ambermarine

1 hour ago, DomTurner said:

I find myself using the "manual" mode to lock it into a lower gear, usually 3rd, if I am preparing to overtake. 

The ect pwr button is there for that purpose as stated in the owners manual.

The ect power is there for safe overtaking when you floor the pedal in normal drive it will change up the gears after initial kickdown .When you floor the pedal in ect pwer it will down shift but stay in that gear so as not to lose forward impetus whilst overtaking or similar manouveres.

23 minutes ago, ambermarine said:

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The different regions are for the countries and continents the car was originally sold in. Various factors determined this such as climate, road surfaces and local environmental regulations, one example being California as it as the highest criteria for cleaning engine exhaust gasses in the world.

The issues that come with the 430 are by this time well documented and comparative to the 400 potentially very expensive and more of them.

The radiator leading to gearbox failure the struts the windows delam,exhausts  rotted out, air con pipes and a few other items ,compared to the issues on the 400 which I have experienced, leaking power steering pump,rust in hard to get to places, suspension parts especially bushings.

The cost of maintaining a troublesome 430 is very much higher than the 400,with regards to the interior the cabin is of the  same footprint and odd refinements were made to the 430 but overall it is the same experience in comfort levels.

The 400 was 17 years in development from concept to end of production the 430 about half that period so the facts speak for themselves the best and always will be is the 400.

19 minutes ago, scythe said:

Hi Phil,

You are making an incorrect assumption here ...

The journeys I made, though infrequent, were all sufficient to warm up gearbox, engine and whatever else.

I do agree with you about servicing though, and if I was keeping the car then I'd get it serviced straight away.

And Steve, when I bought the car at a year old with 4000 miles done, the car smelled gorgeous, and no one has smoked in it in the years since.

: o )

 

Sorry I am not assuming you did short journeys I was generalising and pointing to  specific conditions on engine usage.

The interval between services is a reccomendation by the manufacturer based on normal usage and your discription of the last four years is anything but normal.

With regard to the engine oil it will detiorate over time and especially doing short journeys as it never gets to operating temparature and is diluted with fuel from cold start ups,this is one of the reasons I change my oil every two years at six thousand mile intervals.

The brakes need servicing even though they are not wearing down as detritus and brake dust collect around the moving parts and corrode them,the fluid should be completely changed.

The power steering fluid should be changed every three years pump some out pump some in to protect the seals.

The diff oil will probably need a change also at 80k .

Just because the car it being lightly used does not mean it is ok to miss service intervals it will show up when normal use is resumed.

I hasten to add this is not a critical review of your post more a warning to others that the service schedule is not written in stone but a guide that needs logical interpretation.

Check the brake light switch and connections under the brake pedal, it is adjustable.

I love the voice ,kind of fetish feel to it but she soon dumps you when she as a mind to,usually a mile away from your destination.

catastrophic

I inadverntatly disabled my Mark 1 foglights when I changed out the ariel there was a relay attached to the ariel bracket and I assumed it was for the ariel and putting in an aftermarket one that had no connections to anything other than ground and positive discarded the relay .Two years later it got through one MOT but was picked up on the second, no rear foglights which I had never had cause to use.

The relay was a common cyndrical used multiple times for different switching on the car and fortunatly I had a wiring diagram manual for the car so we soon spotted my mistake.

I have been using a golf trolley charger that I found in a skip for the last ten years and it keeps my Battery topped up which is now seven years old.The charger is specifically designed to maintain a optimum charge within the Battery after a initial soft recharging that does not cause sulphating of the plates .The car as a need for recharge even after a 300 mile run because the system is designed to run from the Battery not the alternator, this causes the Battery to always be below its peak whilst the engine is running.

Short journeys with everything on will soon leave the Battery in a low state of charge leading to rapid sulphation of the plates.

Nothing is guaranteed after the warranty period and it happened because Lexus are a company in pursuit of perfection . Lets not get carried away with ourselves here all of these scenarios are history so you have to take on board ancedotal evidence from the forums mentioned and as far as this thread goes for me the matter is now  closed. 

I believe that Lexus improved the specification for the manufacturing of the radiator in question and there have been no reports of any one either here or in the usa having to repeat the exercise.

Paul Frost is a breaker and renovator of Lexus cars parts as well as other high priced marques and I have in the past purchased parts for my cars from him, all good .

He has a vested interest in the sale of these independantly made oil coolers but to the best of my knowledge he his not a Lexus engineer .

I think the jury is out but I would not deviate from a Lexus design on a critical system such as the transmission.

There is a fundamental reason why the transmission fluid is sent through the radiator on the Lexus LS400 and that is to keep the transmission fluid at its optimum operating temprature .

The car was sold internatioally across all the continents and the climate extremes are very relevant.

When the Mark 1 I owned was started up in a minus centigrade winters the gears were very sluggish and the sports change up and overdrive would not operate until the car had done a few miles.

This was because the engine operating temprature had not reached its optimum level and so niether had the transmission fluid.

So the radiator as well as cooling the fluid it heats it up to a consistent best operating temp and avoids burnt fluid and burnt clutches because the fluid is not getting where it should.

Because a transmission cooler individually placed in the system does not have this precise control ,example; constant idling in low speed traffic jams means no airflow over the heat exchanger the temp of the fluid could exceed its safe operating temp and burn.

Twelve years ago My first Lexus LS400 mark 1 was coming to the end of its life mainly because of rust .I decided for reliability I was sticking with Lexus but which one ,I did a lot of research into the post ls400 Marque and looked at ls430 ls460 and the sc430 and with the winner being my Ls400 mark 4 here are the reasons.

The issues with the 430 were at the time very out there and were covered comprehensively by Qamar ,The LS460 was very expensive to maintain especially the suspension and the SC430 was a harsh ride not designed for our roads more the american  interstates.

If you couple that with the 17 years of improving develoment of the LS400 it is a stand out winner ,no other car in the Lexus range as been in production for that long .

The rear subframe on the Mark 4, 97-2000 is of a tubular construction as against the ribbed flange version on previous marques. the design was better as it was less prone to holding dirt and moisture and easier to clean and protect with underseal.

You mention the body above the subframe is rusting from the inside out ,this infers the subframe anchors in the body are compromised which is an indication the cills are suspect forward of the rear arches ,if this is the case the car is terminal and a new subframe will not solve the issue.

Had a strange event this morning with the car which may throw some light on past anomolies in the forum of creaking suspension.

I sat in the car for thirty minutes waiting for the wife to do the shop (she as banished me years ago as getting in the way) I had the Air con at max as the weather was scorching ,the Aircon was regassed last december when I had the cambelt done so it is icy.

When we set off on our return journey I noticed a creaking sound coming from in front of the firewall as I negotiated a slow passage through the car park,it seemed to occur when turning putting weight on either side of the car.

I switched off the air con and within a couple of minutes the creaking dissappeared I deduce that the pipes connecting the compressor and the condensor  and the matrix in the airbox had all become stiff and movement in the frame was  amplified by this .

The sound and sensation could have been associated with a worn bushing in the suspension but my car as no issues in that category as it as only done 50kmiles.

Any part of the Lexus LS400 that as wood trim is expensive exclusively made by Yamaha musical instruments division for Lexus.

I would opt for a new Battery ,the life and strengh of that Battery will be compromised and even after charging will cause problems because it will not have the required amp hours to both start the vehicle and maintain a correct supporting voltage for the ECM and other modules.

If you are talking about the front upper wishbone they are not servicable bushings.A complete new one is required and the aftermarket ones are rubbish expect to pay around £250 +vat from lexus.

Have you ever been up the high road Malcolm.

Looks like a ethernet comms system inclusive to users of that system highly encrypted to protect sensitive data transmissions in the open and vunerable domain of a mobile vehicle.

Probably cost an arm and leg to subscribe to in its day but now obsolete in that format.