Gs300 New Owner With A Few Questions

[Andy1001]

Hi everyone, I'm a new member and I've just bought a low mileage (80k) 97 gs300, which I might add is fantastic to drive and there are a few things I wanted to check:

Is there a backlight for the LCD temperature display on the dashboard? I can't see what I'm changing the temperature to in the dark which is a bit odd.

I've done 110 miles today, a mixture of dual carriageway, town and a bit of city traffic and I used 18 litres, so 28 ish mpg, is that about right?

What does the o/d button do on the gear lever?

The multichanger has been removed, so I'm stuck with a tape adapter and iPod. The tape player seems to work, but only after the Dolby digital button is pressed twice, turning it on then off again, is my tape deck on the way out? Or is this normal/common?

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[Sleepypete (FB)]

Hi everyone, I'm a new member and I've just bought a low mileage (80k) 97 gs300, which I might add is fantastic to drive and there are a few things I wanted to check:

Is there a backlight for the LCD temperature display on the dashboard? I can't see what I'm changing the temperature to in the dark which is a bit odd.

I've done 110 miles today, a mixture of dual carriageway, town and a bit of city traffic and I used 18 litres, so 28 ish mpg, is that about right?

What does the o/d button do on the gear lever?

The multichanger has been removed, so I'm stuck with a tape adapter and iPod. The tape player seems to work, but only after the Dolby digital button is pressed twice, turning it on then off again, is my tape deck on the way out? Or is this normal/common?

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

I don't have a GS (mine's a CT) so this isn't personal experience ... Thought I'd peek on Parker's for info seeing as I'd been there earlier :

Parker's for 97 GS

28mpg - Parkers is saying 24mpg, so 28 sounds good. It's about what I'd expect for a big 3.0 litre car, my Focus ST170 with a 170bhp 2.0 litre was doing 28 in town and 36 (max) on a run. My dad's nasty Volvo C30 with a 2.4 never gets above about 32.

"o/d" - stands for overdrive. It'll turn 4th gear into 4th+a+bit or 5th into 5th+a+bit for better cruising mpg. I.e. lower rpm for same speed but worse acceleration and top speed as a knock on effect. Use when maintaining speed, turn off when changing speed.

Tape deck - not sure there, could be an issue with the fake-tape adaptor thing. What you might want to try is a mini FM transmitter for your iPod. I've happily retired my Belkin one now because I can plug my iPod straight in but the mini FM transmitter can work pretty well as a non-intrusive cheap way of getting signal into the car stereo. I'd not recommend Belkin though, they make everything but they are trash quality. (You get what you pay for ). The big drawback with the FM transmitter method is that commercial radio is strong enough to override the signal - not an issue locally but an issue on longer trips.

Enjoy your GS :D

PS Take what Parkers says with a big pinch of salt, they can be biased as hell and like German cars.

[Sleepypete (FB)]

Oops - forgot another useful place for info on mpg :

Fuelly page for GS300

If you're in the upper range on there, you're doing well :winky: I'm guilty of dragging the CT average mpg down a bit

PS Also reading again what Parkers say about the CT. They seriously need to actually drive the car before commenting on it. "Sluggish and unresponsive" ? They must have come from something fast with that comment, the CT is more responsive than my old ST which had less weight and more bhp and a huge amount better than the C30.

[Andy1001]

Thanks for the reply, much appreciated. Wish I'd have known about the overdrive thing, I just did a 200 mile trip on the motorway and never used it, never mind, still got 32 mpg though, which for a big 3 litre I am very pleased with.

I agree about the radio transmitter, i have a Belkin one already and it's seriously rubbish. Are there any decent after market stereos out there that don't ruin the look of the dash?

[dave1]

Thanks for the reply, much appreciated. Wish I'd have known about the overdrive thing, I just did a 200 mile trip on the motorway and never used it, never mind, still got 32 mpg though, which for a big 3 litre I am very pleased with.

I agree about the radio transmitter, i have a Belkin one already and it's seriously rubbish. Are there any decent after market stereos out there that don't ruin the look of the dash?

During the 6 years I owned my '96 GS300 Sport I kept the overdrive switched on almost all of the time. It only operates in top gear on the autobox and improves fuel consumption by reducing engine revs whilst maintaining speed.

[TigerFish]

With the overdrive button, if the lamp is illuminated on the dash, then overdrive is turned off and won't engage to lower the RPM. By default, it will always be on (the lamp on the dash is off), so it will have been working.

28 mpg sounds about right for cruising and a bit of mixed. Should do just over 30 on a steady motorway run.

Yes, there should be a back light on the temp display, your bulbs have blown. There is a link in my signatture below on a tutorial I wrote for taking the panel out and changing the bulbs. Any problems, give me a shout.

As far as the stereo goes, no idea why the dolby button should need pressing, that isn't normal.

[Andy1001]

Thanks, seems pretty straight forward with your guide to change the bulbs, thanks a lot. Now this might sound really stupid, but where would I get a replacement bulb from? ;)

Had no light on on the dash, so the o/d must have been in then,