cruisermark

Hi Mike First point of call would be to check around the window seal to ensure its not kinked or something in there which is preventing the window from closing fully

mark - saw your comments on another posting, and seems like the Mk 4 has some of the problemsthe Mk3 had. I have been living with suspension noise for over 4 years, so would be nice to have silence again. Sat Nav and all that stuff is no bother, only got seriously lost once in 30 years of driving and that was in the days before mobile phones, let alone Sat Nav. It seems the Mk4 still has the cassette system, which is a plus for me. By the way, how do I know it has the DHP suspension. I have found one that says it has full service, just had new brakes and new cam belt, so will be calling the chap tomorrow, and maybe go see. Thanks for your comments, Cheers Non DHP Models have the 5 flat spokes around the edge alloys - the DHP sits marginally lower and has pepper pot alloys with wider tyres. Stiffer suspension means you fell the road bumps a bit more than normal LS - Goodluck

Hi Pete The Mark 4 is is the obvious upgrade choice - i made the same choice couple of years ago - initially due to the Mark 4 having electronic throttle control (which is more sensitive than the Mark 3) I did find the car very light and didnt feel as substantial as the Mark 3 - but over time you get used to this. Theres no reports on any issues on the traction control so you should be ok there and to be honest i dont think ive ever witnessed it working on my car. Obvious upgrades/advantages are VVTi better engine which is marginly better on fuel Xenon head lamps Touch screen controls - looks good in the car SAT NAV - never had the chance to use it but it does have its limitations Seats are softer and dont suffer from failed heated elements like the Mark 3 Things to look out for: Failing bonnet struts Water ingress in the boot - check the spare wheel well Make sure you have 2 master keys plus the grey vanity key and remotes work Failng Temp/Time LCD backlights - requires alot of dismantleing of the centre console to fix Make sure ride is smooth and no suspension noises If your going for the DHP model which has stiffer suspension then i think tyres are very expensive on that Full service history is a must but can be rare given the age of the car but make sure the cambelt has been changed as thats a big and expensive job - also if the gearbox oil has been changed then thats a plus becuase often its over looked. The cabin filter is often overlooked so check airflow in the cabin check all electrics work. Make sure no dash warning lights are on - often you will find brake pad lights on as the sensor has a broken link or the headlamp low warning light on - both of these are simple fixes I think you will find theres plenty of high milers out there with patchy history so it may take a bit of time and patience - i looked for 18 months before i found the perfect one as i wanted the wood steering. You are right about the LS430 - in my opinion the LS400 is more reliable and simpler to fix all the best

Hi will theres a tutorial here on how to change the air filter - have a look around the whole site - lots of useful information http://www.lexls.com/tutorials/maintenance/airfilter.html

From the top of my head as far as i can remember there is no difference apart from the Mark 4 seats are softer and the heat elements do no fail

Hi will the heated seats is a common failing part on the Mark 3 LS400 - its is very rarely found to be working - My Mark 3 had 73k on it and they were not working - I then bought another seat from a car which had done 50K and they had failed too - sadly there is no way round this fix unless you want to buy aftermarket heat filaments and have the seat re-upholstered

Hi Glad youre happy with your LS - is this your first? There is plenty of advice about LPG and suppliers etc - be sure to read it before converting it Theres a saying - "once a Lexus driver, always a lexus driver" - ive been one for over 5 years and enjoyed every bit of - these cars may use alot fuel but you save alot in depreciation,servicing and repair bills.

Hi I have been driving lexus for 5 years and it is the best car i have driven - i used to have 96 Mark 3 and now a 98 Mark 4 - the Mark 4 is the best of the lot , You get touch screen sat nav and controls, Xenon headlamps, VVTI engine and generally a better car overall than the Mark 3. The engines on the LS400 are generally bulletproof. Heres a list of general faults to look for: Failing bonnet struts No working front heated seats (mark 3 only) (generally they never work and theirs no easy solution) Water ingress in the boot - check the spare wheel well Make sure you have 2 master keys plus the grey vanity key Radio LCD digits and backlights tend to fail on Mark 3 Make sure ride is smooth and no suspension noises Full service history is a must but can be rare given the age of the car but make sure the cambelt has been changed. Fuel wise you should get 16 locally and around 30 on a run These car respond well to LPG conversion - some members have used profess gas - check out their website - their price is around £1200 I have never driven an LS430 but the opinions seem to be divided wether its a better car than the 400 - sure its got a few more toys such as newer sat nav, heated and cooled massage seats, Keyless go to name a few. I would say spend a bit of time on the forum and find out as much as you can then drive all 3 and make your mind up from there. All the best

Reminds me to check mine - i know my boot is dry but never looked in the spare wheel well

You are right there is no pattern - just a questions wether it was requested when it left the factory - the woodpack certainly does make the car stand out - it took me a long time to find one with wood steering and gearknob however i must say the steering can be a tad slippery on cold mornings. Heres what to look out for: 1) Make sure it has full service history or atleast that the cambelt has been changed recently- this is a big and expensive job 2) Listen out for unwanted noises/clunks from the suspension 3) Make sure no warnng lights on the dash and all electrics work 4) Make sure bonnet struts hold the bonnet up 5) Make sure no water ingress in the boot 6) Ideally you need to have both remote keys and the grey vanity key and that they work with the car 7) Make sure you find out the satnav security password if it has one otherwise it will be useless if the battery is disconnected hope this helps

Yes this sounds like the typical exhaust blow from the Y Pipe which will know is a dealer only part - Incidently is this a MoT failure or not? The seller obviously doesnt know much about LS400s I sold my Mark 3, 2 years ago - P reg with under 80K on the clock - Mint Condition for £1100

Hi I can answer a couple of the queries To open the boot via remote you need to press and hold the button. In the mark 3 you cannot open the boot with the engine running - this feature was changed on the Mark 4 which is better i think. The Temperature backlight involves taking out the screen and completely dismanteling and replacing a few LEDs so if you can live with it might save alot of hassle - there is a detailed write up if you google "evans web lexus" Its quite normal for the seats take 5 mins to heat up (expecially in this cold weather) so you maybe ok there The only way of getting a replacement sat nav CD is either that auction site or if you feeling rich buy a new one from the dealer. Personally given the age of the system and the fact that a new cd costs over £100, i would invest that money in a handheld device. Hope that helps

Yep upto the Mark 4 lexus have been very good - very few rust issues - however the Early LS430s have had more issues expecially around the boot lid and drivers door

Without sounding patronising would open and close the the sunroof both way i.e sliding and tilt to ENSURE its fully closed and not triggering the alarm. In the past there has been instances where the sunroof is very minutley open and this has triggered the alarm. Have a read here: http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/index.php?showtopic=67052 and here http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=53804 I was going to go out and try this on my car but its too cold

As expected she passed MOT with any advisories - thats second year with her and 3 years with my previous Mark 3 - 5 years of MOTS without any advisories - not bad for any S REG with less that 78K Went to pick her up and the engine was still warm - sounded amazingly silent as ever. Treated her to some 5w-30 castrol edge a few weeks ago and gave her a good clean This year she has cost me : £70 for service £50 for MOT Plus road tax Cant complain with that

hi Must admit it does look very very nice - im half tempted to sell the Mark 4 and buy another Mark 3 lol - i think the Mark 3 wins on looks and cabin quitness. The Mark 4 does have a more modern interior but due to the electronic throttle control and engine tone doesnt feel as sunbstantial as the Mark 3

There is a low mileage Mark 4 for sale on the famous website which bizarely has the Mark 3 type heater controls

hi give these guys a ring http://www.bba-reman.com/catalogue/DetailedProduct.aspx?DetailedProduct=1993

Access to the rear of the lamp is very limited. I had to remove thelamps to replace mybeam bulbs

just wanted to add the wire is on the drivers side brake pad

I agree I tend to buy cars from private individuals who cherish and appreciate their vehicles and preferably one owner from new.

Will there is no mention of the wiring loom. The box is the CD drive which sits in the boot on the near side. It might be an idea to see if there is any wiring already in your boot already on the near side to take the cd drive ( the chances of this are slim but worth checking anyway) Obviously if there is no wiring then you needa loom

Hi will it is fairly easy to remove the stereo - the hardest part would be running the wiring loom from the front of the car to the back (does the ebay systemcome with a loom?) To remove the stereo 1) Lift the wood surround using 2 screwdrivers or similar 2) Disconnect heated seat plug 3) Remove centre air vent by carefully inserting to flat pieces of plactic (similar to lollypop sticks) down each side and carefully pulling the vent towards you - try not to yank as the hazard light switch wiring is behind it 4) then you have 4 screws - 2 at the top and 2 at the bottom and the stereo is out. Before you go ahead i suggest doing some research on a) how good the system - it is a really old system with limited capabilities in terms of detail and speed B) Upgrade cds can cost around £100 iirc

hi here is one possability http://vehicles.motorhog.co.uk/breaking-vehicles/vehicle-details/lexus/ls400/petrol//7388

Anybody else experienced a hard brake pedal when starting the car from cold - returns to normal as soon as the engine starts - never happened on my mark 3? - only happened since the wether turned cold