Manc

P/s leak is a common fault. Mine wasn't the common fault of the o-ring underneath the reservoir (£3-50 inc del), but i had replaced this o-ring the week before only to find i was still topping up my reservoir...so i took it to so called 'experts' After 3 garages told me it was leaking in different places (including Lexus saying it was the gearbox???? - and that was my trust with them gone), i looked myself and was over the moon when I fixed mine for the price of 4 new jubilee clips. It was leaking from the cooler pipe behind main fan as you open bonnet. Look down & u see a looped or fig.of8 pipe joining a rubber hose that runs up to the driver side headlight, that joins another metal pipe going to p/s reservoir. Well, where the rubber and fig.of 8 pipe join is an old type pincer clip that was as weak as Lexus' efforts to locate my leak. After a while stripping the air intake and headlight, I was able to get to the join properly and upon inspection i found that the pipes were fine......couldn't believe my luck and nipped out for new clips and was amazed when they stopped the leak. What happened to mine was that the leak was dripping & spreading around and the fan was sucking it up and spitting it all over so it did look a real mess - can't understand why Lexus would say it was my gearbox...i know the fluids are similar colour but come on...do they really think we are all mugs Good luck fella and if its the reservoir o-ring or a leaky join like mine then you can do it yourself and have it ready to drive in a few hours - its loads better than £10 a week on PAS fluid - believe me

Nice motor by the way - if that pic is yours P/s leak is a common fault. Mine wasn't the common fault of the o-ring underneath the reservoir (£3-50 inc del), but i had replaced this o-ring the week before only to find i was still topping up my reservoir...so i took it to so called 'experts' After 3 garages told me it was leaking in different places (including Lexus saying it was the gearbox???? - and that was my trust with them gone), i looked myself and was over the moon when I fixed mine for the price of 4 new jubilee clips. It was leaking from the cooler pipe behind main fan as you open bonnet. Look down & u see a looped or fig.of8 pipe joining a rubber hose that runs up to the driver side headlight, that joins another metal pipe going to p/s reservoir. Well, where the rubber and fig.of 8 pipe join is an old type pincer clip that was as weak as Lexus' efforts to locate my leak. After a while stripping the air intake and headlight, I was able to get to the join properly and upon inspection i found that the pipes were fine......couldn't believe my luck and nipped out for new clips and was amazed when they stopped the leak. What happened to mine was that the leak was dripping & spreading around and the fan was sucking it up and spitting it all over so it did look a real mess - can't understand why Lexus would say it was my gearbox...i know the fluids are similar colour but come on...do they really think we are all mugs Good luck fella and if its the reservoir o-ring or a leaky join like mine then you can do it yourself and have it ready to drive in a few hours - its loads better than £10 a week on PAS fluid - believe me

Thanks Roy, i'll see what I can get hold of..... Sparky - Thanks for the warning, i already knew this & i already have some component contact cleaner for the MAF, i never got round to doing it and now i have to get it done - carefully i know

Yeah but you could use the same argument to ask why people would pay money for a Lexus, when they could buy a cheap Korean runaround that would do the same thing ? yeah see your point its the wages which does my head in i prefer cricket, but in a very slow way, thats becoming all about the money aswell not as bad a football these days footballers get paid like 100k per week, for what exactly? after just reading the paper harrison ford earnt £43.3m in the last 12 months so thats £832,692 a week just compare that with the top paid footballers C'mon....How long has Star Wars & Indiana Jones lasted???.....Hans Solo and Indy is deserving of such riches having brought such pleasures to millions for so long - You can't complain about Harrison Ford's wages - he deserves it alone for Star Wars, he's a childhood hero, as ronald might well be to a few kids from London who think they are Utd fans, but footballers come & go, how many of us actually remember gascoigne on a regular basis (not including when he's plastered in the paper - literally), footy heros dont last and dont deserve the incredible wages (including robinho!) All footballers do is play with their mates every day for a few hours, go to the gym, go shopping, go home, get laid, work hard (yet still playing around) for 90 mins once a week - and dont believe it when you hear they might be tired But i love it and would rather see more footy on tele than big brother or we think we got talent but really...

f'kin 'ell Sara, i literally pressed enter and your reply was there.....instant messaging or what Glad to hear your cars ok again, Its horrible when in limbo - i know that feeling quite well with my previous cars, it seems to follow me around with that sods law and bite my arse every few years as a reminder and stevie, my lexus aint even worth a grand anymore, so you you can still have quality at a cheap price - but it was a good shout and made me chuckle all the same

Hehehe - no wonder your not into football living there,........ where Burnley, Blackburn, or Clitheroe are your local teams, i'd be driving my lexus off into those hills there too No offense meant love, im a manc and we have strange ways of making ourselves laugh - some do find it offensive, sorry if you do And i love those hills behind you anyway, used to have to go to Leeds/Harrogate often and would go that way rather than M62 Good luck with your motor by the way, did you get it back on the road? Good riddance to ronnie anyway, im surprised the reds didnt throw him out after that rooney incident in the last world cup, that was a disgrace and even being a city fan i hope that rooney kicked his 'ed in on the training ground for that, the stuck up, cheating, poncy, mirror watching, 'where's the camera, is it looking at me' slimy snake. Yes i am blue, but we are not the bitter ones anymore - as we blues do admit he was one of the best kickers of a ball the prem has seen, but im glad now the commentators can no longer cream over his freekicks while missing his diabolical diving and big kid tantrums, not to mention the few elbows he has thrown, or his many kicks at players that everybody but the sky cameras missed or just forgot - and just how many goals in his record breaking year were actually scored from a situation that didnt involve ronald cheating to get the free kick or penalty in the 1st place? Bet it was no where near 10 - and thats a fact Thats all i can bear to think about slimy creatures like him anyway so i'd better go before there a witch hunt for me by several reds who still show ronald loyalty instead of their 'local' club, and found my quick chat to be most offensive and annoying and the fact it made them start seething and frothing at the mouth whilst trying to grab my throat, just trying to tell me what a hero he was.......yeah right - the fact he has now abandoned the club that made him, and beckham isn't around, who's shirts are you gonna sell to pay the bank back??? Imagine that....Utd go into administration.......how much??? 300bn in debt??? and no more shirt sellers.....the times they are a changing lads Say what you want about city - there's nothing we haven't heard before hehehe

In the same boat here as newbie... Its too good a car to just scrap or sell for parts just because of a few high bills at a bad time... I too have thought who i can give this superb engine to, and it has to be the right project too. We looked at fitting it into a jeep, but it was only a small one and would need major surgery on its front end to even try to fit the engine....but since then i have thought many a time how good this engine would be in an off-roader or a home kit / mod car that will be somebody's pride & joy. This engine deserves to be at a good home and well looked after, it has driven 235K and shows no signs of giving up yet - the engine and surprisingly the bodywork are still in very good condition for a 17 year old motor. Still i can see the engine doing Dakar or something in a different body before it dies.........hmmm now theres a thought

Cheers for the replies people... Royt - thanks for the extra effort....You must have the manual ....Looking at all 3 fault explanations, they all mention the ecu connector so hopefully my troubles might be solved by checking wires/connectors and a can of WD40 These pages & pages you mention...... How much for a copy of them??? Im right near the cheshire / shropshire border so can easily travel to you, or having to be more patient, if you ever sell your LS then let me know and I'll buy the manual off you Thanks again

Hi all, I need to pick your brains again. Having failed on the emissions recently, just when the front upper control arms need replacing too, i need to do some cheap work to keep the great motor. A recent engine warning light brought the following fault codes: 13 - RPM Signal..............what does that mean and how do i fix it? It is 1 of 2 RPM signals ( 12 is also RPM signal but does not read faulty in this case) 25 - Air-Fuel Ratio Lean Malfunction.........how do i fix this error? 31 - Air-Flow Meter Signal........im hoping this is not the actual a/f/meter as it was nearly £350 on a Peugot 205gti (ahhh memories.... :winky: ) so no idea how much on this beast hopefully its just the sensor which should be accessible to clean or replace If i clean the MAF, along with sorting the above faults relatively cheaply, then would the emissions be reduced anyway without replacing the cats? The saga continues.......

Same problem here too.... and to be honest i haven't even looked into the socket yet, i thought it was the plunger thanks for putting me right :D

Hi KP, They are a very high quality car and they are one of the best cars i have driven ever (never mind owned).......but they can be very expensive if the common faults have not been fixed recently - if they haven't then haggle the price down 'cos it will cost another £1000 + to fix some (not all) of the most common faults or just the normal wear & tear. Main faults are front suspension bushes (whole arms need replacing tho'), emissions, p/s leak, flashing dash syndrome, labour for belt replacement can be dear but i paid £500 for a service including the belt and a few smaller jobs. I'm gutted because mine has come to crunch time......MOT failure I've had it 5 years and only spent around £1500 on it, which over that 5yr period is not too bad (my old bangers i had in the past cost half that every year!!!....) so it is a good car to own, and most parts last a lot longer than 95% of other cars parts, but when the major parts need replacing it can get expensive for the one job.... suspension upper control arms £400 each + fitting, lower control arms are less than £100 each and thats just the front end - rear has two sets too, one affordable the other virtually writes the car off failed emissions...original cats are extortionate, cheap ones are £150each but are they worth it? major servicing and the odd job while the car is stripped can be towards the £1000 too Dont be scared, these jobs dont come around often, and as i said, the overall cost hasn't been bad at all for me - up until this MOT....but buying a used M plate can be due to the previous owner thinking...sod those bills....and leaving the work for the next buyer I love my ls400 (K plate) but the thought of original parts for suspension, 2 tyres, emissions, warnings on rear suspension, upcoming tax & insurance now put this once great car towards the end of its luxury life...... 250,000 miles and the engine is still in superb condition and runs fine, just a shame about the wear & tear parts Buy it and you will love it all the same Dont be put off by my moans - i'm just gutted i cant afford it anymore

Thanks tiger, the links have proved to be cheap - wether they are reliable or not (only a 2yr guarantee) remains to be seen but at that price and the cost of the rest of the work, then it seems the best short term fix.... Info on the lambda sensor too so loads to look into before deciding if its worth fixing at all, selling for parts or the dreaded thought of scrapping such a quality motor :duh: Its strangely becoming one of the hardest decisions i've ever had to make

Hello, Bloody emissions......bloody government.....they dont tell the aircraft industry to stick a probe up their pipes...... Well, I've not been on for a while as my 93 LS400 has been fine for a year or so, but as u can see i now have several problems at once and the emissions bill could kill the car........ You see, its a K plate and over 5 years I have spent around 1500 on the car, 3 out of 4 front suspension control arms have been replaced, the blinking dash syndrome was fixed, p/s leak fixed, servicing etc The engine seems to be A1 (apart from the engine warning light giving me 3 error codes that are all air related) and still drives superb. But this MOT has thrown me a few problems. - The o/s/f upper control arm needs to be replaced at £400 + labour, (both lowers were replaced but like the tight arse i am, i only got 1 upper arm replaced 2 yrs ago!and its all coming back to haunt me now) - Brake pipe has rusted a hole in itself (a long pipe running between the rear wheels), but Lexus quoted only £30 for this inc fluid??? whilst this is done, i need the calipers servicing and pads all round, and h/brake tightening (already got caliper kit and pads) but i can imagine a few hours labour for these jobs - 2 tyres need replacing and 4 wheels need sorting for slow leaks due to age - Warning for both rear upper suspension arms to be replaced soon (@ around 150 each + labour which isnt that bad) - and finally - the bloody emissions The garage where its parked says replace the cats but they gotta be having a laugh? The cars only worth around 1000 (if that) and 2 cats exceed that without the rest of the work being done...I can see a £2000+ bill coming...bloody do-gooders!!! obviously dont know about L.O.C then do they I only seem to come on here and moan i know.....but this site has helped me in the past and i need good advice again this time as again, i cannot be the one to scrap a lexus.....just no way.....i cannot do it even selling for parts does not sit right with me....the engine is still sound and i can't accept i might have to let it go because of some government green tree hugger sat in his office on a mission to save the planet (even tho' its a natural cycle anyway) and deciding old cars are just dirty and must be binned (to get people to sign up to finance and get into even more debt...yeah right mate!), but aircraft can just stay as they are kicking out a million times more carbon than all the cars in the world put together. VOSA or TOSsA???? hehehe I know i need to find a garage who know the score and whose owner hasnt got a top end 58 plate jag.....says it all yeah? but now the police have auto reg cams, i cant take it all the way back to my home town and a to friendly face.... After all that......how can i get the emissions down a bit?? I was gonna try cleaning all the air intakes and MAF, but noticed on a post that someones O2 sensors packed up after cleaning and his engine ran funny.... I have only basic mechanical skills but have got the effort and willing to try to save my car from its foreseeable doom.. HELP!!!!!

Hello, Bloody emissions......bloody government.....they dont tell the aircraft industry to stick a probe up their pipes...... Well, I've not been on for a while as my 93 LS400 has been fine for a year or so, but as u can see i now have several problems at once and the emissions bill could kill the car........ You see, its a K plate and over 5 years I have spent around 1500 on the car, most of the front suspension control arms have been replaced, the blinking dash syndrome was fixed, p/s leak fixed, servicing etc The engine seems to be A1 (apart from the engine warning light giving me 3 error codes that are all air related) and still drives superb. But this MOT has thrown me a few problems. - The o/s/f upper control arm needs to be replaced at £400 + labour, (both lowers were replaced but like the tight arse i am, i only got 1 upper arm replaced 2 yrs ago!and its all coming back to haunt me now) - Brake pipe has rusted a hole in itself (a long pipe running between the rear wheels), but Lexus quoted only £30 for this inc fluid??? whilst this is done, i need the calipers servicing and pads all round, and h/brake tightening (already got caliper kit and pads) but i can imagine a few hours labour for these jobs - 2 tyres need replacing and 4 wheels need sorting for slow leaks due to age - Warning for both rear upper suspension arms to be replaced soon (@ around 150 each + labour which isnt that bad) - and finally - the bloody emissions The garage where its parked says replace the cats but they gotta be having a laugh? The cars only worth around 1000 (if that) and 2 cats exceed that without the rest of the work being done...I can see a £2000+ bill coming...bloody do-gooders!!! obviously dont know about L.O.C then do they I only seem to come on here and moan i know.....but this site has helped me in the past and i need good advice again this time as again, i cannot be the one to scrap a lexus.....just no way.....i cannot do it even selling for parts does not sit right with me....the engine is still sound and i can't accept i might have to let it go because of some government green tree hugger sat in his office on a mission to save the planet (even tho' its a natural cycle anyway) and deciding old cars are just dirty and must be binned (to get people to sign up to finance and get into even more debt...yeah right mate!), but aircraft can just stay as they are kicking out a million times more carbon than all the cars in the world put together. VOSA or TOSsA???? hehehe I know i need to find a garage who know the score and whose owner hasnt got a top end 58 plate jag.....says it all yeah? but now the police have auto reg cams, i cant take it all the way back to my home town and a to friendly face.... After all that......how can i get the emissions down a bit?? I was gonna try cleaning all the air intakes and MAF, but noticed on a post that someones O2 sensors packed up after cleaning and his engine ran funny.... I have only basic mechanical skills but have got the effort and willing to try to save my car from its foreseeable doom.. HELP!!!!!

Hello everyone, Just a quickie to ask you all if you know where i put the grease on the new shims/pads. I was sent a little packet of stuff with each set of shims (f&r), and obviously i dont put it on the pad face, do i need to put it all around the shim - between the shim and pad, and the back of the shim??? Another easy job brings up questions - it makes me realise how little i do know.... And is changing the pad sensors yourself an easy job anyone? i didnt look when i had the wheel off........

That one could be good - thanks janey Its not the same at all, and the wires look different fittings, no idea what all those rubber bits are for either - but i will save the link in case all else fails Thanks again

yeah i can access the gear housing for the broken cable, the shaft comes out of there and doesnt come out unless i break it. I need to poke something down it to get the stuck parts out, but need to push them towards the top......... or find a scrap lexus for the whole assy - if i can get into its boot

Hi Jazz, Yes Chris Vince is your man, he can supply you plus removal and installation instructions for a reasonable fee. I'm getting a new one in the new year, i've just had mt dashboard fixed by the same man. Speedy service mate. Contact me if you cant find him here, i wouldn't like to post his details here?? its upto him to decide

I recently tried to fit a new aerial mast as mine had snapped - and i f'#*!ed up. I've snapped the base end of the mast and its stuck in the shaft, which is a sealed unit. Does anyone know of a full aerial assy - including the mast, toothed cable, motor and cable assy (behind wheel arch) Any local scrapyards you know got a 400? - all the ones i ring say no no joy on e-bay so far Hope to hear from someone soon

Thanks pete, I can get you another fridge if you tell me where to shop :winky: I usually go to lexus swindon - is that wrong - he seemed a good fellow and to be honest you just get sent there when finding parts thro' here i think thats how i came across him.

Ha, so did i - it was a fat turkey baster tho' and it would only go in so far so i had half left too Gary, Here's the job - All the front air intake (3 pieces) on top of the fan need to be removed, then unpug the wire from the air-flow meter (dont pull on the wires!), then undo 3 bolts to take off the air filter, together with the air-flow meter, oh and the 2 jubilee clips need to be loosened to remove the hose, to get the units out. You can then access the p/s resovoir properly (well, sort of)..... and do what chunks says above. Before putting it back, its wise to clean all around there with a rag, just to make it easy to see if it leaks again!!! Remember the wire before replacing the air filter or you trap it underneath and cant plug it in.... :tsktsk: After replacing all the air intake you have to get the air out of the steering too - dead easy....when you fill the reservoir (to cold level), leave the res cap off and if your car is still on axle stands then turn wheel side to side full lock a few times (without engine on 1st) and you will hear the bubbles as you hit full lock - do this till they quieten, put the cap back on the reservoir, then do the same full lock thing with engine on. Tighten cap, Done! As with my car, if its not that o-ring thats leaking look under the fan as you open the bonnet - a thin metal looped pipe joins a rubber one and the clips can get weak with old age. But for 1.50 im happy i did the o-ring aswell. Good luck :luck:

Cheers Steve, Im getting to know my car at last, i've only had it 3years :iraqi-info-minister: But i'll do your starter motor if you can finish the list on mine Don't worry, im sure if you post a note on here when you finish you can laugh at everybody else when its their turn and want your advice. Cheers fella Thanks Pete, thanks for the advice it will be heeded. Out of curiosity (and a tight fist) whats the benefits of the gold membership - how much discount is there and are there other good points about it?

Joy of Joys - Things are on the up I fixed the p/s leak for the price of a few jubilee clips :hocus-pokus: It was where the cooler pipe joins the rubber hose under the fan as you open the bonnet. Headlight out an'all so i could access the hose to replace it but on doing that i saw the hose and the pipe were fine, so a trip to the shops and £5 later i was smiling again. Had the engine cleaned too to help me find the leak so its looking good under the hood - for a nice change. Its not dripped now for 2 days. Bought pads all round, to d.i.y of course, but had trouble getting the nut off so gonna get the caliper kit and pins and get the whole system refreshed at the garage Dash sent off to chris vince yesterday, Bought aerial and new wipers to help keep my sanity - can't handle any more crackles and squeeks Just got to fix window switches then find where water gets in - and where it actually is 'cos i know its damp in the car cos windows steam up for nothing but i cant find a wet spot unless it lashes it down for days - and then it depends on how im parked????????? Then im sure next m.o.t. (april) will bring the curse of new bushes somewhere, but then, maybe just then, its back to a top motor again and i can keep it for years and start saving up for the 600

:arrrggg-matey: I just went on the lexls site and was looking at the caliper service as i need to change pads and its a bit old around those parts so i thought i'd do a proper job and do the caliper service, new pins to silence knocking and change the fluid........ It states when bleeding brakes, you usually start rear passenger with normal cars, but with the ls its the rear drivers side 1st.....I thought good job i read it, then im thinking its a goddam american site so is his tutorial correct with our right handers over here?? To be honest i dont know what the master cylinder looks like to start at the furthest point away from it - i see the abs thingy near the p/s pump but i dunno..... Anyone got any facts for me??? I've been brave and fixed my p/s, i now need to fix more and more ........ - im addicted :mat:

Alright gary? its not as bad as it sounds (you need to take air flow meter out etc) and takes less than an hour unless you have a brew....... One of the 3 nuts holding the resovoir is a pain to get off/on - not even a 1/4 turn with the spanner each time.....tick tock.. There is a full d.i.y. website at lexls.com Its some american bloke who has kindly done step by step photo instructions for any job just for us amateurs. I keep meaning to send him a donation but dont have paypal so i always feel guilty when i finish there. Check it out