skyway

a rare car here I am not sure if it would be hard to keep the V12 running in the uk.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/TOYOTA-CENTURY-V12-FRESH-IMPORT-JDM-DRIFT-RETRO-VIP-CROWN-PRESIDENT-CELSIOR/283880493743?hash=item42189892af:g:lyIAAOSw33FecPSw

I like the new.... but I also like your old ones

No..... it did come with a tv tuner under the drivers seat (non standard), two washer bottles,radar sensor, toll card thingy and to top it off a Sony mini disc player.

What it does not have is more important to me..... no air ride and mark lev sound system... both of which have been a bane to me in my ls430's.

NIce choice Phil....

Mine came with 18's I wonder if that was a year dependent thing or maybe options thing.

looks like you have done a stand up job Phil.

wanna show us your old wheels?

Mine are pealing and I just can't stand looking at them anymore so next weeks project is to start stripping and polishing them... then I think some clear coat.

nice work Phil

Had you done it before?

I was worried about damaging the paint buffing it (with my heavy handed skills).

Why did you want to change your wheels?

It would be a good thing to find out if it has air shocks... my celsior came without them, which is something I looked for.

I finally forced myself to put on the space saver to check... and it is the tyre... the space saver had never touched the ground before I think so.... it was almost painful to put it on.

Has it been 2 years already Phil? My how time flys.

I was talking to the misses about getting something else with more seats for the kids (they are grown but don't drive yet) Misses vetoed  the idea right away she loves the celsior toooo much. 

also after being underneath the car for a day.... its in remarkably good corrosion wise although the wheels need a repaint... bubbly mc bubbly LS wheels, so its a keeper.

How are you doing with those wool seats Phil?

They are Bridgestones still on from Japan so are showing their age

just ran outside to check... they are not directional tyres i am afraid.

Also I changed the front wheel bearing because I thought  that was the problem.

I had a crack in the exhaust pipe.... y section just behind the o2 sensor...it was actually the bracket that clamps the stainless heat shield down that caused the crack as it seems to hold onto water.

I removed the shield and what looks like fibreglass padding (sound dampening) then  wrapped n welded a piece of sheet metal around the pipe.

That being done I can't hear a difference in the sound coming through the car except the noise from the crack was gone.  

so now all that needs to be done is get a new tyre as I think I have a defective rear tyre ... it sounds like a wheel bearing has gone .... but i checked it and its fine,(moved the wheel from front to back and the sound moved with it)

Thanks guys 🙂

Hi everyone 

I hope I find you all well this evening.

Would anyone happen to know the diameter of the exhaust pipe on a lexus ls430....I am thinking its 50mm but I'm not sure...

I have an exhaust leak in the usual y section, I also have nothing to do and a welder and as it's not stainless I thought I would give it a shot being that my local garage is closed.

Thanks everyone for taking your time to read this and your help.

The best way is to slowly do it.... 2 10mm bolts on the drivers side of the gearbox i think.

That will give you access to the fill bolt (24mm) and the level bolt, make sure you can open the fill before you remove the sump bolt.

Something like 2 litres will come out but stick it in a jug to see how much and simply replace it through the filler then run the engine.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Oil-Fluid-Suction-Vacuum-Transfer-Hand-Syringe-Gun-Pump-Extractor-Gearbox-Hose/322189184435?epid=1857811695&hash=item4b03f8cdb3:g:KlAAAOSwcgNZCriw

using something like that....to get the atf in the hole

Rinse and repeat.  

All you need is 2 jack stands and a trolley jack, when I did mine my atf was pretty crappy looking at 100k.

You can of course leave it much longer it just maybe a peace of mind thing although I do believe that car makers feel 100000 miles is lifetime, It was a sneeky thing to remove the dip stick It builds in an impending doom upon the car, sells more cars in the end I would hazard a guess. 

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls-3rd-gen-2001-2006/492855-04-06-sealed-transmission-fluid-change-interval-the-mother-thread-23.html   a detailed post

Hi Guys

has anyone had their brake discs skimmed before?

Normally I just change my discs 

I am getting some vibration when gently braking and not when I brake with a little more force... maybe its time to get my angle grinder out lol

I always look at a service sideways when they dont put any prices on any websites It makes the practice look a little shady for something thats meant to take 4 mins per disc

Nah it will be OK..... some of us will be f#'ked of course due to being in a car crashes or electrocuted, killed by bored relatives that don't like losing at monopoly or abducted by aliens as usual.

Aids, Sars, chicken flu, mad cow disease or crazy Dave who lived round our way who used to steal kids so we were told didn't get us..... but nothing has had a massive impact on us really since the Spanish flu... and in those days being short because you didn't have enough to eat or kicking the bucket because you had TB or arsenic poisoning from green wallpaper that you just had to have in case the neighbours saw you had last years blue Wallpaper still up (what a fu#@king liberty).

But its 2020 we are (for the most part) warm and dry in our homes with little or no damp causing respiratory problems, we all have enough food and maybe enough loo roll in the cupboard to see us through (there is always the SUN newspaper otherwise).

Of course it could be the end of civilisation as we know it.

But what is to be done anyway....... Its like standing in the sea watching a wave about to hit you you can panic or just watch it hit you either case there is no getting away from it...

Distilled down to the very essence of the situation Chaps Stiff up lip and carry on.

Either way its my Toyota Celsior and if i get the "Rona"..... i'm going to die in the car and instruct the wife to set it on fire ... I am going out like a viking 

hahahaha love it

Not a bad idea Richard..... tbh I left mine standing for a good few months as I didn't want to part with it as it was fairly low mileage and ran sweet.

I only drove it to northern France and back then parked it up as I got my celsior and it has sat there looking at me everyday, ever since.

My daughter wanted it as her 1st car... but a 3 litre gs will be an arm and a leg to insure and run and I will probably have to fit some of that bill if not all, so it has to go and a cheaper to run corolla has to be found instead.

Update time....... with the aid of some wire and a paper clip I managed a yaw sensor re-calibration... zero point calibration even... all the diagrams I found online were showing the wrong pins.... 4 and 13 it turned out to be 4 and 14.... it was free and its done thanks for everyone's help.

On 2/25/2020 at 12:05 PM, k1elliott said:

Hi Malc.

 

Rad is all good thanks. I have an intermittent annoying squeak from a pulley. Think it's just the belt tensioner. It's on my list.

Does anyone know of a guide to replacing the engine mounts ? I have a feeling that mine are a bit soft or broken.

Cheers

i changed the engine mounts on my old ls430,,,,, got to be said they were no fun at all to do like really no fun.

I think its a job that would send me rocking in a dark corner muttering to myself

https://www.ebay.com/itm/TOYOTA-GENUINE-45206-50020-YOKE-SUB-ASSY-STEERING-SLIDING-W-SHAFT-OEM-/352948369862

I think it might be something like this...

https://www.amazon.com/INTERMEDIATE-STEERING-COLUMN-U-JOINT-2001-2006/dp/B07BN4K52P

might not be to bad a fix mind you Phil  

yeah I have... its a thing Phil