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Issue resolved. There was a faulty connector on the abs module and this was preventing the code check for the battery test. Dealer sorted connector and now a fault-free battery test, yay !

Picked up my new toy yesterday.very happy Can't seem to pair my contacts to the car,and have found a cable next to the cigarette lighter but I don't know what it does . Here's some pics

I'll be headed down to the Monaco Classic Grand Prix. Back home via Italy, Austria, Germany, Luxembourg and Belgium. Route so far attached. Approx 2,400 miles. One fellow F. Might start a new thread for suggestions on places to visit etc.

Sounds somewhat normal for the 400h which has an older regenerative braking system. Common complaints are difficulty braking smoothly and difficulty in assessing how hard to brake, sometimes stopping quicker than expected and being 1m in front of a traffic light marking line for example. Most people get used to it but yes, sometimes the brakes can be difficult to modulate in earlier hybrids Having said that, if you've changed pads or discs recently, could be them - or brake fluid thats getting old.

Hey, It's been a while since I last posted. 2005 LS430 has been SORN-ed for 2 years since gearbox problems on the Isle of Arran in 2016..... recently put a new transmission/torque converter (breaker @ 43K miles) plus an independent oil cooler and voila... she's back! I put her through the MOT the next day and she sailed though.... welcome back to the quiet beast and special thanks to a Lexus fan in Darwen, Lancs for all your help!! ;)

Right, Some of you might recall that I visited Lexus Liverpool about 3-4 years ago and spent a relatively large chunk of £££ on a series of jobs including a new transmission and torque converter, new back boxes etc. To be fair to the dealer, they did me a deal on their labour (next to nowt in cost). Some on here quite rightly thought I should have called it a day but the bronze LS430 has sentimental value (never good I know) to me as I'd bought it both for business miles and to ferry my terminally ill parents around with it's magic carpet ride and they loved it which made me feel decent too. Anyway... when I left the dealers I felt like the car was as good as ever but alas I wasn't smiling for too long as some 10000 miles later I was having a day with my camera on the Isle of Arran and on leaving the Caledonian MacBrayne ferry the gearbox seemed to slip a few gears then became stuck in 3rd (?). I drove home stuck in gear (keeping revs below approx 3500 revs) in the snow/sleet and the 300 mile trip to Merseyside was somewhat stressful to say the least. Straight to the dealership the following morning and they confirmed the gearbox was shot, when I produced their invoice for the work undertaken previously they looked horrified but eventually argued that the gearbox was only guaranteed for 10K miles and I'd done 423 miles over that - I was not impressed and told them so!! I thought I'd scrap it or trade in but as my FiL was on his last legs I decided to SORN it and deal with things later. I bought a used Skoda Superb 4x4 for work and kept the LS on the drive... to the chagrin of other family members. Roll on the clock 18 months and a friend told me of a Wirral based auto gearbox specialist so late last year a flat bed vehicle took the LS away and I negotiated a price with the garage for a rebuild to get it back on the road. After Christmas, the garage called me in and gave me their tale of woe... on three occasions they had stripped it down and rebuilt and on each time it burnt out within a couple of miles... they were of the view that there must be a hairline crack in the unit or another inherent weakness, but they did confirm that the 'fitted gearbox' from the franchise wasn't consistent in their opinion with one that had covered just over 10K. They reported that there was no water from the radiator in the transmission fluid. They suggested if I could get another box, they'd fit it for free and see what they could salvage from the old unit though they did recommend an external oil cooler as a safeguard and it was only a small additional cost (£90). So, a low mileage used transmission box including torque converter was picked up from a breaker .... thrown in and test driven for 40 miles.... success! Before celebrating too much, they put in for an MOT the following day and it flew through with no advisories!! They replaced the transmission oil as I requested (not cheap) and so I insured it as a second vehicle for less than £200 and she's now valeted and back on the drive!! I've only driven 200 miles since but she feels and sounds amazing... again..... I'm keeping everything crossed this time. Costs... Gearbox and Torque Converter @ £600, transmission oil @ £170, external oil cooler @£90 ... I insisted on them charging me for some of their labour after all the effort (£250 compromise) plus MOT, 12 months road tax and insurance. Hope I made the right choice and I won't be recommending a certain local franchise dealership to others. Wish me luck and I'll post pictures when the weather improves

You will unlikely see any problems visually with out of shape tyres. Try swapping them from the rear to see if it changes anything.

@Flytvr Size isn’t everything...... and empty vessels make the most noise....... I’m running out of exhaust envy things to say..........😩 🐀

plus big exhaust?

I like the idea of these but the details aren't quite right. Black out the chrome trim, lower the suspension and fit some special forged wheels and they would look great 😎

They do not make them in 245/40 R18 which is the size for all Mk3 GS cars with 18" rims. However they do make them in sizes 225/50/R17, which some Mk3 and Mk4 run on, and 235/45 R18 which is most of the current Mk4 lineup (excluding F-sport).

I dont think the C350e and the GS really compare. The C class is ultimately a competitor for the IS, and therefore no match for the GS in terms of pure refinement, comfort and quality. Of course, the 450h engine is a masterpiece as well.

What's the smallest wheel that will fit on the rear? If you have a front wheel puncture couldn't you fit the spare to the rear and use the rear on the front? They way you don't need to carry such a large spare? On the GS F the TVD electronics sit in the spare wheel well - that represents a bit of the problem. Is the RC F the same?

About 10-15 years ago, when Lexus recalled cars, they used to hand over a bottle of champagne for the inconvenience. Now, they've changed that policy and refuel instead - go with a full tank, you don't get anything! Im not sure either - maybe it was the dealers sending them out rather than Lexus UK themselves

Rear privacy glass is standard across the range on the series III RX450h. If you find one without then it could be an import or the glass has been changed for some reason. As the UK law only allows a maximum of 25% tint to the windscreen you could have a common look to all glass however that would just be light cosmetic tinting, it wouldn't offer privacy which is the feature that Lexus are offering.

I wouldn't say this is normal. I owned a 400h for 5 years and never had this issue and it is no worse than a RX450h or IS300h. If you watch the power meter it will go down when you brake - this is the regenerative braking system doing the work. If you apply more pressure the needle will go no further and the extra braking is performed by the mechanical braking. You need to determine if you are experiencing the problem with just the regen braking, when mechanical braking is also being used, or at the transition point. One explanation is you have sticking callipers, which is common on the RX, and the mechanical brakes are grabbing when they start to apply.

I'd suggest the manufacturer's recommended oil because using that got it to 180k. Why change a winning combination. :)

Cheers David, I'll certainly do my best my friend, but I can give you a very brief overview now - we absolutely love it!!

If you have a fuel tank pressure issue due to a cap fault then you will get a P044x error code, not one relating to oxygen sensors or cat converters.

50 mph with a light throttle, the engine is probably only spinning at 2,000 rpm. Put your foot down, the power meter should climb, and the engine will rev around 4,000 rpm. At that point you should be able to hear the engine and tell if the drone is related to the engine or not.

Really? Didn't think the Mich Crossclimates came in the GS size!

Not wishing to hihjack this thread but I hope you will do a review of your 450h when you have run it for a while. I found your posts on the RX 300 very informative, partricularly the mpg comparison, John.

Hard to conceive a worse car than a gen1 SLK but it seems everyone else except Chrysler just wasn’t trying hard enough. Just had a quick look on welovecrossfires.com out of curiosity but the page hasn’t been opened for so long it’s rusted shut!

I must concede, it did have a good........... errrrrr.......... ummmmmmmm.............. no, on second thoughts it didn’t!

Going to put Michelin Crossclimates on the GS450h once the currents wear down.....

Dan, be fair to Chrysler please. It is an achievement in itself to build a car that totally fails on all fronts. Not easy to achieve it is an engineering accomplishment in itself! Did the americans ever build a car that could compete with the standard in the automobile industry? Why oh why do they still use regenerated coca cola bottles for the interior, why are the gap panels so flexible that sometimes you can literally stick your fingers in it? Why are there no engineering accomplishments no technical innovations apart from Tesla? Anyway, i still think it is not a simple task to build a car that is engineered so badly as the Crossfire, hats off!

A droning sound especially at around 50mph could well be from a tyre. I've had this twice and both times it was a tyre out of shape, even though it looked fine tread wise. It sounded like a bearing or similar but completely went with new tyres.

Come on Martin, sell him yours😵

I dont mind the Matt paint - looks pretty good IMHO. Just not sure about the RC-F having the lower portion of the rear bumper and sideskirt black. Never been a fan of black wheels either.

It could be a few things. Wheel bearings often make noises upon turning - sort of sound like groans. Its not a fault as such but just normal wear and tear, especially on a 05 vehicle with 88k miles. However, it could also be tyres. I had a Merc with budget tyres on (dont ask, all my money was spent on renovating the house) and it made a washing machine like whirring noise. Budget tyres are notorious for this. Its unlikely that they have put the wheel on wrong - its literally just put it on and tighten the bolts to set torque. Why do you want to change the discs and pads? Are they rusted or worn? If not just leave them. However, Eurocarparts currently have 50% off discs and pads using code FEB70. Go for the Brembo brake discs and pads - you can't go wrong with those and they work out less than £100. Use topcashback/quidco and you'll get about 2-3% back as well. 4 years seems ridiculous for batteries. They should last atleast 6-8 years I would have thought.

Not a fan of the matt paint, agree that they look like they've had a cheap wrap. On a positive.... I did like the white leather sofa with the red trim in the background and I think I spotted a slice of battenburg on the coffee table ☺...

Hi Malcolm, There was so much wrong with the Crossfire it was untrue! Any that are still around now should be OK maintenance and reliability wise but they are not without their issues; It's a Chrysler so was/is made from the cheapest possible forms of all materials. To say it felt like it was made from old biscuit tins would be flattering 18 inch front wheels, 19 inch rears.....why oh why oh why!? The chassis legs were unncapped and exposed beneath the front bumper so in certain wind conditions it howled like blowing across the top of a bottle and you only found the source of the problem out after 6 months of annoying ownership as the dealers said they 'could not hear it' even when you took them out and replicated it with them sat in the car. They always said they could not replicate it when they had it to themselves, odd that. It shared most of it's construction with the SLK of the same era (Gen 1). Have a look at one of those and the interiors are quite nasty and plastic-ey. Chrysler used cheaper plastics and harder materials so it just looked and felt worse. Interior fit of everything was very poor, very rattly. Radio looked like one out of a 1984 Cavalier most of the interior trim on mine was silver hard plastic which scratched up in no time. Both cats went on mine within 1,000 miles of each other on a 24,000 mile car (very common fault), which required the full exhaust system to be replaced unless you went with after market weld in variety, which at the time I didn't. a very pricey job to fix Very, very uncomfortable and very sweaty seats that were made of what was supposed to be leather but looked and felt more like plastic. Mine were in a fetching murky green colour (if you wanted the gunmetal grey one, which I did). Worthless boot space. Clarkson said they looked like a dog bending over for a poo so consequently every bloke between the age of 15 and 45 also said the same to you and found it hilarious (oh how we laughed!) Doors are about 50,000 miles long so you can't park in most places Bonnet is about 100,000 miles long and with the roof being so low you can't get up high enough to see over it. Sounded like a far slower car, accelerated like a far slower car Other than that it was great..... you should get one!! (DON'T!!)

Yes, Keith, you may be right although from the reports I read there seems to be a knack to it involving a kick under the bumper and back. I've made an enquiry with one of the Alibaba suppliers but it looks like the $40 might be the price per kit if I were to order 500,000 kits a month. Any interest Forum members - we may be able to put in a bid for two minutes worth? No Rayaans, not sexist, possibly rude, but not sexist. I'm happily at one with my female side but all man despite that. I get no joy out of getting dirty unlike "you blokes" but I'm happy as a sandboy taking an engine to bits just as I am taking an attractive woman out for a drive in a car, the ivory upholstery of which is not smeared by grubby fingerprints. But each to his own.

Fingers (and toes!) crossed for you Nigel, really hope this sorts it out.

The saga continues (this is getting longer than Star Wars...)! The Yaw sensor arrived complete with full mounts and bracket, which was a bonus and I had it fitted and re-calibrated just over a week ago. ...and we are right back to square one, with the fault back in full effect - and yes, that is the sound of what's left of my hair hitting the keyboard! So, following yet another trawl through the depths of any Lexus-esque forum I could find, I eventually located a single item that described exactly the issue I am experiencing. This is the article: https://www.justanswer.com/toyota/83aop-lexus-rx300-2003-lexus-rx300-when-pulling.html ...and this the paragraph that caught my attention: " "The vehicle skid control system will be activated and the primary thing that causes this is the steering angle sensor. If you have a scan tool that monitored live data from the vehicle skid control system the steering angle while going straight and braking normally should be 0°. What you'll probably find is that the angle is going crazy or off more than 20 or 30° when it actually is going straight. The computer will interpret this is a sharp turn while moving and try and activate the skid control system to correct for this. The yaw rate sensor and the deceleration sensor are the two secondary sensory inputs that help control or monitor how much slip control is input." This morning I was back down at RPM in Malvern, who plugged in their diagnostics and looked specifically for information regarding this and while they did not find anything untoward with regard to the steering angle sensor, they did spot that the Tilt ECU reading was 4.5 degrees (which is not an issue as within tolerance) and that the ABS/TRAC ECU reading was 1,150 degrees! In other words, the ABS/TRAC would assume that the steering is hard over on the stop (and at 1,150 degrees, I'd suggest a few time round as well!). In testing this did not change regardless of the steering wheel position, so it would seem that whenever I pull away the system believes I am skidding in a straight line with the steering hard over and therefore activate. To remedy this will require a replacement ABS pump (44540-48060) and, needless to say, I did not bother speaking to Lexus and have bought a "pre-owned", warrantied unit off of eBay instead. Hopefully it will be here by the middle of next week and this sorry saga might just draw to a close. I'll let you know...

Yep everyone is at it at the moment. The deals tend to suck as well - they're nothing better than what you could get on any other day - just has a lot of marketing behind it to get people into the showrooms in the first place.

8 am she goes on the ramp and 20 mins later we have a new certificate. Offside Front suspension has slight play in a lower suspension ball joint (2.5.B.1a) Nearside Front position lamp(s) deteriorated, but still visible from a reasonable distance (1.1.A.3d) Front Tyre worn close to the legal limit (4.1.E.1) Some underside corrosion. How happy can car owning when you have a Lexus? Just 5000 miles in the last year. I must get those new tyres fitted now.

Just had mine MOT'd today:- PASS! No advisories! Rio will 20 years old in March.

Sad to say I've got another problem with my NX. The front suspension is now creaking and groaning over larger bumps, especially speed humps and even at very low speeds. It's booked back into the dealer next week, continuing to merit the 'timeshare car' tag that it's been given due to the amount of time it spends with the dealer. Not exactly what I was expecting quality wise when buying a Lexus. Anybody had or heard of similar issues? Any ideas as to the cause? I'd say the ride has become much harder too over the past few miles so something isn't happy!

It was the strangest test drive ever, the owners insurance policy had lapsed but he still took me for a test drive. I sat in the passengers seat. Just as we were getting back the unmarked X5 that was behind us put his lights on and pulled us over. Car was impounded on the spot!

With the risk of being sexist, this thread makes you sound rather womanly.... Us blokes love getting our hands dirty On a more useful note, perhaps use another finger? Preferably not the one you adjust your bow tie with