lexusk8

Have you tried lightly knocking the black shifter plate (i.e. where the letters 'P, R, N, D, 2, L' are located)? The bulb may just be slightly loose from the socket connection, and I find that to happen sometimes in my '01 ES. Whenever the shifter area appears dark, I just knock on the plastic shifter plate until it lights up

Put up another one on the board. In my '01 ES, I've probably accessed the A/C filter assy located beside the gas pedal 3-4 times within the past yr (just to familiarize myself with the components, and to change it out once). My owner's manual even indicates with pictures how to remove the A/C filter. From the testimonials we have here, it looks like my theory is still correct: All pre-'02 ES models have the A/C filter beside the gas pedal :D

Joe, I've seen a '97 ES around here with the 16" OEM wheels from the '00-'01 ES model. As long as you stick with the tire factory spec of 205/60-16, your '98 ES should have no problems with the 16" OEMs.

You're looking at the wrong place buddy ;) The A/C filter in all pre-'02 ES models is located to the right of the gas pedal near the floor. You'll have to pull out the carpet covering and unclip a narrow plastic "access" door to get to the A/C filter assy. You should see a grayish tab from the filter assy. Just grasp it and pull the entire filter out, and there is one more located directly above that one that you need to drop down and pull out. It's a little dark to work in that area so use a flashlight. No other special tools needed to change the A/C filter assy. Hope this helps.

When you are talking about the pollen filter, do you mean the A/C filter? If so, the access/installation instructions are located in your ES owner's manual. If you don't have the owner's manual, you should consider getting one as it can save you a lot of trouble down the road. Call up 1-800-25-LEXUS and press '4' for customer service, and ask for a free owner's manual to be delivered. You can find access/installation instructions for the A/C filter by typing in "a/c filter" in the search engine of this forum. You should find a lot of past threads that discuss about it.

Nice pics of your ride B) In the future, you may want to consider shrinking the size of the images before posting them up. They are way too big (at least for me and my 17" LCD). At any rate, I like that shot you took of the AVS (adaptive variable suspension) control. A rare but useful option for the ES ;)

That "knob" is the AVS (Adaptive Variable Suspension) control, which essentially adjusts the suspension according to your needs. If you opt for the "sport" mode, the suspension will be lowered, and if you opt for the "luxury" mode, the suspension will be raised. It's certainly a nice optional feature on the ES300 but a rare one too (I don't know anyone around here who has an AVS-equipped ES).

That's a rare color on a '95-'96 ES, but I like it. Nothing better than a clean looking Lex! :D

I've never heard of a Platinum Edition on a '94 ES. Plat. Ed. comes in the 2000 ES300 year models only (plus the same for the GS sedan). Given the description of the car you just looked at and drove, it may have been the more rare "Anniversary Edition" since that comes with Coach Edition wheels and AE floormats (as well as other things I can't remember).

I couldn't agree more on the simplicity of the process of changing the rotors/pads. I composed a semi-brief write-up of the brake change on ClubLexus, and included a couple pictures of the process. Here's the link: http://www.clublexus.com/forums/showthread...threadid=129706

If you're worried about dealership costs for the parts, you can purchase similar parts at http://www.irontoad.com. They're operated by Thompson Lexus in PA, and known to inventory factory Toyota/Lexus parts at much cheaper prices than at local dealerships. I ordered front brake pads and rotors from them a while ago for my '01 ES, and they arrived at my door the very next day after I placed my order (talk about fast service!). I'm very pleased with the way they handled the transaction, and would definitely do business with them again

I ran into the exact same situation as you did with my 2001 ES300 last year. CEL and TRAC OFF lights went on at the same time, I took the car to a Lexus dealership ASAP (the next day after I found the problem I believe, as this was sometime in the middle of last year), the service advisor scanned the codes and found out that the problem was with the charcoal canister. This affects the fuel and exhaust emissions, and could prove to be catastrophic should you keep running your car with a bad CC. Anyway, I got that replaced for roughly half of the original quote (my extended warranty does not cover emissions-related repairs) :( I paid about $240 for the CC repair. Many months later, no problems with the CC and haven't gotten any warning lights. I'm sure if I had known about the EPA article regarding CC replacement under an extended warranty, I would've pursued the matter. But now it is over a year later on, and I already paid for the fix and have no problems, so I'm out of the radar :D

Hello. My 2001 ES300 originally came with washer nozzles with a 3-spray pattern on each, but I recently went with the nozzles from a 2003 ES300, which is more of a fan-type of spray pattern. I got those nozzles from the Lexus parts dept, and installed them myself (the nozzles are basically held on by clips on each side). To me, the new nozzles sprays a larger area of the windshield, and are more efficient. Plus, there is less chance of the '03 ES nozzles getting clogged up than in the 3-hole pattern of the '01 ES nozzles. Anyways, just something to consider :)

When I had my '96 ES back in the day, the dealership gave me a '01 ES loaner during my 90K appt. This took place probably around Dec 2001, and I didn't ask for a specific kind of loaner. It was a sweet loaner, and after the 2-3 days with loaner, I knew that was going to be my next Lexus (and it is!) :D I'm sure the dealership may grant you a loaner of your choice if you ask for it early (meaning ~2 weeks in advance). Loaners come and go almost every day (i.e. for people waiting for oil changes, 30/60/90K appts, etc.), so to pick that special one out of the flock does not usually happen.

Wow DG, you certainly can't get in any better condition than your ES. Can't believe the low mileage on the 5-yr old vehicle, so you know it's time to start racking up them miles! :D

When you notice a turn signal bulb flashing abnormally, most of the time it is the bulb that is burnt out. The bulb itself has 2 filaments, one for the parking light, and the other for the turn signal or emergency light operation. You can tell the bulb is burnt out when either one of the filaments has snapped. Bulb P/N should be 1157A for a 2000 ES300. Replacement bulbs can be found at Wal-mart or any auto parts store. However, if the bulb appears to be OK, then the problem could be dirty contacts of the bulb. Use a good electrical contact cleaner (i.e. can be purchased from Radio Shack) to clean the contacts of the bulb, and see if that brings the electrical connection back into place. Special case: For those who own a '97-'01 ES and have encountered the front turn signal lamp problem (either left or right), there is a TSB released for those models. I attached a copy of the TSB to this post (feel free to download). Please read the TSB carefully if you are thinking of using it at the dealership as this only applies to VIN-specific '97-'01 ES models.

What year is your ES? The '92-'96 models have one piece headlamp assy, and the '97-'01 models have the 2-piece kind. Both require slightly different removal methods for the bulbs.

My Lexus dealership charges $93 per hour for service/maintenance work. They've stepped up the rate from a year or two ago when it was $87-$89 per hour. No joke, this is one of the most expensive Lexus dealerships you'll find anywhere in this country (we're located in Fairfield County of Connecticut where taxes are high and house prices are thru the roof). Toyota dealerships are not much better than Lexus; theirs is only about $85 per hour I can't complain about the loaners from Lexus. So far I've received a '97 ES300, '01 ES300, '03 ES300 and a '04 RX330 :)

Welcome to the LOC forum Mainely :) Nice to hear you've been keeping your '94 ES for a long time and still in terrific operating condition. Now let's get down to your issues: - I imagine overheating would be the result of a problem with the coolant (or antifreeze) in your car. However, you've observed that the "cooling" fan is not up to speed, thus possibly causing the overheating. I would start checking the coolant fluid if you haven't already and make sure it has been changed recently and filled up to or near the 'FULL' level. I'm not exactly sure if the fan could be directly linked to the coolant fluid - How long have you had your check engine light on? Do you notice any differences with the engine noise, feel, etc.? You may have already tried going to the dealership and getting the error codes scanned for your check engine light. If the dealership has been no help at all, then you could get rid of the warning light by disconnecting the battery for a couple minutes and then reconnecting it. Hopefully the warning light is just a fluke and will go away for good. BTW I notice that you're from Maine. My family and I used to live in Maine (Augusta, to be exact) for many years. Definitely enjoyed the lobster up there :D Whereabouts are you from, may I ask? ;)

Black Onyx, can't get any simpler than that :D

Here are a few online places where you can check out the PIAA or Sylvania bulb inventory: http://www.optauto.com (ordered PIAA Xtreme White lows from them) http://www.cardomain.com/shop?ref=cdns http://www.nextcollection.com http://www.midnightmoose.com

What is your idle RPMs like? It may be in the low range like 500 RPMs or less. Normally the needle should settle around 600-750 RPMs. Suspecting that you have a low idle issue, I would guess that you may have a dirty throttle body in your ES, which may be too rich in fuel and gives the wrong readings of air/fuel ratio to the MAF sensor, causing the idle speed to be incorrect. You can get the throttle body cleaned either by yourself (with some carb/throttle body cleaner spray bought at an auto parts store), or at a dealership (preferably Toyota for cheaper prices). Good luck!

I'll also put my vote in for Lexus wipers/blades. I replaced the wipers with the Lexus ones sometime in Nov. '03, and have been using them ever since with no problems. Very quiet and excellent quality. In addition, I apply carnauba wax (same kind of wax used to wax the body of the car) onto the windshield about once every 2-3 months, which helps with the water beading during rainfalls, thus reducing the use of wipers in general. It's a great technique I've picked up long time ago when I started in the early stages of detailing my own Lex, and I urge any of you to try it out :D

bdonker, I think I know what manual fix you're talking about in attempts to correct the rough idle problem. I would have to say that that fix is just a temporary fix (so bring that "fix" back to factory spec if you can), and that the real culprit may be underneath the throttle body. Read my earlier post on what to look for inside the TB ;) :)

Welcome to the LOC forum. Congrats on a unique but wise trade for the ES from the 'Vette :D I had a pair of Silverstars installed in my '96 ES for close to a year when I had the car, and I encountered no problems with the bulbs. They worked great and made a big difference to night driving. A lot of people have mentioned that the Sylvania Silverstars are one of the best quality halogen upgrades around, and after having them in my previous ES, I would say I totally agree with that statement. For your cruise control problem, I would first pop the hood and check the wiring for the cruise control computer (don't ask me where it is under the hood) and see if it's plugged in correctly. If it is, then it's likely that the computer has become defective, and that you may need to bring the ES to a Lexus dealership for repair work. Again, congrats on your '94 ES! :)