1998 Lexus ES300 radio

GAUGES, METERS AND SERVICE REMINDER INDICATORS
32
If the brake fluid level is correct ...
Have the warning system checked by your Lexus dealer.
(b) Seat Belt Reminder Light and Buzzer
Once the ignition key is turned to ºONº or ºSTARTº, the reminder light and
buzzer come on if the driver's seat belt is not fastened. Unless the driver
fastens the belt, the light stays on and the buzzer stops after about 4 to 8
seconds.
(c) SRS Warning Light
The indicator comes on when the ignition key is turned to the ºACCº o\
r
ºONº position. It goes off after about 6 seconds. This means the SRS is
operating properly.
The SRS warning light system monitors the airbag sensor assemblies,
inflators, seat belt pretensioners, warning light, interconnecting wiring and
power sources.
If either of the following conditions occurs, this indicates a malfunction
somewhere in the parts monitored by the warning light system. Contact your
Lexus dealer as soon as possible to service the vehicle.

The light does not come on as described above.
 The light stays on or flashes.
 The light comes on or starts flashing while driving.
If the light stays on, it indicates that the driver and front passenger air\
bags fail.
If the light flashes, the side airbags and/or seat belt pretensioners fa\
il.
(d) Discharge Warning Light
This light warns that the battery is being discharged.
If it comes on while you are driving, stop the vehicle, turn off the engine, and
check for the cause. Look first at the engine drive belt.
 If it is loose or broken, the generator will not charge the battery properly.
 If the belt is O.K., there is a problem somewhere in the charging system.
The engine ignition will continue to operate, however, until the battery is
discharged. Turn off the air conditioning, blower, radio, etc., and drive
directly to the nearest Lexus dealer or repair shop.
NOTICE
Do not continue driving if the engine drive belt is broken or loose.

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
78
16E127
Do not attach a cup holder or any other device on or around the door.
When the side airbag inflates, the cup holder or any other device will
be thrown with great force, or the side airbag may not activate
correctly, resulting in death or serious injury. Likewise, the driver
and front passenger should not hold things in their arms or on their
knees.
 Do not use accessories for the seats which cover the parts where the
side airbags should inflate. Such accessories may prevent the side
airbags from activating correctly, causing death or serious injury.
 Do not modify or remove any wiring. Do not modify, remove, strike
or open any components, such as the steering wheel column cover,
front passenger airbag cover, front seats, airbag sensor assembly or
seat belt assemblies. Doing any of these may cause sudden SRS
operation or disable the system, which could result in death or
serious injury.
 Do not modify or replace the seats or surface of the front seats with
side airbags. Such changes may disable the system or cause the side
airbags to inflate, resulting in death or serious injury. Consult your
Lexus dealer.
Failure to follow these instructions can result in death or serious
injuries.
NOTICE
Do not perform any of the following changes without consulting your
Lexus dealer. Such changes can interfere with proper operation of the
SRS in some cases.
 Installation of electronic items such as a mobile two±way radio,
cassette tape player or compact disc player.
 Modification of the suspension system.
 Modification of the front end structure and side structure of the
passenger compartment.
 Attachment of a grille guard (bull bar, kangaroo bar, etc.), snow plow,
winches or any other equipment to the front end.
 Repairs made on or near the front fenders, front end structure,
console, steering column, steering wheel, dashboard near the front
passenger airbag, front seats or seat belt assembly.

AIR CONDITIONING AND AUDIO
112
1Turning the system on and adjusting volume
(See page 113 for details.)
2Stopping and ejecting a cassette tape
(See page 118 for details.)
3Function buttons
1 ± 6: Station selector buttons
(See page 117 for details.)
SCAN: Scan tuning
(See page 118 for details.)
P. SCAN: Preset scan tuning (See page 118 for details.)
4Display of functions in TAPE mode

:
Side change
(See page 119 for details.)
: DOLBY NR
(See page 119 for details.)
 :Rewinding
(See page 119 for details.)


:Fast forwarding
(See page 119 for details.)
RPT: Automatic repeat
(See page 120 for details.)
SKIP: Automatic skip of blank portions of tape
(See page 120 for details.)
SCAN: Scan selection
(See page 120 for details.)
4
Display of functions in CD mode
:Disc selection
(See page 124 for details.)
 :Reversing
(See page 126 for details.)


:Fast forwarding
(See page 126 for details.)
RPT: Automatic repeat
(See page 126 for details.)
RAND: Random access
(See page 126 for details.)
SCAN: Scan selection
(See page 125 for details.)
5
Mode selectors
(See page 113 for details.)
6Cassette tape slot
(See page 118 for details.)
7Tone and balance knobs
(See page 114 for details.)
8Radio mode: Frequency tuning
(See page 116 or 117 for details.)
TAPE mode: Direct access to a desired program
(See page 121 for details.)
CD mode: Direct access to a desired program
(See page 126 for details.)

AIR CONDITIONING AND AUDIO115
(c) Your radio antenna
The wire antenna is mounted inside the rear window.
NOTICE

When cleaning the inside of the rear window, be careful not to scratch
or damage the wire antenna.
 Putting a window tint (especially, conductive or metallic type) on the
rear window may affect the reception of radio. For the installation of
the window tint, consult with your Lexus dealer.
(d) Your cassette player
When you insert a cassette, the exposed tape should be to the right.
NOTICE
Do not oil any part of the cassette player, and do not insert anything except
a cassette tape into the slot.
(e) Your automatic changer
20E016±2
If your Lexus is equipped with an automatic changer, it can play selected discs
or continuously play all the discs set in the magazine.
When you set discs into the magazine, make sure they face the correct wa\
y.
If not, the player will display ºErrº and the disc number.
NOTICE
Never try to disassemble or oil any part of the compact disc player. Do not
insert anything except a compact disc into the magazine.
The player is intended for use with 12 cm (4.7 in.) discs only.

AIR CONDITIONING AND AUDIO
116
Radio operation
(a) Listening to the radio
20E017
Push these buttons to choose either an AM or FM station.
ºAMº, ºFM1º or ºFM2º appears on the display.
20E018
Push this button on the upper side to step up the station band or on the\
lower side to step down.
Your radio automatically changes to stereo reception when a stereo broadcast\
is received. ºSTº appears on the display. If the signal becomes weak, the radio
reduces the amount of channel separation to prevent the weak signal from
creating noise. If the signal becomes extremely weak, the radio switches from
stereo to mono reception. In this case, ºSTº disappears from the displa\
y.

AIR CONDITIONING AND AUDIO117
(b) Presetting a station
20E019±1
1. Tune in the desired station.
2. Push one of the station selector buttons ( 1±6 ) and hold it until \
a beep
is heard. This sets the station to the button and the button number ( \
1±6
) appears on the display.
Each button can store one AM station and two FM stations. To change the
preset station to a different one, follow the same procedure.
The preset station memory is cancelled when the power source is interrupted\
by battery disconnection or a blown fuse.
(c) Selecting a station
Your Lexus has an electronic tuning radio (ETR). Tune in the desired station
using one of the following methods.
20E020
Preset tuning: Push the button ( 1±6 ) for the station you want briefly. The
button number ( 1±6 ) and station frequency appear on the display.
Manual tuning:
Push the ºTUNE SEEKº button briefly. Each time you push
the button, the radio will step up or down to another frequency.
Seek tuning: Push the ºTUNE SEEKº button and hold it until you hear a beep.
The radio will begin seeking up or down for a station of the nearest freque\
ncy
and will stop on reception. Each time you push the button, the stations wi\
ll
be searched out one after another.

AIR CONDITIONING AND AUDIO
118
20E021±2
To scan all the frequencies: Push the ºSCANº button. ºSCANº appears on
the display. The radio will find the next station up the band, stay there for a
few seconds, and then scan again. To select a station, push the ºSCANº button
a second time.
To scan the preset stations: Push the ºP.SCANº button. ºP.SCANº appears
on the display. The radio will tune in the next preset station up the band, stay
there for a few seconds, and then move to the next preset station. To select a
station, push the ºP.SCANº button a second time.
Cassette tape player operation
(a) Playing a cassette tape
20E022±2
When you insert a cassette tape, the exposed tape should be to the right\
.
The player will automatically start when you insert a cassette tape. At th\
is
time, ºTAPEº appears on the display.
If a metal or chrome equivalent cassette tape is put in the cassette pla\
yer, the
player will automatically adapt to it and ºMETALº appears on the display.
To stop or eject the cassette tape, push the ºEJECTº button.
Auto±reverse feature: After the cassette player reaches the end of a tape, it
automatically reverses and begins to play the other side, regardless of whether
the cassette was playing or fast forwarding.

AIR CONDITIONING AND AUDIO127
(h) If the player malfunctions
If ºWAITº appears on the display, audio signals of the disc cannot be read or
the system has trouble. Push the ºCDº button once again.
If the player does not operate, check that the disc surface is not soiled or
damaged. If the disc is O.K., the following cause is possible.

The temperature of the player's internal mechanism is raised because of
high external temperature. Remove the magazine from the player to cool
it.
If the player still does not operate, take it to your Lexus dealer.
Car audio system operating hints
NOTICE
To ensure the correct audio system operation:
 Be careful not to spill beverages over the audio system.
 Do not put anything other than a cassette tape or CD magazine into the
cassette tape slot or CD changer.
Radio reception
Usually, the problem with radio reception does not mean there is a problem
with your radio ± it is just the normal result of conditions outside the \
vehicle.
For example, nearby buildings and terrain can interfere with FM receptio\
n.
Power lines or telephone wires can interfere with AM signals. And of course,
radio signals have a limited range, and the farther you are from a station, t\
he
weaker its signal will be. In addition, reception conditions change constantl\
y
as your vehicle moves.
Here are some common reception problems that probably do not indicate a
problem with your radio:
FM
Fading and drifting stations ± Generally, the effective range of FM is about
40 km (25 miles). Once outside this range, you may notice fading and dr\
ifting,
which increase with the distance from the radio transmitter. They are often
accompanied by distortion.
Multi±path ± FM signals are reflective, making it possible for two signals to
reach your antenna at the same time. If this happens, the signals will cance\
l
each other out, causing a momentary flutter or loss of reception.
Static and fluttering ± These occur when signals are blocked by buildings,
trees, or other large objects. Increasing the bass level may reduce static and
fluttering.