Herbie

Sorry it's happened to you Jacs but as Lee says, it's a problem that's reached epidemic proportions. There are plenty of posts about it in the proper RX forum so have a look over there.

That certainly gives the impression that you don't take the time to clear the screen of ice or snow before you drive off.

You're welcome mate, I like to help when I can.

Exactly what I was thinking John!

Mark - I've just sent you a PM regarding this. Herbie

If she has the will to do so, she will. I repair computers for a living and also do some basic computer tuition. One of my customers is a lady of 83 and she's as bright as a button and really looks forward to our tuition sessions. She's a quick learner and loves it. The flip side is a guy of about 45 who really has no interest in computers but thinks he should learn as "everything seems to be on the Internet these days". Consequently he really struggles with the most basic of things. Your friend's fate and future with the car is in her own hands.

RX all day long, but it's your choice.

Putting diesel into a petrol car doesn't usually do much apart from making lots of smoke as it burns. Doing it the other way, petrol into diesel can be quite catastrophic for the diesel engine. Given the above I'm quite surprised that the car actually broke down in the first place, although I suppose it depends on how much petrol was in the tank when she put the diesel in.

I keep the steering lock on and go back in the house while it defrosts and gets nice and warm

Borrow or hire a smoke machine and put it inside the car, then see where the smoke emerges from.

Yes - how to drive a hybrid 😀 First of all, a 58 400h and a 62 450h are very different beasts so I'm not sure you can compare the two. Secondly, the whole idea of a hybrid is to anticipate the road ahead and use gentle braking, so that most of the stopping is done regeneratively and you keep the traction battery charged. The 'normal' hydraulic brakes are really only used in three situations: In an emergency where you have to 'slam on' and brake heavily the system goes straight to hydraulic When slowing down to a stop the system changes from regen to hydraulic at about 3mph if I remember correctly If the traction battery becomes fully charged and can accept no more (on a long descent for instance) the system changes from regen to hydraulic This is why brake discs and pads last much longer on hybrids than on other cars.

This should help:

It should do. When the screen is icy I leave my steering wheel lock in place but fire up the engine so that I can soon defrost the screen without having to use deicer, while I go back in the house to keep warm. I always use the 'auto' function because it's climate control. You set the cabin temp that you want and the car does whatever it has to to keep that temp for you. As the engine heats up the air will start to blast out from the footwell area because hot air rises and this is the quickest way to achieve cabin temp. As Peter said above, check the thermostat for correct operation.

Wow, that's some mileage in 6 years I apologise for doubting you Alex. Ouch!

I don't mean to imply that you're wrong Alex but are you sure it's the traction (hybrid) battery you need and not the ordinary 12V battery? It would be extremely unusual for the traction battery to need complete replacement after just 6 years, hence my question.

This should get you there: https://www.lexus.co.uk/owners/about-my-lexus/manuals/

Yeah, I was wondering why the back of the seat had to come off?

I agree John and was just pointing out that service plans are available as well as just paying per service. As I see it there are only three options here: Just grin and bear it as just part and parcel of owning a car Have servicing done at an independent garage, which will be cheaper but still require the same work to be done at the same intervals Use the car more so that he doesn't feel as aggrieved when he has to have a service done - I can never understand people paying so much money for a luxury car (or any car for that matter) and not using it

Good info but should be pointed out that those prices are individual services. A service plan covering services for two years can be bought, which has its advantages. I paid £1,170 for a 24 month plan which covers three services, 5, 6 and 7 year ones, or if you prefer, 50k, 60k and 70k miles, with 60k being 'the big one'. The main advantage of course, is being able to pay by monthly interest-free installments rather than one big payment.

If you look further up the thread you'll see that the OP bought them from PB Coilovers in Taiwan (via eBay) which are the same ones as Godfrey is selling, so it seems like you've dropped lucky there if you can work out a deal with him.

Do you mean that it opens to its limit and then electrically closes again or do you mean that it just won't stay open and falls back down of its own accord? If the latter, it's probably the gas struts failing. You can get replacements from https://www.sgs-engineering.com/gas-struts

Because it's a hybrid the rear wheels are driven by the electric motor as and when the system thinks they should be, so sometimes FWD, sometimes AWD.

I've never had air suspension so I'll let others with more experience answer your question, but with the eye-wateringly expensive price of spare parts for the system many people convert to traditional coils instead. Have a read of this thread:

Yes, I think you can, subject to the Lexus dealer doing an inspection first.

It's impossible to say because FM broadcast stations don't have a great range, so you may find a free spot but 10 miles down the road it's occupied. If you ever listen to BBC Radio 2 you'll know that when they do a station ident they always say "BBC Radio 2 on 88 to 91 FM." That's because it's a national station but it can't just broadcast on one frequency due to other stations in other areas already occupying parts of that frequency band. In your area it may be on, say, 88.7MHz but 10 miles down the road it could be 89.6MHz.