anzial

She doesn't claim to know all about cars, either ;) The point here if you claim to know everything there is to know about cars, you gotta have experience to back it up with Not saying that the person in question is, in fact, ill-qualified for making the kinds of claims he does, but it is a very good point that having loads of experience works in his/her favor. Why do you think when you looking for a job, everyone asks for experience? ;) It's common sense, dude

Best argument in this thread :)

97 es300, sage pearl, 75k miles, 1 owner before me :) Leaking coolant from EGR cooler, thermostat housing, and leaking engine oil from rear main and oil pan. All done + both valve gaskets just in case (mechanic said they were about to leak) run me close to $1400 in total . Labor is what killed me, duh! :cries: Also replaced the radio LCD (DIY, $100 for the parts, thanks LOC B) ), done spark plugs ($160) and 60k service ($250). Need to do some detailing and maybe painting - both bumpers are scratched, as well as and front left fender + few dents in the front bumper and that fender ($????). :whistles: Not to offend anyone around here, but why do some ppl use only caps? it's looks and reads ugly :chairshot:

wrong forum me thinks :)

It's salvage title now? I wouldn't buy it. Most dealers won't go for a salvage either. You best bet is trying to sell it yourself, as a private party. Don't expect a full KBB PP price tho, it's a salvage after all.

Did you guys try doing search? it's a common problem :) I found some info here: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...topic=7149&st=0 I did it too, now I got a working screen :)

should one be concerned if blue smoke happened just once so far? could it occur due to other factors?

when valve stem seal leaks, does it cause blue smoke at every cold start? or can it be on and off thing? i.e. does it show up consistently or not?

BTW, why bring up LCD issue when it's completely unrelated to engine :) LCD, after all, was not even designed by Toyota, it's outsourced to Pioneer :D I mean, com'n, this is not a valid comparison! :chairshot:

I agree but my 98 did not use additives etc before I got it. I can show you Lexus slips since I need a new EGR put on the very next year since the engine has issues in this area. Just do a search and you can find out. Also if Lexus designed my engine correctly there would be no issues with plugged Ivac, TB and intakes now would there......there would be no slow to accel, rough idel, low mpg..... I can show you the new shirt I used to clean my TB and ivac after 80K miles. Yea, it looked realy clean. You could have used it to clean up tar and it would be the same color. Here you go: http://home.comcast.net/~94gsxr1100/lexus/tb_clean.jpg Additives have there places and they do work. I had to replace my Radio LCd screen too. I wonder if the engineers where on a ITO break or something when the signoff came around. All cars have issues. My wifes last Toyota had 200K and the 3rd owner just sold it. But what you do not know is all the $$$ it too get to that point. And that was maintained at the dealer and the dipstick still had varnish on it and leaked from 80K miles on.... ← this still doesn't answer the question whether aftermarket additives prolong or shorten the life of the engine. After all, this your experience which may or may not be repeated by others. What is really needed is a very long, very expensive test running a set of cars as engineers intended and another set with aftermarket additives - both driven in absolutely same conditions. Only a few years later we might have more or less definitive answer. At this point, all there is a gimmick which appears to work for some ppl in the short run with unknown long-term consequences. After all, you can't really compare service record of engineer maintained vehicle with one subjected to aftermarket additives, 'cause both are different, used in different conditions, for different purposes, driven in different styles. Too many variables to account for, too little confidence in a meaningful comparison. Just my $0.02 :)

NM :)

Hey there guys, I tried searching but couldn't find a definitive answer. I need to replace one of the front turn signals, and wonder if I can use 00-01 signal lens housing on 97 ES300? After all, they are the same body style... And while I am on the topic, can I buy OEM HID headlights for 00-01 ES300 and install on 97-99 ES300? I might go for a cheaper kit but I'd like to have good cut-offs too. Retrofit is too complicated for me, but I might be able to swap the headlights if they fit :) Thanks for any help!

Uhm, where's the link? On related note, is there any preventative maintenance that could be done to prevent valve cover gasket from leaking? :) My mechanic said something like my valve gasket is a little off but it's not leaking. There's something going on with it - forgot what it is exactly but he said he sees same thing in every es300 that comes to his shop.

Hey I'd like to have instructions for replacing LCD too. Could you e-mail them to anzial [at] gmail [dot] com ? Thanks!

I have kinda similar problem - it takes forever to defog the rear window... Maybe it's just because I get too much condensation down here in SoCal