Farqui

Warning: this maybe too "American" for some

Sounds like greasy salesman speak

Some interesting details on the RC-F front end here as a chap removes front end damage. I find this style of time lapse videos quite entertaining over an early morning brew. I know most of you are likely to be shocked by these images of a Lexus in pieces but some of us enjoy a little spanner time...

Excellent news Roger, I'm glad it all worked out for you in the end.

Well done acquiring a replacement matrix. Personally i would be reluctant to break the seal on the metal hose. But... I can see your reasoning and it may we worth a try. Fingers crossed that an additional flush works.

Hi Kal, I'm sorry to hear that you've had a series of warning codes and been hit with some bills recently, especially at this time of year. Keep in mind that the vehicle has a few years under it's belt so service items like disk/pads are to be expected on any vehicle. I've also had to replace the rear (and middle) of my exhaust which means I no longer have any concerns about that going forward I also often work on the premise that it's better the devil you know! I'm glad that you've spoken to mr Hybrid Battery Solutions, he's the font of all knowledge for the power packs/etc. It's odd that the battery warning hasn't reappeared, did something unusual occur that might have caused it to trip earlier? You're right about it being a fantastic car, I'm still very pleased with mine.

Hi Duncan, is your OSR housing broken? There appear to be several options over the years - check here for part numbers/etc; https://lexus.7zap.com/en/eu/lexus+gs/334510/gws191r-bexqhw/4/8111/813663a/#81565 Teasing back the boot liner is fairly straight forward on the passenger side with the 12v battery having a separate small section. Tease out a few clips and you should have pretty good access to the light. You might be able to gain sufficient access to remove the lamp bolts via the pop out plastic panel but access will be limited. Here you'll see how to disconnect the wiring; http://www.lexomans.com/manguide-560.html then it'll just be a matter of 3 or 4 small bolts to removing the housing. Good luck and let us know how you get on.

Update: I managed a good run at the weekend and the mpg's sneaked up very close to 40mpg I've not seen it that high for a long time and I wasn't 'milking' it either. Looking back over my fuel consumption, the mpg's have been pretty low over the year which I partly contributed to having fewer long journey's,. But it now seems that the poor tracking was perhaps the biggest factor. Will keep an eye on it. John @Britprius, if your tyre wear is okay then I can understand why you're reluctant to get the tracking checked. I'd still consider it as a preventative task and should have done mine earlier. To prevent the front wandering you'd be able to dial in a little more front toe, if needed.

Well found, I do like a cross model parts swap [emoji106]

Well done Phil

^ good, only 'go there' as a last resort. What radiator flush product did you use?

that brings back memories... I spent many hours wresting with those pesky blend door controls! Take the control levers apart and you'll be in for a heap load of...fun.

You're welcome, they say "a picture paints a thousands words". The design is not unique to Lexus and you'll find this design is common to many vehicles. I guess it helps with packaging and keeping components compact.

Thanks Kevin @KevH, your photo's are great - they look the same on my vehicle. The short hose runs to the clips are great as you then don't need to mess with the hoses on the firewall and risk causing a leak inside the cabin.

My wife's car recently had speed related noise and vibration that we thought was due to a bad wheel bearing. The noise/slight vibes came and went at different speeds. I couldn't find anything wrong with any bearings/bushes/etc so dropped it into our trusted indi. He found that it was due to a bad tyre that had gone slightly out of shape. As you mention the tyres are getting ready for replacement, it might be worth renewing them sooner rather than later.

Andrew @Odysseus, the heater core has both the feed and return pipes on the same side of the matrix, so flow on the far side is reduced and can clog. Here's a pic crib'd from the www that shows what can occur (note: it's from a US forum)

Yes, they're online operation appears to be based in New York. I recently ordered parts from my local Lexus and others from Rockauto on the same day. Both orders arrived 3 days later. I had to drive the Lexus dealership whereas the long distance order arrived on my doorstep [emoji106] Priority shipping was Regular shipping wasn't much less and usually takes 5-7 days. Prices vary depending on the package size and weight, as you'd expect. I'll definitely be using them again as their prices are good, they have a wide choice, great shipping and an easy to use website.

Sorry to hear that you had an issue with them, I have used them many times and never had a problem. Their product descriptions are usually pretty good but i guess mistakes can be made. Did you double check the part number on another site before ordering? I rely on 7zap/etc for parts diagrams and product codes before I hunt down a supplier.

The port may have a cover on it that makes it difficult to see, mine did and i missed it at first. The port is usually under the steering wheel regardless of left or right hand drive.

Ian @IanA2, this might help ? https://www.outilsobdfacile.com/location-plug-connector-obd/Lexus-gs-2

Like this pic ? - hijacked from the www, sorry I can't recall where

Kevin, can you pop up a picture of the hoses you use to flush? I did some research a while back and the heater matrix hoses were at the back of the engine bay on the passenger drivers side and not near my airbox.

Ah sorry, re-reading your OP I now see that you have already tried a flush solution What is your hose pressure like? On sample vids I've been them use a valve to pulse the flush fluid through, sometimes this can help dislodge any blockages. Have you done any investigation on the heater matrix servos? Are there any odd noises in the dash during start/stop or when operating the heater controls? I hope you don't have to replace the matrix but if you do then I believe there are only a few bolts holding the dash in. However there are many other components to remove in order to get the dash out

My GS has cooler output on the passenger side (not cold) which I initially thought were bad blend doors/servo's but they all checked out. Servo work is a pig of job by the way, so I hope that is not your issue. I've also read about the matrix getting clogged so intend to get give the heater matrix a flush and soak to see if that helps. You're ahead of me already and it's disappointing that you haven't dislodged anything yet. Are you considering soaking the matrix guts with an appropriate solution? As a footnote, I mentioned the issue to a former Lexus tech and he said that low passenger temps could be due to low AC...I haven't followed up on this and in 2 years my AC works fine so hasn't been regassed.

Crumbs, why are apparently simple jobs so bloomin' technical these daysl?! Thanks for the heads up John, will see what I can do.