Leaderboard

I went to the PistonHeads oragnised Sunday Service today - loads of interesting cars there! I met a nice chap called Adam from Toyota, who’d borrowed a lovely looking red RCF carbon. I also saw a dark grey/black ISF to complete the set, and as an aside managed to visit the memorial to Bruce McLaren and Sir Jack Brabham. Most of the time, I totally forgot to take photos, but the bacon sandwiches were great and the weather was freezing! The GSF was utterly faultless, although a healthy presence from Sussex constabulary on the journey home prevented too much fun!

The rx300 is a permanent 4 wheel drive system I believe. I was very impressed with my first winter in the Rx, mine has been fab in the snow the last week had no issues and haven’t got stuck yet. Bridgestone normal tyres on mine

It is normal for the engine to kick in when starting in cold weather. That car has probably been sitting there for a while.

I'm the IS F owner! It's a grey one 😊. Had a little look at your GS F and it looks superb. It reaffirmed my opinion that black is by far the best looking interior colour for it and the only colour interior I would consider. Shame so many seem to have red. Definitely on my list in a couple of years. Would be ideal if a few more get registered between now and then to help the prices! It was a great but very cold morning.

Sounds odd that you need to do that. If my climate control is on auto, when I press the demist button the air is directed to the windscreen and the fan speeds up automatically. The windscreen demists quickly. I wonder why your fan doesn't speed up automatically. Is it because you've changed the fan speed from the auto setting? Or is the air conditioning turned off? Or maybe the fan speed only increases when the engine has warmed up a bit. But that seems unlikely from what the RAC website says (mentioned in a link above) as even cold air will help. Another factor of course is that the screen should be clean. In days gone by, before air conditioning, people would wipe the windscreen to get rid of mist. But that just made it worse by putting specks of dust on the windscreen that the mist would stick to. Might be worth checking the air conditioning is working properly.My experience is that the whole car mists up if the air conditioning is turned off in wet or cold weather.

I think I'd class that as operator error

Calling all Lexus LS Owners! I've been tasked with helping organise the launch of the new LS500 at our Dealership, which is expected to hit showrooms at some point in January. Having seen and driven it in Milan, it's a beautiful, beautiful thing. You will love it. Without giving too much away, I'm looking for a couple of owners of ideally a gen 1 and gen 3 LS. They'd need to be in "good to great" condition (I appreciate they will potentially have up to 30 years use). I'd need to borrow them for a night, maybe even a couple of days - but would organise something to repay the favour. Please drop me an email if you think you could help: john.parker@vantagemotorgroup.co.uk Many Thanks, John. Lexus Birmingham.

Thanks for the advice. I’ll give it back to them to sort, as I’ve done barely 800 miles since I picked it up. Hopefully they should do it all under warranty. I’d be disappointed if they asked for anything or said the pads/discs suddenly needed doing. Will start using the foot brake as well.

Funnily enough I've been looking at the Eibach kits. 20mm on the back http://www.eibachshop.co.uk/eibach-prospacer-kit-pair-of-spacers-20mm-per-spacer-system-4-s90420013_p31222695.htm#.WjbGNN-Rq70 15mm on the front http://www.eibachshop.co.uk/eibach-prospacer-kit-pair-of-spacers-15mm-per-spacer-system-4-s90415009_p31222694.htm#.WjbGL9-Rq70 Pretty sure I'll get the usual socks from Santa though

Do you straddle speed humps? That wears inside edges of tyres quite badly. The alternative of course - to have one side in the centre of the hump and the other side on a flat bit - risks suspension damage unless you slow right down - but then that's the intention!

Oh God.........here we go.....................

It'll be interesting to hear what difference you find if you have climate control set to auto before pressing Demist. Hope it makes a difference. One other point to bear in mind is that the manual says: "Operation of the air conditioning system in Eco drive mode In Eco drive mode, the air conditioning system is controlled as follows to prioritize fuel efficiency: ● Engine speed and compressor operation controlled to restrict heating/cooling capacity ● Fan speed restricted when automatic mode is selected". So, as well as auto climate control, check that the car isn't in Eco mode - ie switch to Normal or Sport - before pressing the Demist button.

That is correct. My old Prius would always start in winter, but often not in summer. In winter you need heat and demister which = hot engine. So the computer starts it.

Someone knows his law.

"Press the starter button and, like all hybrids, there's the sound of silence. Nothing to begin with from the 388bhp 5.0-litre petrol V8: just the almost imperceptible sound of the 221bhp electric motor, part of what must be the most seamlessly integrated hybrid drivetrain yet created. Of course, with over two tonnes of luxury limousine to shift, the electric motor soon needs assistance but the switch in power is seamless, part of a thrust of acceleration that arrives in one smooth linear surge, courtesy of a combined 439bhp power output. " From the RAC review. HTH

The asking price is merely an invitation to treat Den (as I think you know), it is not the sellers expectation, etc. I think that Phil is much closer to the mark.

Dealers are mostly chancers rather than professional sellers. Many have little knowledge of these cars. They get what they consider to be a great limo and price it according to their perception of a customer's response. A few may fall for it but most buyers of these ageing Lexus models know the value which is why many private sales go through fairly quickly but lots of dealers get stuck with them until they see sense and lower the price. Some have been on eBay for months. Asking prices mean very little.

Yes its like a candle mate is it switched on.

The “Vehicle Smart” app is a better option IMO. Its gives you the option of having the families cars in a “garage “ for quick reference, and colour codes the mot status.

I believe we had multiple threads about different options so sorry for starting it all over. However, I wanted to create single one where we have a list of recommended bulbs for each application. To begin with making a clear distinction between 2 options. As we all know there are HID/Xenon set-up and Halogen set-up. High beam and parking lights would be the same, but the Main beam cannot be more different. 2 main criteria are Colour and Light output (strength): So the light output is calculated in Lumens (lm) and the higher the better, here is where I guess many people get it confused with colour and latter is not "the higher is the better. Colour is represented by kelvins and the "higher is the bluer", quick introduction into Kelvin rating as well: Based on the scale above Halogens are in the range between 2500-4500. I believe standard Lexus ones were 4300k giving nice white colour though quite weak (in lm). Anything below 3000k I consider vintage or fog. Not sure about Lexus parking/side lights, but they are same for both types, yellowish ~3000k. High beam is the same for both cars again, I believe it to be similar temp as HID/Xenon ~ 5500K. This is as well around the range I prefer - I don't really like anything above 6000K aka blue light (or aka cheap xenon/LED kits). As well I have adjustable video light with 3200K to 6500K range. I personally found that ~5300K is perfect for my taste, so I guess anything between 5000-5500k would be ok. Xenon/HID Recommendation: High beam (standard 5500K/~?lm) - I believe it is HB3 are there any LED options? It seems that best HB3 bulb I can find is ~1700/1800lm which is fairly weak. Main beam D2S (standard 5500k/~2400lm) - Osram XENARC COOL BLUE INTENSE (sounds scary blue, but it is actually 5500k), Cool Blue is as well rated at 3200lm whilst "Night Breakers" and "Long Life" are both rated 2800lm and colour is 4350k (kind of towards yellow at least on paper). There are as well Phillips Xenon White vision ~ price range £65-85 Side light T10 - PHILIPS XTREME VISION 360 LED T10, there are 4000/6000/8000k versions ~£13-17 Halogen Recommendation: (LED/Xenon conversion kits are illegal to use in UK due to "construction and use" and therefore I would like to avoid recommending any of these). High beam (standard 5500K/~?lm) - I believe it is HB3 are there any LED options? Main beam - I believe it is H7 , what are the best options? Side light T10 - PHILIPS XTREME VISION 360 LED T10, there are 4000/6000/8000k versions ~£13-17 I am not sure if I am going to be able to edit an original post due to changes in forum, but I guess I will summarise suggestion in a new post.

If I recall correctly, Ford developed a heated front screen and patented it so other manufacturers couldn't copy it. I may be wrong, but I recall reading that somewhere. My front screen takes a few minutes to clear using conventional fan method.

agree run regularly but I don't run it all the time party to aid fuel consumption (to save the planet. In my 5L v8) but also as I find the air too dry I moisturising my face whilst I hammer down the m1 might be considered dangerous by some.

Hi ,I have these on my IS250C they were on when I bought it and according to the history I have were swapped by Lexus Belfast for the first owner .I think they suit the car ,the only downside for me is they are difficult to keep clean , and they are not ' staggered ' for the rear size ,so all 4 tyres are 225/40 .This does not seem to have had any effect on the drive over the 12000 miles I have covered Dave

I used to press that on my IS200 and it didn't work: It didn't make it snow.

Lexus has released a teaser of a new concept - the LF-1. It is deemed to be a flagship crossover, therefore probably surpassing the RX for pure luxury when/if it is released. It appears that there is a panoramic roof which blends into the boot glass. There is also a small side profile picture of the LF-1 on the right side showing it to have a very long bonnet and short overhangs possibly indicating an RWD SUV based on the GA-L platform from the current LC and LS

Robert. Torque settings for wheels, brakes, and shock fitting. Wheel nuts 76 ft/lbs Front Brakes:- Caliper bolts 58 ft/lbs Rear Brakes :- Caliper bracket bolts 40 ft/lbs Slide pins 18 ft/lbs. Shock absorber mountings:- Front shock top nut 21 ft/lbs Top ball joint nut 64 ft/lbs Bottom shock through bolt 81 ft/lbs tighten bolt holding nut still with suspension loaded. Height sensor nut 48 inch/lbs Rear shocks :- Top shock nut 13 ft/lbs Bottom shock through bolt 81 ft/lbs tighten bolt holding nut still with suspension loaded. Bottom arm to hub through bolt 81 ft/lbs tighten bolt holding nut still. John.

Changed all light builbs today, my choice was: Osram XENARC COOL BLUE INTENSE for "dipped" beam (6000k) £42 (~80 normally). Osram COOL BLUE INTENSE for "main" beam (4200k) £11 Osram LED Premium Cool White for "side" lights (6000k) £9 Now it might be obvious to somebody who changed the bulbs before, but if that is first time you will need to go prepared: gloves, 10mm socket, long extension, ratchet. You will need to remove airbox for access to drivers side HID and windshield washer filler pipe on the passenger's side. Here are some before shots. Side + dipped (this one was already getting bit pink): Main beam: Here are after shots. Side: Main + dipped: Here are side lights side-by-side: Now my conclusion is that side lights (Osram LEDs) are definitely an upgrade - cheap, maintenance free, matches perfectly with HIDs. To my surprise the HID on the drivers side (the one going pink) was already Osram XENARC COOL BLUE INTENSE, whereas on passengers side it was still original one. My guess is that previous owner or dealer has replaced failed HID with random used bulb which happened to be Osram, I have seen slight difference from the beginning, but was not sure if that is because of build or lenses etc. Overall, XENARC COOL BLUE INTENSE is great replacement, but not day and night difference. Finally, I was a little bit foolish with COOL BLUE INTENSE main beam - even though it stated "HID/Xenon" looks it was 4200k. It is definitely better than standard bulb and actually the colour difference it is hard to tell, but it is definitely not perfect match. Next time I might replace it with LED, but for now it at least looks better than old ones: