sgtschlang

Hey Andrew I think if you ask toysrme who is a long time forum member and who knows EVERYTHING there is to know about these cars from a mechanical prospective, he will tell you differently about the '92-'93 ES having inherent overheating problems. Andrew, I've got a 92 ES300 that I've had for over 3 yrs and I've put over 40K on the clock. The car is driven every day in your geographic location - the Bay Area -between Fairfield and Danville. This car has never overheated. Only cooling related issue I've ever had with the car is the factory radiator that I replaced with a quality unit at about 140K. This car routinely sits in bumper to bumper traffic (Bay Area traffic sucks) and we experience summer temps well over 100 F. It hit 105 in Fairfield last week and 107 in Livermore to the south. My car is a 5sp - automatic trans cars may run hotter. Not disputing that some may have experienced cooling issues w 92/93s but that didn't stop me from buying the car. Good luck with your LX search.

Have I created a cluster for myself? I did a search and found a thread with mixed opinions that removing the cluster blows the CENTER Airbag sensor. Can anyone confirm if I have blown the sensor and created a potential stall problem? Thanks QUOTE(Air Force Rascal @ Feb 20 2005, 02:05 PM) Just want to add this...for everyones benefit...the reason why these led lights in the instrument clusters in the 90 - 98 models are going bad is because the LED lights were made for only 12 volts, well..the bad news is..the alternator puts out 14 volts..and over time it burns out the led's. also, a SMALL Warning..after you take out the instrument cluster..you will still be able to drive the car..HOWEVER!!, do not because when you do..you will blow the CENTER Airbag sensor..and your Airbag light on the cluster when you get it back and re-install it will stay ON all the time..which is a CODE 41, your diagnostics will will come back..wiring harness OK and fuse OK..which means REPLACE the Center Airbag sensor..at the tune of over $300 at the dealer ship plus labor. I said you will still be able to drive the car, HOWEVER, since the ECU is not getting the right information from the MISSING cluster it will probably stall out at traffic lights ETC, NOT a GOOD thing. Hope this helps you'all out there in Lexus land. Sorry, but every bit of that is wrong. Most especially the airbag part.

My 92 ES is a 5speed and I love it too :)

The dist. o-ring was a snap just make sure you mark the dist for repositioning. The oil filter adapter o-ring was tricky becasue the ex pipe is right in front of it. The v-cover up front was a snap and the rear one requires the removal of the plenum and that took me about 5 hours total as it was my 1st time and I was in no rush and wanted to do it just once. Also did the timing belt, idler and tensioner bearings and water pump myself with quality parts for about $175. Now it's time for brakes...

Looking for any tips to help me narrow down a nagging oil leak. Actually the car hardly leaks at all but I get a bad oil burning smell in traffic or at a stop light if I have the climate control set on incoming air. Also after driving the car and parking it the smell can obviously be detected from under the hood. When I first bought the car about 6 months ago it was leaking like a pig. I have replaced the following as detailed below and it is frustrating that I still get the stink. I can visually see no smoke coming of the engine. Both v-cover gaskets and bolt grommets: Did this myself using quality Fel-Pro gaskets. Dealer in my area wanted $550 just to replace the gaskets. Oil filter adapter O-ring: Did this myself for $3 (dealer wanted $135) and this stopped a major leak that was coating the entire oil pan. Oil was blowing onto the exhaust and I thought that this would stop the issue as the pan is now dry. Distributor O-ring: Did this myself for $3 (dealer wanted $135) and this stopped a good leak as well. After replacing the old gaskets / O-rings I pressure washed the engine to ensure my repairs stopped the visual leaks. I have been under the car since and can visually see that the 'rear' right v-cover is sealing and dry. All other areas appear dry. The only other thing I can think of is the transmission. Car is a 5-speed and the trans barely leaks (weeps) and maybe this is blowing back onto the exhaust? The exhaust overall appears dry. Maybe there is another common gasket/ O-ring that I am missing? Any comments / advice appreciated.

Thanks for the replies

Have heard that a 5 speed in these cars are somewhat rare?? Just curious...