ambermarine

Allan Screw the bolt back in to the tensioner and when you get it in all the way using a breaker bar or extension ease the tensioner back pushing anti clockwise this will relieve the tension on the belt and you can slide the belt out .Take the bolt back out and fit the new pulley then follow the same course to releve the pressure and slide the belt back on let the bar go and the job is done.If you can use the centre of the old pulley in the first operation it will act as a spacer for the bolt.Remember that this is a left hand thread so when you tighten it up it will bring the tensioner right back to the slacken off position do not worry about that when you let it go it will go back up.Make sure the belt is on correctly and the ribs are all in the correct grooves before starting the engine.

Three years ago when I realized the 22 year old Mark 1 I had owned for 16 years was passed its sell by date I had some serious thinking about the replacement ,the only thing I was sure of it was going to be a Lexus. I studied the members posts on all of the LS range and money being no object I was not limited in price. I did not take on board any of the professional pundits views dealership blurb or Jeremy the thug,I simply looked at my past experience with all my cars and the Mark1 and realized that after seven years of initial development and a further ten years of refinement there could only be one car the "Lexus LS400 Mark IV" There as never been another car ever made that as seventeen years of development in one guise so it as to be as near perfect as it can be.As someone as already said it is probably the best car ever built and ever likely to be.

Hi Lougraden I am intrigued as to how the garage came up with the pump as the problem there are several scenarios that can result in your symptoms It could actually be a £12 fuel filter thats clogged and just to put your mind at rest it is is the first time I have ever heard of a fuel pump failing on a Lexus LS400.Follow the advice of the members that have suggested a proper analysis, it could well be a simple fix.

I have a small runabout truck which I constantly have to jack up as it as classic mini running gear which needs regular attention,one issue I have noticed when using trolley jacks is the lateral inertia put on the jacking point as the angles change between the telescopic arm and the ground.If the wheels on the trolley jack are not moving in and out the forces on the jacking point are extreme.I have actually dragged the truck sideways when the jack wheels have not moved as I jack up the truck.The chassis is robust and as a steel web welded to the base so it is well able to take the sideway forces so I am not to worried by this. I run the trolley jack on a peice of 9X2 timber so the wheels can turn easily. The point I am trying to make in the preamble is that the jacking points on the Lexus are not designed to take sideway loading so make sure if you are using a trolley jack the jack can traverse in and out when lifting the car.

I stand corrected.

The Mark IV did not have folding mirrors.

Titch The earlier marks did have serrated platforms on the diff for the hydraulic telescopic jack but that disappeared on the Mark4 and I think it unwise to jack up on the diff as they changed the diff suspension in the subframe on the mark 3 and 4 which could be the reason for dropping the jacking platform.

With regard to the cooling requirement for towing on the Ls400/430 I would assume it depends on the weight being towed as to weather extra cooling would be needed. The provision for extra cooling would have been stated by Lexus at the full towing capacity of the car for obvious reasons. Anything less than that would be by definition degrees lower both in effort required and temperature reached in the box. If you are towing a caravan with kerb weight at its maximum as against a light two wheeled trailer there will be significant differences in the effort required. Personally the Lexus I have would not be used for towing for two reasons, when towing the best form of transmission is manual it gives quicker response time in emergencys such as control during turbulence and the fuel consumption would be excessive Diesel engined manual gearbox everytime for towing.

In most cases the problems solved on this forum are from owners experience's and a lot of information is feedback from the garages they've used in the first place. So if these guys are saying the people on forums know nothing are they referring to themselves,or are they to full of themselves that they can't take advice from anyone who is'nt a mechanic . If I had gone through life with just one opinion on everything I would now be in the same position as Jeremy Corbyn " up a creek with no paddle".

I have used Magnatec for 20 years in my Lexus,s first it was 15/40 they discontinued that about 5 years ago so I use 10/40 these days . I stand my car a while between uses and the biggest wear factor on an engine is start up ,the magnetic feature keeps oil on the wearing surfaces which helps to reduce the friction .I might add that I change every two years these days as I do less than 5k miles a year I purchase a 15k fram ultra synthetic filter XG3614 in the states for $6 although I never run them to that mileage .I suppose its belt and braces really and it is not expensive I could'nt do the 4.5 years that Malc does it would be a step too far for my piece of mind

That is typical of government departments ,they are making serious mistakes and nobody is ever held responsible. The recent report on the Hbos debacle strongly censures the FSA for its lax supervision of same .The writing was on the wall for the ministers before the report so they disbanded the FSA so no one could be held accountable. I lost £5k when a company registered with the then FSA went belly up owing £26M to its customers who had placed monies with them for currency exchange,subsequent investigation proved a massive fraud had taken place and most of the directors went to jail the MD topped himself day before the guilty verdicts were announced.Then on government decree administrators spent £1.5M of the £2M left in the accounts (our money) to find out what had been going on . The FSA says they were not responsible nor was the companie's bank but the customers funds were not ring fenced but open to the directors wants and whims. As you get further up these departments it is easy to see why the British Public despise them.

Sorry Graham but there is a red flag on using washing up liquid from just about every advisory group regarding screen wash and washing the car. It contains a very aggressive degreasing agent that is known to damage paintwork and causes the rubbers around the windscreen to harden over time.

Alfred Try putting a new battery in the key fob if you have a new battery in the fob already the security ecu could be malfunctioning and that will be a serious problem because if you have to replace the ecu you will need to have the keys and new ecu coded and that can only be done by Lexus .Weather they will attempt to work on your car is another issue as they may not be able to get the parts that are needed.

Izzy There are no non satellite versions of the mark 4 Lexus versions that were sold in Europe the Mark 4 came as an all up version unlike the USA where you got a base model and added extras when it was ordered. The part you are looking for is usually available on Ebay if someone is breaking them ,the only trouble is the Mark 4 as become sought after and there are very few being broken these days as you have found out. I suggest you check with Lexus and find out what part you have to purchase it could be that the sliders are a part seperate from the body unit.

To be fair to the guy or guys who built this car it is a superb piece of retro engineering.Of course it will never get the recognition that it deserves because they used a Lexus LS400 as a platform and non of the Lexus LS400 purists would condone such a treatment of their Icon. Perversely that is a compliment to the Lexus LS400 because the platform would need to be a very robust piece of engineering to perform such a radical change on.

Just to clarify a point made by Brian ( Tulpen) There are no manufacturing plants in the USA for Lexus models .There is a manufacturing/ assembly plant in Ontario Canada (Cambridge) which is exclusive to the RX model sport utility vehicle (SUV) North American parlance. All other Lexus models are built in Japan at four manufacturing locations. The LS models are all built at the Tahara plant alongside several other Lexus models including the RX. The Cambridge plant is solely providing vehicles for the North American market.

Sounds like the water as hit the O2 sensor and caused the fault code to generate, the vsc is linked to the drive intelligence so a fault may have also been generated. There is a procedure to reset the VSC and that is in the owners manual.

Simon I seem to recall buying refills for my Mark 1 from a Lexus dealership many moons ago I think it was about a tenner at that time. I think the wiper through the LS400 range is virtually unchanged so the rubber profiles should be the same.

Martin Looks good enough from the description and pics .The wheels are not Lexus wheels and to be honest do not suit the car .The owners wallet is there so that can be a good sign of attentive care the price is around book price for the year. Worth a look and try to get it down a bit on price so you can get some Lexus wheels.

Looks well used in the drivers and front passenger seat, alloys are scabby the dent is possibly push out but the cost of replacement is prohibitive.I think it will start costing money with that mileage. There are better examples out there at lesser mileage and although the £1500 price looks cheap it might cost double that over the next couple of years.

David Thanks for the compliment. In answer to your query regarding a model alternative to the 400 ,I did when replacing the Mark 1 give a lot of thought and consideration to that issue and worked up quite a lather in getting to where I now am.The subject is covered in a post on here at the time and I put forward my view on the LS model alternatives .I stated at the time that this car would see me out and up to now I see no reason to change that.Of course the unimaginable could occur accident, stolen in which case I would probably go for a 460 in burgundy.

Hi Chris Sorry about that ,I know you are only joking but it is a lesson in jumping at the chance when it comes up, I had always vowed never to buy a car on Ebay but the low mileage of 18k caught my eye and I just could'nt believe it ,I had to make inquiries and trust the people I talked to and that trust payed off big time. The issues that arise with our forum members regarding values and history of cars is all subjective,it is up to the buyer to make the final choice after all is said and done it is a car.

Allan The idler pulley should only be replaced when the timing belt is replaced. There is little point in breaking down the front of the engine just to replace the pulley. Try to stick with OEM parts when replacing them.

Malc I cover the drivers side with a waterproof mat as the weather here is always wet and that creates a mess on the luxury fabric of the Lexus carpet.

I suppose with the lowest recorded mileage on a Lexus ls400 on this forum I have a vested interest in the discussion on values. I have owned a Lexus Ls400 now for over twenty years my 1990 mark 1 came to me in 96 with 50k on it . I had it 16 years and sold it with 180k on it ,by that time it was tired and had most of the common faults rectified with new UCA's and suspension bushes replaced it was rust affected and the y pipe flanges were shot and I was tired of fixing it. The day I bought my present car on ebay for £3750 was probably an act of God and to this day 12k later on the car I cannot believe my luck.It only as 30k on the clock and still looks just as the photos . As for the subjective view on wear and tear and parts lasting forever this is not an argument for me as I have experienced both sides and driving this car is light years above my Mark 1. The pics of the mark 1 were taken when it was approx 15 years old it went down hill in all respects very quickly after that, rust being the main enemy.