GoldfingerLS

When I booked the LS in for a cambelt at Lexus, they said it was a 3.5 hour job, so I asked if I can collect the car after 3.5 hours, they said to be on the safe side give us 4 hours because on the LS it sometimes takes us a bit longer because there is more to dismantle and put back together again. That 3.5 hours didn't include a tensioner or waterpump. Also remeber that these Lexus mechanics know these cars very well, they have all the tech manuals to hand, all the special service tool, know the drill and sequence to get the job done quick. From what is invloved I still think 3.5 hours is hard to beat to take it apart, put the cambelt in and put it back together again. Your local garage may have underestimated the job and what it invloved, but it sounds too good to be true.

The solution to alloy wheel corossion is very simple, only use car shampoo to wash your wheels every 2 weeks, nothing else is needed. If you take your car to these hand car washes which have poped up everywhere, the strong TFRs they use to clean your wheels butchers and destroys your clearcoat and paint no matter if you have the best finish alloys in the world. Also dont use chemicals like wonder wheels which is also quite harsh. Since I had my Mk4 wheels re-furbed, i wash them every 2 weeks only using car shampoo and a sponge/soft brush and thats enough to get all the brake dusk off and have them looking spotless. once a month i use autoglym wax on them and that helps float the brake dust off. Even fairly liquid is too harsh i think because its designed to cut serious grease, but it may be needed to get off spots of tar and baked on drake dust occasioanlly. If you do use fairy, remeber to wax it again afterwards. Yes, the lexus alloys are not the best when it comes to corrosion but at the same time if you use TFRs and harsh chemicals you are bound to dull the finish, if not attack the clearcoat even on better quality finished wheels. As for diamond cut wheels (such as the 5 hole ones on the mk4 LS400), any diamond cut wheel will require extra care compared to a normal finish one so the avoidance of using harsh chemicals and regular cleaning is even more critical.

Only use Toyota Type IV ATF otherwise you will be asking for trouble by using anything else.

Be careful There no such thing as a "cheap" LS. Buy the wrong one and you could see yourself spending a £1000 or more putting it straight. £2500 is probably a bit too low for a 98 car. But search through these pages to see what the common niggles are on LS cars. The front control arms can be expensive if the ball joints are worn out, the rear ones are expensive but the labour involved in replacing it another thing. Make sure exhaust isnt blowing from anywhere, a new sections from lexus wont be cheap. Often this will be factored into the selling price. If its not been well looked after, repairs will be expensive.

For the 98+ MkIV LS400 with VVTi the OEM plugs are Denso Iridium SK20R11

In the USA the Nakamichi Premuim sound system was always an optional extra on the LS400s. If you dont have a Nakamichi amp then as Steve suggests it is probably at the back of your head unit.

Guys tyres wearing out in just 4k miles or even 11k miles does not seem right to me for the LS. Are you sure the tracking alignment is setup properly ? I got Dunlop SP Sport D8z replaced on my Mk4 LS400 23,000 miles ago. Most of my mileage is around town milage which is very heavy on tyre wear compared to motorway miles. My front tyres still have minimum 4k or 5k miles left on them (provided i keep them at the front) and my rear tyres still have approx 10k left on them (provided i keep them on the back). I had the tyres supplied and fitted by Elite in Rainham and had my tracking done by them twice over the last 3.5 years and although their tracking is expensive the tyre wear, handling and alignment even at motorway speeds as been nothing less then perfect. I agree with Haylands - the front tyres do wear faster on the outer edges on the front . This is probably due to 2 reason: 1. the LS has a lot more body roll being a bit of a boat so i always take corners and round abouts quite slow as it also helps take pressure of the control arms and ball joints aswell. 2. The LS has a very tight turning circle and the front wheels have a lot of KPI angle on them so the more lock you put on the faster outer edge wears. Again just try to go as slow as practically possible when u got near full lock on. To balance this out, last time i had my wheel balance done i asked elite to re-fit the front tyres so the inner edge on the outside and outer on the inside. All in all i'm very pleased with the life of the SP sport D8z. :)

I bought a 'Gunson EEZIBLEED' power bleed kit from halfords to change the brake fluid. However none of the different caps supplied which are supposed to fit on to brake fluid reservior fit my '99 LS400. Is there another cap available from somewhere which I can just drill a hole and fit ? http://www.gunson.co.uk/item.aspx?item=1818&cat=664 The universal ones they do are like £15 just for a cap. I'm guessing another cap from Lexus will be about the same price if i buy one to drill a hole in it. Any ideas ? Thanks.

Thanks Tango. 2 stage system it is then. Did the filters come with it when you ordered it from screwfix ? or which filters did you order separately ? I like the idea of having a fine filter in the 2nd housing. If this works well, I would get one for the house aswell. The water areas in the kitchen and bathroom accumulate a lot of limescale very quickly. And not to mention that the clothes after going through the washing machine should feel softer as they are not saturated with minerals...........:)

Thanks John. I've used it before to buff off polish, but i wasn't sure if using it to buff of wax would end up taking the wax off with excess heat or something and defeat the purpose of waxing. Looks like i'll be saving me even more time when I wax from now on :)

I am planning on putting another layer of Autoglm Extra Gloss Protection on and followed by P21S wax on my LS. Can these products be buffed off with a machine polisher with a microfibre towel buffing bonnet ? I've got a 60 watt 7" random orbit polisher (which mimics the hand movements) similar to this one : http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/part...gt;POLISHER.htm If not which wax products can be safely buffed off with this type of polisher. Thanks

I am also fed up with water marks. The LS is a big car to wash as it is and as soon as i finished washing it if i dont dry it within 5-10 mins (even when not in direct sunlight) i get watermarks. Should this water filter do the trick for using it to feed a Jetwash ? http://www.screwfix.com/prods/20315/Plumbi...eduction-System or which out of these would do the trick ? http://www.screwfix.com/cats/101259/Plumbing/Water-Treatment Thanks

But provided mileage on odo is true and there is service history, then high motorway miles in a short space of time should be good no ? I've come across cars only 2 years old which have covered approx 80k miles which i assume must be motorway miles...

I can see both side of the argument here. I think it probably depends on which items are due for a service. For something more involving like a cambelt and water pump change I can see why people would take it to the main dealers to make sure a proper job is done, everything was torqued back to the correct specs where needed and have the peace of mind (which is not to say independents out there couldn't do the same). However for items like air filter, oil change, brake pads discs its quite difficult to go wrong at an independent or for a competent person doing it themselves. For anyone not familier with cars or if you have never sucessfully done mechanical work then best to leave alone. I personally take this approach. Cambelt, starter motor took it to main dealer because it requires a lot of work. For oil changes, air filter, plugs, coolant, fuel filter brakes etc etc I do the work myself where I am fully confident (and I am very picky to make sure its done properly, exactly how I want it to the manufacturers torque settings and specs) or I take it to my trusty mechanic. With the money I save in labour costs (which is a lot) i put it towards buying pretty much genuine Lexus parts and good oil. Mobil 1 0W-40 oil gets thrown out and replaced approx every 4,500 miles regardless. For a 9 year old car I would be hard pushed to find anything which is in better condition. Rather than paying Lexus £120 per hour to change oil and filters etc, I would rather spend this on buying good parts.

When I recently received my 2007-08 nav CD which is for the 1998-2000 LS and GS cars I was impressed with this new feature: "EMV Clock Adjustment (GS 300 Only) The clock in this system can be corrected using signals from the GPS" This looks like its just for GS300 cars so i won't be able to take advantage of it in my LS, but I was impressed they are still developing things like this for a 10 year old car. Not bad at all eh ?

I was looking through the little booklets which came with the nav CD both old and new and its seems there is a big improvement in coverage. The stats are: 1998-99 Ver 2.1: 773,253 objects for total cen be selected 741,100 steets 25,100 city centres 1,300 hotels 800 restaurants 500 tourist points 2,300 fuel stations 1,800 parking areas ...and more 2007-2008 Ver 1: 1,487,500 objects for total cen be selected 1,364,000 steets 49,900 city centres 18,100 hotels 34,400 restaurants 3,700 tourist points 11,500 fuel stations 5,900 parking areas ...and more

I dont think there will be many more roads on the CD as such. i put both old and new CDs in my PC drive and both were pretty full up (650 / 700 MB). The amount of data you can store on a CD is pretty limted so its not surprising. Although all new major roads are probably updated. On a DVD you can store anything up 4.7GB or 8.4 GB if dual layer hence better coverage. I live in London and the coverage for in and around London was very good even on the old one. However it is still very useful for having updated roundabouts, road juntions, changes to one ways, M6 toll road etc (which havn't tested yet). However all the points of interets and labeling on the Maps is updated which is also quite useful when trying to find a place. My old one was Ver 2.1 Data '98-9, 08664-50820 / 86271-15V250. My new one is 2007-2008 Ver 1, 08927-50813 / 86271-15V464 / 99001-02070.

My LS400 has the old CD based system instead of the DVD. I think all LS and GS cars from 1998-2000 have CD systems. I very recently purchased a 2007-2008 Nav CD from: http://www.cheaptoyotaparts.co.uk/ Cheaper than the lexus dealer price i think. The CD says its compiled from map data as at Nov 2006. A new feature allows you to input door number into the nav (but not postcode). It took a 2 - 3 weeks to arrive because its just come out and there is high demand for it. It arrived all new and packed, the genuine thing and i'm pleased with it. My old one was also a version 2.1 from 1998. As regards the version 2.1 means that its version 2.1 for that particular year. doesnt really tell you which year it is i think. by the way i tried http://www.lexus-mapupdates.eu/ aswell but i think they dont cater for the old Cd based systems. only the newer DVD ones. Last time i tried it didnt even have an option of the LS400.

Agree with DJ Wozza re the power supply. no point going from 12v to 240v and back to 12v again. The correct 12v power supply should do the job, no ugly inverters and transformers to house and if you wanted minimal clutter you can conceal the wiring and take the power from under the centre console (or if you got a mk4 from under the centre armrest). What will you use to monitor engine data ? Will it be something which plugs into the data connector inside the car and then into your USB port ? what sort of software ? would be interested to know. Thanks.

Now that you've done this isn't much help BUT I had the same problem, foreman in the local Lexus dealers is a friend and lent me the tool. It bolts to the front pully, and rests on top of the inner wing on the drivers side, to hold the crank. I then sat on the floor and pushed my Snap on knuckle bar with my feet. BIG BANG and I undid it the rest of the way with my fingers. i was warned DO NOT torque it up, just tighten it by hand. I've got pictures and dimensions of the tools if anyone needs them. Hi, If its not too much trouble, could you post a pic and dimensions of the tools. Since its such a common issue when replacing a timing belt it would he really useful for future reference if I or anyone attempt thsi job. I've heard horrer stories of people trying to get them off, rounded the nut which then needed drilling out ! Many thanks. :)

Is the colour code for the top half of your car 8J5 ? If so, then the bottom part could well be UCA53. This info is for a 1993 car (couldn't find it for a 1992 car) but i think if the colour code matches for the top half then it should be the same for the botton half ?

Doesn't sound to healthy Since you've already captured the fault codes, you think it could be worth disconnecting the battery for 15 mins or so to re-set all the ECUs. It could be that they just need a 're-boot'. ? (Make sure you've got your radio code if you do it)

erm no, they have the power on tap to require the much bigger brakes as fitted to them. a std IS, GS, RX, or LS doesnt have the power to warrent the brake upgrades the brakes as fitted std to these cars are more than upto the job of stopping the cars, in everyday normal use I agree. After driving it for the 1st time I was very surprised how well the brakes on the series 4 LS400 can stop such a heavy car, even with 4 passangers and luggage !

I'm only kidding dude :) But seriously, improvement in brake fade is the biggest factor why most people who spend this sort of money are looking for. The typical profile of this kind of person would be someone who may go on a track day, take their car to the ring or from time to time drive enthusiastically. By 'enthusiastically' I would mean to put the kind of demands on their brakes that they would if they were on a track. And this isn't very difficult to do if you car can accelerate fast. Imagine going on a empty airfield and doing 110mph and braking very sharply (almost like an emergency stop) down to 30 mph and doing this several times in a row when the brakes are already quite hot. Soon enough you may find that the 'standard' pads and discs just aren’t stopping the car very effectively even when your pushing hard on the pedal. But with performance kits its a different story. My Ls400 has 4 piston callipers and 315mm discs at the front as standard and this is by no means weak. The brakes are awesome for stopping a 1900kg car but you can start to feel the brakes start to hot after a few brisk stops. I have driven a 997 911 Turbo (which weights around 1700kg) with big cross drilled bbks I can really appreciate how well the brakes continue to hold up when they are hot. Sierrra Cosworth, Skyline, Supra, Evo drivers may spend unto £2,500 on brakes because if you got a powerful car that can easily reach high speeds, you need the brakes to match the power for safety. Same goes say if you got a GS300 for example which isn’t exactly a light car but you want to be able to enjoy the acceleration for a heavy-ish car without being 'held back' by the brakes getting hot. But generally speaking a person who is going to buy such a car is most probably going to use it exactly what it was designed for. And your right you will always get the pimp aspect as well. Funniest is probably the footballers and sports-stars with their Astons and Ferraris etc and sometimes wrapping them around lampposts. lol As always the best and safest place to enjoy this kind of fast car performance is to simply take your car off the public roads and on a track or airfield :)

Can we conclude cars like the Lexus IS-F, BMW M5, M3, AMG Mercs, 911 Turbos with their big brake kits are a waste of money unless you take them on a track and are only there for pimp value ?