tckcumming

I was once a starving student, too - but all I had for transportation was a bicycle or the city bus! If you want to save some cash, you could put off replacing plug wires for a while. It's convenient to change them when the plugs are changed, and they don't last forever. But they are pretty durable and could be left alone for now. Fuel filter could also wait. Change it at some point, tho. Plugs - about $60 Cap, rotor - $40 PCV - about 10 bucks Air filter - $15 1 can of carb cleaner - $5 Distributor cap, rotor, and PCV are easy do-it-yourself jobs. If you change the front 3 plugs yourself and take the car to a mechanic to do the rear 3, you're probably only looking at an hour's labour, tops. Maybe less. Last time I did it this way the shop charged me $30 - well worth it!!! A check of the timing while it's in the shop is a good idea too. Say - about $50 for shop labour, plus or minus. So you could do everything on my list EXCEPT change plug wires and fuel filter - for about $180. Let's round it off to $200 approx. You should see a dramatic improvement in gas mileage. tck... ps Toysrme -where do you get O2 sensors for $25 - $30?? Last time I priced one of these it was $125!!

You are right. I can't prove that this adjustment makes any real difference. It is probably very small on a dyno, if any at all. It's all very "seat-of-the-pants". The car does seem to "launch" better under some conditions tho. I stopped on a long deserted stretch of country road yesterday to try some hard launches. Foot on the brake, low gear, A/C off. Give it lots of throttle to "pump up" the torque converter, then side-step the brake. I got a nice launch, quite a bit of wheelspin, to the point that front wheel !Removed! was quite pronounced. Don't remember that from the last time I tried this ( a long time ago, admittedly). I did several of these starts, same result each time. Awesome! Maybe a little more tire pressure... Car manufacturers have to tune and adjust cars they sell with a LARGE "window" of performance & reliability built in. They have no idea who will be buying their product. Might be a granny who needs a grocery getter. Might be a family who needs a quite & reliable ride. Might be a closet drag racer who'll do practice launches on a deserted country road... they have to be sure the car they sell will be able to do all these things. They will always "err" on the side of caution and conservatism. They have to. I have always found that there is quite a bit of "free" performance (or economy, in the other direction) if you're willing to look for it. Just depends which side of the middle of the performance/economy road you want to travel. If I can add a little extra "oomph" by turning a gear a few clicks, why not? If I don't like the result, I'll turn it back. Maybe the other way a little. It might be better - it might be worse. One way to find out! I don't want a drag car or a street racer - I want my quiet, luxurious Lexus. But a little burning rubber on a back road every once in a while is a good thing, too. tck...

My expert :whistles: opinion: 1. New plugs. Go to a Toyota dealer and get whatever OEM plug is spec'ed for your ES250. Expect to pay more than you think they're worth - but I have found that the OEM plugs for these Toyota engines work much better than any aftermarket ones I've found. 2. New distributor cap & rotor. Again, buy OEM parts at a Toyota dealer. Aftermarket caps & rotors are generally pretty crappy. 3. New plug wires. OEM are best, but last time I changed mine my local Toyota and Lexus dealers wanted $160 CDN for a new set !! :cries: !! I bought an aftermarket set for about $60, they fit great & seem to be fine so far. 4. New PCV valve. Again, get an OEM one. Cheap aftermarket ones are garbage, don't waste your time. BE SURE to replace the rubber grommet that the PCV plugs into AND the short rubber hose that goes from the PCV to the intake. You can get the grommet & hose at the Toyota dealer or at any autoparts store. Be very careful taking the grommet out - it deteriorates & hardens over time and can easily break up and fall into the engine. Use a bit of lithium grease on the new one and on the PCV - makes getting them out next time easier. 5. New air filter. A regular paper one is fine. 6. Take off the large rubber hose that goes from the air filter box to the throttle body. Get a can of "carb cleaner" and a toothbrush and clean the throttle body intake. Be sure to thoroughly clean the surface where the throttle plate touches the throttle body - ANY buildup of carbon/crap in this area is critical in messing up performance and fuel mileage. If you're really ambitious and have a few hours to kill, you can remove the entire throttle body and clean it out 'til it's like new. But I've found that leaving the throttle body in place and cleaning everything you can reach with the toothbrush works just fine. 7. New fuel filter. OEM. All these things are pretty easy to do yourself in your driveway - EXCEPT - changing the rear 3 spark plugs and maybe the fuel filter. Buy your parts, do all you can yourself & take the car to your local mechanic to have the rear plugs & fuel filter changed. You can save on labour charges BIG TIME. :D . If you're not mechanically inclined, buy all your parts first and take it to your mechanic with parts in hand. That way you will know that the proper parts went in - no cheap aftermarket crap! Do ALL these things, your gas mileage will improve dramatically. Post your "before and after" numbers after a few tankfulls of fuel. Oh, and concerning your fuel guage problem - other than changing the sending unit in the gas tank, I don't know what you can do about that. I'd worry about the gas mileage first & deal with the guage later. tck...

You want speed? I'll give you speed... ** '70 Austin Mini 1000. 998cc of screaming British muscle. 4 lane hiway, long gradual downhill grade, slight tailwind. I pegged the speedo at 85 mph! Probably got up to around 90. You haven't tasted fear until you've sat in a tin shoebox with 10 inch wheels screaming down a hill at 90mph. Life-altering!! ** '71 Super Beetle. 4 lane hiway. Accelerate through the gears, put it in fourth and mash the throttle to the floor. Hold it there... hold it... you'll be doing about 75 mph in the blink of an eye (if it takes you about 20 minutes to blink your eye). The legends are true - the Beetle's top speed is also its cruising speed. You can sit there all day with the throttle floored, never lifting, and do top speed as long as you can stand the noise from the thrashing engine and the vague smell of burning oil wafting thu the cabin. How many Ferrari or BMW drivers can do that? A quick blast to their top end is all you get, if you're lucky. In the Super Beetle, I could get that rush of holding the pedal mashed to the floor for 2 or 3 HOURS at a time! True heaven for the speed freak. Add to this the excitement caused by any passing 18-wheeler (even in the opposite lane of a divided hiway) making your car dart about across both lanes like it's possessed. Who couldn't love that? 130mph in a GS400? Pretty mundane compared to these two speed machines. Oh, and don't even get me STARTED about motorcycles!! tck...

Sorry dialup internet users - might take you forever to download all these pictures Before... After.... Before #2.... After #2 .... Here's what I use ... OOOOOO ... purty!! ....... BUT - look what I found on the top surface of the right (passenger) side headlamp ... Should I be shopping for a new headlight? The cracks are very small, not noticeable unless you look closely. But they weren't there last time I did the headlight polish thing ( 6 months ago maybe??), at least I didn't notice them then. New headlight units must be horrendously expen$$$ive, has anyone priced them (for interest sake, only!!). Is ebay the best way to go if I do eventually need a new one (or 2)?? Has anyone else replaced a headlight because of cracking??? tck...

Compare the plug in your photo with the middle one in the photo at the top of this post. That's what 120000 miles of driving will do if you never change your plugs. If you have over 60000 miles on your car and haven't ever changed spark plugs, do it now!! You will be happy, your engine will run better, peace will reign in your automotive world. tck... ps. the original factory OEM plug in my photo is an NGK BCPR6EP-11 (P for Platinum, maybe??)

This is the wrong place to buy this type of part to save a few bucks! I definitey feel that you should get an OEM timing belt. ← OEM is the only way to go on this part. Period. ;) ← I agree. I'm all for saving a few bucks wherever possible, but I would not even consider getting anything but an OEM timing belt. Most of the expense (or time & trouble if you do it yourself) is in the labour to change it. The difference in cost for the actual belt will be negligible over the long run. The difference in hassle if the cheap one breaks will be enormous!! Always go OEM for something as critical as a timing belt. tck...

........ looking for my receipt ........ tck... ← Monroe struts for ES300 - $73.00 CDN ea. at Autopak (Oct. 2004) p/n 801958 (left) 801957 (rt) Changed them in Oct 2004. Replaced original equip. KYB's because one had a blown seal, other was leaking and both dust boots were completely gone. So far, so good. Ride is good, no complaints. Can't say how durable these struts will be over the long run, they've been in the car less than a year & so far are holding up just fine. BUT... last winter the car rode very harshly in cold ( -20 and below) weather. Lots of thumping over even small bumps. Didn't do this before I changed the struts. Ride quality returned to normal in warmer weather. I don't know for certain if the Monroe struts were the cause of this, but I suspect they were. Anyone else have this experience? If you live somewhere that has lots of very cold days in the winter you might want to stick with KYB's. If I have to change them again I would probably go with KYB's even though they're much more expensive (can't remember the price, about twice as much if I recall??) If you live in Texas or California or somewhere that doesn't get the -20 degree days in winter, you probably wouldn't notice a difference in ride between the two brands. As I said before, tho, I don't know how durable the Monroe's will be. If they "crap out" anytime soon I'll post about that later. tck...

I agree 100%!!! Spark plugs are about at the bottom of my day-to-day concerns. It's more of "philosophical" question to me. The actual difference in cost is unimportant. In general, I agree that you do have to pay more to get something of quality. But just because something costs more and someone tells you it's "better" doesn't mean it is. I think of it this way. If you want to know what time it is, you can buy a $10000 Movado or a $40 Timex. Is the Movado "better"? Depends. Both do the same job. They will last a long time. Both will be perfectly adequate as timepieces. One makes a WAY bigger impression on others. One makes you feel a whole lot better about purchasing it. If you work on a construction site or in a factory, one is much more suitable for telling you when it's time for your lunch break. Which is better? Your choice. How many people who claim that one spark plug, or tire, or air filter etc. is "better" than another have actually taken the time to personally compare these things? Not many! (me included!). They rely on opinions of others, advertising hype and, yes, price to decide which thing is "better". I hear and read a lot of the "I would never use anything but ... **insert Brand Name here** ... in my vehicle" type of attitude on this and other forums. Please don't misunderstand my comments - I'm the same as everyone else, I do the same thing much of the time. I just like to put a little more thought into these things than most do. Does spending more money on something as mundane as a spark plug for your car make you feel better? Then I say go for it. Whether it makes your engine run better or not. tck... ps. sorry about the rambling reply - it doesn't have much to do with the topic - I really got on a roll! :)

I don't usually use anything but regular unleaded, car runs just fine on it (even tho my owner's manual recommends super). It does get better mileage whenever I use super - but not enough to offset the added cost over the long run, I don't think. I haven't done an in-depth study or anything (like I'm sure others have done), these are just my impressions. Look at the photo I posted a while back of the spark plugs I pulled from my engine. They had around 100000KM (60000miles, give or take) and looked fine, no deposits or signs of abuse (2 of them, anyway!). Almost all those miles were regular driving on regular gas. I'll probably try messing with the timing a bit, once I buy a new timing light. I was setting the timing on my MGB a couple of months ago, backed the car up and ran right over the light. Crunch! tck... ps. - speaking of my MGB, while looking through the workshop manual, I came across the recommended fuel grade for my engine ('69, hi compression). MINIMUM octane requirement = 98. With lead additive. No wonder it's so hard to get it to run right! Can you even buy 98 octane fuel anymore?

I did this today on the advice of Toysrme (I only mention this so I'll have someone to blame if it all goes horribly wrong... :chairshot: ) Ready ..... Set...... Go....... 5 "clicks", as suggested. You can just see my red index mark behind the little coiled spring.... Filled up with Sunoco 94, went for a short drive. A-OK so far. Engine seems to rev more freely in mid-range when the pedal is "mashed", from about 30 mph and up. Still idles & runs the same otherwise. I'll drive it around for the next week or so & report back on anything that comes up. I'll check my gas mileage, too. Expecting it to be very good, since I've changed plugs, wires, cap, rotor. Engine running slightly leaner should help mileage a tiny bit, too. Do I need to re-seal the airflow sensor cover with silicone? I'd rather leave it with the cover on but unsealed, in case I want to change anything in the next while. I'll seal it back up once I've decided to leave it alone. Doesn't seem like it will hurt anything to leave it for now, as long as dirt or moisture can't get in. I'll wrap it up with duct tape in the meantime. :D tck...

........ looking for my receipt ........ tck...

The security code by default is the last 3 digits of your vin# I don't have my manual here but the procedure for unlocking the headunit is in the manual, I'll have it later. Or call a stealer for directions. Good Luck! ;) ← On my '93 ES300 the security code for the sound system is the last 3 digits of the keycode, not the VIN. I got the keycode from the Lexus dealer that I purchased the car from. He looked it up on some database. It's pretty easy to reset, but best to have the directions in front of you while you do it. I can never remember all the "push this, hold these buttons while you press that..." sequence. I can scan the pertinent pages from my owner's manual & post them if you don't have a manual. One more thing - you get a total of 9 incorrect tries to reset. On number 10 wrong entry, the unit locks up & must be sent to Lexus for re-programmming. So no button-mashing or guessing at the code or could be SOL! tck...

jncooper - fyi - "Macpherson strut" is a type of suspension design, not a brand name. Check out this link if you want to know more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MacPherson_strut Two common brands of replacement shocks/struts are KYB and Monroe. Do a search & you'll find lots of online sellers for both. KYB's are usually more expensive. I replaced the rear struts on my '93 ES300 with Monroe's, they've been fine but I did notice that the ride was harsher in very cold weather last winter. I'm not sure if the cause was the shocks or something else - the ride has been fine since the warm weather returned here in the Great White North. tck...

Right U R toysrme... I was sure I was going to break the top fitting when I tried to change mine. It wouldn't budge even when I really leaned on it with a long breaker bar on my ratchet. I had visions of the car being stuck in my driveway unable to move & leaking fuel all over. I ended up taking the coward's way out - took it to the dealer to let them do it. That way, if it strips or breaks it's their problem. Any reason those fittings have to be soooooo tight? tck... ps. justin97 - I've read other posts that claim the fuel filter doesn't ever need to be changed, that it's a "lifetime" filter. Don't believe it!! Mine was full of brownish crud. There's no such thing as a "lifetime" filter.

I didn't have to remove my housings or grill to replace the fog light bulbs in my '93. The housings are accessible from below the grill. Unscrew the back of the housing, the bulb is held in place by a little wire spring - unclip it and the bulb pulls right out. Sounds easy, right? Well you need to have double jointed wrists, it's quite tight in there. But I had no major trouble. Be really careful not to touch the bulbs at all (I wear a pair of cheap cotton gardening gloves when I change mine), also be really careful not to get any dirt, grease, or other crud on the bulbs as you are putting them into the housings. I replaced my original H3 fog light bulbs with Silverstars (they were on sale). My headlight bulbs are also Silverstars, they are awesome, I'm really happy with the increased light output over stock. They are expensive, but worth it IMHO. I'm not so sure about the fog lights - I would probably just stick with stock H3's for them next time, there doesn't seem to be enough difference to justify the increased price of the Silverstars. IMHO, as usual. tck...

The Denso plugs in the pic are pretty used up, they have almost exactly 60K miles on them. That's why I took them out, I change them about every 60K as well. They look almost pristine compared to the old NGK plug that was left in there for about 120K miles, tho. True - but just because something costs more doesn't mean it's better. You can't just assume that the higher priced piece is superior. Sometimes you do get what you pay for, sometimes you pay for the hype. I like to be convinced! Case in point - I have a set of Bosch Platinum+4 plugs in my '69 MGB. It runs great with these plugs. I recently put in a new set of Champion copper-core, dead standard (cheap!) spark plugs as a "back-to-back" comparison. It runs just as well, absolutely NO detectable difference. Are the Bosch parts better? Not in this case. Same performance for WAY less money gets my vote!! tck... ←

Any ill effects from messing with the airflow meter that you (or anyone?) are aware of? Overheating cat, failed emissions test (yes, we have these in Canada, too!), or ?? Seems like I might be opening a can of worms messing with fuel/air, timing, etc - all the systems on these "modern" engines are so dependent on one another, I have found that it's easy to really screw everything up by purposely putting something else (like timing, fuel mixture, etc) out of spec. I'm much more comfortable with old Detroit iron or '60's sports cars than with newer electronically controlled computer robot-mobiles like my Lexus (even though - I guess it qualifies as old Japanese iron, being 12 years old!).. I'll probably try it anyway, unless somebody out there can talk me out of it. After all - what's the old saying? - "He who hestitates is f****d!!" tck...

Toysrme - Cut it open - how? Like with a hacksaw? More importantly, is this kind of mod reversible? I'll try anything - as long as I can put it back the way it was if I don't like the result. I don't want to have to buy a new airflow meter if I screw mine up. This reminds me of a gadget on my '69 MGB. There's a little thumbscrew on the side of the distributor with arrows marked "A" and "R". Turn the screw 10 clicks in the desired direction, you can Advance or !Removed! the timing by 1 degree. 20 clicks = 2 degrees, etc. Makes fine tuning the timing a breeze. Fuel mixture can be adjusted similarly with adjusting nuts on the bottom of the twin carbs. And I thought the age of computers had made these simple, low tech methods of turning things and counting "clicks", etc. obsolete. tck...

Hood? There's a hood? Can't seem to get past the twin hood ornaments. Would they fit on my ES300? Where can I order them? Are they imports? You must be a wealthy man, skperformance - many of your "accessories" seem way out of my price range!! tck...

I was amazed at the condition of the Denso plugs, they have about 100,000km (60000mi.) on them and still look fresh and perfectly serviceable. Even the NGK in the photo looks pretty good considering its age & the abuse it has had. The original plug wire on #3 cyl (the one that had the old NGK plug in it) looked pretty dodgy, there must have been some blow-by from the loose plug for some period of time. I changed the wires, distributor cap and rotor as well, they were all original equipment and needed replacing. So, with my !! 6 !! new Denso platinum plugs, cap & rotor, new plug leads, air filter, and a good cleaning of the throttle plate & intake ( I used a can of brake cleaner and a toothbrush), my '93 Lexus runs better than it has in years. It shifts much more smoothly, too... or is it just my imagination?? I'm sure my gas mileage will improve, as well. All Good! tck...

See the photo - these are the plugs I pulled from the rear bank of my '93 ES300 (cyls. # 1, 3, 5, in order). My car has close to 200,00 KM (120,000 miles, give or take). Original plugs were supposedly changed at around 100,00KM (60000 miles) by a local Toyota dealer when I had the timing belt and a myriad of other work done about 5 yrs ago. The center NGK plug was obviously never removed. It was in the center rear cylinder - the hardest one to reach. It was very loose in the head, too - I suspect some moron mechanic tried to remove it, had a hard time and just left it. Amazing that the engine ran as well as it has for all this time with an old, loose plug rattling around in there. Finding this example of shoddy workmanship makes me suspicious about the other work that was done by this dealer. Luckily, I haven't been back there since the timing belt change. The moral of my story - ALWAYS ask for your old parts back when someone else works on your car, and check to make sure that the parts were actually changed. tck... p.s. I'd like to send this photo and a complaint to Toyota Canada - anyone know an email address? I don't expect them to do anything about this, as the "work" was done so long ago. But "ratting" on the dealer will make me feel a little better, at least!

On my '93 ES300, most V6 Camry parts are a direct replacement. Autopak, UAP, and that old standby Canadian Tire are great parts sources for my Lexus. Some things are better purchased at a Toyota dealer, like ignition parts (spark plugs, distributor caps, etc.) and things like water pumps and other mechanical bits that you want to replace when you need to and then forget about. But most of my experiences with aftermarket suppliers have been positive. I needed a new fuel tank for my Lexus, Canadian Tire sourced one & replaced it for a LOT less than the Lexus dealer had quoted. The old one and the new one were identical, even had the same markings on them. Jusy my long-winded way of saying that I'd go to your local Can. Tire and ask for a set of steel wheels for a V6 Camry, same year as your Lexus. Mine have been just fine. BTW - when I purchased my steel rims, I also put a set of Canadian Tire IceTrak winter tires on them for my Lexus. $40 CDN each for the wheels, about $60CDN for the tires (on sale). Awesome winter tires - I'd never bought such a cheap tire before, I figured I'd gamble & see what they were like. They really suit the deep snow and very cold temps we have here in Eastern Ont. in the winter. tck...

This happened to me, too... but I was extremely lucky. I got a very bright work light and managed to get it to shine into the hole - I could just see the rubber piece inside the valve cover. I bent a hook into the end of a small piece of wire and managed to move the piece nearer to the hole in the valve cover. A pair of very slim long nose needle-nosed pliers, a great deal of finesse, and a lot of holding of breath - it came out. You might want to try (carefully!) fishing around with a little wire with a hook in it before you tackle removal of the intake and valve cover - it's a long shot, but you might get lucky like I did. Since then, I change the grommet every time I change the PCV so it doesn't get so old & brittle that it breaks. I also hold it tightly with pliers and cut it through on one side with a sharp utility knife - it comes out in one piece much more easily that way. tck...

I see you're a fellow "canuck"... I bought 4 steel wheels for my '93 ES300 at Canadian Tire - about $40 CDN each. They probably have some that will fit your ES330... worth a look. You might only need 3 if you have a full size spare - the spare in my '93 is a full size Toyota steel rim. tck...