sgriffith

My parents just purchased a 2002 LX470 last Friday and it came with a dvd entertainment system in it. It has the navigation unit built in and I can find no other dvd player. I assume that the screens feed from the dvd/cd changer (the screens are in the headrests). The CD changer actually isn't working (don't know how that happened on a certified vehnicle :chairshot: ) ...plays music VERY quiet and scratchy. Also the DVD will not display on the NAV screen on the rear screens (even with vehicle in park and parking break on). I am taking it back to the dealer on Friday to have them look at it, but wanted to know if any of these systems come installed from the dealer? The screens brand name is myron/davis. Other than those annoyances (which are annoying on a 50+K car) the love the vehicle. Any advice/suggestions on the changer problem or any similar experiences please let me know. Thanks!!

Yes, disconnecting the battery will clear the CEL....I have done it once. I did leave the battery disconnected for about 15 minutes to make sure it was reset. Not sure if it was necessary, but figured it couldn't hurt. The only bad thing was I had to reset the memory seats, radio stations, and all that other stuff that makes a Lexus wonderful!!

I can't comment on the GPS system, but I can give you my 2 cents worth on the extended warranty. When I purchased my 99 RX with 32K miles two years ago (not from a lexus dealership....other import shop) I opted for the extended warranty. I know it isn't through Lexus & has a $50 deductable, but it is about to pay off. I think mine was around $1400 extra and I am about to use it to replace my rear main seal ($1100 from Lexus) and a strut mount (about $300 from Lexus)....so in just those two instances it will completely pay for itself. Others will say that just save that money because the odds are in the warranty company's favor & not yours....well, i am not that disciplined! It has saved my rear already, and I still have another 30K before it is up. I am always really cautious about things & have always bought the extended warranty as it gives me peace of mind....and I haven't always used it, but I will from here on out always purchase it with my vehicles.

I have to agree with mbpgawest....Steve is the best!! Our RX has never looked better....and I have even more plans for it!! Finding the lexusownersclub forums have been wonderful for me.....and it is the only site that I can actually say that I visit 4+ times per day. Thanks to everyone who makes this thing great!

I was in your same boat & just picked up the yellow pages & started calling. Lucky for me, the 3rd one I called could do it. That is my suggestion....I think it is more common than I initially thought.....the guy that did mine did it out of the back of a van. $25.00 later I had a working key.

I have also read (but yet to try) that you should use the 303 Wiper Treatments...it is supposed to keep your blades pliable not by lubricating them properly. They can be purchased at lexuscarcare.com for around $4. Probably well worth the money.

I have heard that the Yokohama Geolanders are great tires....and get excellent reviews on tirerack.com. They also seem to be a very good price....I will be checking into them my next go around.

I replaced my factory tires with Kelly Safari tires. They are much like the LTX by Mich....and just about the same price. The vehicle has a bit more road noise than before, but they are holding up well. I have nearly 30K on them so far and they are still in wonderful shape. If you are worried about road noise, don't get them...but they have been great on the occasional snowy & wet days....which was why I got them.

I am having the same problem but from the passengers side. I had reported a problem while the vehicle was under warranty....and they didn't find anything wrong with it. I took it to another dealer 2 years later to do some other service and they told me it was the suspension support. I have tried to get Lexus to replace it under warranty as it is out of warranty now...seeing as how I reported the problem under warranty. All they will do is pay for the parts...not the install costs. There is actually a TSIB that was put out in december of 99....the number is su002199...it details the problem & can be accessed on the clublexus.com web site. They have remanufactured the part due to the problems. I am lucky & have a 3rd party aftermarket warranty and they are covering the cost to get it replaced. So, I have the problem too....and that sounds exactly like what is happening in my vehicle.

Oh, ok. I thought maybe it was something special from Lexus....I'll stick with what I have!! Thanks!

I am almost positive that a small section of my drivers side seat is fading & needs a little help. It doesn't look bad yet, and I have been keeping it conditioned & cleaned. When evaluating all of the possibilities for leather care & trying to prevent future fading, I looked into the Leatherique products & found that they sell a leather dye kit. I have thought about trying it on my seat to see how it looks, but wanted to see if anyone else had tried it before. You can actually send them a swatch (thought I don't know where I would get one!!!) and they will custom match your leather if the color doesn't fall into one of their premixed categories. So, any experiences or suggestions otherwise would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!!

I was recently looking at parkplacelexus.com and went to their Lexus Accessories page...noticed that they too sell all of the lexus branded car care products. I never realized there were so many! I noticed their prices weren't too bad (interior products especially) and they offer free UPS ground shipping with all orders. Anyone tried these products? Are they made by some other company (that we might know of) like Eagle One, Meg, etc.? Just wondering if anyone had used them before. I might give their leather stuff a shot when I run out of my Autoglym products.

Others might be able to tell you for sure if I am wrong (which is possilbe), but I have heard some use the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser & get out lots of stuff. This might be beyond the capabilities of the eraser, but it might be something to consider. SWO, do you think this would help any?

I would say so...it is all Toyota stuff anyways....and the Toyota dealer in my area can acutally do all of my scheduled maintenance. I still take it to a Lexus dealer for the maintenance that I don't do myself...but mostly just because I like to take a day off work & go to the metroplex!! I would think that you were safe...the Toyota dealer closest to me is where I buy all of my parts to do my service anyways.

Thanks...that is what I was afraid of....I appreciate the info!

I have about half of a bottle of the Meg. gold class wax that I want to finish up before I move to something else. I am about to need to wax again and was wondering if I could use the gold class on top of the Klasse Sealant? I would like to use the AIO, Sealant, and then the gold class....but did not know if the gold class (since it was a one step product) would remove any of the Klasse sealant glaze. Any input/ideas on this? I am wanting to just trash the gold class and go to a klasse/p21s combo...but just don't want to be wasteful! ;) Thanks in advance!!

http://www.jpimportz.org/ This will get you to his web site...which has his phone number & all other contact information on it as well. I haven't used him either, but have heard many good things about him.

Late reply to this I know, but for douglasmiami, I was going to have my local lube shop do a flush for me. They were going to charge $85 for the flush, but I still had to bring the special tranny fluid.. They wanted me to bring 16qts....at $5.05 each from the Toyota place....it all adds up to more than I want to spend! So, I figured I would do it myself. They weren't going to give me any type of a discount for bringing my own fluid. I don't know if this is commonplace...but it is my experience at least.

I change my oil myself....so it is a lot less expensive....but when I bought new tires for my RX they throw in rotations & balancing for the life of the tire....so my service runs just under $22.00.....and it doesn't take that long for them to rotate the tires (but I do live in a small town ;-) ) So, you can spend A LOT less than $268. Like Arizona, I only take mine to the dealer to do work on the vehicle...because I too need a loaner & only want them to do that kind of work. But, like most others on this forum, you have to do what makes you feel most comfortable....but $268 for an oil change and a tire rotation makes me do more than scratch my head!!!

Wing0, check out the Lexus Detailing Forum...it can provide a lot of good information. In short, my autoglym products suggest applications 3 times per year. With these products, I never have had that sticky problem...but some have said that they apply products like lexol and leave their heater running for a while to help it soak in. While I don't know how much good this really does, I guess I would probably try it if I were in your weather situation!! Also, if you don't have to drive the car, you could leave it in overnight....it might help some....like I said, the Lexus Detailing Forum here is full of lots of great info from people who know a lot more about detailing than I do...so check it out...it is fun reading (if you are a car geek like me!!)

I have begun using Autoglym Leather Cleaner & Autoglym Leather Care Cream......I know everyone uses/prefers different things, but I have been satisfied so far with both of them. I have traditionally used a method from SW03ES for cleaning the leather....6:1 ratio of water & woolite....and found it to work perfectly..I just wanted to try something different. I also used the Meg. Gold Class conditioner and just wasn't that thrilled with the results. I have yet to try the Lexol products, but will probably order some b/c I have heard so many compliments towards the product. I think I have also read that if your seats are sticky after using the product that you need to leave it on longer & put the vehicle in sunlight if possible...it helps it absorb the product much better. I haven't had that problem myself, but that is what I have heard from others...SW03ES....if I am wrong please feel free to correct me!!! Anyways, that is just what I have heard....for what it is worth. SW03ES...if you don't mind, what product do you personally use for conditioning your leather? Just interested.

That was my guess....thanks a million for the reply. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing anything!

I know this is a stupid question, and I haven't yet crawled under the vehicle to check it all out, but where do you refill the fluid? Is there another place where I pump it back into the pan, or is their some place in the engine compartment where I can just add it? Yeah, I am a newbie, but I have done all other service on the vehicle so I am fairly confident that I can do this as well. douglasmiami...I did a search within this forum for "tranny" and read all of the postings I could find. Lexus states that you should replace the fluid every 30K, but every post that I have read by those that know what is going on seems to suggest that you should every 15K. As far as the fluid, others have had mixed reviews/problems with using fluid other than the specified toyota type-iv tranny fluid. It is pricey (5.03/quart at the closest toyota dealer), but I am going to stick with it just to be on the safe side....I figure a few extra dollars here and there to ensure that my tranny is well taken care of is worth it to me. As far as the "real deal" service manual...Toyota/Lexus puts one out for all of their vehicles. The one for the RX will run you between 150-200...depending on the source, but it is two HUGE books loaded with all the info, diagrams, etc. that you will need to do all of the service/repair work your little heart desires. You can sometimes find them on ebay for a little less than you would pay for them directly from toyota. I just mainly want them for the service work...when something breaks I take it to someone else!! So, I am hinting at the full-blown service manual for fathers day!! ;-) Thanks to all for the posts....especially for newbies like myself.

I am about to do a drain & fill on the tranny fluid.....but have heard a couple of different methods and want to see if I am on the right track. I have no problem dropping the pan & replacing the fluid, but some have mentioned just "draining the fluid" and then replacing....is there something I am missing here or is this just another way to say the same thing? Also, when I drop the pan, will I need to replace the gasket? After much searching, I will stick with the recommended toyota fluid & just bite the bullet every 15K. I have also read a suggestion that you drive the vehicle for a few days and then do another drain & fill to get the old stuff that was still in the system out. Is that something that everyone recommends? Until joining this group, I was aware that the fluid should be changed every 15K, and I have put about 40K on the vehicle since I first got it. I know that the fluid had been by the dealer prior to my purchase, but it hasn't since. I figured that since it had been so long, that doing the procedure twice might be a good idea. Any thoughts/suggestions on that? I am going to get a "real deal" service manual before too long, but wanted to do this service as it is way past time. Being the cheapskate that I am, I bought one of those "Service manua CDs" off of ebay thinking that it would answer some BASIC questions like this...what a waste of money. Oh well, only 10.00...not that big of a loss. Just fair warning for others considering the same, my experience with the service cds isn't that great...save your money & get the real deal!!! Thanks everyone!!l

Won't know anything for a week or so......