bdonkersgoed

Hello Everyone, Ever since I first got my 1992 ES300 2 yeasr ago, both of the switches for the heatde seats are broken. The rocker switches rock, but they won't click into place. It is like something snapped inside. Is there a way to fix these, or is there a place where I can get new ones? Thanks! Bryan

If you guys really want to save some gas, get a small motorcycle. I have a little 250cc Kawasaki Ninja and that little bike gets an amazing 70-75 mpg, and that's driving VERY aggressively :) I bring the bike up to about 10000 rpms every time I accelerate :) And it redlines at 14000 rpms :) It is not a fast sportbike by any means, but it car still take on most cars on the road with a 1/4 mile time around 14 seconds. Bikes are so much fun, and a really cheap way for someone like me to commute to work and university. Some people say that bikes are too dangerous, but those are usually the people who have never driven one before. You have amazing handling and stopping power on a bike when compared to a car. I'm not saying that they are as safe as cars by any means, but they aren't as dangerous as most people think. If driven very carefully and under the assumption that all cars on the road are trying to kill you, you can really reduce your risk of a collision. Regards, Bryan

The lights are a really common problem on the ES300. I have been lucky and my lights haven't gone yet, although a very small portion of my speedometer needle is burned out. I try to preserve the lights by keeping them pretty dim unless it is really sunny outside. I don't know how to fix them, but I would be interested in knowing too, as I am sure that I will run into the same problem sometime soon. Regards, Bryan

The mechanic said that he didn't hear any rumbling sound when he drove the car, but it is deifinitely still there! I'll try checking the spare tire this evening, and then checking the bolt under the rear seat as mentioned in other posts. If I can't find anything, then I guess I'll have to take it back to the mechanic . . . By the way, the squeaking and the rumbling are two separate problems, correct? Someone said that the squeaking is caused by bushings or something . . . but I don't even know what a bushing is :( I need to pick up an auto mechanics book and start figuring things out . . . Anyways, how much do jobs like bushings and suspension tuneups costs? Thanks! Bryan

Hey . . . the spare tire is a good idea :) I never thought of that. The certainly sounds as if the spare is bouncing around a little in the trunk . . . I will give it a try tonight. My car is finally done at the shop (it took over a week!) and I get to pick it up today. I asked the mechanic to check out the rumbling sound, but he phones back and said he couldn't hear any rumble like I described . . . I would be really surprised if it just happened to disappear. I am never so lucky :) Regards, Bryan

Well, if they would have considered doing that, then I think they would have mentioned it. I would just go to the wrecker and get a set off of a '86 for cheap, but I think the garage has already started installing the ones that they had ordered. I gave them the "go ahead" last week. I don't really have the time to shop around because I really need my car back soon. Thanks for your help, Bryan

The calipers are going to be about $400CAN for the parts . . . I guess that isn't too bad. They didn't mention anything about rebuilding the ones I have. They said something about not being able to get them off without breaking them (or something like that?) Regards, Bryan

Thanks for the reply :) I do know that my rotors and pads are all fine, because I have just replaced them all this month. What I have done in last month: - Replaced rear pads and rotors - Replaced Emergency brake cable and shoes because it was stuck - Replaced front brakes and rotors - Recharged the A/C with 1.5 lbs of freon. Now it's SOO COLD :) What I have yet to do: - Fix massive leak in brake line (I have no breaks!) - Replace all calipers because the shop cannot bleed the system - Replace the e-brake shoes AGAIN because, for some reason, the driver's side show is already down to the metal and makes an aweful scratching sound when I drive - Fix a leak in the power steering - Figure out and fix the rumbling sound in the rear when I go over bumps - Figure out and fix the squeaking in the rear. When I push down on the rear of the car, it squeaks quite loudly Looks like I am going to rack up quite a bill this month :( I love the ES300 though and it's worth it. The engine and transmission has never failed me . . . it's only the wear and tear parts or parts that will rust that can give me a headache. Any thoughts on what the rumbling or squeaking may be? I have another post describing the rumbling in more detail. If anyone could help me out, I would really appreciate it! Regards, Bryan

Please don't think I am stupid, but I am not very mechanicaly inclined. . . . Are there calipers on all four wheels? Thanks! Bryan

Does anyone know if there are aftermarket emergency brake shows available for the ES300? I replaced mine about a month ago, but for some reason, the driver's side is already down to the metal! It must be due to an incorrect installation (which was done by a friend). It makes a horrible scratching sound when I drive :( What sucks is that Toyota only sells E-Brake shoes in a set, which means I will have to buy the entire set again, even though I only need the one side. And if my memory serves me correctly, I believe the set was over $180.00CAN! ($128.00US). How frusterating! Also, are there aftermarket calipers available for the ES? The shop can't bleed them so I need new ones. This is going to be a big service bill :o Thanks for the help! Bryan

The sound is really hard to describe . . . it started about 5 months ago. At that time, it only did it once in a while. Now, it rumbles over every bump. I thought my suspension was pooched becuase, if I push down on the trunk of my car, it squeaks pretty loud . . . is this a related problem, or do you know what the squeaking comes from? Anyways, the rumble kind of sounds like a tennis ball bouncing inside a small wooden box if you shake the box, if you can imagine what that would sound like. Or, it kind of sounds like a soft, low, rumbling thunder. The rumble doesn't last long . . . it just rumbles when going over a bump (which dosen't have to be big). As soon as the car is over the bump, the rumble is gone. Going back to the tennis ball analogy, the rumble is like the tennis ball bouncing against the side of the box 3 or four times. I probably make no sense, but that is the best way that I can describe it Got any ideas? Thanks! Bryan

I pretty consistantly get around 600 - 630 kms on about 58L of fuel (I think my car has a 60 Litre tank, but it is never bone dry when I go to fill up). This is doing mostly highway driving, and I drive pretty conservatively. My ES300 is also a 5-speed manual transmission which may help a little. Regards, Bryan

For about 5 months now, my 1992 ES300 has some kind of weird low-pitched rumbling sound coming from the rear of the car. It is really hard to describe what it sounds like. It rumbles every time I go over a bit of a bump in the road (and the bump doesn't have to be big). Has anyone else ever experienced this before? Does anyone know what it might be? The sound really annoys me :) Regards, Bryan

I actually prefer the trunk lid on the '92 the way it is . . . the trunks that open at the thigh level are more difficult to get opened and closed (heavier and more awkward). I like the nice, light trunk lid. But then again, I may be weird :) Regards, Bryan

Well, I mieant bottoming out to mean when you exit a parking lot with a really steep curb or something . . . but if there are rails, then that should protect it :) Anyways, the mechanic phoned back and it is going to cost $250 . . . much MUCH better than the $1200 (minimum!) that Toyota quoted me!! I can handle $250.00 :) Regards, Bryan

Hey skperformace, Sorry that I didn't have my profile updated. I have put up my location now. I actually go to the University of Waterloo, and live in a small town outside of Waterloo. Right now I am at a coop position at an insurance company downtown Toronto, so I am living with my brother in Guelph. It is a long commute, which kind of sucks, but at least it is a job ad I am getting experience (and money!) :) Anyways, I take the GoTrain into Toronto from Milton, and Milton is where my car is stuck right now. I got it to Toyota in Milton and that is where they provided me with the quote. Instead of doing the brake job with them, I am going to one of their affiliates and having it done using a cheaper method. I am just going to run a brake line underneith the car and am going to screw it to the floorpan or something like that. It should save me a lot of money, although I run the risk of breaking my break line if I bottom out really hard. My mechanic told me that I would have to bottom out REALLY hard to break the brake line, so I am not too worried about that. If I ever do happen to bottom out (which is a rare occurence), then I will be sure to pull over and inspect my break line. The car is getting fixed tomorrow, so hopefully all goes well! Regards, Bryan

Toyota just called back and quoted me $1191CAN for parts, labour, and taxes. Holy crap, is that ever expensive! They said that whether they do the fuel line or not, the labour is the same. Parts are cheap relative to labour. They said that this is a 9-hour job, and there is a chance that they might also have to replace some bracket on the fuel tank if it snaps off while they are working on it. That part runs for $747.00 or $402.00 aftermarket!!! EXPENSIVE!!! You said $300 parts and labour?! Why are they quoting me quadruple??? Thanks for your help! Bryan

I'm not really sure . . . it was in the rear of the car, that is all I know. I didn't really have time to get a good look at it as they were closing in like 5 minutes. Would it be better if it was in the flex line? Because then I could just replace that without replacing the line under the car? The dealer was talking about having difficulties splicing lines and putting on a new one to fix the problem . . . I'm not really mechanically inclined, so I took what he said to be the truth. Thanks for he help, Bryan

Hello Everyone, I have had my '92 ES300 for about 2 years now, and never had a significant problem until recently. On Friday. when I went to drive home from work, I had absolutely no brakes! I have always had a bit of a leak in my brake line, but have always made sure that I kept it topped up once every couple of months or so. Anyways, my brake fluid was right empty. I went to the GM dealer across the street a managed to get a bottle of brake fluid. I put the fluid in, but the leak continued. I was able to drive it to a Toyota delaership before I ran out of brake fluid again. Once I reached the dealer, the brake line was leaking like crazy from the rear of the car. Anyways, I left the car withToyota and went back the next day. When I spoke with the technician, he was quoting me at a minimum $1200CAN!!! Yikes! He said that it cost so much because they would probably have to replace all of the fuel lines as well, because once they try to pull out the brake line, the fuel lines (which are clamped to the brake line) will disintegrate. He said I could probably take a cheaper route by running a brake line under the car and !Removed! it to the floor pan. As long as I don't hit a pothole hard, then I should be fine. . . What do you guys think of all this? Am I getting ripped off?? Regards, Bryan