saint_ex

Thanks for the reply. I think that you're onto something. I did do a search on LS400 forums and I did find some treads with exact same symptoms. I will be looking into it sometime in the near future. Again, thanks for the help.

Hello all, I've encountered an odd problem with my 99 ES300 (approx. 210,000 miles). I suspect it may be the problem with the wires, but I would like your input. Whenever I turn the lights on, on my dashboard, R lights up and the rear-light-not-working warning indicator light goes on. At first, I thought that one of the reverse lights was out. But they were both working fine (that one time I checked). So, when those lights on the dash are on, and I go to put it in Reverse to back out of the driveway, it feels as though it violently jams the gear into reverse (note, just before that, P and R on the gear indicator are both on). Once I back out of the driveway, I put it in drive, and I have no problem taking it out of R. At that time both R and D are on and will continue to do so. If I, however, turn the headlights off, the R will disappear, but I cannot, obviously, drive it without the headlights. If I shut the car off, and turn it back on for the second time, I get CEL with a transmission code (sorry, I cannot remember the specific code, it was checked about three weeks ago, but I know that I had looked it up and it was a generic transmission code). Anyways, CEL goes on. During the day, when the headlights are not on, the CEL will stay on for the first couple of times (usually 3) of car being turned on and off. I guess that it does its self-check, it doesn't find the fault after several miles of driving or several ignition starts, or whatever it does, but it turns itself off. And, then, at night, the same story will repeat. I think that it gets confused with 2 lights being on at the same time and that is why it kicks out the CEL. Today, I have checked the reverse lights at the back of the car, and they are both off. I had a quick look in not-so-great lighting conditions, but they seem fine. Here is the final problem. The trunk won't open either via remote or by pushing the button in the car. So, I really have a feeling that there may be something wrong in the wire. If that is the problem, what is the best way to figure out where the problem is (I hope nobody will say that I have to rip the carpets off to get to the underbody and all the wires that are there)? Or, does anybody have an idea of what this could be, and how to get it fixed. Thank you for the help.

I've searched this forum to find whether somebody had experienced similar issues, and all I've been able to find is that people are having the opposite kind of problems (my luck). My problem is that the car ('00 ES300, 310,000KM) is upshifting at much lower revs than usual. Just to rule out the driving habits - they have not changed at all. Up until a few days ago, the car would go into the next gear when the tach would read between 2000-3000rpm. However, now, it is doing it at less than 2000. Sometimes, it will reach 4th gear (O/D) at about 55-60km/h (way too low). Also, it may sound weird, but it almost feels like the engine is vibrating in a different way. So far, check engine light hadn't turned on. Once I hit usual highway speed (120km/h), I can see that the car is operating at the standard 2600-2700RPM (so the tachometer is working fine). Finally, when stopped and in Drive it is operating at around 750RMP (again, normal). Any ideas what this could be? Thanks

Thanks for the quick reply. Yes, I do spend most of the drive on the highway, but of the 31km to work, 9 km are spent going through the streets. Is that enough to warm it up? Sorry for the dumb question, I really don't know. When I open the reservoir after driving, the PS fluid seems to be less viscous.

Hello all, I've recently performed a couple of PS drain and refills (on my '99 ES) and I've noticed something weird about the level of the PS fluid in the reservoir. I filled it up to max cold line (the engine was cold), and after driving it, I noticed that when the engine and the fluid heat up, that the fluid only goes up to MIN hot line. So, should I add more fluid when the engine is cold. I mean, for the most part, the PS is not operating at cold temperatures but rather when it's hot, so I would much rather fill the reservoir with enough PS fluid to, at least, be in the middle of MIN and MAX when hot. However, at the same time, by doing that, I would exceed the MAX cold line and I don't know whether exceeding the MAX cold line is good. Any suggestions? Thanks! P.S. It's not leaking. I've checked it every day for the past two weeks. Also, I have used the Toyota's Dexron III fluid (so that's not it either), and the same thing happens regardless of the distance traveled (even a 30km trip to work) - so it's not like I'm not giving it enough time to warm up.

I'm having almost identical problem. It is as though the car is haunted :) On my car, the locks are constantly trying to open themselves. I can't leave my car parked without disconnecting the battery. From what I have found out, it is a faulty lock actuator. I tried to take the door apart to see if the connection could've come loose, but it seems to have stood firm. Then I tried to disconnect it permanently, but because of its position, I couldn't unplug it. I wanted to try to see how much it would be to replace the part, and, unless buying through ebay, you're looking at 250+ for the part alone. Maybe some of the other board members can prove me wrong (I hope that they do, 'cause I really don't wanna be disconnecting the battery all the time, especially with the colder weather approaching).

Over the past 2-3 weeks, I had noticed something wierd with my transmission (99 ES, 125,000miles). Where I live, there is a section of a highway where it has a steep grade. Sometimes, on the way down, the car will downshift into 3rd (at about 40-45mph), and oddly enough, it won't let go. No matter what I do (i.e. let go of the gas, add more gas, disengage/engage the O/D back on, it stays there. And it will stay in 3rd even after I clear that grade - eventually it does, roughly 0.5 mi after I clear the grade. It happened 3 times so far. Ironically, sometimes it happens, but most of the time it doesn't. My concern is that because of the relative mileage on the transmission, that something might be wrong with it. I DO know that when going down hill, shortly after braking that the car does disengage the O/D (i.e. goes into 3rd), but it won't stay there if I, say, press on the gas gently. Does anybody know what is happening? Is it possible that it is just a computer that is getting confused (because of the relative lenght of the highway - over 2 miles)? Thanks and sorry if I made this very confusing! btw, AFT was changed on regular basis, and shifting is very smooth.

I recently replaced my Fr engine mount, and, just for fun, I decided to see what's inside of it. Using a knife, I made a hole in the rubber cover at the bottom of the mount. Some kind of liquid came out...it looked like engine oil. Does anybody know whether this is normal? I was under the impression that it is vacuum driven, i.e. that there should be no liquids in it. How does this vacuum-driven mount actually work, anyways? Thanks!

I've been trying to figure out why do I get vibrations when at idle, or why do I hear a "clunk" when I switch from Park to Drive. I've searched this forum, and it looks like the engine mounts are responsible for this. Visually, I couldn't find anything wrong with my front engine mount, but when I took a closer look at my transmission mount, I realized that it might be worn...I mean, I saw a bolt in the middle, with nothing around it (see picture). Is this a sign of a worn transmission mount? If so, is it possible to replace just the rubber around the bolt (if that is what the problem is), without changing the entire mount? How difficult is it? I noticed that there are a total of 8 bolts holding it in place - 4 on the bottom (I could feel them with my fingers), and 2 on each side (at an angle). Can somebody post a DIY instructions? I've found a lot of useful information on this site, but I couldn't find anything specifically for my '99 ES. Also, I wanted to get back on the subject of front motor mount. While, when looking directly at it, I couldn't see anything wrong with it, I did lift up my hood, and I tried to look (through the opening) at the engine behaviour when adding gas (I didn't have anybody with me at the moment), and I could see it trying to lift up....although slightly! Should it be replaced as well? Finally, where do you guys stand on the aftermarket parts? Are they worth it? I mean, I don't want to buy them, find that they don't fit properly, or have to replace them a month after the installation. Thanks!

I need some help fixing 2 small problems on my car... 1. On the climate control section on the dash, one of the lightbulbs went out. During the night driving, I can't see the front and the rear defogging buttons. Is it possible to replace it, and how can I do it? 2. the "SET" button on my seat (for the presets) is jammed. One of the valets from the dealership jammed it, and now I want to fix it. I saw the repair manual, and it said I should just "pry" the cover from the seat. My worry is that it seems as though that same cover is held in there by at least 2 screws (maybe even more). I don't want to do anything just yet, mostly because I'm worried about all the pyrotechnics in the seat. Any suggestions on how to fix it? Thanks

Well, that is exactly what I was thinking. The grinding noise appears only with the summer tires...and, yes, they are on separate rims. But what bothers me about that theory is that those are my Lexus rims (OEM), and I've never had problems with them up until last fall. But now that you'd confirmed what I thought might be the problem, I'll look into it more careful. Thank you.

I need help trying to figure out what the problem is (with my brakes). A few days ago, I had exchanged my winter tires for my summer tires, and immideately, I started experiencing a problem on the right rear brake. The problem occurs under braking. Whenever I break, you can hear some kind of grinding noise. The slower the car goes, the bigger the gap between the grinding noises. That leads me to believe that it only happens on a specific part of the wheel/rotor/whatever... I've had the same problem last fall when I had the same tires on. Then, after putting on my winter tires, the problem was no longer there. At first I thought it had something to do with the tires, but now I'm not so sure. I know how stupid this will sound, but I almost believe that it has something to do with the temperature. Why? Because, I started paying a close attention to the grinding noise whenever I'm leave my apt. building and whenever I return (I have the underground garage and the echo produced helped me to isolate the problem to the right rear tire), and I noticed that when the rotors/brakes are cool, noting happens - no grinding noise. Then, on the way in, you can clearly hear it. I did look close at the brakes, rotors, etc., but I can't see the problem. Brakes and rotors look fine, and except some rust on the rotors and the calipers, everything looks really good. The last time I serviced my rear brakes was in spring '05, and I had them (Lexus) replace brake pads and service the rotors. Does anybody have any clue as to what is causing this noise? Thanks P.S. Sorry for going into details, I just figured that it might help somebody figure out the root of the problem.

I got it...finally. I managed to get a 6-point socket, and it did the job. Although, to be honest, I really, really, had to put some muscle in it. The funny thing is, the other one came out without any problems. Yes, it did require some force, but the one that is attached to the shock towers...unbelieavable. Thanks, again, for all the help

Thanks. Yeah, the reason why the socket kept slipping is because I had been using the 12-point socket. I've been able to borrow a 6-point one and I'll give it a try. btw, I thought of using a cheater bar, but I didn't have anything in the house that could, safely, perform that job. Thanks again

I'm in a process of changing my front engine mount (dogbone mount), and I'm having problems with one of the bolts. The one that is furthest away (connected to the shock towers), seems to be permanently embedded in there. It won't budge. I must've used half a bottle of WD-40 over a period of a couple of days, but no luck. The other one came out without any difficulties...but the first one just doesn't want to co-operate. I've been thinking about using a bigger ratchet, so I can get a bigger torque, but I won't be able to get it for a couple of days. In the meantime, I was thinking about trying something else...can anybody give me any ideas on what I could do? Thanks. btw, the bolt is getting to the point where it will get damaged if I keep failing...

Why do you want to disable this feature? It's a wise safety enhancement that has been standard on ALL motor vehicles sold in Canada since the 1990 models year. It uses a minimum of light voltage & it let's others see you better especially in bad weather. I'd think twice before disabling it. Just my 2 cents. This feature has also proven to reduce traffic crashes significantly in studies conducted over the years. ← Yeah, I have to agree with this. Daytime Running Lights is an excellent feature. It is much easier to see a car heading towards you, especially when it is ovecast or there is light drizzle. As an example, driving on a Hwy 401 (Canada), I have no problem recognizing that there is a car coming when it has DRL's, but when it doesn't, even though it might be closer than the car with the DRL's, it is still harder to spot them. Don't get me wrong, I'm not blind nor do I have any problems with my eyesight. All I'm saying is that it is a lot easier to spot a car that has the DRL's than the one that doesn't. I really see no point in taking them off. I agree that without those lights, you will save some fuel (because the engine no longer needs to generate power to keep them running), but we're talking about, maybe, 2-3 drops. Aside from, "it is my car, I can do whatever I want with it", do you have a reason for wanting to disconnect your DRL's?

How does one get a job at TMMC? Unfortunately for many in the area, TMMC is not hiring anymore. There was a time (I believe it was 2 years ago, just before the startup of the new RX330 line), where they were hiring about 50 people/week for 7 consecutive weeks. And if that wasn't enough, the total number of people hired just before the start of Lexus was over 700, accoriding to the company. Getting in there is very, very hard. They have very strict guidelines about hiring people...there are 5 (FIVE) interviews, and some people have told me that they take as many as 2+ yrs to complete. Personally, I waitied 9 months. I can't blame the company, though. Toyota Motor Company had given TMMC a huge responsibility - Lexus. I guess HR has to make sure that they hire the right person. I'm not going to give anything away, but I'm pretty sure that all of you who go will be blown away when you see the Lexus plant. You won't believe that the cars are being built there. I hope you guys will enjoy it.

Let's not panic! I work at for Lexus at TMMC, so make sure that you wave at me when you get there. As far as you scheduling plant tours, it is as simple as calling them directly at (519) 653-1111 ext. 2270. YOu don't have to plan it few months in advance. I think that there is a waiting list of about 2-3 weeks. Here is some additional info: http://www.toyota.ca/cgi-bin/WebObjects/WW...t160000e%2ehtml Hope it helps.

It is fairly simple, yet to fix it can be pretty frustrating. First of all, you have to remove a wheel. Once you've done that, find something that looks like a horseshoe...it will be black, and on either end of the part, you will be able to find a screw. Unscrew it (this is where it gets tricky). Because this part is so close to the body, it is almost impossible to get to it. You have to be patient when using a simple wrench, as you will be able to do only less than a 1/4 of a turn with your wrench. Then once you have removed it (or at least loosened it, because putting it back on is a pain in the a**), jam something flat (screwdriver) and try to separate the rubber part from the pipe around it. Use your lubricant (you want to use the straw that came with it for easier reach), and spray it where your screwdriver is, i.e. in the gap. Feel free to spray lots of lubricant as it is very cheap and will not damage anything around it. Once you have done that, put everything the way it was. Now, here come the bad news...by now, you will have realized that it will take you at least 20-30 minutes (per wheel) to do this...and this is if you know what you're doing. Unfortunately, you might have to repeat this step several times. So, if you live in Canada like me, you might want to just take it in to your mechanic and have him fix it, otherwise you will freeze trying to do it in this weather. THese bushings are 15$ USD for 2 and they will charge you 1hr of labour...so this might be a better option for some. As far as the kind of lubricant that should be used, just go with a SILICONE based lubricant. Even better kinds are less than 10$ and you won't need more than 1/2 of a bottle in the worst case scenario. I hope that this helps.