Ls 400 Parts Availability

PWJ Bishop · May 23, 2013

Twice during the last year brake work has been required on my '93 LS 400 Mk2; the car has during the 14 years I have run it been looked after on schedule by the local Lexus Hatfield dealer.

Firstly, it turned out that front brake calipers are no longer avaialble and now the same situation is apparently true for the offside front brake backplate, though the left one can be had with a month's delay.

Now, I realise that some uninportant trim parts cease being available after 10 years, but it looks now as if ordinary and vital mechanical components are to cesase availability after 20 years.

So, the remaining life of the car becomes a matter of luck.

Is this experiance unique to Lexus, to me or a common problem, please?

Malc · May 23, 2013

Possibly a non Lexus garage / mechanic could source suitable parts that even Lexus cannot reach .................

Many owners run cars that are decades old ........... . I have a 1932 Triumph and with some careful sourcing just about everything is available ..... I had to go to Australia last year for a set of points mind you, but I didn't mind the trip ......... better than having them posted over to me in the UK !!!!!

Malc

PWJ Bishop · May 23, 2013

Malcolm

Thank you, yes going to get things is more fun than having them delivered!

But there are other things that are no longer available from the official Lexus source; I suppose my question boils down to "do Toyota cease support after 20 years from a model's introduction?"

One point of buying a decent car is durability and, in spite of being in constant use for 20 years, with many short runs which are never good, the mechanics show no wear at all so far, which demonstrates the quality built into the car. 220,000 miles and still no oil consumption, for example - though I have always used 0w-30 so as to get around the engine quickly when cold, which is where 90% of wear occurs.

It seems a great waste to have to discard a perfectly serviceable car owing to lack of parts. Mercedes used to advertise that everything would be avaialble for 30 yeras, and going by the number of old ones still in use this seems true.

But in the Europe, the LS has always been a small volume player. Maybe parts are still freely avaialable in the US or in Japan serving the Celsiors?

There used to be a Lexus specialist breaker near Shoreham by Sea but no longer - I am still, just, running on Dunlop D8z tyres which I got there!.

Malc · May 23, 2013

The problem with the tyres is that Dunlop ceased manufacturing the DZ8 a while ago and even I can't source replacements now ... I used to be able to mind tho'.

And built in longevity with the LS400 means that they never sold many spares of a certain nature and therefore no demand usually equals no supply or at best a small supplier that can manufacture one-offs or has captured the market in a particular subject ..... . like my Triumph points ... last source in the world from Australia, in 80 year old but otherwise brand new Lucas Birmingham boxes !

Malc

PWJ Bishop · May 23, 2013

I just remembered the name of the breaker was Swift Lexus Spares. They found there was not much demand, as you say.

I suppose that, providing I can get the part number, I could search on the net and maybe get spares in America (I cannot speak Japanese!).

The modern Dunlop tyres do not come out particularly well, except for external noise - but it is internal noise that matters. Goodyear Efficient Grip have the lowest rolling resistance (B), 70dB external noise, and middling wet grip - anybody tried those?

ROYT · May 23, 2013

Google 47782-50020 and the back plates are still available in the USA and elsewhere.

The USA site I tried would not send outside the US.

One is listed in Japan and one in UAE at reasonable cost, the problem may be the shipping cost.

I repaired mine but may chance sending for the Japan one.

Note, to fix it, you have to cut a big slot in it to get it off or strip the hub. [ I cut the slot!]

Malc · May 24, 2013

Aha, a trip to the States then is called for

Malc

PEPE · May 24, 2013

Have a look in here, PWJ, this might help:

http://www.lexls.com/tutorials/intro/parts.html

Pepe

ambermarine · May 24, 2013

This was always my concern with owning a Lexus .My 1990 Ls400 was sold last year with a bootful of spare parts as I had collected them over the 16 years I owned it I managed to buy an insurance write off 8years ago exactly same age and colour .

I stripped it ,apart from engine and running gear which I sold for a kit car for the same price I bought the write off for.

Even the Mark 4 I got to replace the mark 1 as started its own collection Wing mirrors satnav display/Audio/A/C Module which was the prize £5000 from Lexus £50 off eBay.Mirrors £30 each £1500 each .I have a setting on my eBay site that enables me to be alerted to what is newly available, that way with the knowledge gleaned from 18 years of Lexus ownership and this Forum I have a good idea what parts to collect but with only 22k on the clock of the latest LS I doubt it will be me who fits them.

As a rider to this info the aftermarket suppliers such as Blueprint have more or less taken up the torch in supplying spares for Lexus as the USA and Asia have far more Lexus owners than Europe so it is worth their while, Blueprint build within a 10% tolerance of original Toyota parts suppliers and in some cases supply toyota with new build parts.The Japanese JIT (just in time) mantra for parts was invented to illiminiate inventory as a cost saver and the doctrine dribbles down to aftermarket sales, as it now does with most asian car builders,its just that it becomes a issue with Lexus because the cars outlast most of the rest.

PWJ Bishop · May 24, 2013

I want to thank you all for the tips!

I have sent an email to Toyota/Lexus is Surrey and this has been passed to customer relations, which is not encouraging.

Mercedes advertised that they keep parts avaialble for 30 years, so Lexus ought to at least match this. The other thing is that there are six planes coming from Japan every day, so it never ought to take more than a couple of days to obtain anything; it's not as if the prices are too low to pay for the occasional airfreighted example, should the warehouse in Belgium have run out.

The one, so far sucessful repaired part has been the dashboard circuit board. The original failed at 120,000 miles, the next lasted only 40,000 and the third a mere 20,000 (and each replacement was about £1,000! Clearly Lexus are selling old parts with the faulty capacitors. I got the third board repaired in Essex and, so far, no problems. If the clock/air conditioning temp board goes again, I will take the same approach (that was £550!).

But, you are all so right, the quaality of the car is so high that if only one can achieve the few repairs necessary, aven at 20 years old, there is no reason to change it. It is still superior to almost all the cars on the road, so one never longs for something else - except when filling up!

Once, I did a trip from here, Watford, to Newcastle return. I kept strictly to an indicated 70mph both ways and achieved a measured 30.2mpg, which compares to the original official 75mph figure of 28.5mpg. So, this is as good, on a run, as the LS600h, though obviously not so in town. No oil consumption at all yet, but have been using 0w-30 grade since 1999 when I took over the car (62,000 miles) because it gets round quickly when cold and when 90% of wear occurs. 552 miles on one tank, by the way, on the Newcastle experiment, but 70mph constant is SO boring.

I will let you all know how this goes, but the car is still in use and on the road for now. I recently had the use of a modern Mercedes S-class 3-litre diesel for 10 days (courtesy car from Lexus insurance!) and can sy it was not as quiet and did not ride as well as my 20 year old Lexus, so nothing to go for there.... However, it did return 42mpg whereas the LS600h I tried would only do just over 30mpg, driven similarly. So, diesels beat hybrids for efficiency, by a mile. The LS600h spent most of its time at about 1,000rpm, which is well under the sweet spot and thus bound to be innefficient.

Malc · May 24, 2013

And think how much money you are saving by keeping the dear old LS400 on the road too ........ just mega tens of £'000s I reckon.

The LS600 starts at £110k or thereabouts and I doubt it will outlast your existing 1993 Mk2 anyway.

220,000 miles, a mere drop in the ocean for a LS400 methinks

Malc

PWJ Bishop · May 24, 2013

Yes, of course, it is always cheaper to mend a car, even at Lexus prices, than it is to change it. The motor trade make most of their profit from persuading customers to flip from one to another.

Actually, it is a reflection of the fantastic constistancy of modern manufacturing that the problems, there are not many, seem to occur at about the same mileage or age, This seems true, certainly for the LS 400.

It also means that it is not worth changing your individual car since the one you buy will surely produce the same faults you have already dealt with. And, there is, for me, the now apparently old fashioned, pastime of keping the car in good nick, looking after the leather (I use Gliptone) and attending to any paint blemishes. I have always done this, but the more I work on the Lexus, the more enthusiastic I become about the quality of, particularly, the unseen bits. It's just so well made, and so taking care of it is a pleasure with most discoveries being a delight rather than a dissapointment.

This all goes back to Toyota having to make an outstanding statement, when they entered the luxury market, which they certainly achieved. Of course, it has fewer gadgets, but the quality is in no way inferior to anything Lexus make now, and this quality remains better than any other car made by others.

Finally, which other car has such an attractive under bonnet appearance?

PWJ Bishop · May 24, 2013

One more thing, since the car sailed throught the MoT a couple of years ago, without even a lightbulb being needed, I thought I would treat myself, and I replaced all eight rubbers, at the top and bottom of each spring, and the anti-rolling bar bushes.

The improvement in silent running was remarkable!

PWJ Bishop · May 28, 2013

I have just heard from Customer relations at Lexus.

Apparently, they only undertake to maintain availablilty of parts for eight years after production of a particular model ceases after this it is simply a question as to how long the remaining stock of spare parts lasts.

So, no point in buying, and properly maintaining, a Lexus - then?

Malc · May 28, 2013

I will, for so long as I can. The alternative car for me to want to drive just doesn't exist, well, not that I have yet found anyway.

Maintenance costs of a LS400 are really quite minimal as are running repairs and associated costs compared to virtually all other cars on the road today.

Longevity is proven, mine's 18 years old this year and feels like a newish car even today ... I cannot see that changing for a very long time.

Malc

ROYT · May 28, 2013

Same here, can't see me changing either, though eight year parts supply is poor for a quality car.

The way things are going KIA will be offering a warranty that long soon

Mercedes will have the edge if they a promote a thirty year parts supply

PWJ Bishop · May 28, 2013

Malcolm

On the strength of my experience, I persuaded two friends to get LS 400 Mk 3s, one of which I drove often. It is actually indistinguishable from a Mk 2, apart from being rather more accellerative, from the start in particular, owing to the shorter first gear. The Mk 3 is also a fair bit lighter than the Mk 1 or Mk2 , and the sequential fuel injection makes it about 5 mpg more economical on a run. Also, the front seats are certainly more comfortable too (I have made some small brackets to raise the front of mine, creating more tilt which helped a lot).

But, the Mk 3 does not have quite the same little details, like carpeted covers for the ends of the seat runners and extra-flow for the rear air conditioning which is good if you have rear passengers. But, it does have OBD2, so one could use a Scangauge to monitor what is going on. The only gadget I regularly miss is a trip computer, but I believe this did not appear until the Mk 4, which also was the first car to have sat-nav as standard - and the best looking of all the LS models, in my view.

But, i think I am going to have to look towards getting a second car, if delays to repairs are to feature from now on. One must have one car which can be relied upon.

You probably think this is nuts, but I favour a Nissan Leaf, the only other car I have ever been in where you can hear the tyres of the other cars owing to the quietness of one's own.

Malc · May 28, 2013

Hi, I have had a Mk1 and Mk2 and now my Mk3 ................. all superb and I think I do prefer the Mk3 and support all you say.

!0.5 years of LS400 driving has spoilt me. My other car, the g/fs , is a 1994 Mazda 323f hatch ( poppy-up headlights ) and I ensure that we always have one or other of the cars in fine fettle and manage the servicing and repairs accordingly.

Rather than the Mazda as a second car I would rather the g/f had a LS400 BUT she says a firm ........... NO

One monster is enough in the family she tells me and to be honest I do quite enjoy driving the sporty little manual Mazda.

Malc

PWJ Bishop · September 15, 2014

Front wheel bearing!

Near side front wheel bearing is humming slightly, so booked in to have it replaced by Lexus Hatfield.

Apparently there is a possibility that this may write-off the car since they cannot get a replacement hub which, they say, is sometimes needed.

So far as I can tell from the workshop manual, the hub is not a service part, so I don't follow this point, though one does need a press and certain special service tools, which a long-established Lexus dealer must have (or can get).

New tyres

Finally got to the end of my stock of Dunlop D8z originals (with 125 mph rear blowout, just to keep life interesting). I chose Michelin 225/16 98V ENERGYsaver, which seem to ride well and quietly and might save some fuel too, but no chance to measure that yet. £125 each from myTyres, fitted by Hatfield for £72.

bazgtr · October 1, 2014

All parts are still available for the LS400 MK1 and MK2.

You just need to know where and how to get them.

For example you will find brake calliper's can be sourced either second hand from breakers, Japan market under Clesior, Aftermarket replacement parts or refurbished and the duel use of parts like some Supra calliper's fit Lexus.

As for the wheel bearing they can be replaced and has been covered by myself in this forum somewhere. They cost around £30 to £40 off the top of my head for one front bearing. You can always find out the bearing size and then just ask any bearing supplier to match size.

Goggle the internet to death and you'll find the answers to LS400 parts.

Baz.

Mikaelse · February 19, 2016

I agree with Bazgr. The part you need is out there. I have spent about 1000£ on parts for my last year bought LS400 which needed major service after a number of years with not so much.

Some exchanged only for peace of mind like brake hoses and lower balljoints etc. Nice to work on . Very little rust on mine and high performance and a high quality long life product.

There are a number of good places to shop. I want good quality parts at OK price. About half has been OEM or "same" supplier like AISIN , Mitsuboshi ,DENSO The prices vary wildly unfortunately. Amayama.com Japan/UAE has seemingly original LEXUS/TOYOTA parts at decent prices but ask for least expensive shipping option quote since that can be expensive. Rockauto.com in USA has a massive choise and has even hard to find stuff like brake accesories. Good prices even on shipping . They have several warehouses so try to see that it all comes from one of them to save on shipping. eBay and amazon I have also tried and found to be OK If I stay with good reputation brands . Several German sites have also quite a lot of parts even though LS400 did not sell much in Germany. Best deals on shipping form there. 12 -> 20 Euro often even on really heavy stuff like brake rotors, springs etc.

.

Hitchers80 · December 3, 2020

Help i have a 1998 :S 400 and rear screen is broken and Lexus cannot provide a replacement . Any ideas, please?

BigBoomer · December 3, 2020

Breakers maybe, but getting that bonded rear screen out is going to be a PITA.
There's a video here of 2 young un's getting an intact rear screen out of an LS400.
Not sure if the heated window will ever work again but maybe you could bridge some wires to it.
Good luck :thumbup: