ArmyofOne

do you have to disconnect the battery to do this job?

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You already have this job done, right? So why would it matter?

Technically, just about any time you work on the car the manual says to disconnect the battery, it's for safety. Of course it depends but many procedures start with disconnecting the battery.

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the only reason i said no is because you dont have to disconnect anything electronic to do the job...well a few things but tey are ABS and the Electronic SpeedSensitive Steering...but they arent gonna fryif you dont...

i wonder maybe if the dealer did disconnect the batt and erased his lock code and his preset stations.

my car has been in for way more work that a R&P and the stations have never been erased, therefore i can deduce that the battery was not disconected nor any main fuse removed while being worked on. thus it is not nessecary, because JP Importz did the work. If it needed to be done, he would have done it...correctly. my car has had well over $3,000 worth fo restoration work done there, (over a span of 3 viusits) and i dont think the batt was ever disconnected for the reasons stated above.

Do a Google Search for "paypal sucks" and it will provide links to websites that will tell you Paypal's secret customer service phone number.  Call the number and ask the Paypal rep to email you instructions for closing your account.  The Paypal rep cannot close your account for you. You must do it online yourself.

Be prepared for hassels.  Like Paypal may block you from accessing your own account so you won't be able to close it!  Paypal has done nasty things like this and thats why there have been lawsuits against paypal and why there are websites like paypalsucks.com.

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this makes no sense, if i simplyh tell them i am leavingt eh country (not liek its a lie) and i will nto have acess to it for 6-8 months...why should i keep it. i could leave it open and just close my bank account LOL.

NVM, i took care of it. all i had to do was go into my account profile, give my # and clikc close account.

*post Deleted...duplicate*

Check this out...I recently purchased a "Certified" GS 300. I didn't check out the tires too much except to see that they were new. After a few miles of driving, I noticed that they were loud! It turns out the dealer had put Bridgestone Insignia SEs on the car - S rated tires are about the cheapest you can get!

I tried to work with the dealer - they offered me a car wash. Big Deal! I was going to put new tires on myself and consequently have been following this thread, but I decided to call Lexus Customer Care today and they are going to talk with the dealer and let me know what can be done next week. Lexus agrees the tires should be "V" rated. I'll let you know if they step up to the plate and put new tires on and what kind they are.

Meanwhile, I have been researching tires and the Yoko AVIDs sound good. They come in H and V ratings. I'm not sure of the cost difference, but I wonder how they differ in ride, quietness, grip etc.

My only experience with Yokohamas has been with 50 series A008s on an RX-7. They were really grippy initially, like riding on rails, but got more slippery as they wore.

Any other opinions on the AVIDs?

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my avids went to *BLEEP* after 15,000 miles:

horrible tires. they had ZERO traction in rain and snow and sidewalls were stiff. the only thing they had going for them was they were farily quiet.

Not worth the time or money. I know a friend that converted.  He basically bought a donor car & switched everthing over.  It took a long time.  I believe that the wire harness was different & it was a lot of work to remove the old harness & reinstall it in the other car. Practically the whole interior had to be removed.  I helped him with other parts of the conversion but not the electrical.  You need to know what you're doing. My 2 cents.

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Did he do it on an IS300?

manual swaps in a toyota are usually pretty straightforward. however, that may not be the case here.

what you woudl definately need:

ECU

Wiring harnesses

Tranny mounts and crossmember

Tranny (duh)

Clutch

Flywheel

Fuel pump, relay and ECU for the fuel pump (possibly)

Chutch Pedal

Welder

a few hoses here and there.

Correct, the hybrid technology on the RX400h is 4th generation & is different than the system on the Prius.  Hybrid technology originated in Japan in 1997. 2nd generation was in 2000 with the intro of the Prius in the US. Then in 2004 came their 3rd generation technology on the redesigned Prius.  All 4 systems are different.

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do they still use the regenerative braking? i think thats the best system ever devised. i always thought there was a lot of wasted energy in a braking system.

how do i close a paypal account? i never use it and i will be going on ADR soon, so i will nto be able to use it for a good 6 months even if i wanted to. how do i close it? is there an option to do this onlin? or do i need to call?

Just a note, fuses can fail without being able to be noticed by casual examination. If you actually remove each fuse, you can easily see if they work. The easier method would be use a test lamp and check the terminals on each side of the top of each fuse. Circuits which are powered when the ignition is in the ACC or ON position will show power at both terminals.

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Exactly! I don't know how many times someone said "all the fuses look fine". I break out the DMM only to find a fuse blown

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does the tranny still work? can you shift it out of park and into R?

On my 91 LS400 when unlocking the driver's door occasionally sets off the alarm. If I lock & unlock with the key several times it will stop. The ignition was replaced about 90,000 miles ago and new keys were made. Has anyone else had this problem? Is there a fix?

Thanks B)

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i have been having this issue recently. i thinkyou are unlocking it too fast.

when i turn mine too fast and nto al the way, then try to pull the key out, it will lock all 3 doors (the dirvers rear doesnt work) and the alarm will go off until you turn the key toward the back of the car 3 times.

these cars are old and sometimes they dont always work the way they should. i shouldnt think its a big deal. just kind of emarrasing in a crowded parking lot.

a tranny with an air pocket?  to get air in the system, dont you need a leak?

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I would think not because it is not a sealed or closed system.

The dipstick is a perfect place for air to get in.

Could have happened when it was being filled, who knows, I brainstorming here.

If the fluid is not leaking and the level was low, then I would deduce that the fluid wasn't full to begin with. Air is the only think that I could think of that could displace the fluid from below to make it look full on the dipstick after you tranny work.

steviej

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but the same fluid has been in it since december...its a good theory, but not sure if thats the case in my situation. but i do appreciate the input! :)

I will, for now, think my theory was right, because as of today it hasnt slipped after antoher 10-15 miles. hopefully all will be well. :) (i hope im not shooting myself in the foot).

Hello,

I am not sure i did ask this question or not.

When i turn my car on, after 15-20 sec while i reversing my car i always hear some noise. I thought that was brake. But today I left in park position and that noise came. I am sure that is from ABS because In my 99 Sienna same type of noise(Little louder)comes but after 5 sec when I turn car on.

Is this normal? or something is going wrong with my ABS. How to check?

Thanks in adcance.

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Is something wrong?

Hard to tell without hearing the noise in person.

Is this normal?

Probably not.

How to check?

Pull out the fuse for the ABS system, if it still does it, its the system.

You still may not have a reliable car because your transmission was slipping the other day and the cylinder head could be warped and corroded due to the prior owners' failure to service the cooling system.  The cylinder head gasket may also be marginal now too if the overheating warped the cylinder head.

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Cylinder head is fine, compression is still GREAT: 1: 168, 2:170, 3:169, 4:170, 5: 171, and 6:172. I'm not losing coolant, there is no smoke, the tranny has stopped slipping, that was my fault. There is a bad seal on the speedo input gear, when i tilted the car back, the tranny fluid spilled out of the case, and settled on the lower part of the unit, thus never hitting the ground, nor making it appear that i had a leak, but the fluid was no longer in the transaxle. Thus it slipped. I added fluid, and now all is well. :D

Oh and FYI, a tranny for this car is 540 dollars. I think i can handle that. I'll Take 2 days off of work and pull out and reinstall, piece of cake. I have done this before and i can do it again, no issues. The problem will be finding time to do it. I pay a mechanic to do my work because I choose to, not because I have to. This car is reliable, and i have driven vehicles with slipping trannies many many many miles. They are simply annoying as all hell, not really anything more than a nuisaince until they go.

looks awsome , i cant wait to get my timing belt and water pump done

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I added it up, and i have spent $4,333.39 since aquiring this car, and im due for $1200 more at JP Imports for the Power Steering Pump and High Pressure Feeds, then $800 for the Rear Main Seal (which im not even sure is leaking at all) and THEN, the dash and paint.

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Tint will installed monday (5% rear, 20% front) and new tires (falken ziex ze-512's in 190-60hr15).

looks awsome , i cant wait to get my timing belt and water pump done

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I added it up, and i have spent $4,333.39 since aquiring this car, and im due for $1200 more at JP Imports for the Power Steering Pump and High Pressure Feeds, then $800 for the Rear Main Seal (which im not even sure is leaking at all) and THEN, the dash and paint.

okie.. heres the problem.. i turn on my car today.. turned on my system via the FM tuner and everythign works.. antena comes up.. radio turns on.. but then i decide that i want to listen to a cd.. so i press the CD button and BAM.. nothing happens??  so i'm like wtf? so i open up my cd changer case thigny and look.. and the eject button is not greeen either? so i'm like.. omg.. what is going on..... so i press eject and nothing hapens..but the radio still works.........

so i'm like freaking out.. i decided i can't do anything as of yet.. so i go to work.. for a few hours.. COME BACK.. and turn on my car press the cd button again and BAM... it starts working again!! so i'm like.. what the hell was that?

just wondering what it could of been? could it be the cold weather? since i' do live in Canada hah .. could it be a problem thats gonna reoccur? has anyone had the same problem with this ..? and also..... if it is a on going problem.. and i do decide to change my system.. would it be a big problem if i was to install one of those dvd players? would i need custom work done to make it fit?

btw. this is the 1997 Nakamachi 6 cd changer system..

thanks in advance everyone!!

concerned ls400 owner.........

Jimmy

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i dont know, but if it ever goes, thast $1,000 out of your wallet...at least.

Guess i was thinking mine was a senior citizen. 91LS w/ 177,840 miles. Shoot, based upon the posts my girl's only middle aged and still in her prime.  Might even spring for some new wheels to replace those dinky 15s!

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If you do, let me know, if your wheels are chome i want em! and even if they arent, mine ar epretty beat up!

am jus wondering where can i go to make my sc400 into a convertible because i saw one and it look really nice

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Hey, I'm new here, I also have an sc400, and I really want to turn it into a convertible....

I can't find that site.....do you know which site it is?

Thanks.

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THANKS...that is the one I have been searching for...

now.......does anyone know where I can get this job done, and how much it will cost?

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Look to spend around $5-$7,000 depending on labor rates in your area. i would say probably closer to 7k

why would you want to do this though? convertibles have more body roll and road noise...also arent as safe in side impact collisions...usually (the SC430 is the excpetion because it has a hardtop)

do you have to disconnect the battery to do this job?

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why? i wouldnt think so...especially not on an LS.

ok, i have made my desicion. due to the ride of the car and the price of the tire, i am going to get these...same tire, but OEM size:

http://www.discounttiredirect.com/direct/f...id=006158&ar=60

48 each

after tax mounting and balancing that comes to $281.45...MUCH better. and they havea 60,000 mile garuntee. size is 190-60-R15

they are HR rated...more than i need.

i figured out what caused my tire bubble...

i exceeded the speed rating numerous times...those yokos were only rated at 110!!

Whoo-hooo! monday at 3:30 pm!!!

not the first car i have had tinted, it will be limo in rear (5%) and 20% in the front.

Llmar High Performance Metallic Film. I know the guy who is doing it verywell and its under warranty anywhere llumar film is sold.

He is doing it for an unbelieveable price, a price so good, that i cant turn it down, but i cant saw how much.

needless to say it is the same guy that did my contour, the f150, my concorde, my old explorer and my old ranger. show quality work at a fraction of the price.

maybe your tranny just had a bubble or air pocket that worked its way out.  No leaks just a drop in fluid level.  Like when the coolant system gets an air pocket.

who knows.  let it go and move on until is slips again.

steviej

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a tranny with an air pocket? to get air in the system, dont you need a leak?

Keep us posted on your tire wear problem as well as your tranny concerns Army.  Don't do anything just yet with tires until you find out about the other stuff & the costs.  Just my suggestion.   B)

 

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checkthe tranny thread for update.

as for the tires, i will go to discount tire tomorrow and see if they have the falkens in stock. i will then reserve a set and have them put on next week.

if they dont have a set in stock that they can reserve, i will order them online, but i would rather get them from the store, i have a coupon for $25 off any set of tires or wheels, and now is the itme to use it. :D

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I do have another issue, i dont need atire that will do 149 mph...my car wont even go that fast!

130 is plenty of speed rating...the 205 you have listed:

205/50R15 86H 28-331-572 6.5 5.5 - 7.5 23.2 8.1 6.9 10/32 51 1168

i will ask about today when i go to discount tire.

im just shopping at the moment. the problem with this tire, is its not listed on discount tire direct...

maybe you should also give that filter that SK has been talking about.  that may help clear out some things too.  You never know.

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i cant. it cant be made to fit thins vehicle without dodging power steering and coolant lines. it woudl disrupt the flow of trans fluid...

i edited my last post,...see above ;)

Keep us posted on your tire wear problem as well as your tranny concerns Army.  Don't do anything just yet with tires until you find out about the other stuff & the costs.  Just my suggestion.  B)

 

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checkthe tranny thread for update.

as for the tires, i will go to discount tire tomorrow and see if they have the falkens in stock. i will then reserve a set and have them put on next week.

if they dont have a set in stock that they can reserve, i will order them online, but i would rather get them from the store, i have a coupon for $25 off any set of tires or wheels, and now is the itme to use it. :D

Army-

Is that a new link, cause it works fine through Windows Media Player.

I really felt sorry for the poor tires.......they certainly won't last very long with super burnouts like that. 

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i did change the link.

i DL"ed it, hopefully it stays working now.

and he was burning off the old tires, look at the caption at the bottom of the vid...its in yellow and hard to see. ;) so they were old and decrepit anyways.

i need to find someone to do that wiht my old yokos and dunlops here in another week...because the damned thinsg are bad, the dunlops are bald, and the yunkohamas have bubbles LOL....unfortunately, i cant do it, cause my tranny is not going to take that kind of abuse.