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She scrubbed up well for being 25 years old :)

The backlight bulbs I replaced in my 1990 mark 1 were part no 83119-24530 and I bought them from Lexus in Edinburgh. They are actually clear but supplied with a green plastic shroud,weather these will fit in the 1998 console is not something I can verify but I am sure you could get the part number from Lexus. The pic is of one of those but as a round base were as the one in the console looks square.

a lovely (no pics) "manual" ls400 with "premium pack" - thats a rare car

Nice and posh Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

sorry 'bout this, couldn't resist; I really would advise anyone looking at this car to think very caerphilly about it! http://www.gumtree.com/p/lexus/lexus-ls-400/1124943565 I know, I know, but that's GS drivers for you I guess ;)

Hi! Is there no way to extend the warranty with Lexus in such a way that is covered? Does sound very odd that the pipe fractured, usually if a pipe is run somewhere vibration is an issue, it is insulated at the bracket or with flexible sections. See if you can get the part number of the pipe from Lex- it's usually 10digits long. If it ends with a "1" or higher, then that part was redesigned by them to fix known/reported issues! The Non-hybrid RX's had exactly this issue with the automatic gearbox cooler pipes, where due to improper insulation, the pipes would fracture and corrode. The newer revision part came with new fixing bolts and anti-vibration rubber grommets/washers! Sneaky but true!!

I don't think there is another car on the planet that shines the way yours and everybody else s LS shines after 25 years with a wash and polish, what a stunning LS you have. Well done Mike.

Basically there are 240 NiMh (Nickel Metal Hydride) 1.2Volt batteries in the 400h. These are connected in series to produce about 288Volts. The inverter and its associated control computers feed the power to the batteries from the two MGs (Motor Generators) one in the braking system and the other in the wheels and supply power to the drive motors to move you along, converting the voltages appropriately. Obviously due to the high current involved this generates a lot of heat which is why it has a liquid coolant. It seems very suspicious to me that the unit was performing perfectly until a few miles after the coolant was replaced, as has already been suggested any type of anomaly such as an air lock would be my initial prognosis. I worked as a mainframe computer engineer for many years on liquid coolant chilled processors so I feel qualified to chime in. Good luck with this, I would definitely be asking for an explanation with respect to the failure mode if it is the inverter.

Using Silicon polish seems to shed dirt easier, I found. Silver doesn't 'show dirt' much!

An LS always look nice when scrubbed up, I need to spend some time getting mine cleaned up, but as ever other DIY projects and the garden get my attention when the weather turns nice.

So, here I am in Scarperia, Tuscany (next door to Mugello circuit for Petrol heads!), after 1200mls of pan European driving. Lexus has performed admirably, cruising at between 110 and 140kph and returning approx 46mpg. Only had one road issue, where an elderly gentleman in his older Mercedes almost wiped us out as we overtook him and he decided to overtake a truck, on the autoroute in Belgium. I've also not seen another Lexus (IS, CT, RX, NX anything) since we left UK, not one, you European guys are really a select bunch. Drove 2 interesting roads on the route here. 1) Epinal to Mulhouse on E512 through the Parc de Vosges - the downhill descent had us on EV for most of the 15km or so and the battery max'd out full. 2) Gottard pass in Switzerland - the tunnel queues were long southbound on Saturday, so we took the old N2 road and wound our way up the pass to Gotthard (spectacular views and road, highly recommended), where we stopped for a bratwurst. Downhill section on the other side was interesting, again battery max'd out and on EV for most of the way, except for trying to slow the descent down, as the road is wide and sweeping, so using the paddles to run in D3 or D4 to keep it in check at between 80-100kph. Car is now absolutely filthy including being divebombed by birds crapping cherry stones on it,need to find somewhere local to wash it off, though it drys so quick in 36deg heat!

Well folks, what can I say im the proud owner! A bit earlier than expected aswell- couldnt resist! I drove it today finalised the deal pick it up on Wednesday, will get some proper pick up soon. Thanks for all the help so far, Ross

Careful with the Daily Mail digs.....wasted on some, red rag to others! :D My SAAB 9-5 Aero is quicker than a 996 Turbo through the gears, 30 - 100mph, and it only cost £5k, no mods at all. Now that deserves a headline! :winky: Pete

Good job! When I had the starter on my previous LS400 repaired the price was less than the original quote, the guy doing it said it took less time than he anticipated. Glad to see you've got the holes plugged up, you wouldn't want nuts of any variety going down there! So presumably you're just replacing the contacts and plunger which is what many others have done, including me?

Mine was already converted before purchase but it is a small 4 wire unit loomed into the wiring at the rear of the dash, if not already done you will also need a rear fog light fitting or converted for UK use.