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MrDog2000

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Everything posted by MrDog2000

  1. VSC does a pretty good job. I use Snow Mode in traffic when it's slippery and also in stop and go traffic in summer. One thing is sometimes you need to switch VSC to 'off' so that you can spin the wheels and not get stuck - a paradox. THe best snow tires you can afford are a must. Having said that, I'm looking for a used Jeep for next winter.
  2. So it's not the also classic sound that indicates an air bubble in the cooling system? A flush helps that.
  3. Where I am, one station sells 90 octane regular with 10% ethanol. I've been using it for two years with no adverse affect on how the car performs. The car manufacturers all seem to agree that 10% poses no issues.
  4. When test drove my car at the dealer (2000 GS400 130,000KM) it had new tires and felt great. Before I picked it up I had the dealer put on the snow tires that were in the trunk (Winter was due to arrive). I got on the freeway and I thought the entire car was going to shake apart. The snow tires looked OK, they had about half tread life left, but were shot. I had my local service guy drive it (Ford dealer no less) and he said right away that its tires. New snows - no more shake. Having said that - check that other ball joint.
  5. I think you'd be better off to buy a used AMG Mercedes, or M-series BMW. It sounds like you want a hardcore performance machine, and the GS is more of a touring car. A touring car that's hobbled by a terrible front suspension design from the factory. Never underestimate the power of a project to cost twice as much as you thought, and take four times as long.
  6. HI Lexman96 Can I get the link to manual. My e-mail is mr-dog@shaw.ca I have a 2000 GS and could use the inside knowledge when talking to my dealership.
  7. Thanks for the welcome, most appreciated. I've thought about the tail-light swap. Maybe E-Bay's a good place to look for that. I'd like to get new mufflers too, not so much for sound, but my tips are so grungy they just won't come clean. I like that quote by Foose on your post, that's my car mod philosophy too.
  8. Hey everyone, I bought my first Lexus, a 2000 GS400, in Oct 2009 and have gotten some great info from this site (thanks all). I love my new-used car, and actually still can't believe I bought it. I've always owned American cars because they're cheap to fix - and I worked in a GM parts dept. for many years. Before the Lexus I owned a '04 Malibu Maxx, which was amazingly versatile and a decent car. But, I noticed that repairs were getting pricey. I had a brake job done and it was over $600. Then I had to replace the transmission cooler lines, which cost $250 each plus labour! I said to my wife that if I'm going to pay that kind of repair costs I'd at least like to drive a better vehicle. So, what to buy? My brother had bought a 2004 SC430 and I was amazed at the quality of this car, but it was out of reach for me. So, I looked at older Lexus' and found a GS400 in Calgary, 300Km south of where I live in Edmonton. I asked my wife if she wanted to go see the giant new mall they've built just outside of Calgary and maybe go see the GS400 I found on the web. She agreed, but we left late and as we passed the mall she said we better go see the car first. We got to Silverhill Acura and saw the GS, I said "this car looks good," missus agreed. A test drive had me convinced and my wife. I should explain that I have agonized over every car I've bought, and no doubt tortured my poor wife. It was a bit like the both of us playing "chicken" with she wondering when I'd get cold feet and back out of a deal! The sales rep, Bob, was a retired RCMP officer, so he has to be honest, right? He showed us the carfax, which we were able to confirm as a a one-owner car from Calgary. Plus, Silverhill had done the brakes, rotors, timing belt, spark plugs, battery (all OEM) and new Michelin tires. A deal was made and 2-days later we drove down to Calgary after work to pick up the new car. I'd asked that they put the snow tires on, as it was October. As soon as we hit the highway north, I new something was wrong. The car pulled hard to the right and there was a loud 'wah-wah-wah' sound accompanied by steering wheel shake. It was 9:30 and the dealership was closed so we drove 300 KM home. I thought I'd been hood-winked and had bought the worst car in the world. But, I told my wife that it must be the snow tires, as the car drove beautifully on our test-drive with the new Michelins. Back home, my friend, who's a service manager for a Ford dealer, tested it and agreed the snow tires were shot. One set of Michelin Alpins and an alignment later, my Lexus again drove like a dream. Since then I've replaced the ball joints (thanks for the safety tip) and put a new starter in (it is 10 years old after all). I cannot believe how well this car looks and drives for 10 years old. Everyone I've shown the car to thinks it's only 3-4 years old. I'd like to do a few mods, maybe some really good shocks/struts (Tiens perhaps) some LED marker lights, stainless brake lines and some wheels. I love the look of old-school racing wheels like Panasports or Superlites, but I don't think they have my size. Thanks for reading my long story, I think I'm now Lex for life.
  9. MrDog2000

    2000 GS400

    My 2000 GS400 Millennium Edition
  10. MrDog2000

    2000 GS400

    From the album: GS400 Platinum

    © copyright Earl McKenzie ©

  11. MrDog2000

    GS400 Platinum

    2000 GS400 platinum silver in northern Canada
  12. So my 2000 GS400 (Platinum silver) got keyed while I was at work. I've only owned it for 6 months, and bought it partly because it looked nearly new. I thought it was one of the homeless people who walk through the parking lot to get to the free breakfast place. Then I laughed and said to my wife, "homeless people don't have keys do they?" I guess it was someone who was jealous of a ten-year old Lex. Anyway, tried polishing compound, did nothing. Tried rubbing compound, did nothing. Tried Nu-finish, helped a little bit. Tried NIxx, worked the best. Of course now I've sanded away part of the clear-coat. Has anyone had experience having just the clear-coat freshened? I need to get the front bumper fixed up anyways. Your ideas are appreciated.
  13. Had my 2000 GS400 up to 165KPH for a few seconds then backed off to 100KPH about 3-min later came to a stop light. While stopped I thought I could sense a "warm" smell, but the temp gauge was perfectly normal, idle was perfectly smooth, transmission shifted properly.Has anyone noticed similar? The ambient temp was 0C and I'd only been on the highway for 5 min. I burn 90 Octane with 10% ethanol. It only lasted half a minute and went away. Other than that, I was absolutely astonished at the passing power this car has. I used about half-throttle and went from 120 to 165KPH in about 5-6 seconds.
  14. It's a little late to bring this up since you just bought your Alpins but you might have been happier with the better snow performance of "Studless Ice & Snow" tires than with "Performance Winter/Snow" tires like the Alpins. I didn't know the difference between the two tire categories until about 2003 after using performance snow tires for many years before that. I've been waaaay happier with the snow performance of the heavier duty snow tires. I thought the ride and noise would be worse but, if it is, I don't notice it. Being frugal, I've liked that heavy duty snow tires have lasted a lot longer than performance snow tires. I used to go through performance snow tires like $#!+ through a goose -- maybe I drove them harder in the dry. I think you're right, The Revo's I had on my Malibu were studless ice and snow and worked wonders on that car. This time around the Michelins were all my friend who works for a car dealer could get me for the GS400, so I went with them. I will definitely keep your experience in mind for when these are worn out. Thanks for the input.
  15. Drove my 2000 GS400 today in 5 inches of snow at 25F about minus 3C, on new Primacy Alpin PA3s Not as good as my old Sunbird, but not horrible. Switched of VSC to get out of my parking space. switched on ECT snow, worked quite well. Traction control and ABS hardly came on, but traffic was pretty heavy, barely got about 30KM/hr. Hills are the enemy. Expect it will be very different when temp drops to minus 25C tomorrow, might actually be better. When you grow up in Edmonton you develop a sixth sense for snow, and it's pretty obvious there's a lot of newcomers in the city who think AWD makes them invincible.
  16. Hi, I just got a GS400 and want new wheels, but can't find the look I want. There's lots of VIP style stuff out there. But, what I want is a classic roadracing look like Minilites or Superlites, Halibrands, Ronals. I really like the look of the wheels on the original GT40s and the classic trans-am racers. Anybody know of anything like that to fit my car? (in 16 inch) Thanks
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