Steviewevie

With the engine on or off ? (e.g power steering going or not)

I'm sure you already know this anyway Rob, but obviously you still need to be very careful if you try this sort of thing on the autobahn, e.g. closing speeds will be much higher than you may have been used to before (e.g. on UK roads), reduced reaction time if someone suddenly pulls out etc. As you say, the car should be able to handle it fine, it's the driver that's more risky !

The manual doesn't appear to show a different part for the IS300 there, but perhaps you can tell better for yourself, I don't really know what I'm talking about Or someone else can probably confirm for you.

I was just having a look at where the horns are currently mounted, and where they could go. I can see the holes in the crash bar (there seem to be several of them), but I think I might be missing something. If I'm going to use a nut and bolt to fix the horns to the crash bar, how do I get to the other side of it ? Whilst the rear is accessible, the front is covered over by the bumper etc, but earlier responses said there was no need to take that off ? Which is why I think I must be missing something ... :iraqi-info-minister:

Don't know, but you could have a look at the online workshop manual here. It has separate sections where the IS300 is different, so you could see if it shows any suspension differences.

I seem to remember reading here that the VVTi doesn't "kick in" as such (perhaps as opposed to Honda's VTEC ?), it's active across the rev range. Maybe its operation changes part way through the rev band though ? Or maybe I mis-remembered lol ? The Camcon is for sale on ProLex's site here, with lots more info here

Maybe it depends how tall you are, unless the size/shape of the headrest changed or something ? The centre headrest doesn't obscure my view of the rear brake light or out of the back window from the driver's seat at all.

I would check they're all masters first, you wouldn't want to find only one's a master and you've sold it ! I'd keep all three if I were you, if you lose one then you've got two good keys still, if they're all masters. Check out eBay for prices, or perhaps others can advise.

Did you come up with anything on this ?

I think that when the car is brand new, the master keys are the three-button ones, and the valet keys (non-master) just have two buttons (no boot key). However, when a car's been through several owners you can't be sure what has happened to it and what keys might have been reprogrammed/gone wrong etc. So I believe that the only reliable test is to watch the behaviour of the dashboard security light when you insert the key into the ignition (no need to turn it). If the security light goes off immediately on insertion, then I believe that's a master key. If it comes on for a second when the key is inserted, then it's not a master key.

I really do feel for you, that would drive me mad too, it sounds like you've been trying really hard to find it. I would have thought that a Lexus dealer probably would charge you a fortune to find and fix it. Although I guess there's no harm in asking if they know of any known dashboard rattles similar to the one you describe, and see if they'll tell you for free. They might even charge you to have a quick look at your car if you want to demonstrate the rattle, I don't know. But you don't lose anything by asking. You said that when you moved the tilt lever, the noise stopped. So did it stop completely with the wheel in a slightly different position ? Or did it only stop when you were actually moving the lever ?

Check out the "sticky" posting about "Need a New Key ?" at the top of this forum, there's lots of useful stuff in there. Yes, you start off the procedure with your master key to put the car into programming mode (when it starts locking and unlocking in its own), then you press the buttons on your new fob to programme it in. You're right to be concerned about having only one key, you're in big trouble (big bill) if you lose your only master key. I don't know if it's possible to somehow mess up the existing key with this procedure, but I don't remember anyone saying that they'd done so, so I tend to doubt it. What generally seems to happen is that it either works or it doesn't. If it doesn't work then just try it again and it will probably work, assuming you're doing the steps correctly.

Sorry but I think a Lexus dealer is very unlikely to have got your geometry right, even if they tried to do so. If your car hasn't been to WIM, then it's almost certainly going to greatly benefit from a trip to Tony and the WIM boys.

No probs. My experience at my local dealer is that they call up the information about the Lexus model on their computer, then can call up a picture of all the parts in a particular part of the car, so they should be able to see which bits have individual part numbers and can therefore be ordered (and can also tell you the price, of course).

Dunno, but try phoning a Lexus/Toyota dealer's parts department. They should be able to look up the relevant info and tell you what they can get hold of.

Gone off the S15 now then ? :D

That's great !

How easy is it to fit the Prolex kit ? For example, if I was getting some other work done at a garage anyway, I presume they'd find it easy enough to fit ?

I'm pretty sure the ProLex ones come with brackets.

Actually I just noticed that the sub-heading for this thread is "GS300 Sport", although this is one of the IS200 sub-forums. My answers were specific for the IS200, I have no idea whether this is true for the GS or not. If it has a security light and you can see different behaviour from different keys, then it probably is, and would be interesting to know !

This thread is interesting, that's another advantage of coilovers that I'd never thought of, i.e. that you're getting new shocks at the same time with them.

Originally when the car comes from the factory, the master keys have three buttons and the valet key two buttons (no boot key). *However* I don't believe the number of buttons is a reliable test once the car is several years old and keys might have been reprogrammed etc. Put the key into the ignition and watch the flashing security light on the dashboard as you insert it (you don't need to turn it). If the security light turns off as soon as the key is inserted, it's a master key. If the security light comes on/stays on for a second when you insert it, it's a valet key and can't be used for programming. As long as you've got at least one master key, you can programme new keys as per the instructions on the main IS200 forum.

I'm guessing that the 6-cylinder IS200 engine was probably designed more for refinement rather than outright speed.

See my Wiki link. The RS200 engine, despite being "only" 4 cylinders, is a lot more powerful.

There's some good stuff on this at Wikipedia