50% of complaints

In owners’ own words

Other RX model years

How to read this