mikeyv

Mine were originally polished alloy I think - the spare still is - anybody know what that would cost?

I've always loved big Japanese cars, starting from the 70s, when a relative bought a brand new Toyota Crown estate, which was a fantastic car, way ahead of the normal brit cars of the time. Datsun Laurels and 280C/300C, Toyota Crowns, Camry and Cressidas have all passed through my hands over the years, with the only snag being corrosion on early cars. Now I have an LS, which tops the lot. Sadly though, the great British car buying public have never shared my enthusiasm for large jap metal, which is why Toyota stopped importing the Crown and Camry (best selling car in America at the time, I believe), and Nissan kept the Laurel and 300C to themselves. Honda battle on with their superb Legend model, but how many do you see on our roads? Ah well, the good news is that we can get some excellent reliable bargains for peanuts, because most people in the UK are badge snobs, and listen to buffoons like Clarkson.

http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/index.php?showtopic=57402&hl=+bonnet%20+strut#entry635563 If you check the thread above, you'll see that a lot of members have ordered from them, seemingly with good results. I got mine from them, and they fit my MKIV 99(V) perfectly.

The bore above the piston crown will be washed by excess petrol regardless of the state of the rings surely?

Really? I fitted taxi meters and radios to a few of these when they first came out. The quality and fit of the interior trim was shocking, even by 80s standards, our fleet of 70s Datsuns were streets ahead in every way.

Really? I wish there was a decent search for all LPG pumps, it's almost like a secret society at the moment - unless anybody knows different?

Countrywide said I would have to apply for an account to use their pump at Chepstow, I'd open one, but it's not convenient for me at the moment - handy though if you're near, as it's 24 hrs. When you mention builders merchant, do you mean for cylinders, or autogas pump?

what exactly do you mean by "wash the bores with petrol"? The car will be running rich when cold, so there's a tendency for unburnt fuel to wash oil from the cylinder bores, thus causing wear. As I said though, maybe modern (ish) fuelling systems are more efficient, causing less of a problem - even so, getting your engine up to temp as soon as possible has to be a good thing.

Another drive off straight away vote from me. Idling a cold engine will wash the bores with petrol, causing excessive wear - that was the theory a few years back anyway - whether the more sophisticated injection systems have changed that, I'm not sure, but I doubt it.

deleted as already posted by others

Mines the same, but it can wait for the warmer weather. If you're sturdier than me, the best thread I found was this one. http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/index.php?showtopic=31393&hl=washer+bottle

This may be of interest to fellow lpg users. I've only just discovered a Flogas filling station in my home town of Newport, as it hasn't appeared on the searches I've used previously, and it's tucked out of the way on an industrial estate. Here is the link to their searchable site. http://www.flogas.co.uk/42/lpg-autogas Only snag is, there were three results for Newport, however, when I rang them all, two didn't have pumps, one having stopped due to elf'n'safety nonsense making it not worth the effort. Fortunately the one who does have a pump is selling at 72p, as opposed to Shell Newport at 75p and Morrisons boroughbridge also at 75p.

I bought mine from an established ebay trader with good feedback. He was a tidy bloke and told me that he had an agreement with the local Honda dealer, whereby he took all their part exes, good bad or indifferent, apart from those the dealer could retail of course. He would then sell the good stuff, through ebay and other ads, and mainly dispose of the tat through the proper auctions. I would say that there are good and bad traders, often you can get a good idea just from their adverts, or over the phone, you just need to use your common sense mostly. One thing to bear in mind - trade prices on LS 430s are VERY low - I had a shock when putting the reg nos of a couple of 430s in to Glass's guide online - try it yourselves for a giggle.

Thanks for the reply Chris. You're right when you say I did used to teach most of the above, but I was an ADI from 1990 - 1999, and so can't comment on 1986. I do recall though, according to the instructors that had been at it a while, that there had been recent changes when I started, for example with regards to using gears to slow down, as opposed to block changes. That would seem to tie in with what you are saying. To Geoff, the OP, I would say go ahead. Part of qualifying as a driving instructor is an advanced driving test - I found it very enjoyable, and even though I'd done an awful lot of miles as a taxi driver previously, it definitely improved my driving.

As an ex driving instructor, I find that interesting, could you expand on it a bit please?

Great username and a nice looking car, though the interior looks a bit plain in the photos.

Well done, hope it turns out as good as it looked.

Hello Ted, I've had mine since January and love it, I'm sure you will too.

I'm all for second hand parts Noby but when it comes to brakes I'm not! I have to have brand new ones, it's just the way I am and nothing will ever change that lol. I had a horrific crash in 1999 in Dartford tunnel where the brakes went on me at 80 mph and I lost control and hit the wall hard! I woke up in hospital 3 days later! I'm overely paranoid with brakes since! Thanks for the offer but I've already ordered a new calliper from Lexus (£200) Ouch! It'll be here by Friday and my mate is gonna help me fit it so no car over Christmas. Agreed Chris. Things like trim, body panels and light units are great buys second hand. Braking parts should be good quality and brand new.

Tend to agree. Ticking is a good word to describe the slightly more noticeable engine noise when running on LPG. All relavtive of course, and you have to listen hard to hear it. I have the same sound and pointed it out when picking up the car after conversion. Injectors was what they told me as well. Barely audible from inside the car, more noticeable outside with the bonnet up.

I'm not sure that constantly monitoring mpg when you run a V8 petrol of 4 litres or over, is the path to true contentment. I've stuck mine on lpg, but beyond that I'll just fill it when needed and enjoy that lovely smooth engine for what it is.

I have been watching this too and pointed the car out to my wife. When I first saw it, it was being driven as an 'open top' jobby and then later it looked like an ordinary hard top saloon! I thought that they had changed the car but obviously not. Where on earth does the top go when they put it down, or do they take it off and leave it in the garage!!! Must admit I've never seen one. Youtube has a clip

Unusual date of first registration for a 2005 car as well Reg. Date: 19/09/2004

Cat 'D' as well, I notice quite a few ads now that just casually mention cat C or D buried in the details. Bit naughty imo, as that's probably the most significant detail about a car.