Very, Very strange noise coming from the LS!

[The Lexus Enthusiast]

12 minutes ago, Tinonline said:

Oh air pump...didn't factor that as I'd forgotten some 400's have air suspension...

As fancy as the air suspension is, perhaps it is 'the' Achilles heel of the ls430?

[The-Acre]

58 minutes ago, The Lexus Enthusiast said:

As fancy as the air suspension is, perhaps it is 'the' Achilles heel of the ls430?

In my humble opinion I think air suspension was a complete waste of time.  In all honesty I can't say it feels any better than my MK4 did. The only good point is that it adjusts depending on weight etc, and I do think it corners better. Apart from that mine will be fitted with springs should a major problem arise, that's assuming I keep the car of course. 

[39buss]

It may be the rubber mountings on the air pump.  It's been known for them to fail through vibration. Is there a fuse for the air pump, if so take it out and see if the noise does.

[messi]

I was going suggest the same thing as 39buss has. They are around £9 for all 3 mounts from main dealer and simple to replace.

[ambermarine]

When I decided to replace my aging Mark 1( 18 yrs old) I looked at both the 430 and 460 as contenders to the mark 4 .

The Mark 4 had to be a low mileage minter which is what I eventually found ,the main issue that was standing in the way of the 430 was the air suspension .

There were lots of pros & cons at the time and the main thing for me was peace of mind and after 4 years of the Mark 4 I have had that so the objective as been realized.

[Scribe]

The only car I've driven that had a better ride than the LS400 was my Xantia.  I had two of them, and the hydropneumatic suspension was generally very reliable and inexpensive to maintain.

[dendonc]

In all honesty I can't say it feels any better than my MK4 did. 

Ive heard that before, it would not be a good reason to change from a 400,once a luxury car always a luxury car

[Scribe]

It's a pity for us ageing paupers that the 'basic' model - without the Premium Pack that included air suspension - was dropped so soon after launch.  Otherwise there would be more coil-sprung examples around, with one less issue to worry about.

[The Lexus Enthusiast]

7 hours ago, 39buss said:

It may be the rubber mountings on the air pump.  It's been known for them to fail through vibration. Is there a fuse for the air pump, if so take it out and see if the noise does.

Hi there Jim, unfortunately I have v little mechanical knowledge (just locating the sunroof fuse a while back felt like a conquest) but the car is still booked in for Sat so everything will be in the hands of a pro, and thank you for the advice and i will let him know when the car goes in.

Alex 

7 hours ago, messi said:

I was going suggest the same thing as 39buss has. They are around £9 for all 3 mounts from main dealer and simple to replace.

That's reassuring- finally a replacement part that has a cost in single figures, ha ha! 

Cheers,

Alex 

[The Lexus Enthusiast]

Well, no doubt the mafia like the LS430 because with a dead weight in the boot, the air suspension will even out so the car sits evenly and the rear end won't be slumped down!

So there you have it, perhaps (for some) the air suspension is a virtue!!

[The Lexus Enthusiast]

          

 

 

Should have got an air suspension............................

 

btw: image is from sunmotors.co.uk 

 

[The Lexus Enthusiast]

sorry, unfortunately it doesn't seem to want to show the photo so here is a link to the page....

http://www.sunmotors.co.uk/news/12-crazily-overloaded-vehicles/

[The Lexus Enthusiast]

UPDATE: 

Hello again everyone, I have more news-

As I believe I said earlier in the post, the car was booked in a while back with a mechanic we know (non Lexus). 

On examining the car, he soon said that it was indeed the mounts that hold the pump for the air suspension in place. Congrats to the members who pointed this possibility out, you are right

The good news is - they cost around £10, which is fantastic.

The bad- its a good few hours job to get to the pump and will involve disassembling lots of the front of the car (poor Lexus) and therefore the cost of labour is looking pretty hefty unfortunately. Poor wallet, too

The car is booked in for the procedure after the easter break and I have some brand new ( I think original) headlights for it which he will put in while he is at it because I'm pretty sure they don't shine as far down the road now. It could just be me, I am a perfectionist after all

Apologies for having kept you all waiting for this update, but as usual life is hectic. 

Lastly, this post isn't over yet,  I'll keep you all updated closer to the time of the appointment and possibly sneak some pics. If he goes ahead and puts in the new OEM headlights then there will be pics of those as well. 

all the best to you all,

Alex 

[cruisermark]

IIrc you can access the compressor through the wheel arch which is a lot easier and quicker 

[The Lexus Enthusiast]

Just now, cruisermark said:

IIrc you can access the compressor through the wheel arch which is a lot easier and quicker 

Right, i'd best let the mechanic know at some point. Thanks Mark. 

Alex 

[messi]

Eh few hours job? No its not, its around 30mins. Like the post above, you can access it through the wheel arch. I think they are trying to rip you off here.

[The Lexus Enthusiast]

1 minute ago, messi said:

Eh few hours job? No its not, its around 30mins. Like the post above, you can access it through the wheel arch. I think they are trying to rip you off here.

Thanks to you and cruisermark's helpful input I may have just avoided getting completely ripped off. I have no mechanical knowledge so am no doubt a target, unfortunately. 

Thank you Qamar,

Alex  

[The-Acre]

10 hours ago, messi said:

Eh few hours job? No its not, its around 30mins. Like the post above, you can access it through the wheel arch. I think they are trying to rip you off here.

Correct, I had my 3 mounts replaced and it took about 30 mins with parts costing £9, I was charged £20 for fitting. I would somehow doubt that it's your problem though.  If you switch to "high" do you get the same noise?  Mine turns out not to be the mounts but the bearing. I have my friendly Jaguar specialist on the case who bought a Denso repair kit for it for £18.  It's been like it for a year and never worsened but it will be nice to get it done.

[The Lexus Enthusiast]

10 hours ago, The-Acre said:

Correct, I had my 3 mounts replaced and it took about 30 mins with parts costing £9, I was charged £20 for fitting. I would somehow doubt that it's your problem though.  If you switch to "high" do you get the same noise?  Mine turns out not to be the mounts but the bearing. I have my friendly Jaguar specialist on the case who bought a Denso repair kit for it for £18.  It's been like it for a year and never worsened but it will be nice to get it done.

Hi Phil, when switched to HIGH, the noise does not occur. When you say bearing, do you mean wheel bearings? If so, those were replaced not so long ago, and are therefore almost brand new.

Thanks Phil

Alex 

[messi]

Alex

He means the bearings in the compressor

[The Lexus Enthusiast]

Just now, messi said:

Alex

He means the bearings in the compressor

Oh wowI am silly. 

I will look in to that and suggest it. 

Thank you both Qamar and Phil

[messi]

First of all dont let that garage rip you off. Itso a 30 mins job. You never know it may solve the issue

[The Lexus Enthusiast]

Just now, messi said:

First of all dont let that garage rip you off. Itso a 30 mins job. You never know it may solve the issue

Quite right. 

It really does tic me off how people want to get as much £ off you as possible without ever stopping to think about wether it's right or not. 

It is a shame though, as we have known the mechanic for quite some time, he has always seemed nice and complemented the car.

There is the chance that (as the lex is so complex) he is unaware that there is a way in through the wheel arch (which I will tell him). 

I really do love the LOC- full of  people who help and look out for others

[The Lexus Enthusiast]

UPDATE

So everyone, just to keep you informed.....

Returned to UK two days ago and we took the car to finally have the new mounts on the air compressor. Decided to kill two birds with one stone and have the MOT done as well. Unfortunately the brake pads and discs needed replacing. He said (and we saw) that they were on their last legs. Strange after only being replaced about 3/4 yrs ago, but it goes to show how poor quality the new set were as the first originals lasted about 12 yrs!

Anyway, it turns out that Lexus sent our mechanic the wrong mounts, prob for an LS460, isn't that just typical? So its rebooked for a date in a couple of weeks time. Oh well. Hopefully then should be the end of this damn noise!

One thing- 

Earlier today, when driving we needed to use the horn as some genius decided to back almost completely into us, and it sounded quite week and faint! It has gone back to normal now, but I wonder if something was not done properly at the garage yesterday, or is it just a low Battery? (even though it was kept on charge all the time we were away) Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I should add that I turned on the interior light and started the car and it did dim a little so have put it back on charge even though it said it was full just the other night. 

Cheers all,

Alex 

[The Lexus Enthusiast]

I should add that thanks to Qamar and Mark, he is going to go through the wheel arch thank goodness