LSUMatt1514

Thanks guys. I was able to pick up a couple from Lexus-parts.com. Cost me $123 for the ball joints and $40 to overnight them to me. That still came out cheaper than the local stealership here in Birmingham, which by the way now shows up as a sponsored link on Google (Tom Williams Lexus). Shows you just how much cash they are raking in. They are the biggest bunch of crooks you'll ever meet. Anyway, even wtih the extra shipping it was still $70 less than Tom Williams for the same OEM parts. No I'm not comfortable driving the car...that's why I've driven it to work the last two days and my wife drove my 4Runner down to Montgomery from Birmingham. I'm getting them replaced in the morning and getting the new tires as well. Thanks guys. Matt

I took my wife's 2000 GS300 into a local Firestone service center today to have new tires put on it and the front end aligned. I get a call about three hours later from the manager (whom I know and definitely trust) and he tells me that both of the lower ball joints on the front have over 1/4" of play in them and that they need to be replaced ASAP. He contacted all of the local parts stores (Advance, O'Reily, NAPA, etc) and noone had them. We're stuck until Monday. What I need to know is this.... 1. Are the ball joints sold separately or do they come as part of the control arm assembly? 2. Just how much fire are we playing with by driving this car with this much play in the joints? I just read a post about a guy who's '98 had a front lower ball joint fail causing the tire to turn 90 degrees, him to wreck, and 7k worth of suspension and body damage. I've contacted the local dealer and hope to hear back from them on Monday. I'm not going to let my wife drive the car out of town on the interstate on Monday knowing this. I'll drive it on my 25 minute commute to work and pray nothing happens. The Firestone manager told me about $130 in labor if he could just replace the joints themselves, but over $500 if they had to replace the entire control arm assemblie and the joints. Needless to say this hit me completely out of the blue. Thanks for the help guys. Matt

I've got a couple of oxygen sensors to replace on my wife's 2000 GS300. I've never done it before and don't know where they are located or how to replace them. They are OEM Toyota/Lexus sensors so I believe it's just a matter of unplugging the old ones, plugging in the new ones, and then disconnecting the battery to reset the ECU (correct me if I'm wrong). Anyone that can shed some light on the location and the how to, I'd appreciate it. Later. BTW....pics would be great if you have them. Matt

Yes, you add it into the oil where the oil cap is on your engine. I usually pour some in and then drive to get my oil changed. I don't leave it in there for any extended period of time. This stuff is great. Use it!!

My wife has a 2000 GS300 and one of her low beam bulbs is blown. I wanted to replace all six (lows, highs, and fogs) with SilverStars but she won't let me spend the money. I've got the SilverStars in my 4Runner and I've been pleased with them. Since I can't get the "somewhat white" look all around (I say that because the SilverStars in NO WAY compare to HIDs), I don't want to just put two in the low beams. I was looking into the Sylvania XtraVisions, but by the way the description on the website reads, they are a higher wattage bulb. Anyone have any experience with them? I don't want to burn up her wiring harnesses by putting in higher wattage bulbs. What bulbs do you halogen users use? Thanks. Matt

Nevermind....Ignore that request. I got it to come out. Just like I thought it should come out only I had to use a flathead screwdriver to pry it over a little more to get all three ears on the bulb to line up. Thanks. Matt

I'm really not following you man. I don't understand what you mean by the socket. What I see is a black ring with about three or four screws in it. By the way it looks, the bulb should just rotate and then pull straight out, but it doesn't. It seems as though the bulb will only rotate about 45 degrees, which won't allow it to pull out. Two of the three "ears" I'm referring to are lined up on the openings but one is not. That one "ear" is keeping the bulb from coming out. It's like it's getting hung on something. I don't see anything else in there that will rotate and I don't understand what you mean by the socket. If you could take a pic tomorrow (or I can post one after work) I'd greatly appreciate it. Matt

Not sure I follow you. What do you mean by the socket? Seems to me that the bulb just turns and should pull out, but it doesn't. Like I said, one of the "ears" on the bulb doesn't line up with the opening and it's preventing it from coming out. Is there another component that turns other than the bulb?

This is ridiculous guys. I can't get the freakin bulb out. The bulb will turn about 45 degrees, but one of the "ears" won't line up with the opening and I can't get the bulb out. What in the world and I missing here? The book says to go to a dealer and there is no way in hell I'm going to a dealer to get a bulb replaced. What am I missing? Also, does anybody have the Sylvania XtraVision bulbs? I'd like to replace both low beams with these, but I'm concerned because their website states something about them being a higher wattage bulb. Higher wattage=burned up wiring harness. I don't want to go with the SilverStars because she won't let me replace all of them. I'm not gonna have 2 SilverStars and the rest of them dingy yellow. Any experience with the XtraVisions? Thanks guys. Matt

Denso Platinum, You can also use the iridium plugs. ← I went to Advance this morning and bought a set of NGK Iridium IX plugs. The part number is BKR5EIX-11. As I recall, my OEM plugs in my 4Runner were NGK and I replaced them first when a set of NGK platinum plugs from the dealer and then my latest set are Denso Platinums. Any issues running these NGK Iridiums in here Lexus? Thanks. Matt

My fiance and I will be getting married next Saturday, so it's time that I take over responsibility for the maintenance on her car. After we get back from the honeymoon, I want to have a full service done on her car since she has basically done nothing to it but oil changes since she bought it. I'd like to replace the plugs and put a set of platinum ones in there, but I know there are issues with the Bosch platinum plus and iridium plugs in my 4Runner so I'm running Denso platinum plugs in mine. What do I need to buy for hers? If you've got a part or model number, that would be great. Thanks!! Matt

I refuse to purchase any parts from our local Lexus dealer. They are ridiculously overpriced and they could care less about their customers. I've searched Google and it comes up with a million hits for Lexus parts, most of which are imitation knockoff accessory type stuff that all these sites sell. I'm looking for a good site that I could purchase OEM fuel filters, oxygen sensors, etc to have some maintenance done on my fiance's car. The local Toyota dealership will do all of the work on it, but they have to order the parts from the Lexus dealership and I refuse to give them any money after they totally ripped her off the first time she went in there (without me). A good example is Toyotaparts4u.com Any and all Toyota parts you could need. It's basically a dealership that has an online site and sells the parts at a discounted rate. Any suggestions for a Lexus parts site? Thanks. Matt

Oops, just realized you were asking about the throttle body. I've never cleaned mine, but I probably should. Check the Tech section under maintenance on Yotatech.com Those guys know alot and I'm sure they've got a good product that they use to clean theirs. I seem to recall seeing a writeup on cleaning the throttle body on a 4Runner on Yotatech. Matt

Simply adding Seafoam to the gas tank will only clean your injectors and the inside walls of the cylinders. To clean the top of the valves, you need to add it through one of your vacuum lines. I just treated her car tonight (via vacuum line and gas tank). I'll add about half a can into the crankcase before she drives to the Express Oil Change to have her oil changed. I don't like to run it mixed with the oil very long, but it is safe to do and they recommend it and it definitely works. The first time I added it to the crankcase of my 4Runner and drove to the oil change place, I asked the tech to see the filter and the oil was definitely dirty so it did indeed do what is was supposed to. However, that's why I don't add it to the oil and leave it. Give it a shot. For $5 a can you won't be disappointed. Matt

I found the spoiler on the BlankenshipAero website and it looks to be an exact match. They didn't have a price listed though. I sent them an email so hopefully they are reasonable. Thanks for the link. Matt