donkmeister

Thanks for that - I can see they allow generic cables vs the Mongoose / Fap-off one so I'll investigate that and when the time comes dust off my old laptop.

Thanks all. Any reports of people "breaking" anything with a non-genuine jobby? In case that sounds paranoid, I've done that on another car! Once upon a time I had a Vauxhall and there was a spate of cloned diagnostic tools bricking modules due to corrupt files (I broke my stereo, the chap who fixed it had seen people make their cars completely undriveable).

From what I can see on the EPC (and backed up by Amayama), 28800-31500 is the correct battery, so none of those would be correct. Toyota and Lexus OEM batteries are actually labelled as Toyota and carry a Toyota part number regardless of who made them - looks like yours is branded Yuasa. A fine battery manufacturer, but not OEM if it doesn't carry a Toyota part number. If nothing else, asking the dealer for a price (assuming you don't want to do the long drive) you can at least ask for the correct part number and details. ETA speaking of using AGM batteries for anything but cranking, and noting you are a Kiwi and therefore a shed owner and handy (am I wrong? 😁) I used an old 110Ah AGM battery from a Merc, in combination with a small solar panel and controller, to rig up 12V power for lighting in my old shed. Even got a load of 12V tools and accessories like soldering iron, shopvac, USB charger and so on. Lasted years until I got a new workshop and didn't transfer it over.

I've actually found Lexus and Toyota main dealers decently priced for batteries. 28800-31500 is the OEM part number for the LS500h but it isn't showing as available on Amayama (delivery cost of a battery from Japan could be interesting!). Definitely worth a call to your nearest dealership.

Does anyone rent out genuine Techstream? I have Carista, but want to do a full brake flush this summer. I replaced the rear calipers on my LS460 a couple of years ago and the bleeding was a mare as I was having to clear fault codes with every squirt.

I am planning to rent a few hours on a two post lift to do some jobs on one of my other cars. Whilst there I thought I would change the oil on the LS460... Not strictly a ramp job but I've never been a fan of clambering under cars despite never dropping one. Whilst there I thought I would have a good poke about the brakes, steering and suspension to see if anything looks like it should be renewed in the near future. What other jobs would you do whilst you have an LS460 in the air?

For comparison, I averaged 34MPG in the 460 last week on a 120mile run from the south coast. Bit of slow driving through the New Forest and A-roads, motorway cruising between an indicated 80-90 (kph, of course 😜) when conditions allowed, stuck in traffic at various times (M27, M3 and M25). The car was loaded to the gunwales, 3 people in the car, ac blasting as it was 31 degrees, fridge full of cold drinks and bum-coolers doing their business. Not bad for an almost 400bhp, 2 tonne car. (Although a bit more boot space might have been useful!)

Sorry for late response. No idea about the codes I'm afraid, the original remote was still with the car when I bought it.

Be aware that ultrasonic deterrents are not truly ultrasonic... My parents had one that they couldn't hear, but was very unpleasant, nay maddening, to younger ears to the point that I opened it and chopped the power lines out before reassembling. It also drove dogs mental when they walked past, which confused elderly owners who couldn't hear the screech.

Hiya, I've found that eBay is best for items like this, from breakers. With our cars being uncommon you may need to order from overseas. However, if it's any comfort I've ordered parts from Japan, the continent and the US for my Lexus and never had anything go missing. I'd strongly advise checking the part no on the old one and matching this before buying, to avoid the heartache of ordering an incompatible part. In my experience of non-lexus cars, the mirror glass is attached by a little leaf spring that latches over some lugs. You need to get a small thin screwdriver or trim removal tool to flip it up to remove the old glass, then detach an electrical connector or connectors. If you are very lucky you may find "new old stock", but it won't be cheap. I paid £300 for a heated electrochromatic glass for my Merc, for a car that had been out of production for about 8 years. It came from Lithuania, despite being RHD specific.

You can easily check if it has SBC - the pump actually has SBC on the casting, and there's a little pressure sphere (like an old Citroen hydropneumatic sphere) with a warning label ("this has got loads of pressure inside, just don't muck about with it" IIRC) attached. Front driver's side of the engine bay. The SBC Stop mode is a one pedal drive mode that is pretty cool. SBC Hold is essentially the same as Hold on the LS.

I've found eBay a god send for this sort of thing - I've even ordered parts directly from Japanese sellers and the cost/shipping time was better than I expected. I have a vague recollection of engine bay plastic parts for my LS arriving in less than a week.

Which bodystyle is your E-Class? I always thought the E-Class wagon with one of the V8 options was close to perfect as a do-all car. Much as I love my LS460 the boot is smaller than what I really would like... Fortunately I have another car for load lugging but it's not a luxurious V8 waftmobile. Noting that your new Merc is a 2010, thankfully by this point they had dropped the SBC braking system! It's a great system, but as it was new tech and longevity was unclear Bosch took the (understandably) risk averse step of building in a pre-defined life. When I had my pump replaced the quotes varied from £1500 at a good Indy up to £3000 at the dealership. They're good cars, the E-Class of that era - I think they get a lot of flack because of the 90s quality issues and the Daimler-Chrysler merge but TBH that seemed to be more about Chrysler benefiting from Mercedes tech than Mercs being rebadged Chryslers.

Frustrating though it is, sometimes you have to concede these jobs to physical maladies; I have an old back injury that meant I struggled to do much in the way of DIY for a few years (doing wheel bearings would have crippled me for a couple of weeks after). Remember, you're helping to keep someone in a job!

Anything can be retrofitted if you can source the parts and code it in. However, retrofitting power tailgates (to any car, not just Lexus) involves quite a few parts that are different to the non-powered version plus a lot of dismantling and reassembly of the car. What that actual cost would be for your car... One way to work it out is to do a side by side comparison of the EPC to work out which parts are different, you can get the parts costs from a lexus parts desk or your online auction site of choice. Once you add in a couple of days labour for retrofit you may find it more cost effective to trade in against a car with power tailgate from the factory.