TouringGS

I believe that situation is covered by most insurance company policies with no deductible fee. Try and contact your insurance company and explain the situation.

Looks like I'll be giving these products a try. Is the Nxt Tech Wax similar to their original polymer sealant? Thanks for sharing, and what a transformation on that car.

The wood is clearcoated, much like a car's exterior paint. I remove debris from the wood with a can of compressed air, then use mother's quick detail spray on it as an initial wipe down, follow that with meguiar's scratch X, and finalize with a wax. I do this about once a month, and just dust it periodically.

I purchased cross-drilled and slotted rotors for my GS from a company named irotors. You can take a look at them at irotors.com. They gave me a very good price for all 4 rotors and pads. The pads they carry are rotora axxis brand, which in my opinion are one of the best on the market. Another option would be to check ebay. You can get even better deals there, although be sure to buy from someone with positive feedback, and a good history. That way, you can be sure that you'll recieve what you pay for, and in the condition advertised. Look for a seller that stands behind their item with a warranty. Good luck.

You could sand down the area well to remove the rust and smooth it out, and paint it with high temp paint. Its fairly inexpensive material-wise, but if you opt to have someone else do the work for you, labor might be more than the materials. Perhaps a member in the California area you're from will recommend someone. Good luck.

If your paint is in exceptional conditions (little to no swirls, zero oxidation, no hairline scratches etc) then by all means do save time and just use the clay. Although, if your car is in need of claying then it is highly likely that your paint has other imperfections that the clay will not remove. As far as I know, no clay bar that I've used ever removed swirls or fine scratches from the car. I always had to follow the clay procedure with a heavy duty paint cleaner. Just in my experience, though. The only way to know for sure is, after you clay the car inspect it thoroughly under good lighting. If there are any swirls or scratches, hit it with a heavy duty abrasive cleaner polish.

Yes. Claying removes foreign contaminants that you can actually feel or grab. The paint cleansing products remove swirls, oxidation, fine scratches etc. that the clay will not remove.

Should look something like the image I attatched....

Like TurboGS300 said, turn the bulb to unlock it after you've unplugged it. The bulb gets secured by these "teeth" on the edge of it.

I see under your username that you have a 1st generation GS... For the 1st gen GS, when you open your hood and look at the top of the headlights, you should see a black plastic cover held in place by 3 screws : 2 on top, one on the inner side. Remove this cover, and after doing so you should be able to see the harness going to the headlight housing. The center bulb is your lowbeam, and the one closest to the center of the car is your high beam. Unplug the harness from the bulb by pressing the release clip (feel around for it). Pull out old bulb after harness is unplugged, replace with the new one. Secure it in place, and plug the harness back in.

I've been a fan of the Scratch X ever since I first tried it (about 8 containers ago). If you have trouble removing certain paint damage/defects, you could try several applications. If you're still having trouble, the damage might be too severe for the scratch X to remove. Scratch X is fantastic, though. Worth more than it costs, in my opinion.

King Phill, SW03ES's recommendation of the Meguiar's #9 sounds like a good idea. I had the same issue with the wood in my GS, but what I tried was Meguiar's scratch X over it. Then I topped it off with a wax. Came out really well, and as of yet I haven't had to do anything to the wood other than some dusting, periodically. I'd give that a try. Good luck.

Sounds good, I'll be applying it tomorrow. I'll let you know how it turns out. Also, since you said Meguiar's products are interchangeable I was thinking of topping the No. 20 with the Meguiar's paste wax I have. Good idea? Thanks, SW.

Anyone that has used Meguiar's No. 20 polymer sealant, what was your experience like with it? How good was its protection ability, and how long did it last? I've got about a third of a bottle of the stuff here, and was thinking of giving it a try.

I have a Touring edition GS, and these came with a "Touring" emblem on the rear right side of the car. My problem is that I bought the car with gold emblems, but I rather have them chrome. Since the emblem was discontinued, and I have not had any luck finding it elsewhere I was wondering if there is a way to re-chrome it. I'm thinking you could strip the emblem down to the bare metal, and chrome it. Although, I don't think the results will look like the factory chrome emblems do. Anyone with knowledge or experience on this I'd appreciate your suggestions. Thanks.

Got it repaired just 3 days ago. VBdenny, he did just what you mentioned... Painted the entire panel. Said it's the best way to do it. After thorough inspection under different lighting, I've got to say the paint looks like a factory paint job. Really pleased with the results.

Rj, Unfortunately my GS is a first generation and I believe they don't have chrome under the black paint like 2nd gens. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

Just tested it out, and sure enough it turned the terry towel black. I assume the bottom (gray portion) of the car is more than likely clearcoated, right?

Ran into some bad luck today, as someone scraped some paint in the front left of my car, as well as causing some "shattering" in the paint with the rear of their S.U.V. I'm going to repair it on my own, to avoid the insurance deductible. I'll be supplying the materials for the work to be done... My question is : My car is onyx (2 tone car; gray bottom), and I understand Lexus does not use a clear coat on their black cars. I'm going to be purchasing PPG Paint, is there anything I should know specifically about using PPG without a clearcoat? Though I trust the person that will work on my car, I still want to be sure I provide all materials needed for the job for it too look as close as possible to the factory paint. Thanks in advance for responses. Edit - Car is a 1995 GS300, paint is in good (almost like new) condition.

That's the truth. I've witnessed it myself how the guys at dealers handle the cars (brand new ones, even). The sad part is, a lot of the customers either don't notice the swirls or simply dont care, since they see it as "If the car shines, it must be well done".

Thanks for all the help, SW. Hopefully, I can get that car shining like a Lexus should again.

Appreciate the reply, SW. I used the Meguiar's Mirror Glaze s. remover, with a yellow cutting pad. I'm gonna give the Poorboys and the 3M Perfect it polish a try. I was also looking at the blackfire products... What's your opinion them? I was thinking of using a BF sealant to finish it off(and a carnuba wax on top of that). Thanks again.

Recently, I detailed a friend's car (96 GS300) using the same simple procedure I use on mine (a '95 GS) which was claying, swirl remover, polish, and waxing (porter cable 7424 was used with swirl remover, and polishing). The car looked good, but I noticed the paint on the 96 was a bit more dull and not as glossy. I assume this is from continuous improper paint care. Is there anything that can be done to restore the gloss in the paint? I'm thinking some compounding with a rotary, perhaps? Any suggestions will be appreciated.

Appreciate all the advice. I'll keep you guys posted... Hopefully the update will come with a couple pics. Thanks again.

I appreciate the response. I kind of figured I'd be better off getting new shocks... Are there any aftermarket brands you'd recommend in particular?