Rice

Hi All. Been a while since I posted on here, but here goes... My steering wheel controls have been working intermittently lately and finally they stopped working all together. The horn is out too, but airbag light is not on. I have read something about clock spring, but nothing that would help me fix the issue. If someone knows how to fix this w/o going to the dealer and leaving my kid's college fund there I'd greatly appreciate it.

Hi All, I just bought an 05. The car is very nice in all respects, but it has 80K highway miles on it. I wanted to do a transmission tune-up (change filter and fluid) and the guy who sold it to me said to NEVER do this. He said that 05 trannies are sealed and are not meant to ever be opened up. In fact, the car doesn't even have a transmission dip stick. He also told me that if you touch the existing fluid, it will upset something inside and will cause problems. This seems to be a common thing that most mechanics tell me - A customer comes in to perform routine trans. flush and leave with problems - bad shifts, no shifts, etc... My question is, what does Toyota recommend to do as far as tranny maintenance and how often? Also, I want to tow a bike for about 2K miles this spring. I used to have a hitch on my 97 LS and it handled it w/o any problems. However, in order to be on the safe side, I'm thinking of adding a transmission cooler. Just in case. Has anyone done it before? What's involved? Many thanks!

Why would you wana do that? :chairshot: You could wire your fogs to the high beams through a relay or to a switch in the cabin but only if you have absolutely no other choice

I recomment that you do espesially since you paid so much for those bulbs. It's easy enough and you will eliminate the chance that you will touch the bulb during installation - The reason why most halgen bulbs burn out. Just replaced a bunch of bulbs myself the other weekend. The whole job took me about 30 minutes in my driveway at night.

Just a note on the gasket - There is no gasket. Lexus uses special sealant that comes out of a tube. This is one of the reason why it is so hard to remove that pan. I advise to find a straight edge to knock the indentations around the holes for the screws flat prior to reinstalling the pan.

I'm with larryp on this one. As a general rule, I would never go to one of those lube only places. They usually have the least qualified "mechanics" there. Just think, those are the people who couldn't make it as real mechanics, so thay do oil changes... One of such places screwer up a drain plug on my supra and refused to admit fault. I ended up changing the oil pan to fix the problem.... Never again! Always go to a real mechanic to chenge oil!

Does your engine work fine if you give it gas and hold steady in park? If there is no problem there, my guess would be that it is the transmission hunting for the right gear. This could easily cause the violent front-back shaking that you described. Have your transmission tested at a qualified shop.

Sorry man, but with all due respect, the only word that came to mind when I read your post was SUCKER :chairshot: I've never paid more than $20 for an oil change at an independent shop. That always includes inspection because mechanics use oil changes as an excuse to find something wrong with your car. I guess it all works out for the best, since they are motivated to find and fix the problem and I pay almost nothing for the oil change in the process. Dealer, on the other hand, is not motivated to fix your car if it is still under warranty. In addition, if you think that dealer will give you a better oil change than joe shmoe down the street, you are mistaken. The only caveat to my logic is finding a good shop and a good mechanic whom you trust. I did, so I am good.

I would begin by changing the serpantine belt. I found that the noise is caused by it more often than not. Do not try to spray any lubricant or stop squick on it because it doesn't work.

Wow, It's getting interesting. I am beginning to nurture a hope that I will get of cheap this time. I have a question. 1 - Does first-second solenoid control drive engagement? My tranny shifts just fine from 1st to 2nd or any other gear for that matter. 2 - This condition only occurs after the car has not been used for a couple of days. After the first time I put it in drive and it does what I've described, it acts normal the rest of the day and nobody can tell that something is wrong. Again, thanks for your help! The selinoid is sticking when it is cold. Clean and or replace them. It looks like a very easy job that I can do myself. What's the good place to get the shift solenoids? dcfish, if this works, I will as you for your address so I can ship a case of beer of your choosing to ya Well, What is the update ? I haven't done it yet. I am waiting until I get back from vacation. Will report back in mid-july. In the meantime, where can I get the solenoid from?

Looks like the temp guage. One more suggestion is the fan clutch may be engaged permanently. Try turning the fan with engine off - It should turn free. If it does, then it must be the guage or the temp sensor.

My Infinity used to do that. Lexi don't move the seat.

First of all, turn off the caps. To answer your question, or half of it... It apears that you have two issues. 1 - Your fan clutch is gone. You need a new one. Your car overheats because the fan is not doing its job. Even though you will see it speening, it is not speening as fast as it should. Driving 30mph pushes air through your radiator and cools the engine. When you are stopped, the fan should be doing this job. 2 - I have the same problem with interior heat on my 97. I do not get any heat when at idle. Once RPMs go above 1K, the heat begins to flow. My A/C works fine. I have not tried to diagnose this myself, but if someone out there has a solution, I would like to hear it. If I had to guess, I'd say that the cooling system may be partially blocked as it goes into the heater...

Eagle33 - do you have parkinsons? Eagle33 - do you have parkinsons? Eagle33 - do you have parkinsons? Eagle33 - do you have parkinsons? LS4hundy - it would've been nice if you provided some details, like the sound that you are hearing and the milage of your ride. The fact that you bought it from an old man (prolly Eagle33 :whistles: ) doesn't quite describe the full picture Eagle33 - do you have parkinsons? ...... Did I ask that already???

Threadcutter, LOVE your avatar ;) I want that creature for president just to p i s s myself off