cduluk

Sorry to thread jack, but i have a question. If you go to the dealer and have this thing installed for $500, do you need to pay any annual fee to hear the radio? If so, how much are the additional costs?

Haha yeah, the headlight projector mod was one of my favorite additions to that car. No one else in the world has 'em on their Rx300! My first headlight retrofit on the rx300 used infiniti m45 projectors. After a few weeks i realized they weren't the best performing, so i sold the pair on ebay and started another retro. For the second try, i used a pair of lexus LS460 single xenon projectors, and they were great! Wicked wide and intense... But a few months later, i found out there was a different version of the LS460 projector that used a bi-xenon solenoid that added extra light in high beam mode, so again, i sold this pair of headlights on ebay and made my third retro using the bi-xenon version. Both my second and third retro's looked identical since both the single and bi-xenon ls460 projectors look the same from the outside. The second pair i created is actually back on ebay being sold by the same person i had originally sold them to. I actually retro'd the wires on the back of the headlights to plug into a non-HID rx300 wiring, since at the time he didn't have the HID Rx300. It would be perfect for what you'd need them for. You could just plug them in! If i remember correctly, the leveling motors were a little loose, whoever buys them just needs to wrap duct tape around them or something. They don't serve any function except controlling the height of the beam. Just place them at the right height, and tape! Other than that, they were perfect. Here's the link on ebay for them. It's funny seeing them on ebay, since i made them lol. I sold them to him for $400 and he's asking $500- but he's so expensive on everything he sells! http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/LEXUS-RX300...sQ5fAccessories As far as the back-up sensors, i don't remember the exact product name, all i know is that i bought them on ebay for about $50. They worked perfectly for over 3 years that i had them installed. I had them painted to match the bumper, and i drilled and installed them myself, wasn't that hard.

You'd need to purchase a pair of 01-03 Rx300 HID headlights and do a swap. The HID version headlights use a different reflector which is designed for the HID bulb. HID bulbs and standard halogen bulbs have different focal lengths, therefore both require different shaped reflectors. You cannot just put an HID bulb into a halogen headlight- you will get a lot of glare above the cutoff which will blind oncoming drivers, and there won't be enough light on the road where you need it. Also inside the HID headlights is what's called the "ballast". A ballast is used to ignite an HID bulb which takes around 27,000 volts whereas a halogen bulb takes 12v. A ballast converts the 12V from the battery into the high power HID bulbs require. When you get the HID headlights, you'll need to do a little wiring because the plugs are different for each unit. From the back of the HID headlights you'll find a square plug with 4 wires going to it- if memory serves me right, pink, white, green and black. Two of these wires feed the ballast 12V, and the other two feed 12V to the high beam bulb (same for halogen/HID units). You would need to find out which wires go to the ballast, cut them from the plug, and solder them to the two wires that would go to the halogen low beam bulb on the halogen Rx. Then wire the two wires that feed the high beam bulb on the HID unit to the two wires that feed the high beam bulb on the halogen Rx. The parking, fog and directional bulb connectors are the same for both units. You'd also lose the auto-leveling function he HID bulbs have, where they go up and down. There's no way to wire the motors to a non-HID Rx. And that's all it takes to do the conversion. Some people say you need a harness before the ballast, but the Rx puts out enough current so you're fine. It might sound complicated, but it really isn't... Damn i wish i was where you are, i could set it up in 10 minutes lol. You should be able to find a pair of used HID headlights for around $100 each. The HID headlights will include the ballast, since they're impossible to remove from the headlights without opening them up... Good luck!

for the rx300, there are many things you can do to better the looks. I would first suggest one of the polished stainless steel brush guards for the front. There are two types available- the wrap around, and the push bar, both of which i've had on my old Rx300. Here was my Rx300 with the wrap around grille, which i LOVE. Take a look at my Rx300's cardomain for some other things i did to it. You can also look at the links in my signature for more as well. http://www.cardomain.com/ride/3090724

What do you mean? Are talking about adding puddle lights? I would wire them to the light-up ring around the ignition. It goes on whenever the doors are unlocked, when the doors are open, and fades out when they're cosed. When i had my Rx300 i added light-up door sills and tapped off of the ignition key ring bulb which gives 12V and plenty of current.

definitely! lol I was thinking somewhere around $200...

Hmm, didn't even think to bother asking them. I'd assume they'd charge a premium. We don't have regular services done at our local dealer, unless it's warranty work... My father had an argument with one of the managers over a decade ago and he refuses to have anything to do with them unless absolutely necessary... I did stop by one of the Town Fare Tire places around here, and the guy said, "Well we usually charge $99, but for you i can do it for umm..... $69". So i guess that's good? lol.

Lexus doesn't make a touch-up pen or anything like that, specifically designed to match the grill paint. Your best bet is to go to a place like Autozone, and buy a few random grey touch up pens, and mix and match to the grill color.

Hey guys/gals. I've been toying with the idea of purchasing a set of chrome wheels for my Rx400h, and found a great deal so i took it! I found a set of NEW chrome wheels WITH new tires for $1300 shipped on ebay. This way i will have a complete set for the summer months, and i can use my factory set for the winter months. Here's the link: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAP...alenotsupported My problem is that the wheels/tires i bought are already assembled, but there are no TPMS sensors installed, only standard valve stems. So i purchased a set of 4 sensors on ebay as well (they're apparently working, from an 07 ES but will still fit RX). When the wheels/tires arrive, i'm gonna have to take them somewhere to get them ready to be installed. This is what i'll need done: 1. Have the new tires removed from the chrome rims. 2. Have the standard valve stems removed. 3. Have the TPMS sensors installed in their place. 4. Have the new tires be put back on the chrome rims. 5. Have all 4 tires balanced again... 6. Have my stock rims/tires removed from the car. 7. Have the front end aligned (it needs an alignment...) 8. Have the chrome rims/tires put on the car. And from here i should be able to press the "reset" button under the steering column to get the car to recognize the new sensors. So what type of place should i take the car to, to have this work done? Town Fair Tire? And what can i expect to pay? I don't need any materials purchased from the place, as i have everything. I'll just need to pay them for their time. Thanks for any input guys!

Unfortunately i didn't take any pictures before or during the process of doing mine =/ It was such a pain in the butt to remove the pieces, i was in a bad mood the whole time and didn't even think about taking pictures The process of sanding/staining/clearing is the easy part. As soon as you have the pieces out of the car and in your hand, from start to finish, it can be completed in maybe 8 hours or so, barring any unforeseen incidents... It's just like painting a car part; just instead of using a metallic base coat, you use stain followed by the clear. I sanded the factory clear with (i think?) 800 or so grit sandpaper, maybe 1000. Then sprayed "Krylon's red stain glass paint" through a straw and into an airbrush bottle. I created a nice sol'n, half the stain and half reducer (to thin it out) then sprayed (using an airbrush) a thin coat right on the factory clear, to give it the red effect. Let flash for 5 minutes or so, then baked in the oven at 140 degrees (actually 170 the lowest setting, but kept the door open) for maybe a half hour or so. Then took out, let cool then sprayed a couple coats of Dupont's two-part spot panel clearcoat. Then baked at the same temp for 45 minutes, then let cool for about an hour or so. Then wetsanded with 1500-2000 grit to remove any dust etc, then machine polished with 3M's scratch remover, then installed back into the car. The clear dries very quickly when baked. Baking the paint is the key to getting it to stick and dry hard enough to resist scratches etc. The steering wheel and shifter were the only pieces i needed to strip the wood before staining and completing the steps above. Since the steering wheel and shifter are rounded, just sanding the factory clear and applying coats of the stain will yield uneven results. It's better to get it down to bare wood so the stain soaks into the wood so you can get an even coat all around. I swear, the hardest part is getting the pieces out. The hardest pieces to remove were the ones from the center console and from the rear armrest due to all the pulley and spring mechanisms built in. And not to mention the pieces on the door panels which need to be removed from the inside, requiring you to remove the door panels... The two pieces around the shifter knob come off in about 10 seconds as they're just held on by clips. If i were to ever do this again, i would just remove the console from the car (6 bolts, takes a few minutes), pop off the rear armrest piece (two screws) and mask off everything but the wood and proceed from there. I didn't know how hard it was going to be to remove the pieces until i actually took it apart... I did buy a spare console (from an rx330's tan interior with light maple wood) to play with before i took mine apart, which was helpful to refer to when putting everything back together on mine. I do have to say that the pain and agony was worth it though! I'll take some pictures of the stain and other materials later tonight or tomorrow (i have class in a few hours UGH). I'll do the staining/clearing process on one of the spare pieces (from the rx330 console i bought) and take pics so everyone can see how i did it. :)

just don't use mr clean's magic eraser! It removes the dye... Dish detergent with water on a soft cotton rag will do the trick and be safe.

yeah that's the only one i'll have trouble getting. I contacted Lexus parts (why didn't i think of this before??) and they said the bottom two they could get in about a day, but the black one would take 6-10 weeks to deliver. I'd need the old one to present (to get info from) and they'd need to make another... I'll have to see if the shop kept the sticker or not...

Hey, thanks! I google'd "Ebsco auto repair reference center" but didn't find anything?? I looked on the lexus parts manual page online, and think i've identified two out of the three stickers. Can't find the black one though.

They attempted the "masking" of the stickers on my rx300 when they did the pass. side after i clipped a fire hydrant, and it was obvious something was wrong. The paint was as high as the thickness of the sticker. If you ran your finger across the sticker, you would feel that the sticker was at the same level as the paint. It looked like they sprayed the door jamb with clear, then placed the sticker in the clear before it dried... It looked, odd...

If they can't save the labels or if they can't find replacements, i'll scan someone else's, edit them with my info, and have a sticker company make me some duplicates :D I plan on having the car for a long, loooonnngggg time, so my biggest worry isn't resale value if they're missing, but rather looks.

Hey guys/gals, I'm having the whole left side of my Rx400h re-painted due to some vandalism. The body shop is also painting the inside door jambs so i don't have to see the masking "line" all along the edges of the body where they meet the doors. They told me i have two options concerning the info labels on the door jambs. They can either mask them off and paint around them (which will look tacky) or they can remove the labels altogether. But they said if they remove the labels, they will be rendered useless and won't be able to be put back on after paint. I asked if they could order new labels, but the shop stated they were not able to be purchased, and that it was actually illegal to put labels on over paintwork, since the absence of labels indirectly shows presence of paintwork when buying or selling... I understand that the "VIN" labels on the jambs shouldn't be put back on over paintwork, but the three info labels on the drivers door jamb shows the production date, paint codes, tire pressure info etc, info that to me seems important to e able to refer to. Here's a pic i found of another Rx's door jamb labels: So is the shop right? I looked in the Rx400h parts manual, and there's a page dedicated to "labels", but i can't find any that look like the ones on the drivers door jamb. The top black one is the one that's pretty much custom for ever vehicle since it contains the vin and production date which vary between cars. The other two are the same for all of them. Anyone have any input on this? thanks!! :)

hey that's awesome!!! thanks! I have to change my cabin air filter soon, now i know how to get to it!!

hey thanks! :) I had to remove all of those pieces as well... It took about a hour to disassemble the center console (and get it back together) with all of the springs etc. that make up the cup-holder. ALL of the wood pieces are held on by screws from the inside. A BIG mess-up on Lexus' part... Not fun to have to replace! They should have just used clips like in the Rx300. If i ever had to do it again, i'd spend the extra time to just mask off the black areas. I had no idea what i was getting into until i had everything apart :(

ah yes, that's it!! It's called the SP Sport 270 apparently. Here's the ones from ebay: And here's the same one from the Dunlop site: http://www.dunlopdriversclub.co.uk/tyres/d...car/SPSport270/ http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?ti...P%20Sport%20270 When on the UK Dunlop site, i typed in Rx400h and these were the tires that fit. I e-mailed a few people on the UK ebay who sell dunlop tires and asked them if they'd ever heard of them. A few responded stating they were OK tires, one rated them 7 1/2 out of 10 and said that they were still better than the goodyear RS's that come stock on the Rx's- which is good to hear. They also said this is a poor tire in snow, but since these would only be my summer set, that's OK with me :) And these tires are about $280 each which is about $100 more than it's competitors...

yeah, i definitely don't have that :(

ah perfect! thanks

ah thanks!! i'll give them a call on monday... I have been doing some research on what little is on google about "dunlop" and found this excerpt from an article: "Tire manufacturers supply the two distinct—albeit related—markets: OE and replacement. Automobile manufacturers buy in large volumes that give them influence over tire prices and specifications. They demand tires with characteristics that suit their vehicle designs, marketing strategies, and production schedules. In turn, OE orders allow tire companies to keep their production facilities operating at efficient volumes. The OE business also can help generate future sales of replacement tires. By linking its tire lines with a specific vehicle make or model, a tire company can draw on the brand loyalty of motorists. Because four times as many replacement tires as OE tires are sold, such brand loyalty can be valuable to the tire manufacturer. Background on Passenger Tires 27 Like makers of many other consumer goods, tire manufacturers seek to distinguish their products from those of competitors through branding. Most sell under heavily advertised manufacturer (or national “flag”) brands as well as associate and specialty brands, some acquired through mergers and acquisitions of well-known tire companies. Goodyear, for instance, sells under its own name and several other nationally recognized brands; it owns Dunlop (in the United States) and Kelly. Likewise, Michelin has acquired the BFGoodrich and Uniroyal brands in the United States, and Bridgestone also sells tires under the Firestone and Dayton brand names. These nine brands accounted for 51.6 percent of the replacement tire consumer market in 2005 (Modern Tire Dealer 2006, 39). Most major tire companies supply both the OE and the replacement markets. They typically use their flag brands for the former and a combination of flag and associate brands for the latter. An exception to this practice is Cooper Tire, which concentrates on serving the replacement market. It sells tires under its own brand name and under associate brands such as Starfire, Dean, and Mastercraft. In addition, most tire makers supply replacement tires to retailers selling under private labels, such as the Sears Guardsman, Wal-Mart Douglas, and Pep Boys Futura. In these cases, the retailer creates and controls the brand, often contracting for supplies from one or more tire makers offering the lowest price or other valued attributes such as supply reliability. OE" found here: http://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/sr/sr286.pdf Do you think this means the dunlop tires are basically the Goodyear's with a different name... I've heard some pretty poor things about Goodyears...

Hey guys- I found someone on ebay selling a used set of wheels/tires from an rx400h. The sensors built into the wheels have already been programmed to the previous car, can I re-ptogram them into mine?

That procedure of "activating" the moonroof must be done perfectly, but you only have one chance to do it. Remove the negative terminal on the battery for 30 mins. Then put it back on, and try the procedure again.

I've found someone on ebay selling a set of rx400h wheels with Dunlop SP Sport 2070 Tires (235/55R18) with excellent tread life left. My only concern is, are the tires any good?? These would be my summer set, so they'd need to be decent in dry traction, good against hydroplaning etc. But i can't seem to find specs for them???