is200 Newbie

Best to take it off / sand and repaint like you have said as if replacing it then you would have to take it off anyway I know what you mean about the quality of the arms as mine have bubbled and I have often thought about repainting them. May well do so when I change the wiper blades.

Mines an 07 and its in the location that Normski has pointed out - yours should be the same

That looks quite similar, if not the same, as the IS250 centre section

Ok - just to take everyones mind off the raging insurance debate that Linas has.... I have never quite understood the explanation of this. When we are told to reset the ECU, for whatever reason, the car re-learns what the driving style is. What does this mean? I get the fact that it will re-learn a few of the technical bits like fuel RON types being used etc / emmissions etc but driving style???? Does this mean that if I reset the ECU in the morning and immediately drive like Mrs Daisy to work then the car will "set itself up" in that driving style until reset again or does the ECU continually monitor the driving and amend to the different driving conditions and if I switched to F1 mode it would compensate for that? Not being ignorant, just not fully understood what this process actually does, a bit like the self check it does when you first turn the car on, in that instance what is it self checking that the ECU isn't?

Nice ... question ... There doesn't seem to be any damage from the drop down the chimney !?

Thanks - will get it checked this week

I posted as you replied - from the picture it looks like Toe Wear - is it conceivable to think that there could be an issue with bushes on both sides - would one failing on say the passenger side produce the same wear on both tyres?

Looks like Toe Wear from the pictures above but no where near as bad as in the picture

With the weight of the car it will roll "freely" down a hill - depends what he means by "freely". If you are doing it this way then its best to drive along a flat straight - when slow and at a crawl then put car into neutral and see how it stops - if it stops with a jerk then you have problems - it it gradually stops smooth with no jerk then chances are its ok. Check the alloys for heat after a run - all should be the same temp - if theres any that are hotter than the others then theres an issue with pads binding / seized calipers. How long have you owned the car and when were the slide pins last checked and greased?

I greased the caliper slide pins today (front and back) - I make a point of doing this twice a year. When I had the tyres off I noticed both front tyres have uneven tyre wear - they are both wearing on the inner edge of the tyre - other surfaces are fine and while not bald (yet) its noticeable that the inners are wearing unevenly. I had an issue with tyre pressures for a while before I found out what that issue was (corrosion inside the wheel causing the tyre seal to break and leak air the same as a slow puncture. So it could be a result of that? When I greased the slide pins back in March I did not notice any wear on the tyres but I have done a bit more miles than usual since then. The first thing I will do is get the alignment checked as I do remember going over a bad pothole in April (felt like driving over a cave!!) - considering the wear is on the inner os both front tyres is there anything else that could be checked? Oh - and two healthchecks done by Lexus on the current recalls (fuel seal and airbag) - both this month have not indicated any issues with the obvious wear on the tyres but they did say the caliper operation were a bit tight !! Had a look today before re-greasing the pins and theres nothing wrong with them!!

The slide pins on the calipers ARE greased - both front and rear calipers. If your mechanic does not know this then don't think twice and change to someone else. If its the grease on the pads (copperease) used to stop pad squeal that he means, then yes, this is still used. Its an easy job you can do yourself and In doing it yourself then you know the jobs done with the right parts and grease. There could be an underlying issue tho - if the calipers have not been greased (slide pins) and by the sounds of it he has not done this and if you have taken it there before chances are he has not done it then either so you could have an issue with the calipers starting to sieze as they may not be releasing from the disk when applied at lower speeds

Guess the more they are doing these the quicker they are gettin at it Mine was a Saturday job - the service dept closes at 12:30 - got it in first thing at 9 and had a call at 11 to say it was done. Surprised at how quick it took.

Airbag work was done yesterday Dropped car off at 9am and work was complete by 11:00am. The dash did not need to come off - work was undertaken on the passenger side with access to the airbag from under the dashboard from the passenger side. On a separate note - I had a loan car (2017 CT200 hybrid) - very nice inside but I was very disappointed from the noise in the car, specifically road noise and a few other engine noises, considering my car is almost 11 years old, mine is quieter than a new one!!

Got to agree with John on this one - I use flush every time (Wynns engine flush) although I don't think the brand matters. I have had the rattle and got rid of it after a few oil changes. Not found it to be an issue during ownership. It sounds like a machine run rattle for one second - usually started only at start up - no pattern to when it did it but the oil changes cured it but like John does, I change the oil every 6 months along with a flush and at the same time, off topic, I do the caliper slide pins.

Also, This sensor, Denso Air/Fuel Sensor 234-9051, will fit both Bank 1 and 2. The differences between the banks if you are quoted two part numbers is probably due to the length of the sensor wire but this part number has a wire long enough to fit in either bank. You will see when you take them off the car that one sensor wire is a bit shorter than the other.

Got to agree with Normski - its a well worthwhile job to do - you should see a difference in the running of the car after replacing both. I never done the PCV valve when changing the sensors on mine - to be honest I did not know it could be done. Job for the future. The hardest thing about replacing bank 1 is taking the engine covers off. Bank 2 is a bit more tricky, not because theres mountains of kit to remove, because theres not a lot of space to work in - you do need to remove battery and the electronic kit underneath which I think is the ECU so don't bang it around - take your time and you will see how easy it is to do. The sensors I bought came with a small sachet of thread copperease grease type of stuff so there may not be a need to purchase any specific for the job (not that its expensive stuff anyway) Remember to disconnect your battery before unplugging connectors - but as you progress you will need to anyway Let us know how you get on.

There are plenty of posts on the form regarding 220 vs 250 Suggest before the purchase you take a read of these so you can get a good idea of which is best suited for your driving

When I was looking originally I could not find anyone to do a centre section - the company I went with would not touch it due to the cats - like John said above its a complex setup. Also you need to be careful in having a centre section manufactured, non oem, as you would need to carefully match the cats to retain the back presuures etc in and out of the engine as I believe its a balanced system. You may have issues with the running of the car also due to possible conflicts between the sensors both pre and post o2 ones.before and after the cats? If you have one manufactured then I would expect it to be more expensive or around the same price as the one being advertised currently on ebay - when you consider the OEM Lexus one is around £1700 then the one on ebay at just under £400 is good value especially for an oem one.....

I have recently used the Turtle Wax Magic wax/polish and been impressed with the results. Ok - its not an expensive based one but it certainly covered up a recent set of scratches obtained free of charge in a B&Q car park. I usually use Meghaurs (excuse the spelling) for cleaning the car with good results. To add to the question from the OP - whats the general consensus of how long the car can go without a second coat of wax (how long does the first application last - in general?)

AW come on ... its an easy job... Seriously tho - this is the exact spot my original one went at - a bit disconcerting when it fully goes as most of the power is lost and it sounds like a tank ! I could suggest a few options: Repair the hole - I did do a very good job in repairing it myself when it went first and I posted up on the forum the parts I used so you may find it from around 2 years ago (or so) I eventually decided to get a stainless steel one as I did not trust my repair but when the exhaust centre took the centre box of, the repair I done was absolutely solid and would have lasted a very long time. I cant find any pictures I took for the parts sorry. Weld the hole up - may be a difficult job due to the corrosion on the metal and its position but should be doable but will need a good ramp to do it that way Stainless steel system - Will cost you around £400 to £600 but be very careful to chose a good manufacturer as these SS exhausts can be noisy in the cabin as I experienced Lexus fitted one - Will set you back probably around £1700 to £2000 fitted. I am sure they also need to replace the down stream O2 sensors when doing the exhaust. Ebay - these come up frequently on that site and there are two on at the moment - one used at just under £200 and a new one (non oem at just under £400) Make your own ??!! If you want to adapt a part to replace this then use the is200 resonator as its a good fit but will need to be cut to fit the one on your car. If you are willing to get your hands dirty there are a few options. One thing to consider - the two O2 sensors on the centre section run into the cab - I believe they go under the drivers seat and removal of the sensors on the exhaust, so I have been told, needs a special tool (not looked into that to be honest) so its feasible that you will need two new sensors if they are damaged upon removal from your system if replacing the centre section. If its the centre section you are set on replacing I would ask the exhaust centres such as ATS if they would be willing to accept delivery of a centre section if you bought it from the likes of Ebay and ask if they would be willing to fit it. I shouldn't see why not as they do exhausts day in day out.

.... also - if it is your sensors then its best to change both at the same time - doing so does make a difference to the running of the car.

How long did the job take?

Is the fact that is works on the double lock giving you any issues?

Its a good feature also to indicate the car is locked - especially double locked but equally on the first lock as looking at the mirrors from a distance indicates its locked up.

The mirrors will close on the second press - double lock function but the manual operation of closing and opening via the door card switch should still operate them. Sounds like you have done the job right. One tip tho - in the winter, when thick ice is present or you know a thick frost is coming, try to keep the mirrors open as when opening the car, with the mirrors on auto opening, you could damage them.