branshew

I have one burned out needle on my fuel gauge and another that is on the fritz. I found a replacement cluster in a local junkyard of of a '94 for $80 (which seemed to be a good deal since other yards I called were quoting $250 and eBay usually goes for $175 +/- depending on mileage). Everything seems to work when I plug it in, but the ODO is at 180K miles and my ODO is much less. Needless to say I don't want to do a direct swap, but I was wondering if I could just swap the needles? Has anyone tried this? How easy/difficult was it? I guess if it's a huge PITA I could swap the clusters temporarily and send my original to LexTech. Any thoughts?

Anybody know the proper torque setting for the valve cover gasket bolts?

I'm inclined to agree w/ jragosta. I don't have alot of experience w/ the '05 other than the loaner that I had a couple of weeks ago at the stealership, but I would imagine that it is the same as other years with respect to the transmission. Although I only had it for a day, it was noticable for me in the '05 so I imagine that it would be the same for you. I wouldn't however buy a TL. The new ones are nice, but the interior quality just isn't up to par w/ Lexus (not as luxurious), and the exterior leaves something to be desired. I would take a hard look at the GS - even if it means that you have to go used or CPO. It is similar in size to the ES, but much better looking IMHO and more sporty. I think the '05 ES requires premium as well, but so does my wife's VW Passat wagon.

Don't throw in the towel yet. I didn't think one could fix an AC problem by clearing a code, but if its working then go with it.

I replaced the rears on my '95 last year. I bought OEM KYBs online and had my local indie do the job (I didn't want to mess w/ compressing the springs). P&L came out to @ $400 US or so if I remember correctly. Not knowing what the conversion rate is now that the dollar is weak, that may be a good deal if parts are included.

No. No ASR or ESP or any other "traction control" devices on that year. It's probably just the FWD that's helping.

I'm with you on that SK. I would never put any "stop leak" crap in my engine to "fix" a leaky seal. I'm not looking at it as an additive to block any leaks like sgriffith. I prefer to just go ahead and replace those gaskets that are leaking. I had the pan gasket & screen replaced @ 15K ago so I'm not worried about clogging anything. Auto Rx not one of those "miracle lubricants" like Slick 50 and other PTFE / Teflon products. It's chemistry is entirely different and it was developed (applied would probably be a better term) for a different purpose. It is composed of lanolin, aliphitic, and polyol esters that are designed to clean off sludge and varnish deposits that have built up over the years. I'm, guessing that with 160K I've probably got a little of both. My front valve cover gasket is leaking. I will replace both, but I thought about removing the front valve cover - taking some pictures of the condition of the internals before putting it back together. I would then run the Auto Rx treatment and then replace the rear vcg and take some pics to see how cleaned up it gets from the Auto Rx. I've been researching this stuff and even the die-hard anti-additive people seem to like it. Who knows - if it works it may be able to help those with '97-'01 models that have (or could have) sludge issues. I'll post results in a few weeks when I am finished to let you know how it goes. Bob is the Oil Guy

I was thinking about giving it a try on my '95. I've got about 120K on it and I am trying to keep it until at least 200K. The engine still runs strong and it drives like the day I bought it. It's spent it's whole life on Dino oil with changes every 3K. I had a Bilstein flush from Lexus @ 100K, but nothing since then. I need to do a valve cover gasket job anyway so I thought about some before and after pictures. Any thoughts?

Short answer - Yes. I would think @ $400 +/- would be a bit more reasonable, but it depends on the labor rate around where you live. Like most stealerships, it sounds like they are charging you for 2 separate jobs (timing belt & then h2o pump) when both can actually be done at the same time

I thought there were 2 settings. I'm not as concerned about the backrest. It would be nice, but I'm only having the top of the driver's seat redone and don't want to deal w/ the hassle of having the back of the seat taken apart. I have been told that I could tap in to the power seat wiring for this. I just assumed that the wires for the heated seats would have already been put in place but the pads & switches not installed. It seems to make it easier for production if the same harness is used in every car - similar to pre-wiring for the CD Changer and leaving it as an option. (Although I know adding on power seats is usually not an option unless the pads are installed at the factory.)

Try Billy's Toyota & Lexus Parts in Alabama. They may have a working one out of a vehicle that they took in. I have had good success finding a few odds & ends from them before. Billy's

Unfortunately I recently totalled my Wife's '00 Pathfinder (rolled it 3x on the interstate) and she has been driving around in our Lexus for the past few weeks while we are looking for something to replace it. Although it hasn't gotten too cold here yet, she has been (verbally <_<) missing her heated seats in the Pathfinder. I need to have some upholstery work done on the driver's seat and I was thinking about adding an aftermarket heated seat pad similar to the one below: Heated Seat Has anyone done this yet? I'm not set on a brand or supplier yet as I am only toying with the idea at this time. So if anyone has any suggestions.... Although many of the units that I have found come w/ a hi/lo switch I was wondering if I could retrofit a factory switch since it would fit better into the console slot. I was also wondering if there was a power source installed from the factory under the seat that I could tap in to (even though my car is not equipped with the heated seat option).

Absolutely fix it! If your motor mounts are not there or broken then your engine is moving around somewhat or is sagging in the engine bay. You could put excess stress on a tranny mount since it is not just holding up the tranny as it was designed to do, but is also supporting some of the engine's weight. This can also cause undue stress and wear on the other parts of the car that are attached to the engine. The mounts are cheap. If you want to get another 50K out of the car then you should take care of it.

Due to excess friction in the mast, my antenna froze about 1/3 of the way up yesterday. The motor kept trying to push it up (until I switched to CD mode to stop it), and I am afraid that I may have caused some damage to the motor so I am going to replace the whole unit. I am guessing that this is fairly straightforward and that just about any aftermarket assembly would work. Any comments and/or suggestions before I proceed?

I just replaced my rears on my '95 w/ 115K on it and they were fairly worn. It never hurts to put the new parts in while your doing it and they aren't that expensive.

To my knowledge, KYB are the OEM manufacturees for the ES struts. I just replaced the rears in my '95 with KYB and there was no noticible difference from the OEM ride and the KYB so I don't know about it being more sporty or stiff as indicated by some of the other posts. If the old suspension is worn out and soft then you may see a difference on replacement. On the flip side of that I don't have the electronic controlled suspension, so you may want to make sure that will still be an option if you replace with KYBs. Make sure you get the strut brace if you order new struts (looks like an upside down bowl that the strut fits into). You probably don't need the strut tower or support. Your noise could be coming from the strut mount (if one is cracked), but more likely it is coming from the rear sway bar or sway bar link. The sway bar noise is common on the ES and gets mis-diagnosed as a bad strut alot (especially on the '93-'96). If you are only going to replace the suspension to get rid of the noise then I would have someone look at the sway bar first before you order all of those parts. There are a couple of ways to tell if this is the problem. 1) If you disconnect the sway bar link on one side and then drive a couple of miles over some bumps you should have an idea of whether or not that is the problem. Disconnecting one side takes some of the tension off the bar and that can cut back on the noise. 2) You could also remove the bar completely and drive a couple of miles to see if it is still making noise. Just don't drive long distances, high speeds, or try any sharp cornering w/o the sway bar connected.

Super easy job that only requires basic mechanical skills. The starter on this engine is on top of the engine and relatively easy to get to. In order to provide the easiest access, you will need to remove your battery. After you have done this, remove the bolts that hold the cruise control regulator module in place. You don't need to remove the throttle cables or anything like that. Once those bolts are removed you can "fold" the module back out of the way and rest it in the back corner. At this point, you should be able to see the starter where it connects to the block. Remove the power wires to the starter and then take out the bolts that hold the starter in place. Swap the old one with the new starter and then put everything back in place.

Don't do it! While the chrome rims look great, you will pay way too much from Lexus and they are a pain in the @$$ to take care of. I live in Va Beach and we have alot of humidity and thus salt in the air. You probably have it worse in Fla. I have had several cars with chrome rims here and unless you wash them 3 times a week and wax them at least once a month or more then they will eventually develop small rust pits on them from the salt. These eventually grow larger and will diminish the overall look of the wheel. I'm not lazy, but I don't like to clean my wheels that much. Plus with the kids and all I am sure you don't have that much time to do it yourself (unless of course your kids are old enough to do it for you...)

None of this is mine. I lifted it off another non-auto forum that I frequent, but it is incredibly funny. I was sitting at my desk LOL. What they talk about on other forums..... Bentley/Rolls Royce Forums - I used the ash tray today. How do I replace it? Camaro/Firebird Forums - My girl slept with my brother and my wife. How can I kill 'em? btw, I have a record and I ain't going back. Mustang (Chevelle) forums -Some punk kid in a Civic tried to race me. Monte Carlo forums -Why do I keep getting pulled over, it ain't stolen yo. Civic forums -Some punk kid in a Mustang tried to race me. VW Bug forum - The Save the Earth concert was a success (pics) Yugo Forum - When's the last time yours ran? Lamborghini forum - Wind noise around 210MPH Miata forums - Some redneck jackass in a Chevy Tahoe just ran over my car (pics) Chevy Tahoe forum - Are gas prices going down any time soon? Pontiac Fiero forum - Just bought a new flame retardant suit (pics) BMW 7-series forum - Where to get service on my Rolex? Cadillac forum - Problems parallel parking at bingo. Buick Forum - Is Medicare or Medicaid right for me? Delorean forum - Just got back from the future and blew a head gasket. Please help. I'm from 1985. Crown Victoria forum - How come people don't ever pass me on the highway? Honda Accord forum - Mom is giving me the car. Looking for some cheap, used 18 inch rims. Toyota Prius forum - Do our cars use AAA or AA's? Ferrari forums - Need suggestions about a business trip to Columbia. Want to get in and out fast. Porsche forums - Tire just went flat. Is it best to trade or sell the car myself? Saturn forums - Roman candle landed on my fender. Melted and need to replace. Mercedes forum - My wife and her stink hole lawyer are trying to ruin me in divorce court. How do I get them both killed and not get in trouble with my medical board? Mini forum - Just flipped the Cooper after seeing The Italian Job. Suing the movie company. (pics) McLaren F1 forum -Some punk kid in a F16 tried to race me. Dodge Minivan forum - Where's the best place to post the soccer schedule so I don't forget where I'm supposed to be? Hummer forum - Had a fender bender today. 24 hurt, 10 killed. Do I have to get the black touch-up paint from the dealer? He's 25 miles away. That's $35 in gas. Fiat forum -Hello? Am I the only member? Subaru WRX forum - I hate cops. Got ticketed for drifting in the Walmart parking lot. Chevy pickup forum - How do I git the dried tobacco juice stains off the side of mah truck? Supra Forums -Head to big to fit in car, should have bought a Targa. Vette Forums -Why did I pay $50k for something with a Cavalier steering wheel Ford 2.3 forums -Help! Replaced everything, still doesn't start

I was talking to one of my customers earlier today and he told me that he is going to Germany next week to take European Delivery of his new Mercedes S500. He is going to drive it around for a week and then fly back while his car is shipped over to the States. For a brief second I thought “Wouldn’t that be cool if Lexus had a Japanese delivery option?”. But then I gave it more consideration and realized that it probably wouldn’t be such a good idea. I can just picture myself trying to navigate the Japanese roadway system in my new left-hand-drive sedan and not being able to read a single road sign, not to mention having no clue how to ask for directions. The only advantage would be the availability of a lot of aftermarket JDM products.

You dug this one up out of the past.... I did have the wheel bearing replaced. I don't mess w/ the drive wheels or suspension components myself. I can't remember, but I think P&L came to @ $200.

Nice looking car. Congrats on the purchase and welcome to the club. Lexus has always had a good track record for reliability (building on Toyota's existing foundation) so no worries there. As to the loss of power...is it possible that you hit a shallow puddle at high speed and hydroplaned a little? That would cause a noise from the water spraing under the front wheel wells and the sudden slow down due to the excess friction could feel like you lost power temporarily. The AC shouldn't cause a sudden loss of power if it had been on the whole time. As to your choice between the Ford and Lexus: that should be apparent that you made the best choice. I had the displeaseure of owning two Ford products and would never buy one again. FORD: Fix Or Repair Daily F#$%'d Over Rebuilt Dodge F@#$%er Only Runs Downhill

That deal isn't bad, but it isn't great either. I am not sure what your budget is, but for $500 - $1000 more you could get a '94 or even possibly a '95 with similar mileage. I would stay away from the pre '94 models. They have problems with overheating and a few other issues that were corrected in the later production years of the 1st gen ES300. Do a search on autotrader.com. Search at "any distance" to see what else is out there. I realize that you probably won't go to Dallas to pick up a car, but it will give you a feel for what price/year/milage ES300's are out there and what their asking prices are. At that point you'll be able to compare that to your price and determine if the deal is right. I don't know if you are dealing with a private seller or dealership, but you could save $1000 + if you buy from a private seller instead of a dealer. Who knows, you could even find that cherry with all the mainenance records in imaculate condition just waiting to be stolen.

Absolutely! This is the best advice so far. It doesn't matter how many miles it will go if you can't find a decent mechanic to take care of it.

While I do agree with muh of what Lexusfreak says, I think that the 500K mark is somewhat unrealistic. I am at 120K now and I am hoping that I can get another 100K -150K + out of it before something major happens. I think eventually that it will get to the point that the combined cost of preventative and general maintenance over a given period will outweigh the car's value and you would be better off putting the $$ towards a downpayment on a new car. On a related note, I think that cars that are driven daily and subjcted to high mileage over an extended period of time will outlive those that are driven sparsely. My co-worker has a 1995 Chevrolet pickup with over 300K on it. He maintains it well and drives it all the time and it runs great. On the converse, my grandmother's 1997 ford Taurus with 65K on it feels like it is about to kick the bucket because she only drives it for shorter distances a few times a week.