johnboy007

hi. Folks, can anyone help. Following heaps of advice about car battery charging I have been told that my car battery sitting at 12.3 -12.4 volts would be approximately 50% charged and with a 4 amp charger would take only 3-4 hours to fully charge. I have now done this and went to work yesterday with the comfort that the battery was 100%, and when I got home in the evening checked with a meter and found the battery was at 13.0 volts, so I was ecstatic. This morning I re-checked the voltage and found it was at 12.4, back to 50%, so am now confused. Have read up a lot about charging and the census of opinion is that the reserve capacity of which mine is 135, should be multiplied by .6 to give the amount of amp hours needed to charge (81) divided by 50 as 50% is missing, which gives 40.5, and thereafter a charge rate of 4 amps ( which my charger puts out) calculates to 10 hours of charging @ 4 amps (40.5/4). Should I therefore go & charge my battery which has 12.4 v for a further 10 hours to fully charge it?. The fact it read 13.0 after a 20 mile trip down to 12.4 12 hours later is confusing me, is the charge from the alternator a false indication of a batteries charge ?, or do I maybe have a drain somewhere... Thanks for listening , John

thanks for that royt, had battery checked out and was fine, but only had a 25% charge, even though i had brought it back home over 100miles. I put it on a trickle charge to get it back to 100% and now its fine, Checked it with mutimeter tonight after parking and engine off and showed 13.06 volts, this soubds good to me as i know 12.65+ is equal to 100%. is 13.06 too high or is that ok ?.

Can anyone help me figure out a problem. I have just purchased a rx300 2002 se auto and it has been running fine for a week. This morning when I went out to start it it would only run when I kept my foot on the gas keeping the revs, soon as I took my foot off the gas the engine died. I have now got it running with idle after holding the revs up for 1 or 2 minutes, although it only idles at about 300rpm, which is very low. Going back to my early mechanical days this makes me think its an alternator problem esp as the lights brighten when revving. could it be a bad battery as well. The battery was showing over 12v when off & my wife held multi meter on battery while I revved up engine & she said it crept up from about 13 something to 14.3 after minute. Any help would be appreciated, John

does anyone know if a 12V Glove Box Jump Start set (small nicd 1300 mah)type battery starter will work on my gs300. I have done some research on this gadget and have found someone saying not to use on a toyota. As a lexus is a toyota does this mean it wont work. Am having problems with battery draining and cannot find root of problem so am having to rely on jump starting on those very cold mornigs.

thank-you dave1 4 that, That was my worry. Why is there a park position though, why not just have a neutral position, to use with the h/brake?. when would you use the park position, would it be when stationary for a short while, like at T/lights ?.

Every time I park my lexus gs300 (automatic), Which is my first auto to be fair, I never know whether or not I should put the h/brake on. Obviously on a hill would be advised, but on a level road I always think that park, which would not be on a auto gearbox unless it was there to be used ,need`nt be backed up by the handbrake (foot pedal). Would there be any detremental effect or wear by not using the h/brake ?. Johnboy...

Thanks lads for input. Will have to save some wonga and get 2 new brake discs, hoping that sorts the problem. I have been searching the net for an idea of prices, and have been amazed at the difference in prices from around £60 - £150 for each disc, is it a faulse economy to buy the cheap ones ?. Thanks again for your help so far, Johnboy...

Thanks, ormi & kam05 for reply. I had 2 new tyres fitted on front and had them balanced, was told although wheels balanced o.k., they were warped(buckled) slightly, so am wondering if this could also be influencing the shudder as well. Not that I dis-believe that discs could be possibly the problem, how does that cause the steering to shudder so badly, mechanic said they are well worn down and scored does this also cause shudder?. Thank`s again 4 reply, look forward to ur comments again...john

Hi, can anyone tell me why I am getting a shudder on my steering . I have replaced the brake pads, had all the calipers checked and seals changed, and yet am still experiencing a bad shudder on the steering wheel when braking hard, and a slight shudder when braking lightly. The brake discs are not overly worn but I cannot tell if they are warped and whether or not that would cause that much shudder. Can anyone please confirm this for me.

Can anyone tell me whether or not the wiring loom on my gs300 is a standard loom, or if it has either a multiplex or can-bus wiring system?. I am about to wire my newly fitted tow-bar and dont want to get it wrong. Thank`s .........Johnboy.

Thanks 4 that steviewevie, much obliged...johnboy

Can anyone tell me how or where I can check the series number of my 1996 "P" Reg gs300. I am looking at fitting a Tow Bar but am not sure if the series number giver by Tow Bar company (JZS147R) is the right one, and dont want to commit to buying the wrong one.

Has anyone experienced the same problem as I am just now. Every time I rinse my gs300 after a wash the engine starts missing, running really rough, especially when Idling. I am convinced water must be getting onto the electrics throung the grill but nothing seems to appear wet. Is there anything on the electrics side thats more likely to be play up if effected by water. Have just spent a fortune on new silicon HT leads, Rotor arm, Distributor Cap, and new Plugs, so the problem can`t be to do with any of that. Appreciate any feedback.........Johnboy

The year is 1996, "P" Reg. I can say for sure its not the mat, have even removed mat to proove it. It feels like the mechanism is sticking, and it needs a good kick (up the perverbial arse) to unstick. Never seems to stick first thing ?. any other ideas ?. Thanks ...tigerfish

Hi, can anyone help me with either information on how I can fix my accelerator pedal or provide me with a diagram of the accelerator pedal workings. Every so often (50 %) of the time, when I press down to drive, off it sticks solid, and I am forced to press down very hard to overcome what ever it is thats sticking. I have checked the cable to the carb, and have doused the pedal in the footwell with plenty of wd 40. Your help would be appreciated.....

Can anyone tell me what type of heavy duty battery I should use on my gs300. My battery is suspect and I have a spare new 12v jheavy duty battery which has : CCA . SAE 580 AMPS / AH (20h) 60 AMPS on the label, and this meansw nothing to me....... Any help would be very appreciated. Johnboy...

has anyone experienced their hazards coming on when the vehicle is parked and locked up. I own a gs300 and had a knock on the door tonight to tell me my cars hazards where on, once I opened the car up it stopped. The battery seemed o.k. as it started o.k.. If it where a battery issue as in the battery low would this be enough to cause this.

Hi, can anyone tell me what type of Automatic Transmission fluid should I use to top up the level in my gs300 3.0 v.6., and does it matter if it does`nt match the fluid type already in the gearbox. Thanks......

Can anyone tell me if a small area of missing fins about the area of 6" x 2" at the bottom area of my radiator will effect its performance. Whilst removing the rad to change the timing belt I noticed the fins corroded, however the temperature guage still reads normal. Would it still do its job or should I replace the rad just in case, and if so would a non lexus radiator that I have sourced at approx £120 be adequate.

Thanks for that, Tigerfish, my v5 (log Book) just has gs300 on it, and the date of registration is august 1996, apart from that I dont knw if it is a mk1 . I am going to try and perservere with this ariel just now. From what I have ascertained so far the blue/yellow wire from the loom connector in the boot left hand side which is a white block is the 12v constant feed and this connects to the red wire on the ariel, and there is a red/blue wire which is the 12v on off feed from the radio which I have been told connects to the green wire on the ariel. The other 5 wires as I mentioned earlier are I assume not relevant and can be blanked off, this should be enough to make the ariel go up and down as the radio is switched on and off, I hope. Do you agree !!.

Sorry for adding new reply`s, am new to forums and did try several times to add to original reply, without success. Seem to have cracked it this time, dont know what I was doing wrong. Apolagies all round. Thanks to Tigerfish & goeffers for all ur help. Still not 100 % as to what to do, but am thinking from all I have read that I should just need attach the red and green to the 2 12v feeds and that should be enough to make the ariel go up and down !. Am I right in saying that I dont need to use an earth as ablack earth lead from the installed ariel is attached to the bodywork?. If I do need to use an earth lead then am not sure what lead is earth, I thought brown would have been earth, however have been told contradicting info, from black, black with a white stripe to brown.

Thanks for that goeffers, I am not in any way near to being a auto-electrician, and so dont understand fully your help. Do I take it I just need to use these three wires (green-black-red), and dis-regard the rest ?. What about the 2 thick wires connected to the heat shrink plastic covered fuse/relay thingy ???..