Malc

hahahahaha.............. you'll probably get the Halfords logo appearing every time you start the car now 😊 Malc

ok, this might not be of any use with a Ls460 BUT on my Mk3 I had this ridiculously annoying issue, just like you, for years and years and years, removing all metal objects etc, fiddling with the main alarm stuff etc etc Informed knowledge on here told me ( my indy ) to just open up the console area itself in front of the console cubby area / drink holders BUT take great care you don't want to split anything that's fragile .............. and lo and behold, beneath there is a mechanism to just wind the volume down to zero AND it works too Might yours be similar ? Malc

just read somewhere ( on here ? ) that Markerstudy is a subsidiary of a windscreen company ...... no wonder they whined a lot when I wanted my local !stCall people to replace my screen and whinge about the side strips BUT they did agree to IstCall and without a higher excess, because they could get the screen post haste whereas their own parent ( it seems ) couldn't get a screen for I think some 6 weeks Malc

not just on your car by the way .. a few years ago my windscreen had to be replaced and the insurers ( Markerstudy ) said that if they had to replace the trim strips they would object and possibly not pay the strips were ok BUT the trim strips I understand were then about £150 a side ........ absolutely bonkers money for a thin piece of metal Malc

on mine, Mk3 Ls400, I think I read somewhere ( probably on here, but maybe in the manual somewhere ) that to drain say 2 ltrs at 130k miles and then the same again at each 35k miles thereafter ..... just the 2 ltrs mind to drain and refill my indy does it of course so I have no idea how challenging that may be BUT he doesn't complain about it at all Malc

one of my short haul supermarket runs can extend to about a half mile at 50mph which i can do flatout now with so few cars around and the other extends to a mile or so at 70mph and likewise, flatout ..... both about a 2 to 3 mile run in all I think I'm so lucky to have this opportunity in these challenging times ..... and of course that's both ways too Malc

OK to put this all to bed on cats My prtnr is a Cats Protection co-ordnator with much experience and we have 4 cats ( god help us ) YES they do have a genetic ? coronavirus type which stays in the cat and it's NOT covid19 .... you will find that all cats have this specific strain which has never ever passed to humans ...... well maybe in China I suppose ....... and I remember going to Canton many years back ( about 30 ) on my holiday touring China AND was quite horrified at the delicacies on offer in the marketplace there ......... say no more .............. it was a horror story ...... I part put it down to Canton having a very much French cuisine influence as they were the " colonialists " for that part of China in the day Malc

my first UCA was about 173k ? miles ...... yours should have plenty of life left ! Malc

and maybe call the RAC / AA or whomsoever you're with to change a flat tyre ! Malc

Miele always was a fantastic product, that's all we ever had indoors with my second ex-wife, she was German too ( I think Miele is German ) .... hahahahaha we had money then ! as it was often about twice the price of every other brand ........ or so it seemed her parents had a Miele washing machine still alive and working after 40 years too and that's why we bought Miele I was reading some months ago that the Bosch products are made in Spain ............ not sure if it was all or just some though Malc

this is good for the home and garden I'm sure ... lots of jobs getting done around the place BUT, even the cats seem bored silly, they don't understand why they don't now have the run of the place with us now indoors almost 24/7 and letting all their mates in to play, rest and of course eat,sleep,eat and sleep and sleep and sleep is this really what cats do all day ( and night ) Malc

I used these a few years ago too BUT, they got miffed when I had to have a new windscreen and said they would likely refuse to pay the cost of the retaining exterior side-down strips if they had not been reusable, as is often the case when removing an old screen .. fortunately they were ok at that time something to bear in mind with these guys if ever you had a busted windscreen .......... I think they are not that profitable a business maybe Malc

many many years ago driving in France I wondered why some idiot in a little French car was ambling along well below the speed limit ..... so, I overtake safely and WHAM, yes, my overtaking speed did it for me .... instant 90 euros fine I believe but no record anywhere at all... but i did get the receipt for the cash paid, to make sure it didn't go into their tea fund ! Malc

well, strange though it may be ... I carry my old one in the boot at all times ...... just in case i go on a big trip somewhere and the ( new 24k miles ago now ) timing belt snaps and I'm in some god forsaken place where one's just not available ...... middle of sub Sahara or summat ............ probably get one in Timbuktu though ! But by then of course the engine will be knackered and I'll have to buy another car maybe to get home ! or maybe my RAC breakdown and recovery membership will do the honourable thing and get me home Maybe I'll just bin it, the old belt that is ! Malc

of course your premium is much higher, they've got to pay out more on lost holiday / coro virus claims, how on earth do you expect the insurers to survive without, as usual, screwing what they can out of everyone who is within their greedy grasp This is simply par for the course with zero monitoring by anybody useful to ensure they aren't just taking the p - -ss 😲 Malc

you can get that many cans of baked beans ?? Malc

just the Fat Cats and I guess there's many of those in positions of Absolute Power .... like everywhere else in the world eh ! Malc

Austin hi If any suspension stuff needs doing one side it might not need the other done at all ....... on mine, one front Upper Control Arm was replaced at 173k miles ( the kerb side ) and the other at ( and it hadn't yet gone but was very worn ) 217k miles . and they were the fronts only .......... the rears have been subsequently replaced but only at their expiry much later in life Fortunately I have a very competent independent car mechanic who is very honest, reliable and not too expensive ........ and at each and every MOT ( Govt test ) he is there with the Tester and they discuss what's likely needed for next time around a year hence ... and it's sorted during that time or possibly at the next year's annual service .. I cover about 12/15k miles a year When you change the timing belt you should also change the waterpump and check the pulleys are ok ..... they are all on the same job and it really is an all day event for a competent garage to do you will also then want to change the serpentine belt ( fanbelt ) too and you will lose some coolant in the process the thoughts here are that the gearbox oil will not need draining to replace BUT at about your mileage now it is sensible to drain off say 2 ltrs and refill, and maybe every 35k miles after UNLESS of course you have a problem BUT these cars engines and gearboxes are almost indestructible, there's one guy in the USA ( and he's online / youtube somewhere ) who's Ls400 has done 1 million miles Keep in touch, you have a brilliant car that's quite becoming a " classic " here in the UK As an everyday driver, for 20 years now, I'm on my 3rd Ls400, a Mk1, then a Mk2 and now my Mk3 that I've had for nearly 9 years and 100k miles+ ......... maybe 250k miles my driving Malc

..... welcome Stewart ......... Malc

when our old machine finally died after many many years of use my friendly plumber took the old machine to use the drum for his BBQ ..... then disposed of the " body etc " Malc recycling in its many forms is good for the planet eh !

particularly like the wheels and centre caps the Wolseley 16/60 had both really nice wheel trims AND a real clock too Malc

just reading about the UK MOT equivalent in the USA ..... am I right Austin ? In the UK each year commencing year 3 each vehicle on the road has to have a mandatory UK Govt Test that's equivalent across the UK and to meet Govt standards It can be very intensive, stringent and show up all sorts of stuff that's not clear from a visual inspection by the owner many cars fail this test and have to have the repairs done to continue on the road and often on that day too USA annual tests seem to vary from state to state and often not annual and not often very deep The info from members on here is often quite authoritative and comes from many years of having to have their cars ready for this annual Uk Gov. Test Hope this helps too Malc

that's 10 years / 100k miles .............. the rear pads etc are just fair wear and tear no doubt and if you don't use original Lexus stuff you might save some money on that we know on here there's a guy in USA who actually rebuilds ECUs ( I think ) and the display units too there's a mountain of info on this site about the Mk4 Ls400 ( your car ) and a fair few with your actual car so hopefully someone will pop in and give you some more relevant advice 130k miles is tiny, these cars will easily do 4 x that mine's only on 229k miles Malc

I would be inclined to get a second independent opinion from someone / garage you have trusted over the years on everything the control arms and stuff you can get at trade prices from Rockauto in USA I believe ( do u live there? ) and much of what they say needs doing should have maybe lasted another 30k miles or so .... but depends on driving conditions and driver .... if it feels great to drive then maybe it is and the're just trying to frighten you into spending money with them ! the timing belt, pulleys and waterpump should be changed every 10 / 100k miles ..... so check if that's ever been done. That in itself is an all day job with not much cost to the parts Must be worth saving Malc

RUBBISH one of my prtnrs nephews children is suffering quite badly ...... he's age 10 Malc