ultimatequinoxe

Toyota IV right ? I shall make a few inquiries, and see whats around. I hate living where I am, as there are no Toyota places near by either. ...Got Massey Ferguson and John Deer though ! :)

I've read a few cases of the oil being near onto £100. I'm happy paying out for the oil, I spent hundreds for as close to perfect oils as possible on my previous car, and I really appreciate the value in getting the right stuff. But, I do agree, its cost when there seems to be no problem, brings to mind the expression "ifs its not broke, don't fix it". But I think I must shell out, and much sooner than I thought, like now ! I went out tonight, started from cold, drove 3 miles very gradually. Came to a junction onto a fast road, slowly came out then floored it, instead of a brisk acceleration I got the opposite, slowing down and not a lot happening, so I took my foot half off and then to the floor again ( as a coach was fast approaching ) it kicked down and pulled me out of trouble but the change up was rather heavy. Drove back, all was fine, I was tickling and flooring and all changes were fine then. But in short, I feel a great urge to change the oil asap coming on ! BUT, I need to get all the parts, preferably without going all the way to Leicester !

I think I'd ideally like to go for a total sump off and clean up as sometimes ( after a drive today ) the box is smoother, then when warmer it seems to be a tad more jumpy so I'm theorizing the oil is old and rubbish and getting to thin when hot. I'm not comfortable with the kickdown either, sometimes its a little bit hesitant and harsh, and other times not so. Oil change for now, possible rebuild later I'm thinking. I have one annoying issue though, and that is parts sourcing. I can use my trusty oil supplier for engine and transmission oil, but does it HAVE to be toyota stuff, or is there just certain chemicals to avoid etc ? The other parts issue is a problem too. I need a manifold-cat exhaust gasket too, and I tried a couple of Exhaust centers with no results, and my nearest Lexus center is either Leicester or Lincoln, both of which are well over 50 miles from me. Are there any places online that can deliver or other places closer that will stock the manifold-cat gaskets, and the transmission filter, gaskets and what-knott also ? Thanks again for all the tips and pointers, truly indispensable for me !

Hmm, thank you some good points there ! Air con works fine ( amazingly, it still blows cold ), but I only turn it on once every few days when sat idle for whatever reason to keep the fluid flowing etc. But I keep it off when driving to penny pinch. But I need to check on the RPM as it was not doing this when I first got the car, but I still reckon its been standing for a while, so I'm expecting sticky things to develop off and on for a while, especially in this cold. I will look into a Transmission flush, thanks for the pointers. And I will try and find somewhere with pressure testing equipment if I can't spot any obvious leaks in the system. Again, thanks for the tips, it all really helps ! :)

Hi, thanks ManicMark. I have no idea yet where my nearest Lexus stockist is, but I will get onto that. Tried online for any gasket retailers as I need a whole load for my other car too. I will go over the car in the next couple of days, see if I can see a leak. I hav'nt seen anything notable yet, but I'm inclined to check down by the water pump and underneath more carefully. And I will check all around the radiator too now, thanks for the pointer ! RPM is consistent at the 650 mark. Its the same thing when cold or hot, still jolts a bit. On the dipstick, the trans fluid looks normal, but I will wipe it on a clean cloth to check on its colour, my guess is despite a full history the gear oils not been done for a while. Is changing it a difficult job ? If not I will do it along with the engine oil in the next couple of weeks. Mind you, just looking back over what you wrote, with the dodgy gauges due to the resistors packing up, the Revs could be higher than what I glimps when the dials are lighting up. I will see if I can find an idle screw or adjuster somewhere and tweak it down a tad when warmed up, see if it makes a difference. The RPM does sound higher than 650 I'd say, but with a softly quiet V8, my ears struggle to be sure about that.

Hello ! Thanks for all the replies, much appreciated in deed ! Well I topped up with coolant yesterday and went for a 20 mile run at various speeds. Checked the coolant today and it has gone down, but not by that much ( about a cup full roughly it seems ). And duly noted, the emissions are a lot less than my old Stag ( not surprising ). I will keep an eye on the levels though and try to roll around underneath and over the top when its running warm and check for minor leaks, including the tank ( thanks ). There is nothing obvious yet though, but i will remove a few bits to check. Two Q's at this point. 1. I need one ( or two for safety ) of the Manifold to Cat gaskets, anyone recommend me a place to get one from or is any old Exhaust retailer sufficient ? 2. When I first got the car this wasn't noticeable, but after the last couple of days I feel the engagement of Drive or Reverse is rather heavy, certainly heavier than it was I think. Being 200,000 miles I'd expect the box to be less than factory new smooth, but are there any precautions or checks worth doing in case its a sign of future failure ? I will try and find this Chris V. with my electronic needs. I am fine with electronics normally, but I'm not well practiced with soldering and looking at some pictures of the LCD, I can see you have to have some pretty serious dexterity for getting it right. Would be safer in the hands of someone whos done this before, so once again, thanks for the advise !

I have a feeling this LS won't last to long, but just driving it the few miles I have so far, I'm already comfortable and pretty happy to drive it and tinker if needed. Sad thing is, that I suspect head gaskets gone or going at least. I've got the coolant level dropping a fair bit, though I should test it over more time in case its just been ran low, and I'm catching up on it as it pumps round. But there is also relevant fumes, steam like. Not OTT, but after warming up it puffs out the odd mild cloud which dissipates in about 2-4 seconds on idle or at 3,000 rpm constant. I would say it was just typical exhaust gases, but I fear not. Can't see any leaks underneath. Climate blows hot when temps up. And Dipstick, filer cap and what can be seen of the insides, there is nothing suspect, no residue, milky deposits, moister etc. But thats not to say the water is not trickling out the gasket inside somewhere. Somehow I think a headgasket replacement will be a mighty task on these, or a costly one for someone else to do it for me ? I will try bleeding the system though if anyone can maybe send me a picture or guidelines on 'how to' do it correctly. I keep trying my seat heater but nothing, so I guess a fuse or elements gone. That being said the backs don't seem to heat up either....Not tried passenger side yet. Thanks to ManicMarks point on my brake warning light, replaced the blown brake light bulb and the warning lights gone. Looking to get the replacement resistors for the dash next and a new LCD screen for the climate control. This LS400 is a bit of a pig at the moment, it hangs in the balance as to whether it will go well or go bad for me. But I could very easily find myself sticking to Lexus' from now on. Might just be that I will have to break this one to stock some spares and then get a better one later, depending on how far I can fix it. Once again, thanks for all the thoughts and advise and support, much appreciated ! :)

Got a new one today, not anything major though. The wipers, flip up, then down, but the last couple of inches they stutter ( and I can here the relay clicking along with it ) then they park as should be. Again, wonder if the cars been standing for some time. Instrument binical was flicky when out first time this morning just a couple of miles, then was fine when coming back. Just going out now to give the car a proper look over........

Genius, thanks ! I checked my lights when I got back and one brake light is out :) Is the ball joint very difficult ? depending on what its like under there, I wonder if its worth me getting new wishbones with the ball joints and doing the lot ? ( If im getting my info correct that is ). Thanks for the help ! Much appreciated !!!

Hi ! Thanks for the welcomes ! Thanks for link, excellent resource, just the thing I need. There is nothing notably wrong mechanically, few small issues though that will need attention which I posted in the suspension and brakes section. There is a slight blowing in the exhaust nearer the engine end, sounds very much like a weak gasket though. There was one other Q though I just remembered, the master key was lost by a previous owner, I have the second key and emergency key, but it means I can't remotely lock/unlock. I'm guessing that a new master key is an expensive and tricky thing to get ? Thanks again for the welcomes and help !

Greetings all ! I just picked up an old 1993 LS400 today ( cheaply ) and of course needs some TLC, I do my own mechanics and electrical things etc, but I won't touch something unless I know the details first ( and where to look ). If I list the problems I have found so far, and anyone has any helpful hints or advise, its of course greatly appreciated :) - Climate/radio back lights - nothing at first, but after driving about 150 miles today, they started to flicker and come on. But the LED display for the climate control is blank ( a common problem I hear ? ) - Weird one, the instrument display - needles, fuel gauge, gear indicator and all the read outs ( ODO, outside temp etc ), when taken for a test drive, it was explained that they flicker on and off, but after warming up they stay on. When I drove home though, they went entirely, only when I turned the ignition on and off would they briefly flash then go out again. BUT when only 5 miles from home ( after driving 150 ) they all came on and stayed on. ( I wondered if the car had been standing for some time maybe ? ). - inside boot release doesn't seem to work, not sure the drivers heated seat does either....but then again, it might have been once I used it a few times. I'm guessing they are electrically heated on 1993 models ? I think thats it for now. Any help, much appreciated, thank you !

Just bought it today ( very cheap ) 1993 LS400, few TLC needs of course. This being the suspension and brakes section, I shall put my queries here for anything I can find wrong with mine in this category. Any thoughts or advise, is really appreciated, thank you ! - Slight mild knocking on turning ?? intermittent. I'm thinking front wishbone or another bush somewhere ? - And I bought it with a brake warning light on, but its the parking brake one ... ( ! ) .... I thought at first its a pad warning light, but its maybe something else ? Brakes fine though, no noise or pulling etc.