AntonyR

A while ago my air con system stop working. Some white misty gas appeared to come through the centre vents into the passenger cabin. That lasted for about 5 mins, off and on, whilst travelling down the motorway. From then, the air con has not blown cold at all. It just replicates the air temp outside and the fans blow hard when hot outside as desired temp in the cabin is not being attained. More recently, some small pieces of grey foam material (max. 0.5cm squared and similar texture to a kitchen sponge in density) started to be blow through the centre vents of the ventilation system into the cabin; the same place the white mist emanated from originally. I had a Toyota garage check the air con system and they gave it a clean bill of health saying that the compressor was functioning fine and had been tested and that the system had been dye-tested to check for any leaks, of which they found none to my surprise. They re-gassed the system and sent me on my way but it quite quickly became apparent that the system was still not blowing any colder than the air temp outside. I recently took my car to a mechanic friend and he tested for any gas in the system by undoing the cap on the refiller and touching it with a key to see if any sprayed out the top but there appears to be no gas left in the system in spite of Toyota having re-gassed the system AND apparently giving it a 'no leak' diagnosis. I have had to replace the original condenser before when the air con stopped working so my questions to the knowledgable forum readers are these: 1. Is it likely, given the above, that the white gas leaking out was in fact the air con gas during a fatal parts blow-out , either of pipework or condenser? 2. Has anyone had the incident I described with the foam pieces coming through the centre vents before after the air con failed? 3. Could the bits of foam be some form of lining/seal for the air con pipework or is it something unrelated? 4. Is the condenser the most likely problem now given the above information? 5. Does anyone know how long it should take a good mechanic, in hours, to replace the condenser please? Many thanks too all that reply in advance. Antony.

When I went there asking for them to take a look at my coolant leakage issue 6 months or so ago they ran a mile, metaphorically of course, as most of the people who worked there couldn't run 100 yards without some form of cardiac event. Anyway, it is a disgrace that garage 'groups' can discriminate in this way...it should be illegal, shouldn't it. Thankfully it is pretty cool weather (and I have just returned from holiday in Spain where it was truly 'scorchio' this year) otherwise I would be in full 'no aircon panic' mode. Thanks for your continued interest and feedback.

Thank you both for your posts. Very frustratingly, the Toyota garage at the top of Brixton Hill (closest to me) is owned by the same 'Jemca' Group who own the Lexus dealership in Croydon that I used to go to and therefore the Toyota dealership refuses to even look at my Lexus and keep telling me to go to Croydon instead, thereby trying to charge me as much as possible to get my car repaired. (Is that even a legal thing to do?!) I need to find an independent air con specialist. I am tempted to go to the guy in Horley, nr. Gatwick, as I know someone on the forum posted that he had a decent experience there from an air con guy but it isn't exactly close by. Never mind, perhaps needs must and all that...

I have a Y plate ('01) Lexus IS 200 SE and have had an issue recently with the aircon system. My wife and I noticed a white mist/gas emission (?) coming into the cabin from the passenger side central vent. Then the aircon system showed remarkably less cooling ability. After about 20 mins, there was cooler air coming from the passenger side vent vs. the driver side central vent. At the same time, and when the air con is switched on in the car now, there is quite a high-pithced squealing noise from behind the centre vent console somewhere. I ran the air con with the bonnet up and the noise is hard to pinpoint but is aggressive enough for me to be quite concerned about it (albeit from a position of very limited knowledge). When the air con button is switched off, the noise disappears completely. Is there a belt or fan that may be causing this noise and the air con system to not function correctly? What was the white mist/gas emitted into the cabin when the noise first appeared and the air con system stopped working effectively? Currently, we have zero/very limited cooling from the system whatsoever. It is not noticeable either way really compared to how it should be. I have read a bit about this issue on other forum posts but not found the conclusive answer as to what it most likely could be. http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/topic/81830-air-con-compressor-clutch-pulley-bearing-a-positive-experience/ (??) Any advice or points of view would be greatly appreciated. I am in SW11 (London) and if anyone knows of a decent aircon specialist within about a 45 min drive (who wouldn't rip my face off having a go at fixing it) then I would be keen to get their contact details. I always prefer to go armed with some info as to what the most likely issue is from the clever folk on this forum first though. Many thanks in advance. Antony.

Bosch car batteries for my IS200SE are cheaper in CostCo than anywhere I else I could find. They are around £57...but I had already bought a new one in ECP unfortunately. Same 4 year guarantee applies too.

Hmmm, water pump...and that is located where exactly under the bonnet pls?!

The photo in my manual was very poor. The one you have so kindly provided explains everything. I couldn't initially locate the reservoir as I was looking for something a little more obvious...however, I have located it and checked the level. It was below the bottom mark and needed around 700ml of Toyota 'red' coolant to get it up to the max. line as per your guidance. In addition, and stupidly in my instance, I presumed it would be easier to find and I expected it to still be clean and therefore visible! Neither were true in all honesty but with your help I have managed to refill it so I am grateful to you (all) for your guidance and help. The next thing I will do is monitor the coolant level over the next few days/week(s) and see if it loses the level it is at now when cold. There must be some kind of small leak otherwise I assume I wouldn't have lost any coolant in the first place. Is that assumption correct or could there be a more 'natural' explanation? Since I have topped the level up I have not heard the gurgling sound once on my relatively short trip home (and I would have expected to). However, if air is in the system I am guessing I may still have to 'burp' it. Will monitor this situation too but, so far, no gurgling sounds. PS - the cap to the coolant reservoir was not immediately visible either but again your photo was far superior than the one in my manual. It's a case of once you know what you are looking for it is far easier to find! THANK YOU!

Thanks for the replies. They are much appreciated. I have just checked the manual to check the coolant level and the photo in the manual is appalling. I cannot make head or tail of it. Page 236 in my manual if I remember correctly. Any tips as to how to find it please? Apologies in advance for such a pathetically basic question guys but I would appreciate your help once again.

I had a dead battery and when the AA came out the guy reckoned I had a current drain too but he couldn't pinpoint it. How did you find out that it was the boot light and how did you ensure that the boot light only came on when the boot was opened rather than constantly please?

Hi everyone. I own an IS200SE (2001). Recently, I have noticed a strange gurgling sound coming from somewhere between the wheel and the centre console. It sounds like a liquid moving around in a pipe when the car accelerates. It happens in both hot and cold conditions and, from my basic testing recently, appears to occur whether the air con is on or off. It sounds like air passing through a liquid but also quite like coarse sand or tiny pebbles moving around in a piece of plastic pipe - it is a very distinctive sound. I know this sounds vague but it is mystifying me and usually occurs when you begin to accelerate from a standing start. For some reason it always feels like I am about to get wet feet when I hear the noise in spite of no leak being visible anywhere. Does anyone have any ideas as to what this might be please? Any suggestions would be most welcome and if anyone needs any more info then I will try and answer albeit not being very technical when it comes to my car unfortunately, hence my approach to those far more knowledgable than me. Thanks in advance.

Glad you got hold of the batteries OK - the hardest thing I found when I did mine was to find a screwdriver small enough for the job. I had to use my dad's spec screwdriver set to get into the key casing in the end as even my smallest screwdriver head was too large. Was a 5min job in the end and cost next to nothing...I just wish all my other car related jobs were as easy!

I just had my IS200 SE Y-reg (45,000 miles) MOT'd by the local MOT-only place in Wandsworth and the guys there pointed out that my original rear brake pads are pretty badly worn and will need to be replaced before the next MOT. Does anyone know of a trustworthy independent garage that could do the job for me in SW London or possibly Shrewsbury? Unfortunately, I am fed up of sending my car to the local Lexus service centre for such work given their labour costs seem to increase each year by more than the price of gold bullion! Out of interest, I contacted a Toyota dealer in Colchester when I was staying with a friend for a couple of days and they said they would charge £120. Any idea if that was a reasonable quote? I can have the work done in either SW London (SW11/SW18/SW17/SW4) or in Shrewsbury, Shrops but I would prefer it done in London and preferably soon too. I have also seen some comments on the 'Brakes' forum about whether to insist on using original Lexus/Toyota parts for the job, rather than Mintex etc., and to buy them in advance and give them to the garage to use as replacements. I have never done this before but I am guessing that it will limit the chance of being fleeced on the purchase price of the replacement pads or am I being too optimistic here?! (I am unfortunately a real cynic when it comes to car garages as I just do not know enough about cars to know what is and isn't BS, which is entirely my fault, I know). Any help / replies most appreciated - thanks in advance.

Hi - did you ever get this sorted out? I believe I have the same thing on my IS200 SE (Y-reg)...any solution?