Engine noise when starting

What kind of vehicle and engine? What is the model year? How many miles are on the odometer? What kind of oil filter is on the engine?

Well I am not sure we are talking about the same thing, but for me if I would drive my 1990 LS400 for a very short distance (~1 mile, or less, i.e. to go to the store) from a COLD start ... probably not enough time for the engine to get to normal operating temp. ... when I would go to (re)start the car a short time later (i.e., to drive back to the house from the store), the car would act up (somewhat violently) until it got warmed up. This would NEVER happen (or HAS happened) as long as I always drove the car long enough for it to get completely warmed up (Temp gauge a couple of ticks ABOVE "C" - normal operating temp). I also cleaned the EGR filter (

) I "feel" this helped the problem ... although it could be just a coincidence ... I try never to start the car anymore, unless I drive it long enough to get to normal operating temp.

I have an 1992 ES 300 with a 3.0 liter engine 200k miles and a 1999 ES

300 with a 3.0 engine and 100k miles and both car experience the same problem. I use Castrol 10w-30 on my 92 and Castrol 5w-30 on my 99 which is the Lexus recommended oil weight. Oil and filter are changed on both cars at 5k miles. I have used the Toyota oil filter (when they are on sale) but most of the time I use a Fram PH 3614 filter.

What happens if you simply let the car sit for two nights and then start it? In cold northern climates, you should never ever shut an engine off until you have warmed it up sufficiently to thoroughly heat the oil, so if you are up north, perhaps you have generated some ice in the oil by the brief run the first day. And then there is the question of what happens if you let it sit for three night, or four, or five, or ...

I don't believe the problem would be aggravated if the car sits for several nights. I am not that far north to have a freezing problem. I am in the Washington DC area and we rarely get long periods of time below 32 degrees F. So cold IS not the problem.

Mike

I asked about the oil filter because a cheap filter might drain out if it is oriented so that the oil could flow out, but it seems like you are using quality filters. BTW, you can purchase the Toyota filters more cheaply at a Toyota dealer than at the Lexus dealer.

My guess is that during the initial cold start and quick shutdown the motion of the engine circulates the oil remaining in the engine back down to the pan before the oil filter has a chance to circulate enough replacement oil and during the next start, the engine is a little dry until the oil circulates enough to re-fill the passages. Depending on the source of the sound, you're hearing a little piston slap or drivetrain noise. I've heard it in our Sequoia on occasion, it is nothing to worry about.

On Wed, 01 Feb 2006 04:22:09 GMT, Mike graced this newsgroup with:

that's odd. I live in Herndon, Va, just outside of DC and it's been a very moderate winter. We have an 00 ES300 and an 02 LS430 and have never experienced this problem. Have you taken the car to the dealer to have it looked at?

If nothing else, I'd recommend taking it to Absolute Auto in Herndon and have them look at it. Something is *not* right IMHO and you need to have it looked it. I'm hoping you're not a victim of the dreaded jelling oil problem.