MUDGUTS

Thanks Colin, The service manager couldn't offer much of an explanation other than "it doesn't get changed". Such a shame that these days we're so isolated from the guys that work on our cars. I did get a good deal of a major service which included spark plug replacement, engine and inverter coolant replacement for £825. I wanted to get as much as I could done at the time and I intend to run this car right up to 250k if possible (currently at 154k), hence the query over diff oil.

Oddly enough my GS 300 was finished off when the diff failed. I heard a massive bang from the rear and assumed I had driven over a brick or something but the diff continued to make some noise and it was obvious that something inside had broken. When I had my RX 450h in for a major service at Lexus, they did not change the diff oil.

I asked Lexus Coventry yesterday re discount and they said they don't offer this any more.

Update; The car has been into Lexus Coventry for a service and the Tech has secured the heat shield in one place with a larger nut/bolt. By the looks of it this has been screwed into the hole where the original stud or bolt was.

Hi all, I have recently bought a 2009 RX 450h. The heat shield over the rear exhaust box was loose. As I have read on various forums the aluminium heat shield corrodes where it meets the steel bolts. I read somewhere a chap fitted a large washer onto the existing bolt to hold it in place but this is not an option for me as both nuts are totally rusted on. I have secured the heat shield with strong wire as a temporary/permanent fix. Has anyone else had a similar issue and if so how did they fix this? Has anyone removed the heat shield totally? If so did they encounter any issues? Any advice gratefully received. Thanks.

Thanks very much Linas. I had forgotten about that method. It’s a shame because I really don’t like using jacks and stands. Even ramps I find fairly unpleasant and my drive is all gravel so it all points to being a PITA. I have to do this with my 5 series and I hate it. It’s probably going to mean services at a garage or at least oil changes. Either that or I’ll replace my BMW with an RX so I can service it myself.

Hi Folks, I would appreciate any advice on the feasibility of an oil change on a GS 250 WITHOUT raising it on jacks/ramps etc. Is it possible to get to the drain plug and the oil filter etc? Thanks as always.

Hi, I have a very similar problem on my Wife’s 06 RX 300. I had the AC re gassed last summer and the guy who did this noted that we could only get cool air from the left hand (passenger side) vent. I can live with this but after a week or so the AC was not producing cool air. I guess it has a leak. Took the car into an independent yesterday and today he has advised the Compressor is faulty and needs to be replaced. Unfortunately Lexus have discontinued this part. The guy at Lexus parts reckoned this isn’t a common part to fail and an aftermarket of pattern replacement could be around £400 plus so I really need to know this is the most cost effective way of fixing this. The issue with the air only coming from one side is something I can live with as long as the AC actually works, however if there is a way to diagnose and a possible fix for this I would be interested. Thanks for any advice offered.

Thanks for the input folks. I’ve switched the search to the IS300h now. Really I would want a GS or LS for my commute but can’t justify it so the IS would be a sensible compromise. I’ve done a bit of research and as with the CT and people here have a advised, a change of driving style will be necessary. Thanks again.

Thanks folks. I went to have a look at a CT200h ‘Advance Plus’ today at Lexus Teesside. Whilst it looked great, I’m not sure the drive would suit me, doing 25,000 miles per year. ...Having said that, the low running costs would have probably lead me to try and I was on the verge of making an offer when I discovered the service history had a massive 30,000 mile gap! Apparently this is acceptable even for an approved used Lexus. How can this be? There was a service at 10k, 20k then the next was very recently, I guess when it was taken in at 49k I’m going to keep an eye on the market and will keep you all informed.

Thanks everyone, I’m looking around now for a post 2014 model as I understand the ride is better. I’m slightly concerned about the performance and road noise but I guess I’ll get over it. Gone are the days when I could sit in my LS or GS at a ton plus - I just can’t afford to lose my license now. Will keep you all posted.

Hi, I’m looking for some advice on changing to a CT 200 H from my e60 530i M Sport. Previously I’ve had LS 400, GS 300 etc. My Wife has an RX 300. Most of my miles now are motorway. My normal commute is 120-200 miles each way 3-4 times a month at least which are 95% motorway. I’m getting 29-30 mpg from my BMW and I’m doing 25,000 a year. Realistically, can I do this? I would be buying an approved Lexus and probably only want to spend £12k maximum. I’ve had it with traders so this is the way I have to go. I understand I’ll miss the poke I have now but there’s not really much motorway left now where I can make significant progress. All advice gratefully received.

Hi, I'm looking for a decent and trustworthy, recommendation for some suspension work on my GS 300. I'll need an MOT retest afterwards. Thanks very much in advance.

Thanks Gents. I'll have a look underneath to see if I can swap those post cat sensors. I replaced both the pre cat sensors last year as the heaters in each had failed. From what I have read, changing the post cat sensors is a bit of a pain unless I can just cut the old wires and wire the new one in. What is odd is that I'm going up to 1500 miles at times without a fault code then it comes on several times a week. The only pattern I can see is that when I'm using the car for longer (150 mile) runs the code isn't so regular but as soon as I'm using the car for running around town, after a day or so the code appears.

Hi, This fault code (P0430 Catalyst System Efficiency Below Threshold Bank 2) has been coming up on my 2004 GS300 for nearly 6 Months / 8 thousand miles. I'm getting consistently good mpg (27-30) and the car went through its MOT after the code first came up, obviously passing its emissions part of the test. Sometimes I can go 1500 miles between it coming on, sometimes only 50 miles My fault code reader allows me to reset the MIL which I do each time it comes up and also read the Freeze Frame Data which is below. DCTFRZF P0430 FUELSYS1 CL FUELSYS2 CL LOAD_PCT (%) 71.4 ETC (F) 189 SHRTFT1 (%) 3.1 LONGFT1 (%) -3.1 SHRTFT2 (%) 0.8 LONGFT2 (%) -1.6 RPM (/min) 1704 VSS (mph) 46 IAT (F) 52 I'm interested in a decoding of the info above if anyone can help.

Thanks, I managed to get one from an IS. After some slight modifications it fits perfectly. What's more, the replacement filter (it came with a hardly used one) seems to be cheaper than a GS filter. Marked Toyota BTW.

Update: This fault has been on & off at various times over the last 4 months. I can do up to 2000 miles between it coming on. Each time I just reset the EML. I noticed recently that it was not possible to reset but after a little drive and I assume once the ATF has warmed, a reset was possible. Also if you put the car into manual mode, the 'M' flashes and the car won't shift. ...so I'm just going to live with it

Hi, I'm trying to source the plastic tray that holds the Pollen Filter for a 2004 GS 300. It's probably the same on most Lexus cars of that era. I've emailed a couple of breakers in the past & today but with little success. So I'm looking for any reliable leads folk have. Thanks in advance.

This subject comes up every year. Every motoring website has a similar thread. I have seen lots of overpriced screen wash for sale everywhere from Halfords to Tesco & various filling stations. The only ready-mixed screen wash that seems to be good value is the stuff from Lidl: If you can get it. Alternatively you can mix your own. The information below will hopefully help those who are prepared to help themselves. I have read over & over again that German screen wash products are very good, so thats either the ready-mixed type in small bottles from Porsche or VAG or the concentrated type that has a vessel at the top to measure the required quantity. Two appear to be very good value: Sonax Einszett Kristallklar Either product works out about 30 pence per litre when mixed with water which is fine for summer use. When it comes to winter, all you have to do, when you mix up a load in your 5 litre container, is add some Ethanol / IPA / Isopropyl Alcohol / Isopropanol (Chemists will explain the difference, Im pretty sure for the purpose of screen wash they are all fine). See below for suitable concentrations. I got mine from eBay & it worked out about £2.50 per litre, so even at 40% concentration, when combined with Sonax Clear View or Einszett Kristall Klar its around £1.30 per Litre. That would be good down to -23 oC 10% Ethanol = Freezing point of -4 oC 20% Ethanol = Freezing point of -9 oC 30% Ethanol = Freezing point of -15 oC 40% Ethanol = Freezing point of -23 oC 50% Ethanol = Freezing point of -32 oC 60% Ethanol = Freezing point of -37 oC I hope this info helps folk avoid paying excessive amounts for that blue water.

EML was on again this morning, once I was out of the drive I had a go at selecting gears manually. The car would not go into '2'. As I pressed the buttons on the steering wheel I got two short bleeps each time I tried. Later on after a couple of miles, it was possible to use all the gears. When I got home from a short journey and scanned this time just P0763 (Shift Solenoid C, Electrical). I've cleared it.

From what I have read & understand of this issue it should still be down to Lexus to sort this out. 1) A Lexus technician carried out some recall work but did something incorrectly. 2) Lexus have put this right but in doing so, if you are correct, another fault has developed as a result of this work. Although the customer service is good, Lexus still have a lot to learn, I believe. Check out my tale of woe from years ago (below). To cut the whole story short Lexus MK did quite a bit of work and in the end could not diagnose the issue. (It was a clamp on the fuel line, affecting the fuel pressure) someone in the US LOC suggested this & in the end an independent found it after merely checking the pressure. When I complained to Lexus GB I got the brush off. They were quite patronising in fact and as the car had little service history with them I didn't have much of a chance in challenging this. The moral of the story is to give 100% clear instructions as to what they should do. If necessary include the phrase 'please check and carry out xxx in accordance with Manufacturers specifications and procedures'. http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/topic/73960-1997-ls-400-wont-rev-beyond-4000/

Thanks, it shifts ok and has those buttons on the steering wheel to change up and down manually, they also work perfectly, however I have observed it never goes down to '1'... Up and down through the gears 2 -5 ok otherwise. I think I read that this is normal. I have a quote from Lexus to drop the pan and change the filter etc. and check the solenoids at the same time, so I might well have to do this and have that solenoid replaced. As always, I'll keep you all informed.

Thanks Colin, I'm going to monitor this. If it becomes a problem I'll have to let Lexus deal with it, will have them change the filter etc. at the same time.

Yep level is good. Checked today. It looked very slightly low after a run, so I added about 75-100ml of type 4 then went for another run and checked again, this time it looked slightly high so I think the level is fairly good.

Hi Colin, I'm going to re-check this, this afternoon but I'm pretty sure that unless it's lost any (no signs on the drive) it will be 100%. Each time I drained (always cold) via the sump plug on the Transmission pan, I measured what I had drained and put in exactly the same amount. After a few weeks of doing this I did one final check and it was OK. The level was good before I started this process.