Do Not Sell My Personal Information Jump to content


Recommended Posts

Hey everyone!

Just put a deposit down on a MkII GS300, and I'm picking it up on Saturday next week. The car comes with a full service history but was last serviced just under 14 months ago, although it's only covered 5k miles since the last service.

After the warranty expired, it's been serviced at an independant garage as you'd expect, but I know nothing about them.

Do you all think it's worth me taking the car to my local Lexus dealer (Hull) to have a full service and once-over before I start doing any real mileage in it, or would I be best taking it to an independant garage?

I already suspect it needs a pair of front discs as the steering wheel wobbled a bit when braking down from 50-60mph, and the logo'd centre caps on the alloys need replacing (if they are available seperate from the wheel) as the paint is coming loose. I haggled the price down accordingly ;)

Other than that, it was sublime. Incredibly smooth and quiet :D

I'd appreciate any advice.

Adam.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

When I brought my 02 GS 300 I booked it in with Lexus Sidcup for a service and cambelt change even though the car had only done 2000 miles since the last service which was done at an independent garage. The car had done 71000 miles and has FSH but no paperwork showing if the cambelt had been changed, as this was overdue I had this done the day after I collected the car.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hello, Good Purchase!

You don't say what the Mileage Is but Good advice on the CamBelt change (if you have No record of it being done then it may be wise to have it done for your own piece of mind!)

Servicing!.......Well, if cost is Not a problem, Then get a Main dealer to do it, If only for the stamp in the service book!, Otherwise a good Reputable Indie is always worth a Look But make sure he has all the correct Diagnostic Gear for the MK2 GS !

All in All, A wise choice of car, It's reputation preceeds it (as you already know!!).....The 2JZ-GE Motor is arguably one of the Best 6 pot motors ever built (BMW may argue that!) and with regular Servicing will go for half a million miles or more!......And the rest of the car should still be with the Engine at that Point!...It has No achilles Heel Other than the Remote possibility of the Hydraulic Brake booster going haywire!

Your front discs could indeed be warped/Worn but this can happen if the Wheel nuts are not done up in sequence and Torqued correctly!.....Worth looking at Quality Discs and pads if they need changing (Got Mintex Discs & pads on Mine, They are superb)

Enjoy :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the replies guys!

The car has done 88k (registered in 2002) and had the belt changed at an independant garage, but the paperwork shows a genuine part was used so I'm happy with that. In fact, the only thing that I couldn't tell from the paperwork was which transmission oil had been used - it's marked as being changed but doesn't say what it was replaced with. I've gathered from a few posts here that using the correct transmision oil is pretty important or the box doesn't change smoothly, etc...

How much does it cost to get the Mintex kit (discs, pads) fitted and is this something Lexus would do for me? I'm a bit weary of moving away from OEM parts due to the impact it could have on my insurance... and the fact it wouldn't be valid if I didn't tell them.

I think I'm gonna get at least the first service and once-over done by Lexus, it'll give me peace of mind and time to find a decent independant garage who have all the right kit.

What's this about the brake booster? Do the brakes soften up or do they suddenly slam on?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If you don't want to use an independent, take it to a reputable Toyota dealer. Exactly the same parts, usually the same workshop even if it's a shared dealership, although the coffee in Toyota isn't quite as nice as in the Lexus waiting area their labour charges are half.

As for the transmission fluid, the proper Toyota stuff is generally regarded as essential but it's pricey. Does the paperwork have a contact for where it was changed before? You could phone them ask what sort of fluid they would use on a Lexus to find out if generic fluid was used.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

How much does it cost to get the Mintex kit (discs, pads) fitted and is this something Lexus would do for me?

IME, Lexus will not fit parts sourced elsewhere, because they cannot warrant the whole job they say. If you can hold a spanner, you could change the discs and pads yourself, a very easy job indeed. See this tutorial I did so that you can weigh up what you are paying for when Lexus quote you, could be a bit of an eye opener. Clicky

Link to comment
Share on other sites


If you don't want to use an independent, take it to a reputable Toyota dealer.

I'll give them a ring in a bit and see what they say. They are two seperate dealerships in Hull, but they aren't even a mile apart. The quality of their coffee doesn't really bother me... as long as the work is still good ;)

Does the paperwork have a contact for where it was changed before?

Yes, it did but I didn't think to take a note of it. I'll ring the dealer who are selling me the car and find out what the number is. It's expensive but if it has to be done I'll get it done straight away. I'm planning on keeping this car a while so it makes no sense to cut corners.

If you can hold a spanner, you could change the discs and pads yourself, a very easy job indeed.

You know, I have most of those tools and I could probably borrow axle stands and a piston tool from somewhere but I'm terrified of making a mistake somewhere in the process and the brakes failing while I'm on a motorway or driving through the school run.

I'll first of all see if the discs do actually need changing. Like fildigger said, it could just be that the wheels haven't been correctly reseated and tightened up. If the discs are knackered I'll have to make a decision then.

I've favourited the tutorial though, so thanks for that! I'll let you know what happens.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, I picked it up today - what a lovely motor. Got it at 11AM today and I've only just got home.

The garage I bought it from have sorted the brake wobble, it turns out they hadn't put the wheel nuts back on correctly so they've done that on all four wheels. It's going in on Monday for a service, and they're gonna check everything for me too... Just need to get a handsfree kit, some HIDs and the latest navigation DVD and I'll be sorted!

I'll get some pics up once I've taken a few ;)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, I picked it up today - what a lovely motor. Got it at 11AM today and I've only just got home.

The garage I bought it from have sorted the brake wobble, it turns out they hadn't put the wheel nuts back on correctly so they've done that on all four wheels.

That would really worry me as to what else had been done incorrectly....wheel nuts are fairly basic

It's going in on Monday for a service, and they're gonna check everything for me too... Just need to get a handsfree kit, some HIDs and the latest navigation DVD and I'll be sorted!

I think I would have wanted it serviced before I took delivery.

I'll get some pics up once I've taken a few ;) /quote]

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That would really worry me as to what else had been done incorrectly....wheel nuts are fairly basic

Yes, which is why I'm taking it to Lexus for a service/safety check, etc... As it happens there wasn't anything else that needed doing.

I think I would have wanted it serviced before I took delivery.

I'd rather have it serviced by Lexus than a used car dealer to be completely honest. I even got them to skip valeting, and had the price of the service and valeting (at Lexus prices) knocked off, which made the car quite a bit cheaper.

Now got the car back, having been serviced (including transmission fluid, etc) and valeted. Lovely!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That would really worry me as to what else had been done incorrectly....wheel nuts are fairly basic

Yes, which is why I'm taking it to Lexus for a service/safety check, etc... As it happens there wasn't anything else that needed doing.

I think I would have wanted it serviced before I took delivery.

I'd rather have it serviced by Lexus than a used car dealer to be completely honest. I even got them to skip valeting, and had the price of the service and valeting (at Lexus prices) knocked off, which made the car quite a bit cheaper.

Now got the car back, having been serviced (including transmission fluid, etc) and valeted. Lovely!

Sorry, I (wrongly) assumed that you had returned to the supplying dealer. I always use Lexus dealer myself and have done for my 7.5 years of Lexus ownership. Glad it's all sorted and hope you enjoy the car.

Link to comment
Share on other sites


No worries - I'd noticed the brake wobble when I took the car for a test drive, and mentioned it to them when I got back. I imagine they then looked up possible causes and found the wheels weren't on correctly.

I'm probably going to continue using this Lexus dealer I was at today, they've been very good. I'm sure I will enjoy the car :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share



×
×
  • Create New...