chris vince

Hi Trev, I cannot help you with your enquiry, only to add that: My discs are past the minimum wear level (MK4 Car also) and I intend to replace them. A while ago I also placed an enquiring post on this site to enlist the experiences of other owners who had replaced their discs and pads, to try to ascertain the best combination OE or pattern parts. Sadly my post attracted no replies other than Chips to reassure me that later Lexus discs have a slower wear rate. I will watch your responses with great interest, and like to urge any other owners who have changed their discs and/or pads to recount their experiences and recomendations as to what combinations work well and more importantly not so well. Regards to all, Chris Vince PS Washer reservoir level indicator repair still holding fast with no false alarms or leaks.

Hi Syd, If it helps. When the cars come from the dealerships they are security programmed with the last 3 digits of the Vin No. very few owners ever bother to personalise the codes, therefore if you get the Vin No. along with the radio, chances are you will be able to unlock it without all of the associated agro, you may even be able to try this before you buy if local. Good luck, Chris Vince

Hi TY, Have you sorted out your level sensor? I also have a '98 and recently have the same warning light showing when the reservoir is full, and remembered reading your posting. I sorted mine out this weekend. To get to the reservoir jack up the near side front and loosen the horizontal flush closing panel in front of the wheel, this also forms part of the wheel arch liner but there is no need to remove it all just enough to get access to the bottle. When you have gained access you will clearly see the reservoir with attached pumps (2 off, seperate ones for windscreen and headlights) and pipes, there is also a round sensor approx 35mm dia with two wires going into it at the very bottom of the bottle, this is the offending level switch. The switch is of the normally open type, eg when the bottle is full no current can pass, on mine the switch had stuck closed wrongly indicating lack of water, quite why this occurred I don't know as it has never run out, so should never have closed. To avoid damaging the seal and causing a leak (due to its age) I decided not to remove the sensor and tapped it lightly, this immediately cured the fault, now I know where it is, if the warning light shows again I will tap the switch in situ without removing the closing panel, however if it happens on a regular basis I will risk it and remove it completely to see if it can be freed off/ cleaned or repaired. Regards, Chris Vince Well it went wrong again, I find this type of fault really irritating so this time I was determined to fix it properly. So for the benefit of any other owners whose washer indicator shows a false light I have a really easy, cheap (almost nothing) repair. Stripping the sensor out was pretty easy, as you can see from the picture access is straightforward once you have partially removed the splash shield, disconnect the wiring, then remove the sensor connector from its holder so that you can completely remove the entire sensor to work on, it is held in place by a flange in the rubber seal only, to remove it just ease it out of the recess leaving the seal in place. The sensor works using a fixed magnetic switch (see the photo) it is surrounded by a tiny ring magnet in a float, it is this float that fails, they absorb water get heavy and trip the switch. I cured mine by force drying it. Gently heating it with a hot air gun then blowing it through with an airline, repeating this process several times (although I think natural air drying will achieve the same if you have the time), once I was sure that it was dry and very clean I coated it with very thinned (to ensure the varnish was sucked into the porous holes as the previously heated float cooled) polyurethane varnish, again drying it with the hot air gun, the next coat was slightly less thinned and so on until I had given it about 6 coats the last being neat. I left it overnight and tested it in the morning, although the buoyancy was better I was unhappy with it so made a ring float of polystyrene about the same diameter and 5mm thick making the central hole with a hot 4" wire nail, I then made sure the original float was perfectly dry and gave it another neat coat of varnish whilst it was still wet I stuck the polystyrene 'float' on top of the original one, when it was dry I tested it again, the result was perfect. I reinstalled the modified sensor back in the car to date there have been no more false indications. Regards, Chris Vince

Hi Noel, No inference intended at all connecting you with the Ebay item, I'm sure it wasn't this seller I dealt with, it was in my early days of Lexus ownership. Being horrified at the price of a Lexus climate control unit, I filled in one of the multitude of online spare part request forms, and found a breaker that had one, my problems started when they sacked the bloke I had dealt with (or so they said) and then denied that he would have confirmed it was a servicable part. I do clearly recall a thread running here, where another owners-club member had had a bad experience through ebay, several others joined in recounting similar unsatisfactory deals. The point I was trying to make, is that it is all too easy to dispense with our normal checks when we come across, or are offerred something we think is a bargain! Best regards, Chris Vince

Hi John, A very simple quick cure, I'll swop you for my '98 400! I expect not to hear. Best regards, hope you get it sorted. Chris Vince

Fellow owners, Be very careful, there is a thread going on this site about an Ebay seller breaking Lexus cars, where others have paid for defective or worn out items, in some cases they have paid but nothing ever arrived! I got caught once many years ago and bought a climate control unit for a MK2 LS400, due to the usual problem of the screen blackening, I was assurred it was perfect, when it arrived it was worse than useless! So I used it to practice on, learning how to replace Mk2 LCD screens before attempting the job in my own unit. My advice is to scrutinise sellers feedback ratings before dealing, or place a question here, enlisting the experiences of other owners who may have already dealt with them, before parting with what could be a serious amount of cash. Good hunting, Chris Vince

Pops, If your Lambda sensors are suspect this may help. I have just changed them on my wifes Voyager, Chrysler ones £98 each. I bought a Lambda sensor tester £4-95 off Ebay, this confirmed one had failed. I then bought 2 universal NTK (NGK) ones (they all measure Lambda 02 content at 1.0) off www.lambdasensor.com for £24-95 each, they come complete with shrink tubing to make the spicling of the original connections weatherproof. Excellent service, products and prompt delivery, the site is also an excellent source for general swotting up on sensor info. I hope this helps. Chris Vince

Hi TY, Have you sorted out your level sensor? I also have a '98 and recently have the same warning light showing when the reservoir is full, and remembered reading your posting. I sorted mine out this weekend. To get to the reservoir jack up the near side front and loosen the horizontal flush closing panel in front of the wheel, this also forms part of the wheel arch liner but there is no need to remove it all just enough to get access to the bottle. When you have gained access you will clearly see the reservoir with attached pumps (2 off, seperate ones for windscreen and headlights) and pipes, there is also a round sensor approx 35mm dia with two wires going into it at the very bottom of the bottle, this is the offending level switch. The switch is of the normally open type, eg when the bottle is full no current can pass, on mine the switch had stuck closed wrongly indicating lack of water, quite why this occurred I don't know as it has never run out, so should never have closed. To avoid damaging the seal and causing a leak (due to its age) I decided not to remove the sensor and tapped it lightly, this immediately cured the fault, now I know where it is, if the warning light shows again I will tap the switch in situ without removing the closing panel, however if it happens on a regular basis I will risk it and remove it completely to see if it can be freed off/ cleaned or repaired. Regards, Chris Vince

Chaps, I placed a similar thread a short while ago, I have the same problem on a MK4 LS, I have tried the switch on the knee role, even taken it out and placed a multimeter across it to make sure it was switching (it is). I suspected this may be a problem calling for a dealer code input solution, can anybody confirm this as fact, I know there are other owners with the same problem. Regards, Chris Vince

It sounds as though a previous owner has inputted a security code as previously mentioned. From the factory the radio codes are usually the last numbers of the VIN, so I would try this first on the sat nav. If this fails you may have to trace previous owners or get the present code read, but this is an Aotusound, Lexus or other specialists' job. Good luck Chris Vince

Unless the aerial stops very short on FM don't worry, they are designed like this, they sense the incoming signal and self reguilate their length to ensure best reception. Regards Chris Vince

Syd, Whilst replacing the climate control LCD's I have removed a couple of dozen center vents and cannot believe that the drivers side vents are totally dissimilar. To remove the center ones direct the air flow fully downwards, then with finger tips on the revealed ledge wriggle the entire unit back and forth side to side etc, the unit is held in with spring clips only, no screws at all, once the clips are past there holding point the unit will slide out, I cannot guarantee that the side ones are the same, but it would make sense. Regards, Chris Vince

Hang on - I looked up the LS 430 on the DVLA website after the changes were posted yesterday - it is in band F not G as far as I could see - ie Toyota have produced a 4.3 litre engine with better emissions than a 4x4 (as you would expect) so it is in the rate below the new £210 - correct me if I am wrong please i am just about to tax!. I have just had another look at the DVLA site and they still list the CO2 emissions of a LS430 as 270Gms per Km. this puts it in the new G band, but now they qualify this as applicable only to cars registered on or after 23rd March 2006. Chris Vince

In my experience if the car is properly set up, alignment, pressures etc, and the car is driven properly ie used but not thrashed, the rear tyres wear fastest. Therefore personally, I would put the new ones on the rear, let them wear naturally together and they should all need replacing later as a set, but you as the present owner will get the best benefit from them. Regards, Chris Vince

Hi All, Have you seen the budget yet? New rate of road tax announced for big cars band G, those that produce more than 225 gms of CO2 per Km its going to cost £210 per year, only affecting cars registed after 2001 (LS430's etc). For the rest of us LS owners we have got to find another fiver i.e. £175. Still its worth it! Regards, Chris Vince

Hi Chris, Give Colin at Powerhouse in Camberley a ring, they are Lexus / Toyota independent specialists and have been for a number of years now, you should also be able to get heavily discounted independently supplied parts. Regards, Chris Vince

I tried More Than last year, ended up talking to a very nice Indian lady, it all went wrong when we got to the security device section, she wanted the make and model of the immobiliser/alarm, I told her it was a factory fitted standard system. I then spent the next spent 40 plus minutes on the phone arguing with her that there was no security device make or model it was a Lexus system. I had to curtail the quote when her supervisor told me to take the car to a Lexus main dealer get them to identify their alarm then ask for the part numbers, and phone back to complete the quote!! One of the problems I have encountered with insurance, phone, and other companies going 'abroad' with their call centres, is that once you veer off of the standard response answer sheet the handlers have in front of them the conversation rapidly goes to rat s**t. Regards, Chris Vince

Funnily enough I am also with NU, this year I completed their website questionaire for an on-line quote, because I did this online it meant an automatic 10% reduction on their online prices which are cheaper than their direct line prices, they were also running a 14 months cover for the price of 12 offer. Armed with this quote I contacted their direct line dept and demanded equality with the online quote, and threatened if not, I would be offski. Guess what, I got the online deal. When my lads Corsa insurance was due also with NU, I used the same ploy again. I never used the shop around or haggle for insurance but now do so all the time I find it easier over the phone, not having to look at their disapproving faces. Regards, Chris Vince

I believe its because on the new computerised MOT system they need to record the engine code and Vin No. But as always I may be wrong. Regards, Chris Vince

Hi Chris, Even though their have only been five responses to my original enquiry we have already identified three Mk4's with the same problem. I wonder if there is a factory setting or code that turns them off, but I am sure someone wiser than us will be along soon with an answer. Regards, Chris V

Following Boyles Law a little further if the outside temperature was -273C ( absolute zero) the volume of a gas becomes zero does this mean that you wouldn't be able open the bonnet to start with nevermind make sure it stays open? You wouldn't catch me outside in weather like that!! Regards, Chris

Ah, That will be Boyles law then: In the mid 1600's, Robert Boyle studied the relationship between the pressure p and the volume V of a confined gas held at a constant temperature. Boyle observed that the product of the pressure and volume are observed to be nearly constant. The product of pressure and volume is exactly a constant for an ideal gas. p * V = constant The key to the answer being constant temperature. Nearly time to go home then! Regards Chris Vince (I'm going honest)

Hi Chris, No, I've had this one coming up to a year now, and it has never chirped, although everything else, alarm and immobiliser work fine. The owners handbook clearly says that the aforementioned push button will turn off the bleep, I've tried it in both positions but can't get the noise back. I have searched but can't find any other switches or loose wires, and was wondering whether any other owners have had a similar problem and found the cure. Its only a small anoyance, but these days we need all the reassurance going to ensure we lock up our possessions. Regards, Chris Vince

Hi Maneesh, I seem to remember it did turn to alter the volume on my '93, but not on this one, its either in or out there is no rotation on the switch at all. Thanks anyway for for your thoughts. Regards, Chris

Dear All, I have looked through previous posts for this problem without success so, I wonder if someone can help me with this? I know its petty but if it has it , it has to work! I have a 1998 LS 400 Mk4, when locking the car and setting the alarm using the original fob key, all works OK, exept the car will not acknowledge the actions with a chirping noise as it says in the owners manual. I have tried operating the push button switch under the steering wheel on the knee roll, in both positions but it is totally silent in both. As Lloyd Grosman says in 'Through the Keyhole' "Over to you". Many thanks for your thoughts. Chris Vince