Steven Lockey

Oh, if anyone knows a good lexus indy closer to Guildford than Japex in watford, let me know 😉 Thanks

So long as its clear its from the users not LOC itself, they would have no liability. And to be honest, if someone is running a business, well you put up with whoever comes through the door really. No more likely to get 'those people' here than coming in from finding him on Google. And good indies are a national treasure, I always try to find a good one but it can be hard, the more people we can encourage to use them, the more we get. The problem is the bad indys....

Its 2 hydrogen atoms per oxygen atom. however in terms off mass, thats actually 8 times as much Oxygen (atomic mass 16 for the most common isotope) vs an atomic mass of 1 for hydrogen. Problem with hydrogen is energy density. Unless you compress it, you need a massive balloon on top of your car to get 100 mile range. If you do compress it, you can get pretty good range, but its a bit risky cos if that hydrogen tank gets punctured or say doesn't get wall maintained and goes rusty..... its basically a fuel-air bomb waiting to happen.

Sounds like you've got an idea of what you need to do. Only thing I'd say is if you aren't doing a full re-condition and testing the batteries at max draw, you'll probably find you are in the same situation in a few months and have to do it all over again. Its unfortunately nearly impossible to tell if a cell is about to go like this as they often only show any sort of performance drop right before they are about to start having issues. Its just if you have two cells failing, there are likely a couple more just waiting to go. A full recondition helps to prevent this. It uses several techniques to try to remove the crystal layer that forms on the anode of batteries To be honest, as you've done most of the work already, I'd be tempted to see if there are any hybrid shops near you that have a reconditioning machine and see if they will run your cells through it cheap since the disassembly and reassembly is a good chunk of the work. And I agree, its not to difficult, the only issue is that literally one mistake and you are dead when dealing with high voltage dc, so please be very careful when you are linking the cells back together.

lol, as a programmer this sounds like a classic case of 'uncaught error' syndrome. So to explain, you have to remember quite how dumb computers are. They know nothing and investigate nothing. The AV equipment throws an error, however most likely that error was never expected to be thrown so it wasn't included in the error spec that the main hybrid system picks up. The hybrid computer basically receives an error that isn't in it's list of known errors. It's got no idea where the error came from or what has caused it. So what you've got is basically the Lexus version of "Something went wrong" generic error message. Generally this advises an immediate shutdown like this just in case its something really serious. As for the other options suggested here, for various reasons I'd say they are unlikely. Viruses are OS reliant, the system the lexus AV uses is too niche to try and hack and doesn't give you any access worth anything. Most you can do is shut the car down by sending errors. The battery voltage suggestion doesn't make much sense if you were able to restart simply by unplugging the USB. Most likely here was as soon as you restarted it was trying to read the song off the USB if it was plugged in and regenerating the exact same error. The power draw from reading a USB is extremely minimal.

I believe someone linked somewhere on this forum that you could get the shocks for £250 each, far cheaper than the lexus price.

Its not quite that simple. A battery is build from cells. So long as the capabilities of the battery in total are sufficient then they will be compatible. I'm assuming you have a hybrid battery in the car currently. So, you basically have 3 options: 1> Get the battery reconditioned - this will likely involve replacing some dead cells. The replacement cells will want to be of the same type as otherwise it can create an imbalance in the battery. All the cells in the battery should have the same spec. This is more than just discharging/recharging them I believe it needs a specialised unit to do. 2> Replace the cells - You can have all the cells replaced, in which case any set of cells which meet the requirements of the car will do, just all cells need to be of the same type 3> Replace the entire battery - Basically the same as #2 but replaces bit surrounding the cells as well. Overkill IMHO. There's no reason you can't use different spec cells in a battery, but its not ideal as the differing internal resistances of the batteries, how quickly they might lose power e.t.c. will all vary, from what I understand is makes the cells more likely to burn out faster in the future when an imbalance occurs. Personally I'd advise giving www.hybridbatterysolutions.co.uk a email. I had the cells replaced for the hybatt ones he does and they have been perfect so far. Still got the box of old cells sitting next to me waiting for the lockdown to end so I can sell em! 🙂 Cost 2.2k for a completely new battery with 3 year warranty all included. While been in CA he probably can't help you directly, hes a nice guy and can give really good advice. I've seen a few US companies offering a similiar service. Honest truth is, messing around the hybrid batteries is dangerous, I used to work as an electronic engineer and I still backed off at it, so if you aren't 100% sure you know what you are doing, I'd strong advise getting an expert to look at it for you. High voltage DC is dangerous and unlike AC, if it shocks you, you tend to clamp down on it instead of been thrown away, meaning its far more likely to kill you. Saving a bit of cash isn't worth risking your life over.

Thanks, I have two pairs so am using them but don't always want to wear them. Oh well. Thanks anyway.

Hey, I was just noticing as I was driving in bright sunlight or under some street lights, I get a really annoying reflection of the top of the dashboard on my windscreen. Never had it as bad as this in any other car before, probably because its rather flat and quite shiny. Does anyone know of a way to reduce/prevent this effect? I've cleaned the window but it hasn't seemed to help much. Thanks

I don't know specifically for these battery cells, but in most cases if the cells start to swell at ALL they are bad and in the worst cases can be dangerous. I know I have a bad cell that did the same, I've actually got all the cells from the original battery sitting in 2 boxes next to me at the moment and one shows signs of swelling like that. From what I understand, balancing the cells is unlikely to do more than buy you another few months before the error pops up again at best. Really you will want to get it fully reconditioned and each cell will need a full deep charge/discharge cycle before you have any real idea if any of the cells are good or bad. I'd strongly recommend Hybrid battery solutions: http://www.hybridbatterysolutions.co.uk/ He'll be able to give you far more expert advice than anyone here.

Note sure about your advice aka the gloves. While viruses will be killed by detol, the detol is going to sink into the fabric. The virus particles will sit on the outside of the fabric meaning they will likely have no exposure to it. Also constant skin exposure to detol is not a good idea.

Thanks for all the help and advice everyone, much appreciated! Richard fitted my new battery today and it drove back down to London beautifully. Much better than on the way up, where it cut out 4 times on the drive, including once when I was overtaking a lorry (scary as hell!) So much nicer now its not doing that. I was mildly satisfied with how the car was performing before, but its like a completely different animal with the new battery, the accelerator is much more responsive and it handles cruising on the motorway far better AND I got nearly 40mpg on the way home, up from ~27 previously! Strongly recommend Richard at hybrid battery solutions to anyone who has any issues with their hybrid batteries.

Why does that matter? Unless you are daisy chaining extensions, then just keep both ends in the dry, you can dip the cable in all the water you want unless its full of holes in the insulator! (in which case throw the damm thing away and get a new one anyway)

I believe this is reduced if the car is over a certain age or mileage. With mine he advised he could only give 6 months on a reconditioned battery and advised me to purchase a replacement. While it costs around 2k for a new battery, you've got 2-3 years warranty on it and you can sell the old battery as there are still likely a lot of good cells in there. Maybe less for your's since it has already been reconditioned once.

In snaps of cold weather like we've just had, batteries can go really quickly if they aren't used now and again.

Thanks for replying! That sounds almost exactly the same except I can restart mine straight away and it generally lasts a lot more than 5 minutes, so sounds like your's was just in a worse state than mine is. That reassures me alot! Already got a replacement battery on order from Richard at Hybrid battery solutions from the recommendations here, will put the old battery on E-bay for people to buy, so should reclaim a lot of money from the new battery that way. I would guess the majority of the 80 cells in it are probably fine and can be reconditioned by the various companies with the equipment to do it properly. Just waiting for the slow boat from china with the new battery now! 🙂

Hah, wonder if this will work on self-driving cars! Will have to have some '2' and '200' speed limit signs made up to really irritate people! 😉

I had something similar in my last car. Quite often the rubber of the window seal has perished a bit and when you are going above a certain speed, it forces a gap in it open creating the whistle. Try rubbing some vaseline into the inside of the window seals and seeing if it stops the whistle. If it does, thats your problem, you can either replace the seals or just keep topping up the vaseline every 6 months or so.

I've really noticed it but I've come from much smaller cars. Had a Citreon Saxo 1l and a Rover 25 previous, which have relatively high sides and low weight. By comparison I barely notice crosswinds, even on known spots in bad weather. I do remember in the Citreon, I was doing about 80mph during a gale, hit the top of the hill where it was exposed to cross-winds and bang, before I knew it I had switched lanes without turning the wheel. Scared the crap out of me!

Just had a check, seem to be two ways to check if you car supports this: 1> On the car, go to the audio page. If there is a 'BT Auto Connection' or similar button there, your car is compatible. 2> On your phone, when paired with the car, in the bluetooth menu, select the car, then view services. If it has a hands-free or similar service only then it doesn't do music. If its music compatible, you should see two audio services available, one for music and one for calls. I did check on mine and only saw the one service and it looks to be quite close to your's.

Hi Nicky, Just to confirm, it did the exact same thing including cutting out while driving it? If thats the case, you've just made me very happy since a replacement battery will solve it and I'll have a very lovely fully working car!!! Please do post the video link, I'm going to take the back off this weekend so it would be very useful if you could post the video so I can can see how to do it right. Thanks Steven Lockey

I believe the 07 only has Bluetooth 2. Bluetooth 3 is required for a full audio/music connection. You can in theory play music over a Bluetooth 2 connection but well, it'd sound worse than radio as really it only supports enough bandwidth for calls, much lower sound quality than you would want for music. You used to be able to get apps on Android phones that would allow you to trick the bluetooth into playing music over the call, but the quality was poor and you can't skip tracks e.t.c. Only way I've found to pipe music into my 07 GS450H is to use a 'fake tape' which has a 2.5mm audio jack, so you tell the car to play the tape and plug the audio jack into your phone. Unfortunately the sound quality generally isn't the best. Easiest to just burn yourself a MP3 CD of music. Can fit over 100 tracks on one CD so its not too bad. I haven't been able to get a MP3 DVD working yet myself.

@OldTrout Yep, already took that advice, just waiting for the new battery to arrive so he can fit it. I was going to get the old battery reconditioned and I discussed this and this problem with him and he advised he thought the old battery was likely pretty far gone and needed replacing. Saw quite a few people recommending him here which was why I decided to go with him. I'm just a bit worried about getting the car to him with having to go round the M25 and it shutting down. Fingers crossed cleaning the vents might help!

Thats really useful, I wasn't sure if you needed to go via the back seat or the shelf in the GS450h, I've not been able to find a decent guide for cleaning it anywhere. I guess to clean the actual parcel shelf bit itself you've basically got to remove the whole array from the top of the battery? I can hear my fans going like crazy whenever this happens, even when the engine is running.

Cos I had never heard of the warranty going over 100k miles before and was only informed about it what two hours ago while I was at work....... Am also fairly sure the previous owner didn't have the health checks done but might be wrong so I will check. This is something I am thinking of doing, but having looked into it they don't actually do much you can't do yourself with an OBD to USB cable and the free software from Lexus. The load test is the main thing and I already know it will fail that as the battery is clearly on the way out anyway. I'm not a mechanic but I was an electronic engineer so I've got a pretty good idea about how electronics work! I wish I was a mechanic! And define 'tested'. Most of the 'tests' done other than on the battery are just reading the sensor codes. The reason I am asking is to see if there are any other likely problems that might be causing the car to shut down like this that aren't battery related but so far all the things people have suggested, well it would be very surprising if they were the cause of the issue. The thing is, this car has so many sensors, the common errors should all generate error codes. Am I very much hoping its the battery, yes 100%. Am I saying that is the only possibility.... no of course not otherwise why would I be posting here asking about it! Please don't misrepresent me. 1> I didn't claim to be experienced at any point 2> Where did that come from? I don't have X-ray vision to work out what bolts are connected to what through the seats do I? I am more than capable of unscrewing them, I just asked if there was an easy way to get to them as I've not been able to find a decent guide to removing them and don't want to accidentally unscrew the wrong thing...... Its called been careful as the last thing I want to do is cause more problems. 3> How am I not listening? People have made suggestions and I replied with my it doesn't match what I'm seeing. I haven't at any point said this isn't the problem, I've just said it doesn't match what normally happens in this scenario based on what other people on this forum have said when describing their problems..... There have been many good suggestions that I'm very appreciative that people made, but that doesn't meant they are right.....