anthonyiez

yes brake wear is directly related to your locale. i run the akebone/brembo combo on my gs with the factory shim kit. a nice combo but the akebono pads are actually more expensive than the factory toyota pads. yes buy them from toyota, they will be cheaper. iirc most toyota pads are ceramic based anyway.

never use an unviversal, because most lexus/toyota vehicles don't actually have oxygen sensors. they are air fuel ration sensors. yes they look like oxygen sensors, but they operate in a different manner.

i have 90k on my gs400 and every time i start to get a shimmy i just balance the tires and it goes away. before digging into other expensive repairs, find someone with a good wheel balancer, that's designed for stick-on weights. don't be afraid to ask them if you can see their balancer. that being said, they also have to know how to use it. my local lexus dealer has a kick !Removed! balancer, but they couldn't balance a go-cart tire. this is the one i have and its awesome http://www.accuturn.com/wheel-balancer-1450.html granted i've had a few years and there's newer ones out now, but like i said, you can have the best equipment but it comes down to the operator.

not sure if its your problem, but the brake complaint is pretty common with most toyotas. 2 things... 1st...the caliper fix kit should be changed. those are the clips between the pads and the caliper bracket. 2nd...if the rotors are grooved (lots of small grooves like a record, for those of you that still remember records ;) ) a bit, the pads tend to get a bit stuck in these grooves then move back and forth with the rotor.

didn't notice that 1st time around, man what a bunch of idiots. they actually look crooked as well. some pimped probably traded it in on an expedition.

a little off topic, but did you see how fast he took that m5 up to on the autobahn??? 198!!!

what i really prefrer to do is 5 quarts oil and a can of bg moa additive.

cool...btw, its fun when you actually get the car out far enough to *BLEEP* the vsc to the point it beeps :D

it easily explainable, you have bigger problems or its the wrong torque rod. since the car sounds like it was in a serious accident i'd got with bigger problems. if the sub frame is bent or moved back then the engine would be moved slightly back as well causing this. this is best case...worst case, the actual unibody frame, that the sub frame bolts to, is still bent, improperly repaired/replaced causing the engine to be slightly moved back towards the firewall.

like i said this design is becoming the norm. its much better than no allen hole at all, those really suck.

the most common place for the wire to break is where the wires go from the door into the piller. the constant opening and closing of the door typically causes the wires to break. this is a common problem on a lot of asian cars,

nope, lexus isn't in the barney business. or the metal flake business either. i should add that is about the ugliest color i've ever seen.

i put 5 1/2 quarts in all toyota 3.0/3.3 engines

not much of an audio guy, but i'm willing to be lexus took the overall trunk size into account when installing a free-air woofer.

yes the vsc will beep if you get the car too turned around, but i highly doubt the vsc would be kicking in while he's parking. :whistles:

spray on white lithium grease will be your friend. every toyota vehicle built on the camry platform does this. at the bottom of the steering column, right where it goes through the rubber boot, is where you need to lubricate it. push the boot back slightly and while turning the steering wheel spray the grease between the shaft and the rubber boot. keep a towel handy so you don't get any grease on the floor.

the sell antenna sockets for this exact reason. you can actually "cheap out" and buy a plastic antenna wrench that has about 4-6 different antenna sizes.

yes, the type of beep would help...but i am willing to say that any "beep" while turning shouldn't be there.

i personally use a 3/8in inpact gun because it spins faster than a 1/2in. typically the gun can "outspin" the shaft and get the nut off. oh and i wish that bolts and nuts would just fly off ;)

The problem is there is no flat spot; absolutely nothing on which to grab. I'm going to try some vice grips on the plunger, hopefully I'll be able to grab it without it turning vice grips or channel locks with locking teeth. sory i can't be more help, we spin them out with an impact gun.

make that caps...remember there are 2 distributors, one on each head. chances are one has a slight crack. if they're old change them out and don't forget the rotors inside of them. i'd do the wires as well, since they're not expensive and easy to do. i'd get the wires from lexus, since they come complete with all the hardware.

hope its better than the gs450h show, talk about boring. nothing like watching 2 guys drive around and talk to each other to spark my juices.

in my experience, typically not. ball joints can only wear so far before they fall apart and imo they can't wear enough to cause steering drift. although, worn ball joints are nothing to play about. if they are bad change them out asap. if one breaks, there goes the suspension on that side.

my wife started running 87 in our highlander and i noticed a difference right away. lack of performance when under hard acceleration and a slight bit of pinging. yes, todays cars, actually going back about 25 years now, have knock sensors which control knocking, thus protecting the engine. pinging is a different story.

don't forget to make sure the spring in compressed, with a suitable spring compressing tool. if not you might be in for a trip to the emergency room.