true blue

Hi still no success so I'm going to grasp the nettle and get a new screen fitted . I remember some people having problems with one national company but I can't remember which one ; any advice gratefully received

Hi This is certainly a good price for this job,how many miles had the belt done ? regarding the changing of the other items; I go along with the water pump if it does not leak ,is not noisy ,and has no play in the shaft .BUT how do you or the tech who changed the belt explain the belt damage if it was not caused by either the tensioner the idler or the alignment of both ? When I changed my belt at 57000 it looked perfect but i still changed the tensioner and idler as it had managed to jump 1 tooth .I would certainly keep an eye on it annually .

Hi my other car is a Mazda MX5 with a limited slip diff. ,during recent discussions at MOT brake testing , I was informed it is not advisable to use the roller brake tester to test the front and rear brakes, as this can cause wind up and potential damage to the LSD . Apparently the testers manual excludes vehicles fitted with LSD from the RBT testing ( Section 3.7 information column ) In view of the fact that some Lexus IS have a LSD ,has anyone come across this aspect before , and what happens if the tester does not realize the car has a LSD fitted

Hi it does not sound good if the light does not come on . I would guess whoever sold you the car has something to hide and could have removed the bulb ,was it a dealer or a private sale ? .The first thing you should do is get the car checked to ensure the bulb is present and working , and if the light stays on after start up get the fault code read and report back with the code numbers ,someone on here will be able to offer further advice . What makes you think you have a head gasket issue ?.

Hi , thanks for that, had a quick look but the drains are not obvious ,do I have to remove anything? Where do they exit ?

Hi I have recently noticed a small amount of rainwater running down the inside of the screen from the area behind the mirror .this only happens when driving and not when parked ,even in heavy rain ;There is a small gap in the seal in this area where the 2 ends meet, I have sealed this with black sealer for windscreens without success . Does this mean the seal needs replacing or is there any way water draining from the sunroof could cause this ? In view of the many problems people have had with replacement windscreens in the past any advice on going down this route would be appreciated . The screen does not appear to be original ,but has been fitted before I purchased the car

Hi LEX01 is it an auto ? you say it starts when you fiddle with the gears; if it is auto it could be a problem with the interlock switch which prevents you starting the car in gear ,also the small red immobiliser light should go out when the key is inserted

Hi have a look on the workshop forum good pictorial guide under Replaced my timing belt today, shows alignment proceedure

Hi Sorry can't help with the LED question ,for topping up the power steering the work shop manual recommends ATF Auto transmission fluid Dextron 11 or 111 .

Hi Bezza ; I'm sure the change to your wheels wont affect the running of the engine; My advice would be to buy a new battery and when it is fitted get the alternator output checked to ensure the charging rate is OK .From what you have said it seems too low ,but it may just be a duff cell in the battery affecting the charging rate . Once you have done this it may take a short time for the car to settle down to ' normal ' as having the battery changed will reset the ECU . Hope this helps

Hi your car seems well maintained , and as the oil and filter was changed last October ,you will be OK with a oil and filter change in Oct2011 ; it may also be worth changing the gear box and axle oil at the same time as the car is 8 years old ,everything else has been covered ,as I presume new coolant and antifreeze will have been added when the water pump was changed . You can change the power steering fluid ,it won't do any harm but it may not improve anything . I can't understand what you mean by 'dry' ,you could check the power steering belt tension as it may be slipping ,but if the level is OK I can't suggest anything else Dave

Hi I pefer to use original pads as Lexus will have spent a lot of money developing the material best suited to their cars. Having said that I have used Mintex pads on other cars and found them quite satisfactory . The hand brake mechanism is a separate system with small conventional brake shoes in an intergral drum .You can check this while you are changing the rear pads ,they may be causing the noise ; but it is probably a sticking pad . When you replace the pads ,make sure the pins on the front and the pad backing plate edges where they slide into the caliper at the rear are greased with copper grease to prevent sticking

Hi sounds like you have a warped disc ; try to get hold of a dial gauge and check the run out on each disc ,if its more than 2 thou remove the disc clean the faces of the disc and hub . reassemble and try again ;you can try the disc in different positions on the studs sometimes this will give a better result in 1 place than another . If the problem still persists I'm afraid new discs will be required ; clean all faces and set up with a dial gauge as described . Tip after heavy braking do not stop and leave your foot on the brake pedal ,heat transfer from the pads can warp some discs in that local area.

Hi if you are using as much fuel as you say I would not use the car until you have fault codes .you are likely to do permanent damage to the cat which will be expensive

Hi if the engine management light is on ,get the fault code read so we can pinpoint the fault . This will give you something to work on,there is a fault code list on here

Hi you have done incredibly well to carry out that job with the minimum lift and on your own!! .I have done a few clutches over the years but not on my own ,you also did well with the alignment ,this can be a struggle if you don't use a mandrel first . Well done

Hi shop around for quotes as prices vary a lot . These cars are quite straightforward to work on so should not present any problem for a competent mechanic . I can see no advantage in maintaining a lexus history at a high cost on a car this age .Lexus will probably be the most expensive unless you can find a dealer prepared to do a special deal ,a toyota dealer is a good alternative ;cheapest will be an independent ,find a good reliable small workshop where the owner either carries out the work or supervises it closely .One final point ,try to find evidence of a cambelt change which should be carried out on a time basis even though the car has only covered a low mileage ,in fact it may be prudent to have a 60000 mile service carried out.

Hi Light Globes ; had me puzzled then I saw your location G'day sport :D Uk cars are side lights W5W 501 capless Dip beam and front fogs 9006 HB4 51W Main beam 9005 HB3 65W

Hi a litre of coolant is a large amount to lose in such a short time. If as you say you have no overheating problem ,my first suspect would be the radiator pressure cap .Replace this with a new one ,if your leakage still persists get a pressure test carried out by a garage who should be able to verify whether the head gasket is faulty or not .

Welcome and well done ;I'm sure you will be well suited with your purchase , rear wheel drive but otherwise quite different from a MX5 . I like them both 'so I,ve got one of each

Hi I run a IS 200 manual sportcross ;I find it an excellent car ,quiet and comfortable I have just done a check over the last 1000 miles @ 29.8 MPG 70% on long runs . I don't have dogs but my daughter has 2 ; they fit ok in the back but she has the old shape Honda CRV and that has more 'dog room'.I bought the 200 because the 300 was not available in manual ,but having driven 10000 miles I think auto would suit the car if I was to buy another I would go for the 300; all in all a very versatile car .

Hi as I previously posted this usually stems from a badly fitted replacement screen, this was the case with me ,but there was only a very small amount of moisture present,I think some cases happened during the bad snow we had ;when it was brought into the footwell on shoes and some of the damp condensed on the connectors during the cold evenings when the car interior cooled . If the method I have posted is followed it will cure the fault and it will not return if the leak is cured .If the lights remain on then the fault lies elsewhere-repost and further advice can be given . my advice for Joneb is to give the job to a local auto electrician if you are not confident in tackling it; he will be used to these types of problems Dave

Hi, as Ormi says -take it back this happened to me when I did my cam belt last year ,you can be sure with the code 1346 the timing is NOT 'bang on ' did they change the tensioner at the same time ? ,if your not careful the belt can move 1 tooth .when they do it properly there will be no error code .

Hi, despite what Lexus say ,the ingress of damp into the fuse box by the drivers footwell is a common problem ,which will cause the headlights to stay on .It usually stems from a badly refitted windscreen ; this headlight problem can be caused by other faults but the following course of action will cure it if this is the reason . 1st disconnect the battery ,remove the trim and covers to expose the multipin connectors. Carefully disconnect the connectors and dry out the pins and sockets with a hair dryer .Also look for any ingress of water running down the wires from the area beneath the screen around the cable grommet.if this is visible the screen will need to be re fitted.Now for the most important point,before reconnecting the multiplugs coat the pins and sockets with an electrical grease NOT WD40;The best one I have found is called CONTRALUBE ;it is available in a small tube from Maplins or on E bay. this will seal against the ingress of water and ensure good electrical contacts .I have used this on many car and motorcycle applications including this headlamp problem on my Lexus last year ,when I posted the same advice . finally reconnect everything,refit the covers and reconnect the battery, if you are lucky that will cure your problem ,repost to let us know how it goes as there are further steps you can take if this does not cure it

Hi I have this problem with the pipe off on the drivers side ;will I have to remove the wing inner liner to replace the pipe or is there an easy way ?