steviej

my first thought would be to go to an 18 wheel. That will give some lateral stability and tighter corners. HOWEVER, if you a venturing in to construction areas, then the road conditions must be deplorable and that would be detrimental to the wheel itself as it has less tire to absorb impact from road hazards and debris. I am in the exact same predicament in Boston with the famed "Big Dig". I stay away from there with my 18s on. steviej

On my old SSEi I noticed the same symptom. In addition to what you noticed, I would also see a sharp decrease in gas mileage. steviej

I was at the dealer today and they offered to resurface all four rotors and claim it under warranty. Now it brakes wicked smooth. :D steviej

dealer determined the O2 sensor was faulty even though it wasn't tripping the CEL when I got to them. They took me in right away and replaced it under warranty. All nice and smooth now. I mentioned about the brakes pulsation that was coming back. They inspected them too, and resurfaced the fronts and the rears. He claimed it under warranty too, so I paid nothing. I just love when things go my way at the dealer. later! :D steviej

agreed. See you at Fenway!!! steviej

I actually had the code cleared for a reason. I wanted to see if the roughness that was occuring before the CEL came on was directly related to the code/error that eventually came up. As I have found out, it is directly related and reproducable. I took Alan's suggestion and through in a bottle of dri-gas. Upon starting the car to come to work tonight, the CEL did not light up. The car is running less smooth than when the CEL was onm but is running nonetheless. It may very well be crappy gas causeing the sensor to send a bad signal and not a faulty sensor at all. Thanks, Alan. I will swing by my dealership anyway, just to have them look and swap out the O2 sensor if needed. By luck the O2 sensor will fail just after warranty and then I gotta pay for it. I'll opt for them to swap it out under warranty just cause I actually have a little time in the AM to swing by. I'll be the first one in. steviej

Awesome question/suggestion Alan. I did just recently fill up. However if it were bad gas, why would one sensor be effected and not the other. I will try that today and see if it goes away, couldn't hurt. steviej

Went to Autozone. The retrieved code was P1135. "Air/Fuel Ratio Sensor Heater Circuit Malfunction (Bank 1 Sensor 1)" I have to work from 11pm tonight to 7am Monday. I'll just bring it by the dealer first thing in AM. It is covered under warranty. The funny thing, I had the clerk clear the code. On the way home the car was running rough again, bucking, surging, etc. About 2 miles into the trip, the CEL came on again and the ride smoothed out completely. I may just leave it and put black tape over the CEL, it runs so smooth. j/k. The ECU must enact a default signal when the O2 sensor craps out in order to make it run smooth. don't know. steviej ps, oh yeah, the scan tool was very nice and simple to use. I asked how much and he said, $99. I may just go back and get one. Something else for me to think I need to want, or want to need.

Alan, how long ago was 60,000 miles or better yet how many miles do you drive in between actual oil changes? When you change just the oil filter, do you lose much oil (~ a cup full)? If you lose any, do you add the same amount of new back it or just run with what little is lost until the actual oil change? steviej PS, Please refrain from typing in all caps as it is considered rude by most forums. We have asked other members to try to remember this, so it is only fair that I remind you, too. Thanks.

the ES won't make a horn beep or "bloop bloop" sound. However, this is one blip sound that is emitted when the car is locked. There is also a volume control for this sound. Under the dash by your right knee, there should be a knob. Turn it so that it is on the loudest setting. Gordon, don't get excited. The loudest setting can be drowned out by a whisper. steviej

Alan, that is so not fair. <_< Blue Jays are ok, just not the Yankees. :o :P steviej

Brenden, in honor of your comment, I could not help but change my avatar. steviej

sorry Steve, good question. I edited my original post. just under 37,000 miles. I am guessing it is an O2 sensor, cause the car runs perfectly and isn't making any weird noises. steviej

I noticed something funny/odd in the acceleration from start through 1st and 2nd gear for most of today. The car would kind of VERY faintly pulse/surge/buck as it accelerated. Then once in 3rd, the pulsing would subside. Around 10pm tonight, I got in the car started it up drove about 100 ft and the CEL came on but the car operated as normal (only 36,600 mi on the clock). The kick in the pants is that the faint pulse/surge/buck is completely gone when accelerating. Anyway, I'm off to Autozone in the AM to get the codes read and cleared. I am curious if the code comes back, and if the faint pulse/surging stays gone while the CEL is off. I will keep you all posted. Out of curiosity, what is the quickest anyone has seen an O2 sensor fail? steviej

you may find it cheaper from a lexus parts wholesaler than the dealer in your neighborhood. look it up here: http://www.newlexusparts.com steviej

why bother, you got the correct answers here. Unless of course you are like me and feel it necessary to quiz your service manager. steviej

awesome!!! steviej

my guess is it sounds like they forgot to hook up a vacuum hose somewhere, or a vacuum hose has popped off. There are mutiple hose and any one could create the scenario you state. Open the hood, stand in front of the car while it is running and see if you can't pinpoint the humming noise and it might lead you to the unattached hose. If you find it, the connection should be in that area. steviej

wherever you get the alternator, make sure you get a warranty. Most places (Autozone, etc) will give a 1 year replacement warranty. As for the CV joint, a reman will do you $60-120 depending on where you get it. Take about and hour and a half, if you know what you are doing and you have the tools (like sk said). steviej

This is a very variable topic as it ultimately comes down to the fact that each person develops a change interval that they are comforatble with. I think you will find the most common interval(s) are every 3000 miles when using conventional oils (dino) and every 5000 miles when using synthetic oils. These intervals are independent of the grade of oil. steviej

they replaced front pads and rotors. The rotors were even totally different that what was swappped out. I only feel it when coming down an off ramp of a highway or when lots of braking has been done from speeds > 45mph. It is defineately not the pulsation that was there with the pre-TSB pads and rotors. I don't get it with just running to the store and back, but hitting the highway and constant stops and starts over say an hour will bring it out. steviej

I throw a bottle of Chevron w/Techron (and yes, the synthetic formulation) in the tank with every oil change. That comes out to be about 3 per year. It costs less than $10 USD at AutoZone. steviej

Of all the 02/03 ES owners, have any of you had the brake vibration return after the TSB work was performed? I had the TSB done at 24k miles and now at 36.5k miles the vibration is coming back again (especially on highway off ramps). steviej

I do find it interesting how Lexus and Toyota dealerships are starting to flush the red coolant before 60k miles or 5 years. My service manager says it is because they are not feeling comfortable with the "long life aspect" and it is cheaper for them to flush it out sooner then to replace a crapped out radiator towards the end of a warranty. steviej

yep, same here. usually between 330 and 350 depending on whether I let is stop at first automatic shut off or I squeeze it off to the nearest quarter. (don't ask me why I do that, cause it's going on the speedpass.) theoretically I should be getting 425 miles per 18.5 gallons. (I average about 14.5 gallons on each fill and that is going from 340 down to less than 20 miles on the driving range display) I say theoretical because I am not going to drive the car until it is bone dry to find out actual miles per tankful. steviej