ambermarine

Thanks for the insight David and to be sure Lexus terrifies anyone who are not familiar with the brand but they are pretty straight forward well engineered cars and as some members are aware not to difficult to work on.The costs of taking this job to a main dealer of any type and I am aware that Park are a reputable group in Scotland( nice coaches) is their overheads which cascade into a fairly mundane task for a decent mechanic, couple that with a sitting around looking at it labour rate and you are probably wishing you had avoided the Lexus name,the Vat alone is a week in Benidorm.

We are fortunate in the south to have choices but from your rigorous research your experience is similar to my time in Scotland when I was locked into Lexus Glasgow.

Since then because the brand as more sales down here there are plenty of options as time as caught up with the spread of technichans leaving Main dealerships hence independants capable and confident to offer service at cost without the polished marble and free coffee.

The main issue for you is your location late last year I had the timing belt all tensioners water pump and regas for the air con  Total £ 620.

I used a local independant with a good reputation and sourced genuine Lexus parts from the UAE for £250.The work is warranted because I sourced genuine Lexus parts. The labour part with regas was £370,of which regas £76.

The work you will get done at Lexus will be warranted and you will get free cups of coffee in a very nice waiting area but  as I have said many times somebody as to pay for that.

5 hours ago, ambermarine said:

The first advisory could be serious depending on how bad the corrosion is ,the mot inspection usually advise if the corrosion is detrimental to the integrity of the area described and if that is not the case it may be just surface rust,Malc is correct and the dealer is a not to be trusted officinado because the areas described will need remedial treatment, then undersealing. These models have a reputation for very expensive suspension renewal procedures especally on the front and if these have not been renewed at 110k miles expect them to require that being done in the next 50k .

Sorry about that the lead looked like a 460 from your monika forget the suspension issue but the corrosion is something to be concerned with.

Most of the mark 1Vs had the faulty washer bottle float and it is an easy fix ,remove the float dry it out and coat the float in a thin coat of clear epoxy  that is it and it will last for the life time of  the car , mine has.

I find it extraordinary that a so called mechanic can find a wire in the throttle body that was connected to something and diregsrd it as irrelevant.These cars are electronic minefields and the designers at Lexus do not leave anything to chance ,so a loose wire as been doing a job they are not put in for decoration.

Take it to a  qualified up to the mark technician before you end up with a absoloute morass of pain and anguish.

The first advisory could be serious depending on how bad the corrosion is ,the mot inspection usually advise if the corrosion is detrimental to the integrity of the area described and if that is not the case it may be just surface rust,Malc is correct and the dealer is a not to be trusted officinado because the areas described will need remedial treatment, then undersealing. These models have a reputation for very expensive suspension renewal procedures especally on the front and if these have not been renewed at 110k miles expect them to require that being done in the next 50k .

It does not matter that Stephen was a short term member he still had the intellect to choose the best car ever built and it is sad that we have lost a fellow enthusiast .

Sincere condolences to his Wife and family.

RIP Stephen.

First of all it is not a 400  so there are issues with the 430 that there never was on the 400 ,that being said this is a remarkabley mint condition car with genuine service history and looked after on every front .If you wanted to buy luxury to this level today price in £120k and you don't know what the future is in terms of problems especially with all the gizmos you don't use.I think it worth the asking price because if you want a car to see you out this will do it.

Having lost a close family member in the same week I know how distressed John's family are and my sincere condolences go out to them.

He was around the forum for a good part of its existence and his contribution was much appreciated by everyone including myself who admired his wit and straight talking.

Rip John.

I had a eBay buyer in NI and the eBay postal assist did not assist it declared the process as not applicable.So the sale was cancelled and as a result I excluded  all bidders from NI as it was a nightmare getting stuff to them.

It looks like the mechanism is faulty and to address that you will need to drop the roof lining, even if you were able to get it to open there is no access from the top.When you have identified the issue you can start to determine what parts you need and if you can get them.

The range on my Mark 4 is about a  hundred feet(30metres),uninterupted view.

This is a job for a well experienced pro and not an amatuer project unless you do not care about the end of the road outcome.Personally If  it as serious internal damage I would cut my losses and break it for the parts they are very sought after in good condition and getting rare although there are still good examples around so parts will be needed in the future.

I can see from your post that you are very attached, so why not buy a like model and swap some of the touchy feely things like seats and steering wheel from yours to an acquisition that way you get to experience your  old car in a new one.

Changing the engine is a major task and after a replacement is fitted marrying up the security and ecm needs software updates so it could be costly and its unlikely Lexus dealerships would take the task on.This then leaves you in the hands of a independant who may not have the back up to get it running after installation.

I would get an analysis of what as occured in your present engine because an insitu rebuild of that may be more within the capabilities of  an independant,and there would be no issues marrying it up to your present security and transmission.

Lexus get the OEM brake units from at least three suppliers for supply security and competitive pricing .Further down the road that can end up aftermarket dependant on who as the capacity. Even giants like Toyota cannot risk having all their eggs in one basket.

The LS range have a double floor with a cavity which is filled with sound deadening materials but also hollow areas .There will be rubber bungs in several places underneath the chassis take a couple out front and rear and feel for wetness on the inside .

If you have water in the cavity it must be getting in down the A pillars.

Ok if used indoors to keep dust and bird *hit off but will mess up the paintwork if used outdoors especially were it is windy,the fabric abrades the parts it touches .

depending on the material they can produce static electricity which can cause  electrical gremlins in the various electronic modules in the car.

There are bearings in the pump and they only come under torque when pressure is applied to the pump when the car is operating normally, moving the steering  while stationary does not apply the same pressure.

You could clear the whole system with the take some out put some in method it wil lrequire about two litres of dextron to get about 80% renewal.

I still think you have suspect bearings and it might be a replacement pump is required.

On 1/19/2023 at 3:18 PM, BigBoomer said:

I find it hilarious that Toyota feel that they have to "light-up" the dashboard for what is a minor sensor failure. I had the same when my O2 sensor had a minor issue with it's pre-heater and when I had a tiny exhaust leak in the Y-pipe. For these insignificant issues it disables VSC (Vehicle Stability Control) and all kinds of other systems which is stupid and dangerous. I understand that too many idiots ignore the dash warning lights and then act surprised when their engine detonates but this is over-compensation.
For a failed Front/Right ABS sensor I would have the dash show in RED "ABS sensor failure F/R. Braking will be affected" and disable ABS for that one wheel.
That way you know what is broken and can drive accordingly.

All the manufacturers seem to design their error codes to force you to go to their dealers and they design them to panic the owner into getting a minor issue fixed IMMEDIATELY!

commonly known as **** blue lights syndrome

nea

3 hours ago, jpjsavage said:

To be fair, I think that's a Cheshire accent. 

nearer than Nelson Mandella house Chiswick.

He knows its never going to  get him his money back on resale hence the raffle but I doubt anyone going for a decent LS430 is going to trust one bought in a raffle .

He keeps going to Lexus for  repairs so has no idea where to get genuine parts at proper prices and get someone to fit them.

Modern day car salesman without any experience reminds me of Delboy but with a manchester accent.

Go on facebook marketplace and search Lexus LS400.

Gonna look better than this and that is a tribute to your work,make sure you get the wheels going in the right direction if you use the 15 inch original spec .I got  them wrong on the drivers side here.

Read a report about this push towards hydrogen and the investment into producing it is huge, not everyone is convinced in the automotive world that electric is the future.

On balance taking out the various downsides of both energy sources over time hydrogen comes out way on top because it as no residual waste, just water, the biggest  downside is the energy required to make it ,at the moment that process is carbon rich but they have a new idea that is top secret and from all accounts cuts the carbon by 2/3rds.

The biggest example of the reluctance of the auto market to go the distance on ev,s can be hilighted by the Volt Battery factory in the UK nearly folding last month because they have no orders for any products having spent nearly a £100m already.

On 11/23/2022 at 10:23 PM, Stanwithaplan said:

Apologies in advance to everyone who already knows about this.

My '99 LS400 has the original Navigation LCD display and a little while ago, in one of its sub menus, I found brightness settings, but there was also a mysterious "Night mode/Day Mode" button that didn't seem to work?

Well today I cracked it, if you turn on night mode and then use the instrument cluster dimmer/off switch, it turns the Nav screen background from bright white to a cool green colour that is easy on the eyes whilst driving at night. 

I could not be happier, I swear just when you think you have discovered all features, another one turns up!

This feature is only available on the mark 4 upgrade in 99 previous mark 4 as not got it .