luke_j_bsker

Quick update; Alternator is spot on and charging as expected. Wiring is in really good nick, nothing corroded/frayed, etc. No signs of moisture anywhere either. The bulbs I took out we're a variety of brands - Ring, Bosch, Gerlux and one completely non-branded item - all failed. One thing I did notice was that part of the headlight unit is very loose. The bulbs fit in tight and snugly, but part of the headlight itself is moving inside. I can imagine that every time I hit a pothole or bump in the road that's amplified into the headlight, rattling the s**t out of the bulbs. No filament in any bulb is going to with stand that for too long. I can't see any fixings to secure the innards - i'll need to remove the whole unit to investigate the issue properly which i haven't got time for at the moment - so i'm going to place some padding in there to stop it rattling about so much. See if that solves the problem. Oh, and I ordered a complete new set of bulbs - Osram in case you're wondering!

Good point - didn't think of the alternator. Will grab my multimeter, see what it's putting out. The bulbs on the rear end have been fine the whole time which makes me think that it's something local to the front. Condensation could be the culprit. I'll pay attention to the connectors when i open it up. I'll also check voltage to the connectors. See if anything obvious is amiss. Will report back - in the mean time i'll order some quality bulbs.

Some bulbs came with the car, which suggests the issue has been around before my reign. I bought additional replacements for my local indie motor factors. Will have to look at the brand supplied, but it wasn't any cheap chaff off eBay. Perhaps the Lexus doesn't like this particular brand. What brand do you recommend... Bosch, phillips? What brand do Lexus supply when new, or do they use 'Toyota' bulbs? I'm pretty savvy on the auto mechanics side of things so i would have made sure they fit snug and avoided touching the halogen bulb at any point.

As per the title, my Lexus goes through bulbs like wildfire! I'm replacing them every 6months or so and have no idea why. Need to replace another 2 on the drivers side again and i'm sure the passenger side won't be far behind. I leave the lights on the 'auto' setting so they're likely to come on a tad sooner than I would bother, but that can't reduce their life that much surely!?! Has anyone else had this issue? Any solutions too? FYI - it's the side lights and headlights that seem to blow again and again. The main beam, from what I can remember, have been fine. Luke

Well the next morning all was well. No lights on at all, drove fine. It's been fine since too, driven softly and hard. I think it may have ben the tuning box that I have plugged in that tripped it - TDI tuning, CRTD2. I disconnected it that evening and it's the only thing that I have changed. I'll try a different setting on the box and hopefully it won't reoccur. Luke

Smokey exhaust? You could be burning it.

I was accelerating hard up a hill - the misses was desperate for a wee - and all the pretty lights came on. Oh joy! Did ye ol' paperclip trick and got following four error codes: 43, 51, 62, 63 I reset the VSC and everything went except for 51. I haven't driven it since so the others may come back. Looked it up and code 51 and corresponds to ' Engine Control System Malfunction' - pretty ambiguous if you ask me. Anyone know what that means in terms of fixing it and/or had experience with with this error code? Also, am I OK to drive the car do you think? Seems to relate to ABS and I won't be going too far. Luke

I'm not sure what special tool that could be other that the arms of a small child. Maybe they do have a special tool, like a funny triple angled extension bar, to help take off the bolts with ease with the benefit of a ramp to work under. But nothing about the fittings are unusual. They are all standard sized and need nothing more than a ratchet and socket. Space is the issue. Plus it's open to the outside so road dirt and other jazz gets up there making the thing more difficult to remove. Design floor. Or maybe it's a way of selling 1,000s of enclosures. Either way, it's stupid.

Just thought i'd mention a product I used recently and would definitely recommend. I've tried to be as honest as possible as there are so many reviews online these days it's difficult to actually find a product that actually works. [seafoam - does it work or just produce smoke when it's burnt. Impressive but possibly pointless!] I've also listed why I tried it and what led me to try it. It's important. (no one ever sates this fully!) Anyway, onto the review... I had done a full service on my car, including the evil fuel filter job, and I had also cleaned the egr all with improvements to drivability and mpg. All was well. Running great. Then, suddenly my mpg dropped which baffled me. From 36mpg, with mainly town driving, down to 28mpg. I spent most of my time in higher gears trying to bring it back up. I researched online and decided to buy an induction cleaner which may help. I bought a cheaper (cheaper than the product i'm reviewing!) induction cleaning fluid, Liqui Molly, which came with varied reviews, but better than most. I tried the direct into the induction system method, one of the options available, but there was no difference. Not saying it doesn't work, but it didn't work for me with that method. So I went deeper with my research and found this stuff: It isn't cheap at just over £20 but it came with great reviews all round. More info here: http://bgprod.co.uk/products/fuel-and-air-intake/bg244 I chucked it in the tank once the fuel light came on, gave it a blast down the motorway/a-roads, then filled up to the brim. Back to 36mpg after a tank load. I'll be honest, I thought once I emptied the tank and refiled it would go back down in mpg over time, but several refills later and still good mpg. Recently, on a fresh tank, I went on a long journey (330 miles-ish) and I got great mpg... ...I even broke 56mpg at one point, but the M25 crucified that. OK, motorway driving will always get better results but i'm currently on 48 and that's a 50/50 split with motorway and town driving. Few more days and i'll have to fill up so it won't change much. (FYI - I have a medium to heavy pedal foot!) I'm not saying this is the solution to your problems, please do a full service first. Check the obvious, follow the diagnosis, get it on a code reader if you can and do your research before plummeting your money into something that 'someone' said is great on the internet. I want to avoid a bad rep for a product due to people expecting miracles. But, as in my scenario, you've done that and you have a similar high mile car it might be worth a try. The car just might need to clean its tubes. Product states to use it 10,000 miles. For my part every two years is enough, which I will be doing. Depends on milage of your car of course. My motor did 130,000 without it. £20 over 2 years is pennies. Hope this helps someone, anyone. I will update the thread if anything changes. Again, also important. Luke

Horrid job. On your back with no access, hours of fighting to get it undone then diesel running down you arm whilst desperately trying not to get it in your eyes. Sounds like a mechanic who knows how difficult it is. I think i'd have said the same answer 'Yeah, Lexus only mate'. YES

I used this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g18DS7tx9d8 When I refitted mine it didn't start. There was an air leak due to the crap metal gasket. I just took it off again and smeared a small amount of exhaust gasket paste on each side of the gasket and refitted. Perfect! That's a magical feature of the 220d, epic turbo lag. They are all the same. You get used to it or learn to drive it accordingly. The gearbox has very long gear ratios. It's surprising how log you can say in one gear before you have to change. Basically, drop a gear when you want the power or stay in a lower gear. Took some getting used to. Cleaning your EGR will help smooth things out so i'd give it a crack, won't do any harm. And it costs nothing, other than some carb cleaner. There are tuning boxes out there too that will smooth things out lag wise. Don't go cheap though. £200+. Will affect insurance of course. Good luck both.

To expand on what Steve has said, yes, a performance diesel isn't Lexus' market. Lexus tried the diesel from 2005-12 with the 220d and then with the 200d from 2010-12. Lexus has been successfully petrol for so many years and they have stopped all diesel cars altogether and focused on hybrids instead as that is where the the market is heading, I suppose, and/or due to some reliability issues with the diesel. Personally I own a 220d, love it and had it about a year with no issues but I have read some horror stories. Get a good one and you're fine, get a bad one and, well... Lexus aren't know for cheap spares. No warranty = no money! Lexus' are generally bombproof and outstanding cars. Even though the diesel range has a bad reputation in terms of Lexus' high standard of reliability, it's still better than the usual road fodder. In answer to your question; your budget will get you a 220d or a 200d, depending on trim level and milage. There was even a IS220/200-F range if you ant some performance. Not sure if that's in your budget through. Could just pimp a standard model like I have for a fraction of the cost. But as Steve said; if you want a Lexus, petrol is what they excel at and it certainly won't disappoint. Don't expect amazing mpg, but refinement, reliability, exclusivity - yes, yes and yes. Any hybrid will be out of budget for you at the moment, but personally, I wouldn't bother.

I've owned my 220d for almost a year now and love it. My first Lexus and I think i'm converted! I bought it to travel to Europe to get married / honeymoon and it was a dream to tour in. 4000 miles without a hiccup. Yes, it does have it's minor niggles - turbo lag/odd gearing and lower than expected urban fuel economy - but on the whole it's great. I know others have had issues with the diesel range but I guess I'm one of the lucky ones and have a 'good egg', so to speak. It already had alloys and a K&N filter when I bought it and since then i've added a CRTD2 tuning box to help with the turbo lag issues: http://www.tdi-tuning.co.uk/car_and_van_diesel_tuning_boxes/lexus/is/is_220d_175_bhp__177_ps__130_kw/lexus_is_220d_175_bhp_177_ps_130_kw_crtd2_diesel_tuning_box_chip_P1522.html Great bit of kit. Thinking of upgrading to the TWIN channel version for additional benefit(s). Plus it gives an great bit of oomph, when you're in the mood. Personally i'm gutted they killed the diesel range. I think given a few more revisions they have been onto a real winner. I've noticed Lexus are hybrid focused now but, in my opinion, they still have a way to go before they are worth buying, regardless of brand. Still, I understand why they have done it - invest in the future of motoring. Guess my next car will be petrol, but still a Lexus!