The-Acre

Certainly on the earlier ones like ours, the park assist button was only for the fronts, and that seemed to be an option. I've no idea how hard it would be but maybe a switch could be added to operate the rears. Have you tried contacting Lexus to see if they're familiar with this? There must be loads of people towing with these cars, you see lots for sale with tow bars.

I don't know of a switch in mine that disconnects the sensors, you have a separate switch on the right if you have the front sensors, but not for the rear. Maybe finding the correct fuse is the answer.

Some people do drain their gearbox by taking a litre at a time from the hose via the gearbox pump, it may take a long time to fully flush it though, and it's not cheap. I hope you manage to salvage it. What was the indication that it first happened? I've just recently diverted mine away from the transmission to a cooler to avoid this very problem, although with a new radiator it'll be OK for some time. Reading other comments from past victims of this problem you may not be able to restore it unfortunately.

That's so obvious I feel like an idiot! I was wondering what to do with the hoses I disconnected from the radiator, I didn't think of just linking them back, Doh! So as you say, the forum proves its worth again.

Thanks for that, it's a really good bit of info. I had a look and they are charging less for headlight bulbs than I paid at Eurocarparts, Even air shocks are slightly less scary at £788 each!

I got it on ebay. They may even supply one with 10mm fittings if you ask, which would make the job easier (not that it's difficult anyway) And I used about 600ml of fluid to top it up. Here's the link, but they seem to be out of stock. Plenty more available through other sellers, although a lot from China! After doing some research it was the "stacked plate" cooler that was suggested as being the most efficient, which is what I used. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/370888636929?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&var=640119921904&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

I just ask this question out of curiosity. After fitting a transmission cooler I'm more aware of the heat generated now it's at the front and accessible. With the factory system it's cooled through the radiator, but the coolant in the radiator is not exactly what you would call cool, even with the fans running. When the engine is up to normal running temperature you can't really hold on to the radiator hoses for more than a couple of seconds. The new cooler and hoses certainly don't get any hotter than the radiator, but they obviously do get quite hot. I've done about 70 miles since fitting it, some waiting in long hold ups, some at speeds well in excess of XXVVXX MPH! So it all seems to be OK, but I just wondered how hot I should expect it to get. Thanks

Or you could put a separate cooler on like I did. Actually, it would be just as easy to replace the radiator, they're not that expensive. What about the suspension issues, do they still apply to the face-lift model?

I may be wrong but it looks as if one of the back windows is starting to de- laminate as well. Best left well alone then. If you're seriously looking one will come along, they seem to be reasonably plentiful. What's wrong with your current car then?

Don't be jealous, the pliers are missing!

The rise is only very small, I think that people imagine that the car goes up by a bout 6" when it's only about 1" at the most. If I switch mine to high (which I do occasionally just to keep parts moving) The back seems to go up first, followed by the front. If you were a passenger and you weren't told, you probably wouldn't notice. I asked the seller of the one in Wales about the cam belt. I also asked if there's been any work done on the suspension, but he's not aware of any. I think if one has been converted the pump etc would be disconnected. If this one really is as good as it seems, it would be a good one for maybe fitting coil springs in due course. I was looking at a US Lexus forum last week, one guy has done 240K in his LS430 without any issues!

I forked out for Denso blades last year, I won't be doing it again though!

Cam belt done at 104K apparently, nice looking car.

This one I imagine http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2000-LEXUS-LS430-AUTO-SILVER-/271870081271?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item3f4cb838f7 If I was looking I'd consider this. I think the price is OK if the condition is as good as they say it is.

Depends what you mean by electric mirrors. My 93 had heated and electric adjustable mirrors, the tilting mirrors though came later.

I did it on my last LS400 as it started to come unstuck in very hot weather, plus it was looking a bit tired. I got the self adhesive stuff from Halfords, it did actually look very good. I'm going to do the same to my current one soon as it's also looking a bit tired.

Well John Noakes, Valerie Singleton and Peter Purves are all still alive!!! Not sure about Shep though....

It's ridiculous the way we pay so much here. It's also ridiculous the way Toyota dealers seem to talk about Lexus as though its a family member they no longer get on with.

It just couldn't be that simple could it! The problem being is there's just so much packed in at the rear it's hard to know where to start. Is it a recent thing or did you buy it like it? I think I would try every single adjustment on the seats to see if different positions eliminate it. The felt type covers in the boot come away fairly easily but I don't know how you get to the rear blind. I assume you've tried it with the blind up and down, and had someone sit in the back to listen? I've got a Vauxhall estate that I use for work, and I very nearly bought a new exhaust due to a rattle from the far rear, turned out to be radiator mountings right at the front! I hope you get it sorted, it would drive me nuts.

Thank you for that Rupert, I'm assuming I can get it easily enough without going online. Disappointing result from Toyota really, although I thought the fixed price full service was reasonable at £239. Especially as they said in their report everything is fine, apart from a chip on the windscreen and.... "THE ATF FLUID IS LOW"

My car was serviced by Toyota today, they said when I booked it in that they would top up the trans fluid to save me buying 5ltrs (after fitting an after market cooler) Now they say they can't and want to sell me the full amount at £60. Presumably that means if you have a Toyota and the fluid needs topping up you pay for 5ltrs, even if you only need a tiny amount!! This Mobil fluid is available and according to a US site Mobil ATF 3309 is compatible with Type T1V, Anyone know if that's correct? http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mobil-ATF-JWS-3309-Toyota-ATF-T-IV-T1V-Lexus-Volvo-Porsche-High-Performance-1L-/141103693775?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item20da6f7fcf

It may be the same. I took my mirror off recently to look for a point to wire a dash cam. All I did was unclip the front of the casing and the rest was fairly obvious, the mirror just unplugs from the multitude of wires in the casing. Don't know about the dipstick, I didn't think I had one but found it much lower down than expected.

Hi Paul, welcome to the LOC!

Have you checked the exhaust heat shields? It's quite common on the LS400 anyway. They corrode around the fixing bolts causing a rattle.

There are two metal 10mm pipes that come from the gearbox and join the rubber hose 300mm before the radiator. I get your point about the clips which is why I would get a 10mm kit if I did it again. Having said that, it looks like I have loads of clips but one is replacing an original that I took off, so there are really only two that connect the reducing piece that I had made. I guess it could be rubber mounted, but I can't see why it should be a problem if not, many coolers on other cars are solid fixed. It isn't thermostatic controlled and I don't know how much oil it will take as it's going to Toyota on Tuesday for a service, they said they'll top it up for me to save buying 5 ltrs! I lost only about a teaspoon when I disconnected the old pipe. I can't image that it will take more than about a quarter of a liter to top it up.