[Wheel covers]

That is a part number for the CT200h, some of which have steel wheels. 

Surely your IS250 has alloy wheels and so does not need wheel covers? 

[How much should I ask for my 2006 GS300 SE]

Try parkers.co.uk/car-valuation/

There are several other free valuation sites - just search for 'car valuation'

WBAC only deal with cars up to 15 years old, AFAIK.

[Lexus IS 300h not vulnerable to CANbus theft]

Does that apply to the pre-facelift GS300h, as I see that is also not on the list of cars for the security fix?

[Alternator issues... AGAIN! less than 2 years old...]

Have you checked all the earth points for engine and 12v Battery? Make sure all are clean and properly making contact with the body/engine/battery terminal.

[Looking to buy GS 300H]

An interesting and useful comparison. My car is a GS300h Premier, pre face lift.

A couple of nit-picks:

My car has RCTA and head-up display. It has 18" wheels and the larger discs - I didn't know 17" wheels wouldn't fit but can well believe it. The sat nav shows speed limits (not always accurately, but my last map update was 2019). I think that improvements/spec changes are incremental and come in randomly during model life, so some pre face lift will have features that others don't and that probably carries on for post face lift as well.

I don't think the ride is all that wonderful - I'd  agree with the post somewhere that gave it 6/10.

I understand that pre facelift cars are Euro V and post are Euro VI

My road tax is £25 per annum.

I love my car and expect to keep it for many years!

[GS300 2007 - Sell or Scrap?]

Definitely sell it - it must be much too good to scrap. If you want minimum fuss and no risk you could try carconverter.co.uk

I think most of the 'cash for your car' type people won't quote for cars over 15 years old but carconverter say any age.

Or there's Autotrader but then you've got potentially quite a lot of hassle (crooks, people not turning up, time wasters, bouncing cheques or bank drafts, etc)

Or send it straight to auction - BCA etc.

Better all round if it has a MoT  (but don't worry about any other tarting up - you're unlikely to recoup the cost)!

The Battery should just need jumping and you may be able to get the tyre fixed at low cost (borrow a pump?)

[Lexus GS 300h]

I think it depends to an extent on how long you plan to keep the car. If you are going to drive it for say 4 more years or past 150K it might be judicious to change the gearbox oil in the near future. Otherwise probably don't bother.

'Lifetime' fluids don't necessarily mean real lifetime when a car gets older - most manufacturers don't really expect their cars to last more than about 15 years or 150K miles and if you're still driving then you're on your own! Having said that I'm sure there are GS cars around with many more miles without the fluid being changed (as Colin just said whilst I was typing this reply 🙂)

IMHO

The GS300h uses the L210 transmission - GS450h cars use the L110 transmission. It looks rather easier to change the fluid in the L210 so it shouldn't cost too much. Probably best to have it done by a Lexus dealer or a really experienced indy.

You can change most of the fluid in one go - the 'bit at a time' as per Lexus auto transmissions doesn't apply to the CVT boxes.

[Ho do I get the High beam to say on]

There's an auto headlight function. Whether the lights are then on high or dip beam depends on the position of the headlight lever (switch).

There isn't an auto dip function on my 2014 car - I don't know if there is on facelift Phase 4 GS cars.

Personally I hate auto headlights. People depend on them too much, and there are lots of situations where headlights are necessary (or at least desirable) where the auto function doesn't work - eg in fog, rain, low sun etc.

[GS450h Stinks when air set to blow downwards]

Worthwhile using an aircon 'bomb'. That will at least eliminate the aircon system itself (or should!)

[Ho do I get the High beam to say on]

Push the lever forwards - away from you.

Then backward for dip. Pull again towards you for main beam flash.

If pushing away from you doesn't put main beam on, you have a fault.

[Gs450h on dashboard shows low air pressure]

Your OBD2 scanner probably only shows engine faults, which you don't have.

A failing Battery is not an engine fault.

[Tyre monitoring system]

Back to the dealer I guess.

[Tyre monitoring system]

Try resetting the TPMS. Set the pressures you want manually with a compressor (maybe at a garage).

Then locate a hard-to-see button under the dash - it's about central and set back from the edge of the dash. There are two buttons there - one is for TPMS and one for AFS. Press and hold the TPMS button until the tyre pressure warning light blinks 3 times (you need to have power on while doing this)

See the Owners manual!

[GS450h/2007 code B2287]

Welcome to the Lexus GS OC!

It seems that we aren't very familiar with this code.

Personally I have no idea, but see here:

B2287 Lexus Code Meaning, Causes, Symptoms, & Tech Notes (engine-codes.com)

The code indicates a wiring or ECU fault but it could be anywhere. Check for chafing of wires or any obvious damaged areas

Good luck!

[Slow = Cold air]

PS - Hazel - if you have or can get hold of an endoscope you might be able to find a clean cylinder by looking through a plug hole - might save having to remove one cylinder head.

But again - I hope it's not that - removing a head on these engines is a real task!

Mention of a recent overheating problem doesn't bode well though.

[Slow = Cold air]

Not if it's going directly from a water passage to a cylinder. You only get water in the oil if there's a leak between an oil passage and a water passage.

If there's no leak into an oil passage but there is to a cylinder the water will just get vapourised and blown out of the exhaust.

Water leaking into a cylinder actually improves combustion....for a while.

My supercharged MX-5 has water injection - it's there to act as an intercooler but it keeps the cylinders nice and clean!

[Slow = Cold air]

Here's a video of how it's done.

But I'm afraid - if you can't see the leak from outside the engine, the coolant is likely to be going inside - ie into a cylinder via a head gasket. Hopefully it's not that.

 

[Lexus GS 300h]

I think you would have more to worry about than the plug. The seat controls are managed by the main body ECU and operated via CANBUS. I suspect that the higher spec seats will have different settings in the ECU.

I could be wrong - all the functions may be built in to the ECU with redundant circuitry and software but I don't think that is the usual Lexus way. They generally set up the ECUs for what is in a specific car type.

[GS300h boot wont open]

The usual cause of this is switching to valet mode by the switch in the glove box. The button should be pushed in - then you should be able to open the boot.

But you say you've tried that?

Maybe a fuse?

I don't understand how the manual key won't work. Could there be something caught up in the lock?

[Lexus GS 300h]

You might be right.

But I have to say - the by-pass valve is only there in case the filter gets blocked - I always change the oil and filter every 5K miles so it is very unlikely that the filter will get blocked. I don't think there's anything very precision about the valve mechanism. The plate carrying the filter centre tube pushes down smoothly against the spring.

The ally housing looks very well made - smooth casting and sharp lettering where the torque specs are 'embossed'. I think it's an improvement over the plastic original.

I think 'made in China' is nowadays a rather dated dismissive. We used to say that about 'Japanese' Those days are long gone.

[Towing a caravan.]

I don't see why you shouldn't tow a caravan. Just check the weight limits in the Owners manual. 

The car has adequate power and torque and it would be way better than a Landie or a Rangie. 

[Lexus GS 300h]

I've used Mannol 0W-20 but I've switched to 5W30 - it's a compromise between engine protection and fuel consumption.

Have you checked how to drain and remove the oil filter?

In theory you unscrew the cap with a 3/8" driver extension bar, then insert the plastic spout which comes with the filter. However I've always found that the whole filter unscrews when you try and remove the cap. Anyway, if it doesn't you definitely need the special oil filter removal tool which fits most Lexus and many Toyota models. You need it to replace the filter to the correct torque before replacing the cap to a much lower torque. There isn't room around the filter to use any generic filter removal tool.

My drain cap is completely jammed into the filter housing and I risk damaging the plastic filter housing in attempting to unscrew it. I've recently bought a metal (alloy) filter housing to replace the plastic one but I haven't fitted it yet - that will happen at my next oil change - quite a while yet.

The torque for the oil drain plug is 30 ftlb, oil filter housing 18 ftlb and the oil filter cap 9 ftlb.

[Lexus GS 300h]

Here's an extract from the Workshop manual.

For the usual oil and filter change it takes 4.5 ltr (I find maybe a bit more - up to nearly 5 ltr)

From a dry engine (eg after rebuild) it would take 5.9 ltr.

[GS300 gear box trouble]

I think I'd try changing the gearbox oil - the whole lot, which I think will mean doing several drain and refills using the drain plug, or remove the sump to get it all out in one go.

[GS300h Gen 4: Auto-locking when in drive]

Colin Barber explained in the thread posted by Christopher - automatic central locking was reintroduced at the facelift for the Mk 4 GS. Pre-facelift didn't have it.

Your car, Robert, is a facelift version.