nhoward

Thank you Steve The tip about the motor being the same as some Toyota models is excellent - thank you very much. If it is diagnosed on Monday as being this part then I will get the part number and head straight for a Toyota dealer. I will put a cleaner through the sat nav and see if it makes a difference. If it doesn't I will wait for a breaker to come up and sort it that way. I will post some photos soon. Ideally the mileage should be kept low, but I am using it for work and do 20-25K per annum. I've had some 'big cruisers' over the years but the LS400 is the only car that has managed my ultimate test of keeping on cruise control at 140 mph all the way from Bristol to Exeter (early on a summers morning when there is no traffic about I should add!) Nick

I have just bought another LS400 after a gap of 6 years having got fed up of the unreliability of my V10 Touareg. It is the same year as my last one (1999) with 36K on the clock. I did 180K in the last one and am hoping for the same this time :-) The steering column adjusts up and down but the motor controlling the in and out is not working. can anyone suggest if this might be lack of use, motor gone or a connection? Has it happened to anyone else? I have the car booked in at Lexus Exeter for them to have a look on Monday, but would rather go in armed with my own info. A secondary point is the sat nav which works sometimes and not others. It is displaying a message that the CD is not readable. Is this likely to be lack of use/dust in the unit in the boot or something more serious. Is there someone known to this forum that can look at and repaair these units. Th emain dealer will simply tell me to buy another unit at £lots which I won't be doing. Finally, if anyone wants a very cheap V10 Touareg then let me know! Nick

You are right Colin - I called Lexus Exeter and got an emphatic 'No'. I have now emailed Lexus UK to ask, and while I don't expect a positive response I am interested in what they will say. It is crazy that their alloys don't last 2 years without corroding. Even Land Rover changed my alloys post warranty when they corroded - and they are normally masters at saying 'no' As I won't pay out £ ?lots? for new ones, I will have to look at refurbing or replacement with non Lexus alloys

I've tried to check previous posts before putting this out but apologies if it has already been covered. The alloys on my 1999 LS400 are starting to corrode quite badly. They are not the originals as they have already been replaced during the three year warranty. Given that there is no curb damage and they have been regularly cleaned, is there any precident for Lexus changing them again ? As they are replacements, do these also have a three year warranty ? If anyone has been down this route I would be grateful to know what you did to get Lexus to change them. The alloys are the slightly bigger ones that came with the sports package. Thanks Nick

Thanks Maria I tried Cleve Motor Salvage and they had a 400 being broken, but surprise, surprise, the connectors fron the front had already gone (all of them). Obviously a common problem. What happens when someone has to repair a vehicle with damage to the front lights and broken connectors? Does the insurance company pays for the complete front loom at £944, and they cut off the connectors and throw the rest away? Or do they charge the insurance company for the new loom and then go down the breakers yard and cut the connectors off ?

Thanks for the replies. On the way into work this morning I went to two car electrical factors and they said that it was not one they had ever seen in the UK. I have just come off the phone from talking to Lexus customer service and they admitted it was a 'rediculous' position but said that they could not give me a £944 loom to cut off a connector. They are now contacting Guildford parts dept to ask why Lexus parts UK can't get hold of just a connector. I predict that I will be looking for a breaker, so if anyone knows of one thay have used before then please let me know. Nick

Please can anyone help with the following. A bird 'took out' my sidelight and I went to collect the replacement this morning. Having been told that the unit came with all the connectors, etc it turned out that it didnt. When the light was smashed, it has damaged the connector that plugs into the back of the unit and this is a 'Lexus special' and not available elsewhere. When I asked for a quote to replace this connector I was told that it was part of the complete front loom which cost £944 + VAT + fitting. This is bl***y ludicrous ! Does anyone know what I can do to solve the problem, ie where can I go to get just the connector with 4 ins of wiring out the back so I can solder it onto the existing loom ? Nick Howard

Hi all STOP PRESS !!!! I have just left Lexus Guildford this morning and they have a 'special' for sale. It's a tow bar for a 95 - 99 (I think) LS400 which is reduced from £800 to £100. I would have bought it myself but they said it was 5 hours fitting time as the exhaust has to be cut, dropped and re-welded and that they strongly recommend fitting an oil cooler. By the time you add up all that lot its still not a cheap proposition !

Sorry if this has come up recently but I did do a search before posting ! I need new tyres for my 400 and when looking at the blackcircles.com site there are 13 different makes listed ranging from £82 to £163. The car is standard, I do 30K miles a year of mainly fast A roads,and do high speeds when conditions permit. Nick Howard