johns13

Lexus of Serramonte just performed the 55,000 mile service on my 2002 SC 430. They also replaced the V belt and the engine air filter and repaired one of the (dreadful) run-flat tires that had a puncture. The problem is that two seconds after I left, the VSC and VSC OFF lights both came on. I turned around immediately and went back to the dealer, who tried to blow me off with some kind of excuse about the tire pressures being wrong, but then admitted that the service techs had all gone home and they were needed to run the diagnostics. Has anyone else had this problem? What does the solution entail? Is this something the mechanics could have broken while they were working on my car? It seems strange that the VSC was working fine when it went in and now it coincidentally doesn't.

Hmmmm... needed a flashlight to find that little switch (not mentioned anywhere in my owner's manual!) but it was on "Main" rather than "2nd". I am leaning more and more towards replacing the run-flats with some decent Pirellis... and upgrading my AAA membership! Thanks for the help everyone - looks like it is something the dealer will have to see to.

I inflated them all to 39 psi - light still on. *sigh* Ride doesn't seem any worse.

1993 Mercedes 600SL Had more get up and go than the Lexus but sucked the gas. Lexus service staff and aftersales service are way better than Mercedes.

Good questions. I bought the car used from the dealer with 22k miles and 9k miles later it still has the same OE run-flat tires (Bridgestone Potenza RE040 245/40-18) and TRD wheels (factory option I think). The recommended pressure is 33/33. No repairs have been made to the tires or rims. Last time the warning light went out when I inflated the tire back to 33psi. I suspect the bumps and thumps due to the horrible condition of San Francisco roads has broken one of the sensors - I don't know whether that is a warranty item or not.

I have a 2002 SC430 with 31k miles, on which the tire pressures are supposed to be 33/33. A few months ago the tire pressure warning light came on and I checked all the tires - one was down to 26psi so I inflated it back to 33 and the warning light went off. The warning light has now come on again but all the tires are at (or above) 33psi. I called the dealer to book in the car for them to check it and the service guy tried to feed me some b/s about how the warning light might come on when the tires are cold (I measured them at 33psi when they were cold) as the sensors are "sensitive". He then told me to try inflating all the tires to 40psi. What is the story? The warning light doesn't need a dealer to reset it, does it? I suspect one of the sensors has hit one too many potholes and they don't want to replace it under warranty. What tire pressures do people run? Anyone else had a similar problem?

The Bridgestone Potenza RE050 runflat seems to get good reviews on TireRack, especially compared to the OE Bridgestone Potenza RE040 which gets slammed. In 245/40WR18 the RE050 RunFlat is $273, so about $1.1k for all four corners.

Do you get the Lexus logo stickers from the Lexus dealer?

Interesting, I didn't know about the 24 hr drying/curing time. Did you do a wheel at a time or take all four off together?

I like the look of red brake calipers with an open-spoke wheel. Has anyone used a product like this on their Lexus brake calipers? http://www.tirerack.com/brakes/g2/caliper_paint.jsp I have an Indigo Ink SC430 so I'd love to see some pictures of a blue Lexus with the calipers painted red or blue, to help me make up my mind. Otherwise I'll have to use photoshop to see what its going to look like. Thanks

Should they look like this? There was one on eBay -John

Hi Everyone, I am new to the wonderful world of Lexus ownership, having just traded my 1993 Mercedes 600SL in for a 2002 SC430 from Lexus of Sacramento. I love the Lexus, the only negative thing about it is some tire bump-thump and tramlining issues, which I expect will go away when I replace the run-flats with regular tires. I had a couple of questions for the experienced Lexus owners on the forum: I can't seem to find the service book - is this paper trail obsolete now as everything is in the dealer's computer? The climate control seems to run colder than the displayed temp - I would normally set the temperature to 72º but find myself setting it to 76º in the SC430 (roof up!) to avoid freezing during Sacramento's 100 degree days. Is this normal or does it need adjusting? I like to leave the transmission with the ECT/PWR switch on as it feels more responsive round town. I expect fuel economy suffers around town but does it have an impact during steady freeway driving? As an aside, I have had more compliments on this car (particularly from women) in the first two weeks of owning it, than in six years of owning the Benz. Thanks John http://www.bubwub.com/car/