cleverdick

The A/C system essentially has three parts - condensor, pump and evaporator. The evaporator communicates with the car's interior, and the condensor with the outside world. As air is blown over the evaporator (to cool the car's interior), the refrigerant will pick up heat. That heat is deposited (via the condensor) right in front of the main radiator. So, on a hot day with the A/C on, you will be blasting hot air right onto the rad. Not ideal! In stationary traffic, without forward movement to assist in the throughput of fresh air, it is to be expected that the coolant temperature will rise. It is so rare to experience high outside temps in the UK that Toyota specified only one electric fan for this market. Versions for hotter climates (and later models?) had two fans. If the engine is overheating, turn the A/C OFF and the heater ON.

I had exactly the same thing once on my old 1990 LS - sweltering day, traffic jam on motorway, A/C on. Didn't notice temp reading until moving off and hearing horrendous pinking. I did have the radiator flushed, but that car always had a tendency to pink slightly in very humid conditions with the A/C on. Cars for certain markets (other than the UK) had two auxiliary fans fitted instead of just the one, so clearly a known issue. I'd say this was normal, and one of the very few design shortcomings of the early LS. Just don't have the A/C on in stationary traffic and high outside temps - it won't cope.

(Particularly between the shoe edges and backplate) I'm just doing a survey here... Please choose one of the following: 1. molybdenum grease 2. lithium grease 3. generic copper grease from RS Components 4. goose fat 5. olive oil 6. Vicks VapoRub 7. other (please specify) 8. don't know and don't care

For the ball joint rubber clean it with a bit of carb or brake cleaner & super glue it. Good idea, might give that a try... But grappling with the rear brakes at the moment - not fun.

Nice one, thanks for confirmation....

I just need to be certain that I have the hold-down springs positioned correctly - each side has a pink and blue spring, one for each shoe. Of course, the service manual shows the different types - with different part numbers, but doesn't say which colour is which. The blue spring has more coils, but both seem to be the same overall length (and strength). Any clues? 1994 LS400.

You may well find that removing and lubricating the front stabilizer bar bushes does the trick. It's quick and easy to do and is a freebie fix. Only two bolts each side, and if you have the right length socket extension bar you don't even have to remove the drip tray! Some people have got lucky by spraying WD-40 or suchlike on the bushes; I wasn't so fortunate and had to take mine right off. They were quite dry, and a copious smearing of silicone grease on there before reassembly fixed the creaking. Refer to lexls.com.

Today, just as a spur-of-the-moment thing, I thought I would tempt fate and try an old cassette in the car! (Bear in mind that it's the factory system from my 1990 LS transplanted into my '94.) To my amazement, especially as the cassette player section hadn't been used for nearly 10 years, it: (1) Played without chewing the tape, (2) Ran at the correct pitch without any wow or flutter, (3) Played without any loss of HF, and (4) Gave the cassette back afterwards undamaged! Top marks to Pioneer, I think! So, when did you last use yours?

I've recently broken one of my own rules and had KYB front dampers fitted (as opposed to OEM). For some reason, the rubber bush around the lower bolt-tube just won't stay central - it keeps twisting round. Has anyone else had this? I'm pretty sure the originals didn't have this problem. I'm now on my second pair (the first having been replaced under warranty). I'm just not happy about this! To make matters even worse, I have a small split in the O/S/F lower balljoint gaiter, on the inside at the top. Looks to be fairly recent. Hopefully no water will have got in there yet. Is this a common fault, and is it possible to replace the gaiter without too much hassle/expense? Thoughts please...

I only wish you could operate the windscreen washers separately from the wipers. I just hate the way the wipers spread all the dust around - possibly scratching the glass - before the water has made it through the pipes. One thing I don't like to see is aftermarket wheels (sorry guys)! To me, they almost always look plain wrong and IMHO devalue the car.

Hi all, I will soon be in the position of needing a full geometric alignment following the replacement of a bent control arm. (I didn't bend it, BTW!) I seem to remember reading that there was an LS400 alignment specialist in the Cambridge area which isn't too far (from Essex). Could anyone remind me who this might be? Cheers... (1994 LS400)

Just look on www.carsurvey.org - all smiley faces for the '96. (It's quite funny to compare the ratings with those for certain other vehicles, e.g. the Freelander!)

As a bit of general advice, beware of manual trigger-spray bottles of de-icer. They are prone to leaking horribly.

"I haven't used CDs for several years and have no intention of downgrading to CDs when I 'upgrade' to a Lexus..." Ironically, in terms of audio performance alone, changing from CD to iPod would be the downgrade - not vice versa!

Well I'm very sorry to read this; it would seem that your decision is final if you've already bought another car. As we all know, there's more to the cost of owning a vehicle than MPG alone, and time will tell if your Rover costs less overall in the long-term. One of the LS400's greatest virtues is its reliability, and whilst replacement of worn-out parts can be expensive, the need does not arise as frequently as with lesser models. Therefore, why not still keep the LS (if you can afford to), or at least keep it in the family? That way you won't burn any bridges (and I predict that your affair with Rover will be short-lived). If it's any consolation, a colleage of mine bought a 75 new about 10 years ago, still has it and is very happy with it. (I think the only problem he had was the gear stick breaking off in his hand!) On a final note, if the cost of fuel for your 700 mile trip is too much, could you not go by train?

Hi, Tried to PM you but your email address is withheld. I might be in a position to offer you a very good set of original roadwheels in the near future, PM me for details.

Right then, just in case anyone's interested, here are a few more pics which hopefully should show the problem quite clearly. Still can't imagine how it happened though! (The previous owner says he doesn't know anything about it, and I do actually believe him!) I'd be interested to know how many turns of thread should be visible on the strut bars - and, providing it's equal each side, is it that critical? More importantly, just how easy is it to replace the lower arm? I can't believe I fell for this one (having checked every other thing on the car)! One thing to add to list of things to check when buying a car: "Compare wheelbase each side"! http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r243/clever_dick/Straightarm.jpg http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r243/clever_dick/Goodside.jpg http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r243/clever_dick/Bentarm.jpg http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r243/clever_dick/Badside.jpg

OK guys, here are a couple of pics which hopefully should show the problem... When I feel a little more enthusiastic (and fixed all the outstanding faults), I'll try and get some nice shots of the car itself. http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r243/clever_dick/CIMG1537.jpg http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r243/clever_dick/CIMG1534.jpg I think my biggest difficulty will be sourcing a second-hand one with decent bushes. Rather annoyingly, there was one on eBay which has now gone! (I dread to think what a new one would cost!) Has anyone on here actually done this job? Is it hard to do? Oh well...

OK, thanks for replies so far guys... I'm away on a course at the moment - hopefully more info next week!

Well, after worrying about it all night (as you can imagine), I got out there first thing this morning and had a good look at it. It does indeed seem that somebody's hit an object in the road or something, resulting in a slight backwards bend to the lower suspension arm. (I still have my old car, so a comparison was easy). My real concern was whether there was any chassis damage, but as far as I can see that doesn't seem to be the case. Still, I can't believe I never noticed this at the time :( (More initial expense!) I'd put up a few photos if I could figure out how to do it (when I click on 'insert image' a box appears for an instant then goes away and nothing else happens)!

Well, yesterday I picked up a 94 LS which I'd been looking at for some time. And very nice it is too. There's very little wrong with the car (apart from some of the usual issues - leaky PAS pump being the most important). I can see no evidence whatsoever of any accident damage or repairs, but there's one thing that bothers me that I noticed today. The front wheel on the driver's side is about 10mm further back than the one on the near side, and as yet I can't see any reason for this. The car drives straight and smooth, doesn't pull or wander and the steering wheel is straight, too. The tyres (D8Zs!) are evenly worn with no sign of scrubbing. Right now it's parked in my driveway beside the house where there isn't room to take things apart to have a look at the suspension components (and I'm away on a course for a week as of tomorrow, so won't have time to investigate before then). So, any ideas? Caster adjustment?

I hadn't thought of that! I've just PMd him now. ;)

I just called Dewsbury Auto Salvage (West Yorkshire) to get a quote for an electric cooling fan for my 1990 LS400. (Due to its age it only has one instead of the usual two, and I'd like to improve the air-con's performance with extra cooling to he condenser.) A very curt and ignorant man, with obviously no knowledge of these cars snapped that the 1991 model listed on their site "had been sold" and, after demanding to know the plate letter (H), did not give me the chance to explain that a fan from an even later model (of which they listed several) might fit. Clearly not interested in being helpful, he then hung up! Let's just say that customer focus isn't their strong point.... So, I'm still looking for a passenger-side fan to sit in front of the rad, next to the one that's already there. Any help gratefully received.

You can get 1 Quart bottles of T-IV from the US (just under 1l). Be careful if trying to obtain T-IV from a workshop - in my experience, even the Toyota dealers don't use it - claiming that whatever it is they do use is "compatible". (Not sure about Lexus dealers.) Unless you actually see the label on the container/drum it comes from, then assume it's not genuine T-IV.