Leaderboard

I purchased a shed load of gear many years ago (G220 V1, PTG etc etc) but fell out of love with detailing after a while and went back to just using the local £5 hand wash place. Having recently purchased the ISF I decided to get some tuition so I could expand my skills and finally correct a car fully so I booked a tuition day with Matt at Obsiadian Detailing in Saddleworth. The pictures below are a mix of iPhone and camera, excuse my poor mspaint skills when masking my plate. Arrived at Obsidian HQ for 09:00 and after a coffee we got on with washing and claying the car - 2 hours later we were left with a washed and clayed car - Got it out of the rain and into the unit where it was dried and taped up ready for some machine polishing with a random orbital - We started with the bootlid which was showing the usual swirls and marks you would expect from a used car - The paint proved to be annoyingly soft and ended up needing a 3 step process of compounding, polishing and then refining with a trio of pads and polishes. The different between the correct bootlid and the untouched spoiler was obvious. We then moved on to the NSR door, the paintwork was just as bad as the rest of the car - The same 3 stage process resulted in a massive difference - Matt also showed me the Glare Professional Polish which we used on a section the OSR door, took no time at all to apply and I was shocked at just how much of the swirls it managed to mask. Something for me to consider using once I have corrected the rest of the car just to give it that extra something and help me keep on top of the finish. Having spent a good 8 hours or so at Obsidian HQ learning new skills and knowledge I now have the confidence to go and correct the rest of the car and get it looking its best. Will need some decent weather now unless I manage to find a garage or unit that I can use for a day or two. I strongly recommend one to one tuition to anyone who is looking to gain some confidence and skills in using a machine polisher and learning more about looking after your paintwork. If you are local (or fancy the trip to Saddleworth) then give Matt at Obsidian Detailing a shout.

Taped into reverse light wiring,screen and camera,so only powers up when they do

Hi Paul, I have recently replaced my tailgate lock assembly because of faulty electric motor, here are some pics, hope this helps

Thanks John. I never noticed this button. Ahmed tried a few times and it doesn't do it. followed YouTube. maybe it doesn't work on is250 ?

Its still a mistake. It mentions Hilux in there lol

That's a rare car to find even more so with that mileage, any more detailed pictures particularly the interior?

I think I'm wrong about the emergency release (although I could have sworn I "found" it when replacing the tailgate bulbs or shampooing the boot upholstery a while back! I've dug up some links for you to look at though: http://toyotapartscatalog.com/parts/lexus-6943048010/ Pages from the workshop manual: http://workshop-manuals.com/lexus/rx_330_awd/v6-3.3l_(3mz-fe)/body_and_frame/doors_hood_and_trunk/trunk/liftgate/liftgate_window_glass/component_information/diagrams/ I wonder if a wire may have broken/perished in the tailgate harness or if water has found it's way into a connector in the tailgate causing you these issues.... Does everything on the tailgate work correctly, for example, reverse camera, exterior lights, number plate lights, fog lights etc?

Hi, it was all part of the upgrade done by Simon at MJS in Ipswich with the turbo kit he has developed. It is running 6psi and around 230bhp. Apart from the lightened flywheel which helps reduce the stress on spool up, it is stock internals but it has only done 72,000 miles which is just about run in on that car. it does have an uprated fuel pump. The standard ECU learns, so it was just reset and a few adjustments and it runs great. for normal driving you can feel there is a bit more there but when you need it and keep the revs a bit higher, it does go very well. It has been decatted and a powerflow back box which helps too. I will have it run on a dyno one day, but because I haven't gone for bodykits and spoilers and tried to keep is as "normal" looking as I can, its more fun as no one expects to to blast past them. They just think its some old guy in his ancient Lexus until I am waving them goodbye....... I did look at supercharging but when I saw this kit he had developed at £2300 fitted I explored that a bit more. I did then go for the flywheel and new clutch and bigger brakes along with the lsd and poly bushes. I had already done the coil overs, roll bars, strut braces and bigger wheels along with a quickshift so it put everything together. In the end it wasn't cheap but I have a lovely car which I shall keep for as long as its viable. Good luck with yours, what are you planning for the suspension?

GibletPH, the very nice lady on the phone asked if I wanted to sign up to the service plan and is sending me a quote across via mail. She did mention that it would include a 15% discount for club membership so looks like you may be able to drop it some... For everyone's info they are also still doing the 24months for price of 12 on extended warrenty, asked for a quote for that also. If you can get a club discount on that to it would be incredible.

Changed my rear bulbs to the l.e.d ones listed earlier and removed the shields and must say a big improvement thanks for the previous posts great help. Fingers still hurt mind whilst trying to pull body panels off !!!

Curiosity got the better of me when I nearly killed myself with glare on the motorway lol. Something had to be done and I guess ive found a solution :)

Just to provide a bit of closure, the RX went in to Lexus Hedge End again a few days ago. The workshop had the car for 1.5 days. I believe they practically rebuilt the brakes and eventually found that one of the inner calipers or a pin wasn't quite retracting as it should do once braking had stopped. I guess it was binding very slightly. Anyway, all was put back together and the brakes have performed perfectly for the last 50-100 miles. The total cost for two visits and all associated labour - £0. Not a single penny. I've had all levels of customer service with my cars over the years, but Lexus in Hedge End, just outside Southampton have everyone beat. Absolutely fantastic! It's the reason why my wife's RX, and my ISF go there, without fail, every time they need anything looked at.

I could get 37 if I pushed it off a cliff. Never got anywhere near that on any journey. "A" roads taking it very careful I can get 33 but 31 is more likely. Usually it's more like 28 with mixed journeys. Short journeys round town where it's not getting properly warmed up 24-26.