bdonkersgoed

It wouldn't look as good as what? As replacing it with new leathers? I know it wouldn't look as good, but it should be cheaper. The DIY kit is like $75US I believe . . . how much could the paint cost? Regards, Bryan

Thanks SK . . . that's pretty cool, but I was looking for a cheaper fix (like the painting method mentioned above). The leather of the steering wheel is in fine condition . . . it is just the paint that is chipping off . . . Regards, Bryan

You think that's expensive for a battery? Try buying a Kawasaki motorcycle battery . . . I had to shell out $180CAN for mine, and it isn't even a quarter of the size of a car battery Regards, Bryan

Hehe . . . :P I think I read a post once where you said specified the winter package . . . I'm just relaying that information :) Regards, Bryan

So baking is a good thing? It sounds like a pretty good deal then . . . now I just need to come up with the funds :( I think I am going to wait and se how much my suspension costs me first (a knowcking sound in the rear). It goes in to the nechanic on Saturday . . . Regards, Brayn

And where did you get this product from? Did they have a perfect match for you car? I have the tan interior . . . Regards, Bryan

Does this stuff work? My steering wheel is embarassing looking . . . so bad that I have it covered with a wheel cover (and I HATE wheel covers!) I've seen a lot of other Lexuses with the same problem. How does it work? Do you have to get the old paint off omehow, and then apply this stuff? I am really curious. . . Thanks! Bryan

I have always gone to Shell, mainly because they offer AirMiles, but also because of the quality. Maybe I should give Sunoco a try? I only use regular 87 octane fuel, as my ES doesn't call for premium. Does yours? Regards, Bryan

Oh, and yes, the price is for complete body work and complete paint job. He said rattled off some kind of like 7 or so step process that they go through to prep the car. He would be welding new metal onto my fender where it is rusted badly. He woudl properly fix all rock chips and realign my hood (because he thought it was a little off, althoguh I had never noticed :P ) He also said something about baking it? Not sure what that means . . . something to do with the paint . . . Regards, Bryan

I asked him about whether or not the rust would reappear, and he said it wouldn't for a long time. I asked him if I would at least be good for 3 years, and he said, "for sure." I know that they do pretty good work because they worked on my Dad's Mercedes about half a year ago and did a really good job. He said that it would take three full business days, with one guy working on it from 5:00AM to 8:00PM for each of the three days. He is also willing to take cash as payment with an obvious benefit :P I am thinking that I could maybe get the price lowered a couple hundred bucks, and then I can afford to rent a car in case it rains. I woudl just ride my motorcycle to work, but with my luck, it will be raining for all three of the days that the car is in the shop. I am thinking about getting this done. It would really like to get the car painted, but it will be tough to come up with the funds on a student budget :( Regards, Bryan

All of the Canadian model ES300s do . . . otherwise, it would have to have the winter package (heated seats and headlight washers). Regards, Bryan

Well, I am taking my car in to the shop on Saturday, so I'll see what happens. I told them to do a tuneup, check out my suspension issues, and replace the fuel filter and spark plugs (and I made sure they knew only to replace with original Densos). Hopefully the problem goes away . . . Regards, Bryan

I took my car to a shop in Brampton where we had work done on my Dad's S-Class Benz. They work primarily on higher-end cars (Mercedes, BMW, Lexus, Infiniti, Porsche) and do really good work for really cheap. He wuoted me at $2500CAN to redo the ENTIRE car, fixing all rust and sanding down to the bare metal. He said the car would look absolutely mint by the time he was through. I am considering this offer . . . I feel it is a pretty reasonable price. I do have quite a bit of rust that needs repairing . . . Plus, if I get the entire car repainted, then I could get the plastic trim painted to math the rest of the car :) Does anyone know of any other reputable body shops in Ontario that do good work for a cheap price? Thanks! Bryan

You have psychic abilities SK :P You are indeed correct. I knew that it had a little ding in the front fender when I bought the car, but I didn't mind. The hood and front fender has been repainted, and not done very well. The paint on the hood was never glossy like a Lexus should be. I took my car to a shop in Brampton where we had work done on my Dad's S-Class Benz. They work primarily on higher-end cars (Mercedes, BMW, Lexus, Infiniti, Porsche) and do really good work for really cheap. He wuoted me at $2500CAN to redo the ENTIRE car, fixing all rust and sanding down to the bare metal. He said the car would look absolutely mint by the time he was through. I am considering this offer . . . I feel it is a pretty reasonable price. I do have quite a bit of rust that needs repairing . . . Plus, if I get the entire car repainted, then I could get the plastic trim painted to math the rest of the car :) Does anyone know of any other reputable body shops in Ontario that do good work for a cheap price? Thanks! Bryan

Well, that's probably because they live in Toronto and don't do a lot of highway driving liek I do. Most of the rust occurred over this past winter. Tonnes of salt + tonnes of driving = bad rust conditions :( I am going to a shop in a couple of hours to get an estimate. You can't let such a nice car as the ES get rusty! Regards, Bryan

I would like to, but I can't until the week-end (as it is my Mom's digital camera and I don't live at home). I will try to get some pics up on Friday night. Thanks! Bryan

The ES is an excellent car . . . I have had mine (the rare '92 5-Speed) for about 2.5 years now. Most fo the repairs that I have done have been wear and tear: - Brake pads and rotors all around - Emergency Brake shoes and cable - Hole in Y-Pipe - Replace Battery - Leak in Brake Line Most of the parts are the same as the Camry (which is the reason why I bought the ES in the first place) except for the body and maybe the transmission I think. However, althugh cheap with respect to Lexus (who will charge like 40% more for the same part), Toyota parts are not cheap in relation to Domestic Parts. But I am sure you are well aware :) As for fuel economy, I get a pretty consistant 10.5km/L (30 mpg). The only bad thing is rust on an older car (escially in salty road Canada). Mine could use a good body job which will probably not be cheap. Overall, it is an excellent car. Consumer Reports lists it as one of the best used cars you car buy. But then, so is every other Lexus in Consumer Reports B) You certainly don't see any Fords with such a designation :P Regards, Bryan

Thanks for the replies guys :) Well, I tried some metal polish as described earlier. Although it took off a little bit more oxidation than the plastic polish, it didn't remove the scratches. I have already tried Meguires PlastX which works awesome at removing oxidation, but didn't remove the scratches either. Anyways, my light are really clean and clear now, but they still have these fine scratches through them. I think I inaccurately decribed them before. The scratches are very fine, and are all over the headlight lenses. They kind of look like they could have been created by a coarse winter snow brush or something. They are most noticeable when the lights are on, because the light refracts a little bit through the scratches. Will the mirror glaze product help me if I already tried Meguire's PlastX with no luck? Thanks! Bryan

Well, I am going to go and check out a body shop first and see how much it would cost to fix the ones I already have or get aftermarket parts. I have rust on my passenger door and passenger quarter panel as well, so I would want to get all that fixed as well. I will see how much it costs to get the fender fixed compared to replacing it with a new one so that I can do a cost comparison. It will probably end up being cheaper going aftermarket as I don't really have a need for both of the fenders, but I will get back to you once I find out. Although aftermarket may be more difficult to install, I would just let the bodyshop guys deal with that :) Thanks! Bryan

Hey SK, you still haven't responded yet. How much are yo uasking for the two fenders? Regards, Bryan

My '92 ES300 has 207,000 kms on it, and I have yet to have any cooling problems with it. Here is everything that I did in the last 2.5 years. Note that an independant mechanic did all of the replacing/fixing: - replaced battery ($100CAN) - fixed a hole in the Y-pipe ($80CAN) - Replaced all brake rotors and pads ($800CAN) - Replaced rear brake calipers ($400CAN) - Replaced E-Brakes shoes and cable ($200CAN) - Fixed a hole in the brake line ($200CAN) Not too bad for 2.5 years of use if you ask me. That is owning the car from 131,000kms to 207,000kms. Now, the only crappy thing is that it is starting to rust. My passenger fender looks pretty bad, and my passenger door has a big rust spot. Also, I have a knocking sound in my driver rear suspenion that I am getting checked out next Saturday. I have a manual transmission car, and my gas mileage is usually pretty consistant at just over 10km/L (can you tell I live in Canada too ) I can sometimes get as good as 10.8km/L. Hope this helps. Good luck in your search! Bryan

hey sk, OK, now I understand :) I thought that you were wanting to sell the Japanese fenders that you bought :) Anyways, approx. how much do you want for the fenders? Regards, Bryan

Well, I don't think that they are cracks . . . I mean they just look like a cracked glass vase . . . I think they are actually some kind of scratch that is all over the headlights. It kind of looks like a mosaic. You can't feel the lines, but you can see them . . . Thanks! Bryan

What is a silt filter? Is that like a kind of prefilter? Can it get clogged up? Thanks for the help! Bryan

Hey Guys, I finally got the initiative to pull the headlights out of my '92 ES300 to give them a good polish inside and out (using the over the break the urethane seal). Anyways, I ave done one light and I managed to get rid of all the yellowness, which is great! I drove at nighttime with one clean and one dirty headlight, and was amazed at the difference in light output! The clean side was SOO MUCH brighter! Anyways, I am happy that I got rid of the yellowness, but one problem still remains. If you look at my headlight lenses with the lights on, it looks like there are tiny cracks goin all over the headlight (because the light refracts through these cracks). You know what cracked glass vases look like? That is kind of what my headlights look like, but not quite so extreme. Does anyone kow if it is possible to fix this? Thanks! Bryan