2003 Lexus Es300 Recalls
No NHTSA recalls on record for the 2003 Lexus Es300. That means NHTSA has no open safety campaign for this vehicle — it does not guarantee the absence of problems. Owners have filed 147 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the vehicle speed control. Last updated July 5, 2026.
Complaints by component
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.
“My driver headlight keeps shorting out.I bought another bulb and same problem .”
“(xxxx) air/bag busting thru dash ( * need help ) (xxxx) year: 2003 make: lexus model: es3 parts of this document have been redacted to protect personally identifiable information pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).”
“Tl* the contact owns a 2003 lexus es300. The contact stated while driving 15 mph, when she saw smoke and fire igniting from the hood. The contact stated the engine failed and turned off in the middle of the road. The contact stated no injuries were sustained. The fire department was able to…”
“Sir/madam, I am trying to help my friends (xxxx) and (xxxxx), long time residents of huntington beach and a very sweet couple. Peggy was driving her husband to a doctor's appointment and due to a fault in the engine (there is a recall and they were not informed), the engine caught on fire. If it…”
“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…”
“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…”
“Sudden acceleration, in motion in reverse”
“Unwanted acceleration while applying the break while slowing down the rpm gauge pins itself to about 3000. The car will not down shift until it jolts forward just a little and the you can feel the lower gears engage. I bought it as a used vehical about 3 weeks ago with 80,336 miles . I see lots of…”
Defect investigations
THROTTLE CONTROL SYSTEM
THE POPULATION NUMBER NOTED ABOVE IS ESTIMATED.IN THE JANUARY 15TH, 2004 PETITION REQUEST LETTER TO THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION (NHTSA), THE PETITIONER IDENTIFIED 37 VOQ COMPLAINTS AS RELATED TO VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL ISSUES SIMILAR TO THOSE THE PETITIONER ALLEGEDLY EXPERIENCED IN THEIR OWN…
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
IN A LETTER DATED JULY 8, 2005, AND AFTER EXPERIENCING TWO INCIDENTS (AND ONE CRASH) WHERE HE ALLEGES HIS MODEL YEAR (MY) 2002 CAMRY ACCELERATED WITHOUT DRIVER INPUT, MR. JORDAN ZIPRIN PETITIONED THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION?S (NHTSA) OFFICE OF DEFECTS INVESTIGATION (ODI) TO COMMENCE A…
UNWANTED AND UNINTENDED ACCELERATION
THE OFFICE OF DEFECTS INVESTIGATION (ODI) OPENED DP09-001 ON APRIL 8, 2009, TO EVALUATE A DEFECT PETITION REQUESTING ADDITIONAL INVESTIGATION OF POTENTIAL THROTTLE CONTROL SYSTEM DEFECTS UNRELATED TO FLOOR MAT INTERFERENCE WITH ACCELERATOR PEDALS IN MODEL YEAR (MY) 2007 LEXUS ES 350 VEHICLES.THE PETITIONER REFERENCED…
THROTTLE CONTROL SYSTEM
THE LEXUS MODELS WERE THE SUBJECT OF DEFECT PETITION (DP) 04-003.TWELVE ODI COMPLAINTS ARE DUPLICATIVE TO TOYOTA REPORTS, INCLUDING THE TWO MINOR CRASHES.THE V6 EQUIPPED SOLARA MODELS HAVE BEEN EXCLUDED BECAUSE THEY DO NOT CONTAIN THE SUBJECT THROTTLE CONTROL SYSTEM.TOYOTA INTRODUCED ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL (ETC)…
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2003 Lexus Es300 as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.