cduluk

All of the thunderclouds have the chrome slit grilles, i don't think that version is for a thundercloud...

Here are some pictures :( The "tear" is right in the seam between the painted part and the plain plastic part below. Even if the tear could be somehow mended, they'd have to sand, bondo, and paint the lower black part (which is supposed to remain a textured plastic). Plus, this bumper has been re-painted before. So this would make it the bumper's 3rd coat of paint... I just want the repair to look right <_< And i've thought about installing parking sensors (i installed them in the Rx300 after my accident in the Target parking lot lol) but i haven't gotten around to putting them in the 400h. I don't think parking sensors would have helped me much this time since the point of contact was on the side, i guess i just need to watch out for rock walls on my left and right now lol

Hey guys I had a little accident tonight... All along the side of my girlfriends driveway is a stone wall, maybe about 2 feet high. I've been with my girlfriend for about four years, driven into and out of her driveway a MILLION times with no problems, but tonight i swear the damned thing moved. I was backing up after dropping her off, and right when i started to turn, the front right of my bumper scraped along the wall. Apparently i was a little close on the right side... So i got out to look, hoping it was only minor- but of course it wasn't. There was a 1ft long black/white scrape (right down to the plastic) accompanied by a nice tear. Thankfully it was pretty "low" on the bumper so i didn't have my girlfriend go buy me some spray paint so i could somehow hide it so no one would notice it on my way home So yeah, i am going to need to replace the bumper. There's a good 3" tear in the bumper which i don't think can be repaired... A few years ago i had backed up into another car in my Rx300 and the new rear bumper plus paint and labor was around $800, but i'm hoping i can score a better deal this time. I've got a good autobody guy who could probably do the painting for about $200 w/o installation labor (i can install it myself) but i'd need to get the new bumper myself. And i'm ruling out after-market so i will need OEM. Carson Toyota/Lexus/Scion online has a new front bumper for $327.63 down to $271.93, but i can't even imagine the shipping costs... And ebay at the moment doesn't have any used ones in good condition. And, i'd rather pay for everything out of pocket rather than going through insurance... We've got a $500 deductible so it probably wouldn't benefit. I swear, i am TERRIBLE while backing up. All of my accidents (by myself or with another car) have been while BACKING UP First when i backed out of a parking space into the side of a classmate's car (didn't see it behind me), then into a minivan driving behind me at a Target parking lot (again, didn't see it behind me...) and now this. And well there was that one time when i was parking at my girlfriend's house and scraped the entire side on a hydrant... That wasn't while backing up, but it was at my girlfriend's house so it counts :P But yeah, i'm just thankful it wasn't with another car <_< I'd rather have this happen while going -3 mph with a stone wall- at least this way it's a lot simpler! And i'm not really in any sort of rush to get this fixed... It really doesn't affect the integrity of the bumper, it's just a minor cosmetic issue. And it's low enough where a quick touch-up will keep me breathing until the spring But when the salt and sand from the roads washes away it's quite the eyesore :o I'll take some pics tomorrow for you guys to see too... Thanks for any input and advice on the new bumper! :D

Leaterique's Leather "Rejuvenatior oil" followed by "the Prestine Clean" is the best on the market. Only natural cleaner and conditioner out there that will actually help the leather rather than age it quicker. Avoid any silicone based product.

It might have to do with the direction you look into the film with. It might not be reversible.

lol buddy, i was laughing at those statements because you think a Lexus is almost as reliable as a Cadillac, but that you THINK A CADILLAC IS RELIABLE IN THE FIRST PLACE Lexus is MUCH more reliable than Cadillac, seriously what planet is your info coming from...??

I heard the same arguments when i brought up a similar issue about the seatbelt chime... My biggest aggravation is how the chime comes on and stays on for the first minute you don't have it on. I don't usually put my belt on until i'm backed out of the driveway and a half mile down the road... And the red light is just as annoying for those first few minutes in the car.

The pattern on the dash is made to match the rest of the car's trim. I doubt having a different dash pattern will make the interior look any classier. <_<

Yeah, check the leveling sensor. It'll be located between one of the wheel control arms and the under body of the car. It'll look like a small arm connecting the control arm to the body of the car.

You'll most likely have the "waviness" effect with the Pilkington glass. not directly in front of you, only if you look out the right side of the glass (from the drivers seat). You'll also notice the "tint" is different (oem is a little more green) which won't match your side windows, and also it won't repel water as well. Had a pilkington windshield put in my old Rx300. Had the glass place replace it 3 times because of the waviness, but none of them were good enough... But since the ES windshield is much smaller than the Rx's, you might be OK... Pilkington glass are the rejects that don't pass Lexus inspection for perfection and never make it to the last steps in the Lexus glass process.

Yeah, the fog lamps have leveling adjuster bolts. Try turning it in different directions and see if it moves.

Not really... Just make sure your tire pressures are normal. I would do a test to assure its accuracy. Go on the highway and use the mile markers and a stop watch to record distance and time, and figure out your average speed. Set the cruise control to.... 65miles/hour. When you pass a mile marker, start the stopwatch. When you hit the next mile marker, stop the watch. Then divide the distance (1 mile) over the amount of time (in hours) it took to travel that one mile. And if the answer is 65miles/hour, then you're good. If not, bring the car to Lexus and they can re-calibrate the difference in the computer.

Oh i finally get it now :D It takes me a while but i get it now lol

Do you mean you put the blue film under the ring area? Like under the needle? Just over the gauge face? Or did you simply put the film over/under the tinted cove Wont all the idiot lights be tinted blue now too? So would the yellow gas light now have a blue filter over it (making it.. green?)

There's space between the gauge face: and the plastic rings themselves: Here's what's below the gauge face: Is this where you slipped the blue film? How could you have cut it so perfectly to the same shape of the rings?

It's hard to tell by the pic, but what's white and what's now blue? Is everything white except for the rings which are now blue? Did you put the blue filter material over the "leg" areas of the blue rings? Or did you cut out pieces that are the same sizes as the rings themselves?

Uhhh all i did was replace the amber LED in the unit with a blue one, and replace the resistor to compensate for the difference in voltage and current. And since this was a complete retrofit (the Rx300 doesn't have these from the factory, they were from an Rx330) i did all the other wiring myself :D I got the LED's from mouser electronics and the resistors from.... well not sure exactly, somewhere online

Haha thanks :D I can do yours for you but we can't talk about it on the forum (it's considered solicitation) but you can PM me and we can talk about it through e-mail if you're really interested :)

Ah! i tried a similar method first by putting blue permanent marker over the SMT's, but this combo proved to be too dim. The white SMT's with any type of blue filter reduce the intensity by a LOT, that's why i had to replace the white ones with blue LED's.. and even those are barely bright enough. <_< This method works, but you won't get a lot of intensity, especially with ambient daylight. The only way to do it right is to replace the white SMT's with blue SMT's or preferably blue LED's. <_< And you've really gotta turn the white areas between the integer marks blue so it doesn't look washed out in daylight ;)

$43k for an ES??? Yikes

Is it just the center "speedometer" area dimming? Or do the adjacent gauges (RPM, fuel and temp) areas dim the same? I'm only asking because the speedometer plate is illuminated by a different CCFL than the surrounding gauges. If the speedometer is the only gauge that you're having a problem with, then i'd suggest that it's CCFL that's failing. But if it's all three gauges dimming the same, then the issue is something else. If the complete gauge cluster (all 3 gauges) are dimming equally along with the center console (with the radio), the issue is most likely due to the sensitivity setings. Has this issue always been evident since you've owned it? Or has this problem just started lately? Have you made sure that the dimmer switch is set to the highest point? I think this is totally normal. On my Rx400h, the gauges will dim a bit if there is no surrounding ambient light, and brighten during the day. If i am driving in daylight, the brightness will be at its MAX, but if go below a bridge, the lights will dim until i reach the other end. Most likely to prevent any glare... But i believe this only works when the dimmer is set to the position directly "below" the max position. If i have it set to the max position it does not do this.

There two approaches you can take. You can manually raise them by adjusting some bolts on the headlights themselves, or you can find the headlight leveling switch on one of the control arms, and adjust it that way to fool the car to think it needs to raise the headlights. Both are equally as effective and won't cause any problems. Personally, i'd try to locate the switch and adjust it. This assures both headlights move equally. Not sure where the switch is located on the ES, my guess on one of the control arms. It will look like a tiny arm (maybe 4") connected to another arm of equal size, between the control arm and the undercarriage of the car. It's located on the RR control arm for the Rx300, so i'd start looking there. The arm will be connected to a switch (which is like a potentiometer) which tells the computer if there's weight in the back of the car (which would raise the front end causing the lights to blind people) and counteracts this to lower the headlights. Just remove the arm completely and rotate the potentiometer until the headlights are the position you like, and leave it there... This way the car will think there's "negative" weight in the car, and will leave the headlights a little higher for you all the time. Thanks allot i.d.k. what half of those things were but i will deff take it to my buddy who is a mechanic and tell him this because if i did it myself i think i would be lost. do you think this wold take long? Yeah it's really hard to explain :( Shouldn't take more than 10 minutes as soon as you find the leveling switch.

i responded in your other thread

Hmm, not aware of any new sizes for HIR :( You could modify them yourself you just might lose the high beam function.

The stepper motors used in the early Lexus gauges had lots of problems... They are hard to calibrate and easily fail :(