nevarthur

Hi mate, Well, in my opinion, the snow button seems to have the effect of retarding the timing, or cutting fuel supply or something like that, which reduces the amount of torque (or turning force) available to the driving wheels, thus making it less likely for them to exceed the available grip. When you use it, you should notice that the throttle response is very different to normal. It takes more throttle pressure to get going, and the car seems more sluggish. This is very handy in snow, as you are less likely to break traction and spin round. It's not impossible though, so go easy! ;-) The trc, or Traction Control button is a very cheap way of trying to pretend the car has a limmited slip differential, but it isn't that good at it in my opinion. If you find a gravel or other slippery surface, line the car up and then pull away vigourously while steering sharply to the left or right to provoke wheelspin, you will notice that the car seems to die as you do so. Push the trc button in though, and you should be able to keep the spin going, and more importantly, the engine doesn't die in the same way, which means on the side that has some grip, the tyre can still propel you. It's useful for me about 2 or 3 times a year, if that, so don't worry if you never use it!

Hi Kev, I have been using this place for the last 3 years. - http://www.albinbmotors.co.uk/ I can't really tell you much in the way of costs because I tend to look at the big picture. They're cheaper than a Lexus main dealer, but were trained and used to work in one. I've always found them friendly, informative, technically competent and honest, as far as I could tell! I just leave the car with them, pick it up later and pay. There have been a couple of times when it was a lot of money but I'm a perfectionist really when it comes to the car, and I enjoy having it looked after well. When it was a lot of money, it was a lot of work! It's always difficult to do a recommendation and not sound cheesy or pushy, but I live in Ashford in Kent, and take my car there and then take the train home and usually pick it up later or the next day, and still I haven't looked for anywhere closer to home. I must be happy eh? :-) All the best, Nev

Mine is just coming up to 10 years old as well, and for the last couple of months I've been thinking of changing my shocks as there's a little bit of vagueness going round fast corners. So it sounds like that's the sort of age they're going at, if that helps? Nev

Hi, I admit I didn't see the program you refer to, but I just wanted to say that my local branch has a nice guy managing it, and he keeps on top of everything so I've never had anything less than great service there. That said, I remember in East London, you could get problems with them at times, so I think it's quite possibly very Branch dependent. I guess you can get problems anywhere, but I felt the need to defend this particular branch! No offence! Nev

Hi Mate, Bouncy is never a good word to be used about a car! I would be fairly sure that's a shock absorber although if you could get to look behind the affected wheel and see if there's any fluid coming from it, that would help to confirm it. If there isn't any fluid though, that doesn't mean it's OK necessarily. The nearside is obviously taking more of a hammering these days due to all the potholes about! My subjective advice? Ignore Ebay for a while. There's millions of places that can do shocks and most will quote you a price including fitting. Don't forget that Kwik-Fit will often price match surprisingly low prices and my local branch is good so I'm sure others are too. It's not a job I would look at doing myself, I know my limits and they're quite low! Try googling "your town name/shock absorber/fitting" and that should get you started. I hope this helps you. Nev

Hi all, As I have made a couple of posts requesting help today, I thought it only fair to try and redress the balance a bit by offering up some points that may help one or two of you. Firstly, I would thoroughly recomend the IS200, whatever your budget for a car. I could get a replacement, and frankly, three and a half years with a car is unusually long for to keep one, but I still really like mine. The fuel consumption *is* heavy, no doubt. There are 3 things worth considering to help with this. 1st. Consider resetting the ECU unit. It just involves taking out a couple of fuses for a short period. Search on here in the search box at the bottom of the page. Somebody else wrote a detailed account of how to do it that was easy to follow. Just one thing. Have a good grip on the fuse when you extract it, or a magnetic screwdriver to retrieve it from where it falls when you drop it! I don't know exactly why this works, but it did for me. I struggled to break more than 280 miles a tankful in the first few months of owning this car. I would suggest possibly an improvement of up to 40 miles a tank was possible after this. 2nd. Press the Snow button if you don't need every horsepower unit on a regular basis. First thing, this helps smooth out the sudden take-off that may affect the autobox model. I can't comment on the manual model. Then, if you try and drive in relaxed manner with this button pressed everytime you start the car up, or especially on longer motorway runs at 60 to 80 mph, I think if you have the same experience as myself, you could be looking at an extra 100 miles a tank. You do sacrifice performance no doubt, but it doesn't seem to have any other downside, in my opinion. I have been doing this for the last 20,000 or so miles, and haven't lost a gearbox yet! Your rear tyres should last longer too. 3rd. Take on board general driving tips for smoother, more efficient driving. It's not for everyone though, but I enjoy it and it makes things smoother for passengers. If you live within a couple of hundred miles of Wheels in Motion, I would whole-heartedly recomend a yearly trip to them for setting up the geometry of the car. In my subjective opinion, the car feels nicer, and my last set of tyres lasted 32,000 miles, with just one swap around to even out the wear. But I am a gentle driver also, so don't necessarily expect that milage! Tyres. When I got the car it had on the Dunlop SPs that were recomended by Lexus. Both my wife and myself found ourselves commenting on the surprising amount of road noise that came from them. Before too long I switched to Bridgestone Potenzas which were a Which? Best Buy, and these have been noticably quieter. I don't race the car so I can't say whether they let go quicker than others in corners, but on occasion when I drive exuberently, they seem to me to grip well, and they do so in the wet as well. I did have to replace a few suspension components at 60k, on the service. I think this was mainly down to the previous owner being a bit quick over speed humps, but then most people are. I would not count that against the car. My car does not use oil. End of! I have never added any! As for other fluids, I had them all changed at 60k, including the autobox fluid. I think that if a manufactuer insists on using oil to stop some components wearing out, then you might as well keep that protection by not letting that oil deterioate! That's just my opinion as well though! I think she's a really good looking car, but I don't spend loads of money cleaning it. There's a bunch of hard working Lithuanians up the road and that costs me a fiver every couple of months. One problem I did have was with the cigar lighter but the part was reasonably priced, so I ordered it from a local Toyota dealer. As the service bloke was helping me fit it, the old one started working again, so he didn't charge me any fee, and sent me on my way and that's worked for over 2 years with my Garmin Sat-Nav without further problem. The Factory Fit Double Din sized CD Player is of an unreliable design and I would suggest taking a CD with you if you ever go for a test drive in an IS200 with one. If it comes up with an Error code and won't play, it may be worth haggling because you're going to have to replace it. A stop gap measure might be to buy a Sat-Nav with the ability to store MP3 files on it, and then to play them over a Radio frequency on the standard but broken unit, via the FM Transmitter that is fitted to many high end Sat-Navs. It is possible to upgrade the stereo despite what you may be told by stereo fitters. There is a complication with the wiring harness but you can find the bit of loom necessary to get round the problem on Ebay very easily. There was also plenty of advice on this forum about it. Would I buy another IS200? Yes. However, they're getting old and the Lads are starting to like them, so it makes me look a bit old for mine! Which? Magazine highly recomended them as did their owners, for several years in a row. Honest John's web site also speaks highly of them, and doesn't list pages of potentially expensive problems with them, unlike Audis and BMWs. I would just urge you, pay more for a well looked after example, because it's just so much cheaper than trying to put one right that you've bought cheaply. Don't rely on Service Book stamps with no receipts, and read the service history before you even go on a test drive. Check it carefully, it's all very well having 9 MOT certificates but if it hasn't had a service for 30,000 miles then it's a bit of a risk! Excuse the long post, but I hope it might be useful to someone at some point. Nev

Hi all, I like to look after my car, especially as I'm in it for the long term. I have enquired elsewhere on the forum for Timing Belt advice but I was just wondering about things like shock absorbers, exhausts, etc. I think I can detect a little unsteadiness on her feet which might suggest the shocks are worn, do any other LOC members think I would get many more miles out of them? Any ideas for replacements if needed please? My exhaust has done the 100k, and I can hear no noises suggesting it's worn through anywhere. Are they prone to problems at this milage? I thought I detected a little graunchiness from the handbrake cable through the handle in the last few weeks, is this a massive job or a known weak point? Any other suggested jobs please? Thanks for any advice chaps, and possibly ladies. Nev

Hi all, I have my car serviced pretty thoroughly on the money every 10,000 miles at a Lexus specialist in South London, and I had the belt and water pump done at 60k. It's now soon coming up to its 100k service and I just wondered if it's necessary to have it done again at 100,000 miles, or it's just that people are confusing the old custom of Lexus specifying it to be changed at 100,000 (for the first time) with a need for it to be replaced then. I don't mind changing it after only 40k of sympathetic driving, but it seems a bit daft when it did 60k in the first bit of its life! Best wishes and thanks for any advice. Nev

Hi, For me, the first place to go is to the "Which!" website and see which ones are a best buy. Money is not usually that important, within reason. Style over substance is not something that works for me, but it might have done when I was younger, I admit. Very happy with the tyres I have on at the moment, Bridgestone Potenzas, much quieter than the official Lexus tyres. I don't go drifting, so can't tell whether the balls out performance is up to much though! Nev

A lot of the more enlightened Stealerships are using the WIM settings now rather than the Lexus 'optimum' settings, and unfortunately Tony never made a bean out of his publicised corrective settings. It's quite possible Lexus Coventry is one of them That's rather public spirited of him, and why I'm driving all the way up there on Friday, so at least my money goes to him! Looking forward to seeing if it makes a difference or not. Nev

Thank you very much for your reply, very useful. I have an 8Gb SDHC card in my camera and it can fit an enormous amount on it, as you say. I will check out SatNavs that take those and see if my preferred ones do indeed take SDHC. It sounds very much as though the playing MP3s through the SatNav and transmitting it via FM is the way to go, with the odd legal issue as I go through certain European countrys! Either that, or stop listening to my normal player so loudly, so I can hear the directions. If I was going to have the phone mute thingy wired in, would then that need the portable SatNav hardwired into the car? Sorry to be so ignorant on that point. That was unfortunate for your mate that the car was broken into, but I understand that risk, and that there's not much one can do about it. I guess put some money away for the repairs that would be needed, and then hopefully never need it. Perhaps if anyone on the forum could estimate how much it costs to have a side window replaced, I would be grateful to them. I will look into the idea of the mobile phone or PDA with satnav software on it, as I have been looking at one as a possibility for storing all the rulebooks I have to carry around for my work. Would save me a lot of heavy lifting actually. I had heard though, that the PDA option was less than ideal, perhaps Parthiban, if you get the time, you could let me know of anything that hasn't worked for you with the PDA option. Thanks for taking the trouble to answer my query. Nev

He yielded the position, Kimi was in front plain & simple, if Lewis's nose was completely behind the Ferrari, that is proof enough that the position was yielded. I don't believe you have to let them have a 1 second, 2 second or longer gap when the driver is (correctly) back in front. The FIA (Ferrari's Internal Advisors) should be ashamed if Maclaren's appeal is not sucessful. Ever since the spying row last year, the FIA have had it in for Maclaren. They know full well 40% of the kudos associated with the sport is there because of Ferrari, so they get the rub of the green. Dodgy fuel last year..... hmmm came down on Ferrari's side... Michael bumping Damon in Australia...... hmmm came down on Ferrari's side... I don't think Maclaren have a cat in hells chance of winning their appeal here, but I wish them sucess. Lewis let him infront across the line, the position was regained and Lewis was doing 6 Km/h less as the crossed the line. The pit straight @ Spa is not long enough for getting a great tow IMO either, he just outbraked him plain & simple in a car handling the conditions far better (proof being Kimi in the wall and Lewis no where near him @ the time. If Lewis is not reinstated as winner of the Belgian GP, I'm not buying any more Ferrari's :tsktsk: :tsktsk: Hi Wozza, Spot on, in my opinion. That's two ferraris down for this year in their sales figures! Nev

Hi all, Last time I had a problem with my Lexus, I got loads of good help. Well, I'm back, I need more, but maybe it will help others too. After renting a car in Canada recently that had SatNav in it, I have become a fan. However, it would appear it's all too easy to go out and spend on something that's a bit crap, or won't do what you want it too, so I'd like to avoid that. I decided that I need something that will have maps all over Europe, and as my wife's from Romania and we'll drive there from time to time, that rules out the Tom-Tom as they stop at Hungary! The Garmin looks good then. I fancy the traffic reports and don't want to pay a monthly fee, so that leaves the 760 (or 860) as the current front runner, unless anyone else has any other ideas and waaay too much time on their hands! I guess my main questions are, Bearing in mind I need to fix up an ariel to receive the traffic updates, does it take 20 minutes to get ready everytime you want to go out in the car? How much in the way of music do you think you can actually fit onto the player is, because I can't find that info anywhere? How do the instructions get transmitted into the cars stereo, by this FM transmitter? Is it easy, or a pain in the *****? Will I hear them if I happen to be listening to my stereo that's already in the car? Is the idea that I have to listen to the MP3s on the SatNav? How often is it going to get stolen??? I was thinking of putting a safe in the boot to hold it, I don't want to carry the thing around with me all the time, and at least that way I can leave the glovebox open to try and convince thieves it's not in the car and easily obtainable. There is an even more expensive Garmin available, the 860 I think, is it worth the extra? I realize this is a lot of questions, but people like Wozza were so helpful last time, I thought I might try my luck. If it's any good to anybody, in the way of paying you back, I reckon after resetting the ECU on my IS200, I'm getting consistantly 50 - 80 miles a tank more. Definitely worth a try, I hope this helps someone. Cheers, Nev

A mate of mine can't stand cheese, but he just orders a pizza with no cheese. They don't consider him mad so other people must do it as well I reckon. Just check the box before you pay and moped disappears into the distance eh? Nev

One of the few advantages of getting old is getting cheaper insurance, Swiftcover.com do me for about £240ish. An advantage with them is if you do the occaisional short trip of up to 3 days in Europe, you don't need to inform them that you're going, and you stay at fully comp rather than 3rd party. Nev

Now that sounds like it would be worth seeing! Not for me, I'm probably going to keep mine for another 3 years, then replace it with either an IS200 supercharged, or an IS300, or a Toyota Prius. I know, bizarre choice, but they're growing on me! Nev

Hi Jay, Please don't think I'm setting myself up as some kind of expert, it's just that I faced a similar quandry a few months ago when I bought my 2001 IS200SE. My thoughts were: I wanted a specific colour. My wife had said I could have what I wanted providing it was blue! I knew I wanted a car with 2 genuine key fobs that worked, as they are expensive to add later. I wanted a car with a years MOT. I also wanted a car with a full service history, and more importantly, proof of it. If you rule out Traders, you do rule out a lot of cars. Equally, they're not all crooks, in fact, the guy I bought mine off, Adam at Moorlands, I bought a 4 pack of beer for, as he was helpful, and fair. I don't like the look of the car you sent the link for, for these reasons. It's just my opinion, but: It's too cheap for its age. It's not a particularly startling car in that colour. The ad says naff all about it really. I find if it's not mentioned, it's not good. You can do better, and it's worth waiting. These are relatively common cars and there are plenty about. If you get a good one, it will cost you less than getting a ropey one 'cos it was a bit cheaper! If you need to keep the costs down because your budget is being pushed, then get a car that has good tyres, a years ticket, has been recently serviced or the place you're buying it from wil do it, and ask for 6 months tax as a haggling point just before you complete the deal. I hope this helps mate. Nev

That sounds an interesting way to do it, and you seem to have thought it all through. Have fun. I'm off to Romania in my IS200 next April so just a bit further than your journey. :P Nev

Yes sir, you have gone a bit bonkers. :P It sounds like great fun though. Are you going on the shuttle or the ferry? You need to find out the height of the vehicle you're bringing back because there are limits on ferries and Eurotunnel. That will affect the cost. Then you may find that some crossings are more expensive when it's a one way trip which of course it will be. Are you driving down to get it in one vehicle with the driving shared and then the other person brings the original vehicle back? If that's the case, and as you're heading down the West side of France, think about booking through Speed Ferries as they go to boulogne and are cheap. Only downside is they are not a roll on/roll off ferry and you may find it takes a few more minutes to disembark than you would like. I think continental travel is brilliant, you will not regret making this road trip I'm sure. Just plan what you can mate. Nev

Thanks to everyone for their thoughts on this. I eventually got to a tyre place and asked them to investigate. On putting the soapy solution round the beading on the tyre that was losing around 3psi a day, one could see bubbles emerging from between the rim and tyre. Once the tyre was taken off, there was visible damage to the tyre in that area, a great big nick in the beading with a bit hanging off. After checking all the tyres, 3 of them were like this, so I replaced all of them with the Bridgestone Potenzas mentioned elsewhere. It was the considered opinion of the various fitters there and the manager, that not enough lubricant had been used by the muppet that fitted thoses tyres in the first place, so if you get the chance to inspect work when you're having tyres replaced or you have slow punctures after having had tyres replaced, perhaps suspect bad fitting techniques if you don't see soap on the sidewall! Might save someone some money. Nev

Thanks to everyone for their thoughts on this. I eventually got to a tyre place and asked them to investigate. On putting the soapy solution round the beading on the tyre that was losing around 3psi a day, one could see bubbles emerging from between the rim and tyre. Once the tyre was taken off, there was visible damage to the tyre in that area, a great big nick in the beading with a bit hanging off. After checking all the tyres, 3 of them were like this, so I replaced all of them with the Bridgestone Potenzas mentioned elsewhere. It was the considered opinion of the various fitters there and the manager, that not enough lubricant had been used by the muppet that fitted thoses tyres in the first place, so if you get the chance to inspect work when you're having tyres replaced or you have slow punctures after having had tyres replaced, perhaps suspect bad fitting techniques if you don't see soap on the sidewall! Might save someone some money. Nev

To be frank, I would think that with all that torque, the IS300 could be quite a handful in the wet, whatever tyres you put on it, but thanks for not making the Potenzas seem so bad now Nev

Hi, I just had all my tyres replaced with the Bridgestone Potenzas, so was a little sad to discover someone didn't rate them! That said, now I feel the need to defend my choice, lol. They are currently a Which? Best Buy, which is why I thought I'd try them, and in my opinion they do seem quieter than the Dunlops I had on before. They were the Lexus Dunlop SP9000s, the Japanese ones with the stiffer side walls specifically for the IS200, apparently. The guy at the tyre place said he thought those Bridgestones were the original tyre choice for the IS200 so I don't know if that's true, but it didn't really affect my decision. For me, I want low noise, comfort, good milage, then safe wet handling, then safe dry handling. I've only done about 40 miles with them so far, so am still running them in really, but time will tell if I prefer them I guess. Cheers, Nev

Thanks for that, I'd never even heard of it being a problem, so I wouldn't have thought of that. I was just going to get the tyres replaced! Nev

Maybe. Do you think new valves all round and see how I get on, or could a garage fix small punctures like that? Cheers Wozza. Nev Check the valves matey with a bit of neat soap liquid, put a bit in the top of each valve and see if bubbles appear? you can do it on the rims where there tyre meets the rim but better to do it with the wheel of the car so you can do both sides? Most people use a bit of water to do it but i find running soap liquid round the rim shows it up as it'lL blow bubbles that can bee seen better? My brother had the same problem and had his tyre resealed and a new valve due to air leakage? That sounds like a good idea aztecbandit, many thanks for that. It will also give me a chance to see more accurately how the tyres are wearing. Thanks again mate. Nev