Lexus Newbie.

[Flakmann]

Hello Guys (Gals?)

After months of dithering and hours of LOC post reading, I am testing Lexus ownership with an old GS300.

A Mk1, because (a) it wont have vvt problems and (b) it has a non-interference engine.

With 130k on the clock, it starts and runs well; no noise, smooth gear changes and slightly better m.p.g. than I was expecting, however, there are a a few issues that I must address quickly.

(a) The SRS/airbag light is on.

(b) Slight wheel wobble, only sometimes, around 40 mph. ( Wheel balancing/warped discs/calipers

I don`t know which is favourite)

© Instrument cluster illumination. I can see that there must be at least one bulb out, but for some reason the speedo and rev-counter needles are hard to see.

Apart from that, I will be changeing the cambelt, ( no change info in the service book ), the o/s rear door is electrically dead and the boot lid has no lifting assistance. ( and it`s heavy - spoiler )

I`m looking foreward to working on the car, so any pointers on any or all of the above will be more than welcome.

Many Thanks.

[steve2006]

Hello and welcome to the LOC.

Airbag light is probably a disturbed connector under the driver's seat,no doubt when you bought the car you moved the seat to suit your driving position?

Wheel wobble could be all the things you mention also check for play in suspension components,you could try swopping the wheels front to back to see if it is a balance problem to begin.

bulbs do fail in the dash,have a look on eBay for replacements.

[Flakmann]

Hello and welcome to the LOC.

Airbag light is probably a disturbed connector under the driver's seat,no doubt when you bought the car you moved the seat to suit your driving position?

Thanks Steve, A good place to start. I did indeed move the seat to its limits trying to find my best driving posn..

[aly-g]

Hi Roald, regarding the cam belt, if its the same as is200 it needs changing 60k or 5years whichever is soonest, then every 5 years or 60k, if you have no history on the car ......do it as soon as possible or risk a recked engine !!!!! hope this helps,

Allan

[Flakmann]

Thanks Alan, The car has history, but strangely no mention of cam belt change. Being non interference, the worst thing that can happen, if the belt snaps, is to come to a stop in the middle of nowhere. But yes, it`s a priority.

Looks like the speedo and tacho needle lack of illumination is going to be a problem .

[TigerFish]

I'm sure the needles are electroluminescent, and that the tracks on the back of the needle can fail (the return path for the circuit). I seem to recal that they can be repaired by, very carefully, soldering a strand of coper wire on the back of the needle to remake the circuit.

[Flakmann]

Interesting post Rick, I`ll investigate that possibility when the instrument cluster is out and the needles are on the table,

Not as urgent as the `wobble` and airbag light, but I can`t see it passing the next MOT as it is. The tacho needle is completely out; The speedo needle is glowing for about a cm. from the pivot, then flickering towards the tip. The fuel/temp smaller needles look ok.

[Flakmann]

Update. The speedo needle has miraculously mended itself. The tacho needle is still dead. Front o/s caliper piston seized; Slider pins fine. Caliper gripping disc, but the discs themseves look very good - just slight edge lipping

No luck so far with the airbag/SRS light, Are there any more fuses apart from the main underbonnet ones? gas struts for the bootlid are shot, and the bonnet struts are borderline. LOL

[TigerFish]

There is a fusebox in the drivers footwell (might be one in the passenger footwell too - been too long since I owned a mk1 so the memory is a bit faint!).

[Flakmann]

Thanks Rick, Managed to sneak out today for a quick look, removed the small panel by the gas pedal and on the reverse side of it is info. of the fuses within.

Top row, 5th fuse from the front is a 15A for the SRS. Tomorrow, I might get chance to check it out.

BTW, none on the passenger side.

[Flakmann]

Update.

Morning Guys,

The Mk1`s doing just fine. Decided in the end to renew all 4 brakediscs and pads plus a front brake hose that looked ok but was bulging under pressure. (Not easy to check without help, but the brake pedal didn`t feel quite right)

Removed the front camcover and finally found evidence that the cambelt and the aux belt had been renewed. So that`s ok for a while. Flew through the MoT yesterday, but jobs still to be tackled :-

gas struts, especially boot lid, Rear driverside door, lock inoperative and window not moving but motor whirring.

Both radio and aerial non op. Tacho needle still not lit up.

Goes like s of an s, so quite pleased really.

[ikgs300]

Boot struts you can get from sgs-engineering

Not expensive.

[aly-g]

My mk1 never had gas struts on the bonnet just had the stay that you hooked on to the bonnet to hold it open.....

Allan

[ikgs300]

Mk1 has two gas struts on bonnet.

Sent from my Iphone using Lexus OC

[TigerFish]

Yeah, ditto, two gas struts right towards the back of the engine bay.

Sent from my Iphone using Lexus OC

[Flakmann]

Thanks for the replys fellas,

I`ve just been in touch with sgs-eng, and they`ve emailed back. I`m posting all 4 struts to them and they will re-gas them.

The pass side boot strut will only come out in its compressed state ( to clear the fuel tank vent pipe )which takes a bit of doing when you`re laid on your back inside the boot, even when the strut is supposedly soft.

The other three are a doddle!

Apparently all the radio will need is taking through the anti theft sequence, because the Battery was flat and subsequently disconnected. No use doing that yet, because, to be on the safe side, I`ll disconnect the Battery again when I have a fiddle with the instrument needles and binnacle.

I`ll keep you posted.