Steviewevie

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The Corolla Compressor uses a 4 cylinder engine, doesn't it ? Not sure how you can make any sort of judgement about how good a charged IS200 is by driving a Corolla ?

If you have OEM satnav in your car, then you'll need an additional box of tricks otherwise your satnav won't work any more once the new head unit is connected.

The Sport uses exactly the same exhaust as the other models, shouldn't make any difference.

I recall some members talking about possible leaks in the hoses/pipework, which can cause power loss, might be worth checking if those are all tight.

ok, looking on eBay for 1895 (thanks Aztec !), this looks interesting, think I'll measure up and see if it will fit (it comes with the necessary bayonet connector) :

What sort did you get ? I've seen some "bulbs" with 3 SMT LEDs in, I'm wondering what sort will give a good balance between being bright enough to read maps without being dazzling. Was it autolumination.com ?

The alternator fuse is a big one though, isn't it, the 120A one ? Not one of the small ones that you can use the fuse removal tool on. I presume it just pulls out. Maybe you're talking about a different fuse though.

Sounds like HID-mimicing halogen replacement bulbs are the answer then !

That linked bulb set will probably give you the bluish look that you're after. If that's the right sort of bulb for an IS250 then it should go straight in, yes. A proper HID conversion kit (with ballasts etc) will be *much* brighter.

Yes, that's the one in Redline. I remember that Driftworks thread being posted up before, now you've reminded me ! :D

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On my Pioneer head unit (FH-P80BT, double-DIN) you can change the FM tuning step in the setup. It is 50 KHz (i.e. 98.10-98.15-98.20) for manual tuning on mine, but changes to 100 KHz when AF or TA is on (and then via setup you can change that back to 50 KHz). Don't know if yours is similar.

Was having a look at this in a shop today, and I noticed that they're swapping some sort of American V8 (can't remember the details) into an IS200 body shell. Don't know if IS200s come up often in these sort of mags, I don't normally look at them. It was only a very short piece, a couple of photos showing wheel arch extensions etc, but I imagine there will be more over time.

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Why are they recommending a regas ? Does the aircon work ok, apart from being smelly ? If so, then it sounds like a waste of money to me.

I agree that these days a dealer service history, especially once a car starts getting a few years old, isn't really going to have much effect if anything on the value of the car. The important thing is evidence that the cam belt was changed, not who did it. I would get it done at an independent specialist if I was you, will be a lot cheaper than getting Lexus to do it. Or even getting Toyota to do it will be cheaper than Lexus.

Surely that would just create more drag? After reading up on it, they're supposed to reduce drag. If there's a steep change in surfaces, e.g. where the rear screen suddenly dips down, then instead of the air cleanly following the surface of the car, it breaks away and becomes turbulent. The "gap" that this creates in the air can try and "suck" the car back, creating drag. The idea of vortex generators is that they disrupt the air flow slightly and the vortexes actually make the air follow that steep change of direction better, reducing drag. However, if you look at the links I posted, the reduction in drag is absolutely tiny even on cars where the vortex generators were specifically designed for them.

Found an article on them via Google, here. I'm not convinced they'll do anything at all at road speeds, but I guess if you like the look of them, that's the main thing. Edit - parts 2, 3 and 4 of the article.

Check Toyota/Lexus for their price (and join as a Gold member on LOC to potentially get a discount from them), also check at a motor factors for prices on an ADL Blueprint clutch. Be careful because another LOC member ended up with a damaged flywheel too from his knackered clutch, so try not to drive it if you can avoid it.

ok, so the map light take a BA9 bulb as far as I can see. There don't appear to be a lot of LEDs to fit this on eBay though, unless I'm not looking properly (maybe there's another designation for it too ?). Anyone have any recommendations for what sort of LED works well for this, i.e. so that you can still use the light to read maps without it being blinding for the driver ?

Brilliant, I love it !

P0302 is a misfire on cylinder 2, as you say. No idea what that extra "P" means, the code wasn't just wrapping around and repeating, was it ? It could be caused by various things. Might be worth swapping both the plug and the coilpack over to different cylinders and see if and where the code moves to.

What is the idea of a vortex generator ? Presumably it is supposed to generate small vortexes which have some sort of beneficial effect ?

The FIA have just announced that the world championship will, for this season, be decided by who wins the most races, with the current points system as a tie-breaker. More here.