Well, I installed a block heater today. Followed the instructions here...

http://www.greenhybrid.com/wiki/index.php/...on_Instructions

and all was going well, until I had to remove those stupid screws with the star shaped heads on them. Why would Toyota use these things? Anyway, I tried a 5mm regular socket with no luck. Then I tried a pair of Visegrips, before I grabbed the wife's car and headed to the hardware store. There I found something similar to this

http://www.toolsnow.com/external-female-torx-socket-set.html

Officially these are called 'female torx sockets'. If you're going to do this yourself, buy a set of these to save yourself about three hours and skinned knuckles. Got home and discovered that I had stripped the heads with the 5mm regular socket just enough to make the torx sockets useless. Resorted to vice grips which took the better part of an hour, and involved skinned knuckes and several bouts of cursing/crying.

If you're going to do this, the RX is a bit different than the highlander. First off, you don't have to remove the exhaust heat shield. Everything can be accessed from below. You will have to remove the lower splash panel (just like if you were going to change the oil filter. I found it helped to remove the oil filter and the oil drain channel thing to make access easier. Once the nuts and those torx screws are out, the metal cover can be removed (I used a long pry bar and it just popped off - there was a fair amount of sealant holding it and those pesky screws in) Installing the block heater is a snap. I actually put the electrical connector at 6 o'clock to keep the cord away from the oil filter and the exhaust. When refilling the rad, the RX doesn not have a bleeder nipple like in the Highlander post. There's a cap similar to the Highlander that unscrews but no nipple. I just screwed it right out and filled the rad until coolant came out of the hole.

Why did I do all this? Well the dealership wanted $250 installed. I paid $46 for the heater and six hours of my life. If I had had the female torx socket from the start it might have been more like three hours. But I enjoy tinkering on cars, so no big deal. Being the nice guy that I am, I let my wife park in the garage in the winter so she won't have to scrape ice and snow (plus she doesn't have heated seats). Between the block heater and the magnetic oil pan heater I stuck on, I figure I'll have heat sooner and the ICE won't have to run so long to warm up, leading to better mileage and reduced emissions.

sorry about the ordeal lemon,
I was about 20 when I first experienced torx. AMC used 'em for a time on the Jeep CJ5's windshield back in the 1970's. Rather than buy a set, I welded a giant stainless fender washer to the top of the windshield fasteners and simply wrenched 'em out ... switched the fastener to a standard allan flathead, and life was good. Those 1st experiences with ANY new mechanical experience can be a drag, when there's no one to help.

Same with buying torx. An entire set can be had for only $7.99 and the nice thing about that is, you can buy 3 or 4 different sets ... for only $25.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/disp...temnumber=91310

Just what you want, right ? .... 100's of different torx bits ... that you'll use maybe once in your life. Our EBH took maybe one hour ... but I'd previously installed one on our 2004 Prius ... which was maybe a bit easier (but for getting large hands into small opening). BTW, anyone in the U.S. wanting to do this ... forget about trying to get your Lexus / Toyota dealer to find the part number ... I had to call the Canadians ... who know what REAL cold is all about

I don't have the # any more, but perhaps lemon can post it?

Edit:
Even nicer then getting higher mpg's during the 1st 10 minutes of driving with the EBH use, is the effect a pre warmed block has on the 400h's heater. Sub zero temps cause the heater to be slow to warm up. But with the EBH it's much quicker. We run ours on a timer, and set it for about 90 minutes prior to leaving in the morning.

Many vehicles use torx screws for one thing or another. Their design allows for higher torque potential and less chance of "cam-out" when tightening the screw. By the way, here's a neat trick that works well when you accidentally strip a screw head: Use a Dremel tool with cut-off disc to make a slot in the screw head. When it is wide and deep enough to get a decent-sized flat blade screwdriver in it, use that type of screwdriver to take the screw out.

Dave

No, those are torx bits (I have lots of those) - what I actually needed was a 'female torx SOCKET'. http://www.toolsnow.com/external-female-torx-socket-set.html

Part number for the block heater is C0140-00644

I have lots of Torx bits, which work in a 'screw' with a hole in the head to insert the bit. However, this screw was a bit different, requiring a socket as I mentioned
The socket in the picture is a regular 5mm socket. The one I actually used is similar to the ones in the link in the post above.

Ah, those are much more rare. Thanks for clearing that up.

Dave

Thanks for the p/n lemon ~ I'll give our neighbor a call that wanted it.
And yes ... those dang females ... got mine from a store north of L.A. - but what a crazy swing in prices comparing the cheep stuff for example to Snap-on's:
http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/item.asp?P6...amp;dir=catalog

Naturally the ones I bought are on sale now (great)
http://www.anytimesale.com/servlet/the-49/...w-Holder/Detail

Just like flat screens ... you can never get the best price


EDIT:
omg! what a coincidence ... we bought this little ipod radio/boombox with battery backup ... the access door to replace/install batteries has an odball triangle torx round head so we're locked out! the nightmare continues (shaking head) ...

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