GrahamG

My '04 Ls430 [85,000miles] has an intermittent murmuring noise which can be heard up to 30mph and is apparent only when the car is moving including in reverse [not when revving the engine in neutral and stationary]. It continues when coasting in neutral. It is intermittent like morse code but softer and lower register. No it does not say, 'I am locked in the boot'. Its is not affected by moving the steering wheel, applying brakes, A/C on or off or the engine RPM. Perhaps it started when my telescopic steering function failed recently. The fuse was pulled with the wheel in a good position which kills both rake and tilt motors. Difficult to say where it comes from other than in front of the driver but it is quite a distinct sound so I am hoping someone knows.

I am astonished 5 year old tyres can be sold as 'new' and I will pay attention to this factor when next buying because I have only recently become aware of age factors affecting tyres. There are recommendations that 7 years is old enough. It is not just a matter of safety. For a luxury car quietness can be compromised by the heat cycles hardening the rubber well before the tread is worn down on low mileage cars. There is a Youtube video of a mechanic demonstrating this with a sound meter in the cabin.

Eddy, have a read of Jake430's posts in July 2015. There he lists the Lexus parts for the rear suspension in steel. These cost him 1,100 Euro so to do all four corners will be much more expensive than I suggested above [@10.20am] which is the oft quoted relative cost in the USA. Lexus Birmingham would be worth a try to give you an idea of costs in the UK. Amayama in Japan are often favoured on this forum but there are extra import costs.

Jim, can you give any details of the change to the rear Lexus steel? Any part numbers? Was it just a spring and shock absorber or was a top mount or bumper required? Who did the work, presumably not a Lexus main agent? Any problem with the dash warning light?

Take a strong torch and check for rust underneath, especially the rear sub frame.

Jim, I see it is a 2004, could you confirm it is the facelift model?

Jim, what year is your Ls430 please? Coilovers have a mixed reception in the US and seem less successful if the original Lexus ride is required.

Eddy, I should say second hand air struts are available on Ebay and are easy to fit. One advantage with air is that if just one has failed it is not necessary to replace any others at the same time. Beware that all four struts are not necessarily the same.

Phil, are you saying the steel spring suspension was offered in Japan for the facelift car ie 2004 to 2006? If that is the case then I will certainly convert if my air system fails. I changed from a '95 Ls400 with steel to a '04 Ls430 with air and experienced no improvement whatsoever.

When the ride height sensors seize up the connecting arm can break. Worth looking to see there are no broken arms. On the US owners club site search for a diagram of the pneumatic plumbing system and some soapy water might show a leak. There is a 4 way manifold for instance that is easy to check. The pre facelift models, ie your car,. were offered without air suspension. For the cost of renewing one corner with air suspension you could replace all four corners with conventional Lexus steel. That is a common remedy in the US.

When my front spring went the car was not safe to drive.

My 1995 LS400 when five years old and at 30,000 miles had a front spring break when reversing out of my perfectly flat driveway. It was the only time the car stranded me in my 15 years of ownership and total of 95,000 miles. Lexus Guildford reported they had never seen such a thing happen and advised against changing the other front spring, which proved sound advice. Might be worth a call to the service manager to hear what he says now.

Peter, what is it? Details please. Reminds me of my father's 1953 Ford Customline, especially with the sun shade and aero mascot. Every home should have one!

5 litres of IPA on Amazon [inc delivery] on its way will make a lot of cheap de icer and is so useful for de greasing and cleaning in the workshop. Thanks to Rayaans for the tip.

Lexus Guildford talked me out of replacing my radiator. They knew of four failures affecting the box and in two of those instances there was prior warning with the box functioning oddly. The trans was lost on two occasions My driving seat has no heating; cooling yes, heating no, at 85,000 miles. On the USA club site an owner observed, 'these cars may be bullet proof [engine and trans] but they can nickel and dime you to death'. As of last night my telescopic steering is no longer working despite a new motor fitted recently. I would buy another again and pay a premium for low miles and full Lexus service history as a second fun car but provided I had a reserve fund of at least £4,000.

Brian, thanks for your report.

I would avoid air suspension even on a new car let alone an old one. In my experience it confers no advantage whatsoever and can cost £1000 a corner [there are ride height sensors as well as the strut] when it goes wrong. Have had my RX350SE four years [no air struts] and hope to drive it forever. The 350 is faster and more economical than the 300 series and has a timing chain therefore no belt to change.

Brian, when you removed the wheel arch did you find any areas prone to rust behind the lining?

Many thanks Brian for those excellent photos. I had read elsewhere of this problem but never before been able to see exactly what is involved.

At £995 for two years inc AA cover it is a bargain for an older car if you can afford it. I got my money back for work done on my RX350 during the last two years a warranty was available [up to 10 years] and I paid twice that sum. Also while warranty work was carried out a new water pump and vvti oil pipe was fitted by way of preventative maintenance at parts cost alone.

Chris, could you explain how to obtain service history of your car from the mylexus site? Others would also be interested in this. Know it is available in the USA.

How about inflatable roof racks? We used them for a couple of hang gliders on hire cars in Spain. Weight about 60kg. You might have to improvise something with the cradles.

Was astonished to see the market capitalisation of Tesla is now greater than Ford. In the rust belt of USA they are being bought because they are aluminium. In California they now outsell all the luxury German makes combined. A new owner enquired about a service plan to be told, 'well we could grease the bearings at 250,000 miles'. I can't vouch for the above statements but I would love to drive one.

How clever of a 1995 Lexus to have TEMS. According to Wikipedia this is a special microscope with instruments designed to allow operations through the anus. Presumably fitted for you to try on the a******e who hit you.

The only good thing about air struts is that when one fails it is not necessary to change the one on the other side at the same time. As Phil says the others might last 250k miles. Apparently it pays to renew struts soonest otherwise violent motion can damage the ride height sensor and that's another £350.