Bluesbreaker

Sorry to hear about Heathers health problems Ian,please wish her the best from me,-unfortunately,I too will be cancelling my attendance at the P&L this weekend sadly,as I've had to sell the LS due to financial hardship,I was hoping recently to be buying a LS430, but my circumstances have changed since then,neccessating the sale of the LS400,- the good news,is that it has gone to a good home up North,to a newly -joined LOC member,a really great guy,who I think will love and cherish the old girl,as I did,I will continue however,to keep on the LOC forum,and who knows,maybe one day,I'll be in a position to own another one of the best cars in the world, I hope the weather stays good for this Sundays Meet anyway,and wish everyone all the best.

I wouldn't waste much of my time on commenting on this guys attempt at humour -save for him dragging Stevie Wonder's name into the sales/*******/spiel-he may be blind,but he's got talent.

You've probably checked this anyway,but,-tyre pressures?

Anyone coming up from the South ,via the M1,want to rendezvous at Newport Pagnell services,and 'convoy' up to Plank and Leggit?

Very nice,a lot cheaper than it's Aston Martin or Rolls Royce counterpart, just goes to show though,how relatively easy you could tart up your old LS 400, for a lot less money,-like the dangling dice,and the pink flamingo on the bonnet ......

I should imagine that roundabouts,are one of the top accident hot spots in the UK these days,what happened to you Pete,is an everyday occurrence here in MK,people drive round here like maniacs,-driving through them as though they have a death wish,another growing driving-trait menace,are people driving around them at breakneck speed,meaning that any car that pulls out in front of them gets dogs abuse for daring to enter onto it,-I never take any other drivers intentions or actions for granted-in short,I never trust them.

Obviously,the Top Gear mentality has firmly sunk into the psyches of these drivers,who haven't a scooby doo what kind of car their dealing with,when taking on an LS400- surely the chrome lettering on the boot lid gives them some idea,-apparrantly that's not the case.

Wow,sounds like you have had one difficult experience there,glad to hear your all sorted out now.

You might not like the reality of living in one Ian,I helped run a mobile home park in Scotland a few years ago,these Chalets may look well-made,and smart,but believe me,it's all cosmetic,thin-wall construction,flimsy to say the least,simple flooring,at least a two-foot gap needed underneath for services,waste pipes etc, meaning the cold rises up through the flooring,their sturdiness against adverse weather conditions-ie high winds,etc,are questionable,heating bills are astronomical ,as the insulation is minimal,you'd be lucky to get full insurance coverage for them,as they are considered a fire hazard, personally,I'd rather live in a smaller space like a motor -home than one of these units,sorry to throw cold water over your enthusiasm for it Ian!! -( no pun intended )

The lights flash on my Mark.IV also,when the alarm goes off,-as it did the other day,when parked on the drive of a Relatives house,the reason the alarm went off? I'd left my iPad on the central armrest,covered with a blanket,-I cannot leave anything metallic or magnetic in or near that armrest,it triggers the alarm,but only after 10-15 minutes of setting it-very odd.

Never a truer word spoken,an old friend of mine,became a millionaire overnight,by selling at a crucial time,land he'd bought,just off the M4, near Reading,he'd bought it in a 50% share with a business partner,a couple of years previously,for a relative song,they set up a Property Management company with the proceeds,my friends business partner promptly went out and bought a late model Astin Martin with his small change,my friend,more cautious and far-seeing,bought an older Volvo Estate,stating that one of the first rules of business,was,do not show off your ostentatious wealth,keep your light under a bushel,etc,he went on to bigger and better things as time went on,whereas,his business partner -a Jack the lad anyway, went under,spending all his dosh on flash cars and coke,( not the diet kind,I might add) some kind of lesson to be learned possibly.

Mmm.... if their fetching that kind of price now,maybe it's time to get the the old t-cut out,and tart up the old girl,-I might do the same to the LS afterwards.....( apologies for my lack of political -correctness here....) -well,maybe not....

Never understood the logic of buying brand new,and when the car hits the road outside the showroom,it immediately depreciates,I do understand the motive behind buying new,though,for the fact that nobody else has driven it/ warranty scenario,-but that doesn't impress me enough,I've always thought that buying someone's 'cast off' at one or two years old,a better proposition,as any initial faults,etc,would have been sorted out by then, anyway,in the long run,I think the 'buy new' fad,is just that,generated by motoring media hype and advertising,I can't see the need to keep changing cars all the time,when the one you have,is prefectly fine,and does the job it was built for,and that's why I'm keeping my old Lexus.

Power folding mirrors! Now I'm getting jealous,that's one innovation I really like, had them on a Pajero I had years ago,very handy.

Hi Brian,I wasn't aware that on the Mark4's,BOTH door mirrors dip down? -maybe something wrong with my drivers-side mirror,as it stays in position,when I reverse, can you,or someone enlighten me on this please?

Hey Kristoff-bet that truck pulls well with a load! any chance of some photos of the LS 400 engine in your truck?

An impressive lump of metal,if ever there was,nothing like seeing a V8 Engine,on the floor,in all it's glory, Japanese technology at it's finest.

Hey Steve -your a one-man Lexus Handbook,is there no limit to this mans expertise,in all things Lexus,I ask myself?........

Lexus technology at it's best-dontcha just love these cars.

Just stumbled on to this thread Ian,-what a simple,yet brilliant idea,full marks old son.

Hi Chris,my commiserations at losing your job, but,by the sound of it,your optimistic attitude towards your situation, will hold you in good stead,small consolation,I know,but the old saying,'one door closes,another one opens, springs to mind,keep smiling pal,and all the best.

A hundred years ago,when I was on a Kibbutz in Southern Israel,we were given ( foolishly) the use of a Toyota Land Cruiser, when the Israelis,running the Kibbutz weren't driving us,like slaves,working in the fields,in our spare time,us volunteers,used it,to go off-roading in it,the Negev Desert,being our backyard,as it were,about eight of us,would hitch a trailer,to it,load it up with booze,food,sleeping bags,and any girls who were daft enough to come along for the ride,( chortle,chortle) we gave that wagon hell,driving it through dried-out river-beds,at breakneck speeds,over rocks,bottoming -out going over sand-dunes,in fact,doing just about everything that those morons on Top Gear would do to a vehicle-except we got paid in Shekels,while Clarkson and co,get vast salaries,this Toyota got the living day lights thrashed out of her,and it never,ever broke down,the Israelis drive vehicles like idiots,this Toyota was no exception,it was as tough as a Sherman Tank,given the wide choice of 4x 4's these days,for durability,and sheer brute toughness,the Land Cruiser can not be beaten,that's why you see the UN using them,no other vehicle can take the abuse meted out to them in War Zones. So,yes,I would recommend buying one,sod the fuel consumption,sod the somehow,old -fashioned style of the body,sod what people might say about Land Cruisers being considered a bit ' passé ' I'd have one in a blink of an eye,tough as old boots.

Driving around my area earlier today,in the space of three miles,I must have spotted five late model IS 200's, later,around lunchtime,I spotted seven more IS200's, and IS250's, I never spotted one twice,as I took a mental note of the numbers,and colour of each one, such an unusual occurrence,certainly around the area,in which I live,to see so many Lexus cars, maybe there was a covert meet going on-or maybe I was just hallucinating.........I did take some bad acid once............

Nice one,I hope your happy with your new car.

I think everyone here, has more or less put their ten-cents worth into the debate,regarding just how much of a racket,the insurance game is,-a licence to print money,( my opinion),it's a subject,which I think has come-up on more than one occassion,and promotes lively debate,my final comment on this matter,for what it's worth,is that we,in Britain,are enduring one of the worst financial recessions,in living memory,with no relief in sight,being royally mismanaged,by the current crop of incompitents,who would make Richard Nixon look honest,with swingeing financial -cuts being implemented right across the board,vital public services budgets paired to the bone,-all to save a few hundred,or thousand quid-while these maggots award themselves pay-increases,while all the time,telling us 'were all in it together' -my hairy arse,we are,and that is why loyalty to insurance companies,is a hiding to nothing,and shopping around,is the order of the day,( as Bluesman rightly mentioned,the internet makes it much easier to shop around,and get good deals) anyone reading this diatribe,will surely agree,that given the financial climate,prices of everything,are rising at an alarming rate,-and people are losing their jobs as fast,I for one,wonder where this is all going to lead to,-it ain't gonna get any better soon,-though,if you listen to Cameron,and his mouthpiece,the BBC,you'd think we'll all be in clover this time next year,-dream on, I apoligise for chuntering -on so,but I am fed up to the back teeth,with what's going-on in this once great country of ours,and feel so impotent to do anything about it,and sorry to Jeremy,for hijacking your thread,...signed:-******-off,from Milton Keynes.