ntwrkguy1

I'm going to be in FL picking up a '97 LS400 the week after the 4th of July. This is the ultra-low mileage one I referenced in an earlier post (36,000 miles). After conferring with a few of my friends from the GS board, they thought it might be a good idea to get the timing belt service done before I return home, just due to the age of the belt.

The larger issue is that it's 700 miles from Tampa to Raleigh, NC, and this car has never driven 700 miles in a day. So I figured better safe than sorry, and let's get that service out of the way. What are your thoughts on this? Am I being overly concerned about the age of the timing belt vs. the miles on the engine? And also, while I'm there, I figured a complete fluid service would be in order: I know the coolant and oil will be done with the timing belt, but what about power steering, brake, and transmission fluid? Should those all be done before driving it home? Believe it or not, I think all of them are the original fluids.

And while we're on this topic, does anyone have any experience with any of the Toyota dealers (pros or cons) in the Tampa/Clearwater/St. Pete area? I'm from that area originally, but haven't lived there since 2000. I had my GS430 timing belt done at the Toyota dealer (that's a pretty popular topic on the GS forum) and was thrilled with the fact it was a LOT cheaper than doing it at the Lexus dealer, yet I still had OEM Toyota parts.

Any and all advice is appreciated!

ais300c

Honestly I don't think you need to worry about the timing belt. Age is a factor however the belt is meant to hold up to heat and friction so the age doesn't really do a whole lot, if you choose to then by all means go ahead it can't hurt anything and there is a place called "the toy house" ( no its not a strip club which is what I thought it was haha) but they specialize in Lexus and Toyota honest and cheap so that's my opinion on that

ntwrkguy1

I see your point on the fact that the belt is meant to hold up to heat and friction. I guess I was concerned about the age, and the fact that the car was not a daily driver. It's had periods of sitting around, but never more than two or three weeks at a time.

I'll look up the Toy House -- and stress to my wife "no, seriously, I'm going there to get the car fixed!" lol

robertrios

iTrader: (11)

check out Tampa Automotive Center- guys there are cool and one of them drives a nice GS. They are located off benjamin road in Tampa. If you want a dealer the one in Brandon has always been less expensive for me than the Stadium Toyota Dealership.

I've had work done on my 2IS and my SC430 at both places but of course Tampa Automotive will be less.

ls400rgr

Stadium Toyota was good when I was there. I would not go to Lexus of Tampa. Never had a satisifying experience with their service department.