Malc

I'm intrigued by the hand pleated interior door trims ...... was this the same on the first cars too, from 1989 and which we all exisiting owners enjoy to this day ? Malc

I was so impressed with SGS when they made from scratch new rear window struts for my ( alas now departed ) Mazda 323F a few years ago. No trouble at all, they didn't have the template in their repertoire and copied new from my existing dead ones that I sent to them. Brilliant service Malc

ok, hope you're right 👍, my 266 miles felt like i was nose to tail the whole goddam journey, motorways or not ... we never stopped, just slowed right down to a snails pace for looooong lengths of the journey .... that 7.5 hrs excluded however the half hour stop at the end of the A14 for coffee I'll never again drive north from Kent on a Friday morning ............. brilliant time in Yorkshire though, fabulous driving in the Lexus, all over Dale and Moor ..... brilliant Malc

blimey, that's optimistic ... my 4hrs drive up to York the other Friday took the best part of 7.5 hrs Malc

and quite clearly my 1995 Ls400 .... now nearly 209k miles and going strong ( ly stainless ) and 23 years young Malc

OMG I'd better go buy the car and keep it for the next 10 years Malc

you might get one of those dent removal businesses that visit you at home to do you a special price for a whole days work rather than just the one dent removed for a whole days work ! I'd try it anyway Malc

Stuart those dents seem unimaginable if you didn't experience it first hand .... true battlescars, one to tell the grandchildren Malc

likewise in Yorkshire on my recent holiday one morning along a country lane where a branch from a tree had fallen overnight. Lady had stopped in her 2006 Vauxhall and exclaimed to me that I shouldn't get too close to the branches in my new car .... I was manhandling the branches over the wall to help clear a way through the road. I explained her car was 11 years younger than mine ! Malc

Pete, I doubt any car is as reliable as an Ls ( that's been well maintained of course ) Malc

Graham, over the years I have read of both the Ls400 and Ls430 bubbling paint just under that specific point on a door, usually the offside though. Members have often caught it just before the 12 year Lexus paint warranty expired and had doors etc replaced FOC. ..... boot lids too on the Ls430 Malc If it's any consolation I noticed that self same thing happening to mine about 5 years ago ( when she was 18 years old ) and thankfully the mark has not yet seemingly spread, at least on the surface

non classic cars rarely appreciate in value .. even if it seemed a great bargain at the time Malc

David i don't know if this might help at all When i bought my Mk3 from ACLex in 2011 ( he's still on here somewhere I believe ) he had changed my car to DHP stuff and I bought it from him re-converted back to original spec. If you contact him I guess he might be able to give you some useful info on this subject Malc

Torrey hi, so what's the hourly rate charged by your chosen mechanic ? Malc

don't forget the usual Lexus main dealer hourly rate is @£180 ( + vat ? ) and most local good indys will charge maybe £40 or so Malc

excellent result, well done Malc

is this the only guy ( called Paul ? ) that i have seen recommended by you guys ? Thanks Malc

we experienced owners find that original parts do have extraordinary longevity compared to other marques Malc

thank heavens I only have, quite extraordinarily for these times, " Ordinary " headlight bulbs in my Mk3 ................. cost about a fiver each and last for donkeys years and actually give out pretty good illumination too Oh for simplicity eh ! Malc

suggest you go for a brass toasting fork, much simpler even though now Michael Gove is trying to ban log fires due to carbon emissions etc .......... Malc

remembering .......... I had a super, fantastic metallic light blue Vauxhall VX 2300 S estate, ( YUG 600S maybe ) a super straight 6 engine I believe, I had it at 3 years old, fabulous and quick ( for those days ) bags of family room and a lovely car to drive too ..... ex-wife had it in the settlement in '84 just as the front wings were dropping off with the rust. Don't think it lasted her too long ( how sad eh ! ) I was left with the other family car ( on finance ) my W reg saloon Ford Cortina 2.3 Ghia ( OKM181W ? )... that too seemed a fabulous quick car in it's day sorry I reminisce when guys talk about their beloveds Malc

Brilliant, 15 years old and only one screw missing .............. you might get a few more as the years progress I suspect I have a few too .............. Malc

R49FFG sure doesn't have a current MOT I've just checked ! Malc

If it were me I would consider phoning a local independent specialist aircon repair business At least then you would get a sensible comparative likely cost from a proper professional independent and i don't mean the likes of Halfords Kwikfit or similar Just my 2pn'th Best wishes with it Malc

Malc