DylanLaw

Oh yeah, forgot to mention that some tw@t keyed my car, all along the passenger side from rear light cluster to start of front door. I tried T-Cut, didn't touch it. Any ideas roughly how much a repair on that (2 doors and rear quarter panel) might cost?

Hi guys. I've got a couple of niggles with my 2000 IS200 SE. Just lately when I'm braking and almost coming to a complete stop I get like a minor clunking noise from the front of the car, mainly drivers side I think but I may be wrong. I removed all the wheels and checked the calipers for any play but they're all fine. Any ideas anyone? Also, when I fully depress the clutch, as I release it I get like a mild squeaking noise, just a little irritating but enough to annoy me. Is there anything I can check or fix to make it go away? I'm due to service the car very soon (she's at 136,000 miles now), I want to look at getting all the belts renewed (cam belt, tensioner & idler, A/C, Power Steering etc.) and all the oils too (engine, diff, gearbox) if anyone has any suggestions on where to get bits or what grades and makes of oil are best then it would be a great help. Cheers

Hi guys and girls. Yesterday i seemed to have blown my exhaust pipe fromt he back of the cat to the back box, I have not looked under the car properly but I can see it is no longer attached at the back of the cat (or is a box of some kind, under the rear seats area) so I need the pipe to reattach it all and get it fixed but I'm on a very tight budget at the moment so cant really afford garage prices. If anyone can help it'd be greatly appreciated. Many thanks

I had a bump and wrote off my beloved Subaru Legacy B4 import so lost my no claims (plus I had less than 2 years driving experience and 6 points at the time), then bought my IS200 with the insurance money and by far the best quote I got was from Hastings Direct although they havent been great with other quotes I've tried getting when I've looked at cars. Best advice is shop around as much as possible

Oh yeah its nothing too overly noisy, just doesn't sound right on such a decent car, plus I'm a perfectionist so it needles me that little bit more haha

So I'm not the only one then? Thanks for that, I'll give it a read

Hi again guys. Since the cold weathers set in I've noticed a squeek sound from the front of my engine, sounds like a belt slipping a bit. I've found the replacement belt sets on ebay pretty cheap (AC, Power Steering & Alternator), I was just wondering if these can have the tension adjusted at all and/or how hard is it to change these belts myself? Thanks guys

Thanks again for all the suggestions, the Toyo's would be nice if they were 215/45/17. I was wondering if anybody had any experience with the Maxxis M35 Asymmetric tyres, they sound really good and have a decent life expectancy, strength and temperature rating and I found them quite cheap. If not I may go for the federals unless my mate (who deals with a tyre company) can get me any good deals

I'd love to get some really decent ones but money is very tight at the moment so I have about £250 budget for a set. I like the looks of the Federals and the Maxxis M35 at the moment

More power (preferably a turbo or two) More MPG (my old twin turbo Legacy gave better returns than this and that was 280bhp!!) Rear wiper All Wheel Drive (Cause the traction control and snow modes are just useless) HIDs as standard Better quality stereo (speakers are ace but Fuji headunit is crap) Other than those I love my Lexus although I still feel that in this weather it's gonna kill me!

Thanks for all the replies guys. I have been looking at the Maxxis M35 X/L 91Y Asymmetric tires, are these any good as I cannot find any reviews of them? I know people have covered tires before but I am just trying to make sure I get the right ones, nearly skidded out and crashed again last night on the way home from work!! Starting to wonder whether I should just trade the car in

Hi all, My MOT is coming up next month and due to a dodgy wheel bearing (which I've now replaced) I need 2 new front tyres for my car, although I'll probably switch all 4 while I'm at it. I'm wondering if anyone can recommend an that are well priced but offer good in iffy road conditions (where I live and drive to work gets a bit of snow and can be slippy). I'm on a tight budget to be honest, wish I wasn't but rather than go by what a garage might try telling me I'd rather ask the people that will know. I have the standard Lexus 17" alloys, 215/45/17. Thanks in advance

Great thanks. I'm going to try all the methods I've found and been told here, just to get them looking as good as I can. Cheers guys

Great thanks, I bought some brasso after reading bits on the forum but was unsure what to do with it. I thought I needed to get a polisher or something to do it. Do I need to remove the headlight or just polish with it in place?

Hi all, I have been through the forum and not found a definitive guide for how to polish up the headlight lenses. Mine look like they've been sand-blasted and the light from the front of my car is not great. I want to get HIDs now christmas is out of the way but want to clear the lenses up first. Can anyone offer a complete guide on how to do it (with minimum expense as I'm a bit skint now) and maybe offer step by step instructions and/or images? Many thanks in advance guys

Well finally got it sorted (cost me £160 though). The garage said the bearing was hanging off by the time I got it done so I need new tyres and the tracking done for the MOT in February. Thanks for all the help guys

Yeah I'm going to try fitting a new bulb in place of the old one using the original holder. It's only for when the lights are on, not for when the heated seat is in use. Purely cosmetics cause I'm a fussy sod haha! Thanks guys

Yeah I checked the passenger side, there was no play in that at all. I also checked the brakes while the wheel was off and they were fine. Guess I'll have to try get the cash from somewhere and get it in a garage ASAP. Thanks for all your help guys

Oh bugger, thats got me worried now. If I just order the parts can I do it myself or are some special tools needed because I could just about afford the bearing kit but not the labour charge a garage will hit me with? Are the kits sold on ebay any good such as these, item numbers 220296533072, 330210745512, 220456264136, 220456264144 or 220456263043? I got a quote back from Lexus parts direct and they quoted me £112.56 for the bearing, snap ring, oil seal and cap which seems a lot considering they're around £20 for some cars

Hehe, why don't my friends ever give me cool stuff like that?

Well I inspected the wheel as per your advice and found that it does wobble slightly from top to bottom when pushed whereas the passengers side doesn't move at all. I checked the brakes, all is well with them for now. As I can't afford to change the bearing yet are there any dangers with continuing to use the car as its my daily get-around for work?

Thanks a lot both of you for the help, I can finally sort that annoying little problem out (I'm a perfectionist and little things bug me haha). Thanks a lot

Thanks for the help, I'll check those today before I go to work. Cheers again

I'm finally getting round to sorting the little problems I have with my IS200 and the last one to tackle is one of the heated seat switches. It illuminates when it is pushed in but not when it is just in standby and the lights are on, but the switch next to it is illuminated. Does anybody know the part number for a replacement or a compatible? I was previously told it is a T3, T4 or T5 wedge bulb or something similar but never which one it is and I never seem to find time to go fiddling with it myself. If anyone else has had this and sorted it any help would be greatly appreciated. Cheers

Hi guys. For a while my IS200 SE has been making a strange kind of whining noise from the front drivers side wheel, usually when i'm driving above 50mph and turning left a bit (motorway, carriageway etc.) but I thought very little of it because I've been so busy with other commitments. Now, I am getting a sort of grinding sound from the wheel now whenever I'm driving and at all speeds, is it possibly a wheel bearing and if so how much can I expect to pay for parts and labour? Cheers