Herbie

Because they must automatically go off when you switch on either the side/tail lights or the headlights, so a couple of relays is the way to do it, just like this guy did here:

Just use a multimeter to check which fuses are dead with ignition off and live when it's switched on, then use a piggy-back fuse connector on it. Did you get the relays in with the DRLs or did you have to buy them separately?

To do a proper check you need a heavy discharge tester really. A starter motor in a 'normal' non-hybrid car draws about 300A so the heavy discharge tester checks to see if the battery can provide that for about 20 to 30 seconds without the voltage dropping below 10V. As it's been a very long time since I did anything like this I would take those figures with a pinch of salt but you'll get the gist of it - have the battery properly tested by an auto-electrician.

Sadly not, not directly anyway. Bluetooth works for phone calls but not for music, but there are various adapters and aftermarket units out there to allow you to plug in an iPod etc., etc., it's just a matter of how much money you want to throw at it. Now that we have a 450h rather than the 300, thankfully it works straight from the factory. Just a final point about your cam belt - if you let Lexus do it, the price they give you is purely to replace the belt; they don't include the idler/tensioner/pulley so you have to pay extra if you want those changed as well. Most independent garages I've used in the past tend to replace the lot and buy in the new parts as a kit.

This looks a decent one although there may be something newer out there now

Forget the integrated satnav and stick with your TomTom - the integrated ones are very clunky, outdated and very, very poor compared to the TomTom. I think your satnav will be the same as my old 2005 RX300 in the sense that the maps are DVD-based, so no way to input your own POIs, speed cam warnings, or anything else. You can't even input a full UK postcode when trying to plot a route. Again, I'm not familiar with the engine in that model but it sounds like it does have a cam belt rather than a chain, so I strongly suggest that you also have the water pump replaced at the same time as the belt. The reason for this is that a lot of cars, the RX300 included, have the water pump situated in the same area as the belt. Just plucking a figure out of the air as an example, if replacing the belt costs £350 then changing the water pump at the same time will add maybe £50 to the bill. However, if you have it done later, replacing the pump could cost you another £300 on its own because almost all the work done to change the belt will have to be done again to change the pump.

Never had to use him myself but I'd give a '+1' for Richard, or maybe there's someone else closer to you. Anyway, here's a short video from Richard himself:

You're talking about a completely different thing there - the dim-dip system. It was outlawed by the EU which is why you no longer see it in use. I seem to remember reading that it wasn't very efficient or good for the bulbs as they only placed a resistor in the circuit to dim the bulbs, which meant that they didn't run at their designed temperature and caused problems.

I don't think so. There's a posting somewhere on these forums that contains the text of a letter from Lexus UK stating that the beam patter is flat and doesn't kick up to the left, therefore no adjustment to headlamps is necessary. However, you definitely switch off the AFS system, which moves the lights left/right as you turn the steering wheel.

Great job, well done Mark.

Ok, I only managed two broken hours of sleep last night so I'm not performing at my best and I'm willing to accept that it's me being thick here but, if I understand correctly, you want to make the sidelights come on with the ignition and then tee into that to power a couple of lights under the bonnet (for working in the engine bay?) and then a couple of W5W bulbs in the headlights? In a word - no. The sidelights and headlights are monitored by the CANBUS system and any more or less load than the system expects to see will cause problems there. I've never had a GS450h so I don't know the lights but I doubt you'll be able to modify any of the existing lights other than maybe the indicators like Sorcerer did with his RX300 above. If you don't want to or can't modify the indicators like he did then I think your only option is to find a place to install aftermarket DRLs. Any DRLs will require an ignition-fed power source and a relay or two for the switching. I can draw out a circuit diagram for you, showing you how to connect the relays etc., and it's a simple enough job to do.

Beautiful car, well done Jonathan!

Yeah, the RX300 was the same. I got the guy who did the LPG conversion to change the plugs at the same time, knowing that he'd be doing a lot of dismantling

Can you do it again please Barry, as a proper tutorial with step-by-step instructions and lots of photos? Seriously though, good job, well done. I've always enjoyed working on my own cars and you do get a fuzzy feeling inside knowing that you've achieved something.

Yeah but, if I understand you correctly then, all you've done is to replace the incandescent bulb with an LED so effectively they aren't DRLs are they - you're just driving around with your fog lights on. That in itself is an offence as they're only meant to be used in fog or falling snow. No offence Lee, but if you're going to do a job you might as well do it properly

Be aware that if you do this though, you must make sure that you have measures in place to switch the DRLs off automatically when the side/tail and/or headlights are switched on. It would not be legal to work solely on the manual 'fog light' switch and your own remembering to turn them off - you could easily forget.

The above is taken from https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/daytime-running-lights/daytime-running-lights

I don't know what would be involved in doing that but maybe an alternative is to use switchback LEDs in the indicators if possible, just like this RX300:

OBD2 is an industry standard so any OBD2 reader will do - plenty on eBay or Amazon. Alternatively, if you have a laptop you could go for a miniVCI cable

Excellent job Jon, well done!

I beg to differ. I suppose it depends on how big and bright the other lights around it are but I find that they tend to grab your attention faster, plus I just really like the look of them.

How can you trademark a light? Anyone with a soldering iron and a bit of electronics knowledge can knock up the same thing in their garage. I made a sweeping/sequential amber light for a display stand a few months ago myself, but I doubt Audi will be after me

I've always taken "average mileage" to be 12,000/year but some folks these days say 10,000. Either way, that car is still below average mileage and will go on for many, many more miles yet. I'm not sure if that engine has a timing belt or timing chain but if it's a belt they should be replaced at 100,000 miles or 10 years, whichever comes first. If it's not been done, maybe use that as a bargaining chip on price. I think you should also be able to get a hybrid health check done at any Lexus dealer for about £60. The car may be too old to get a hybrid warranty but at least a good health check result should put your mind at rest about the hybrid system at least. Other than that, just enjoy.

As the drivers or end users of the cars we don't have access to all of the traction battery. I can't remember if we get about 60% or about 80% of it's true capacity but as Colin says above, this system allows the battery to have a long life over many years and many, many charging cycles. It may help to visualise it as a horizontal bar, divided into three sections, with the two end sections coloured, say, green and the middle section coloured yellow. The whole length of the bar is the true, actual capacity of the whole battery, but we don't get to use the two green end sections. The yellow coloured section in the middle is 'ours' and the battery indicator that we can see in the dashboard shows us the state of charge of 'our' battery, from flat to fully charged - and yes, we can indeed often see that it is fully charged.

Thanks folks