flanker271

There are two fuse boxes to check. One obviously is the black box behind the battery. The not so obvious one is at the driver's side kick panel. Look up under the driver side, just to the left of the steering wheel and you will see a small cover covering an additional fuse box. Your manual should help you identify the fuses.

The previous must have not changed the waterpump when the timing belt is changed, which is at 112,000 miles. Thanks for all your help. I'll keep her going like this until it dies, then I'll figure out what to do with it.

Took the car in for inspection around noon, just received a call from the service representitative from Precision Toyota of Tucson: According to the guy, my waterpump and some rubber hoses are leaking. He didn't explain why I had the smell coming from my a/c vents. In addition, he mentioned the following: --air filter is dirty (I just replaced it 2 weeks ago) --ps pump is leaking (I had the pump refurbished 1 1/2 year ago at the same dealer) --ps rack is leaking (my ps reservoir is still full after 1 1/2 year) --master brake cylinder is leaking, he quoted me $2100 for parts and labor! --one of the pully bearing on the accessory belt is torn, causing extra load on the engine After speaking with him on the phone I took a deep breath and told him that I'll call back. I don't know how much more I want to spend on this car, but its my only transportation right now. I want you guys' opinion: whats urgent and whats not. I've never heard about LS having brake problems. Can leaky master cylinder suddenly cause a catastrophic brake failture? Can I just top off the coolant reservoir once a week and get away with it for now?

The recirculate setting made the smell worse. I checked under the hood near the upper firewall, there are some dried coolant residual on all three hoses and some residual on what appears to be a valve looking thing (heater valve)? There are also some dried coolant residual on the top of the coolant reservoir near the pressure release cap. I filled the coolant to the hot level when the car is warm 1 day ago, but its 1 inch below the cold line when I checked it this morning. I definitely have a leak somewhere. Off to Toyota dealer I go... <_<

I'm pretty much determined that the smell belongs to the coolent. One of my dash light (something that looks like a radiator) lighted up this afternoon. Reading through the manual this light indicates low engine coolant. Sure enough, the coolant level is about 1/2 inch below the cold line. The coolant fume is toxic you say? I'd better get this checked out. Will keep you guys posted. By the way, I always had the climate control setting on "bring in fresh outside air" setting, not the "interior recirculate" setting. What setting do you guys prefer on a hot summer day to make the A/C more effective? I'm talking about during long distance drives, not the initial desire to bring the interior down quickly. The manual says "besure to switch to the 'fresh air in' setting once the interior has cooled down.' " Addition: how big a job is replacing/repairing the heater core?

Hi guys, This symptom started a week ago. When I start up my LS for the first time every morning, I noticed a strange smell coming from all four of my vents. I had a/c off. Since I don't know what R-12 freon smells like, I can't rule out that this smell is the freon. In about 10 minutes when the car warms up the smell is gone. Should I be concerned about this problem at all? If its coolant leak, is this a sign that my waterpump is leaking? If its a freon leak, could it be my compressor or the expansion valve? I don't see any white smoke from the exhaust when starting the car, if this helps.

I have the same hesitation problem. My check engine light comes on and off randomly, usually after a 10 minute drive on the freeway the light will come on, then for no appearent reason the light will go off by itself, then come on again, then off,..... Went to Autozone and got code #13 for the Check Engine Light. What does this code mean on a 1UZ-FE engine?

your compressor is about to go south. If you hear a whining like sound, its your compressor bearing. Your engine stalls because the compressor puts extra load on it, and a bad bearing increases friction. You can have your compressor rebuilt, get a remanfactured, or a new compressor.

Do you need short hand screwdriver even if you move the seat all the way forward? I can not see the two screws on the back of the seat. Are they at the top or bottom? Do they have any cover on it?

This doesn't make sense. A/C shouldn't be temperature dependent. It'll take a while for the vents to blow cold air when outside temperature is hot. I assume that you waited long enough but it still blows warm. Are you sure the vents are indeed blowing cold a/c air instead of cool outside air when the temperature is low?

Not hard at all... I hope the car knows that I've been babying it ever since I got her...I hope she will do me a favor and at least be trouble free for a while!

Cameries have slightly better stereo system than the Accord...maybe is just because Cameries are quieter. According to carsurvey.org, Toyota Camery quality is slipping starting 1999...don't know why.

I suggest you get a 7k Honda Accord...a 7k Lexus require you to shell out another 2k on repair. I've already put over 4k in repair into my 7k LS, and it is still no where near what I wanted to be.

Thanks for the information. I know the procedure but I'm not confident enough to do it. I've heard bad stories about how people fry their ECU after jumping the connectors. I might have multiple codes stored in the computer because the engine light come on and go repeatedly. It could just be a faulty sensor though.

So your solution is to get rid of the bulb?

Well, this annoying light has been coming on and off for about 2 weeks now. Ever since I obtained the vehicle 3 years ago, I replaced EGR modulator 2 times and replaced all four oxygen sensors, replace air filter 2 times, etc. Just last month the check engine light came on again and the dealer said that a probe is dirty. The technitian cleaned it and the light went away. For the past 2 weeks, however, the light has been coming on and going off intermediately. Usually when I start the car in the morning, the light would come on. Then about 10-15 minutes after driving, the light will go out. After that, the light would come on and go off randomly. What could be the cause of this? Is this another probe/detector issue or at worst my catalytic converter? If I can't find a solution I think I'll just remove this annoying light because the car drives perfectly, I get 20mpg local and 26mpg on the freeway. Everytime the light come on while driving it gives me this psychological feeling that something terrible is about to happen.

Wouldn't they cancel each other out? :D VMF does your LS have any physical blemishes on it? I would keep the Civic in the garage because honda stereos are more likely to get stolen.

The dealer added dye to my system last time they recharged it, but they could not find any dye coming out of my car. This is the weirdest thing ever. I'm paying $145.00 each time they recharge the freon so this issue has to be solved quick!

The two side vents are supposed to blow a bit warmer than the center vents. I've had problem with my Freon leaking. Had the system charged 2 times in the time span of 1 year, but the Toyota dealer still could not find any leak. Yesterday it's blowing warm again, and the dealer told me my R12 is again completely gone, and as usual they could not find a leak!!!

Why are they irritating?

I'm afraid your only option is to obtain the code. I'm still puzzled on how the radio manages to switch to SEC mode just by fooling around with the CD player. The only way for the radio to be in SEC mode is to lose all the power. If you do have the code, you have 4 tries. A 5th mistake will activate the anti-theft system and your radio is doomed. The manual says to "bring it to Lexus Dealer", which is not a good idea. See what information you can obtain from the dealer tomorrow.

You can check to see if this 5-digit number is the code. Put your key to Accessories and press button "1" on your radio. While holding down buttion "1", press the upper portion of the "seek/scan" button and the screen should appear as "---", where each "-" represent a digit. If there are 5 dashed lines, chances are that's the number. Otherwise simply turn off your key and your radio will return to SEC mode.

Assume that your head unit is the original one from the factory, the SEC code is usually the last 3 digits of your VIN number. Otherwiseyou should obtain the code from the previous owner.

I had my PS pump rebuilt by a local Toyota dealer about a year ago...at the time the Technician told me that the ps rack and high pressure line is also leaking and quoted me $1200 to fix just the rack. I refused the repair. Now a year later my ps fluid is still full and trouble free. The rack and line didn't really cause any problems at all.

Wonder why....maybe today's automobiles are more electronically sophisticated and that put more demand on the same battery technology 10 years ago.