hammer008

HOLLY SMOLLY...I just cleaned the cartridge with hot water and now it works perfectly!!It appears that dust and crap were causing friction for tray 1 to open and close. So my Lexus is perfect again...thanks for the hint that it might be the cartridge...saved myself $500 (was thinking about buy a new changer) wooohoooo!. :D PS...Also I found out that it was the old battery that was causing ticks/skips. After installing the new battery recommended by SK, not only is my lexus smoother ride but also the CD changer actually "spits" out the cartridge like it should and the sound is much louder and beefy. :P

No paper labels. All 6 were working fine with my 8 year old factory battery but as soon as I changed to Yellow Optima batttery the first CD does not work. Very strange. Also it did get a bit chilly these days. I wonder if that affects anything. Furthermore, I have washed the cartridge...it had alot of "green" crap that looks like the statue of liberty (oxidized copper?) at the ends. Will see if cleaning works tommorow. Does anyone know how to reset the CD changer. Perhaps when I was hooking up the battery the CD changer did not "boot" correctly.

28mpg mostly long and winding road...country road...takes me home.

After searching the numerous posts, i am still unable to solve this. The CD changer will play the discs in slot 2,3,4,5,6 but not 1. It will display the good ol' "err". If I take the disc from slot 1 and put in slot 2,3,4,5, or 6 it works fine. Do you think it is just a bad cartridge? This only happened recently after installing a new Yellow Optima battery that SK loves so much.

Sounds like you had some El Cheapo gas dirty up your system. The same thing happened to me. What I did was use loads of fuel injector cleaners for about 3 months. The Engine light never came back on and from that I am guessing is that the crud on the sensors have burned/washed away. Give it a try b4 spending the dough. Don't forget my Xmas card if it works! ;) What is your gas milliage like?

Well your point would be more valid if the other 5 cars on the list were low end but most of the other cars...in fact all the other cars are high end/fully loaded...hence your point is tenuous at best. Moreover, this is a "current trend", Eurocars were far better in previous years' surveys. Accordingly, I believe the "trend" of decreasing Eurocar quality is valid. Even the BMW executive acknowledged the report and said they will improve next year as opposed to trashing the stats.

They are not comparing a Camry to a BMW. Camry is the 3rd most reliable whereas the BMW is the 3rd most unreliable. I guess the way I posted is confusing people. I would have thought that 5 million surveys would have ironed out/taken care of bias.

Sedans/2004 consumer reports Best reliability..................... Worst Lexus IS300.................. Mercedes-Benz S-Class :chairshot: Acura RL (previous generation)................... Jaguar S-Type :chairshot: Toyota Camry (4-cyl.).................... BMW 7 Series :chairshot: Toyota Avalon................... Jaguar X-Type :chairshot: Lexus LS430..................... Mercedes-Benz E-Class :chairshot: Lexus GS300/GS430.................... Mercedes-Benz C-Class (V6):chairshot:

Well, I have the same miles on my es300 as yours and fluid has never been changed until last month...but it was still pink when I did the drain/fill. I suspect that your transmission has seen some rough times.

Thanks for the pics. Should be a sticky somewhere. Just wondering about the diff fluid fill. I always thought it was filled through the same atf dip stick because someone said that when filling through the atf dip stick it came out of the diff drain. Can someone clearify this? Wow that fluid looks really dirty...I wonder if there is any damage done to the transmission. Was the filter really dirty/cleanible or did you change to a new one?

Bad move man. I replace Brake fluid (1) per year..It is CHEAP and the old stuff is bad for ABS and lines over time. ← You are probably right but so far no problems and it has been 15 years.

Absolutely not sk! Wrt brake fluid, it was bled whenever pads were changed but that is about it...but everything else a big Nada. It is because my family is very ignorant when it comes to cars. Wrt the transmission fluid it was changed once in 15 years. The subaru still runs smooth as my Lexus and it has over 240000km. It is my winter/summer beater and sometimes an off-roader. Furthermore, I have not washed it for over 10+ years!! With my Lexus though it is the opposite story. I baby it too much especially after finding this forum...but I wonder if all this knowledge is giving me worries and emptying my pockets than is really required.

What is the motive for changing the fluid? I have not changed mine in 15 years and have not had a problem. Come to think of it...for my Subaru... Brake fluid...15 years old...never flushed. Diff fluid...15years...still factory original

sounds like an exhaust gasket leak.

A good reply. People like you make me come back to this site. Testimonials are useless. Placebo/brain/faith/belief can be powerful. We are all guilty. Sound experiments and measurements are needed. Wrt air filters///I agree go for the 10$ one. They give the lowest Si.

Should I get snow tires for my lexus. Currently have all-season...is this enough? If snow tires are recommended...do I get just the drive wheels or all four snow tires?

Results for this test(all units in minutes): Amsoil: >500 (no break) Mobil1: 397 Pennzoil Purebase: 242 Castrol Syntec: 221 Valvoline: 219 Vavoline SynPower: 211 Mobil Drive Clean: 209 Quaker State Peak Performance: 192 Pennzoil Synthetic: 159 Quaker State Synthetic: 159 Castrol GTX Drive Hard: 132 Test 2: High Temperature/High Shear (HT/HS) Measures a lube's performance under severe heat and shear (mechanical stress) as would be found in the journal bearings under heavy load. The units displayed are viscosity based, using the centipose unit (cP). The minimum spec for a 30w is 2.9 cP. Results for this test (all units in cP): Amsoil: 3.51 Quaker State Peak Performance: 3.37 Castrol GTX Drive Hard: 3.35 Vavoline SynPower: 3.30 Mobil1: 3.30 Valvoline: 3.30 Mobil Drive Clean: 3.28 Pennzoil Purebase: 3.16 Quaker State Synthetic: 3.15 Pennzoil Synthetic: 3.14 Castrol Syntec: 3.13 Test 3: NOACK Volatility. Measures the evaporative loss of lubricants in high temperature conditions. The higher the number, the thicker the lubricant will become. API SL and GF-3 specs allow for a 15% evaporation limit. In this test, obviously, lower is better. Syns almost always have an advantage due to their monomolecularity. Results for this test (% weight loss): Amsoil: 4.86 Vavoline SynPower: 7.03 Castrol Syntec: 7.77 Quaker State Synthetic: 7.80 Pennzoil Synthetic: 8.15 Mobil1: 8.92 Castrol GTX Drive Hard: 8.93 Quaker State Peak Performance: 10.63 Mobil Drive Clean: 10.83 Pennzoil Purebase: 10.93 Valvoline: 12.18 Test 4: Pour Point This test reveals the lowest temperature at which a lubricant will flow when cooled under test conditions. The lower, the better the product will perform in getting from the oil pan to the upper oil galleys, and in providing oil pressure quickly. Synoils generally are the best, because they are free of wax crystals, but today's mineral oils are better refined to remove wax impurities, and use advanced pour point depressant additives to help offset the synoils' intrinsically better properties. Results for this test (all units in degrees Centigrade): Amsoil: -48 Mobil1: -46 Vavoline SynPower: -46 Castrol Syntec: -43 Pennzoil Synthetic: -40 Quaker State Synthetic: -40 Pennzoil Purebase: -37 Valvoline: -37 Mobil Drive Clean: -37 Castrol GTX Drive Hard: -37 Quaker State Peak Performance: -34 Test 5: Total Base Number (TBN) TBN displays the lubricant's reserve alkalinity, and is, of course, the opposite of TAN (total acid number). A high TBN will help resist the formation of acids from sulfur and other sources. It is also a good indicator of reserve resistance to oxidation. The higher the number, the superior ability to suspend contaminants and the greater the ability to provide long-drain intervals Results for this test (all units in mg KOH/g): Amsoil: 12.34 Vavoline SynPower: 11.38 Castrol Syntec: 10.39 Pennzoil Synthetic: 9.73 Mobil1: 8.57 Valvoline: 7.88 Quaker State Synthetic: 7.82 Castrol GTX Drive Hard: 7.74 Mobil Drive Clean: 7.71 Quaker State Peak Performance: 7.55 Pennzoil Purebase: 7.40 RR's comments: I was very impressed with all the oils, as the mineral oils have significantly improved, consistent with previous comments about how mineral oils are closing in, and that the GF-3 spec has resulted in very good performing products. Mobil1's showing is the best i have seen for that product, which usually was in the 5-6 range previously. It certainly also supports my previous comments that the 3K oil change "necessity" is out of place with current technology. Like an !Removed! for a dead man, while it may not help to do a 3K change, it wouldn't hurt I guess. Test 6: Cold Crank Sumulator This one determines the apparent viscosity of the oils at low temperatures and high shear rates, simulating the dreaded cold start. It has direct applicability to engine cranking, the lower the number the better in terms of stress on the battery, starter, etc. A 10w is tested at -25degF and must show a vis <7000 cP to pass. Results for this test (all units cP at -25degC): Pennzoil Synthetic: 3538 Amsoil: 3590 Mobil1: 3967 Quaker State Synthetic: 4142 Vavoline SynPower: 4541 Quaker State Peak Performance: 4620 Castrol Syntec: 4783 Castrol GTX Drive Hard: 5804 Pennzoil Purebase: 5936 Mobil Drive Clean: 6448 Valvoline: 6458 RR Comments: If you live and drive your car in very cold climates, the advantage of the synoils is obvious. Keep in mind that the NOACK performance figures here as well, as this tests hows the performance of fresh oil - after a few thousand miles, the oils with higher volatility will likely have thickened, unless there has been high dilution from fuel, such as can occur if excessive startup idling warmups are employed. Test 7: Four Ball Wear This one is a good indicator of the wear protection of a lubricant, although in the real-world it is should be factored in with the TBN of the oil. Three metal balls are clamped together, and a rotating 4th one is pressed against them in sliding contact. A scar is produced, since at some point the film strength (resistance to being squeezed out) of the oil will be exceeded. The scar is then measured, and the smaller the average wear scar, the better. This test is affected by both the base stock of the oil, and its additive package. Results for this test (all units in inches): Amsoil: 0.40 Castrol Syntec: 0.45 Vavoline SynPower: 0.55 Quaker State Synthetic: 0.55 Mobil Drive Clean: 0.55 Pennzoil Synthetic: 0.60 Mobil1: 0.60 Valvoline: 0.60 Castrol GTX Drive Hard: 0.60 Quaker State Peak Performance: 0.60 Pennzoil Purebase: 0.65

Not worth it unless you can get that body panel and door the exact color cheap from a junk yard...highly unlikely. You also have to worry about frame straightening...save yourself the headache and get a certified lexus.

I am having a tough time getting my past repair record from the lexus database. So far I have asked the dealer near me and he said they don't have CVSH but will get it in the next year or so. :( Then I emailed 7 lexus dealers a bit away and they are giving me the cold shoulder. Only 1 retuned and only said that my car was last worked on in 1998 and that is all he can tell me. :chairshot: Any suggestions...without driving all over US and Canada... for a lexus dealer that has the CVSH.

Please FIX the following: 1. Highlight searched items don't work.:cries: 2. the default search is more tedious as you need to put + signs in front of each string otherwise it is an "or" search. It should be default "and" without adding + signs...extra typing. and "or" should be specified :cries: This makes searching easier and results in less double posts...trust me. ;)

I am told that Orbital extreme sold by Canadian tires for $CAD179 is is the same as yellow tops by a Canadian tire employee...anyone know if this is true? Apparently, Exide and Johnson have a joint venture for these spiral batteries. Also noticed that Can tires is also selling amsoil oil and trans. fluid...expensive though. $12 for not even a litre and no french on labels.

$13 for parts Auto Battery & Electric 1515 SE Hawthorne Portland, OR 97214-3718 (503) 238-0888

When stopped at the red lights, the steering wheel is shuddering back and forth about 2-3 millimeters. Is this normal? When I put it into park/neutral it goes away completely and the engine is as quiet as butter so I don't think it is the engine or MAF/ICV. I did recently have a transmission fluid drain and fill with dex3/merc. Any insignts?

1996 1). Firm leather front seats. I think the Coach Editions might have cushier My leather are soft after putting some hazelnut butter... still look new (thats what all my passengers say)...smell is also a killer. 2). Weak Seat Heaters. Ive read a few posts on this topic... Mine doesnt seem to After changing to a better battery it improves. Get the yellow top. 2). Wander-ish steering. I know 1st Gen. ES300's steering is pretty light... But Solid steering no wander whatsoever...straight as an arrow. 3). Dirty Headlight Lenses. Is this from the car being neglected or is this a normal Clear as can be...it depends if you put it in the sun (uv makes them foggy I have been told. 4). Is the engine supposed to be SUPER silky while in Park at idle to the point Mine are silky...I was shocked when I first drove the car coming from an old subaru utitily wagon. However, at times it gets rough when stopped at red lights. 4). A slight thud when placed in Reverse. Anybody elses do this? Mine does it even None. 5). "Float like a Boat". Mine rides very well, but not mid-80's "Cadillac-ish" like Mine feels firm...not like a Cadillac at all...but on a straight smooth highway it feels like a cadillac. Depends alot on tires. 6). Dash Lighting. If you dim the lighting, will this preserve the dash bulbs so that Yes. 7). Does that button above the Gear Shifter REALLY make the car go faster??? :D Yes. I use it only when I am taking my friends to the emergency hospital. B) ...getting away from the mafia. ;)