DaveinTX

I'm definitly no expert but I would think the heads could be repaired and re-installed on block. I was wondering how many miles on the car, I though these cars would have a pretty well made timing belt, was something else going on with the engine that caused it to fail. I was also wondering if it trashed the valves when it broke. Thanks-Dave

Hi all, Well it's finally time for some new tires, I am replacing my wife's run flats with regular tires. I saved one of the stock wheels from her old es300 thinking I could use for a spare (kept in my pick-up), I pulled it out to see if it would fit and it looks like the brake rotor on the sc430 is too big for that wheel, not enough clearance on the inside. I was hoping there was someone in the dallas area that might be willing to part out stock wheels as spares, I would love to buy one for reasonable price. If anyone wants to sell one please contact me at d-howe1@ti.com, thanks-Dave

I have some stock wheels from a es300 and have been wondering the same thing, I was planning on using as a spare. If I ever get around to trying it out I'll let you know, please do the same if you try yours. Thanks-Dave

cars.com is a good site to compare whats a fair price in your area. I recently picked up an 04, very good cond., with 50k miles, paid 25k, it was close to other ones with same milage. My wife loves it, it's alot of car for 25k, no regrets.

I posted a thread a couple months ago about how to tighten/remove the rear view mirror, it's a piece of cake once you understand how it comes off, takes about 30 sec. If you can find the mirror you want, I would think it would just be a simple swap. -Dave

the switch shoud be opening the circuit turning the heater off when it clicks, the switch must be bad.

I just wanted to let you guys know I installed the "Vifa TP16WJ-06-08 6-1/2" Woofer 8 Ohm" speakers from parts express. The sound is great, much better than I expected, almost unbelieveable for the price I paid for these speakers, $20 apiece. The hardest part of the install was making the adapters to put the 6.5" round into the 6 x 9 bracket. I can't believe how loud I can turn it up without any distortion, they really sound fantastic. These speakers don't have foam around the edge they have rubber, they look higher quality than what came out. Both the old woofers the foam was split all the way around, I guess you can imagine how bad it did sound. The stock speakers did not look like quality ($200)speakers, and I noticed the foam had split right where the frame presses against it mounting it to the housing it sits in, if I had new stock speakers I would leave the frame off and just mount using the holes in speaker frame, I think the plastic frame that sat on top was pressing to hard on the foam, it had a sharp edge so with all the flexing back and forth I'm not surprized the foam split, what I'm trying to say is it looks more like an issue with how it was mounted than the speaker itself. I followed the procedure that several speaker threads link, that guy did a great job with the instructions. There were a few tips I would add. After removing all door panel screws the panel didn't seem to want to lift up and out, I pluged the window cont. back in and lowered window. After some gentle back and forth pulling the side closest to mirror finally came loose. It's a tight fit, I would reccomend having the window down, and take it slow when pulling out the panel. It was easier getting it back in, just make sure you give it a little extra push to make sure it's fully seated back down. Almost all the screws are phillips head, until you go to remove the 6 X 9 from the housing, those 4 screws under the foam use a little 6 point star, I'm not sure what it's called but luckily I had one. For the adapter I used 1/4" plywood. I would have rather used particle board but couldn't find 1/4", I wish I had looked harder because the plywood was a pain making clean cuts, I made it work but there are better choices. I mounted the speakers in the adapter and then the adapters back in the stock 6x9 housing, I left the frame that went on top of the old speaker off. and then I put some low density weatherstripping around the edge. It all fit together well, and like I said the sound is fantastic, my wife and I drove around all afternoon. The door panels are on tight and nothing broke. Thanks for all the info on these, I could not have done this without all the info on these forums. Just wanted to add one last thing. When calling around to car audio stores before ordering speakers I was very unimpressed with the answers I was getting concerning how they would fix the issue. One shop said he would install boston acoustic 6'5" round 4 ohm speakers, he insisted the 4 ohm would work/sound fine, I wasn't buying it, He wanted $210 for all. Another shop said they would do like another poster said and wire 2- 4 ohm speakers in series. The 3rd shop (car toys) said they wanted to set it up to have all 4 ohm speakers, I guess add an amp, they wanted to get in the car to see whats up before quoting anything, translation- big $. These shops don't have any 8 ohm speakers so I'm glad I just did it myself, the cost was much lower and the sound is fantastic, I can't believe the stock speakers sounded any better than these. I wasn't jealous of my wife's car before now I am, I have a tundra and the audio doesn't even come close. Thanks again everybody-Dave

Aceflash, did you try the 6.5 pioneer woofers? I ordered some 8 ohm vifo 6.5" woofers from parts express this week. They had good reviews, the depth was 3", and the price was only $20 apiece. I figured I'd put them in when I pull stock out and if they sound bad then repair the stock like you did. I was just curious since you didn't mention pioneer speakers. Thanks-Dave

Well Ace it looks like Vtwin may not make it to the forum much. Someone else posted a link in, another thread about the speakers, with excellent detailed instructions on how to remove the door panel. It had pictures as well. I think with that as a reference we should be able to remove the door panel without any damage. I have a desktop so it may mean 25 trips inside to look again at instructions but i'm not in a hurry. I'm starting to think the bass speaker in the drivers door may be blown also, it sounds really bad. I didn't realize my wife had the bass turned all the way down, when I turned it up it was awful. I think I'm going to bite the bullet and buy some new speakers, I havn't even started looking yet. So am I correct that it is a 6x9 thats 8 ohms? Please let us know how your new speakers sound, and if you don't mind how much they cost. I have a 98 es300 and the speakers still sound fine, I can't believe the speakers in my 04 sc430 already sound that bad, previous owner must have liked it loud. Thanks for your input-Dave P.S., just look through the speaker threads and you will find that link for door panel removal, it's very good.

I may get flamed for this but what the heck. I noticed about a year ago the front valve cover gasket was starting to "seep" not really leak, but there was a spot right underneath that I would wipe clean and it would have oil there again quick. I have used used a synthetic blend 5w-30 for 10 years in it (98es300). I made sure all the cover bolts were tightened to spec. and they were. I live in Texas so since the weather doesn't get very cold, so last oil change I switched to 10w-30. Last time I checked it was dry, I guess the cold oil at 10w is enough thicker than the 5w that it's not seeping anymore. I just can't bring myself to change that gasket now, call me lazy. I just wanted to throw that out there for anyone else that may be experiencing that. -Dave

Well guys, I started with the idle control valve and it looks like that was the problem. I didn't remove the valve but I did remove the connector and then the electronic portion. It looks like the shaft to turn valve has a magnetic cylinder on the end. When I first turned it it was sticky, after spraying inside valve with t.b. cleaner it loosened right up. the electronics portion where the connector plugs in is just layered plates with a hole in the middle for the magnet cylinder, looks like a voltage is applied to plates to turn the magnet (shaft on valve). So since there are not any gears or belts turning it just a magnetic field (like a brushless elec. motor) I'm not surprized that it starts getting stuck when dirty. I also noticed on the elec. part, the magnet had been rubbing the upper part of the plates, they were polished and slightly worn where it had been rubbing, so when i re-installed I pushed up a little to try and stop that. As soon as I drove the car I noticed the difference, I think I may have been wrong about it being fine when cold, because now it runs (idles) a little higher and much smoother. To all that replyed thank you very much for the help all, It took all of 20min. and I'm sure saved me a couple hundred from the dealer.

I am no expert but I wouldn't think it would hurt anything. I try to follow whatever the manual says. I also just put in the mobil full synthetic, good oil. -Dave

I have been trying to figure this out as well. I have 4 stock wheels from a 98es300 packed away in garage attic, I plan on pulling them out and if it fits and clears the brake rotors that will be my spare, I still have about 3/4 tread on runflats that came with car so it will be awhile. If you guys find out any more info please update. Thanks-Dave By the way, with all the trash talk about the runflats I must admit I was pretty impressed when rotating tires last week I pulled a nail out that was at an angle between the tread and about 2"deep. I thought the tire would loose pressure for sure but it didn't , they do ride a little rough though.

Wow, small world Vtwin, I live in Plano and have a v-twin also (vtx1800c). I have a 04, my wife has been complaining about the speakers but I thought the problem was with how we have her mp3 player wired in (fm modulator, works but the quality sucks). Anyway she says there is some buzzing when she plays a cd also. I find it hard to believe these speakers are coming apart in just 5 years. Thanks for the fix, I can live with $50 but I wasn't ready to spend serious bucks, I like good audio but can live with just about anything, I remember the days of cass. tapes. I guess I need to remove the door panel and check it out. Did the door panel removel go ok, I really can't screw anything up or my wife will go nuts. What should I be looking for on the speaker? It sounds like your saying the foam around the edges is coming apart??? Thanks-Dave

Thanks for the replys guys. I was thinking about the fuel pump, but whatever it is the engine temp seems to be a factor, it has only done it to me about 5 times but every time the car was very hot. I doesn't seem like the fuel pump would be sensitive to heat back there in the gas tank, but i guess it could. I was thinking maybe the idle control valve has some build-up in it that gets sticky when hot and is making the valve stick, when it breaks loose it overcompensates and goes too far , causing the "cycling" idle. when it's cool maybe the build-up is just not sticky enough to cause the valve to stick. Thanks again for all the ideas, they are all on my list to check. I have too many other issues going on in my life right now so it's going to be a week or two before I have time to dig into this, but I will definitly update the post when I do, thanks again guys for the suggestions, any more would be welcome. This car is being handed down to my daughter very soon (I'm using for a spare on my days off right now) and I want to make sure it's good to go before letting her have it. Thanks -Dave

Thanks I'll give it a try. -Dave

Hi all, I'm kind of new to these forums. Looks like a great place to get advice so I'll give it a try. I have a 98 es300, 105k miles. I perform all maint. myself, the only problem this car has ever had was a o2 sensor heater error, replaced the sensor and all was well. Recently a new problem has come up. If I only drive the car for 10 or 20 min. it does fine. But when I drive it for over about 40 min and it gets hot, the car idle is not steady, it's like it cuts out about every 2 sec., sounds like it's going to stall, then revs to about 1k, it will just sit there and cycle like that, rpm going back and forth from about 500 to 1000. If I turn the car off for a min. and restart it still does it. If I give it gas it will rev up and smooths out about 3k but anything under it still has a small cycle in the engine rpms. I also took the gas cap off for a sec. in case there was a vacuum in tank but no change.The other strange thing was the exhaust seemed to have kind of a sulfer smell. No warning lights come on on dash. If I let the car cool for about 20min. it runs fine again. I have run some lucas fuel treatment in about the last 5 tanks but no help. the car has clean air filter, almost new spark plugs, I need to check my maint. notes to see if I have changed the fuel filter I'm not sure. I plan on checking how old the fuel filter is, I have also read on here about a idle control valve and am kind of wondering if that could be the problem. I don't mind trying to clean parts but I can't afford to just start changing parts, I may end up biting the bullet on this one and just take it to the dealer but I'll be very upset with myself it it turns out to be something simple. Any suggestions would be very much appreciated. Thanks-Dave

I figured it out, it's very easy, all you need is a philips screwdriver and pliers (I used needlenose). Where the mirror attached to stem was tight, but where the stem attached to windshield was not. The mirror must be completely removed (hanging gently by wires) to make the entire assembly tighter on the windshield. The mirror stem has a clip with 4 tabs that go up into the bracket on the windshield. I did this from passenger seat, while looking up at mirror. Gently turn the mirror and stem about 1/8 turn counter clockwise, it should swivel where it mounts to windshield, do not force it, it should turn about 1/8 and then stop. After it stops turning the tabs should be at at spot on the bracket where they can slide down and out. If the mirror turns and stops (looks like your unscrewing from windshield but it only goes 1/8 turn) gently wiggle the mirror and it should come out of the bracket. At this point you can let the mirror hang from the wires for a few min. If you look in the mirror stem you will see a metal clip with 4 tabs held in with 1 screw, remove screw and clip. This is where the tightening comes in, the clip with 4 tabs, the tabs are what slide into clip and hold mirrior tight. Take pliers and just slightly (just a hair) bend all 4 clips downward, if you can see a difference then you may have bent it too much. If you bend too much the clip will break, I used needlenose and I wasn't even sure if I bent them at all, but when I put the mirror back on the widshield there was a huge difference. The mirror is very tight now, no vibration at all. One thing I do need to mention is that when I went to remove the clip from the stem the screw started coming out with almost no effort, so in my case that screw may have been loose a couple turns, I didn't think much at the time but now i'm wondering if that wasn't the case. My point is if that was the case then bending the tabs may not have been the fix, it may have been tightening the screw. To re-install just put the clip back in stem, make sure screw is tight, insert the clip back into the bracket with mirror turned, turn the mirror gently back clockwise until the stem is vertical. hopefully your mirror is tight. The wife is happy. Later guys, and gals-Dave

Just an update if anyone is interested. I spoke with the local lexus dealer and was pleased to find out (from last 8 dig. of vin #) that all the service on our car was performed at the dealer since new. I asked if the rear windshield had ever been replaced and he said that something was done to the rear window frame back in Nov. 05. He said it didn't list any parts so he didn't think it had been replaced but there was some kind of service done to it he just didn't have specifics. So basically someone did mess with it a few years ago, I'd be willing to bet he forgot to tighten the nuts.

I thought those things were great when they first came out. I put them on all our cars and even sent some to family. After about a year I noticed the plastic top had popped off one, I didn't loose tire pressure but it made me realize how cheaply made they really are. When I spoke with my dad I found he had a slow leak on a tire and that turned out to be the problem. I removed them all also. It was a great idea but someone needs to make some that are better quality, I would be willing to pay more for them but they would need to be reliable than whats out there now.

I have been trying to find a diagram of how that assembly goes together for a couple weeks, my mirror is a little loose. It is a good thing that the metal piece is still on the window, I had one come off on a different car and could never get it glued back on well, it's hard to glue things to glass. It sounds like you just need to get the mirror back on to the metal ring, most mirrors have a part that fits around the ring and then a set screw that once tightened holds it to the ring. I have been holding off on messing with mine just because I don't want to break the plastic cover, I need to find out where the clips are that hold it on so I don't break it. Once it is out of the way it should be pretty easy to see how it attaches. I would see if there is a piece that looks like it would fit around the ring, then look for a very small screw, it may have an allen head. The screw may need to be backed out a little, then slide the piece over the ring, then try tightening the screw until it holds the mirror on tight. If the plastic covers ares still on the mirror stem you may need to remove them to see the bracket/set screw. Please let us know how it works out. Be glad the metal piece is still on the windshield, it shouldn't be that hard to get the mirror back on. Good luck -Dave

When we bought this car a few weeks ago I noticed a strange noise coming from the back passenger side whenever it hit a bump (quite often). I thought maybe something in the convertable top mechanism was loose. With the top halfway open I checked everything I could get to, it was all clean, tight, and well lubed. Since it was only coming from passenger side and not drivers side I was sure I could find it by comparing sides until I found something loose on the passenger side. After several trys no luck. I finally had my wife go for a ride with me in the back seat, armed with flashlight and sharp ear, determined to find the source, and I did. It was coming from where the bracket on back window attaches to the window frame, it is on the side of the window toward the top. Back in the garage, I opened top halfway and removed the panel that covers the bracket. The bracket attached to window has a screw that goes down through the frame, THERE WAS NO NUT! There where marks on the metal where a nut had been there at one time, looks like maybe one with star washer because thats what the marks looked like. I checked the other side and it didn't have a nut either. Basically the window was just setting in place, if I had pushed hard enough from the inside the window could have been pushed out! I was lucky enough to have a couple of nuts the correct size, I'm not even sure the size I had a few asst. metric nuts in a box and got lucky. At first I put a washer, lock washer, then the nut. Then I started getting worried that maybe since a window was attached I may have it too tight, so I put a thick rubber washer, flat washer, then tightened nuts just enough to see the rubber washer compress. Well the noise is gone and the wife is happy but that really freaked me out. I have been trying to figure out what happened to those nuts. I am convinced they didn't fall off on their own, the entire convertable assy. was very tight and lexus builds a tight car. My best guess is that the rear window was replaced, and the installer did a bad job. I find it really hard to believe he left BOTH nuts off but maybe he just snugged them and forgot to go back and tighten, and after awhile they fell off. If the previous owner had the window replaced and it made strange noise right after you would think they would take it back and have it checked, so they must have come off some time later. If anyone else has had any experience with the rear window please reply, or if you hear any strange noises coming from that area you may want to take a look at those brackets, or if you have any other good guesses. The panels don't even need to come all the way off to look, if you pull them away from window slightly you can shine a flashlight back there and see nuts (or no nuts), it easiest with the top half open. Later guys -Dave

Thank you very much, next oil change will be much easier. I had a sore spot on my forearm for a few days after, it was rubbing something when removing that filter from above, glad I won't be doing that again. I had a feeeling there was a small panel under it but I was too lazy to jack it up, I will next time. I am actually more of a motorcycle guy, when I bought it a few years ago (honda vtx 1800) I started using some of the online forums and there is a ton of info. Many guys post procedures for modifications with pictures ect. I am kind of surprized at the lack of mechanical info on this site. I guess most people that can afford this car pay someone else to do their wrenching. Not only can I not afford to pay someone else I don't trust anyone else, I have seen some very bad work and had too many people try to screw me. I think now that the prices are coming down low enough for people like me (like to work on stuff) to buy this car we will see more posts about repair and maint. I'm not white trash, just middle class. The neat thing about your reply is now any other new owners who want to change their own oil will know how to remove filter and won't need to wait for a answer. Thanks again-Dave

Thanks for the reply Gordon, The car has about 50k miles, I'm not sure if the widshield has ever been replaced, it had 1 previous owner and was a lease. I'm not really even sure if the mirror is loose, my wife mentioned it seemed to vibrate more than usual, but our car also has the run flats right now so the ride is a little bumpy. When I checked it out it just seemed to have a little more play than I would expect, I really just wanted to look at where it mounts to verify all is tight. Funny thing is after messing with it, the next time my wife drove it she thanked me for tightening it, I really just looked at it but she said it looked better??? I would still like to verify screw is tight. As far as taking it to the dealer, I'm so tight I squeek when I walk, I just don't like paying someone else for something I can do myself. I am a very mechanical kind of guy, I always do all work on our cars, if I have a service manual I'm good to go, I just don't have one yet. I still think the price is high for the spare "kit". I decided to try and find a full size spare anyway, I'll just keep it in the garage. I'm not in any hurry, the runflats it has now still have most of their life. Thanks again guys, good to see more posts, I was getting worried this site had been abandoned by all. Later guys-Dave

For anyone that has replaced their wheels, I would be interested in buying one of the stock wheels as a garage spare, if it still had some rubber on it that would be even better. If anyone is considering getting new wheels you may want to hang on to the old ones if your getting new tires at the same time. I bet there are more people than myself that would love to keep one in the garage even if it's almost bald it would be better than a mini-spare in a pinch. If my wife get's a flat I'll be the one responding every time ans since I work close to home it would be easy to run by the house and grab it. You may have more luck selling them individually than as a set . If you anywhere near Dallas I would be interested. Thanks-Dave