jumbodrive

Greetings from England,
I have been reading some threads on here and thought I'd introduce myself, I have just bought a 2009 GS450H with 120k miles, its my first ever automatic transmission car, first hybrid and first Lexus. Previously I've had manual Toyotas only like the MR2, Celica and a bunch of Yarises which I've enjoyed maintaining myself, planning to do the same with this even though its a bit more complicating. The car has 120k miles and the last few years of maintenance history are from independent shops, so I've got a complete service kit from Lexus including engine oil and filter, air filter, spark plugs, coolant, and cabin air filter.
The oil has been changed recently by the previous owner with 0w20, but the Lexus dealer gave me 5w30, and I did not question it at the time, I think 5w30 is acceptable, but 0w20 is better.I started my first maintenance task by sucking out the coolant from the hybrid inverter tank and replenishing it with new coolant (I plan to do that again a few times, or if the drain location is easy to access, I will drain down the entire system and use Techstream to purge any air out).

I have also got to do the spark plugs, as I can't see any recent evidence of those being done.

I want to also do the transmission fluid and filter. My plan is to follow this video: or the steps outlined here: https://www.clublexus.com/forums/gs-...-w-pics-9.html
The car in the video is AWD and not hybrid, and the car in the link is also not hybrid, so not sure if the process is the same.

I plan to drain the transmission, remove the sump, replace the filter, clean the magnets, refit the sump, fill WS fluid from the fill hole on the side of the transmission, start the engine, wait for the transmission temperature to reach 42C checking using Techstream and then open the overflow level bolt to let any excess fluid drain out or find out I need to add fluid. Does that sound right?

I'm not interested in getting out every last drop out, as previous experience suggests that its normally futile, especially considering I'm likely to be back there in a year or two doing the same maintenance again. I don't do many miles either so I'm not fussed, hence why I'm ok with sucking out the hybrid inverter coolant, and also not doing a transmission flush or repeated drain and fill.

Are there any other maintenance things or gotchas I should have in mind? Thanks.

NormzGS350

Congrats on your first Lexus. I'm sure you will learn to love and appreciate these fine specimens of cars that we pride ourselves in as well.

Seems like you are on the right track with the trans and coolant flush, and the spark plugs too. I would also get basic stuff such as brake fluid, brake pads, rotors, PCV valve replacement, hood/trunk struts checked out or replaced as needed.

As far as oil viscosity goes, I would go with the dealer recommended and go to your manual for confirmation, that's best practices.

As far as tips for new car, I would adjust your headlights up slightly as these GS have them aimed quite low from factory. I gained about 30 feet visibility with the lights aimed slightly more up vertically, there are plenty of guides on CL on how to do that, as well as in your manual. Another thing is if you have tbe Techstream Software do the customizations for door lock, keyless entry, etc as those are always nice to have and customize.

Lastly, have your suspension checked out for any issues. 120k is right around the perfect interval to replace stuff like struts, shocks, sway bar bushings, etc that type of thing, if they are good, and you don't notice any negative issues, then check again 15k miles later for any developing issues.

I think that's about it, these cars are great and relatively low-maintenance as long as you are checking stuff every once in a while.

Best, Norm

jumbodrive

Thanks for the reply. I am enjoying the comfort and power.

I've just replaced the spark plugs, engine air filter and cabin air filter this weekend. The spark plugs were quite involved, the inverter is certainly in the way and it means the intake manifold needs to come off, whereas on non-hybrid models you could easily do the job without removing the manifold. As far as I could tell at least. I also extracted and renewed the hybrid inverter coolant again. I also removed the PCV valve and cleaned it out with throttle body cleaner and compressed air.

According to the paperwork from the previous owner, its recently had new brake discs, pads and fluid (high performance EBC stuff) so I won't be replacing those until they are due again, but I have done a visual inspection and replaced a few missing bleeder covers. I have also got a very expensive receipt for brand new shocks all round.

We are quite lucky in the UK as our yearly inspection checks the headlight aim (both up and down and left to right) and it must be in specification, so I won't be touching that - its something that will have been adjusted and set to spec every year if it was ever out, and will continue to be adjusted by a qualified tester. Its been inspected a few months ago so I've got a year until the next inspection. The inspection also checks bushings and suspension components for wear and damage, so I won't replace anything unless its flagged up.

I have got Techstream, I couldn't find many interesting things for customisation, I wanted to see if cornering lights were something available but I don't think they are. On euro cars its quite common to be able to activate front fog lights for cornering based on steering angle input.

The hood (or bonnet) struts are worn out, and it did almost come down on me, but that's easily kept up with a pair of vise grips on the shaft (lol), so its not high on my priorities.

I have also ordered some steel sheet, because the catalytic converter was stolen on my Celica recently (very common at the moment in the UK), I'll be fabricating a protective shield for the GS450H cats to try to prevent that happening to me again.