is200 Newbie

There is currently no issue with the diff but I will monitor the difference after I have changed the oil just to compare. The parts such as the filler plug washers are like gold dust - easily available in the states but I could find nowhere over in the UK selling or advertising these. Lexus didn't even know the part number for them (didn't even know what they were) and I had to use a US part number for them to reference. A Lexus ebay shop had listed 10 for me - I have bought 4 of so there are 6 left for anyone considering an oil change. I just need to understand if the filler is actually the same as the drain washer (its described as such for the filler and the drain plug).... in ebay, search Genuine Toyota Gasket No.2 (For Manual Transmission Filler Plug) 1215710010 The car is near to 100k (91k) and I plan to keep it so I am doing it for no other reason than I reckon the oil will at some point will need to be replaced. I have seen references to it not needing done, as per the gearbox, but the oil will surely breakdown etc after time I am reckoning. For the expense (£42 for all the parts) it looks to be an easy job - I have located the fill and drain plugs and its an easy change (famous last words ...!) Once done I will do a write up with pictures to compare the used with the new oil. I also believe the plug is magnetic in the Diff so will also examine that although I don't know it will prove anything as its more than likely not been changed before and whats in there would be from the initial bedding in of the gears..

Nice one - thanks guys

I am looking to do an oil change on the diff. Its taken two weeks to find the correct parts but have them now. Not too sure if I have the correct washer for the drain plug but I believe the fill plug and the drain plug are the same size (these washers are on order, not received them yet) I believe they are copper crushable washers as opposed to the fibre ones... OIL - Redline and OEM diff oil costs the same and two 1 litre bottles are required. Question is, should I stick to the OEM knowing its good or will there be benefits from using another compatible oil such as red line or others? There are no indications of a service interval from Lexus for the diff, just checks made at certain intervals - guess this would be for leaks?

Cleaned the wheel arches today - first time since I have owned the car. They looked quite clean before I started ..... WRONG ..... was amazed at how much crud came out - especially from the felt lined rears. Will do this on a regular basis now after seeing how much muck there was. Needed to clean the drive afterwards. I do use a lot of country roads though. I cleaned them by hand with a scouring brush - will a jet was do the same job in cleaning them well?

It could be the water pump - 80k is around the mileage where these start to fail - ii haven't had one go on mine yet ... maybe someone can help to eliminate the pump if you can describe the noise a bit more..

Can you post some more information of the noise .... does it get louder or follow the engine revs at all - have you opened the hood to see if there's any indication of where the sound is coming from. Mileage? Is there any white crusting around the water pump? I doubt the BG44 will have any effect on the noise as this is designed to clean the petrol system etc...

I use the Toyota rubber grease - it comes in a tooth paste size tube - a lot of people use different greases with the same results. Its personal choice. If you find one that works, stick with it. The Toyota rubber grease works for me. Have used if for a few years without issue. If you are going for another make just consider if it is suitable in not attacking the rubber seals. I have serviced my car this weekend - just done the pins today and they were all good. I have put a couple of pictures below of the grease on the pin. I renew the grease every 6 months. The picture below is before cleaning and applying the new grease. I used the rubber grease on it 6 months ago - it came out no problem. There is a noticeable difference in the colour (clearer grease on the pin i have just taken out) suggesting its doing its job and not just sat there on the pin doing nothing. I have also circled a lip on the pin - this area needs to be spotless, if not it doesn't matter what type of grease you use as the rubber will not seal on the pin correctly and allow dirt and water in. The grease I use does not attack the rubber seals so they are always tight around this point. The pin below shows the cleaned pin with a smear of the clean rubber grease - note the difference in colour between used and new. Not very clear images but the difference is very noticeable. A picture of the grease I use is below along with the part number. - available from Toyota or Lexus for around £10

Got to agree with the above - not that I use an indie that often but find, when I do, they take more care of your car as they rely more on the repeat custom and if the service is good then that's what they get. I think the dealers gamble on the fact that people want the work done, in their eyes, correctly with the correct (OEM part), not always the best option when considering compatibility and cost - they are interested in the bottom line .. full stop... the indie relies on repeat business so needs to a good job no matter what the brand is and at a reasonable price. - find a good one and keep them. Also - tell an indie what a problem is and ask them to fix and they will do it - more than the dealer where they plug it into a machine, no fault found, cars good contrary to what you know (in most cases anyway)

It sounds and looks like the oil filter cap has been overtightened - looking at the damaged removal socket they have used a ratchet to try and remove the cap - nothing wrong with that as I have always used a ratchet with no issues in removing it (and its the same socket as the one I use) - It goes a long way in proving doing the job yourself as you would take more care in the work you do with your car. You would not get a garage to do the work and then check the tightness of the cover afterwards as whats the point, you may have well don't the oil change yourself. I guess the different designed removal tools with have different weaknesses if applying excessive forces and also consider the oil change interval times - I do mine every 6 months - leaving the intervals for long periods makes more chance of the cap seizing. A rubber seal washer ring that's applied to the cap at each change gives the cap quite a bit of resistance when placing the cap back on after an oil change - it will only get harder to remove over time while the heat is getting to it. The washer rings that I have taken off in the past are all loose (the one I took of today was loose) yet when they go on, they go on tight so the heat must affect them and make it harder to remove. I would recommend you do an oil change yourself so you can see how easy it is to do.

This is the one I use and have done so with no issue at all since I have owned he car and I have done a lot of oil changes with it ..- pictures below - I am sure I purchased it from Ebay but it was a few years ago now ...

John - I have just changed the oil in mine today - only had the time to do the oil and the filter before the wife was calling me in for tea so a good time to stop. Will finish the other service areas tomorrow - didn't manage to find whether the diff box drain and fill plugs incorporated a washer so may just take a flier and do this on spec - have a good range of washer sizes if required but think the sizes may reflect the same as the oil drain plug - anyway - while I was under the car undoing the oil filter cap I noticed what looks like a drain point for the radiator - The one I have found is under the cover for the oil filter cap (remove the cover - 3 screws) and it will be noticeable looking through the hole towards the front of the car - a few pictures below - one of the "tap" through the cover and one through a hole in the plastic shield (before removing the oil cap shielding cover) Hope this helps

I have just changed my oil today - I noticed the spec for tightening the oil filter cap is stamped on the cap housing itself so I took a picture ... picture below ... Seems to state 25N +/- 5N

I have just changed mine today - magnatec 5/30 (A5 spec for Lexus) - not a hard job, bit messy but easily a job you could do yourself - Euro car parts have an offer on at the moment discounted costs on parts - 8 litres of magnatec (2 x 4ltr tubs) an oil filter and a can of engine flush for £50 - an hours job tops. I had issues in using edge a while ago where I needed to top up between changes on a 6 month oil change interval - changed to magnatec and the level doesn't change now so have stuck with it. As its a new car to you I would ensure you know the oil change has been done and the correct grade used. Give it a go yourself - you will be surprised at how easy it is and you will get satisfaction from knowing its done right with the correct oil and you can save yourself a bit of money in the process. Regarding your question above - 5/30 (A5 spec) is the grade if using magnatec - as you don't know whats in it, in my opinion what you have, the C3 spec is usable for the short period but ensuring it doesn't run low is more paramount in your situation than the choice of oils you have as you don't know whats historically been used so does it matter for the short time.....I would suggest for you to have a go yourself in changing it, it is really an easy job and will save you around £50 easy

toffee_pie ..... Why, when you have taken the time in finding the car you like, leaving the Lexus brand which is undoubtedly a marque that competes at a level the same or even higher in some cases with the likes of Mercedes and BMW are you continuing to make a point on this forum that you have done so? This forum, correct me if I am wrong is for the owners of the Lexus brand. I am not stating anyone cant post on the forum, that's for the moderators to determine but this is one of the best forums out there for the Lexus brand and the users of its cars - we would not be using it if we drove any other brand such as Ford / Mercedes or a Hick branded Tonka toy .... isn't there a Mercedes forum you could be posting on or do you regret leaving the Lexus brand that much that you need to come back to the Lexus forum to continue commenting against users posts? Love them or hate them - this site is for Lexus users .... Lexus aren't sports cars, at least the majority of the ones we drive aren't - I have actually driven a manual, quite a lot actually and I own an auto. Its personal choice, I prefer the auto, that's why I bought it to have the option of using the manual shift if I wanted to and its honestly good to have the option to switch between them both effectively having the manual option for less cost (tax wise). I bought mine to keep and I will do. I have no intention of selling - yes life is too short - to short to worry about what you drive once you have found what you like and if you are happy with what you have then move on ... cut the grass, plant a tree and be happy. That's my annual rant over ...

Jeeez - that's extortionate !!!!!! £160 for a PAIR on mine when I done them on the 250 - ok, they were from the states and I had to wait a few days for them to arrive and its a different car but £350 is a ridiculous price. Took me around an hour to do both on mine and I am no mechanic !! Even at £200 that's steep - if they do pursue this ask them to produce the parts they replaced so you can have a sense of what work was done - do you have pictures of the work they done? The "boss" could be the raised nut that the sensor is screwed into (if there is one) I suppose if they are not careful on a 15 year old car and with it being a first replacement of the sensor (if it is) then there could be a chance its seized in the "boss". Any decent garage should inform you if the cost of the repair is going to be more than quoted... Give the garage a call to ask them to keep the part they replaced and to hold onto the "broken" part so they can prove they replaced it before they state they have thrown them away.

Castrol Magnatec 5/30

These may be useful if you are looking for new ones - took the dimensions when I had mine out just in case. The motor is made (or was made) by a company called ASMO. It may still be around but looks like it was swallowed up by Denso. I doubt they will manufacture single figure units so best to find a suitable non OE motor or a used one you know works.

Also, to add to the fault ... When a stock CD or a DVD is in an indication of the volume is not shown when adjusting although it does show when an MP3 disc is in or with radio or Aux playback

I wish every mechanic worked as quick as this - 6 mins to overhaul an engine - wonder what the labour charge was on this? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJPmiBTj3xs&list=PLLaNsOGS4s0t8n-AYvNl5h5510JGM4Ita&index=2

I have exactly the same problem. MP3 discs play fine. Radio and Aux play fine. Stock CD's wont play (no sound) DVD plays the DVD but no sound. I have looked through everywhere I can think of and cant find any resolution to this. I have had the amp out and opened / inspected and cleaned but no luck. Have reset it by disconnecting the battery, no luck. Have had the head unit out to inspect wires, possibility of them working loose ... nope - all intact and in their sockets tight. Tried what was shown on you tube also and it did not work - tried it for a while and done all combinations with no luck - tried it again tonight but nope. My next thought was to replace the DVD unit (bottom part of the head unit) but at around £200 used then its a gamble that its actually that that's wrong. Points to it but I don't want to take the chance. Maybe if it gives up the ghost fully I will do something about it but at the moment for me the Aux / radio and MP3 will do. I would like the DVD working but I would like to win the lottery also ... I have contacted a couple of Panasonic repair centres (the unit is manufactured by them) and they will not touch it. It will be nice to find a fix to this

Could it be a TPS failure? (throttle position sensor) This would be highlighted in the error codes if read

Thanks Ian - I looked at these sets as it makes sense. I wasn't sure on the size and whether the kit covered it so was looking for the exact OE washer. I found an old washer in my garage tonight and measured it at 21mm outer diameter x 12mm inner diameter - its a fibre washer. The link to the £6.99 fibre washer kit has a 40 of these - will be ordering this kit. I have always used the fibre washers. I am going to change the diff oil also so may take a chance on the kit having the correct sized washer in it. I cannot find any of these on the web. Once I have changed it I will know the size.

Wish I had your problem although my goal is to buy an old 911 targa to restore (on my bucket list) Idrive the Lex (wife wont and kids daren't !!) so its all mine - I have the use of the other 2 cars - almost embarrassed to show them against your ...although one is a convertible (shame about the badge as its quite a nippy car) - obviously pictures taken when they were clean. Surprisingly, the KA, although plagued with rust (this one isn't yet) is quite a fast car - 1.6 SportKA - bit basic ... basically a go-cart with a roof !. Bought for my 20 year old lad - first car, just passed his test when we got it last year and it was the cheapest for insurance. 20 year old, no years driving (apart from the lessons) ... insurance = £660 !!!! come down this year to £540, has had a black box for the first year. Insurance at the time we were looking for a 1.1 Corsa 2003 to 2005 was £1300. But get this .... Insurance for an old 2.2 litre jag was £900. Its crazy the way insurance is worked out. I don't drive the Tigra much, If its first in the drive then I will use it depending on where I am going. Don't like Vauxhalls much (previous bad experience) - not only that, my wife does not keep it clean (inside or out !! - picture is of when I cleaned it to see what it turned out like) Looking to px this against an MX5 at some point I owned this lex before IS200 LE - absolutely spotless car, not even any stone chips which they were notorious for - it was killed (written off) in a local flood in 2012 and I was gutted (more gutted at losing the car than the house being flooded!!) Loved that car but moved on to the 250 although I would love a good clean 200 again. It was more of a raw beast than the 250 is now.

Anyone help with this one - I am after part numbers for the oil drain plug washer (the fibre washer) and also the oil drain and fill washer for the diff for a 2007 is250 Two attempts at Lexus - they don't know and cant supply the parts without the part numbers(or wont supply?!) .... crazy, as they don't recognise what I am asking for - I know they deal with a lot of parts but come on.... Or even better - anyone know where I can buy these from - either OE or non OE parts thanks

I had an error code months ago that led me to the gearbox solenoid and as Normski said it related to the gearbox. It turned out to be a very vague code but I narrowed it down eventually as condensation on or in the solenoid (found reference to it from forums in the US) I cleared the fault and it has not come back - it did lead me to look at changing the gearbox oil but could not get any clear info on whether the oil could actually be changed and from the people that said it could be done they all said it was not a diy job.