Hi,

I went to Lexus today for my first oil change. While there they suggested I also have the fuel system cleaned, engine decarbonization and a brake fluid system flush and replacement. All of which I agreed to. When talking to the representative afterwards she said this was normal wear & tear and nothing I can do to prevent this in the future. Should I expect to do this everytime I need an oil change?

TIA

 

No, i wouldnt expect these services to be performed at every oil change. Typically brake fluid is every 30k miles. I would suggest the fuel system and decarb every 30k as well. So no, these are services you may have needed today, but wont need again for a while.

 

Welcome to Club Lexus!
You didn't post which Lexus you own, but it should be the same for all.
Carbon build-up is just going to happen, not much to stop it except drive it like you stole it! lol
Throttle body cleaning is quite simple, and takes 15 minutes. Hopefully they didn't charge you like crazy to do that. Clean the throttle body every 2-3 years, just to ensure better mpg, and good throttle response.
You can put in a can of fuel injector cleaner about every other oil change, if you want.

 

To elaborate, No, it would be a huge waste of money to do all of this every oil change. Are you mechanically inclined? I am guessing probably no more than your average person, but if you feel comfortable with it, disconnect the vaccuum line from your brake booster and pour half a can of SeaFoam into it (a little at a time, with the engine running). Once you reach half a can, shut the engine off for 5 minutes. Reconnect your brake booster line (its the only rubber hose that comes from the brake master cylinder). During that 5 minutes, dump the rest in your fuel tank (or your engine oil if you are 150 miles/2-3 days from your next oil change), then start the engine back up. You might have to give it the berries for a few seconds to get it to stay running. once you see the smoke, rev the motor with the trans in neutral and the parking brake on. Do not exceed 3-4,000 RPM. Keep revving till most of the smoke is gone, then go for a drive.

DRIVE THE SNOT out of the car for 10 minutes or so. Obey your local laws, but your car will need to be driven as hard as your local limits allow, and likely harder than you have probably ever driven it before. Floor it everywhere, high revs...You have to get the cats good and hot to burn out all the crap you just put through them. Failure to do this could result in burning up your catalytic converters ($800 a piece).

This will (more or less) do the exact same thing as the Engine Decarbonization process they use, for $10. If you do not feel comfortable doing this, this is likely the same treatment you get at the dealership, only I would hope they would not drive your car afterwards. They can do it in the shop just revving the engine, and can adjust things via a MODUS system to change the way your engine is running, and watch it closely so they do not damage anything.


Agreed
Depending on his model and year, fuel injector cleaner may not be the best course of action. On a 2006 IS350 for instance, I have seen an O2 sensor blow right after the client had put Slick 50 Fuel system cleaner in it. Not saying it wasnt conincedental, but in my experience, the only thing I would ever stick in my fuel tank is premium fuel and a can of Seafoam every 10,000 miles or so. I swear by the stuff to the point where I buy it in bulk on Ebay. 24 cans for $150.

 

hmm speaking of which i was thinking of putting a good quality fuel injector cleaner. my car has like 105,000miles on it and i have had some bad start problems. some times the car just wouldnt start and i have to give gas and after a min or so its working and idling all fine. its just @ start ups.
i cleaned the throttle body, MAF sensor. i will be changing the spark plugs. maybe that might resolve the issue.but in meanttime i m thinking of puttting fuel injector cleaner and see if that helps

 

Your issue sounds more like an idle air control valve sticking...

 

x2, you need to clean the IACV. Both the ES300 and RX300 are cleaned the same way, so you can check out the RX300 diy.

 

ya i did checked the thread but i IACV sensor that is held with 2 screws is messed up. One of screw head is gone and the groove is messed up. So now i cannot remove them @ all. but i did clean in and around the intakes.This is what happened to it. Now i am a bit hesitant on using the extractor tools since that thing is a sensor.

 

Brake fluid every 30k and I run a can of seafoam through my gas tank with every oil change. 75k miles and runs like day 1.

 

is seafoam a good thing?

 

Those two screws arent the ones you want to take off anyway.. there are 4 screws below, that hold the entire unit to the bottom of the throttle body, those are the ones you want to take off.

 

ya thats true too..but i followed the instructions thta Lexmex had posted under Rx300 forum on hoe to clean it. But in anycase i managed to remove those bad screws and cleaned the **** that was inside. So now the car starts perfectly. if however it doesnt start down the road then ya i will have to remove that entire unit. that is pain in *** to remove that whole thing tho.