jeffreyt

hadn't looked at the LOC forum for some months and I see this topic is still going strong. I've given up on mine and decided its easier to sell it rather than keep looking for the dreaded 'leak'. Shame really as apart from that problem the car is now sorted. An SLK seems to be favourite,lets see if the Stuttgart engineers can do any better.

whoops,I think this was my post that looks like it broke the rules,sorryyyyyyyyy.

Selling is not allowed unless you are a Gold Member. If found you are selling by PM you can be banned. http://www.goldmembers.co.uk/

been reading this thread with a sense of 'this is going to end in tears',I really do hope I'm wrong. Firstly,if a 13K car is not exactly what you want ,walk away.If it was a £1300 car then yes you would need to compromise but for 13k you will get the right car eventually.It is out there somewhere. The other thing that struck me was that you are expecting these cars to have problems and I think you are wrong.Its not an Alfa (as an Alfa enthusiast I have owned several and love them )these cars are well built and don't really carry any inherent problems apart from the 'flat battery ' problem when they are left standing.Not sure if this affects the later models. The 'faults' you mention did affect a few cars but it was never the norm. You will need to personally check these 'fault' items on any car you are considering as relying on someone else who has a vested interest in selling the car would be foolish to say the least. Which brings me onto your reliance on Lexus dealers to be honest,professional and have your interest at heart.Sad to say the exact opposite is the way it is ,main dealers ,including Lexus,are the biggest bunch of sharks you will come across. I would suggest you bear this in mind in all your dealings with them. I drive an old SC430 (01 vintage)with the 5 speed 'box,it is the best auto box I have ever driven and perfectly adequate for normal driving so I wouldn't get too hung up on the 6 speed 'box. I wish you well with your search/purchase,keep us posted on how you get on.

reading this has got me worried as I disconnect the battery frequently ie every time I leave the car for more than 2 days .Thankfully no error 4 codes have come up. Thanks for posting this Neil but I hope I never have to use it!

put the new ' wheels 'on a few weeks ago and have just done a 200 hundred mile trip so able to get a feel for the the difference proper ( ie non run flat ) tyres make. It was a mix of motorway and A and B roads. They are certainly a lot quieter and the ride is smoother but not as smooth as I had expected.I suspect the problem now is the poor suspension set up on these early cars ( its an 01 model) not the tyres as bumps and potholes still seem too noticeable . Perhaps I am being a bit too picky,overall well worth the cost and the new wheels look 100% improvement over the original 'dinner plates'. I got the wheels quite cheap ( 100 quid ) on ebay ,they came off an old Lexus GS and were in good shape but I got them refurbed by my son ( he is now in the wheel refurb business) at family rates and he got me the new tyres at cost price so didn't break the bank . The space saver spare also came from ebay and was the spare from a Lexus 450 RH ,the original tyre was much too fat but I had an Audi TT space saver in the garage with a low profile 18 inch tyre and swapped them ,it fitted perfectly.The spare wheel fits into the wheel recess in the boot and does not interfere with the luggage cover being in the correct position to open the roof so really pleased with this.Being reliant on a pressure can of goo to fix a flat tyre does not appeal to me. Also noticed after the trip was that the mpg was showing 31.5 which is the highest I've had.

£295 was the price quoted to me by local stealer for belt only ,labour and VAT..He said other stuff only replaced as needed which rang alarm bells with me .How can you tell how much life is left in a water pump ? My son has just had the belt go on his VW Transporter and likely cause seems to be water pump not replaced when belt done.The engine was not wrecked but top end rebuild cost him a grand. He was able to check this out as he bought the van off his brother who still had the itemised bill for the belt change and there was no mention of a new pump.His brother is not a car man and didn't give it a thought at the time. Still undecided whether to get it done now or leave it as not doing much mileage but its obvious that when it does go in I'm going to have to spell out all the specific bits I want replaced.

thanks Neil

having found the strut brace on ebay some weeks ago am embarrassed to say I can't find it now. Neil ,could you post the name of the maker/shop where you got this from ,many thanks Jeffrey

ever since I've had the car the driver's window has been very slow going up and down and now I think its getting worse. The passenger window is fine. I'm guessing the door card is going to have to come off and start looking for a problem with the motor. Any ideas as what I should be looking for ? Worst case scenario is that I take into local Lexus stealers and let them look at it but I would like to have a look myself first. Thanks

Simon,welcome to the SC 430 world. Suggest you read up on the 'battery drain ' threads just in case your car suffers this not uncommon gremlin. PS I too would be interested in any inf on the spare wheel question as am currently trying to find a space saver spare that fits the car AND fits in the spare wheel slot in the boot.I've got a full size spare (off an old GS got it cheap on ebay) that will fit in the boot but can't put the top down as its takes all the boot space.

Thanks,like you I've never thought this was a battery issue. I will start hunting and see what I can find.

thanks Neil.Not near Gloucester (Berkshire) but sounds within my capability. Peter,during the winter I rotate 3 good/big batteries round my 2 cars and recharge the spare to make sure I've always got a good battery in both cars. Whichever battery I put in the Lexus the most it will last is a week without use and then its touch and go whether its got enough juice left to start. I will have to get this sorted professionally as its out of my league and its one of the 2 negative aspects of this car that really annoy me. The other is the run flat tyres and lack of a spare wheel. I think I have solved the 'spare' and will post this separately if my idea works.

Thanks for posting inf about the strut brace.TBH I never looked for one as I assumed nothing like that would be available this side of the pond for this car. Just found it on ebay and am going to order one.Hope it comes with some good fitting instructions.