Jaystar77

A damaged wiring loom would explain a lot of that. How damaged was it and how was it repaired?

Mechanical failure is probably covered but if they have just rusted out they could class it as an external influence. Depends on how the policy is worded and how the claim is presented. Worth a shot at any rate!

Yeah the Harrier is the Toyota branded RX, it was present for all generations right from the start. There's plenty of deviation in the model specifications and trim levels (there's 2WD and 2.4 petrol engines for example) but for the most part the mechanicals are similar. I deal with a lot of JDM stuff and have brought in a few brochures and magazines from Japan featuring them as I found it all rather interesting : Not your average RX driver.. Lots of options Gen1 Harrier Concept images :

Betterment? Are they expecting to fit a used part instead or something? Nothing amazes me with insurance companies but that just sounds completely wrong. Fight it best you can and let us know how it all pans out Ian. Wishing you luck 👍

One of my friends (he did a lot of importing back in the hey day) was heavily into MX5's and he brought one of those in for himself. Really nice spec but it didn't last long until he decided to supercharge it. Thing was a weapon after that! They were rare back then so a good one must be worth a few dollars nowadays. Would still rather have ECTO-1 though 😄

Really love the look of this, refreshing to see something out of the ordinary!

Had a bit of fun with a rear water leak on my RX350 a while back, few pics here : Clicky Might be worth checking those seams just in case. Only thing is I had no water in the front so it might not be your issue. Happy hunting and keep us posted on progress!

Depending on the type of system fitted the cardboard boxes thing might not work. Top gear tried it with a VW last season. Because the VW camera is looking for the shape of a person it doesn't register a pile of boxes (or apparently someone on a bicycle as the shape is different). I don't know how the Lexus system handles matters though?

Yeah, I'm on traders too. Makes things a lot easier to modify!

I'm afraid that shipping costs have scuppered any plans to add skirts or splitters to mine. If you look for Toyota Harrier you might have better luck, Toyota in Japan offered quite a few factory options so would be more plentiful than RX options. Occasionally the odd secondhand part makes it's way across so you might get lucky. Obviously not to everyone's taste but still! (Check out the TRD boy racer bits on the last pic 🤩)

These have aged really well, I'm the same as Jon and didn't like them at all in their early days. Totally dig them now. Health to drive!

In the past I've been guilty of ripping them off completely (for example handbrake cables on a Glanza are hidden by them) but the proper thing to do is secure it back up. In all honesty I don't think they have to handle much heat on older vehicles. Basically just a sheet of pressed aluminum to deflect exhaust heat downwards.

If it's a tinny rattle noise it could just be a heat shield has moved a bit and is touching the exhaust. It's happened on my RX300 and I just dealt with the same thing on a Rav4 this morning.

Here's an interesting comparison on oil filters (not entirely on topic but still is worth a read) that shows the bits we can't normally see: https://www.spyderchat.com/threads/oil-filter-exposed.27947/ Goes to show that whilst some items can look the same it's not always the case. I'd usually stick to genuine Toyota oil filters unless I'm running an engine in. Can remember using Blueprint ones for a while until I found one with a bit of metal in it - who or whatever tapped the thread on it hadn't done it neatly!

I'm not used to being right, double check those numbers just in case! 😄

As Day says they are both quite handy to change. Certainly well within the reach of an enthusiastic DIY'er. I've used genuine and non-genuine in the past and whilst I prefer to keep it all OEM (it just makes me feel like I'm doing it right) I've never had any issues with the 'lesser' alternatives. Don't get me wrong it's much more sensible to stick to genuine parts when fitment and quality are a worry, like body panels or trims for example, but for simple filters it should be grand. Near sure the 2AZ-FE shares these bits with the 1MZ so you should be okay on that front?

I had a similar issue with mine a few years back but it was the front straight pipe before the Y-section that was leaking. Ended up using this site (everyone bookmark it for future reference) to find the part number and bought eBay's cheapest version at the time: http://www.japan-parts.eu/lexus/eu/2002/rx300/mcu15r-awpgkw/3_521210_002_/tool-engine-fuel/1702_exhaust-pipe Looks like 17410-20410 is the one you are describing and it's mega money due to the incorporated catalytic convertor. Weighs in at just under £600 even via Amayama. I'd be looking at either a secondhand one from a breaker or going the custom route with a fabricator to make a whole system for that kind of money. Hope that helps, Jay

Browsing the auctions and spotted this, wasn't aware the gen2 RX (okay, okay Harrier..) had a roof like this. Did it ever make the jump across to UK models? Looks very trick indeed:

I got lucky with black and black interior, the cream upholstery doesn't age well IMO. Really like the dark grey and dark blue in them. Silver would hide a lot of the scratches and swirls that black really doesn't!

Just to clarify, is this hose for the oil cooler or is it the pipe that feeds oil to the camshafts? (I have a similar weep on my 350 and it is the latter).

You could find (as I did!) that a front brake caliper is either stuck in position due to seized sliding pins (fairly easy to sort) or the main piston is sticking (brake fluid bloody everywhere). This will cause the brakes to behave differently on each side. Generally if there's no indication of irregular wear on the old discs and pads a mechanic wouldn't dig into it too much. They should have checked the rubber boots for rips and tears though, and noted how easily the pistons and sliders moved when wound back into the calipers. Toyota/Lexus calipers have always been a weak spot for me TBF. I've done three of four on my RX350. And both fronts on my mum's Rav4. And two rears on my track starlet. And two fronts on my RX300. And one front on my grans starlet. And two on my last MR2. Oh and the starlet before that I needed three. The list goes on!

That pipe that Graham mentions is weeping slightly on mine, I bought a genuine one Lexus (circa £75) via Amayama and am just waiting on the opportunity to replace it. Oh and yes, it's a chain on the 2GR engine so you shouldn't need to worry about it.

What condition are the front brake calipers in Tom?

Oh yes. The tax. Probably best not to mention that bit till it's too late 😄

Welcome aboard, I can only offer what odds and ends I've picked up during ownership but it might help. Alongside the usual checks for service history / tyres / crash damage / etc / etc have a good look round the interior and sniff for water ingress. That was one of the things we've seen a few times on these pages. The body seams aren't great around the tailgate from what I've seen. Mine needed a few lines of sealant to sort a trickle into the boot and a few of the tail lamp gaskets could do with replacement. The 2GR can suffer from an oil leak at the back of the engine. There's a pipe that feeds oil up to the cams that can perish and you get a trickle of oil down the engine as a result. Mine is actually suffering a bit of mist from it and will need addressed. Pipe is around £100 plus some curse words if I remember right. I've had a few worn out bushes in the rear DS hub as well. They are a big heavy bus so you'd expect that sort of thing. Handbrake is rarely used so make sure the cables haven't seized in the off position. Other than that it's just the basic maintenance that you would expect (a lot of the above is probably in this category for a 13 year old car anyway). Oh and fuel. Lots of fuel. But that being said I'm loving it, in no rush to drive anything else!