Haylands

Dan I wouldn't worry about compression readings, just check them, if they are about the same then there is no problem, it is very very unusual for a 400 engine to suffer with engine internals, they have a forged crank/rods/pistons and are pretty much bullet proof. Funnily enough the 430 engine doesn't have all these forged bits.... so will it last as long.... Lexus decided they had gone to overkill with the original 400 so they stepped back a bit with the 430... So a few years time and I maybe fitting a 400 engine to mine!!!! Pete

Hi These are like hens teeth, seen a few come up on ebay and one in as new condition will fetch over £100 on a good day.... Try the breakers but they tend to know this as well.... Good Luck Pete

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Hi Knew I had read something some where, this is from Lextreme The 1UZ is effectively operated as 2 x 4 cylinder engines that are ganged together. It utilises a RPM sensor located behind the bottom crank pulley, with a distributor mounted on the front of each cylinder head, directly driven off a camshaft. The RPM sensor doesn’t really like getting submerged. Each distributor generates a cam angle signal and distributes the spark to four of the cylinders. Each distributor supplies spark to two cylinders on the opposite bank and has its own coil and igniter module. The igniters are normally mounted together on the inner guard and their housings must be well earthed in order to operate correctly. The wiring for the igniters and AFM shares a common loom and is often cut when engines are removed from the parent vehicle. The V8 utilises two main igniter types, which are readily identifiable by three large digits printed on a metallic sticker on the unit. The correct igniters are either marked ‘123’ or ‘201’ and are relatively common on Toyota 4 cylinder twin cam performance engines from the late 80s onwards such as 3SGEs, 4AGEs etc. Note that you need a pair of the same igniters and that the 123 series have different plugs to the 201s. The VVT-I engines run a direct fire system with an individual coil directly on top of each sparkplug. Looks like the igniters are common but the rest is purely LS400 Pete

Hi What’s up, given up on the LS430 or LX470? Fitting a multi point to the earlier 400 is not a problem, you will not get backfires, the amount of gas sat in the inlet manifold at the wrong time is so small with an injection conversion that it is negligible. A single point will leave more in the inlet manifold but at the end of the day it is the car that makes the difference.... The famous Rover V8 has a good reputation for blowing up air boxes on single point LPG that is because it is let into the inlet manifold about 2ft from the valves and because the engine has a marginal ignition circuit so when it is not kept in tip top condition the spark is weak and fires late so when the valve opens to let more mixture in, the mixture inside is still on fire and ignites the mixture in the inlet manifold... The Lexus is far better made and of better quality, keep it regularly serviced and don't just run it when it’s poorly and it will be fine. If I had a 400 I would have no problem in running it on a properly set up single point system, they work fine with it, yes there will be a slight loss of power, but how often do you drive flat out.... you will only notice the drop in power on traffic light racing and you didn't buy a Lexus for that (although I have to admit they will embarrass a lot of cars from the lights) So pay your money and take your pick AS I HAVE SAID BEFORE JUST MAKE SURE IT'S SET UP PROPERLY..... This is the major reason for people complaining about LPG cars Good Luck with whatever you get Pete

Hi Welcome to the friendly club, any problems and someone on here will know how to fix it.... We do like pictures.... so get some put up of yours when you have a minute. Pete

Hi Mine did this once when I changed the disc, it came up with unable to read, I ejected it, reinstalled it and it was fine, you could try that... also have you put it in the right way up? Good Luck Pete

Ohhhh that looks nasty.... were you OK Pete

Hi Amtech is for when you are selling a car.... not when you have just bought one, all it does is mask the problem for a SHORT while.... As Gord says, wait and see how low the compression is, try it first with a dry engine, if OK then fine if low put two squirts of oil down each plug hole and try again, if the readings are much higher it shows worn cylinder bores or piston rings, if the same then its valves.... Remember the engine is old now so don't expect what the book says, as long as they are 70-80% of that and are all pretty even then you will be OK Leaded petrol will not damage valves or the engine it will just ruin the cats... If the compressions are OK then put on new plugs and leads and take the car for a long run at motorway speeds to clear it out, lots of stop start will choke it up... Flush the power steering pump through then just sit and turn the wheel from lock to lock (with the front wheels off the ground) untill it shuts up... it has taken well over 30mins for some people Good Luck Pete

Hi Wheels look nice, no problem with the size they are within what’s advisable.... You will lose some suppleness in the ride on 18's but then again they did fit them to the later 430 so can't be that bad.... All I would say is those wheels appear to have a polished rim and silver spokes, if the rim is polished and then lacquered then they will suffer from peeling after a typical British salt laden winter and look all scabby by next year.... might be worth waiting till spring??!!?? Don't forget to tell the sat nav you have new tyres and don't forget a piccy or two when you've got them Pete

Hi The 2001 430 has the ability to search for street name OR town first, if you put in the street name it tells you which town has a street of that name. Maybe yours will let you do that? If I still can't find places I usually print off a Google map or something and use the "point on map" option. You cannot get an upgrade for postcodes unfortunately. I think yours is a CD based system and I have heard this place do updated discs cheaper than Lexus http://www.toyotalexusspecialists.co.uk/ For the 430 you can get an interface for DVD and reversing camera from this place, maybe they do yours as well http://www.tvandnav2go.com/ This place do Tv on various Lexii as well maybe worth a try http://soarer.tv/ Hopefully someone with your car can answer better later Glad you like it Pete

Steve, are you back now and did you have a nice time? Pete

All change,the guy that beat me to it didn't follow through with the deal on Sat,I got two phone calls on Sat one to tell me it's still mine if I want it :winky: ,then another to say someone wanted my MK1 and sold it Sunday :) so it's mine again :D Ken Excellent news.... you were destined to have the car.... you will now have to love it, and polish it, and wrap it up if its cold, read it bedtime stories etc etc Well done Pete

Hi Most cars don't like it if you do that but not as bad as yours.... A few guesses.... Leaking petrol injectors when cold, you switch off and they drip into the engine then flooded on restart.... Could also be something to do with the cold start, maybe the throttle body or air flow meter are dirty.... Has it only been used for short runs? As a first, cheap fix I'd stick some petrol injector cleaner in it and take it for a good long run for at least 50 miles, more if you can afford the petrol !!! I expect someone else will be along soon with some more ideas.... Glad you are liking it otherwise and welcome to a friendly club... Pete

Hi It’s usually old petrol that causes problems, unleaded will start to lose its octane after about three months. Get the car checked A.S.A.P. as pinking is the sound of the petrol exploding within the cylinder instead of the usual burn of the petrol. It puts enormous pressure on the engine and can blow a hole in a piston in a short space of time. Don't drive it unless you have to Pete

Hi Pinking usually only occurs under load, in higher gears. It is caused by pre-ignition, ie the ignition is too far advanced, or the petrol octane is insufficient, or the car has been modified and its not getting enough petrol. As you say it can be caused by carbon build up and a hot spot forming inside the engine, this creates a dieseling effect and ignites the mixture before the spark plug fires. Pinking can destroy an engine. A pinking noise when you rev up a car at standstill could be very poor quality petrol. I can't think of anything else.... on a lesser car I would say it may be little end wear but not on a Lexus.... Could be something else in the engine complaining, alternator/ power steering pump etc Have you just filled up? Does it do it all the time when driving? Anyone else heard of this? Pete

I'm sorry but I can't keep quiet about this. It is very irresponsible and criminal to drive a car whilst you are tired, there have been numerous accidents caused, that have killed and injured many, that are as a direct result of being tired or falling asleep at the wheel... No journey is so important as to justify an accident. Now we have a car that will let you nod off at the wheel and drive for you until you totally fall asleep with the cruise set and the LKA in place and take you for miles down the motorway with no input from the driver, then a contra flow starts and they take away the white lines and what happens... Yet more lives ruined and families decimated by grief. I personally cannot see a reason for LKA other than allowing the driver to read/text/sleep etc, is it so hard to steer between two sets of lines? Pete

Hi Alanr has the disc with this on, he sent them to me and I put them on.... They are from the CD's being sold on ebay, they are only a few quid and have all the info you will need and then some.... Pete

Hi The "bang your head on entry" I'm afraid will start to effect all cars, it is down to the fact that as safety standards rise so the size of the door openings shrink. Having a great big hole in the side of the car where mere mortals want to enter just gets in the way of the namby pamby/wrap everyone in cotton wool/health and safety brigade who want to make life so safe we all die of boredom.... Apparently you can't meet the latest safety specs with a "normal" size door so they are making them smaller to increase rigidity of the shell. If they want to reduce casualties they should put a six inch metal spike sticking out of the middle of the steering wheel straight at the drivers face...... everyone would drive around so slowly there wouldn't be any accidents..... I'll get off my soap box now Pete

Seems no one on here knows, you could ring Lexus and see if the door and wing have the same part numbers for the different years..... Pete

Hi Remember to buy a drivers one from USA!!!!!! You have to be a bit carefull with LHD verses RHD mirrors on some cars. The amount they move on the electric motor is sometimes different, you need the drivers one to move out more and the passenger one to move in more.... not near mine at the moment but if your motor still works on the damaged one just see if the arc travelled by both mirrors is the same. If you can't then let me know and I'll go play with mine. Never heard of anyone breaking one over here and I'm always on the lookout.... not that I need anything but you never know... Remember the mirrors changed for the facelift in 2003 so make sure you get the right one Good Luck and sorry to hear the news Pete

With thanks to alanr for these step by step guides on how to remove the panels, to get the sticky tape off you can use detal floss (the tape type is better) or fishing line, see-saw it behind the panel and it cuts through the tape and doesn't cause any damage to the paint. WD40 or petrol will remove the sticky stuff left. Pete P.s. the words missing in 2c and 3c below are "a knife" use the method above though, it works better.

LS430 needs a cam belt at 90,000 miles Pete

Hi Have all four wheels gone low, as if they have it maybe something else, if just the back then: There are two rear height sensors, you will have to find out which sensor it is, you can disconnect them one at a time and try moving them to there fullest travel either way, turning the engine on and waiting a few mins to see if the car rises or falls. Then replace the faulty one.... See this picture for details. The sensor is just to the right of where it says "HI" in the picture, you can see the electrical plug in the top, ignore the writing it was from a thread on lowering the 430. The picture is of the passenger side as seen from directly behind the car, look under the rear bumper and you will see what I mean. Good Luck Pete

Thank you Luke, when will you join me..... What I did find out about quiet tyres is that it seems to depend on the size of the tread blocks, just about everyone now has different sized blocks around the wheel to break up the airflow and reduce drumming, but the tyres with smaller blocks seem to be the quiet ones, directional tyres seem to be the noisiest The sp sport 270 looks like this and is very quiet The Sp 9000 looks like this and is noisy The tyres I have recently put on, very cheap Far East tyres look like this and were pretty quiet to start with but have now got noisier over time, They are far more supple than the Dunlop’s though and they soak up pot holes and cats eyes much better, they also have amasing grip in the dry or wet so I suppose there will never be a "perfect tyre" I've put the cheap ones on until I get the caster sorted on mine... see other thread, when these wear out I'll be after some better quality quiet tyres as Dunlop has stopped making the 270.... My local tyre depot said they would fit tyres to my car and I could try them out and see if they were noisy, they would change them if they were. So there are places that will help you out, just tell them what you want, they are all feeling the pinch at the moment and if you are going to buy four expensive tyres then you have some bargaining tool... Good Luck Pete