austin h

Need some help. I sold a set of stock '93 SC300 rims (the paddle wheel design) to someone who is trying to put them on his '93 SC400. The tireshop said they will not clear the front brakes. Does anyone know if this is a known issue (SC300 rims not fitting on SC400) or is something unusual going on? Is there any workarounds or should I just take them back? Thanks!

Update as promised ... it was the struts. The right rear was blown out and the left was soft. Perhaps it was caused by the 300lb+ passenger that somehow managed to squeeze into the back! That's not going to happen again!!

Thanks for all the replies ... I will put it up on jackstands and poke around to see if anything appears loose. I do have a torque wrench and lots of experience with rebuilding LBC's (little british cars). At least this isn't something electronic! Austin

Just tried the "push test" on all 4 corners. Everything still feels very tight but I am getting a small squeeking noise from the rears. No clunking noise but I will have the mechanic check it out more thoroughly on the lift. Thanks for the advice!

Over any slightly rough road or small bumps at any speed I hear clunking which appears to be from the right rear trunk area. I took everything out of the trunk (spare tire, access panels, etc) and looked for the source of the noise. I drove with everything out and the sound is still there. I got under the car and moved the exhaust up and down listening for contact (none). I suppose it could be suspension/bushing related but it just sounds like something loose. The last time I had it in for service I asked the mechanic about it but he said he couldn't hear anything. I would accept that I'm hearing things except my wife hears it too! Any ideas? Austin '93 SC 300, 84K miles

Just wanted to follow up as promised! The slipping problem was intermittant ... going away for weeks at a time. Lately it was occurring more frequently so took it to the transmission shop. They drove it but, of course, it didn't slip for them. They did get error codes for two transmission solenoids. The solenoids were replaced, car test driven and no more transmission error codes are showing up. Two weeks later and no more slipping (fingers crossed) and the acceleration is much quicker. It appears the malfunctioning solenoids were robbing power and making the car generally sluggish. Cheers, Austin

Yes, they used the Lexus specified ATF and there are no leaks. This shop works on a lot of Lexus' and have taken care of AC, brakes and 60K service for me in the past so the flush and fluid change was the least expensive option to start with. Spoke with them today and since they don't do extensive transmission repairs, they suggested I contact a shop that does all their transmission work. I was just curious to see if any one else has experienced with this problem on their SC's. I will report back when I have some news. Thanks, Austin

My 93 SC300, 80K miles, with automatic trans is slipping occasionally when accelerating from a stop. The rpm's go up but the car doesn't move at first. This has happened about 4 times over a two month period. I took it in to an independent mechanic who works on Lexus' and he flushed and replaced the fluid. Now, a week later it happened again. I know nothing about automatic transmissions ... are there bands that can be adjusted? Anybody else have this problem occur? What's the next step? Thanks, Austin