Malc

hahahahahahaha .............. I remember in the olden days when all you needed with a flat battery was to get the starting handle out of the boot and a couple of yanks on that got the engine whirring again ...... oh, and the boot lock was just that, an old fashioned key in the handle !!! Malc

yes, fob and separate key on the Mk3 Malc

robbyg ..... I think the best answer to your Q on wheels and tyres is possibly, because zillions was spent by Lexus on designing the car, even down to the last minutiae re the wheels and tyres, that it might just be best to simply go with what was Original Equipment with the car ! I remember reading the original Ls400 Press Release documents put up on here recently, the fervour with which Lexus placed great emphasis on even the simplest design principles being around the wheels and tyres, aerodynamism etc. Malc

I think the other glass companies around might be more competitive on price .............. . don't just go for the big names. Tell them you're paying for it privately too. But your locality might of course be a limiting factor in availability of indy glass fitters too Malc

Never seen this before, wish I had this when I had my Mk1 ( all those years ago now ) when it needed a relatively simple fix and before I found this forum ....... had it even been created 10 yrs ago I wonder ! ) Malc

Very astute couple then ..... such foresight to buy a car that would see them thru' the next 40 years eh ! Malc

Lexii are great for Grand Touring, Europe seemed easy ( not maybe in the snow and ice tho') when I did my 6000 mile trip this last spring. Life is for living and Ls400s are for touring, and we are blessed with having the finest armchair comfort on 4 wheels. Malc

Easy peasy to get it to Buenos Aires ( ship container ) but there's zilch likelihood of getting it back to the UK easily ............. Argentina world trade has dropped off the cliff !!! Also the protocol with bureaucracy to achieve my car entrance into Argentina is a nightmare ............. not helped it might seem with dopey Clarkson's antics down south recently. The 10,000mile probable round trip thru' Argentia, up to Iguaassu, round, down to Tierra del Fuego and back again to BA will be stupendous, would be my 3rd tourist trip there ...... beautiful country, just need to do it in my Lexus really now at my age ... think the car's got slightly less arthritis than me So Route 66 seems to be the likely option tbh. ............. fingers xd Malc

Thanks ...... I watched the World's Greatest Motorbike Journeys ??? tv 3 parter recently on Quest or summat like that .............................. Thinking of doing that next year maybe, Route 66 that is ........... .. would like to do it in a Ls400 if possible.......... doesn't seem as though it's likely I'll be taking my own Ls400 to Argentina for the trip I would really like to do ................ well, and getting it back to the UK anyway. Malc

I suspect that there's lots not original and having been replaced renewed................. except probably the drivetrain stuff Just fair wear and tear and general maintenance no doubt. I would buy it ..... is it located anywhere near Route 66 ??? does anyone know ? Malc

I think we may have known the seller tho' !!!! The car looks ok, bit odd that's someone has buggered about with the badges on the bootlid. All those leaves too in the engine bay, bit odd. He's likely a Trader ........................ you will need to check everything very very very carefully if you're tempted to buy. Malc

what a stunner Malc

Welcome John, good to see a new member. The cambelt change is about every ten years and 100k miles................. so you might not need to fret too much over that one ! the cambelts rarely snap even way over this. At about the second cambelt change you might want to think about replacing the waterpump ( or sooner if it's losing water ) ...... it's a bugger to do separately. The starter motor when it's on its way out gives you some notice usually and a simple repair kit is available for @£13 ......... you don't have to buy a recon or new unit. Plugs are 60k miles ............ HT leads probably 180k miles or so. Tell us more about your car then !!!! Malc

Hi, well, my car just sounds off for no good reason at all, usually in searingily hot weather ( but not exclusively tho',) I've done all the removing objects from the centre consoles, glove box etc stuff too. Leaving a window a tad not fully closed seems to help and doesn't stop the car doors locking. And for whatever reason I have NEVER been blessed with the indicator lights winking at me when remote locking the car ! I can live with it and don't often get stressed over it, knowingly that nothing is perfect in life ............... not even my Ls400 Malc

................. or maybe the Mk3 but hey, they really are like gold dust to find in fine fettle now .............................. and I do prefer the looks to the Mk4 Malc

hhhmmm......... my first Lexus Ls400 J reg Mk1 actually did let me down on the M2 one dreadful wintry night from an electrical glitch .............. had to call the RAC and was recovered by OneTime in their brand new, first day out, recovery truck ............ which broke down with an electrical glitch just before he set off to rescue me.. My alternator blew out from a PAS leak that just got out of control ..... common fault, dripping pas fluid into the alternator in those days. I'll tell the grandkids that when I'm a lot older and the Ls400 is a distant memory ...... in about 40 years time I guess Malc

Jeremy ............... . that £2100 price was in August 2009 !! malc

Ah yes, the oil ............... in between MOT and annual services, about an annual 10/12k miles for me now, I just don't put any oil in. At service time tho' the oil is at the bottom read on the dipstick and that's only a litre between min and max I believe. ....... of a total oil ( incl filter ) holding of @5.5 litres 3 litres, well, beggars belief that it should have dropped so low. Malc

Hi welcome, good to see a new face. just for our edification, would you tell us the garage you bought your new Lexus from so that we can avoid in the future .......... heavens, if they can't be bothered to do a simple pdi check .................... and tell you they have, well, that's just BAD Malc

It's amazing how life lets one bump into people in the most unexpected locations ............. guess many of us may have experienced something of that ........ I have too .... I digress: It was the earlier Lexus Ls400s that had the non-interference engines, the Mk1 and Mk2 I believe. There's some doubt about the Mk3, maybe someone knows on here ? The Mk4 vvti engines just collapse from time to time ..................... sad for JPS and that other Mk4 for sale that we were referred to the other day ..... now where was that !!! Malc

I would imagine that water pump failure would be pre warned by probable and evident leakage from the system ............. I don't know, but doubt there is a scheduled waterpump replacement time / mileage. I have never known a waterpump on any car I have owned to just catastrophically fail one day ................ . there's always been a tell tale sign of impending failure I would envisage considering replacing my waterpump @ 200k miles with the cambelt at that time ...... in my case it's 3rd cambelt change, the last one done at 105k miles by Lexus. Malc

Blimey, £4000 for a 1998 Ls400 and 223k kms A steal !! Malc

Wikipedia says : In 2013, the United Nations World Happiness Report ranked the Netherlands as the fourth happiest country in the world, reflecting its high quality of life. So they must be doing something better than us in the UK ................. bet the per capita ownership of Ls s is higher than in the UK then Malc

Mine's the Mk3 that ACLex changed the driver's window as per. ............... I think he has left the forum and I know is no longer at Lexus Poole sadly. I think he was intending to emigrate .................. so might well have Malc

I think we may have spoken about this car before being in BRG which it isn't. Also note the probable initial Lexus 7 service stamps .................and the rest by an indy..... and of course the Trader refers quite rightly to the clutch being in excellent condition !!!!! Ho hum. another one bites the dust maybe ................... at this money methinks a full Lexus service history and better finished wheels should be on offer too. Malc