maneesh

Just checked with PIAA, and they inform me that Platinum White, Extreme White Plus are E-marked and legal for road use. Unfortunately, you can't get dipped beam bulbs for LS400s from PIAA, but you can for GS300s! I got confused with the US PIAA bulbs which are available in dipped beam for LS400s, but then those would not be E-marked, and thus, illegal.

I'll second that, and add Nissan QX (Maxima) as an alternative too. Don't laugh now!!! See URL regarding how many awards the 3 litre V6 engine has won. Nissan's V6s are now legendary. http://www.economist.com.na/2001/100501/story23.htm I drove a Maxima in the US, and the V6 is incredibly smooth. Nobody likes them over here, so they are dirt cheap. Plus you still get the rarity factor.

Tell us how good the chrome rad things look. In fact, pls post a piccie after installing..

Yes, the bizarre thing was that I was incredibly calm after the accident. I thought what's the point of going off on one, the accident has already happened, just have to make sure nobody is hurt and exchange details. Maybe I'm getting old!

That's not exactly a helpful answer Anyway, the PIAA bulbs are the same wattage as factory spec, and they are not blue or purple in colour so why are they illegal?

Greybeard, your clear indicator lenses look cool, and very contemporary. If you change those from OEM orange, are you obliged to tell insurance. Essentially, if an accident occurred, could they invalidate the claim by saying, oh, the indicators are not OEM spec and less visible to other drivers whilst turning (etc etc). Cheers. P.S Ever found the clear versions of side indicators? I'm planning on fitting PIAA Extreme White bulbs as soon as I get my car back. Feedback from the US highlights how much more visibility of the road you get with those bulbs when comparing with factory spec, since Mk1 lights are really weak.

Lexus quoted me 340 to change the blacked out LCD a few years back. Sod that, I went to Switzerland on easyjet and got a nice Swiss wris****ch instead!

These look good for Ls400s... http://www.clublexus.com/forums/showthread...t=ls400+bodykit This one reminds me of the same colour on MGFs and Nissan Primeras http://www.clublexus.com/forums/showthread...t=ls400+bodykit some of these are OTT! http://www.clublexus.com/forums/showthread...t=ls400+bodykit Not sure about the GS300 here though. http://www.clublexus.com/forums/showthread...t=ls400+bodykit

is this aldi warranty on the unit for real? so if you use it for 6 months, return it in the box with receipt, you get full refund.....?

Keep 1 hungry rottweiler leashed to each body panel every night. Less chance of scratches, but where you gonna put the rottweilers when you need to use the car?

Yes, there may be more info/help available if you get a GS300, since they have a detuned Supra engine in them. You may be able to get tips/help from Supra community as well. Particulary in engine/susp dept I think. Re the mondeo 2.5v6 suggestion, the difference between a 12 year old LS400 and a newish mondeo/vectra/omega isn't as much as you might think.

So if you feel chuffed by getting a 10% discount on parts at a dealer, you know you have to work harder, as there is plenty of room to get a bigger discount!

:o Luckly they didn't write it off. Yes, lucky indeed. How do these things work? Do they write it off when the repair is 100% or more of the car's value? Or do they write it off when the cost of the repair is say, 80% or more of tha car's value? According to Parkers (it's the only guide I have), my car should be worth 3,300. However, since Parkers undervalues cars, mine is closer to 3,500?

an update. My car is still in the Lexus bodyshop. They have not called once since the car was recovered to tell me what was going on. They never return my calls. Disgusting! Anyway, the insurers call to ask me how the repair is going. I say, I don't know! So insurers call the bodyshop then call me back to say repair approved, it's costing £2,500 (for one wing and one door!!!). Piccie of damage coming soon. Car should be ready in another week and a half (it's been one week already). In the meantime, I get to drive the beemer. I must say I'm getting used to the steptronic box. In normal mode, it's a milk float, in sports mode, it's much crisper, and in manual change mode, it's awesome. However, since it seems to spin all the way round to 6,500rpm, with little thrust until you are over 3500rpm, I'm getting around 22-23mpg driving around town. Still slower than the LS though. For a comparison, has anyone driven the 7-series with steptronic box? Does it behave the same as the 3-series, or is it more relaxing because of the torque? I'm shocked it's only a bit less fuel consumption than my old LS400 which spends most of it's life under 2,500rpm. I miss my baby....

I did some work for the marketing department of a big car dealer up north, and sitting in their meetings was eye opening. They were multi franchise, and told us they made around 6% profit margin on new car sales, and about 30% profit margin on spares/servicing. Interesting! Is the servicing margin higher on luxury brands?

Here is the kind of high quality tech stuff available for LS400 owners, that has been put together at no cost to web users. http://www.lexls.com/tutorials.html http://www.cureline.net/lex/howtos.htm Don't know if this kind of info exists for IS200 owners yet?? Anyone?

To follow up on my previous posting. Westfield do use genuine Lexus parts and they have invested a lot of money to get the specific diagnostic tools that enable them to work on the latest models. In fact, Lexus UK would not supply them the diagnostic tools so they got the tools from the US instead. Personally, I prefer mechanics with years and years of experience working on cars as opposed to youngsters fresh out of training courses. Sometimes, common sense works best as opposed to a "let's write a long list of every small thing that needs fixing". The whole concept of let's try and repair it, rather than replace it, seems to be disappearing from a lot of mechanic's vocabularies. Again, my personal opinion, but I prefer to deal with the mechanic directly, rather than go through an intermediary. If someone tells me the bushes are split, I want them to show me the bushes are split. That's just me. IMHO, for the majority of work on Lexus cars, an good independent will be sufficient. The bulk of technology in a Lexus isn't radically different from other cars around. It's not exactly a Ferrari or a Mclaren F1. 95% of the tech info can be obtained from www.alldata.com When a car goes out of warranty or gets older, it often doesn't make economic sense to keep going to main dealer. That applies to any brand, not just Lexus. Finally, why oh why, does Lexus not operate a scheme like BMW's Four Plus with discounted servicing for older cars? There are quite a few LS400 and GS300 owners with 7+ year old cars that don't want to pay over the odds for servicing an older car. At the end of the day, like a lot of things it comes down to convienience. Servicing can be such a hassle at the best of times, that it's often the closest garage that gets the work.

Some of the LS400s with bodykits/20 inch wheels/lowered in the US really look great. Look on www.clublexus.com for some threads about modded LS400s. Theres even a dude who has got twin turbos on his LS400. Imagine that, smokin a M3 with a LS400! www.lextreme.com

Hmmm, I'm always suspicious seeing adverts proclaiming 4 new tyres. Normally, owners replace pairs of tyres, since the front and rear don't wear out at the same time. Could be to hide effects of dodgy suspension causing uneven wear. Think about that before you get impressed with brand new tyres. Seriously, buying a 12 year old LS400 on a very tight budget is going to be really, really hard work, and perhaps a painful ownership experience. Saying that, you have all of us to support you in your hunger for a V8 Most likely that age of car WILL need a suspension overhaul of some kind, if not done at some point already. Rubber bushes will perish with age anyway, even if not driving hard and fast. A full suspension overhaul can cost nearly the price of the car..Inspect it properly! The trouble with Lexus is that when the bushes are worn, you don't get the bushes sold separately. You have to buy the whole control arm (wishbone), which in this country are nearly £400 each. Then there are the balljoints, strut bar cushions, anti roll bar bushings, front lower control arms, rear upper control arms, rear axle carrier bushes. The steering racks can cause issues from around 130k. Sure you can prob get by running an LS400 on the cheap, but do you really want to drive a big car with sloppy handling and less than smooth/silent engine? In the cold light of day, perhaps you could consider (shock horror) a four year old Mondeo 2.5V6 etc. until you have a bit more cash to spare. As they say, CAVEAT EMPTOR...

Wasn't there a car a while back where it ran on vegetables or potatoes or something strange like that? Can I get a veggie conversion done on my LS400 please? Damn, that would save money, but I'd get funny looks in Tesco buying 100 value bags of potatoes!!

I've been using an independent Lexus garage for a few years now. They are based in Rayleigh, Essex. They are all ex Toyota/Lexus, and have a lot of knowledge, and are willing to tell you AND SHOW YOU exactly what is wrong with the car. I get all my parts from the US and get Chris at Westfield Motors to fit them/do the servicing. Labour rate is 1/3 of Lexus. Plus they are part of SMMT as well, so you can even take your new car there, get it serviced, and your warranty is still valid (not a lot of people think they can do that, but you can). He stamps your service book too. Out of the way for me, but miles cheaper than a Lexus garage. Have a look for yourself. http://www.westfieldmotors.co.uk/ The only downside is they are always booked 3-4 weeks in advance! Plus you have Smithys in Barking and Powerhouse in Camberley. Both specialise in Soarers, but could handle other Lexus models no doubt.

Right, so are Lexus dealers overcharging or do the people compiling Parkers have trouble with numeracy?

My local independent dealer that sells new shape S-classes from time to time, has a metallic green LS400 1998 on a R plate for sale. It's up for 14,995. Blimey, I thought, that's a lot of dough. So I look up Parkers. For an average mileage of 60k on that car with full history, it should be worth: 12,650 Dealer retail 12,035 Private good 9,280 Private poor Either that car has ultra low mileage or the dealer expects the customer to walk in and request a £2,345 discount. Furthermore, I would have thought the price guide of £12,650 is for Lexus dealers, and so at an independent you would pay less than that. Plus, it's a nasty pastel shade light green. I can never figure out prices of secondhand cars, they seem all over the place.

But doesn't an aftermarket LPG conversion take up space in your boot? If so, that's a disadvantage, since the Mk1's boot is smaller in the first place (when compared to the size of the car).

Dude, Sounds like you need to make up your mind before you start looking. The V8 Soarer shares the same engine as the LS400, but not that much else (the suspension is a different setup, so is the exhaust). One is a luxury saloon and the other is a luxury coupe/grand tourer. They WILL drive very differently from one another.