Deet27

Had a similar situation myself, If i was not going to use the car for a few weeks i would lock the car with the key which would not activate the alarm. I only used the remote central locking when i locking for a few hours. Seemed to fix the battery drain issue I had.

Sold my 2003 2nd gen car last year which I Taxied for 4 years putting over 100k on it ( mileage when i sold it 230k), it has been the most comfortable and reliable car i have had and yes the fuel cost was higher but was a happy trade off on a older Diesel reliability/Problems. I had considered a GS450H as a replacement but when i test drove it the boot space and rear head space i felt was not very practical for my customers (Airport runs etc) I replaced the car with a 2nd gen Prius and has been a good working car. In all honesty i regret selling my Gs300 and have been looking to re buy one (As a second Car) with less mileage but have noticed that there is not much price difference between a 2nd gen and a early 3rd Gen. I've heard over the years on how great the 2nd Gen is and that people have regretted getting the 3rd Gen. I don't know how true that is but would great full of any opinions on anyone who have owned both. Regards Deet

That is a concern of mine, Currently I get two large and one/two cabin cases in at a push (although you do loose some space in the far corners with the boot hinges so they need to be flat) When I view the car I am going to bring some cases just to check for peace of mind, From what i can gather is that the cabin cases should be ok on the sides, its very rarely i get customers bringing 3 large cases.

Really appreciate the updates and further information, going to view a GS450H tomorrow and came back to the post to refresh myself. I was unaware that there had been new post as i was not getting notifications through my phone. Thanks Again

Thanks for the help, looks like i should see a slight improvement over the Gen2 GS300. (Well at least its not worse)

Apologies for the shameless bump, But would really appreciate some input. Basically was just wondering what kind of mpg I can expect from driving around town (I don't drive it like I stole it!) Also, if I buy from a private owner - is there any way I can test the battery without having to plug in a scanner?? Like I say - would be really grateful for some pointers.

Hi Everyone, Currently own 03 GS300 which I use as a Taxi (Mileage 225k), I am sticking with Toyota/Lexus and was considering getting a Prius or Hybrid (Would like to save on fuel costs) The amount of comments I get from customers of how Nice/Comfortable the car is you would not believe, and considering that the car is 15yrs old and I spend all day in the car I like the comfort too, So would like to stick with the GS. I currently get 22 MPG on my current car and considering most of my driving is city Stop/Start and Waiting on customers (Urban is listed as 17MPG) I am quite happy. I have seen lots of posts on what people get on motorways and commutes to work but was wondering what most of you get driving around town? Also, on test driving a GS450H is there anyway on testing the Hybrid/Battery without plugin in a scanner i.e. driving on EV mode if it has one Many Thanks

Cheers Again for you help Colin I got it sorted. Im not going to go into detail on how i got it sorted as it could make it very easy for someone to break into your car, safe to say that it is mentioned in the link above. What had happened to me was the Actuator Arm had come off and thus operating the Remote central locking or unlocking by the door switch was not working the lock mechanism on the door lock. One bit of advise I would give anyone in this situation is:- Remove the lock and exterior handle on the good door. Put the lock back in. You will see through the Opening where the exterior Handle was and should be able to work out what to do.

Thanks for finding that, was looking at the other door to work out the way to go but it looked like you had to get to the actuator. Think i might remove the good door handle to practice 1st, I was worred that I would have to cut into the door skin and then a door replacement which seems abit overkill. Will let you know how i got on.

Cheers Colin, I was able to get all but 1 of the screws out by removing the door seal but cannot get out the one at the rear with the door closed so cannot lift the door card up for access. Just unsure if i will have to cut the door card off or cut in through the exterior door handle?

Looking abit of help, Im unable to open my rear door. Both by the outside or inside handles. I can hear the actuator clicking when I use the remote but does not unlock. There are numerous posts about replacement of the lock actuator but the door needs to be open for that. How can I get the door open?

If you could have a look that would be great, Many Thanks Deet

Contacted the seller and he informed me the he has sold many of them and after you remove the ball joint it has cir clip that holds it in place. Would be very great full if anyone has any knowledge of this being done. Regards Deet

My car due for MOT next week and I have noticed that my Rear Upper Control Arm Ball joint has play in it. Checked a few motor factors and looks to be dealer only @£704+V After checking a few forums there seems to be a few posts about people replacing there IS(steel) control arms with GS(Alloy) ones as they are a straight replacement, Also there is a few posts about the ballpoints not being replaceable however Japeurocarparts sell a replacement Ball joint https://goo.gl/oZTWHQ Has anyone ever replaced the ball joint? or are there another options? Many Thanks Deet

Got it sorted But dont know what it was that fixed it. This is what I did today. Any connectors I checked were clean and had no corrosion. Removed the EFI relay and tested for operation. Check the Crankshaft position sensor and was withing spec, Tried to check the camshaft position sensor but could not get the plug off so Started to take the inlet manifold off for access, just gave up and put it back on. As I got it to fire yesterday with Easy Start I wanted try again with the wife starting car and me spraying (in bursts) Easy Start in to see I could get the car to tick over/run for a few seconds. Reconnected battery, reset immobiliser, opened the throttle body butterfly, sprayed in easy start and it fired up again ran for a sec then died. (did this a few times same result). I could not get it to run any longer as every time wife touched accelerator pedal it would bog down and die(No flow pass the MAF sensor possibly as i had the inlet pipe disconnected?) I could hear the fuel pump priming but decided to connect a 12v supply to the pump (it ran continually for the time I had it connected 10 secs or so) sprayed easy start and fired ran for a sec cut out. Reconnected the wiring for the fuel pump, Sprayed easy start into throttle body, reconnected inlet pipe and it fired and ran fine for a few mins. Car has ran fine all day, multiple starts covered 100 miles no issues, baffled on what the cause was, one of the connectors that was unplugged and reconnected? still think it was a fuel issue as car started with Easy start. Any thoughts?