Anthony B

Lexus Swindon did some very good work on the air conditioning system for me recently (fitted new pipes to the back, the old ones having corroded.) They needed to access the underside by lifting the rear offside seat base, but in refitting it they have trapped the seat belt buckle out of reach - I can just feel it but can't bring it up. Short of my driving to Swindon (40 miles) can someone tell me how to lift the rear seat.

Thanks very much - a superb list. I had already worked out the meaning of 1651 from other info sources - let's hope I never have to experience the others. AFB

Intermittently the usual warnng light shows on the dash of my LS430. On investigation my garage reports code P1651. There seems to be nothing wrong with any aspect of the car's operaration. Can someone explain what 1651 refers to and whether I can safely ignore this faulty trigger. AFB

Thanks, Mikeyv - can you give me more contact details for him, as I'm not on Facebook. AFB

The roof strips on my LS430 (I guess they cover the grooves for a roof mounted rack of some kind) are beginning to corrode and look tatty. The yseem to be chrome strips painted over. I'd like to take them off for cleaning and respray or replace them. Lexus Bristol quoted me a horrendous price for new ones (unsurprisingly). How easy are they to remove and refurbish? AFB

For the second time around I recently chose Falken ZE914 Ecoruns. I got 20000 from the first set two and a half years ago and have no complaints. The price through Oponeo was £74 each, inc VAT. AFB

Lex Eleven: thank you - that video is as helpful as can be, so the task was easy and I managed to get the CD player unit out. Can you please tell me how how got the CDs out?

The CD changer on my 2003 LS430 has jammed. Might have been because of my fumbling during a CD swap exercise. Three CDs are stuck in there. Does anyone have any experience of this problem? It's fairly obvious that taking the device out will involve dismantling most of the car, and in any event I suspect that a new replacement would cost the earth. But someone out there might know of an easier solution. The radio works, of course. And this is the first fault of any kind in over two years of splendid driving. Anthony

Thank you - job done. A

Yes it's a Ba9s .

I need to replace one of the rear interior light bulbs on my 430 - a tiny thing, Toshiba A12V8WK-H. Any ideas on a source for such things that won't mean I have to buy a pack of 20 and pay the earth? Perhaps a member out there can post me one - or two to give me a spare? Anthony

Thanks to Messi - and it's in the manual too, if only I'd looked there first! You don't need to start the engine - just switching the ignition on is enough, and you then press and hold the A/C on/off for 4 seconds. AFB

On start-up I'm getting a diagnostic message 'Change aircon filter'. I've done this - the front filter was heavily occluded, the rear much less so - but the message remains. Is this indicative of a deeper problem?

I've had my LS430 for just a year now and recently did the sums on consumption for the year from 1 July to 1 July, with a wide variety of journey lengths and driving conditions over 9000 miles. The answer was almost exactly 25 MPG - which was (almost exactly) what I thought it would be from the first day of ownership, given that it's a heavy car with a big engine. Fuel is not a dominant compnent of our housekeepng budget, and in return for LS430 pleasure - who cares? AFB

Very interesting thread. Six weeks ago I experienced four TIAs (transient ischaemic attacks) within a 90-minute period and was whisked into hospital with siren sounding and blue light flashing. The upshot is that after a four-week ban I am back on the road and will probably never experience these things again as I'm now on an anti-coagulant and statin for life. The insurance company have not blinked, nor have the DVLA - coincidentally I needed to renew my licance, being well over 70. It wss a real treat to get back behind the wheel of my 430, I can tell you. AFB

Some months ago I scraped my rear offside corner and pushed the sensor into the bumper, where it hung, cheerfully bleeping, until I had time to get the car to Lexus Bristol - meanwhile they had ordered a genuine part from Japan, I having decided that at my age I'm not about to start fiddling underneath my vehicle. The total job, including making good the marks on the bumper, cost me £270, of which the part price with fitment was £170-ish. I'm not normally profligate and I regard that as money well spent. Incidentally I have nothing but praise for the service standard at Lexus Bristol. They seem to want to 'go the extra mile' time and again. The coffee's good too. AFB

Below the midline on the front bumper on both sides of my LS430 there is a piece of plastic trim that hugs under the corner curve of the bumper - I've no idea what function it performs, as it doesn't seem to blank any other useful feature. See pics. I've scraped the nearside one off in misjudging a tight corner after dark, and it's lost. I'd welcome ideas on where to get a replacement - anyone got one tucked away? I should be able to fit it OK. Thanks. Anthony

I'd concur with those consumption figures. After 9 months of ownership of my '03 LS430 I'm getting 19 - 20 in our country lanes, 30-ish on long journeys (although I try not to run for long at 80 - my cruise is usually set at 73 and I reckon 65-70, if maintained over a long run, would give optimum consumption) and rough average 24-25. Good idea to operate a spreadsheet - I keep a precise note of all costs but don't formalise them in that way. I'll start doing so. Incidentally Lexus Bristol have replaced my timing belt and water pump, total cost incl VAT £490. They rang me to recommend dealing with the water pump and associated drive belt change, having noticed some early stage traces of age. Good value, I reckon. The car has done only 94400 but is 12 years old, so midway between the 1-year-or-100000-mile recommendation.

I confirm that figure - I'm having my belt done at Lexus Bristol next week for their standard fee of £295. They'll check the pump and tell me. Hope I don't need to spend the extra £100 but it may be good thinking.

A late contribution to this thread: As I posted recently under a different heading, over my six-month ownership period of my LS430 I've averaged 25-ish mpg - around our country lanes it drops, of course, to 20-ish; on longer journeys on M-ways and good dual carriageways I have no trouble achieving 28-29. The enjoyment level is higher than I've ever experienced in 45 years of motoring, and in any case fuel costs as a proportion of living expenditure are trivial - especially at their present levels. I've no doubt that looking at total cost of ownership over several years I shall win hands down. Anthony

No, it's a limited warranty I got when I purchased the car - mainly mechanical parts. Most warranty deals seem to me to be fiendishly expensive, esp. for older cars. It remains to be seen whether I need to use it in this first year and whether I renew next July. My main aim in looking carefully at my costs for the first six months has been to compare them with my previous Rover 75, which was beginning to cost me. Also to check whether Lexus quality is too expensive for me. It seems not - and I've been very impressed by the excellent service and prices of my nearest Lexus dealership at Bristol.

OK, OK, should be 2014. Silly boy!

Having now owned my LS430 for six months I thought some readers might be interested in my expenditure from July 1 to Dec 31 2014. Here are the figures: Insurance (full year) £233.72 Tax (from Oct 1) £285.00 Warranty £178 Fuel – total spend £921.22 Maintenance/servicing Front offside wheel bearing £349.00 Trunk lid struts £231.00 Winter health check £60.00 4 tyres (Falken ZE914) £420.00 Fuel quantity 708 litres = 155 gals Mileage covered 4200 Thus average mpg ~27 So I'm well pleased - 27 mpg is over three-fifths of what I got my old Rover 75, and look at the quality of the motoring. And with current prices, filling the tank is much less painful than it was back in July. Comments welcome. Anthony

Thanks for the info on mpg. I'm watching my right foot and hoping not to be tempted to kick down too often. But it's fun occasionally.

On short runs around the village and into the local town for shopping, 26 to 28 mpg (if I'm careful on throttle and brake, as I am increasingly trying to be.) On longer runs easily getting 30 to 32, again being watchful of the revs all the time, and only stepping on the gas when I really have to. My last car, a diesel 2-litre, gave me an average of 44 without difficulty. But given the higher quality of motoring I'm now enjoying, my personal target is to be satisfied with averaging 28 to 32 over the year, which would be no worse than two thirds of my previous achievement (also petrol's a bit cheaper than diesel.) Anthony