Self Levelling Headlights Mot Fail

[TomR]

My 1997 LS400 R Reg Mark IV has just failed its Mot due to the Self Levelling Headlights not working properley, apparently this has only recently been included in the test. I was surprised as when the lights are switched on you can see the headlights lifting up.

I have an excellent local independant garage (been going there for 20yrs) he knows I have only basic mechanical knowlege which is why I am on my second LS400 and he surprisingly took me to the rear of the car to show me the problem. There is a small motor with arm attached and the arm has snapped. They thought they might be able to replace the arm only but a phone call to the main dealer revealed that you have to buy the motor with arm attached for over £300 plus fitting. It is not possible to repair/weld the arm as it is some sort of alloy.

This note is to warn others of future problems and to ask if anyone has had this problem before and to ask if they have any idea where I might be able to source this part cheaper than the main dealer.

I will pay full price if I have to by the end of the month to get the MOT as I can't see me buying anything other than Lexus (possibly a 2005 GS in a year or 2) Many Thanks

[steve2006]

Hello and welcome to the LOC.

Hopefully joining the club will save you around £260.00 :D

Don't go paying out for the complete unit, the fault with the broken arm is well known and well documented ( see the link below).

If you don't fancy fabricating one contact SGS Engineering at Derby who supply a replacement arm for around £40.00.

http://evansweb.info/2009/11/23/ls400-ride-height-sensor-repair

http://www.sgs-engineering.com/gsc2618-lexus-ls400-ride-height-sensor-arm

[PEPE]

Well done Steve!

[Lexmanic]

Yes we'll done Steve

[ColinBarber]

This doesn't help Tom but to others that may read this - a bit of preventative maintenance is recommended to stop the arm from failing - a quick lube every year or two should stop this becoming an issue.

[PEPE]

Would I be correct in thinking that this problem applies to the LS 400 Mk 4 only? As far as I am aware my Mk 3 has no such mechanism.

[ColinBarber]

Would I be correct in thinking that this problem applies to the LS 400 Mk 4 only? As far as I am aware my Mk 3 has no such mechanism.

Correct, it is part of the HID headlight self levelling system which was introduced on the Mk 4.

[ChrisM]

I too have had this problem in the past. My rear leveller arm had snapped and was repaired with what looked like metal putty wrapped around the break to produce a sleeve, this then passed the mot.

However this year I noticed a rattling sound from the rear, and took the opportunity to look under the car when I had the rear tyres replaced. The old repair had failed and the broken arm was falpping about and making the odd rattling noise.

Looking on fleabay I saw someone breaking a Mk IV - contacted himm, and got a replacement unti all in for £25.00 plus delivery. I am currently working away from home and do not have access to my home repair facilities.But with the help of some WD40 and the standard toolkit plus a small socket set I was able to undo the old nuts from each ball joint under the car. I was then able to replace it with the replacement bar and integral balljionts, which I had removed from the replacement unit in the comfort of my flat. Total time 50 minutes. I still have the eletrical part in case that needs replacing in future.

Two days later it went in for its MOT and passed with flying colours and without any advisory notes.

It is amazing what can be acheived with the supplied tools, I have replaced the aerial antenna which became stuck up when the nylon insert snapped. I had to take the aerial assembly out an strip it to get the old insert out ogf the gears.

However i wouldn't have know where to start without reference to these forums and associated links showing how the job can be done.

[TomR]

My 1997 LS400 has now passed the MOT thanks to Steve for recommending SGS Engineering. The part arrived next day delivery for a total cost of £54 inc VAT and postage. My excellent garage Turnbull Motors in Washington fitted it today and the only problems they had were that the bolts were 8mm not 6 so they had to do a bit of drilling and also adjust the headlights down as the arm was slightly longer. They also had to adjust my handbrake and I had them take up the slack on the throttle cable because I read on one of the posts that this can help prevent the car from changing into first gear unexpectedly at very low speed.

So my 16yr old has again passed its test this time for a total cost of £144. Just shows how great these cars are. I had my 1996 Mark 3 for 4 years and I seem to remember that it passed 2 Mots with no work at all. Not bad running costs when I look at Autotrader my current car is still easily worth what I paid for it 2yrs ago.

[steve2006]

Thanks for coming back and letting us know the outcome,it's always good to have the feedback.

Strange why the replacements from SGS are longer than the original and they are using 8mm bolts instead of 6mm.

I've had mine for nearly 7 years now,the longest I have ever kept a car but I can't find anything better to replace it with unless I spend thousands. Only actually failed an MOT once on front lower ball joints but replaced them myself so just £100.00 for the OEM parts.