is200 Newbie

I was just looking for something different to be honest The wheels on the car are a bit scuffed and they look like they have been refurbished in the past and with two front tyres required I thought it would be an ideal time to look at new wheels and tyres ... Anyway - MOT's due soon, need two tyres so I rang round locally for a quote today and found what I think is a good deal on tyres only - two new Avon front tyres fitted for £68 each - don't know the tyre name just gave the required size over the phone and was quoted this - Good deal?

As Mark and Ahmed above - its a known issue but nothing really to worry about I had it off and on for a while back and to be honest it is a good indication of when the oil needs changing. I usually change the oil every 6 months (try to anyway) and the rattle has not returned. Keep the oil topped up and use the correct grade - I have used both the Castrol Edge and Magnatec grades and (for my car anyway) the Magnatec brand works best and there has been no rattles since using this. I did experience rattles with the Edge brand. I also, when changing the oil, and I guess in changing it every 6 months or so it does help, use an engine flush to flush the engine out. Whether that has helped I don't know but there are no rattles.

Do the tyres scrub the wheel arch liners when on lock?

Quads would finish the look on your car, got you wondering now !!.... Both the back boxes on mine came off really easy - I don't think the stainless metal bonds together that well so it can be removed easily. I have a boot spoiler and upper roof spoiler - like you, both bought painted from Taiwan and an excellent job in colour match and quality but I have not seen any painted front spoilers - its the front one that I would be interested in .... the one I have in the garage I don't really like so it will probably just sit there until it rots !! What would really set the front of your car off would be mat painted inner light surrounds - I have seen it on a few lexus now and it looks really good - I think there has been a post on here as well from someone who has had it done. Are those 19" wheels and have you had it lowered? ... I will have a good look for the spoiler.

there has been quite a few posts on wheels and tyres but there are a few questions I have if anyone can help... My car is due its MOT soon - the tyres on it were on it when I bought it over two years ago. The front ones are just over the legal limit so are ripe for changing. I would ideally like to change the wheels and tyres rather than replacing the worn ones and have been looking at a few styles. The tyres on it now are not of any particular well known make and they sit quite "high" on the road (more rounded than flat if that makes sense) and now they are wearing down I am getting a lot of what feels like under steer which I have attributed to the wear on the tyres felt especially when going around roundabouts. Backs are ok and it looks like theres no wear on them - I thought with it being rear wheel drive then they would wear quite evenly with the fronts.. I changed the wheels when I had an IS200 and put 18" Aeros on it but these needed the centre spigots fitted with them to keep them central. If I am looking at non oem wheels then am I right in thinking that its more than likely I will need a set of these and if so are they really ok to use? So the alloys I will be looking at - I know the fronts are different sizes to the back but is it the tyres that are different sized or the actual alloys themselves that are different sizes? On the car at the moment are stock SE-L 17s" - I would like to fill the arches better so I was considering 18's or 19's - the 19's I have heard can scrub the liner but will the 18's make that much of a difference to the ride height and looks in filling the arches. I have seen two types of alloy - both 19" on cars that are not lowered that look good but not too sure about what size to go for? I am not too worried about the level of noise that's associated with the bigger wheels as the exhaust is quite loud so it would not make that much is a difference to me. is there anything else to consider other than the size of wheels? Would going down to 19's knock any sensors out of sync? Two pictures below are of the two styles I have seen...

Post some pictures up when you get the diffuser on ... I have been looking at these for a while from the states but have been toying with changing the back boxes on the car which would mean cutting into the diffuser as I want to put dual boxes on. I had a look under the car at the weekend and noticed the joints had worked loose on both the back boxes ... had a stainless exhaust fitted almost two years ago, so I jointed them back up again (mot time coming up) but it has made me determined to sort this out so will look to order one of these. As for fitting, I am guessing it does not come with any fittings. I have used Tiger Glue on parts in the past cars I have had with good results - is this going to be a "glued on" job? Are there enough points on the diffuser in order to get a good seal with the bumper.? I have seen some smart results where they have been part painted but I would like to see your results if you can post up when its done. I have "paintshopped" your picture to see what the dual exhausts would look like (hope that's ok) looks quite good at the back ... The spoiler looks really good on the car - do you have a link to where you sourced it from? I have bought one and its sitting in the garage (and has been since last year) I am not too sure it will look as good on the car as the one you have..

There was also a compressor for sale - £49 All in all a good deal

Nice .... Just washed or is the radiator leaking !?

I gave mine a good clean at the weekend by hand and noticed it produced a lot of static Can these polishing machines create a dangerous amount of static on the car considering the amount of electronics it has?

Thanks Paul I get the principle now - more by the comparison of defragging your pc. I just always wondered what was happening during the reset process when I saw comments from users advising to "reset the ecu". So in a way it makes sense to reset it maybe once a year when servicing to clear the logs.

Good point - I wasn't aware of the need to disconnect the earth lead first ...

The clay mitt sounds easier to use - is it a case of using the clay as and when required or can it be used every time the cars cleaned (wont do any damage?) I did notice a few light scratches when cleaning it that I am sure T-Cut would remove - would cutting the car first before claying have any advantages or disadvantages? I know they do have "softer" paint than other manufacturers...

Can anyone shed some light on this - I think it will be useful for people to know also ... Its handy knowing that it needs to be reset for various reasons and it does seem to reset the driving style of the car but what does it actually reset, what does resetting it actually do? Which battery lead do you need to disconnect, Negative or positive or does it matter? How long does it take to reset? How long does it take to re-set to the driving style? What settings do you lose? (windows / seat memory / radio stations / some sat nav settings) Do you need to drive it in any particular style, as normal or heavy/light foot? Are there any likely fuses that blow when connecting the battery back up?

I managed to get the car cleaned today before the grey clouds came over. I clayed the car - have never done this before - Washed / Clayed / Waxed - took a while but the results were worth it. The paint was very smooth after claying and after waxing it was like a mirror. It took longer to wax the car than it did to clay it. I used the Meguiars clay kit from Halfords as it had everything in it. A weird experience using it but it worked fine. A couple of questions if anyone has clayed their cars in the past ... can the "used" clay be re-used providing its not too contaminated? Also, the kit came with a liquid mist spray which I am presuming is specific to the kit. The next time I use this can I use water or does it need to be the liquid in the spray bottle? There is enough in the bottle for another one or two uses but just wondering if water would work just as well. Picture is below - now just waiting for the rain !!!!! :megaangry:

Mine must have leaked in the past as there's white crust in the area but the water pump is fine and the level is fine - had an issue where the level dropped at the start of last year so I topped it up and have no issues now... Still keep an eye on it though.

At a guess I would say that your front discs are warped

That's the correct part Mark has shown and a good price Bank 1 was the easier of the two sensors to do - Bank 2 was a bit more "fiddly" but not much harder. I would suggest that you replace both of them as they will have both been in the car for the same time and theres no reason to think that the Bank 2 one will last (I was told that they are replaced at around 70k miles) Doing both you will find better mpg and responsiveness. The part above can be used on either bank as the wire is long enough to do this. Follow the step through I posted and you will be fine. Doing it yourself if doing both will save you £450 !! and its not a hard job.

Did Lexus tell you to it would be safe to drive? It may have well been safe to drive but you are coking up your exhaust and any other associated damage in doing so. I know this as when mine went I ran it off and on for a bit as I had to wait for the sensors to be delivered and during this time the exhaust tips sooted up a lot. You will be quoted around £600 if replacing both. £150 if you order them yourself online and do the work yourself.

I would try the obvious Is the air filter clean? Re-check the calipers - front and back - it will rule them out as holding the car back which it sounds like a probable cause Is the handbrake on? Is the exhaust blowing? Reset the ECU - not hard to do and you wont lose any vital info - clock / windows / seat memory settings / I think you will need to re-tune the radio in if leaving the battery disconnected overnight. Its nothing that cant be set back. Remember, after resetting it, drive the car as you would normally do until it learns the driving style. Let us know how you get on .....

£500 - that's quite expensive for an indie garage - in fact very expensive .... Took me (and I have not done anything like this before) 1 hour 45 mins to change both so 1 hour 30 would be quite acceptable from a mechanic - cost to me for the original Denso sensors was £150 so £350 labour is a lot of money .... we are in the wrong jobs!!!! but as I found out and like you say, its recommended to do them around 70k miles so it is a worthwhile job, I noticed a big difference after replacing mine.

..... in his own words ,,, On that bombshell ... its goodnight Clarkson !!

That's normal - you are compressing the fluid into the other chamber when pressing one piston in so the other piston comes out. If this is not happening on the drivers side then this will be a contributing factor to the wobble you have experienced. If you are unsure of airlocks, any doubt, then its advisable to bleed your brakes. If you have felt the steering shake when braking through the steering wheel then it will more than likely be an issue with the front brakes - it you feel a shake through the seats then its likely to be an issue with the real braking system

Anyone else find other Lexus drivers wave or flash (their light) at you as you are passing them on the other side of the road - I thought there was something wrong with my car at first as there is on occasion another driver I pass in a Yellow is200 Altezza and he always either waves or flashes. Kind of exclusive masons recognitions going on...

I have always used Wynns engine flush - Halfords stock this No issues in the years I have used it

Would Lexus subscribe to the Top Gear kids show magazine? Clarkson is an "oaf" who heads a show about cars that very few of us will be able to afford in our lifetime .... Didn't see him put this around the track with the more "expert" driver Stig behind the wheel or even try to explain away not doing so ... scared? ... or did I fall asleep at that point? Don't think we will ever see the track time as he will be eating his words.