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There will be another magazine with an ISF road test in the coming months, Modern Classics magazine are road testing my car next Monday, looking forward to see what they say.

Good morning fellow members, another cracking day. Too warm to wash and polish though eh! Anyway folks, thank you all for your valued input but, much as I like doing things myself, I have decided on this occasion to get a sparky in to do it for me. In order to comply with current regulations,there is a bit more to it than I imagined and so I am going to sit in the summerhouse and watch someone else do it. Thanks again for taking the time to reply, it is, as always, very much appreciated.

If the linkage has seized the sensor may not have much longer. If the light comes on again it may be that. The seals on the original are a bit fragile and fail letting water into the body of the sensor (which is really just a rather expensive volume control as you have discovered). If the damage inside isn't too much you can clean it up and replace the seals (available at about £3 from http://www.wychbearings.co.uk/10x21x7-r23-nbr_oil_seal.html ). Unfortunately you may find the small springs inside which make the contact with the wiper have corroded (mine had) so you will need to replace the whole sensor. I got mine from USA for US$85 including delivery. Headlight Level Sensor fits 2004-2009 Toyota Prius Tacoma DORMAN OE SOL This model has improved seals and should last longer. Fitting is quite easy once you have removed the o/s rear wheel. The attached instructions for rebuilding the sensor are from the Forum and were very helpful. Refurbishing headlight levelling sensor (ex Lexus Owners Club 2013).doc

Ok, perhaps I can venture an opinion since this seems to be the never ending thread? Personally, in my humble opinion, this thread outlived it usefulness long ago and should have been locked. I can certainly appreciate why the mods didn't do such a thing, but is it a case of quantity over quality? Freedom to post as much as you want is very good, but in this case, I think the more that is posted, the more certain people are getting wound up. So, in this case, I think it is actually in the forums best interests to let it rest before things escalate further. Now, if I can make one more observation (which is probably going to be unpopular), I do feel that Linas has been treated a little harshly here. I have been following the thread from the start and all he did was state his opinion that he didn't like the engine on the 200t. It was plain and simple, and he didn't attack any owners directly. Being a diesel owners on this forum, I know what it feels like to be bashed by people over the choice of your car. However, after he stated his opinion, certain individuals took it to task to try and dispute his opinion based on his reasoning. The crucial distinction here is that a person's reason's behind that opinion don't have to be logical, rational or fair. Now, when it comes to performance statistics, there has always been a little wiggle room on exact times, and how much one car is faster than another is highly subjective. So, to sum up, what I am trying to say is that what you have here is a difference of opinion where one party is trying to convince/disprove the others opinion. This rarely works, so the only logical course is to accept that you disagree with that person and move on. Otherwise, you get what has happened here, which is going round and round in circles while it gets more personal. I like the fact that people on here have strong opinions, but equally, when that happens a little elbow room is required. Just my opinion of course.

Congratulations on the new car!!! Hope you have better luck with yours than I had with mine lol!!! Mine had hybrid battery failure and gearbox failure within weeks of ownership!!! I ended up getting a refund from the dealer I bought it from (they were very good and reasonable about it all) but it was an awesome car though while it lasted!!! I now have a Mercedes S-Class S500 LWB which I'm loving so far. I also had an LS430 a couple of years ago which suffered catastrophic gearbox failure so I am having a break from Lexus at the moment. There is no way of switching the clock to 24 hours unfortunately, I ran mine on standard unleaded without issue. Try putting the gearbox into Hybrid power mode and the suspension into sports mode then hammer it to put a big smile on your face!!! You can really teach all the boy racers out there a lesson lol!!! Enjoy!!!

Indeed. After 10 years of forum membership its depressing to log on and read numerous posts over an elongated period (many months) from one person about how crap my car is, despite the far he/ she has never owned one. Not just mine of course but other models. However as long as he's polite he can say what he likes, go figure. This place was always, within reason, a corner to enlighten and enthuse about our Lexus vehicle ownership not slag it off. It was always the case that if you wanted to feel good about your car, log on and feel the warmth....admire it on the drive, go out, clean the thing and drive it. Enthuse in the sheer lack of problems or issues whilst BMW forums drown in coil pack issues and the rest. If that makes me a fan boy so be it. C'est la vie

Driving home earlier this week I noticed the AFS light was flashing on the dashboard of my 2007 RX400h. A little googling led me to suspect the linkage on the height sensor behind the rear right wheel. Sure enought the lower ball joint on the linkage had seized and the linkage had snapped in the middle. The linkage alone is not available from Lexus and the local Lexus dealer quoted over £400 to supply and fit the sensor, arm, and linkage (89407-48030) as a unit. Toyota however do supply an identical linkage (48906-35020) for about £80 from a dealer or £40 from eBay. Still pricey I know but I didn't fancy fabricating a linkage using Rapid Electronics Modelcraft Swivel head Ball Joints and the ball joints are sealed and the link is easily adjustable with the Toyota part. Two nuts to remove and replace and all is well. Hope it helps someone in the future if you are looking for an equivalent replacement for the link.

It takes one post to express an opinion ...

Looking very swish and shiny! You certainly put the Carplan No1 Super Gloss on properly! Its a sealant so it will naturally sheet better than it beads but anyway, the beading looks good and its definitely on there. How did you find it to use? Also keep us posted on how long it lasts! The Autoglym SRP - definitely put too much on if its dusting. You need to work it into the area using firm pressure and you'll see it almost going clear - thats when you know you've not put too much on. It shouldn't be leaving loads of white haze everywhere when drying - only a light coat of haze. With the birdpoo, give it 5 mins of hairdryer on max setting, touch the panel to see if its hot and use AG SRP in that area. A blob should last for a continuous 2 mins of firm buffing. You'll need to do this process atleast 4-5 times before you see any improvement as the cut of AG SRP is extremely fine. You need something more aggressive but if you're not used to it, you won't know until you've gone through the clearcoat. What were you using on the silver trim? That would come up well with something like Autosol metal polish BTW did you clean your tyres? And it needs a finishing touch like tyre dressing and you're set:

Well the weather was kind today and now I'm knackered! But the car looks a lot better for all the time and attention (and expense) Here's a pic, freshly washed with two bucket method and after application of fallout remover and tar cleaner and then clayed using the G3 mitt I then spent about half an hour trying to get rid of a bird poo mark right in the middle of the bonnet with the hair dryer method. Didn't seem to make much difference so not sure what I was doing wrong but gave up in the end. Then it was onto Autoglym SRP. Probably applied to much and left it too long at the beginning because there was an awful lot of white dust when polishing off. Got better as I went along and it did seem to make quite a difference. Then finally, I applied the Carplan No.1. Seems ridiculously easy, spray and wipe - wasn't sure I was doing it right but I guess I must have been because there's definite beading going on (see the video for full effect - don't know why it doesn't play direct?) VID_20170707_154049.mp4 Disappointment of the day was the fact that I'd wasted £8 on a bottle of Autoglym product that made absolutely no difference to the window trim

My wife often says I could go back or forwards more because it sticks out, until she looks at the other end! And it does seem strange at a time when cars seem to get bigger that parking spaces get smaller.

Very nice car, SE-L specs and best colour combination 7) If the dealers will not help, have a look around here there are several topics regarding satnav update for very reasonable price. Best thing to do is take a picture of your current disc and send it to http://www.satnavdvd.co.uk/lexus-25-c.asp see what they say.

It'll be fine. You'd never be able to turn anything fast enough by hand to damage anything. Sent from my iPhone using Lexus OC

My research turned up that the sensor unit is a Dorman 924-755 typically about £50 from the UK. However I did find some on Alibaba as cheap as $2 so some caution would be needed to try to ensure the unit is of reasonable quality.

Yep that R has been stuck on! Almost looks like the R you find on the Civic Type R! Should come off easily with a bit of heat and dental floss if you want to remove it. On a side note - the number plate looks absolutely massive!

IF you can get to it from the back, lightly hammering it out to a shallow dent and then body filler to level it is as good as a garage will do.[use a piece of wood in front of the hammer if it helps] If you haven't done it before, don't go mad with the filler, fill and flat down, 80 grit paper and fill again if needed

Hi Andrew, glad to hear that you're enjoying your car. 1) I could do with a holder too. I've seen versions that replace the grab handle but haven't sourced anything yet, I tuck my case in the glove box for now. 2) I had a look at my clock setting and within the Info button I see an Adjust Clock option top right. However mine doesn't give an option to change the display between 12/24hr. I can't see the option in the manual either, online copies here; https://carmanuals2.com/brand/lexus/gs450h-2008-1890 4) Individual TPMS can be around £100 each but Richard recently found a garage in Leicester that would supply/fit them for around half that price. So you can hunt around for a more cost effective set. Sensors are coded to the vehicle, so when you swap to your winter set you'll need to reprogram the car to read these sensors. Some folks remove them from the tyres completely, pop the sensors in a pressured box and keep it in the boot - which stops the warning light on the dash. FYI: TPMS errors aren't an MOT failure for an '08 car. 7) beware the OEM maps come several different disks which I didn't like as travelling on the continent would have been fiddly. This may not be an issue if you only intend to drive in Blighty. Cheers, Lee

It's the arrow that's the indicator, not the nozzle, but many people don't know this

Refund received and the second set of struts are now working fine, so I've essentially got them for free (minus postage costs) as their admin doesn't seem to realise they'd sent me another pair, but such is life. Pete

So its been 2 days since I got my new RX and Im very pleased I chose to stay with the Lexus brand - Firstly, I'd like to cover how it compares to the 3RX but be warned, this is going to be a long one! Exterior The 3RX has aged well in my opinion and doesn't look old as such, however I think the new RX looks great and futuristic, especially in F-Sport guise. In terms of the exterior, the panel gaps are reduced on the 4RX whilst paint quality (in terms of orange peel and gloss) is the same. I love the dynamic indicators, especially on the rear. The lights, front and rear look much more sophisticated than those on the 3RX. The handles are a chunkier design and feel more substantial on the 4RX, and the door is heavier with a great thud when closing. Having said that, found that the number plate holder on the front feels more flimsy as its attached to the grill and not very well supported unlike the 3RX one which is on the grill divider bar. Interior This is where the 4RX has stepped up its game. Everything is soft touch with leather covering the dashboard and intricate stitching. The lower portions of the interior There is less use of the silver coated plastic which covered the whole 3RX centre console and the switches are better damped. Its subjective but I feel the design is better as well being rather simplistic in comparison to the 3RX. The leather feels softer but I bet its much less durable than the 3RX. On the downside, the 4RX is certainly less practical. The glovebox is smaller, there is no cupholder on the right of the steering wheel anymore, the airline style pockets behind the seats are smaller and the boot itself is smaller as well. Having said that, the interior legroom is greater but there is less headroom, especially with the added pan roof. Gadgets Another area where the 4RX is better but of course, this is down to it being a newer vehicle. Some things I miss from my old RX are the adaptive headlights which I found useful on country roads. The new headlights are good but the little cornering lights aren't as useful. Additionally, whilst most menus are the same in the 4RX as the 3RX, the remote touch interface feels clunkier to use despite being on the same feedback setting as my old car. I also find the "destination" menu annoying when first starting the car - it doesn't go away on its own and you need to press the back button to make it go. Also, I used the Lane keep assist on the motorway - its very good and works well. However, I turned it off in town, its an absolute nightmare - keeps going off everytime I overtake parked vehicles! I like the auto parking brake but still find myself reaching for the pedal! Furthermore, the tailgate seems to have taken a step backwards. Although it makes a cool (imo) transformer sort of noise upon opening and closing, its slower than the 3RX and can't be opened manually unless you switch it off. Audio system - My 3RX had the ML system, the 4RX has the standard 12 speaker Pioneer system. TBH I can tell no difference whatsoever between the 3RX ML and the 4RX standard system. Basically that means the standard system is actually quite good. Drive Another area where the 4RX impresses. The 3RX was smooth but this is on another level. Furthermore, the noise insulation is better and the car is much quieter. There are also no rattles yet on the 4RX whereas my 3RX started suffering with a few rattles in the last 10k miles it covered in my hands. Obviously time will tell in this regard. In terms of the ride - the 4RX is definitely smoother. Even with 20" wheels, the 4RX rides better than my 3RX. I suspect thats to do with the adaptive dampers which do stiffen up considerably in Sport S+ mode. Also, I used to drive the 3RX in Sport mode all the time. In the 4RX, normal seems to be the same in terms of response. I found Sport S to be too peaky in town but it feels better on the motorway. Don't think I'll be using Sport S+ mode much as its quite stiff. The 4RX handles better than the 3RX despite being heavier and larger. Its not a Porsche Cayenne but its actually quite fun when you want it to be! Feel free to ask any questions about the 4RX or even the 3RX! Im sure I've probably missed something - and dont worry, a write up of the competitors I tested is also coming soon!

Hope you don't mind if i sit here quietly in the corner and have a read up on exactly what it is iv'e just bought ? from what iv'e read up to now it "think" it seems a good choice compared to some of the other stuff i looked at, Merc ML BMW etc, and cant be any worse than the Range Rover P38 it replaces, can it ? after a test drive today the RX 300R should ready to collect later in the week. Any reassurance will be much appreciated ;-)

Well, a little clarification in some follow up posts could be a good idea, but yes, generally I agree with you Peter.

So, state one's opinion, don't try and defend or justify it. It's just an opinion after all One post does it ...

Nice job. It's hard work, but at least you'll just need to give it a basic wash now to make it look like that every week. The window trim looks weird. Kinda looks like it's went years and years without being treated or protected, and it's corroded, for want of a better word....is it rough to the touch? Might be worth looking at covering them up with something like vinyl film, or spray them with plastidip.

I used to contribute to this forum a lot more when there was sensible discussion and debate, I think others did too (I'm sure some are missing of late?). I also enjoyed it a lot more too before this style of posting became prevalent on numerous threads. I have respect for the regular contributors with sound knowledge and good advice. I've kept this post polite and impersonal.....I'm sure you guys can read between the lines (was tempting to insert a deliberate typo there).

I fixed mine about 6 months ago by removing the threaded part , freeing off the seized ball joint with a bit of oil and a wiggle. Then welded the broken threaded part and reasembled. Been fine since. Even though i expected it to fail quite quickly. Cost not a lot at all.

Its a 4200GT, a 2007/8 model, should be interesting, I can almost see the article now, "the Maserati is the car you buy with your heart whereas the Lexus is a car you buy with your mind......................

Well done, you've now got yourself one very shiny Lexus 👍 What's happened to the window trim?

Doesnt seem that strange really, smaller spaces mean more bays & that means potentially more council income

That's the autobox oil cooler. There should be two pipes at each end which connect back to the autobox.

Yeah I bet its closer to a ton from Lexus! I have ordered one from Toyota anywho

I've never driven a newer ISF with the mechanical LSD, but having owned my '08 for almost 2yrs now, also having done a track day at Silverstone with it in the sopping wet, I can't say I'm bothered not having one. It certainly performed as well as I could drive to, and I wasn't hanging about! I swapped the suspension springs and dampers from the stock '08 to the '13 variants and noticed a *slight* improvement in ride quality. Not massive, but enough to take the edge off. Personally, I'd save the extra money and either put it towards a GSF/RCF, or buy a second car - light, agile, something far more suited to a few track days a year :-)

Thanks Lee, that's really helpful, and thanks for the info about the clock, tyre sensors, and sunglasses. The online manual will be very handy too. With regard to the maps and driving on the continent. For for foreseeable future all my driving will be in the UK, so multiple discs wouldn't be a problem. Do the more modern discs allow entry on the move? I've noted that in addition to entering navigation destinations even entering phone numbers and (really annoyingly) track selection from my Lexus iPod adaptor are greyed out when the car is moving.

Just got word back from Toyota I can get one from Toyota for £20 + VAT so £24, might spend the extra £6 to get the Toyota badge hehe

Tried TPS and the roof bag is £27 + VAT at my best discount so I don't hold out much hope for getting a Toyota one cheaper than ebay one is ridiculously cheap!

One big advantage with Japanese cars is that in Japan they drive on the left so everything is properly set up for the UK. So with the odd exception the filer is on the left, the wipers are set up to clear the driver's side and the exhaust pipe tends to exit on the road rather than the pavement side so pedestrians aren't directly in the firing line. My RX has a cradle but I can't find a coin holder or underseat tray so I assume they aren't fitted in it, which is strange as my 2001 Yaris has both but no cradle!

hello and welcome I wouldn't worry about the initial running, just drive it as normal and enjoy it

Picked up a few products at lunchtime, mainly to replace my duff lance. Looking forward to trying Purity X via the lance.

Lexus should do the right thing now it's decided to pull the plug on the turbo and introduce the awesome 350 to the uk. This car is a beast and will out perform most cars on uk roads today. Not only that it keeps the awesome V6 engine that makes the 250 such a fantastic car. The 350 in the uk would sell like hot cakes and I would be the first to buy.

Sorry for the late response guys, building work at home is keeping my busy. Had a spare 10min to try the software I have and it works perfect. Using it on my surface pro running Windows 10. No issues with connecting to the car, reads all the ECUs and even Let's me customise various setting to when I want the doors to lock etc.

When I had a Rover 800 Sterling I bought the official factory workshop manual. It had to be ordered from Rover like any other part and it came in three volumes and cost over £200 back in, if I recall correctly, 1984.

And there are LOADS for sale (because they are so popular)

Mainly beacsue i needed a daily drive car, the GS300h got the nod. Great on MPG, next ro nothing tax, cheap servicing etc etc. Reason i miss the ISF is because of its character on the street.. you can drive it like a normal IS and not make too much noise, go unnoticed, unlike like the AMGs or Ms or RSs are in your face. But knowing you have a V8 breathing under the bonnet. The thought of that was comforting alone, the looks, rarity, confortable, so no, it wasnt just speed i miss.

I still miss my RX300, brilliant car. Only down side was it was very thirsty. ~20mpg on average but that wasnt a problem when the company payed for my personal fuel. I have an is300h Premier at the moment but am toying with a change. Maybe an NX, which I having for 24 hours whilst mine is being serviced but after reading Rayaans latest mini review I think I will wait for the RX to drop a bit more as I now have to have the Premier (I like my toys) and cheapest I can find is 46K I will report back on impressions of the NX vs my is

It's a judgement call at 10 years, particularly as some of the wear and tear items, being 10 years old, will likely need attention and won't be covered by the warranty. Having said that you only need one unexpected bill for the warranty to pay for itself and Lexus do have a decent reputation for handling warranty claims. In this case it sounds like the OP is getting mates rates from his local garage so that complicates matters even further.

So, it was a leaky water pump leaking into the drive belt. Got the water pump and all labour covered under my warranty and just paid £50 for the drive belt.

Overall the process seems well thought out but a few pointers: 1) Pre wash - I would say this is an optional step and personally would forego it. There's no significant benefit to using a pre-wash unless the car is absolutely caked in 3 months of motorway road salt etc. If you think about it logically, using the clay mitt will add much more in terms of fine marring to the surface than washing a car that hasn't been pre-washed. 2) Use a standard shampoo - DONT use/buy Ultra HD shampoo - it has wax in it which may potentially interfere with other waxes and their water behaviour as well as making the claying stage less effective. Ideally you want something thats a pure shampoo and doesn't have any added extras. Additionally, its overly expensive - something like Carchem 1900:1 shampoo is what you need - its the best pure shampoo on the market atm, cheaper and lasts absolutely aged as you only need 10ml in a bucket. 3) The tar/iron removal should come before the clay stage 4) I can't see any Iron contaminant removal - remember that these embed into the paint and therefore you only sheer off what is on the surface with the clay not whats embedded into the clearcoat and these tend to grow in diameter as they rust. 5) Be careful with the polishes - Paint is likely to be super soft so I'd use the 3M blue first and work up if needed. Clean the car with IPA to remove polishing oils. 6) Using SRP or any other AIO after the 3M is a waste of time and product - by the end of the 3M polishing, you shouldn't have any defects left - using SRP would do nothing to add to the finish. Just to add, skip the Meguiars Ultimate Polish - its an AIO and extremely filler heavy akin to SRP. However, unlike SRP it contains oils whereas SRP is polymer based and therefore you can put a wax or a sealant on top and it will last extremely well. With Megs UP, a wax will stay fine on top but a sealant will start to lag within a few weeks. Additionally, a recent test on DetailingWorld suggests SRP is still the king with regard to performance and a sealant such as carlack has been proven to be compatible with it whereas UP can be problematic with regard to what you can slap on top of it. One of the reasons for SRP's success is it does the job at a good price and isn't fussy about what goes on top. 7) The wax itself depends on what you want it to achieve. Im a fan of the Soft99 range. Fusso should last about 6-8 months but the main hype is its beading and chemical resistance not to mention its £25 or so. On the other end, their show wax called Authentic Premium will last for 3 months but give you a great show car shine as its fortified with gloss enhancers and will make flake pop.

Lovely sunny weather this past weekend, so of course some detailing of the Lexus was in order. Ideally I would've liked to have put a coat or 2 of wax on my car, but I felt it was a bit too blustery for that since, a), I don't have a garage, and b), a large tree overhangs most of my driveway. Throw in some neighbours doing various DIY projects and who knows what kind of crap would be landing on my car whilst I was working. So, instead I focused my attention on my wheels since I could remove them and safely wax them from the confines of my shed, plus I was motivated by having a bunch of new products to try out on them. Before OK, so not exactly filthy. I tend to keep my car pretty clean and the wheels have only been on my car for about 6 weeks and they were freshly-refurbed before I bought them, so no months & years worth of baked-on brake dust, sticker residue etc. Nevertheless, Having been seriously impressed by the quality of their Rapid Detailer spray, I splashed out on a few more of Infinity Wax's wares over the Easter weekend when they were on offer at bargain prices, and intended to use a few of them to fully decontaminate and seal my wheels with a few months worth of protection. Step 1 was to hit the wheels with a strong dilution of Power Maxed TFR and then thoroughly rinse a few minutes later with a pressure washer. This removed a lot of the dirt present, but not all, so this was followed by a 2BM seeing-to of bodywork shampoo, delivered by some newly-acquired Wheel Woolies (sadly this was not pictured). After rinsing, a liberal soaking of Incinerate Wheel Foam was then agitated with a soft detail brush to remove anything that might still be present. The wheels were then hit with a dose of Liquid Fire, but this step proved to be quite unnecessary as only a minute amount of contamination was still present (so, not worth picturing). Still, at least this particular bleeding fallout remover has a bearable scent compared to others I have tried (Bilt-Hamber Korrosol, I am looking at you) which smell absolutely awful. At this point, I was prepared to clay and polish the wheels but deemed it unnecessary so dried them off using Sonax BSD as a drying aid and applying a coat of it in the process. Next up, an application of high-temp wheel wax. This was really easy to apply, and remove later once dried to a haze. It's said to be good for 2 months of protection. Applied Buffed Then my attention turned towards dressing the tyres... Rubber Wax applied to the inner-facing sidewall to see what type of finish it provides. Hmm, and then the outside... I quite like the idea of using a proper wax on the tyres instead of the usual sticky products, and this leaves a really neat and clean-looking finish but against really dark wheels I didn't think it stood out very well. I also tried it out on the radiator top hose and that came up a treat, so I can see me being a fan of Rubber Wax, just not for my tyres as I prefer a bit more of a sheen on my sidewalls. So, out came the Megs Endurance... Job done.

Anyone interested in reading an iS300h F-Sport review can read about it on the club pages. It cover the ASC as well in a video and the cool LFA style display. Have a read and please comment at the bottom of the page. cheers! :) Lexus IS300h F Sport Review