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You've seen 2 doctors, got 2 opinions, and now you need to see a 3rd doctor to see which one is correct. You'll be able to make a better decision after you've heard doctor number three's diagnosis. Let's hope he agrees with the lesser of the two quotes! Good Luck!

The clunking noise may well be what your mechanic has diagnosed. It sounds consistent with what you describe. As for your power steering leak, there are several points. First, power steering fluid will not hurt rubber parts, whereas oil indeed will, unless the rubber parts are specifically compounded to resist oil. Oil will cause most rubber to swell and soften it. Your power steering leak typically is in the high pressure hose that feeds the steering rack, usually where the fittings are crimped onto the rubber hose. The only fix is a new factory or aftermarket hose assembly. But steering rack seals will harden and crack with time and heat to where the rack must be removed, disassembled , new seals installed, and then replaced on the vehicle. Sometimes its cheaper to just install a rebuilt rack, or even take a chance on a used rack from an auto recycler. Price and how long you wish to keep driving the vehicle are the determining factors. Either way, you have to determine which problem exists first. So, you clean up all of the oil from the rack and the hoses first and dry everything up, then put the car on a hoist, start it up, and with an assistant inside the car slowly turning the steering wheel side to side, you watch for the leaks underneath to find where your problem is. Good Luck!

When I last had to pull the rear rotors from my wife's last ES (it was a 97) I needed to use the two bolt turnout method described already. I simply used the same bolts that hold the caliper to the caliper mount. They were the same size to fit the rotor holes. I don't recall , but I suspect that the slider bolts for the front rotors will be too large. In any case, the bolts are metric and any good auto supply house or Japanese dealership should be able to get them for you. Be aware that if the rotors are really stuck onto the hubs due to rust, you may ruin and strip these bolts and therefore require replacing them when you're done. Use some discresion when winding them into the rotors. Take a fair sized ball peen hammer and give the rotor a couple of medium whacks right between the wheel studs in a couple of locations. This might be enough to break the rust between the hubs and the rotors and free them up. Just don't overdo it and bend any parts. When you finally get the rotors off be sure to paint the inside surface of the rotor that mates to the wheel axle hub with antiseize compound and you won't have to got through this the next time. Be careful not to get any of the compound on the braking surfaces or on the wheel studs. By the way, if you can't get the rear rotors off, are you sure that you don't have the emergency brake on? You won't get them off if it is. Good Luck!

Its the wife's car and when she's driving the shocks are always set at comfort. Myself, I leave it in comfort around town because of the bumpy roads locally, but on the highway or in heavy traffic when quicker steering inputs may be required, I usually pop it into the highest setting. Personally I don't see a great deal of difference in the middle 2 settings, as they are too closely matched. However, there definitely is a difference between the settings 1 and 4.

I'd source one from a wrecking yard long before I paid that kind of money. I believe that 97 through 2002 (Someone correct me if I'm wrong.) would use the same switch, and check out the Camry for the same years since they may be the same as well.

A good furniture restorer should be able to diagnose what needs to be done to bring back the sheen you're after. In most cases simply polishing the section should bring it back, but the tricky part is just how thick (how many coats) is the final clear coat finish that was applied over the colour coat on the wood. It may be thick enough to be able to be polished out and brought back, but it may be thin and polishing it may burn through to the colour coat, necessitating removing the steering wheel from the car, stripping it right back to bare wood, and doing a total refinish job. You really need a professional to look at it and give you advice on how to proceed. Describing the wood's appearance as cloudy suggests that there may have been a moisture problem with the finish. You need an expert to know for sure. Good Luck!

The GPS antenna is at the top of the windshield next to the rear view mirror on my wife's 04 ES. Your problem suggests that your antenna is not receiving a proper signal, is not correctly (loose) connected to the nav unit, or that you have an internal glitch with the unit itself that a reset might correct.

Your best bet may be a wrecking yard that has a 2003-2006 ES330 (I think those years are all the same body style, if not here's hoping someone else will jump in and correct this) that have the same colour interior as your car. All of those years should be interchangeable. Good Luck!

Oouch! Unless you are mechanically and electronically inclined, I would suggest taking the car to a car audio specialist who installs and repairs systems. They'll have to pull the interior trunk panels around the CD unit, unplug its wiring harness, disconnect the CD unit from the trunk floor, and then open the CD Changer case to see how the cartridge is binding in its receiving tray. Then they'll be able to pry and coax it out. Hopefully there won't be any broken plastic parts on the cartridge or bent metal sections inside the changer. There will be no way that the cartridge will be able to be powered out on its own. It'll have to be pulled from the changer, but it'll be best to do so with the case off so that you'll be able to see where it is jammed. Good Luck!

You need to get a paint chip pen (don't know what else to call it) from your local auto parts supplier who carries paint supplies. Its a plastic pen that has glass fibres for removing rust from small paint chipped areas on car hoods etc. With it you scrape through the rust down to bare metal. Then using a tooth pick as a paint brush, you put a tiny dab of primer paint ( get some good primer in a spray bomb, spray a small amount into the cap of the spray bomb, and then use the tooth pick to transfer a small dab as described )onto the bare metal of the chipped area, but ensure that it stays below the surface of the finished coats of paint on the fender. If you can verify that there is no rust, and don't need the chip pen, then go to the primer stage just described. Give the primer a day to cure. Then get the touch up paint stick from the dealer for your colour code, and again use a tooth pick as before to fill the chip to slightly above the surrounding paint's surface. Let it cure for at least a week before attempting to sand the chipped area down to the level of the surrounding painted surface, using at least a 1500 - 2000 grit wet/dry colour sanding paper(if this is even necessary since the paint may well sink to the same level as what surrounds it). At this point all that remains is to polish the sanded area with an appropriate compound. You may wish to leave these last two steps (sanding and polishing) to a professional, who should be able to do such a small area in in less than 20 minutes. Then again, you may be pleased enough with your results and not feel the need to even do the sanding and polishing. I used this same procedure on all of my cars for years with excellent results that are usually invisible. Good Luck!

Logically it doesn't make sense that the two problems are related. The clock problem sounds like old age has caught up with it, but check your fuse panel first to see if its fuse is gone. The mirror problem may be a dirty switch, a broken wire at the hinge where the door opens, or the motor assembly inside the mirror itself may have gone south. Used parts would be the way to go in both cases, but someone needs to track down the specific problem with the mirror first. If its motor is the culprit and you find a used mirror, even if its the wrong colour, it is possible to change out the mirror's motor parts saving the cost of repainting the new mirror. I've done 3 or 4, and while its time consuming and fiddlely, its not impossible. Good Luck!

Typically the kick panel has either a couple of bolts or screws that need to be removed before you can pull the panel, or the panel simply is snapped into place. Check first to see if there are any fasteners. If there are, then you know how to proceed. If there aren't any, then I would suggest that the panel section closet to the vertical firewall needs to be pulled towards the centre of the car until its snap fasteners let go. Be gentle but firm when you get your fingers between the carpeting and the panel when you pull. Then the panel will need to be lifted and pulled towards the rear of the car along its left edge top to bottom since these panels typically fold over the edge of the side of the door opening. Usually when installing these, the left hand edge is set over the steel opening for the door and pushed into place with the heel of your hand. Then the flat section of the kick panel is pushed into place by hitting it sideways to the left and then installing any screws/bolts or plastic plugs that were removed previously. A little exploration should show you how to proceed. Remember that these particular panels are pretty tough, just don't get carried away and start beating on it if it doesn't go back on right away. Make sure that everything is seated properly before you smack it with your hand to seat it. Good Luck!

Louie, You are most welcome. Glad that this old man could help you out.

Even though the rust spot is as small as you describe it will most likely be larger when you start to probe the surrounding metal. It usually is. That said, the damage may not be that much larger than what you see now. In this case you don't require a repair panel that would effectively replace the entire outer rocker. Take the car to a good bodyman who will probe the damage, determine the extent of the damage, cut out the damaged area, cut and bend a piece of sheet metal to fit the repair and then butt weld the patch into the opening. Some grinding, body fill to fill any imperfections, primer and final paint, and you're good to go, and for not all that much money. Now, I have seen Ford Explorers from my neck of the woods that have the rockers so far gone that the one piece rocker plus the A, B and C pillars had to be removed and replaced as a single unit direct from Ford or an aftermarket sheet metal supplier. Your case sounds rather trivial, and shouldn't require a manufactured panel. Any good bodyman should be able to shape the small piece you require in minutes. What you might consider is getting the car oil guarded after the work is done, and then once again each year afterwards. Good Luck!

Stator, We're so glad that we could help, even though in this case we didn't give you any help! Glad you joined the group and enjoy your Lexus so much. Stick around. There are some pretty amazing answers to be found here from some pretty knowledgeable people.

In the past I have had a similar problem with a Nissan. When I looked up at the bottom of the mirror arm from below the car on that particular model, there were two or three screws that could be tightened and corrected the mirror shake in my case. As I recall I had to use captainadam's suggestion to first remove the mirror from the car, in order to get clearance for a screwdriver to fit in one of the screws because of the curve of the top of the door skin didn't allow the screwdriver to seat. If this doesn't apply in your case, the other situation I'm familiar with is that the motor unit that tilts the mirror has come loose from its mounting inside the mirror body, and needs its screws tightened. To get to those screws you'll need to remove the entire mirror from the car, then push the wiring harness back inside the case to get enough slack for the next step. Then carefully, and I mean carefully, pop the mirror and its backing plate from the body of the mirror case using a cloth wrapped screwdriver. The mirror will then hang from its wiring but will pull far enough out of its case for you to tighten the screws inside. Then getting the mirror to pop back onto the tilt mechanism will take patience. Start with the swing bar first, then the two small ball sockets (You'll see what I mean if you have to get to this stage). Good Luck!

The first time you remove a door panel to fix a lock or window assembly can be pretty daunting, but it is not rocket science, if you are mechanically inclined and know your way around a tool box. You seem to have found the solution that would work best for you, take it to your Toyota Tech friend. It'll be done correctly with no worries as to ruining something getting the latch fixed. Good Luck!

Most mirrors are heated (comes on with the rear window defroster) but you'll most likely not need them in California. If this is the case, take a piece of paper, place it over the broken mirror and trace its shape, and cut it out. Go to a glass store, tell them what its for (so they use a thin mirror stock), and have them cut and shape a new mirror to shape. Put a fair amount of silicone seal on the back of the new mirror, place it over the backing plate of the old mirror (assuming that you've removed the broken pieces), press into place, and then use much masking tape to secure the mirror in place for 24 hours until the silicone sets. I have used this repair several times over the years and it works well. Good Luck!

Replacing the latch unit can be time consuming and frustrating. I've done a lot of them in the restoration shop where I work from time to time. The $300 quote from the dealership is mainly for the time it takes to pull the interior door panel, diagnose the problem, take out the old latch assembly, replace the new one and reinstall the panel again. The panel is not the problem. The latch assembly replacement is fiddly and frustrating because you can't see well inside the door, and the clips and control rods to the latch and lock are hard to get at, because there is so little space to work. Find a wrecked car for the parts if you like, and you may well find that a Camry for the same years might use the same latch. Good Luck!

The Best advice I can give you is to take the car to a Good mechanic who you trust and have him diagnose what your problem is. Your best bet is someone who does not have a vested interest in doing the repairs. Spend $50 - $100 and find out what you are dealing with, and what it will cost. In fact, get 2 different mechanics to give you a diagnosis. Only then can you decide what course of action you are going to follow. Quit listening to all the backyard mechanics who haven't been in the backyard long enough. I had a 1984 Cressida that started blowing smoke at about the 6 year old mark. Initially I thought it was rings or valves, but a good mechanic traced it down to worn valve stem seals allowing oil to run down the valve stems into the cylinders. He was able to fix the problem quickly and for a lot less money than what a valve and ring job would have cost. I got another 4 years out of the car before it was trading time. Good luck!

I've had great success in the past at opening up various CD units and watching the mechanisms as they play or load/unload CD's. In most cases I've been able to track down the problem to a broken drive belt (took old one to a repair shop where they compared its length and size to replacements and sold me a new one for 4 or 5 dollars) or a ripped CD label that has stuck in the mechanism, and such. This isn't a job for everyone, but if you have patience, small screwdrivers, needle-nosed pliers, dental picks, etc., and a certain amount of mechanical/electronic knowhow you can 90% of the time see and fix an obvious problem. And if the problem isn't obvious, you're halfway to getting the unit to a repair shop or replacing it with a used/new unit. Good Luck!

A few things to get, and a few to consider. Try to get access to a 97 Factory Service Manual (FSM) for your ES. It shows the fasteners and their locations for pulling the dash radio and vent trim pieces. It'll pretty much guarantee that you don't break anything. Before you start, disconnect the battery. A short will spoil your day. Go online to www.installdr.com (the Install Doctor) Search through until you find the radio wire harness diagrams for the 97 Lexus radio. It'll give you diagrams of the connector plugs that go into the back of the factory radio, and a list of the colours and locations that its wires go to (ex. brown wire to right front speaker) This will save you a lot of head scratching once you start, and will make it easy to see if the new unit matches with the car's wiring. Get to a car radio installer and buy the needed harness coupler for use between the car's radio wiring harness to the Kenwood unit. (It'll cost you $20 but will save having to cut and splice any wires for the install, and will make it a snap to retrofit the original radio back into the car when you sell it.) Loosely install the radio, hook up the battery and try the radio before you pop everything back into place. Use the FSM to pull the A Pillar trim and lower the front of the headliner over the front rear view mirror, assuming that the Nav unit's antenna has to be mounted up by the mirror and its wire will tuck up under the headliner and go down the A Pillar under the dash to the nav. I would use zip ties to fasten the nav antenna wire to other wiring harnesses and such under the dash, but leave them loose until you get it routed correctly and are sure that its the proper length, then tighten them and cut off the excess if they show or bother you. Good Luck!

I'll assume that since the body style of the 99 was the same as my wife's old 97, that the lens assembly comes out of the car the same way (I'm pretty sure it does.) Basically to change the bulb you have to remove the entire lens assembly to get at it. There is a small screw under the thin plastic cover that goes over the top of the radiator support from one side of the car to the other. At the extreme end of this cover is a plastic plug that you can pry up and out. Then fold back the end of the plastic cover and you'll see the screw to be removed at the front corner of the turn signal assembly. Once its out, tape the blade of an inch wide putty knife (to prevent scratching the paint) and slide the end of the blade between the turn signal assembly and the fender at the turn signal lens' back edge (nearest the door mirror). Grasp the blade as close to the car body as possible and pull/pop the entire lens assembly towards the front of the car. It will pop out, but only as far as the bulb wiring will permit. Turn the entire bulb socket to unlock it and you'll have the lens assembly in your hand. Total time ... 2 minutes at most. Good luck!

We traded the wife's 97 ES 300 when the mileage hit 269 000 km (167 000 mi) in 04. Other than routine maintenance (oil, tires, brakes, wiper blades, etc.), the ONLY problem we encountered was a rapid turn signal flash on the left side of the car about every 6 months. What it turned out to be was a weak set of spring contacts inside the left front turn signal bulb socket. Restretching them with needle nosed pliers allowed for another 6 months of normal operation before having to do it again. Cutting out the old socket and wiring in a new one would have solved the situation once and for all. That's was it! It was so dependable that we bought another ES 330 in 04. If you can verify that the routine maintenance has been done, and that the car was driven by a responsible owner, I don't think you could go too far wrong buying a 97. The reason that you've not gotten many responses to your post should tell you something as well. There aren't many problems with these cars. Good Luck!

Terry, I'm assuming that you pulled the complete instrument panel from the car. It doesn't make sense for the tape that you added to suddenly make the gauge read erratically as you describe. What does make sense is that when you pulled the instrument assembly, you didn't seat the wiring harness plug that includes the temp gauge properly when you put it back together. Either that or there is some corrosion on its pin connector. I'd pull the cluster and reinsert the harness connectors again. If you didn't pull the cluster, then it could be coincidence that your temp sensor has gone south, or its connector is corroded. Rereading your post a second time gives me one other thought. Did you pull the temp gauge needle from the gauge to put on the tape? If you did, then you've installed the needle in the wrong spot on the shaft. Pull it off again, let the car warm up to its normal running temperature, and install the needle where you would have seen it sit normally and you should be good to go. Good Luck!