amf1932

You could put a link from this thread into the electronics forum.......that might be the easiest way of doing it, unless the moderators can move it for you.

I did this test with my neighbors car which is exactly like mine, except he has the metalized tint in the rear window. 1-Parked both cars next to each other. 2-Turned on both radios to the same radio station, either on AM or FM. 3-Switched cars positions to see if it would affect the sensitivity. Here are the findings: If you're tuned into a station with a strong signal there was no difference in the reception, with or without the tint. On stations with a weak signal, I was still able to get decent reception with my car without the tint, but on my neighbors car the station would not even stop at that frequency when using the scan function, or even if it did there was considerably more background noise. The metalized tint definitely affects the sensitivity of a car radio that uses this type of embedded antenna(as said in the page from the Owners Manual posted above). Embedded antennas have never been the best solution to give you optimum signal strength as opposed to a staff type antenna, and that's why I never liked them. ;)

When I took delivery of my 2003ES, my dealer has a girl who's main job is to explain the basics of using the Nav system. She spent over an hour with me, and I have to admit it I felt really dumb because this NAV option was so intensive. I read the Supplemental Owners Manual for a few hours and tried programming some of the features. After a few mistakes I learned a little more. To this day, I'm learning more & more. Remember this, "Nobody was born knowing". I agree that the manual was poorly written for the average person, but as any piece of software for a computer, there definitely is a pretty steep learning curve and there are too few knowledgeable people around to teach you some of the tricks when using this device. Finally, I now feel confident to do the necessary programming to find my way. I love it, and I would never buy another car without NAV. ;)

Here's a page from the 2003 Supplemental Owners Manual. Read the first notice about metalized window films:

The advice I got from a professional window tinting company is to avoid metalized films in cars that have embedded antennas for the radios (AM or FM Bands), and especially if the car came equipped with a Navigation System. You should use a dye type of film instead. This is also mentioned in the Owners Manual from '02-'04 ES's.

Generally, the amps for Lexus cars are model & year specific, ie: ES, GS, LS,etc. It's very hard to troubleshoot where the problem lies in this situation, so before I would look to buy an amp from eBay or whomever, I would either take the car to a reputable radio shop or a Lexus dealer to get an estimate for this repair. In the long run this might be the most economical way of handling your dilemma. ;)

Sorry about your problem Joe, but it sounds like the power supply for the amp crapped out. :( I can't really advise what your next course of action should be since you're low on cash, but I would try to get a schematic of your radio from a Lexus dealer and take it from there, since you mentioned you're familiar with electronics. I don't think there is an aftermarket amplifier that is manufactured for your system, but if there is I'm sure it would be pretty expensive.

The "ect power button" changes the engines RPM shift speeds. When engaged and starting from a dead stop the engine goes to a higher RPM before shifting to the next speed. By doing this, the car is shifting at a speed where it develops peak horsepower in each gear. The problem using this power button is, it's not considered to be the most economical as far as your gas mileage is concerned. I don't know what year they dropped this feature, but my '94 ES had it.

If you accelerate normally without the "ect power button" engaged you'll get your best gas mileage. If you accelerate hard with the "ect power button" engaged your gas mileage will suffer.

Ain't love grand. :D Best of luck with your wifes new car. You'd better keep on her good side otherwise she won't let you drive it anymore.

I didn't put the spoiler on my car with the thought of how much more or less the car would be worth at trade in time. I put it on to get the enjoyment and individuality that this add-on afforded me. <_<

You should not be getting a crackling sound when adjusting the volume level and when it's cranked up to pretty high levels you shouldn't hear any distortion! I would test this by taking the same CD and playing it on another ML system in an ES at your dealer. It definitely sounds like there is something wrong with your system. If the dealer doesn't agree, then I'd call "Lexus Customer Satisfaction" and !Removed! like hell!

In body shop lingo......"your hinge is sprung". This in laymans terms is: it's bent. I doubt whether you can readjust this type of damage yourself because you need some pretty heavy duty tools, such as in a body shop to correct this misalignment. ;)

It worked fine when I programmed it to go from New York City to Montreal & Quebec. ;)

If the area you tried to input has been developed recently, the information(Address & Street) wouldn't be on the DVD's database that was originally installed on your car. They came out with an updated DVD about October 2003. Also, did you change the "Zone" to the area you were looking for?

That's all you have to do........unsnap the airbox, install the new filter and you're set to go. ;)

Yay.....Good for you!

You can get the newest DVD here for $288.00 DVD It's a very simple thing to change it. Just pull off the cover(towards you). You need to tug it firmly. After the cover is off, you'll see an eject button. Press this button and the DVD should eject. Take the new DVD and feed it into the slot(the same way you would put a CD into a single CD player). The computer will automatically upgrade all the new information. Replace the plastic cover, and you're all set.

On the touch screen(upper left) you can adjust the "scale of miles" that the picture displays. Also, in the setup screen you can default everything back to normal. This is assuming that you originally had the proper display before. Upgrading the "firmware"(software) only serves to give you more POI's and new streets that were not there when the database on the DVD was produced. I recently bought the newest DVD for my car since certain street addresses weren't showing up when I tried to program them into the NAV. This new DVD corrected the situation.

Wrong!!! Read on: WD-40

Hey Steve- Nice job! Now you'll have to sleep in your car to get your moneys worth. What are you going to do with the CD changer? You'll probably never use it again. :P

The '97 transmission is different than the '02 thru "04 ES units. They have 5 speeds as opposed to 4, as in your car. I think you have an engine problem rather then a transmission problem. Have you had a tune up recently and what is the mileage on your car?

I don't know what year ES you're talking about since you never mentioned it, but on my previously owned '94 ES I took my car to the dealer because of condensation in the right taillight. They replaced the complete taillight assembly as a warranty repair. This was done in 2000, after the car was about 6 years old.

Did a Lexus dealer repair your car? Why were the bulbs missing? Why don't you bring the car back to whoever did the repairs? I guess it wasn't such an excellent job after all. ;)

Sometimes the bulb filament is open and when you smacked the housing it once again made contact. This might work for awhile, but then the problem will once again come back. You'll probably end up having to change the bulb.