steviej

Looks nice! How much and where did you get them from?

L-Tuned Parts.com

They were $142, then add in shipping. It cost $75 to have them painted in my color.

They come with the 3M tape to stick them on. You just have to do some fancy foot work with a pair of scissors to get the tape to match the contour of the edge. Took about 10 minutes for both. The hard part is you get one chance to stick them on and they better be in the right place.

Steve

That is the correct fluid. That is also the correct amount assuming you are doing a simple drain and fill.

How is it shifting differently?

steviej

The light that looks like the rear view of a car with 2 curvey parallel tracks leading from the back is the Slip Indicator Light.

(It is covered in the manual).

The traction control light says "TRAC OFF" or "TRAC" and the vehicle skid control light is "VSC"

steviej

you won't lose, suffer nor let alone notice anything at the speeds you routinely travel.

the only area you might find a wee bit of difference (and I mean wee) is in cornering at fast speeds. The H rating does not have stiff a sidewall so you may feel a wicken tiny amount of sway compared to the V rated tire of the same. Given that the ES is floaty boaty anywar, the feeling will most likely....blend.

steviej

What can I say, I admit it, I am an accessariholic.

So far, I am comfortable with them. Kinda gives it that BMW 745i look though.

steviej

The two most detrimental factors for tires is sun and use.

If the tire has been in your trunk this whole time, is holding air and shows no signs or dry rot then why spend the money?

It is a spare and to be used for just that: to get you off the road and to safety.

steviej

I would reccomend the Primacy in H rated. Thats what I have on my car.

No idea why they dropped it in V...

I concur.

One can only assume that cost of production exceeded the revenue. V's were not selling.

steviej

I was quoted $750 list for the same by my detailer but he cut me a break.

I ended up paying ~ $550 but I had to buy the autosharp pen to fin in the chips before they applied the film.

steviej

Come on whats your favorite Lexus?

the one that is currently on the drawing board.

a simple search would have found your answer because this queston is asked every other week.

Bank 1 is the bank of 3 cylinders closest to the firewall/windshield.

Bank 2 is the bank of 3 cylinders nearest the radiator.

Sensor 1 is the sensor up top, (between the exhaust manifold and the cat.)

Sensor 2 is the sensor down low (after the cat).

steviej

ps. get a new mechanic.

hello, will stock aluminum camery rims fit my 04 es 330?

tim

if it is a 5 lug nut rim, then it should.

steviej

The second set of sensors have to be programmed into the ECU. Once that happens the light won't flash when the second set setting is selected.

Do you have Toyota dealers up there? They will be able to do it. If you have any other vehicles makes that have TPMS systems, they should be able to do it.

I have read posts where Honda dealerships have been able to program sensors for Lexus owners.

steviej

Steviej:

The next time you go in for any service, see if your dealership has the book "The Lexus Story". --Duckman

I actually have my own copy of this book.

steviej

ah, umm, thanks.

I was really hoping people missed the little name come up at the bottom of the page on the 13th.

Sometimes I feel the age, now I make noise getting into bed.

But on the other hand, it is nice when the old guy (me) can enter the sparring ring and wipe the floor with a 24 year old black belt.

What I don't have in speed and agility, I make up for in wisdom and deception.

It is nice to be thought of.

steviej.

PS. In all honesty, I forget to check this forum too.

Tell me, what are the supposed benifits of Nitro filled tires? They must have some marketing BS to sell it.

There are plenty of claims made to benefits and as many arguements against them. Just do a google search and read.

I have researched the nitrogen alternative extensively because I have seen many retailers "having specials" and "sales" for nitrogen inflation of your tires. I was curious. After reading many reviews and scientific claims I have concluded that a 100% nitrogen-filled tire will do all the things they claim compared to a tire filled with conventional air.

However, I suggest you regularly just use the 78% nitrogen mixture that's available everywhere for free to keep your tires properly inflated. I don't think we need to get into the size difference of N2 and O2 molecules, or the concept of Boyles Law here. Suffice it to say, in some instances nitrogen (which is an inert gas) is a better way to fill a tire. Those instances occur on the racetrack, in airline tires and in some military applications. For normal day-to-day circumstances, it's just not worth the hassel.

Just my opinion constructed from what I have researched.

steviej

Lexus of Watertown.

Next time you are in there, say hi to Brandi, one of the the service managers, for me. She is a friend of mine.

steviej

I would try Sewell Lexus in Dallas, better service and better part prices. I bought my GS 430 from Park Place and am no longer using their services, Sewell beats them in every category.

I am NEVER going back to Park Place Lexus.

I buy parts on line from both regularly and both have done great by me except for one instance where Sewell shipped out old style ES rotors instead of the newer ones called for by a TSB. When my local dealership confronted them on the phone, they immediately sent out the updated rotors at no charge.

For the stuff I buy, they are usually within a dollar to two of each other.

steviej

If the tires are not a directional thread, then swap the tires from side to side:

If it is an alignment issue it will continue to pull to the right.

If it is a tire issue then it should pull to the left now.

I have never heard of "but it would eventually resolve itself." that seems absurd. Did they happen to mention how long this resolve should take?

steviej

eBay is alway easy to check as mentioned.

Try Park Place Lexus in Texas. Great online prices.

License Plate Braket click here $37.45

you could email them for the price of the cup holder insert and the cost of an uncut key. (couldn't find them on the website).

steviej

update:

Monday night I really cleaned the black rubber gasket that the window seals against and then coated it a heavy application of silcone. The gasket appeared to be very dirty and had some high spots. They came off with cleaning and the silicone made the rubber a little more supple and smoother. This reduced the noise by about 95%. I took it to the dealer today and the service guy looked at it with me and he determined that the window and door were not loose but he did comment that the gasket was "dryer" than he liked even after the silicone application. They said they had no problem replacing the gasket with a new one at no charge. We shall see what that does.

steviej.

90% of the time the cause of this problem is because the spring inside the gas door is missing. The spring is simply a little clip that pushes the door outward once the lock is released, think of the spring as a door hinge.

1. You can get someone to push the door while the 2nd person pushes the release button.

2. Slide a piece of index card or thick piece of paper into the gas door before pushing the button. This is what I am doing right now for the last 2 years.

This happened once on my ES, I would have someone push the button and I would open the door using a piece of blue 3M tape (doesn't leave sticky stuff or harm paint).

The funniest time, was when I was alone in the summer at about 2AM and there was no one else around, I mean no one. I guess the store attendant was in the bathroom or something. I used a q-tip and a length of dental floss. Smushed the end of the q-tip in the crack so that the cotten head would bunch up behind the edge of the fill door. It was soft so I didn't worry about the paint. I then tied a lenght of dental floss to the other end of the q-tip and held that taught in my right hand. I then reached with my left and hit the opener button while I gently tugged the floss to get the door to open past the locking mechanism. You get real creatvie when you need to.

steviej

I get the feeling that the Dealers have just about had it with the 3rd gen GS. I've had mine in 4 times with a host of issues plus the 3 recalls. They are nice enough, because that is how lexus trains them but I'll bet they are screaming !Removed! murder at corporate for shipping this lemon down the pike.

lets face it: the 3rd gen GS has more problems than any other lexus in history. this one model may well cost them a lot of future customers. I'll never get another Lexus. It's the creaky dash that just cannot be fixed that kills the whole experience.

and really, it doesn't ride that well, it's not really very quiet. and the german competitors handle better and have more curbside cachet.

I don't agree.

At least in my experience with my GS. First of all, I haven't even brought it in and you have made my mechanic team out to be deaf. We will find out next Wednesday. Second of all, this is the first kind of problem I have encountered in 48k miles and it is minor for the most part. The three recalls were not really recalls, they were service campaigns initiated by Toyota and it covered more than just the GS. Most notably is the fuel line improvement becasue of the ethanol contents in the new formulations of gasoline. I compliment Toyota on stepping up to the plate and providing this servcie rather than letting time takes it course and having customers have to pay out of pocket when parts fail far after warranty. If anything, by doing that, Toyota has retained me as a customer when it comes time to buy my next one. I think you will find that is one practice that has helped get the big three domestics where they are today. As for the dash creaks, I haven't got them and never had them. Myabe I am lucky. I need to ride in a GS with them to see what they are, but I can say my interior is silent with the exception of this new development and that only happens when I am on undesireable road surfaces. I find the ride of the GS to be very similar and as comfortable as my ES and I loved that.

With that being said, can we return to the primary reason for my initiation of this thread.

Does anyone else have this pesky driver's door window noise?

steviej

first take a 20oz plastic soda bottle and cut off the top 1/4 of it.

fit this bottle down under the drain spout to catch the 3/4 of a cup of oil that exits the inversely tipped oil filter when you loosen it. (would like to smack the engineer that designed this one)

I used to wear a long sleeved shirt, use a pair of mechanics gloves and a old t-shirt to put under the filter when removed.

When the manifold cools off, loosen the filter. A cap style filter removal tool is best. The expandable/colapsable wrenches don't have enough room to swing around under there. Once the filter is loosened, the remove the wrench and just unthread it by hand. Hesitate for a minute to let the oil drain out. Once drained, remove the soda bottle bottom carefully keeping it upright. You can easily guide it up and out without spilling. Now stuff the old rag down under. Unspin the fitler and then let it pivot in between two fingers so that the bottom is now down and the opening is sticking straight up. I got very good at that. You can guide the filter up and out without dripping any more oil. Use the rag to clean up any drips or puddles, and wipe off where the filter attaches. You should be good to go from there on in.

steviej

My runflats were Dunlops and I haven't tried the Kumhos. However, I actually went back to conventional tires on my GS AWD this past year. Much better ride. I am not a fan of runflats.

steviej

I don't think mine is the door. When the window is up all the way, it sounds as though it is loose.

However, when I roll the window all the way down or even partially down and hit the bumps, you only hear the suspension noises and the door sounds solid.

I think the window or window bracket is loose when the window is in the up most position.

steviej