SRK

I just checked my '92, and it has the "floating" gas pedal too. Not anchored at the bottom at all, and it has the kickdown switch (which got a workout today on the West Coast road.....)

To SW03ES and dole2000 if my comment seemed "over the top" my apologies. I intended it as a figurative statement, and not a literal one.

Do us a favour and don't mention Audi again on this board. Audi will never build a car with the reliability of Lexus. They have never known how, and never will. EVERY Audi mechanic knows what the inside of the Audi V-6 looks like cause they all blow head gaskets. Transaxles destroy themselves. Audi's blow big parts all over the road, and the little ones too. Lexus doesn't. Biggest pile of crap out of Germany since the DKW, which of course they bought. Along with three other crappy German manufacturers. And this is my gentle opinion. I am sure the Germans invented the Audi as payback for the Allied victory in the Battle of the Bulge in '44-'45.

This is exactly my point. I am not a chemical engineer. I depend on the statements of the manufacturers, as dictated by law ( Department of Transport certification) to describe their products accurately and prevent mistakes that endanger people. In this regard, DOT 3 and DOT 4 fluids are completely compatible forwards and backwards (deja vu all over again). Any seach of brake fluid manufacturers will substantiate this. If a car manufacturer stipulates DOT 3 it is to establish a minimum specification. I have not seen it, but if a car manufacturer stipulates DOT3 exclusively and stipulates that DOT 4 NOT BE USED, then they are mistaken, in that the companies that make these fluids have designed them, and tested them in full accordance with the laws of both USA and Canada, to be compatible. They are staking their reputations on this, and that's good enough for me. Move just one digit more, to DOT 5, and you will find very explicit instructions NOT to mix this silicone fluid with the 3 and 4 polyglycol ones. That the manufacturers are so stringent about this, and so clear on the compatibility of 3 and 4 with each other, gives me confidence, which is what these legal designations are designed to do. Whew. And I said I was tired, and I am. Time for a drink. Remember in the film "The Graduate" when he is taken aside by a family friend and told "The future son, is in plastics" ? The guy was right. The audience laughed, but he was right.....

You seem to think that to use DOT 4 is inviting disaster, or that there is something wrong with it. Name one disadvantage of DOT 4 would you? Use science and technology and the facts in your answer. Discard the emotion. "Exciting cool and manly to take risks" Really? With brake fluid? Ridiculous. I have been repairing cars for longer than you have been alive, no doubt. In any event, I grow tired of discussing this topic with you. Go forth, and do as you wish, as will I.

You want to drift a car? Buy your own car to do it in. Then you just might develop some respect for what it takes to purchase things yourself. You may find you are not so "drift crazy" with your own stuff. Knock yourself out. Just don't hurt anyone else, or mess up their property. Post the photos of the wreck. We'd all like to see. Is that helpful? And I thought teenagers knew everything......

Monarch I see you are attempting to show something. Using DOT 4 brake fluid to replace DOT 3 is acceptable because those that make the stuff stipulate that they are fully compatible. One fluid has a higher boiling point. Either can be used to top off a system, but the characteristics of the fluid will be a combination of the two used. DOT 5 is not compatible, and the warnings about that are very clear and there can be no mis-understanding them. It is like using Dexron III fluid in a car built in the days of Dexron II - the new fluid is compatible with the one it replaces. As to the Amsoil comment, I was perhaps a bit harsh, but I cruise a great many boards, and the Amsoil folks (who I am sure are fine people) tend to jump on any discussion of lubricants quite avidly, and claim many things, most of all extended drain intervals, and special oil filters. No manufacturer supports that practice with their engines. I also tend to trust the major refiners, like Mobil, and their claims and recommendations for lubricants. Consequently I use Mobil 1 synthetic, like many others on this board. I am sure there are lots of fine synthetics, but I am going to stick with the major brands. I am convinced that Toyota Type IV trans fluid is best because it is at least semi-synthetic, and has properties matched to the shift characteristics that Toyota desires their transmissions to display. Dexron/Mercon probably won't hurt the trans in our cars, but the shift performance will be different. To achieve the shift feel that Lexus designed in, use their fluid. This is why I find the continued "belief" in Type F fluid so interesting. Ford has not built a trans that requires that fluid since 1977 or so, and that is what, 27 year? That is a very long in automotive technology. Time to move on. An engine oil made in 1977 would be "SE" service rating, and was rendered obsolete in 1980 by the "SF" rating by the API. Presently, we are in the "SL" rating. That's a big difference in engine oil performance. I know of no one who goes looking for SE oil for their old car - they just use the modern stuff.

I can't believe the myth and dogma that is perpetuated about Type F auto trans fluid. It is not more "detergent", it has a different friction modifier for use in Ford designed clutch packs and their particular organic lining material. The fact that Ford made Type F OBSOLETE in their vehicles in 1977 doesn't seem to matter to anyone at all. It is a true dinosaur oil in every sense. Putting that fluid in any modern vehicle makes no sense at all. Toyota calls for their Type IV fluid, and thats what we should use. Amsoil is for people who couldn't qualify to be Moonies, or something. Only Zealots need apply.

This is exactly it - an excellent description. In addition, the type of caliper will also determine the "give" in the pedal. Lexus, like many other manufacturers uses a floating caliper, which generates quite a bit of pedal travel as the caliper itself distorts under increasing pressure, even after the normal free play is taken up. Fixed multi-piston calipers do this much less. Drive a Porsche 911, with normal rubber hoses and fixed calipers. It is like stepping on a concrete floor compared to our cars. A teflon liner may be used, but it is not the material that prevents distortion - that duty falls to the synthetic rubber casing, which is then protected by the stainless sheath. The firewall which mounts the booster unit and master cylinder can also distort, as can the pedal assembly itself. Save your money for other things.

The idle up valve is a vacuum-mechanical switch on the power steering pump to prevent idle drop at full lock. The AC idle adaptation is done through the engine management system. The vibration may very well be the AC compressor locking up internally. Do not run it any longer, because if it is the compressor it will make metal and contaminate the entire system. The shop that fixes it should waive the diagnostic fee if they get the repair job. Haggle with the dealer and the independant on this point. It should be a very simple diagnosis. The repair cost will be much more. Good luck with it.

Carstereohelp is fixing the Nakamichi in my 92 as we speak. Their initial estimate was for $180.00 for the typical fault the 92 has. They wrote back to say that my unit had been "logged in" to their repair department, and I expect a call or e-mail when it is done. So far my experience with them has been great, and I will post when the repaired unit is in place and working. They claim to fix the faults that the factory exchange program does not - in other words they modify to prevent the same type of failure, rather than treat the symptom. That's the kind of talk I like. I got the unit out quite easily, packaged it according to their instructions. Re-installing the unit will be about 15 minutes I think. These cars are designed to be serviced it seems.

The panel is a laminated plywood with the walnut veneer on it. It is not bent much if at all when removing. Tape up a thin slot screwdriver and pry up gently at the back on each side, going back and forth. When you get the rear of the panel up a bit, maybe 1/2 inch, then pull it back to the rear and it slides out. Quite brilliant actually, and easy. You won't break it, the panel is quite tough.

Leaving any spark plug in an engine for five years is a mistake. Putting a plug in an engine dry, without any lubricant, and expecting to come out after five years without a hassle, is completely unreasonable. There is absolutely nothing technically wrong with using a small amount of never-seize on a plug thread when installing it. No fires, no electical maladies whatsoever. I take the plugs out every two years, if only to have a look, and prevent seizures. And if a plug does pull a thread it can be replaced quite easily by a tech who knows what he is doing, with a heli-coil. No need to replace the head.

Interestingly enough, we are now seeing the beginning of the end for dino oils in automotive factory fill. Presently, all LS-1 and LS-4 Corvette engines are factory filled with 5W-30 Mobil 1 synthetic, and that viscosity, and an oil specifically approved, must be maintained to keep the warranty. I believe only Mobil 1 is presently approved. Jaguar, Aston Martin, Porsche, and AMG modified Mercedes Benz engines are also all filled with Mobil 1 0W-40 or 15W-50 to maintain warranty. BMW M-series engines are also factory filled with a German made synthetic, and no other oil can be substituted, or is approved. Within a few more years most cars will have synthetic oils, or more highly refined and hydro-treated dino oils (which border on synthetic in quality) as a factory requirement. Meeting ever more stringent emissions specs, and dealing with increasing temperatures will demand synthetics. Nonetheless, modern dino oils are outstanding, especially compared with oils of only ten years ago.

I am not a fan of extended drain intervals at all. Consider how much money you will spend in gasoline to wear out the engine oil in 5-6k miles. Gasoline costs far more, and yet the oil determines the engines life. Saving the engine is more important to me, than saving money on the oil. A pal of mine works for one of the biggest tanker truck fleets here in Canada. The engines in the Freightliners and other tractors cost $50-60k. To maintain the warranty, the oil is changed at the recommended interval. With the new cooled-EGR diesels, oil changes are essential because of the soot loading that occurs. The soot particles pass right through any filter, and will gel the oil at a certain concentration. The oil has to be changed. The bottom line for me is that oil does much more than lubricate, and filters do only one thing - remove particles down to a certain size. Filters do not change the chemistry of the oil, and it is that chemistry which is so important to all of the functions that engine oil must provide.

Although Mobil made claims about increased drain intervals in the early days, they no longer do, and recommend changes, with filter, at the manufacturers intervals, or shorter. Measuring TBN is next to useless. They provide no usable definition of it, and appear not to understand the base number. It is an esoteric measurement in any event. Wear metals are not the only measure of an oils suitability for extended use. More important is the detergent dispersant behaviour at the drain point. If the oil is in service too long the d-d's are depleted, and the resultant piston ring deposits are very harmful to the life of the engine. Determining the amount of deposit requires dismantling the engine, something most people are unwilling to undertake, or unaware of. The suitability of the additive package in preventing excessive deposit or contamination on the O2 sensor and the catalytic converter, and the amount of crankcase gases vented to the intake system, and their influence on engine emission performance, is not mentioned at all. Extended drain intervals are very harmfull in all of these performance indicators. I will continue to trust the American Petroleum Institute, the Society of Automotive Engineers, and the International Lubrication Standardization Advisory Committee's testing and rating of engine oil performance, and not some backyarder's idea of what constitutes a good engine oil.

Conventional and synthetic engine oils like Mobil 1 are compatible in both directions, and neither oil will CAUSE a leak, although synthetic may pass through more readily.

Obviously the engine is running roughly. The check engine light is the key. The reason it is on, is that it has something to tell you. You will need to retrieve the code, which probably won't do you much good, or have a mechanic retrieve the code, which will lead them to the repair. The smelly exhaust is a clue that there is something seriously wrong. Stop driving the car until it is fixed.

They will fit perfectly.

With a strut replacement I would think they did an alignment. Any charge on the bill for doing that? A good alignment is a first step in removing and/or preventing vibrations. The pre-alignment check should reveal any bushing or suspension part wear, and the alignment insures all the angles are correct. These cars are fully, and easily adjustable in all angles on both the front and rear axles. Also if the alignment is off, it will tend to distort the tire carcass, eventually ruining the tire for high speed driving.

OK thanks. Now I understand. So the issue is using oil additives, and on that one I believe in just using a good quality oil, or a synthetic like Mobil 1 and be done with it.

You're just funnin' us aren't you? No need for oil changes? Why, to save money for something........important?

I use Techron once a year. Bosch has approved that additive for their fuel systems, and I am unaware of any other product they have approved. Z-max and the like are snake oil. Stay away from them. By the way, I just filled my LS400 tonight. The wife has been driving it for the last couple of weeks (her car really, until I get home) in short trips at relatively low temperatures. Mileage on this tank was 17.5 imperial, quite a bit lower than usual. Goes to show how the mixture is richer during warm-up, and another reason to be moving quickly after a cold start.

VMF it is completely normal for the exhaust gas at the tailpipe to go slightly grey under full throttle. The WOT switch tells the computer to go slightly rich to improve power, and also to heat the cats to clean them. The result is a grey smoke under full load. From idle just reving the engine won't do this. It also sounds like the car is running properly and that there are no other symptoms. Don't worry about it at all.

All the gas gauge tells you is when to fill up the tank. Unless the previous owner lived at a gas station, some fuel was burned going home. You must fill the tank, record the mileage, drive the car and fill the tank again. What was needed to fill the tank the second time is divided into the miles driven. The gauge is not linear in its reading. And you should do this several times. Why do you insist on warming up the engine? Has someone told you it was a good thing to do? It isn't. Start the engine. By the time all the annunciator lights go out on the instrument cluster, put the thing in drive and go. Your actual fuel mileage is far higher than you think.