blake918

That's all I use! I spray it on a paper towel(so that it doesn't do everywhere!) and polish it in. Works good enough for me B) :

Pretty good wet and dry, but I'm not an agressive driver(I am at heart, but I like to see how high my fuel econ can go!). :)

Irontoad has the OEM Lexus water pump for under $100, $88 for the pump and ~$10 shipping. Park Place Lexus has the tensioner, belt, and pulleys for about $250. Here are the links: "Irontoad"(alias for Thompson Lexus in PA): http://www.irontoad.com Park Place Lexus in Plano, TX: http://www.trademotion.com/partlocator/ind...m?siteid=213808 I have dealt with both dealerships, and both were excellent experiences. Most of their prices are +/- $2 of each other, but some things will be way off like the water pump $88 @irontoad v. $155 at PP Lexus. That sounds like a really good tune up! ;)

Let's see...new steering rack, p/s pump, a/c componets, timing belt service, new seat, an assortment of gaskets...yep, you did really well! ;) I bought OEM hood supports off of ebay for $70(I have a '95 though); it takes about 10 minutes to put them in. There is a diy retro fit for this. I didn't want to start drilling out the brackets and what not plus I'm lazy, so I just bought the real things. It sounds like you just need to have the lights in the center stack changed, so you can see at night! Is the climate control lcd blacked out? Here are two reputable, online Lexus parts departments with great prices(for the struts or any other part on the car if you plan to diy)! http://www.irontoad.com http://www.trademotion.com/partlocator/ind...m?siteid=213808 You won't be doing any running because these cars last a very long time! However, I must warn you that parts are very expensive as is labor. I have a '95 LS with 235,08x miles that still gets 20/25 fuel mileage and still goes like a bat out of hell when I punch it. What more can I ask for! :D Do you have any pics of your new car? Best of luck and enjoy the car! B)

That's just what I wanted to hear! lol My LS is running 100%-I'm always curious if it can be better though; I was going to have the filter changed just as a preventative measure. All she had to tell me to get me to not do the change was that the older, higher mileage cars that they've changed the filters on have had problems with fuel lines and what not, and with 235k miles on my car, it's probably best that the fuel lines are only tampered with when a serious repair is needed. Also, if I do decide to have them change the filter one day and something goes wrong, it's their responsibility to fix it, right? I know that some of them will get clogged, but my car runs too good to have a clogged filter! I remember SK saying that these filters don't really need to be changed(to someone in the ES div.) plus it was nowhere in their maintinance schedule(I don't know about the repair manual though. I don't have mine with me right now, so I'll check tomorrow), and to have someone working off of comission(that's what she told me. It sounds kinda odd though! I guess she has break in to peoples houses and break their cars so they will come in for service if she's not making her quotas! Haha) not want to sell you their service, it does inspire a little trust! lol SRK, thanks for the great advice about the gas stations; I've never thought about that, but I do regularly fill up at a brand new Shell station-they have tv's at every pump...pretty cool! Thank you everyone! :D

We have owned 5 Fords(Expedition, 2 Mustangs-1 V6 and 1 Cobra..'95 with the classic 302, 2 LTD/Crown Vics), and would gladly buy some more; everyone seems to hate them, but they have been great cars for us. I looked long and hard for a '00/'01 Taurus when I was looking for a first car. I was very picky while looking(I wanted a SEL with all of the goodies...leather, climate control, mach sound, Duratech, and adjustable pedals.), and I never could find exactly what I wanted. I ended up buying a '94 ES300 because they look excellent in and out, and they are very high quality machines with first rate powertrain which is really sold me on the car. Is the ES higher quality, more refined, etc? Of course, it's in a different class than a Taurus! But, "just because it's a Lexus doesn't mean that you can weld the hood shut"(I forgot who said that on here, but it's great!). My '94 seems to have had more than normal electrical gremlins--check engine light(2 problems in 20k miles-EGR and Cat). ES's tend to have some annoyance problems like flickering needles, wind noise(because people use the pilarless windows to slam the doors), motor mounts, broken antenna masts, and suspension problems("clunky" suspension). I had to quit driving my ES everyday because it was just too small for someone like myself who is 6'3. I really started kicking my self for passing up the Taurus because they are very spacious inside(it all worked out because I got a LS for the extra room I was looking for.). I hope you are not too tall! lol Your ES will have problems at one point or another just as the Taurus would have. Hopefully, you picked the one that you enjoyed more and not because one was a Ford and one was a Lexus(which is what I did unfortunately). Your car looks great! Take good care of it, and she'll last a long, long time. ;)

No sir! I've tried them at 35psi before, and I couldn't find a noticable ride improvement imo. Maybe you are more sensitive to that than me! ;) I find that both of my cars track straighter on the road which is my primary reason for airing them up. Plus, I do a lot of driving, so anywhere I can improve my fuel econ, I do so! 92, your seats look excellent. Did the previous owner have them recovered??...they just look that good! ;) Your car looks great with the 98/00 rims! I've kind of been going back and forth about whether or not I want the 98/00 rims on my '95...I can't decide though

Thanks for the feedback guys. I went in for my appointment at 3:30 today, but believe it or not, my Service Advisor talked me out of the service. She said in the 8 years she has worked at this Lexus dealer they have changed maybe 3 or 4 of them, and those cars where for the people that filled them up with DIESEL! She said the same thing as ebridges...this item is nowhere in the maintinance schedule. Also, I dunno if this is true or not, but she said that pulling on all of those fuel lines to change the filter out can do some serious damage. I said ok...if you insist...you don't want my money...that's fine with me! Then, she called someone to detail my car before I left...and they did a great job! :o I finally had a really great Lexus dealership serive experience. They opened the door for me when I got there, they immediately copied my license and insurance--they were ready to send me off in a RX330(but the service writer talked me out of the service before I could get the keys! darn!!!), and they detailed my car just for comming in! I love this dealer!! What's weird is the Lexus dealer in NewOrleans that treats me like crap is owned by the same people! <_<

Sounds like a fun trip! Down here I seem to run into a lot of stock Acura 3.2TL's with drivers that think they are Mario Andretti. I had my crusie set on 85(on Sunday-cruising down I10), and this white 93/4 LS came out of nowhere and nearly blew my doors off! He had to be doing atleast 110+mph; I didn't see him for long at all!

My thoughts exactly! I was considering dumping my LS for a newer one with lower miles, but then, I realized that this new hypothetical LS will need(sooner or later. LS's have terribly consistant build quality which is why they all have the same problems...IMO atleast) its timing belt changed, hood supports, antenna mast, lca and uca replacment, brakes and a stereo lcd. I bought my car for $6500, and I've already put atleast $2k into my car. The last major thing is the clunk front suspension(I can't decide if I want to replace the entire arms-upper and lower-or take a chance with the ride quality with Daziens polyurathane bushings comming out in Sept. or Oct.), and she needs to be repainted in the near future, but the $2800 price tag scares me. My repairs will probably excede what I paid for the car pretty soon, but I'm condifent that I'll get my money back when I see that the odo says 350k-400k miles!! B) BTW, the climate control display should be waaaay under $400. I paid Mikado $150(for the part and labor. Shipping methods--prices vary per your request) for the stereo LCD in my '95.

In both my LS and ES, I air their tires up to the maximum pressure stated on the side wall which is 44psi. My LS rides on Michelin MXV4 energys(I love these tires!)-225/60/16, and the ES is on the dreaded Bridge RE92's. Despite what everyone says, my tires wear beautifully-never any uneaveness in wear, never had a blow out, and the ride is Lexus like in every way. B) You got some new rims for the 'ole "commuter?!?!?!" :D You certainly made a hell of a find on your new cars. Great Work!!! ;)

I just made an appointment at my Lexus dealer to have the fuel filter replaced. The service advisor assured me that I didn't need to because it's good for the life of the car. Hmmm...is it just me or does a lifetime filter sound kind of oxymoronic?? <_< I'm quite doubtful that the filter still performs like it did at 1k miles vs. 235,000 miles. It's only a $120 service, so I'm having them change it anyways as a maintinance precaution. What do you guys think??

Oh no, I know I directed it towards Lexus., but your's and anyone else's feedback is welcome!! ;) Does your car have traction control?? Yall are 1500ft above sea level!...I'm 15 feet under sea level!

Yeah I know!...telling the LOC that you trade Lexus's flagship for a Kia is asking for it though! j/k :P I could never trade a very nice LS400 like Lexus. especially in rare silver form had for a Kia. Never!! Refinement and quality are tops on car characteristics for me, so I'm sticking with Lexus. But, he is covered for 100k miles which is a nice thought! Lexus., how many miles did your car have? I've never driven in snow; is the LS that bad in it?

I had a local Toyota dealership do the flush on my '94, but I would imagine that probably all dealers have the machine. I think I paid about $130. I was let down because my car ran the exact same before and after the injector flush...I don't know if it was done before I got the car maybe(it was well maintained by a inde. mechanic, so it's possible)??

What is there to say other than....WOW!!!! :o :o It looks like Lexus installed everything! Superb work! B) How long and how much did the entire thing take?

I just turned on the weather channel; you're right-it looks like he's comming for us, MS, the FL pan handle, and AL. I've never been better especially since school is canceled today and tomorrow(thurs)!! :D I'm up at LSU right now; it's a beautiful day...a little windy-I just got in from taking a drive(I got bored. I was going to go take a spin down I10, but I would have been on there for days...I hit the back roads instead! I saw a black '05 ES330-had the awesome new oem 17" rims-from Mobile, AL...what a car!)! My parents plugged in all of the pumps around our house(New Orleans is ~10feet below sea level...makes for awesome streets and even better floods!) and evacuated...my dad is more worried about his resturant in Biloxi that is about 50 yards away from the Gulf, but I guess that's why we have flood insurance...hopefully we won't have to use it. I'm going to my aunt's "Hurricane Party" tonight. Plus, her house is up on a bluff, so my LS will stay high and dry. How's your achilles tendon treating you?

I hosed out my engine a while back, and the same thing happened to me! Mine would run...a little and it was missing horribly. You probably filled up the spark plug cyliners with water...that's what I did. I had to pull the "32v 4cam" nonsense cover off, take the wires off just the spark plug end, and get your air compressor and blow the water out. All will be well afterwards. Good luck!

What a wonderful tribute...very sombering-it still sends shivers down my back to watch, but a fine presentattion honoring the our country and the many New Yorkers. Sadly, I think too many people have already forgetten what happened to our country as a whole-what it stands for, our people, our values, beliefs- and NY. :cries: Thank you for the post, Brenden!

I use Mobil One's 5w30 Super Syn usually a Toyota filter but went with a K&N this time(I didn't think about changing the oil until Sunday, so the Toyota dealership was closed, and Discount Auto finally had my filter from K&N, so I decided to give it a try.) on my '95 LS4 with 234, 8xx. Despite my mileage, my LS doesn't consume a drop of oil! B)

Ron, it looks like you got a hell of a deal on the timing belt change-under $1k! My neighborhood Lexus dealer wanted $1500 to change the belt, 2 idler pulleys, tensioner, and water pump, so we decided to tackle the project diy. Having changed my belt a couple weeks ago on my '95, there's not a chance that I'll do it again, but that's just me. All of the parts cost under $300 via Irontoad and Park Place Lexus. I changed my timing belt with about 130,000 miles on it, and it still had a lot of life left in it, so with only 93k on your car, I'd bet your belt still has a while to go before it breaks. If you decide to do it yourself VMF has a top notch write up here: Timing.

Actually, your Prius made one of Ward's 10 best. Take a look: 10 Best Prius Here's how they score them: "During a 2-month test period, six editors from Ward’s Communications evaluated the engines nominated from 32 different cars, trucks and SUVs. Scoring encompassed the crucial engine characteristics of power, torque, noise, vibration and harshness (NVH), technical relevance and basic comparative numbers. All engines nominated and tested were in vehicles with a base price under $52,500. “The engines in high-priced vehicles should be outstanding,” says Visnic. “By setting a realistic base price, we ensure the awards have value and relevance to the average consumer.” I don't really agree with their top 10 engines, but that's just me. :whistles: I'm sure the tranny that GM sells to BMW is a different animal than what they throw in the Caviler or Trailblazer. I think I would have dumped the truck at a certian repair price point; I would never spend $13k in repairs on any car....you must really love your Explorer! I'm sure Ford must be proud about the Focus's recalls! That's sad. The transmission in the Suburban shifted the same with the tranny that had 60k and the one that was brand new. It is slow and mushy on the way up and jumpy if you plant the pedal. Are you sure your Park Avenue didn't have the series II? My grandmother has a '91 LeSabre, and it has the series II--I figure that a newer car and one higher up in the Buick line up would have the newer engine?

I know you said SOME, but I don't associate GM with making engines that are tops in noise, vibration, and smoothness levels. I think Lexus/Toy, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Honda/Acura, and Infiniti/Nissan...companies that have more than 2 noteworthy engines, Northstar and 3.8 series, out of the numerous, numerous engines they have created. ;) The service manager at Sewell Caddy/Chevy(the coolest dealer...their entire inventory is indoors.) would certainly disagree with you that the Suburban tranny failure is very rare. He said they get a lot of Suburbans in with dead transmissions. The service manager said that they had a new brand manger(I think...or some other admin.) in 97 or 98, and in an effort to make more money they started cutting corners. They decided to skimp on a cheapo bearing, so it seized--incapacitating the transmission. Coincidently, a family member's 98 Suburban also experienced the same failure(the same bearing failed) as well as another one at the dealership. That hardly constitutes bulletproof in my book. Hmmmm...I wonder if Acura put a GM transmission in the TL? <_< What kind of problems have you had with your Explorer? Is it the 4 or 5 liter? What kind of problems are they having with the LS, Focus, and Explorer? One of my friends has an '03 Explorer; the engine/tranny and ride are very nice, it looks great, but some of the materials inside are third rate(mainly the ac controls and the headliner is wobbley as if it isn't attached properly). I've never talked to him about the reliability, so I can't comment there.

I certainly cannot agree that GM makes some of the best engines and trannys. The 350 in our '99 Suburban is far from a refined piece, but it does make the 3ton beast go like a bat out of hell. When it revs over 3500rpms, you can feel the engine vibrating under your feet. There is nothing "wrong" with the engine that would causee the vibrations; other Suburbans that I've been in do the same thing. And, a transmission that one day out of the blue decides to die at approx. 60k miles is not a good thing either. I was never impressed with the smoothness of the shifts either--slow, mushy upshifts and downshifts hurt my neck because they are so rough. lol It's not like we dogged the truck out either; it's main use was for carpooling. I'm stunned to hear that BMW uses GM transmissions. :o We had an Eddie Bauer Expedition 4x4 that was a great truck...great looking too. Never any problems, and it is far more refined than our Suburban. The only reason we got rid of it was because we needed something bigger. People like to bash Ford all the time--I dunno why; all cars have problems, but Ford problems are just unacceptable for some reason. We've had/and have several Fords(Expedition, '95 Cobra convt., '98 Mustang, and a LTD a long time ago), and they have all been wonderful autos. Everybody has their or someone else's horror stories to share about Fords, but they have always been good to us. When I was looking for my first car, I looked at some '00+ Tauruses; they are nice cars with a lot of room, but I opted for a Lexus. Sadly, I chose an ES300 just because of the name plate, and the interior is far more elegant with a 3.0 V6 that is second to none, but about 8 months later, I couldn't take the small size anymore(I was supposed to sell it in March, but I never did! lol), and that's when I got my LS. I don't regret the LS one bit! I love this car, and I plan to drive it to atleast 500k miles! B) Hummer is a part of GM. The H2 is on a beefed up GM platform(I can't remember if it's a truck or Tahoe/Sub. platform) and it's got one of their Vortec engines. Very impressive safety tanget, '90. :D I have no problem discussing other cars in here either. We're not like German and other Japanese car owners that think they drive Indy cars with back seats and navigation systems-->and are better than all other cars. Us Lexus owners know that our cars aren't sporty which ruins their entire argument(If I wanted something sporty, Acura TL and BMW 530 aren't the first things that comes to my mind. A sports car should not have 4 doors imo!), but we bought them for other reasons like quality, reliability, the smooth ride, and luxury. B) I look at all cars on equal ground, but I have a bad habbit of weighing the reliability and quality too heavily...a Lexus will do that to you!

Thank you! How about the LS430 in comparison to your ES300?