robroy

Hi Guys, I am sure eveyone reading the Forum will be as concerned a I am on the above subject.. It is now fairly obvious , all political parties are out to get us once again by the wallet .. Could we have some comments please, in particular from our friends who have had LPG systems fitted on the folowing. :- When does a Gas Guzzler become a non Gas Guzzler ? If we have an LPG installation fitted our cars become (from mpg figures) in line with a normal small family car.. If unfortunately you live in Richmond on Thames does this mean we would not have to pay the higher rate of Parking Charges ? If (following the next election I presume) our Road Tax increases to the figgure mentioned of £1800 pa. Are we exempt from paying this increase if our cars are fitted with LPG ? Are other members as confused as I am between 'Gas Guzzlers (which mean low mpg figures) and damage to the environment due to high emissions . Our other car is a BMW 330D. This car is of course fitted with a catalic converter and does 43/45 mpg on a run. My next door neighbour's old Vauxhall belches out filth and probably does half my mpg. Who's the biggest polluter ? Who should pay more in tax ? Could any LPG members confirm for me please the position with the Ken Livingstone Tax on entering Central London with their cars. Regards Roy

Hi Kitty. What you say is disgusting and enough to put anyone off the brand. I have 'sightings' of Glass's Guide. If I have got your model in the correct focus, this is what the trade 'bible' says (August prices) Deduct approx 2.5% for September listings. RX300SE(NAV) 05 plate 17k miles Trade £ 22200 Retail £ 24925 RX300SE (NAV & ICE) 05 plate 17k miles. Trade £23425 Retail £ 26150 The new prices of the above models £36334 for the (NAV) and £38934 for the NAV and ICE If I can help further with any price info drop me an E on rsaun46318@aol.com. Why don't you publish the name of this Lexus dealer to warn other LOC members to 'keep away'... Regards Roy

Or you might want to look at one of these,i know its not a permanent solution to your problem but it could save you loads of hassle until you get to the bottom of the drainage of current on your RX. http://www.maplin.co.uk/module.aspx?TabID=...02&doy=10m9 Winnie, Have you got one of these solar panels ? I see the sense in these if you are storing the car outside over a period of time and can in some way keep the rain out... But again it is a nothing for nothing world and to use it via the cigar lighter socket (or other 12v sockets on the Lexus) you could not remove the key. The ignition would have be be in the 'radio' position turn on mode... This would bother me . I have thought about them for our caravan but not for the car.... That Bl---y vanity light on the sun visor got me again last week. We were on holiday and her ladyship left the visor down and the light cover up and lit whilst we went away for most of the day.... Luckily we had enough current to start the engine. It could however have been nasty. I am looking at taking the light out of both visors within the next few days. Regards. Roy.

I have had exactly the same problem with my 52 RX300SE..... In a nutshell, the battery is far to small in ampere hour capacity for the hotel loads put across it from standing . (not to be confused with starting currents). The solution is of course a bigger capacity (Ah) battery .The present OE fit (on my car is a Lucas 45ah) is far smaller than the batteries fitted to Merc and BMW.. The real problem however is that if you obtained a bigger battery there is a difficulty fitting it due to the size of the tray. I am investigating this in detail and I will post a thread if I come up with something . I have a 3 litre BMW SE with fairly high quiescent drain and never had a starting problem even when it had been standing for 3 weeks.... Roy (ex Chloride) As you know on the RX400h the battery is only used for powering auxillaiary circuits and lights etc and not for cranking the engine to start it. So should (or is) the battery be of the caravan leisure type which can stand low current drain for a much longer time but does not high instantaneous short term current supply? If it is a normal battery, I think they put the wrong type in the 400H.... Billy, You've got me scratching my head on this one..... As I understand it however, on the RX400 the special 'drive' bateries' which drive the electric motors are nothing to do with the starting of the petrol engine. Nor have they anything to do with all the 'toys' fitted to the car... They just drive the car in the same way as special deep cycling batteries drive a 'Milk Float' or Fork Lift Truck....( much higher quality of course) On the other side of the specification , your engine starter battery does just the same function as mine does on my meagre 2002 RX300... it starts the engine, handles all the 'toys' and , in my opinion is far to small to carry all the 'hotel loads'... I won't go into technical jargon here as I am trying hard to get info on the RX400 drive battery set and it is just like getting Tony Blair to tell us of the important day... In my day , Rolls Royce had problems worse than Lexus could ever dream about. Believe me.. A customer would pay between 1 and 1.5 grand for a service.. Take a car home to his 'Mews' Flat. Leave it there until Ascot week or the Henley Regata.. Get his picnic hamper out , get in his car and THEN .. call a taxi the battery was dead flat... RR solved this problem by fitting 2 batteries one for starting and one for 'Hotel use'. No matter how much the Hotel battery was drained by 'standing in the garage' with a high quiescant drain... the other battery was not involved... As soon as the key was turned the car started and the alternator charged up both batteries.. Problem solved... I understand some top end German cars are now fitting 2 batteries to solve this problem.. One for starting and one to sop up all the Q drains from the 'toys' Hope I've not gone on to much and bored you... I would dearly love an RX400 .. I am retired and it is hard to save up your pennies for such luxuries.. I have stopped the wife having 3 meals a day, buying shoes, clothes and make up and who knows... some day I may get there. Would welcome any info you have on the RX400 drive batteries.. Roy Hii Roy, Sorry for delay in replying. I didn't get a notification of your message. Thanks for the update on the 2 battery systems. As I understand it, there is no conventional starter motor (or alternator) on the 400h!!! It is started by the main drive motor/generator which is driven by the big 280 volt drive battery. So I don't think there is much amperage required from the 12 volt battery to start it as long as there is enough voltage for the control systems... Please correct me if I am wrong :) Billy Hi Billy, I think we have opened a 'hornets nest' here.... Whilst I was involved for around 30 years with Chloride supplying automotive batteries to the European Vehicle manufacturers, there was nothing around like the RX400. I've been retired now for a good number of years... Now, I just have to find out more info on the RX400 system... If anyone else out there can throw any technical info on this subject, I am sure this will be very much appreciated.. If you think for a moment, all the bulbs (and/or LCD's) must be 12 volt..., the engine starter battery must be 12 volts, the radio/CD/tape player/ alarm system etc etc all must be 12v.. These must come off the enginestarting battery.. I cannot see a 'taping' of the 280volt battery being made to start the engine (could be wrong here) I will start digging info on this and post accordingly.. In the meantime anyone having a problem with the standard RX300 cars, keep your eye on the light on the sun visors... This can still be left on when the ignition key is withdrawn from the dash... ifthe panel is not closed completely.. I think this is what dropped me in it.... regards Roy

I have had exactly the same problem with my 52 RX300SE..... In a nutshell, the battery is far to small in ampere hour capacity for the hotel loads put across it from standing . (not to be confused with starting currents). The solution is of course a bigger capacity (Ah) battery .The present OE fit (on my car is a Lucas 45ah) is far smaller than the batteries fitted to Merc and BMW.. The real problem however is that if you obtained a bigger battery there is a difficulty fitting it due to the size of the tray. I am investigating this in detail and I will post a thread if I come up with something . I have a 3 litre BMW SE with fairly high quiescent drain and never had a starting problem even when it had been standing for 3 weeks.... Roy (ex Chloride) As you know on the RX400h the battery is only used for powering auxillaiary circuits and lights etc and not for cranking the engine to start it. So should (or is) the battery be of the caravan leisure type which can stand low current drain for a much longer time but does not high instantaneous short term current supply? If it is a normal battery, I think they put the wrong type in the 400H.... Billy, You've got me scratching my head on this one..... As I understand it however, on the RX400 the special 'drive' bateries' which drive the electric motors are nothing to do with the starting of the petrol engine. Nor have they anything to do with all the 'toys' fitted to the car... They just drive the car in the same way as special deep cycling batteries drive a 'Milk Float' or Fork Lift Truck....( much higher quality of course) On the other side of the specification , your engine starter battery does just the same function as mine does on my meagre 2002 RX300... it starts the engine, handles all the 'toys' and , in my opinion is far to small to carry all the 'hotel loads'... I won't go into technical jargon here as I am trying hard to get info on the RX400 drive battery set and it is just like getting Tony Blair to tell us of the important day... In my day , Rolls Royce had problems worse than Lexus could ever dream about. Believe me.. A customer would pay between 1 and 1.5 grand for a service.. Take a car home to his 'Mews' Flat. Leave it there until Ascot week or the Henley Regata.. Get his picnic hamper out , get in his car and THEN .. call a taxi the battery was dead flat... RR solved this problem by fitting 2 batteries one for starting and one for 'Hotel use'. No matter how much the Hotel battery was drained by 'standing in the garage' with a high quiescant drain... the other battery was not involved... As soon as the key was turned the car started and the alternator charged up both batteries.. Problem solved... I understand some top end German cars are now fitting 2 batteries to solve this problem.. One for starting and one to sop up all the Q drains from the 'toys' Hope I've not gone on to much and bored you... I would dearly love an RX400 .. I am retired and it is hard to save up your pennies for such luxuries.. I have stopped the wife having 3 meals a day, buying shoes, clothes and make up and who knows... some day I may get there. Would welcome any info you have on the RX400 drive batteries.. Roy

I have had exactly the same problem with my 52 RX300SE..... In a nutshell, the battery is far to small in ampere hour capacity for the hotel loads put across it from standing . (not to be confused with starting currents). The solution is of course a bigger capacity (Ah) battery .The present OE fit (on my car is a Lucas 45ah) is far smaller than the batteries fitted to Merc and BMW.. The real problem however is that if you obtained a bigger battery there is a difficulty fitting it due to the size of the tray. I am investigating this in detail and I will post a thread if I come up with something . I have a 3 litre BMW SE with fairly high quiescent drain and never had a starting problem even when it had been standing for 3 weeks.... Roy (ex Chloride)

Hi there. I have used harley wax for some time now on my Lexus and BMW. In my opinion there is nothing on the market that comes anywhere near this product... It is superb in every way.. I have tried them all before.. One of the benefits is of course you cannot knock it over and spill it .... It is a solid polish and very user friendly. The most important point on this I can throw in is this... If you go into Halfrauds you will see they sell a circular polish application sponge ... fairly hairy on one side where the polish goes and foam rubbery on the other. This sponge fits perfectly in the Harley polish tin and allows you to get an even coating on the applicator... Using this, the jobs very easy and as I have said the results are superb... happy polishing Roy

I've been looking for this manual ever since i bought my IS200!. If it cover the IS200 99' plate i'd be really greatfull if you could burn me a copy of the CD, I will be more than willing to make a donation. :winky: I've been looking for this manual ever since i bought my IS200!. If it cover the IS200 99' plate i'd be really greatfull if you could burn me a copy of the CD, I will be more than willing to make a donation. :winky: Thanks everyone for postings regarding the Lexus Workshop Manual CD-ROM I picked up at Wellesbourne Market for a fiver... I have tried for over 2 hours to burn off a copy disc for cnrke (Christian) up there in Newcastle.... Unfortunately I cannot do it .. My PC skills in my later years are not up to the standard of you younger guys, however I will keep trying... The disc is very very useful and the guy I bought it off had hundreds of them , all for sale at a fiver a time, I think they are all the same with a different cover on the box as the discs covers all the popular cars up to 2004.. As we have a 2002 BMW300D and my daughter has a Merc A series. We have a triple bonus. The guy made it clear he only deals on the market and on EBay where he sells the discs for around a tenner. Have a good look at the 'workshop manuals' on EBay.. Like most of the traders on the Wellesbourne market I feel he comes from the Birmingham area..... If I find any further info I will make a posting. Roy

Dear cnrke1 Would do it for you with pleasure for nothing..... IF you tell me how to 'burn' a copy off as I am no expert with the PC. The disc covers all manuals of all the poplular cars up to 2004 .. Obviously all the Lexus range are covered and the info I have gleamed on our model is very worthwhile... Do you know how I can 'burn' off from the disc all the RX300 info ? I have no idea... My direct E Mail no. is rsaun46318@aol.com

Many of the members who live near or in the Midlands will know Wellesbourne Market (Saturday and Bank Holidays) is one of (If not the largest outdoor market in the UK) Imagine my surprise this morning to find a stall selling CD-Roms for the Workshop Manuals of the complete range of Lexus vehicles.... I have had an hour or so with it and discovered some very welcome information on servicing, problem solving , specifications etc... Granted the CD only covers models up to 2004 but for the grand cost of £5.00 Iam not going to complain. As we also run a 2002 BMW 330D , I was pleased to see that this model is also covered on the CD with similar good sound technical information... There are also other models listed... Anyone any ideas on this.. Could it be illegal ? The box and packing etc. all look very genuine . Could be the best fiver I've spent in a long time. Roy (Quite Happy at the moment)

Thanks everyone for he replies.. Now quite clear. Promise to behave like a gentleman even if I don't agree with some of he points raised. So far however I agree with everything said about the RX.

Maybe I am a little thick but could someone ell me please what the wording quote ' Warn (0%) followed by 5 small blue squares means under my Name and Details in the Left Hand column ? Have I or am I doing something wrong ? Excellent site and forum ... Would hate to step out of line. Roy

Hi Claire, Over here in the UK, we managed to purchase a MINT RX300 (first reg April 03) with only 23000 miles on the clock, via a Main Lexus Distributor for £16500. Fully taxed, 12 months warranty,SE model etc. etc. Your price seems a little high to me.... What do other members think... On the side we have had a Brink detachable towbar and electrics fitted and we have already made 3 fairly long caravan trips... Without a doubt it is the best tow car I have ever had and the nicest car I have ever driven. Roy

Hi Everyone, I promised in previous posts that I would post accurate info on what I found out regarding towing equipment on my fairly new RX300 (2003 model). I had a detachable BRINK towbar and electrics fitted at Motabars in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire. I have used these people before and my feelings are they are without a doubt first class. The cost of this work on my RX300 was £434. Worth every penny. We have towed our fairly heavy German Tabbert 540 (single axle) down South for a couple of weeks recently and we are off again for a 2 week tour on Wednesday of this week. The towbar and electrics are 100%. The high quality relay equipment on the 12S socket brings the fridge and 12v charging in very quickly and is much better than my previous equipment on the Mercedes... Following an appointment with Motabars we left the car with them , went shopping and received a call on the mobile in just about 2 hours that the car was ready for collection ... NO PROBLEM. Anyone out there wanting this type of service could do a lot worse that have a nice day in the lovely town of Leamington Spa and let them get on with it. My (and my my wife's) feelings now about the RX300 are very clear.... We are not political people. We speak as we find things. There is no way whatsoever would we go back to Mercedes Benz .. We are keeping our BMW330D as the 'Tesco Waggon' but the Lexus RX300 is something else. We think it is fantastic. We also cannot fault the service from Lexus in Oxford. Compared to the Mercedes E300 diesel,the car is a little thirsty... I knew this whenI bought it and we are not windging... If anyone could give us some guidance on fitting an LPG kit to the car, this wouldbe really appreciated... Many posts have been made about Toyota engines andLPG which do concern me a little... Any help on this would be greatly appreciated...... Excellent Web site by the way... Robroy.

Hi Damer The name is Roy also from the Stockport area (Marple Bridge to be precise) now living in the North Cotswolds. I bought our mint RX300 (2003 year with 25k on the clock just over a fortnight back) I moved away from Mercedes. I must be honest. It is the nicest car I have ever driven We have had a Brink towbar and light set fitted and we have just returned from a 400 mile round trip (with a 17ft Tabbert caravan on the back round Somerset, Wiltshire and into Dorset... She tows like a dream. The cooling fans never came on. The temp gauge hardly moved from the centre position and my fuel figures according to the computer are 28.6 average without the van .. 19.5 when towing... Not quite as good as the Merc which was a 3 litre diesel . I am however very satisfied. Like yourself we have no problem whatsoever with 'lurching' ... Lucky maybe ? I don't know... All in all at this stage the best purchase we have made ... The Lexus dealer (Oxford) have been superb in every respect.. Put the Merc agents to shame. Good luck.. Let us all know how you get on from time to time .

Hi Williz Many thanks again for your help my E mail address is' rsaun46318@aol.com'. I do not have any information on the phone (Nokia 6310i or the Bluetooth kit) This info will be very interesting. regarding the Austrian Christmas Concert from Vienna. There is a waiting list of around 10 years for tickets (so we believe) and the cost is very very high.. have you ever seen it on TV. It is Very Popular over here and very high quality entertainment Kind Regards Roy

Thanks Williz Right first time. Your picture is exactly what I have in the RX.... How do I make it work? Any ideas? Roy first congratulations, this is a good one. supports voice dial if your handset is supporting it and the voice quality is good as well. i would give a lot if the hands free system in the RX400h would be that good. are you familiar with the bonding (conecting your nokia with another bluetooth device) process of your nokia handset? i will send you a description how the HCB30 works. is very simple you will see. i will be back on the internet in about 2 hours. Thanks Williz Right first time. Your picture is exactly what I have in the RX.... How do I make it work? Any ideas? Roy first congratulations, this is a good one. supports voice dial if your handset is supporting it and the voice quality is good as well. i would give a lot if the hands free system in the RX400h would be that good. are you familiar with the bonding (conecting your nokia with another bluetooth device) process of your nokia handset? i will send you a description how the HCB30 works. is very simple you will see. i will be back on the internet in about 2 hours. Williz, I really do appreciate your help with this.. and thank you once again for giving me your time. My Nokia phone is not voice enabled or even fitted with a camera... Just a basic 2/3 years old Nokia.. I am interested in gadgets (probably like your goodself) and I would feel really good if I can make this work... By the way we pull a German 5.4 Tabbert caravan and we have been to Salzburg and Mayrhofan touring in your lovely country.... My wife Jean, says to ask you can you get any tickets for he Vienna Christmas Choir Concert ?? (I think I know the answer to that one) regards Roy

Thanks Williz Right first time. Your picture is exactly what I have in the RX.... How do I make it work? Any ideas? Roy

Hi Williz I've really no idea of the brand of the Bluetooth kit.... The kit installed in the RX300 consists of a microphone protruding between the sun visors. A speaker in the passenger footwell and a small 'rocker type switch affair with a plus and minus sign illustrated.. When the ignition is on the kit can be made to ring when either the plus or minus side of the rocker is pressed... The are little sketches of a 'phone hand set on this rocker which are illuminated 'blue' when the ignition is on. The bottom sketch of the handset has a 'line' through it... Best I can do I'm afraid. Never had Bluetooth before. Does it mean anyting to you ? Best regards Roy

Hi Everyone, Took delivery last week of a 'mint' 23k miler RX300 from Lexus Oxford.... So far we are very impressed. No lurching from the gearbox, all in all a much better ride than our previous Merc... One problem though which I cannot get sorted... The previous owner left a Bluetooth mobile phone kit installed in the Lexus, ie the little plus and minus rocker switch which rings out when pressed. The speaker and microphone etc... my current mobile phone is fitted with the Bluetooth facility (Nokia 63101) There is no way however that I can marry them up to work together.. Made contact with Lexus UK, Bluetooth and Nokia and they all tell me to ring the other people for information. Doe anyone out there use Bluetooth who could guide me ... Been all through the 'phone menu and turned Bluetooth on etc. Having a Brink detachable tow bar fitted with electrics (new 7 point relay) at Motabars in Leamington Spa next Thursday. Will leave a posting on the site confirming how we went on etc.. regards Robroy.

Hi there everyone .. A LEXUS virgin here. so far very impressed. I have recently come over to the brand as I am sick to death with my Merc. The 5th one I have owned.. Apart from the constant battle with the rust and not very helpful Merc Distributors I have thrown the towel in. Has anyone out there any experience with towing a caravan with the RX300... Everything on paper is in it's favour (except for fuel consumption) and my only gripe is lexus do not do a 3 litre diesel. That aside any comments on caravan (or horsebox) towing would be very welcome. Had a test drive yesterday and I have got to say WOW what a car. Probably the nicest drive I have ever had (and we have a BMW330D). Would love to hear from anyone with any 'nasties' (if there are any) or any points to watch .... Robroy in Stratford upon Avon