Spleen Venting

Rickstones248 · June 11, 2015

I am a not so proud owner of a LS430 2003 I purchased the car 18 months ago mainly on the advise of you guys telling me that they are wonderful cars never break down and all the bells and whistles never stop working I was going to buy a Jaguar (wish I had now). Well the story so far the air conditioning has failed with a hole in one of the pipes, parking sensors failed, drivers seat broke ( had to have it repaired for the mot), rear offside suspension is lower than the rest of the car, steering wheel adjustment works intermittently, cruise control has failed. Anyone know of a good scrap yard or should I just list it on eBay for 99p

Loathecliff · June 11, 2015

Hmmm, thinks (& that can be struggle these days)....West midlands...erm, perchance did you buy the car from 'Lexuschap'? ;)

Retreats to bunker.

PS: but it hasn't broken down, i.e. stranded you at the roadside in 18 months ownership of a highly complex old car.

Malc · June 11, 2015

............. these are well documented issues with the Ls430 ..................... now, the Ls400 is a totally different story

Malc

Loathecliff · June 11, 2015

& I thought I was being cruel Malc.

Yes they (400) sure are. IIRC that is why I waited for a 430 with coils :)

Oh look, the vsc light is having a day off again, yippee!

Bluesman · June 11, 2015

Hi Deri, you do seem to behaving more than your share of bad luck. Who did you buy it from? Mike.

Rickstones248 · June 11, 2015

Hi Mike I bought the car off Gumtree from a private owner in EastBourne so only have myself to blame. Thanks to the other contributors both positive and negative. I suppose I should realise that this is not a luxury car anymore just an old banger and as such I will stop cleaning it and having it services and drive it into the ground until it dies

Titch LS · June 11, 2015

Oooh dear! Must say, my 15 year old LS400 (mk4) has been an absolute peach. Can't think of anything that's actually failed. Oh,- the float in the washer bottle doesn't work and one of the cigarette lighters! I forgot about that. Owning my LS has been the best 138,000 miles I've ever seen in any car I've had. Remind me not to replace it with a 430 or a Jag or a Merc. I could tell you some horror stories from friends and family about those motors. Stuart, the grass is not always greener (unless you have a 400, apparently).

thatfatbloke · June 11, 2015

I live in Eastbourne. Give me his address,and I'll go round and relieve him of his gonads if you like.

Loathecliff · June 11, 2015

But which 400 Brian? :)
Only the 430 has massage seats that I can install elewhere for her ladyship;
& a set of coilovers that I can sell to one of you lot & still not be out of pocket on the whole car in ten years time.

NB: anyone who believes all of that needs to go on a course, fast :0)

Selling is for Gold Club Members only. Mike.

Malc · June 11, 2015

..... well, I do think the Mk3 is the better of the stable .... but I would wouldn't I

Malc

Titch LS · June 11, 2015

Hindsight is a wonderful thing. I once bought a big Honda Legend-- it was a great car and naturally being a Honda was very reliable. In fact, in looks it was almost a clone of an LS 400, inside and out. But, the problem was, it didn't DRIVE like an LS. In the end I traded it in for a Mk4 (2000) and I've never regretted it. It's been just as reliable as the Honda but a few notches above in refinement, power and quality.

Loathecliff · June 11, 2015

But which 400 Brian? :)

Only the 430 has massage seats that I can install elewhere for her ladyship;

& a set of coilovers that I can sell to one of you lot & still not be out of pocket on the whole car in ten years time.

NB: anyone who believes all of that needs to go on a course, fast :0)

Selling is for Gold Club Members only. Mike.

Erm, nothing is really for sale Mike.

I was merely promoting the notion that a wrinkles-removed 430 was superior to any 400.

(I'd add a fair degree of emoticons at this dangerous point but my tablet is being moody again) :)

Malc · June 11, 2015

.... but mild steel exhausts ALWAYS rust thru'

Malc

Bluesman · June 11, 2015

But which 400 Brian? :)

Only the 430 has massage seats that I can install elewhere for her ladyship;

& a set of coilovers that I can sell to one of you lot & still not be out of pocket on the whole car in ten years time.

NB: anyone who believes all of that needs to go on a course, fast :0)

Selling is for Gold Club Members only. Mike.

Erm, nothing is really for sale Mike.

I was merely promoting the notion that a wrinkles-removed 430 was superior to any 400.

(I'd add a fair degree of emoticons at this dangerous point but my tablet is being moody again) :)

Then best not to include phrases like "a set of coilovers that I can sell to one of you lot" Mike. Club moderator.

mr2lad · June 11, 2015

Lol so reading inbetween the lines your no happy with Lexus and want to degrade yourself to a jaguar

I had a hiccup years ago and bought a 2yr old jag and within 24hrs regretted buying it.... Uncomfortable noisy and you feel the gear changes lurch.... Your call but you'll regret getting a jag

You bought a 2003 car 18mths ago and have problems.... Welcome to the world of 2nd hand cars wearing out... Please point us all in the direction of a car 12yrs old that doesn't/hasn't a problem

harrylime · June 11, 2015

If you want evidence of unreliability just take a look at the Jag forums (and I'm a fan, I have a 1965 Mk 2 3.4)

Loathecliff · June 11, 2015

But which 400 Brian? :)

Only the 430 has massage seats that I can install elewhere for her ladyship;

& a set of coilovers that I can sell to one of you lot & still not be out of pocket on the whole car in ten years time.

NB: anyone who believes all of that needs to go on a course, fast :0)

Selling is for Gold Club Members only. Mike.

Erm, nothing is really for sale Mike.

I was merely promoting the notion that a wrinkles-removed 430 was superior to any 400.

(I'd add a fair degree of emoticons at this dangerous point but my tablet is being moody again) :)

Then best not to include phrases like "a set of coilovers that I can sell to one of you lot" Mike. Club moderator.

........ "in ten years time".

My apologies for any offence.

Titch LS · June 11, 2015

Beginning to think that the LS400 is THE most highly rated luxo-barge of all time. And for good reason. I've discovered even non-Lexus forums rate these motors. I plan on holding on to mine as long as poss.

Malc · June 12, 2015

.... 25 years then ........... and you can then downsize to a Yaris or summat similar

Malc

Loathecliff · June 12, 2015

.... but mild steel exhausts ALWAYS rust thru'

Malc

I'm puzzled Malc. I thought the 400 system was mild steel?

Back boxes apart, I see stainless ware underneath my lamentable 430.

Bluesman · June 12, 2015

.... but mild steel exhausts ALWAYS rust thru'

Malc

I'm puzzled Malc. I thought the 400 system was mild steel?

Back boxes apart, I see stainless ware underneath my lamentable 430.

My MK4 has a complete stainless steel exhaust system as do all the other MK4s

harrylime · June 12, 2015

was the 400 the first production car to be fitted with a s/s exhaust system?

Malc · June 12, 2015

.......... so far as I'm aware all Ls400s have a complete S/S system ( apart from that niggling tiny bit that needs a £30 welding job after 18 years )

Malc

Rickstones248 · June 12, 2015

Thanks again to you all for your advice I feel a little bit better after my rant, but I would like to try and resolve some of the problems my trouble is I am a bit long in the tooth for crawling over the car does anyone know of a garage/mechanic who for a reasonable price might tackle some of my problems

brendangeorge · June 14, 2015

Hi Den

I'd sort the suspension problem asap. If the sensor fails or breaks you could drop the back end and damage the suspension air bags. I did - and then changed the air suspension for standard struts - you should be able to find the post in the forum.

I have done 240K miles and am about to replace my steering column actuator for the third time. It takes 20 mins and the bits are £160.

The rear air con pipes go over the back axel and were a factory recall - cut em and cap em - make sure you reduce the amount of fluid you put in the system when you refil it - there is a post on the forum about this.

I am a BFB and my driver’s seat broke - I got one from a scrapper but now my leather is wearing out - the rest of my seats are mint.

Buy an old car and you become a hobbyist mate - I bought mine brand new.

Thanks a lot for giving the 400 owner’s cognoscenti the chance to trot out their well worn logical fallacies :) :)

I had 3 LS400s and the 430 is superior :)

Cheers

Bren