Old RX300 PROBBIES

[Owelly]

Yesterday I collected my first Lexus. A 2000 RX300 that was parked up 6 months ago due to a loss of power, busted exhaust and no parking brake. I blew up the tyres, charged the Battery but it refused to start. My OBD diagnosis showed many many faults due to the flat Battery so I cleared them all. It then started first click and ticked over fine however it would not rev off the pedal. If you floored it, it would die. Feathering the throttle around halfway would get it revving. I unplugged the AFM and it pinged the MIL and caused it to not tick-over. I plugged it back in and reset the DTC and the MIL extinguished. This could be because of the exhaust as it seems to be leaking between the O2 sensors. Or is there any other things to look at?

The other problem was the parking brake. The brake shoes had no meat left on them so had welded themselves to the drum. The bolts holding the caliper carriers have been rounded so the only way to get the drums off, was to smash them off!!! Thankfully they're really cheap and new discs, pads and shoes are already on their way.

Finally, tailgate lift assist struts. Scrapyard or new?

 

Thanks in advance.

[tayaste]

 Now youv'e cleared the fault codes and MIL light, I'd run it for as long as you can and then read the fault codes again to see if you have any re-occurring ones.

[Owelly]

I drove it about for 20 minutes but not over 10 mph and just around some moorland so possibly not enough to ping any faults but my reader didn't show any pending faults, which it wouldn't if it was fighting with high O2 at one of the sensors....

[tayaste]

Is the fuel 6 month old in it, or did you put in some fresh? It'd be worth sticking some new plugs in and an air filter too. Might also be worth investing in a new Battery, a flat 6 month old one would be past it's sell by date.

Try and get the basics into a good condition first and then  it'd make fault finding a bit easier.

[steve2006]

Try this place for your gas struts, well recommended by LOC members.

http://www.sgs-engineering.com/car-boot-tailgate/lexus

 

[Owelly]

I put fresh fuel in as it was empty. I've swapped the Battery with one off my other car. I'll fix the exhaust and see if that helps the poor running then look to do a full service.

I've used SGS before so I'll try them if I can find a cheaper option.

Thanks for the help guys.