WHAT IS IT?
This 1999 Lexus RX300 is a low-mile one-owner example of the first model year of the Lexus RX. This crossover luxury utility model would come to be Lexus’s best-selling model and really helped set the direction for the entire auto industry which is now (sadly perhaps) dominated by crossovers and SUVs. After the success of the RX series, Lexus eventually killed off their coupe models in favor of more SUVs in different sizes. Luxury SUVs are so common today that it’s easy to forget when they were still a novelty and Lexus is greatly to blame for this scourge.
WHY COULD THIS BE THE BEST ONE ON THE PLANET?
Renowned for their reliability, it’s increasingly difficult to find examples of early RX300s with less than 6 figures on the odometer. While this example isn’t perfect, it appears to be completely original, sports only 40,000 1-owner miles from new, and the only visible body damage appears to be a small dent on the rear quarter just crying out for a paintless dent removal appointment. While the photos aren’t the best and the car is dusty, the Red Pearl factory paint still seems to glow.
Due to their success (more than 100k sold per year in the US), these aren’t rare, but nice low-mile examples certainly are. This is interesting as a 26-year-old collectible or would make a terrific daily driver with many miles to go and extensive parts and repair support.
Interior materials were of exceedingly high quality, but the leather still cracked and wore with age and lack of maintenance. Even the driver’s seat on this one looks like new. The factory Nakamichi sound system was quite highly regarded at the time, and this one is still in place and hopefully still works. The electroluminescent instrument cluster was also a novelty at the time and still looks bright and clear.
Marketplace – 1999 Lexus RX · RX 300 Sport Utility 4D | Facebook
