plastic orange

I'm currently using Falken 912's in 235/50 x17's on my dhp. I did consider 55 profiles, but I've been really impressed with my choice so far. It makes the car very sure footed on the road in current Scottish road conditions (mainly WET). Pete

I know that Blackcircles pay the fitting garage £12 a changeover. Last tyres I got changed were £10 each for everything. So I'd say £15 is the upper end of fitting charges. Pete

No I didn't - 5 months and 4,000 miles - here's my letter to the supplier: Hi, I purchased a pair of the upper arms for my Lexus LS 400 from you on February 11th this year and had them fitted by my garage a few days later. Whilst I was in the garage today (Brake pad fitting), my mechanic noticed severe wear on the ball joint on the N/S unit (Mot failure), and that both ball joint rubber covers were completely perished therefore allowing water to penetrate the joint. Both these units must be faulty as my car has only done around 4 thousand miles since fitting. I would like to respectfully ask for a refund for these items, as I would imagine that a similar failure would occur with replacements. Many thanks.

I wasn't happy when the ebay supplied ones failed at very low mileage (balljoint very loose and gaiters split). It looks like they just press in new inner bushes and fit a new (sub standard) gaiter over the existing ball joint. As there was nothing wrong with my originals, I put them back on (was trying to cure wheel shake which turned out to be discs), but couldn't get a refund and had to take a pair of replacements instead. They are now wall ornaments in my garage, but would do as a stop gap if needed. I got them here: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330306236922&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT Pete

Hi and welcome. The other day I saw an LS 400 the same colour (rose) as mine going along the Ferry Road, then I parked behind another in Whitehall Street a short while later. I've now seen around 6 in the Dundee area - positively common getting :winky: Pete

I wasn't impressed by the ebay top arms. After a short time, the gaiters burst and the ball joint on one side started to knock. They replaced them but I've not fitted them as I think the same will happen. They refused a refund - replacement only Pete

I'm needing to replace mine too - I've checked ebay, and they are selling these 'flat blades' pretty cheaply - does anyone have experience of these? Pete

That's the same colour as mine - looks the biz on a sunny day. I've certainly not regretted buying mine 18 months ago. Pete

No, it had a really good heater. Pete

Not necessarily. My Saab had the smell(varied from none to strong) for several years without losing a drop. I did keep waiting for it to go, but thankfully it never did as it is not the best of jobs. Matrix shouldn't be too expensive - depends on how difficult it is to change. Pete

Curry smell is the heater matrix on the way out.Or at least on my Saab it was - they are notorious for it. Pete

Mine does it from time to time (gearbox fully serviced too), and always when you least want it. I keep mine in sport mode which seems to keep it to a minimum though. Pete

Today I had the engine check light come on. I was waiting at traffic lights, and when I went to move off - it wouldn't as the engine had cut out. It did the same at subsequent stops, but started easily enough again. It seemed that the tickover is too low as I could hold it on the throttle to stop this happening. I changed the battery the other day, and this was it's first run out, so it may be that the ECU is learning (hope anyway). When I got the car home it ticked over just fine with no warning lights on - strange. pete

Try mytyres http://ssl.delti.com/cgi-bin/rshop.pl?details=Ordern&cart_id=23529471.110.17057&typ=R-152535&ranzahl=4&Breite=225&Quer=60&Felge=16&Speed=W&weiter=0&kategorie=6&Ang_pro_Seite=15&Transport=P&dsco=110&sowigan=So

I use this site to give a reasonable comparison for tyre sizes http://www.carbibles.com/tyre_size_calculators.html but not all 245/50 x17 tyres are exactly the same in either width or rolling circumference due to being from different manufacturers. This was highlighted on retro rides site when 2 manufacturers tyres (same size) were compared and there was around an inch difference in overall width. Very noticeable when they were laid flat next to each other. I'm very impressed with the Falkens I've put on in place of the Pirellis - superior grip and a very noticeable improvement in ride quality. Pete.

Mobil 1 for me - from Opie Oils - 6 litres (leaving some for top up) Pete

Hi car speedos always read over with standard radius tyres (normally 5 to 10%). If they read under they would have a load of law suits against them from motorists getting done for speeding. If you follow a truck on a motorway you will be reading at least 60 whereas a truck speedo will read 56mph as tachos are accurate. Not really true - I've had several cars with accurate speedos (reading as per sat nav), plus the last 3 years on holiday in the US my hire cars have been bang on. Police tend to give a 10% leeway on speed anyway to give folk the benefit of the doubt - speed cameras a bit higher. I'm aware of the profile choices with regard to gearing, but not all sizes are available. Pete

Got my new tyres fitted today and tested speedo against sat nav before and after fitting - no difference - 75mph on speedo is 70mph with worn 245's and new 235's, so presumably when the new tyres wear there will be a slight difference. Has any one else noticed the fast reading speedo on their LS? Pete

I only went for the Falkens after recommendations on here - very impressed so far. I find with tyres that what works on one car sometimes doesn't on another - hence the benefit of owners experiences. I got them here: http://www.allnewtyres.co.uk/tyre-details.asp?id=2703&235%2050%2017%20Falken%20ZE912%202355017%20W96 Pete

The Pirelli 245/50 x 17's on the rear of my DHP lasted well under 10k - fronts about 15k. I looked for alternatives and fitted 235/50's to the front (no problems with handling), and am fitting the same to the rear tomorrow - Falken 912's (£73 each as opposed to over £200 each for overpriced Pirellis). I considered the very slight difference in rolling radius, but we have to remember that tyre sizes (like for like) do vary considerably amongst manufacturers, and the overall height between the Pirellis and Falkens was to my eye negligible. As the speedo on my Lexus proved to be pretty innacurate anyway (70mph on speedo was actually around 67 as tested against a Tom Tom sat nav)I'm not worried. Ok, theoretical top speed may be down a tad, but who does 150 on our roads anyway. Pete

I replaced the water pump, tensioner and all timing wheels at last cam belt change. The water pump was showing early signs of failure at 125k, so I'd replace for peace of mind. Pete

Castle Cover for me (over 50's) - around £240 if I remember. pete

I wasn't prepared to pay the cost of replacement pirellis, so fitted a pair of Falken 912's to the front in 235/50 x17 (less than half the price), and will replace the rear when they are due (very soon) with either the same or more likely 235/55 x17's to keep speedo accurate. I hope to have 235/55's all round eventually. You don't notice the minimal width difference front to rear from the standard fitment. Pete

I'm sure the garage I used for changeing the UCA's (twice) did not have to remove anything other than the arms themselves - only took about an hour the pair. Pete

I had a Merc 190E for 8 years which had a 1 inch difference side to side. Car had never been bumped, and is apparantly still driving around without problems. I did think at the time it was odd, but put it down to manufacturing tolerences. Pete