Jack Pritchard

Thanks, so basically no difference between the 96 and 97 GS300 then? Put simply, if you had a 1997 GS300 MKI would you expect a door catch/lock from a 1996 GS300 MKI to fit?

Hi all I have a Lexus GS 1997 JZS147 Saloon 300 which needs a new rear, drivers side door catch. (I'm in the U.K.) I have found the following on ebay.. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/351570753168?clk_rvr_id=1026117030592&rmvSB=true#vi-ilComp But it states in the compatibility test that it will only fit the 96 model. Is this right? I thought that from 93 to 97 they were the same. Assurances or otherwise needed :) Thanks

Good idea. Thanks.

Thanks for that :)

I'm changing the front lower ball joint as the actual ball ripped away from the arm, luckily when on my driveway. I undid the nut at the bottom of this ball joint expecting to be able to just tap the bottom thread with a hammer and out it would pop, ready to fit the new one, but no. The bloody thing is seized solid. I've been bashing for about an hour and used up half a can of WD40. Any ideas? Piccy attached.

Just wondering what the average range that a key fob should work at is. With my old Supra I could unlock/lock the doors from a good 100ft but with this car I have to get so close sometimes I need to actually touch the key fob onto the car for it to work. Is there anyway of increasing this range. Also, key fob has a brand new battery.

It's a strut that goes from the air intake block down to the bottom of the engine. I'm hoping that it's just a stabiliser and that I can comfortably remove it to give me extra room to work in.

I reckon that I could have just enough wriggle room to get to the starter if I moved the strut in the middle of this picture. Question is, is this strut important? Will the engine suddenly shift or something if I temporarily move it out the way etc. It's so frustrating being able to see the bloody thing but not able to get to it!

I've just located the starter and I must admit that it looks very buried and tricky to get to. Any tips?

Min update: Disconnected the line that goes straight to the starter motor and as soon as I did that all the cars electrics started working again! So it's definitely that that's the problem. Of course now I've triggered the immobiliser so I have to wait before I can fiddle around again but, so far so good :)

I certainly intend to. Forgot to mention that there is now zero power to anything, i.e. electrical system is dead and whenever i connect the battery all I get is sparks and fizzing :S

It's funny you should say that. I've been having problems with the starter for a few months now with it either just clicking or failing to start the car when I know full well that the battery was fully charged. Also, the mechanic was surprised that none of the fuses blew and if you say that the smoke was coming from that area then this gives me hope that I might be getting closer in tracking the problem down. Perhaps I can't find any smoke damage to the wiring because it was the starter itself that was causing the short circuit and was smoking. I changed the alternator because it simply stopped working and I was, for a good few weeks, running the car on battery power only and having to charge it up myself every night. Thanks for this, I feel a bit more positive now

Ok, so I changed my alternator http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/index.php?showtopic=80095 and all seemed ok for a couple of days but then, the Saturday before Christmas I was driving at night to pick my daughter up when suddenly the dashboard lights dimmed as did the headlights and I had a sudden loss of power. I managed to pull over to the side of the road and switch off where I was greeted by a huge plume of smoke coming from the bonnet, roughly where the battery is. Roadside recovery came to my rescue and as soon as he connected his jump starter to the battery smoke immediately started to rise from just below the battery. Although it was pretty dark so we couldn't tell exactly. He told me that I had a short circuit in the wiring loom somewhere and it would cost a fortune to put right. Not being the sort of person who likes to be defeated my questions is this. Is there anything I can do about this myself? I've had a really good look all over, both under and above and have even taken the fuse box apart but can't find any obviously melted wires or anything that looks like it has recently been pouring out smoke. So what can I do apart from get a mobile mechanic around? Thanks :)

Changed it over this morning. Just a couple of bolts and a couple of wires to disconnect but still took me over an hour and ripped my hands to shreds :-/ Slackening off the belt was easy thanks to TigerFish. Volt meter (which I installed myself as for some reason Lexus doesn't think we need one) now reads just under 15v instead of the 12v it used to read :D Thanks to all..

Thanks :) I've bookmarked the page and will have a go when the weather clears up. Fingers crossed..

Hi I'm just about to change my burnt out alternator for a new (ish) one on my 1997 Lexus GS 300 and of course the first thing I'm going to need to do is slacken or loosen the belt. I've located the belt tensioner but looking at it I'm not quite sure what to do with it or even if I need a special tool. Any help or tips on this matter would be greatly apreciated. Many thanks :)

The story so far.. Made sure my neighbours were out. Disconnected the battery then reconnected it. This caused the alarm to sound. Let the alarm sound for as long as it wanted, theory being that this would reset everything. Sure enough after 4-5 minutes the alarm stopped. I was then able to start the car but was still left with my original problem. Took the front offside wheel off. Undid all the covering to expose the b*st*rd little alarm. Took the alarm to pieces and removed this. For all I know the alarm is going off now but without that massive magnet there is pure silence.

***Update*** Now the imobiliser has shut down all the electrics. It's as if I'd taken the battery out! How do I reset the alarm? Help anyone !!!

Just tried it with both my spare keys and didn't make any difference :(

I don't think so. Would that make any difference. I do have a spare key so I'll try that. Thanks for the tip.

Ok, so here is my problem. I have a lovely 1997 GS300 which has recently developed a very annoying alarm problem. Symptoms are as follows... 1. Use key fob to unlock car, lights flash twice to indicate alarm is off and doors unlocked, no problem. 2. Put key in ignition and the steering wheel comes out, no problem. 3. Turn on the ignition, alarm continuously sounds. Trying to turn it off with the key fob doesn't work. 4. Start the engine, alarm changes from continuous to intermittent . 5. Drive away down the road, with alarm sounding and getting some very dodgy looks. 6. After about 2-4 minutes the alarm starts to sound a bit pathetic and then eventually stops. 7. Can now drive around all day with no problems unless I stop and turn off the engine in which case there is a high probability that we are right back to symptom 1 again! I did disconnect the battery for a couple of days in the hope that this would reset the alarm, but to no avail. So, any ideas? Thanks in advance.

Hi all Have been a Lexus owner for a few years now. My first was a 1997 GS300 that was eventually destroyed on the T.V. show, Driving Wars aired by the channel Dave. My current is also a 1997 GS300 but with far fewer miles. Hope to find all sorts of useful info here :)