429
ES300h_OM_OM33D45U_(U)
7Maintenance and care
7-1. Maintenance and careCleaning and protecting the vehicle exterior ................430
Cleaning and protecting the vehicle interior.................. 433
7-2. Maintenance Maintenance requirements ............................ 436
General maintenance.............. 439
Emission inspection and maintenance (I/M)
programs .................................... 442
7-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance Do-it-yourself service precautions................................ 443
Hood ............................................... 445
Positioning a floor jack ............ 446
Engine compartment ............... 447
12-volt battery ............................. 457
Tires .................................................. 461
Tire inflation pressure.................471
Wheels ........................................... 474
Air conditioning filter ............... 476
Electronic key battery .............. 478
Checking and replacing fuses ............................................. 480
Light bulbs.....................................483
ES300h_OM_OM33D45U_(U)
4417-2. Maintenance
7
Maintenance and care
Vehicle exterior
ItemsCheck points
Doors/trunk• Do the doors/trunk operate smoothly?
Engine hood• Does the engine hood lock system work properly?
Fluid leaks• There should not be any signs of fluid leakage after
the vehicle has been parked.
Tires
• Is the tire inflation pressure correct?
• The tires should not be damaged or excessively worn.
• Have the tires been rotated according to the mainte- nance schedule?
• The wheel nuts should not be loose.
Windshield wipers
•The wiper blades should no t show any signs of crack-
ing, splitting, wear, contamination or deformation.
• The wiper blades should clear the windshield without
streaking or skipping.
WARNING
■If the hybrid system is operating
Turn the hybrid system off and ensure that there is adequate ventilation before per-
forming maintenance checks.
461
ES300h_OM_OM33D45U_(U)7-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance
7
Maintenance and care
Tires
Check if the treadwear indicators are showing on the tires. Also check the tires
for uneven wear, such as excessive wear on one side of the tread.
Check the spare tire condition and pressure if not rotated.
New tread
Worn tread
Treadwear indicator
The location of treadwear indicato rs is shown by a “TWI” or “Δ” mark, etc., molded
into the sidewall of each tire.
Replace the tires if the treadwear indicators are showing on a tire.
Rotate the tires in the order shown.
To equalize tire wear and extend tire life,
Lexus recommends that tire rotation is
carried out at the same interval as tire
inspection.
Do not fail to initialize the tire pressure
warning system after tire rotation.
Replace or rotate tires in accordance with maintenance schedules and tread-
wear.
Checking tires
Tire rotation
1
2
3
Front
462
ES300h_OM_OM33D45U_(U)7-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance
Your vehicle is equipped with a tire pressure warning system that uses tire pres-
sure warning valves and transmitters to
detect low tire inflation pressure before
serious problems arise.
●If the tire pressure drops below a predet ermined level, the driver is warned by
a screen display and a warning light. ( →P. 505)
●The tire pressure detected by the
tire pressure warning system can be
displayed on the multi-information
display. ( →P. 91)
The illustration used is intended as an
example, and may differ from the image
that is actually disp layed on the multi-
information display.
◆Installing tire pressure warning valves and transmitters
When replacing tires or wheels, tire pr essure warning valves and transmitters
must also be installed.
When new tire pressure wa rning valves and transmitters are installed, new ID
codes must be registered in the tire pressure warning computer and the tire
pressure warning system must be initia lized. Have tire pressure warning valve
and transmitter ID codes registered by your Lexus dealer. ( →P. 463)
◆Initializing the tire pressure warning system
■The tire pressure warning system must be initialized in the following circum-
stances:
●When rotating the tires.
●When the tire inflation pressure is changed such as when changing travel-
ing speed or load weight.
When the tire pressure warning system is initialized, the current tire inflation
pressure is set as the benchmark pressure.
Tire pressure warning system
464
ES300h_OM_OM33D45U_(U)7-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance
■When to replace your vehicle’s tires
Tires should be replaced if:
●The treadwear indicators are showing on a tire.
●You have tire damage such as
cuts, splits, cracks deep enough to expose the fabric, and
bulges indicating internal damage
●A tire goes flat repeatedly or cannot be properly repaired due to the size or location of
a cut or other damage
If you are not sure, consult with your Lexus dealer.
■Replacing tires and wheels
If the ID code of the tire pressure warning valve and transmitter is not registered, the tire
pressure warning system will not work proper ly. After driving for about 20 minutes, the
tire pressure warning light blinks for 1 minu te and stays on to indicate a system malfunc-
tion.
■Tire life
Any tire over 6 years old must be checked by a qualified technician even if it has seldom
or never been used or damage is not obvious.
■Routine tire inflation pressure checks
The tire pressure warning syst em does not replace routine tire inflation pressure checks.
Make sure to check tire inflat ion pressure as part of your routine of daily vehicle checks.
■When rotating the tires
Make sure that the power switch is off. If the tires are rotated while the power switch is in
ON mode, the tire position information will not be updated.
If this accidentally occurs, either turn the power switch to off and then to ON mode, or
initialize the system after checking that the tire pressure is properly adjusted.
■Maximum load of tire
Check that the maximum load of the replacement tire is greater than 1/2 of the Gross
Axle Weight Ratings (GAWR) of either the front axle or the rear axle, whichever is
greater.
For the GAWR, see the Ce rtification Label. For
the maximum load of the tire, see the load limit
at maximum cold tire inflation pressure men-
tioned on the sidewall of the tire.
( → P. 550)
ES300h_OM_OM33D45U_(U)
4657-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance
7
Maintenance and care
■Tire types
●Summer tires
Summer tires are high-speed performance tires best suited to highway driving under
dry conditions. Since summer tires do not have the same traction performance as
snow tires, summer tires are inadequate for driving on snow-covered or icy roads. For
driving on snow-covered roads or icy road s, the use of snow tires is recommended.
When installing snow tires, be sure to replace all four tires.
●All season tires
All season tires are designed to provide better traction in snow and to be adequate for
driving in most winter conditions as well as for use year-round. All season tires, how-
ever, do not have adequate traction perfor mance compared with snow tires in heavy
or loose snow. Also, all season tires fall short in acceleration and handling perfor-
mance compared with summer tires in highway driving.
●Snow tires
For driving on snow-covered roads or icy roads, we recommend using snow tires. If
you need snow tires, select ti res of the same size, construction and load capacity as the
originally installed tires. Since your vehicle has radial tires as original equipment, make
sure your snow tires also have radial cons truction. Do not install studded tires without
first checking local regulations for possible restrictions. Snow tires should be installed
on all wheels. ( →P. 280)
■If the tread on snow tires wears down below 0.16 in. (4 mm)
The effectiveness of the tire s as snow tires is lost.
■Situations in which the tire pressure warning system may not operate properly
●In the following cases, the tire pressure warning system may not operate properly.
• If non-genuine Lexus wheels are used.
• A tire has been replaced with a tire that is not an OE (Original Equipment) tire.
• A tire has been replaced with a tire that is not of the specified size.
• Tire chains etc. are equipped.
• An auxiliary-supported run-flat tire is equipped.
• If a window tint that affects th e radio wave signals is installed.
• If there is a lot of snow or ice on the vehi cle, particularly around the wheels or wheel
housings.
• If the tire inflation pressure is extr emely higher than the specified level.
●Performance may be affected in the following situations.
• Near a TV tower, electric power plant, gas station, radio station, large display, air-
port or other facility that generates st rong radio waves or electrical noise
• When carrying a portable radio, cellular phone, cordless phone or other wireless
communication device
If tire position information is not correctl y displayed due to the radio wave conditions,
the display may be corrected by driving and changing the radio wave conditions.
●When the vehicle is parked, the time taken for the warning to start or go off could be
extended.
●When tire inflation pressure declines rapidly for example when a tire has burst, the
warning may not function.
466
ES300h_OM_OM33D45U_(U)7-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance
■The initialization operation
●Make sure to carry out initialization afte
r adjusting the tire inflation pressure.
Also, make sure the tires are cold before carryi ng out initialization or tire inflation pres-
sure adjustment.
●If you have accidentally turned the power switch off during initialization, it is not neces-
sary to press the reset switch again as initialization will restart automatically when the
power switch has been turned to ON mode for the next time.
●If you accidentally press the re set switch when initialization is not necessary, adjust the
tire inflation pressure to the specified leve l when the tires are cold, and conduct initial-
ization again.
■When initialization of the tire pressure warning system has failed
Initialization can be completed in a few minutes. However, in the following cases, the set-
tings have not been recorded and the system will not operate properly. If repeated
attempts to record tire inflation pressure settings are unsuccessful, have the vehicle
inspected by your Lexus dealer.
●When operating the tire pres sure warning reset switch, the tire pressure warning light
does not blink 3 times.
●After carrying out the initializat ion procedure, the tire pressure warning light blinks for 1
minute then stays on after driving for 20 minutes.
■Tire pressure warning system certification
Transmitter:
For vehicles sold in the U.S.A., Hawaii, Guam, Saipan, American Samoa, NATO
Germany and Puerto Rico
ES300h_OM_OM33D45U_(U)
4697-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance
7
Maintenance and care
WARNING
■When inspecting or replacing tires
Observe the following precautions to prevent accidents.
Failure to do so may cause damage to parts of the drive train as well as dangerous han-
dling characteristics, which may lead to an accident resulting in death or serious injury.
●Make sure to install four tire s that are of the specified size, and that all four tires are of
the same size, same brand, and same tread pattern.
●Do not use tire sizes other than those recommended by Lexus.
●Do not mix differently constructed tires (radial, bias-belted or bias-ply tires).
●If only two tires are replaced, the new tires sh ould be placed on the rear of the vehicle.
●Do not mix summer, all season and snow tires.
●Do not use tires that have been used on another vehicle.
Do not use tires if you do not know how they were used previously.
●Do not tow if your vehicle has a compact spare tire installed.
■When initializing the tire pressure warning system
Do not operate the tire pressure warning reset switch without first adjusting the tire
inflation pressure to the spec ified level. Otherwise, the tire pressure warning light may
not come on even if the tire inflation pressu re is low, or it may come on when the tire
inflation pressure is actually normal.
■Caution regarding interference with electronic devices
●Users of any electrical medical device ot her than implantable cardiac pacemakers,
cardiac resynchronization th erapy-pacemakers or implantable cardioverter defibril-
lators should consult the manufacturer of the device for information about its opera-
tion under the influence of radio waves.
Radio waves could have unexpected effects on the operation of such medical
devices.
●People with implantabl e cardiac pacemakers,
cardiac resynchronization therapy-pacemak-
ers or implantable cardioverter defibrillators
should not come within 17.7 in. (450 mm) of
the tire pressure warn ing system initiators.
The radio waves may affect the operation of
such devices.