SC430 with 500 000 miles on the clock

[aviator888]

42 minutes ago, Spacewagon52 said:

Great thread - you are brave! Dare I be rude and ask the purchase price?

I bought her from well known dodgy car dealers who go by the name of "carswithnoreseve" lol. They tried to flog it on eBay auction several times but with no luck. So i went over with some cash and a friend of mine, who knows cars inside out :) Even tough i consider myself competent enough in most cases, i highly recommend bringing someone with you when purchasing a car. The reason behind it is simple: You may miss important things in the euphoria and excitement. Your friend, if he knows what he is doing, will look at things from a different perspective.. he won't be buying anything and to him it's just another car. 

As soon as i walked in there, i wanted to turn around and run :D the place reminded me of car graveyard. But i think their pricing must be right as i was checking every detail of the SC, at least 30 people did the same thing to various other motors from Golf's to 911s and even CL600. So overall i would not say avoid them at all costs, but just do your homework and do not believe a single word without genuine paperwork behind it. Also their eBay listings are full of "it" as traders usually do :D 

About price: including all the spending sprees for stainless steel exhaust, cambelt kit, oils filters and gaskets i have ordered, still got change left from £2000. 

With prices for LS430s being so ridiculously low i budgeted for engine/gearbox replacement worst case scenario but looks like this is not necessary for now :) 

[steve2006]

I have a spare space saver wheel and tyre (which may need replacing due to age cracking but not use) for free if you can collect from Derbyshire.

[aviator888]

6 minutes ago, steve2006 said:

I have a spare space saver wheel and tyre (which may need replacing due to age cracking but not use) for free if you can collect from Derbyshire.

Thanks :) Sent a pm

[Spacewagon52]

1 hour ago, aviator888 said:

I bought her from well known dodgy car dealers who go by the name of "carswithnoreseve" lol. They tried to flog it on Ebay auction several times but with no luck. So i went over with some cash and a friend of mine, who knows cars inside out :) Even tough i consider myself competent enough in most cases, i highly recommend bringing someone with you when purchasing a car. The reason behind it is simple: You may miss important things in the euphoria and excitement. Your friend, if he knows what he is doing, will look at things from a different perspective.. he won't be buying anything and to him it's just another car. 

As soon as i walked in there, i wanted to turn around and run :D the place reminded me of car graveyard. But i think their pricing must be right as i was checking every detail of the SC, at least 30 people did the same thing to various other motors from Golf's to 911s and even CL600. So overall i would not say avoid them at all costs, but just do your homework and do not believe a single word without genuine paperwork behind it. Also their Ebay listings are full of "it" as traders usually do :D 

About price: including all the spending sprees for stainless steel exhaust, cambelt kit, oils filters and gaskets i have ordered, still got change left from £2000. 

With prices for LS430s being so ridiculously low i budgeted for engine/gearbox replacement worst case scenario but looks like this is not necessary for now :) 

That is very good. I would be in doo doo land if I tried that, as I can't undo a nut! Please keep this thread going, many on here will be interested to see how the SC pans out. You are still a brave man ............ maybe not with a Lexus?

[aviator888]

Thanks. At this mileage i wouldn't of touched anything else with a barge pole :D 

 

[Bob King]

4 hours ago, aviator888 said:

Older cars in dark colors are real pita to keep mint. Every single scratch is clearly visible.. Silver is the best in this respect.. no need to visit a car wash that often either.

When i bought the car I checked under the carpets for rust/signs of accident repair and also measured the paint thickness all over the car especially the bonnet and rear quarters. All good there.. 

Now trying to find your tutorial about spare wheel fitting 

It’s in with this thread ......

 

[Neil E]

Mel, it's a shame the engine doesn't need replacing. You're the man to drop a 2JZ into it. 

Good advice re. taking a knowledgeable sensible friend to view the car. 

 

[aviator888]

Weather is good and i have a day off work so i'm at it again  

This means both door cards are off and speaker repair in progress. As suspected.. both 6 x 9 speakers damaged. 

Highly recommend take a good care when removing door cards. The plastic is indeed very brittle and brakes easily as i found out in process.  

 

[messi]

That's very common on earlier models, the mark levinson speakers are paper cone, cheap material, replace them with Alpine speakers 

[aviator888]

56 minutes ago, messi said:

That's very common on earlier models, the mark levinson speakers are paper cone, cheap material, replace them with Alpine speakers 

Thank You for advice. Have you replaced the speakers on yours? I'm only trying to restore them because from what i know it's not easy to find an 8 Ohm replacement speakers.. 

[messi]

Yes I have..almost all lexus sc430 owners have replaced the speakers, no point fixing the cheapo crappy ML speakers as your going to have to dismantle the door cards again in couple months as they will break again. You can replace them with Alpine speakers, we don't have any issues with them and they sound better

[aviator888]

20 minutes ago, messi said:

Yes I have..almost all lexus sc430 owners have replaced the speakers, no point fixing the cheapo crappy ML speakers as your going to have to dismantle the door cards again in couple months as they will break again. You can replace them with Alpine speakers, we don't have any issues with them and they sound better

I agree.. the original ML speakers look indeed very very sad. Would you be able to provide me with the part number of the Alpine 6 x 9 you have fitted please? 

[aviator888]

Today i managed to glue back both door handle covers, remove the satnav unit for further investigation, disconnect the TPMS system (no more warning light on the dashboard) and temporarily fix both front speakers. Alpine speakers will be fitted as soon as i find a suitable model. 

Also took my daughter for a quick spin :) She loves this car as much as i do. 

[messi]

I think they were Alpine sxe 6925s and they sound amazing. Way better than ML speakers. I can't believe lexus charge so much for the ML speakers and they are very cheaply made and are rubbish. The premium lexus sound is better

[Bob King]

Here you go...

https://www.caraudiocentre.co.uk/product_m-alpine-sxe-6925s_p-21902.htm

[Linas.P]

3 hours ago, messi said:

I think they were Alpine sxe 6925s and they sound amazing. Way better than ML speakers. I can't believe lexus charge so much for the ML speakers and they are very cheaply made and are rubbish. The premium lexus sound is better

Maybe that is only the case for SC430 and similar age models? Whereas I cannot say ML is worth the money over Lexus premium in IS mk2/mk3 and similar age cars they certainly are slightly better and all in all one of the best standard sound systems on the market.

regarding car in question - what amazes me is how good the interior looks like, the leather doesn't look even "80k miles like", I am not talking 380k... Really amazing.. 

[The-Acre]

1 hour ago, Linas.P said:

Maybe that is only the case for SC430 and similar age models? Whereas I cannot say ML is worth the money over Lexus premium in IS mk2/mk3 and similar age cars they certainly are slightly better and all in all one of the best standard sound systems on the market.

regarding car in question - what amazes me is how good the interior looks like, the leather doesn't look even "80k miles like", I am not talking 380k... Really amazing.. 

I have to say I find the Lexus system in my GS just as good (if not better) than the ML which I had in both my LS430's

[Linas.P]

Not sure whats is your point here? Are we in agreement that maybe ML was not as good in older cars e.g. LS430 compared to never cars like your current GS? Or you saying that generally ML is not an improvement over Lexus premiums systems? 

My experience is based on both ML and non-ML audio in both IS250 mk2 and IS300h mk3. In mk2 when using good source e.g. DVD audio, 14-speakers ML has edge over 13-speakers standard system - not so much louder, but certainly better definition and clarity, but from poor source e.g. mp3 over aux-in... there are almost no difference. Which in summary means ML is nice to have, but not really worth the money on mk2.

However, on mk3 IS Lexus made sure ML is much more worthy option... they dumbed-down standard system from 13-speakers in mk2, to awful 6 speakers system in mk3, then introduced 10 speakers (reasonable) premium audio and then 15-speakers ML, which is significant improvement over Premium audio and I am not even talking about standard poverty line system. 

Overall, ML is great system, but often (except of IS mk3 and RC) standard Lexus system is so good, that any improvement is going to give diminishing returns in terms of value for money.

[Neil E]

To my ears, the ML system on the early LS400 models was very nice indeed, better than any later models I've listened to, including the LS460. The LS430 was pretty good and if you don't try to play it too loudly the SC430 sounds better than any of the GS430 systems I had but again played flat, without too much volume, I agree with Linas it's still a great sound for standard car audio. Replacing it with something better is a very expensive business and probably only worth considering if you spend long hours behind the wheel and are a mad fool audiophile with hearing still intact.

I'm a big fan of Alpine, they are very good value but personally I wouldn't swap to the 2 way 4 ohm Alpine speakers. In practice they work okay but aren't a direct replacement for the original 8 ohm drivers. They will obviously sound better than old blown ML speakers. If you're not too fussy about hifi they are a good quality cheap fix as the ML amp does seem to cope with the 4 ohm load and it's not easy to find 8 ohm component replacements. 

 

[aviator888]

Oils, filters and gaskets delivered today from Lexus Birmingham. Many of you may disagree on this, but i am using 5W- 30 semi-synthetic oil and not the fully synthetic. A friend of mine actually advised to use mineral oil lol, but i wouldn't be able to sleep at night if i follow that. Always used fully synthetic oil in all my cars, but due to the age and mileage of the SC, i see the reason and logic to swap to semi this time. Don't try this at home  i am certainly not doing this due cost reasons. 

[messi]

You should have replaced the sparkplugs and air filter too. I did a full service on mine when i first purchased it at 181000 miles. Got all parts from Lexus dealers 

[Malc1]

Regarding semi synthetic oil. My Indy has only ever indicated the use of semi owing to the age and wear and tear on the engine

nothing to do with cost at all.  He says it's the most suitable in the circumstances 

Malc

 

[aviator888]

2 hours ago, messi said:

You should have replaced the sparkplugs and air filter too. I did a full service on mine when i first purchased it at 181000 miles. Got all parts from Lexus dealers 

Thanks for advice. How many miles on yours now? Any issues with engine or gearbox?

Once i get all the parts in the car will have a few treats including: 

Cambelt, waterpump, radiator, fresh oil both engine and gearbox; spark plugs, air filter, cabin air filter, new cam cover gaskets both sides and sump cover gasket. Grooved discs with quality pads all around and some nice 18" alloy wheels will follow shortly. 

I'm planning to do most of the jobs myself except for gearbox oil change, which will be done by my local Lexus dealer. Another issue i won't be able to sort myself is the paint bubbling on the roof but i will deal with that after everything else is sorted. 

[messi]

I've had my one just over a year and now is had just over 185000. No issues with gearbox or engine. I did have that oil leak though but that was cam covers gasket. New radiator was fitted just before I bought it and I had the cambelt replaced last October. I had a receipt that the previous owner gave me, it was a Halfords receipt for a cambelt and water pump replacement. I did tell him then that they hadn't replaced it, being Halfords they are good at saying that they've done a job but hadnt and how right I was, I got it in time, it was shredding. I got cambelt and water pump from lexus. New rear shocks too and it's perfect. The roof rust is common on our earlier models. I had mine sorted and resprayed 

[Spacewagon52]

Like the LS430, I presume it is prudent to replace the radiator for the potential gearbox contamination problems?