BigBoomer

21 hours ago, Malc1 said:

BUT BUT BUT …….. I’m expecting my 91 Ls400 to last at least another 20 years  🤔

Malc 

Relax Malc, I meant MY car won't last another 20 years. 
That said the chances of me still being alive, let alone still driving at 81 are pretty slim too.

It's one of the reasons why using refurbished struts may be a better bet. More recent "manufacture" and testing.
That said, I suspect Toyota may have changed their suppliers over the years so those 2018 manufactured struts are almost certainly not made by the same company who made the original.
I may soon need to replace one of the front air-struts on my LS430 as it is misting and starting to chatter over bumps and I won't be paying Lexus prices for OEM parts.
The car is 20 years old and won't last another 20, so refurbished struts it is.

I can't find it on AutoTrader. I guess Malc already bought it? 🤣
Are you going for the full set Malc? Mk1, Mk2, Mk3, & Mk4? 

Since the Israel/Iran fracas looked like kicking off there was a spike in Crude Oil prices. The profiteering b@stards at all of the petrol refineries and stations IMMEDIATELY raised their prices, even though it takes weeks for the oil itself to filter through the system. Then the "crisis" evaporated fairly quickly but of course the profiteering b@stards have yet to reduce the prices at the pump. Since we have an ineffective, spineless, pro-profiteering government I don't see any of that changing any time soon either. 

Better yet fit the Dayton Audio subwoofer. Sounds great and only cost £60.

The Amp will probably be fine once you refoam the speakers.

Replacing the entire audio system is a LOT of time, expense, and hassle and probably won't give you a better sounding system,but it's your choice. If I were to do that I'd probably go the Android route where it replaces the Nav screen and not bother with a CD player at all.

2 hours ago, Chris Skelton said:

I guess the thought of just how fast the traffic goes as well? I recall seeing a car doing a spin on the m5 about 100 metres ahead and all hell broke out! At 70+ there’s no room to stop given how close people drive….the ‘two chevrons thing doesn’t apply to me’ mentality?

Combine the chance of a front wheel blow-out with a multiple shunt from a few trucks and THEN test the railings strength?

The Avon bridge was closed completely a few years back after a fatality/shunt there. Meant a 12 mile detour for weeks after,mostly going past our house!

I may be over cautious but I always try to keep a good space ahead when crossing the Avon bridge now.

People mostly drive too close because if you don't then someone just pulls out into the space in front of you and you still end up too close. I once decided to back off every time someone pulled out into my 2 second gap on the M25. I ended up getting undertaken by the car behind and badly cut up by him. Yes, he was an a*** but I can understand his frustration at me constantly braking and just letting anyone who wanted to pull out. Now I drive just close enough to prevent people from pulling out but I always look as far ahead as I can so I can drive smoother and not end up constantly braking.
The 2 second rule works well on quieter stretches of motorway and dual carriageway, but once it gets busy it is useless, and yes not observing it does result in more accidents, but that changes nothing since we have decided not to increase the capacity of overloaded roads.

As for the Avon bridge, in a car you are more at risk of going over that barrier than through it. To my knowledge there have been no instances of vehicles going through or over the crash barrier since it opened in 1974, so the risk is no higher than any other stretch of motorway. However, I fully understand the feeling of vulnerability.

It is quite difficult to get the motors out and even when you do, they will sometimes turn when not fitted and not turn when fitted due to the friction/load of the mechanism.
Unfortunately the motors get weak with age and need to be replaced.
With all of the plastic off you can turn the shafts that the motors attach to by hand if you need to position your steering but it is fiddly and slow.
I wouldn't waste money on motors from breakers as they may or may not work when under load (unless you get some kind of guarantee).
New they are about £200 per motor.

 

I've had the BlueMusic module for about 3 years now and the only problem I have had with it is that sometimes my phone just decides not to connect to the BlueMusic, so I have to go in to the phone and tell it to connect.

Yes, yours looks like the 5+7 but I don't know of anyone else that has used the 5+7 Y-cable with the BlueMusic module.
I believe you will need the 5+7 Y-cable
https://www.musikimauto.de/Toyota-57-Y-plug-large
and the 5+7 BlueMusic module
https://www.musikimauto.de/BlueMusic-Bluetooth-Audio-Toyota-Lexus-57_1
or the 5+7 BlueMusic with HandsFree if you make/take calls when driving.
https://www.musikimauto.de/BlueMusic-Bluetooth-Audio-Handsfree-KitToyota-57

Please do let us know if you get it working.

I agree with Steve. If you see any voltage drop at all to the fuel pump, then there is something in the wiring between the Battery and the fuel pump that is introducing resistance like a broken wire or a corroded connection or relay contact.
The only exception to this would be a starter motor and that causes voltage drop because it draws a large current which means that the tiny resistance of the wires and the internal resistance of the Battery have a large effect. Even then you should only see a drop of 2-3 volts when using the starter motor.

There are gaps at either end where the footpath joins the bridge, but in the middle there is just the fence.
Here is a Google Streetview from the footpath mid-bridge.
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.4893043,-2.692232,3a,75y,4.05h,67.89t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sAF1QipMz1PHtxGdAms96-lNHyNRwoLzCiHUzJjhGkPM9!2e10!3e11!7i5760!8i2880?entry=ttu

Driving in lanes 2/3 changes nothing w.r.t. chance of going off the side, except maybe in your head. 🤣
Those 4 bar crash barriers are pretty solid though. They will stop any car but a fully loaded HGV is going right through. 😱

Well if you insist on driving rare-as-rocking-horse-poop cars, then you will end up with these parts dilemmas. 😁
I have similar problems with some parts for my GTR1000's.

There are several radiators on eBay for £200 and up and you can also get one shipped from the USA via RockAuto.

Be aware that some early 2007 LS460s are ULEZ compliant but cannot use E10 petrol.
2008 onwards are fine with E10 as are all LS430s, but for some reason Lexus used E10 incompatible parts in the early lS460s.
I like the LS460 but still prefer the LS430.

9 hours ago, Jig said:

yes I wish I didnt have to go hybrid its only becuase if ULEZ!! I would prefer the LS430, but will have to settle for the hybrids for some economy and ULEZ! send me a DM, what year and price? thanks

Huh? The LS430 is ULEZ compliant. Yes, you will get slightly better fuel economy from the Hybrid but will it be enough to cover the difference in purchase price?

You need an AGM Battery with 85AH capacity, 800CCA, and the posts and polarity in the correct places.
That may be a "Wet" Battery or an EFB (Enhanced Flooded Battery, sort of half-way between wet & AGM) but AGM is strongly recommended for all Stop-Start engine systems even if yours doesn't use it for that, and AGM are generally better quality and more reliable batteries.
That Battery is 3½ years old (211017 is the manufacture date) so probably due for replacement anyways.

You don't want to vault the fence on the northbound side 🤿 but I can't see any gap on the southbound side Google StreetView.
There is a dark shadow on the satellite view but that is due to the low sun angle and the mesh fence.

I've only ever broken down on a motorway twice.
Once on a motorcycle in France(snapped throttle cable). Pushed it to a gap in the Armco and waited for the breakdown recovery van.
Second time was in my Honda Legend in lane 3 of the A13 between the M25 and the A128 (fuel pump relay died). Luckily the traffic was slow so all I got was abuse from knobheads who seemed incapable of understanding that it was not deliberate. 🙄

25 minutes ago, Chris Skelton said:

Saw one in use only yesterday! On the apogee of the bridge over the Avon on M5! WHAT a place to break down! No way to escape….

He means a Warning Triangle Malc 😁

At least he had the sense to use his triangle and can vault over the barrier to the footpath. Nice scenic place to break down 
Also, cameras will have seen him so the Police/Traffic Office should be on-scene fairly quickly.
They are always pretty quick on bridges as the potential for structural damage is high.

I don't know about others but my LS430 windscreen is already hydrophobic, ie. water beads up and runs off all by itself. I believe it is a factory coating.
At motorway speeds I can drive without the wipers on as the beads get blown off the screen, but I do prefer to have them on before someone gets upset about the idea. 😁
I won't use wire wool on the LS430 screen as I don't want to affect the existing coating that works well.
I do wipe the wipers with Rain-X every so often.

I have used the ultra-fine (0000 grade) wire wool on other windscreens (Honda Legend, Merc S-class, Vauxhall Carlton) before and it is awesome a removing ALL of the dead bug guts and tar and other crud that gets stuck to the screen. Use vinegar based window-cleaner with the wire wool and work in small circles.
No, it does NOT scratch the glass but you do need to be careful around rubber trim as it leaves a "matt" finish on rubber.
Once you have cleaned the screen with the wire wool, clean it again with some pink window cream (white spirit based window cleaner) as that strips any oils from the surface.
Then I would treat it with Rain-X including the wiper blades, and finally wash the car

We have to carry the warning triangle but I haven't seen one used for a broken down vehicle in years. I guess people are too stupid to keep themselves and their passengers safe. Every time I see a broken down car on the motorway, the occupants are either still in the car, or are out but are downstream right where the wreckage is going to go after their car is hit by a truck. Suicidal dumb****s!

https://acurazine.com/forums/2g-rl-2005-2012-76/
https://www.acuraworld.com/forums/2nd-gen-rl-2005-2012.113/

No, they are not very active forums but then the 05-12 Honda Legend/Acura RL didn't sell in huge numbers even in the USA.
There is a plethora of stuff to search on though and if you join and post there are still a number of active members who will reply.
I left those forums in 2018 when I got rid of my 98 Legend and bought the LS430.

I test drove a 2007 Legend before I bought my LS and it was considerably smaller inside than my 98 Legend.
More of a 5-Series size than the 7-Series sized 00-05 Legend/LS400/LS430.

Does the 400 radiator also cool the transmission fluid?
If so, then there is a chance that coolant could get mixed with transmission fluid the same as on the LS430 and your Honda Legend.
If not, then it's just a radiator which will eventually fail but who knows when.
You'll find out when it blows a hole and spews steam everywhere.
Everything wears out eventually, even LS400s 🤣

As for the Honda Legend forums, I assume you are a member of the Acura RL forums in the USA?
I used the US forums when I had my two 1998 Honda Legends.

On 3/21/2024 at 3:21 PM, Herbie said:

With the greatest of respect George, I'm afraid that most of that is incorrect.

For instance, the car needs a good hour or two to go fully to sleep, not just 10 minutes. Also, pulling fuses can cause other (sometimes seemingly random and unrelated) ECUs/modules to wake up and give false readings. The following video shows the best way of doing a parasitic current draw test:

Agreed. A much better way and one I have never seen before. You learn something new every day. 
Most of the cars and motorcycles I have tested my way didn't have much in the way of onboard computers and I had no idea that the volt-drop tables existed for these fuses.

To flatten a Battery of 70AH in 2 days you would need a constant drain in excess of 1Amp and probably closer to 2Amps.
As a first test I would recommend disconnecting the Amplifier (in the boot) and see if that solves the problem.
If it does, then you have a culprit.

Relays are an electrically controlled switch. They allow the various computers to switch things on/off.
Probably best not to mess with the relays unless you know what you are doing.

To test electrical drains you will need an ammeter with ranges of 100mA and 10A.
Disconnect the Battery -ve clamp, connect the -ve wire of the ammeter to the Battery post, connect the +ve wire of the ammeter to the Battery clamp.
DO NOT attempt to start the car like this. That WILL destroy your ammeter.

Wait 10 mins for the car to settle into "parked" mode.
With the ignition switch still off, see how much current is being drawn.
Anything over 5mA is too much but if it is flattening a 70AH Battery in 2 days, then it will probably read over 500mA

Now you need to start pulling fuses and checking to see if the drain drops below 50mA.
It is laborious work but is made easier if someone else can keep an eye on the ammeter for you.
Once you figure out what is drawing the power, you can investigate that.

From your descriptions, chances are it is the Amplifier that blew and that is what is sucking all the power out of your Battery.

Once it has been flattened, your Battery is damaged, and the more times it goes flat, the more damage is caused.
You will almost certainly need a new Battery.

Don't leave your car unused for more than a couple of weeks without plugging in a Battery maintainer.
These cars use a little power even when switched off, and the Battery will also self-discharge over a few months, so you need to keep the Battery charged if not using it even semi-regularly or only doing short runs. I use a cheap £20 7Amp (90W) maintainer that is plugged in in the garage. I just extended the 12v cables to reach where I park the car and fitted a good quality plug and socket to make it easy to plug in & unplug.

If you cannot do that, then you can get solar powered chargers that will do the job. Anything over 10W will do the job but 20W is better.
Ideally put the solar cell inside the window that gets direct sunlight (south facing). They even work on cloudy days, just less efficiently.
I wired one into a friends car with a simple plug so when he parks the car he just puts the panel in the windscreen and plugs it in.

The fold back ones (clamshell?) are OK, but again you need to make certain they are well secured to the ground, or the wind will bounce it off the side of your car.
I had one for a motorcycle (Bike Barn) and it lasted about 6 years before the nylon degraded and started to split.

Whatever you get, you will need size Large or Extra-Large as the LS is a big old beast