thatfatbloke

On ebay at the moment. 1998 LS400 import with 50,000 kilometres on the clock for £995 !!. Appropriate number plate as well. What do you reckon - too good to be true?. Search 'pearlescent white ls400'.

Unfortunately,at the time I had no choice as I needed the cash to get another car straight away so I could get to work. The sellers starting price is what he gave me for it last year with no MOT,so went and got the Saab 93 2.0 SE Turbo for £430,which has proved to be very reliable (so far) with a ticket and a bit of tax. May be looking for another LS in the next couple of weeks - wanna buy a Saab!!?.

Test - having problems posting.

Of course, I'm not suggesting that the seller is in anyway 'dodgy'. Ebay is full of vague descriptions etc. particularly where cars are concerned.

Hi,my baby has appeared on ebay after I sold her back in November. You may recall that she failed the MOT on all four coil springs etc. The description states 'MOT and taxed until end February'. She is certainly taxed until then,but the MOT ran out last November. This of course may well be not very well described,she may have a new MOT on her,but surely you would advertise it as having a new MOT as this would be a major selling point. If anyone on here is going to bid on her,please check the MOT status first!!. I'm not allowed to post a link 'cos I'm not a 'gold member' on here. The item number is 220939980474.The title is '1995 LEXUS LS400 BLACK'.The seller is 'rickyc506' from Leigh-on-sea, Essex. The stereo worked fine when I sold it,though the bloke did phone me shortly after to ask me what the code was. I told him it was written in the handbook,but can only assume there has been too many attempts to re-code and needs to be taken to a Lexus dealer to sort out. As for the cigarette lighter burns on the dash - they certainly weren't there when I sold her. Perhaps someone on here could e-mail the seller to clarify the MOT situation. I can't do it as he would recognise my user name.

Hi - although I no longer have my LS400,I have just gone to 'Gocompare' and they have quoted me £294,fully comp,no points,no claims,aged 54,wife included,5000 miles annually,using my old 1995 LS details. That was with Swinton. I now have a 2000 Saab 93 2 litre turbo 185bhp that I got insured with Marks and Sparks via 'Gocompare' for £192.

Yes - this time I shall check the b****y coil springs before I hand over my hard earned!!.

Hi - I am hoping to get back in the saddle of an LS400 next month after the demise of my previous MK3. Would there be any appreciable difference in MPG between the earlier models with the lower BHP and the later higher BHP ones?. On day to day running I suppose the old MK3 did around 23/24 mpg,but on a long run managed 30/31 mpg which I think is wonderful for a 4 litre V8. Can't wait 'til February to start looking again. I said I'd be back!!.

I would like to wish all you LS400 owners a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year. Still grieving over the demise of my 'baby' last month. The Saab 9-3 I bought to replace her has proved very reliable etc. but it ain't the same!!. It's like sitting in a broom cupboard as opposed to an executive office. Thanks for all the advice given during my eight months of Lexus ownership. I will return with an even better one - hopefully.

No - all gone now. Weird.

What on earth is an SQL ERROR?. Keep getting it when reading certain posts.

Hi - I had to sell my dearly beloved LS400 a month ago because I couldn't afford the £500 needed to get it through the MOT (all four coil springs etc.). I sold her for £400 with no MOT and got myself a Saab 93 for £430. The bloke that brought the Lexus (who I thought was an exporter/breaker) phoned me yesterday wanting to know the code for the radio as he had disconnected the battery. 'So what?' I hear you ask. Well,that means that she isn't going to be broken/exported,and lives to fight another day!!. Whether he keeps it or sells it remains to be seen. The important thing is that she will still be in use. Keep your eyes peeled if you are in the Southend/Leigh on Sea area.

Well I'm afraid she has gone.A couple of geezers from Sarfend came and picked her up last night.Have you ever seen a 20 stone bloke cry - not a pretty sight!!.I didn't ask what was going to happen to her,it would have only made it worse.They gave me £400 for her,I had only paid £500 in February and not spent anything at all on her in those eight months.Unfortunately I just couldn't raise the £500 needed to re-MOT her. I did consider getting the work done a bit each month,but I need a car for work so I had to make the decision to let her go. Have now got a 2000(W) Saab 9-3 S.E. 2.0 turbo with a long MOT and a bit of tax I managed to find on that well known auction site for £430. She goes nicely and she's only done 3000 miles in the last three years making her a 116,000 miler. No service history at all,but no cambelt to worry about either. Previous (died last year) owner had done all the work himself including a new turbo. I would like to thank everybody on this forum for the advice I have been given over the last eight months. I must rate this as the best forum I have come across. The LS was undoubtedly the finest out of the 59 cars I have owned and I will never forget her. Who knows,one day I may return to the fold. Thanks again. Ta ta.

LowriderUK - thanks for the reply. As i'm not very mechanically minded,how low would those springs make the car?. Would they affect the ride and handling?. Would the 18" wheels be a problem?. Could be interested. Cheers.

Thanks for the link Steve,but they were roughly twice the price of the ones I'm keeping an eye on on 'you know where'. I will admit they were KYB springs,the cheaper ones look as though they are called 'Suplex'. Would there be a great deal of difference in the quality?.I've had cheap springs fitted to old Merc's etc before and they've seemed fine.Still waiting to hear from the breaker about cost of used ones,and indeed if they are any good. The 'Suplex' work out at just under £150 for all four delivered. Gonna look at a '96 Audi 2.6 estate later - please stop me!!.

Someone is breaking a November '95 LS on a site I'm apparently not allowed to link to. Mine was born in August '95,can I assume that both are MK3's?. Apparently the springs are different on the various MK's. The previously mentioned member was unable to help when I enquired a couple of weeks ago.

I guess the local garages must be snowed under with work and can afford to be picky at the moment!!. Though when you speak to them it's all gloom and doom of course. I had an offer of £300!!. No doubt it's an exporter. Don't really want to go that route - it'd be nice if she could be saved. Another option is to re MOT her somewhere else,just in case the last lot were after the work. All four coil springs?!!. If needed I could get all the springs new on ebay for £150. How long does it take to do each corner - an hour or so?.As far as I can see the rest of it seems to be mainly freeing stuff up. Around £500 all done?. If so then I suppose,including the purchase price of £500,I'd have a beautiful motor that would last another 200k for a grand.

It grieves me to have to sell her,but no-one seems interested in fixing her. Been to four different garages for a price,not one has got back to me with a price!!.Unless there is someone on here locally that could do it...........

It's funny how we still call them 'wing' mirrors innit?. I wonder what the last car manufactured with mirrors on the wings actually was. A much better position for them methinks,the eyes don't have to stray so far from the road. My lovely old '65 Wolseley 6/110 had wing mirrors,much classier than on the door. Now there's a thought - my LS400 with wing mirrors. Hmmmm.... better get an MOT first I suppose!!.

It was done at Seaside Garage,Fairlight Road following a recommendation for being fair!!. I'll probably get told off for naming the garage,but heyho. I don't think they were after work,surely they would know that to fail a car of that age with so many faults would send most owners to the scrapyard to weigh it in wouldn't they?. (I'll get the hang of this 'quoting' and 'link' stuff one day).

Last MOT done in Ely Cambs. this one in Eastbourne East Sussex. My old Merc 190 needed one,a Volvo estate needed one,never had four go before.Would love to know how long these have gone 'un-noticed'!!. I can't imagine life without my baby,silly how you can get attached to a car.Of the 59 cars I've owned this is easily the best,the only one that could come close was my old W124 Merc 300se (god rest her soul).

Seems a bit odd that last year (before I bought her) she went straight through the MOT with no advisories,yet 4000 miles later she has four springs that have been broken 'quite a long time'. Hmmmm....

My link

Thanks for the replies and advice. Not bothered about the advisories at the moment. I've given the fail sheet to 'my man' and he's gonna get back to me with a price soon. Who are 'Benfur' can't find a website for them. My baby has 18" wheels fitted,but only the original 16" spare,not much use really. Have found some new springs on fleabay at prices varying from £33 to £99 each. Would the cheaper ones suffice or would they be a waste of money?. Could the bigger wheels and tyres have contributed towards the demise of the springs?. Due to being off work for four months after having a hip replacement,I haven't got a lot of dosh to chuck about at the moment. But having thought about the option of spending say £500/600 on another car and weighing in the Lexus to go towards the new car, I would prefer to spend the money on getting the Lexus right.

This stuff to do with the parking brake - is that why when I apply the parking brake the car 'rocks' to and fro slightly (about 3-4 inches) when I take foot off brake?. It's always done that.