Redsteve

Aquatic skeletal manipulation technician.

Hello Denis. I have just noticed you have a 1995 LS, the diagram above is for a 1998-2000 LS so I am not sure if yours will be the same. Steve.

I got one from my local motor factor with no problem at all, he had one on the shelf. I suspect it fits many other types of car. I paid about £20 for it in 2014 and it took about half an hour to fit as I found it much easier once I had removed the radiator shroud. If you are going to do the job yourself make sure you have a "map" of the belt route as you will soon forget which pulleys were overs and which were unders! I used this picture. Good luck. Steve.

I would say that the grumble is more of a feeling than a sound. It only occurs as the car comes to a complete stop and lasts for a fraction of a second

Hi Denis, I have Brembo pads fitted to my LS. The braking is really good, probably the best I have had from the various pads I have tried. However, there is a slight grumble just as you come to a stop which I have never had from any other pad I have tried. I think I will probably use Brembo again purely because of the braking performance. I hope this helps you make your decision. Steve.

Hi Steve, I used to have the same problem on my LS400. It turned out to be a poor connection on the battery. When the key first goes in the slot the steering column starts to move before the alternator is providing the juice so it is relying on the battery for all the power. Mine also used to judder and groan when I took the key out of the barrel . A cheap fix if it works for you. Steve.

Many thanks for your replies. I will have a measure up and check out the website suggested by sorcerer. I will also make sure that I get the ends soldered as it makes perfect sense to have as secure a connection as possible. Hopefully I will get the cable replaced before Christmas as it is becoming a lottery on whether or not the old Lex will start without wiggling the battery cable and then waiting for 6 minutes before I can start the car (most embarrassing on a petrol station forecourt). Steve.

Hello Guys. I hope you are all enjoying the festive season. I just have a quick query about the positive battery cable on my 2000 LS400. I need to replace a small part of the cable due to damage but I not sure what the cable needs to be rated at. I have seen cable rated from 100A up to 450A so I thought just go for the biggest. However, when I checked my battery it is rated at 60Ah and 540CCA. Does this mean I need a cable rated at 540A? Thanks. Steve.

Hello Hugh, I bought a set of front discs and pads for my 2000 LS400 in July from Eurocarparts. I paid £119 for Brembo discs and pads delivered to the house. I think they worked out about £20 more expensive than the Pagid branded ones but Brembo have a reputation of making top quality components so that is why I went for them. They fitted perfectly and I can't fault the performance. I hope this helps. Steve.

My pleasure Glenn. Welcome to the forum. You will find some amazing knowledge on here from the members, I have been stunned by the technical know-how of some members. Did you use the Sat-Nav code in a GS? Steve.

Hello Barry If you do need a code here is the magic bullet that you will need to use to return your radio to normal running conditions. Turn the ignition switch to the ON position (combination meter warning lights illuminated) While pressing CLIMATE and AUDIO switches simultaneously, turn the HEADLIGHT CONTROL SWITCH in the following sequence: OFF~SIDE LIGHTS~OFF~SIDE LIGHTS~OFF~SIDE LIGHTS The SYSTEM CHECK will become displayed on the screen. It will take approx. 30 seconds for the check to be completed - the display will change from CHECKING to OK Once all the function checks display OK then press MENU. The DIAGMENU will be displayed Starting with the AUDIO button, follow the sequence: AUDIO~DESTINATION~AUDIO~DESTINATION~AUDIO~DESTINATION The SECURITY menu will be displayed. Using the numeric keys enter 440215. Press ENTER The display will return to the DIAGMENU. Switch the IGNITION SWITCH to the OFF position. The security code is now cleared - the unit will operate normally. Let us know how you get on. Steve.

Here is what it should look like when you get it all apart. The bottom hole in the hub is where my adjuster is located.

Hello John. I have a 1998 LS and the adjuster cog is located in the 6 O'clock position. I agree with Steve, it is a real pain to see, even when using a torch. Steve.

Hello Martin, after 8 years of ownership of my MK IV LS I have finally fixed this exact problem on my car. When I bought the car the brake vibration was there and I thought is was damaged discs so I changed them. The problem went away for about a month and then came back just as bad as it was before. Over the years I have cleaned the discs, cleaned the hubs, tried multiple brands of pads, all to no avail. Towards the end of last year I had to change the front pads as they had got ridiculously low and when I tried to push the caliper pistons back in I noticed one of them was seized solid. I knew one of the pistons had been a bit sticky in the past but I had always managed to get it working again but this time I couldn't get it to move so I bought a pair of second hand calipers from eBay to replace the originals. I fitted the replacement calipers and the brake vibration was reduced by about half. Brilliant, I thought, all I have to do now is change the discs again and it might be fixed. I ordered a pair of Brembo discs and Brembo pads from Eurocar Parts with a 25% discount (£119.60 delivered) and set about changing them. I got the side that had the seized caliper done with no problems but when it came to the other side I just couldn't get the caliper mounting bolts undone. I tried all day but eventually had to give up. I know it was not ideal but I drove the car with one new disc and new pads on one side and the old stuff on the other side for a week before I managed to finally get the caliper bolts undone and the new disc and pads fitted to the other side. The point of this ramble is, as soon as I had changed the first disc the vibration problem disappeared completely. When I got the second disc done it was still perfectly smooth braking. I have done several thousand miles on the new discs and the problem hasn't returned. I think what has been happening is that the damaged caliper has been damaging the disc and so until the caliper problem was resolved the braking vibration was never going to get fixed. Moral of the story is; Carefully check your calipers are working properly, even a slightly sticky piston can cause problems. Steve.

I am pleased so many people have found this useful. I am guessing from the last line of the instructions saying about the customer, this little gem was liberated from a Lexus dealer without their knowledge. Steve.

Hello Jav, I only have two small resonators in my exhaust system and no mufflers (custom made by Longlife) and I have noticed no real difference in performance as far as speed goes. I do think the car seems to have a bit more bottom end torque but that might just be my imagination. As far as top end torque goes, who knows, it is almost impossible to get to the top of the rev band and still be doing sensible speeds. I would say that my fuel economy has improved for two main reasons. The first is that the engine braking is much less now than with the stock exhaust so I can coast for longer periods and save fuel. The second is that the exhaust is so loud that I tend to accelerate much more gently to avoid upsetting people in built up areas, I only tend to let the horses run free out on the open road. This is the first version of my exhaust but I was not happy with the sound so I had the two large mufflers removed so now it just has the two tiny cans. I hope this helps. Steve.

Hello Guys. The centre caps from my wife's Suzuki Swift Sport (2008) fit perfectly in the DHP wheel. Steve.

Hello John. Sorry to hear you are having troubles. I know it is a long shot but have you tried disconnecting the battery and leaving it disconnected for a while to see if that "resets" whatever has changed when you parked up your car for winter? The fact it was fine before and now it is not points (to me) to it being and electrical glitch and quite often they can be cured by Turning It Off And Turning It On Again. Good luck. Steve.

Hello Guys, I am trying to disable the electric aerial on my 2000 LS400. I have looked for the fuse in the engine compartment fuse box marked "Antenna" but I don't seem to have one. There is a fuse marked "Radio" but if I pull that one the aerial is disabled but the radio doesn't work either. I pulled the boot trim out where the aerial is mounted thinking I could just unplug the aerial from that end but all I can find are multi-plugs with far too many wires in them just to be controlling the aerial. Can anyone point me in the right direction as to which wires I need to disconnect. Many thanks. Steve.

Hello Smoky (always wanted to use that classic sound bite from Smokey and the Bandit), check the fluid levels in the rad and expansion tank are OK as a low level will result in little or no heat coming out of the vents. Steve.

My local ATS did mine for £30.

Hi Phil, the garage pressure tested the system twice and both time no leaks were found. I have owned the car for the last 7 or 8 years and in that time no-one has been anywhere near the AC, maybe over such a long period the gas just leeched away through the hoses and the new gas will do the same after a long time. I used to drive a refrigerated van and I had to have the AC regassed every six months on that but no leaks were ever found. I will just have to monitor the situation and see what happens. Steve.

Thanks for the replies chaps. I can now confirm that when the system loses too much gas the compressor will not engage. I had the car regassed today and there was less than I/4 of an ounce of refrigerant left in the system. As soon as the system was regassed the compressor started working again. I am so relieved it was a cheap fix, I am skint this month. I will apologise now for the crappy weather that will be on the way as my AC is now able to cope with the heat. Steve.

Good afternoon Guys. I have been out in the lovely weather today in the Lex and I thought to myself that it was very warm in the car so I double checked the AC was on...it was but the air coming from the vents was warm. Upon further inspection the AC compressor doesn't seem to be engaging. I can spin the front of the compressor by hand so it looks as though the clutch isn't working. I checked the fuse to make sure that was OK and it was fine. I did a bit of digging on this site and found the instructions below to do a diagnostic test on the ventilation system. With the ignition off, whilst pushing both the buttons marked 'auto ' and the air re-circulate one with the picture of an arrow curling to the right, turn on the ignition. All the little green indicators will flash, and the screen shows 00. Press again the air re-circulate button and the system goes to sensor check. It goes through all the heater vent controls, the button functions, including front screen de-ice, temp change, etc, and a code appears in the display. These are the codes 00=normal 11=inside temp. sensor 12=outside t/s. 13=After evap. sensor 14=water temp.heater radiator 21=solar sensor 22=compressor lock detected [short of refrigerant does this one] 23=coolant pressure 31=air-mix servo potentiometer 32=IN/OUT change damper servo potentiometer 33=Mode damper S/p 41=air-mix damper S/p. 42=IN/OUT change damper S/p 43 mode damper s/p To cancel push the 'off' button I got the 22 code. My query is, is it possible the compressor shut itself down because it detects no refrigerant or is it just my compessor that has expired and locked in the disengaged mode? Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks. Steve.

Given it a damn good spanking round the coast road!