Mikaelse

Do not forget about the ABS central unit problem the LS460 very often seem to develop. 
A new revision new one or a new revision used one from a salvage yard seems to be the way forward...
A new one installed at dealer will probably cost you at least 1500£ including labor. 
(Going price right now in USA for a OEM new is 1000$ for the part only. )

On 5/1/2024 at 11:09 AM, ambermarine said:

The Manufacturer of the shocks will recommend a shelf life before any supply chain is established. Under the( just in time) policy of parts supply at most Japanese car companies the components are supplied on a sevicible life estimate relative to the vehicles manufactured that use the component.

The issue with these components is durability of shelf life and the ability of the various parts to stand the non use and drying out process as a consequense of non use.

The parts have been paid  for by the car manufacturer so they are reluctant to dump the parts  if  they are passed their sell by date so the recipent is the test bed and a suck it and see scenario comes into play.

I suppose anyone with a classic car of modern vintage is going to become susceptible to these anomolies because the more modern classics are a lot more sophisticated than the pre 1980s models.

Hmm. I have had cars of different makes for 40+ years now and never needed to change schockabsorbers. (Lucky) Only some broken spring due to age. Well. 
So I am no expert on these...However at work we design in gaspressure filled struts sometimes in machines.

These simplified has a compartment with gas and oil. The comparment has a seal to the moving rod that seals in gas and oil with a seal running against the rod. it is important that the position of such struts is arranged so that the seal is submerged in oil and not exposed directly to the gas when in normal use if at all possible.
It is then reasonably also important that the strut is stored correctly when in stock. If it is lying flat or wrong side up it may have the seal partly exposed to the pressurized gas and it will leak out much faster. 
I would not be surprised if very old stock have expired and also been moved around and been stored i non stable environment etc for some of the time. A gamble to buy new old stock of this type.
My LS400 shocks are all fine after 25++ years (luck). Although have had to change springs once in the rear due to breakage of one due to rust.  Also disassemble the front and put in more rubber cushion on top end of the spring there. Had expired down to very thin...

On 11/2/2023 at 1:11 PM, BigBoomer said:

Welcome aboard Yousuf 
Sounds like you got yourself a low mileage bargain.

Wipers, battery, bonnet struts are all easy enough to do. Make sure that the struts you buy come with the fittings.
Pads & disks are also easy enough to do.

When was the last timing belt change? They should be every 90k miles or 9 years so it should have been changed twice already.
Normally there is a sticker under the bonnet somewhere telling when/mileage the last change was.

Yupp. A definite risk that the oem belt is stil in there.  When I bought my oldest LS400 the original belt was stil on . Only 90Kmiles but 20 years old. The job is expensive so some do not want to listen to the years rule. Scary old rubber.
I actually kept rpms below 2500 on the trip home and changed it as soon as parts arrived. 

These are wonderful V8 engines that will be wrecked in one second if timing belt fails or waterpump locks up or ??
I would only trust a mechanic who has done a few of these Toyota/Lexus V8 belts before and has some knowledge of what to look for and how to handle handle stuff in OLD cars. 
Extra care must be observed when handling connectors , sensors and cables. 
Just swapping out stuff as ordered is also not enough if you want to enjoy good reliability.   
You should also. 

Spin the accessory belt driven stuff with belt off and listen/feel for dry or worne bearings.  Alternator, fan bearings, tensioner bearings, idler bearing, freewheel bearing for Ac compressor, Servo pump bearing,
It only takes a minute extra listening with a bearing stethoscope (prefferably) while spinning them by hand. I really needed to replace serpentine belt tensioner and idler also , This was 8 years ago. 
If done at a shop I would go in early and get these things checked ( takes no time , belt on/off is done i 5 minutes in parkinglot ) . Then you can preorder the parts stuff needed if any. It can take a week or two to get hold of. 

Use good parts. AISIN has a full kit for these engines for timing belt swap with all needed parts for a good price. AISIN waterpump and Mutsiboshi belt and japanese bearings in the idler and tensioner pulley. 
You can get this from for example ROCKAUTO.com in USA.

Decide if rubber hoses are ok to put back in or if new ones are needed. Mine were fine after 20 years and were reused. Stil in there now 28  years old

The LS430 has a reputation for getting a leak inside the radiator where ATF oil in transcooler is then contaminated with coolant which will wreck the transmission quickly. 
If the radiator is stil original It is smart to replace it premptively with a good brand third party one since radiator is out already while doing the timingbelt. 
These radiators typically cost only 100£ or so.  

It is possible to buy a OEM new one from JAPAN for 400 US$ + shipping and customs etc. 
Shipping was quoted at 130US$ to me in Sweden
Supplier AMAYAMA.com  I have bought from them a few times. worked flawlessly. 
I would wonder if it is New old stock. May contain wery old seals etc that may be dodgy. 

I would probably rather buy a DENSO radiator from Rockauto in the US 
OR buy it from Germany.  132€  at Kfzteile24.de ( no idea about shipping and customs etc to UK from US or Germany.) 

On 3/19/2020 at 11:15 AM, runsgrateasanut said:

Very Ripe Plum  - Water internally sounds like biggest issue -  good luck.

Could be if problems like corroded electric stuff is now present and stuff malfunction. With some luck some problems may go away just be wiggling connectors etc. 
If you experience no electrical issues internally now or close future you should be fine. 
I own two LS400.  You will ned to spend some money on it.
They have doubled their value over the 6-8 years I have owned them while daily driving them every day.
People have now understood how overengineered and good they really are.
HERE in sweden you are hard pressed to find one now for less than about 6000£ at those miles and often they cost even more.  
A bit annoying for me actually since risk for parts theft, used and new parts cost and insurance will no doubt go up.
Selling is not in my plans ( ever ?). 
I just hope these will not go same way old VW beetles from the fifties have . Cost a fortune now and they enthusiasts drive them to meets on covered trailers.

On 10/11/2023 at 1:03 PM, skyway said:

its only the crank bolt that can caused a bit of trouble,,,I recon if you can undo one bolt, you can undo lots

and I got an asin kit flying towards me from the US....I think it looks more daunting than it is.

I have done one before it was a while ago 🙂

 

 

I have done Two. It is a lot of work but not really difficult if you have done simmilar jobs and you should follow some of the good writups with pictures on the procedure to make it easier.
I used the AISIN kits. The first one I did was now 8 years ago and 50.000 miles since.  I plan to do it one more time after a total of 10 years. 
These cars do not have as much brittle plastic stuff as modern cars do but some cables and connectors can be a bit brittle so handle with care.  I replaced no rubber hoses etc when I did mine. They felt perfectly fine after 20 years of service!

I made a tool for the crank bolt . It cost me some stuff from hardware store at a total of 12 £ and drilling of two 8 mm holes.

Do check all the bearings for stuff for the serpentine belt. ALSO ask a tech doing the job for you to do that !.  It is easy when you are in there. Takes a minutes. Just spin stuff and feel for noise, harsh feel or dry hissing noise. Should be smooth and completely silent
Hence spin ,  Alternator, tensioner , idler , fan bearings , freewheel bearing in AC comperssor, servopump. I had to replace bearing in tensioner or whole tensioner and the idler bearing on Both LS400. This is a bit annoying since If you need to buy stuff you are stuck waiting for delivery. Hence when I did nr two I checked the stuff before I started doing the timing belt. The serpentine belt is a 5 min jobb to take off and 5 minutes to put back . Hence you can do a quick check a few weeks before doing the timing belt so you can order any new stuff you need to be all set with all the parts. A failed bearing on the serpentinestuff will not kill the engine but it will ruin your day for sure and may break some more stuff. 

On a LS430 it is really recommended to replace the radiator if it is original ( it is already out while doing the timing belt) since it is prone to failure leaking coolant into the Transmission.
This will kill the transmission fast if it happens. The radiator is not expensive from third party suppliers. I would not buy the cheapest one.      

On my Lexus LS400 1995 with 140Kmiles I stil have the original shocks. I have had to replace the springs though in rear due to corrosion. 
The shocks feel nice and firm and non bouncing still when I drive at different speeds over the speedbumps the love to put in on our local roads. No oil leaks. I expect they will live many more years .
 

On 3/24/2023 at 6:01 PM, Hitchers80 said:

What is a reasonable price for a 1998 LS400 in good condition with 122,000 on the clock?

Perspective:
Here in Sweden the LS400 1998 to 2000 are extremely rare now and prices for cars in good shape where most everything works and there is very little or no rust seem to have gone up a lot. 
People seem to take good care of them here. Seldom used in our salted winters is my guess.
It is common now to see the few that come on market advertised for equivalent of 10.000£ .  What they actually go for is not known to me but they seem to sell reasonably fast. 
I think that at least 9000£ is a good guess.
Being very rare here they are quite costly and cumbersome to fix if you should suffer a fenderbender or a rare item broken. 

The LS430 is simmilarly priced or even a bit higher.   

27 minutes ago, Razor61 said:

Easy enough to release the aux belt and spin the pulley. I took mine off and spun it as in the video.
I believe Idler No 2 is the same on the LS430 - 16604-50030 - about £100 from LPD or the bearing itself can be pressed out and a new bearing pressed in - SKF6301 I believe but can’t be 100%.

 

Best is to take out diassemble and inspect if you want to do this right . There are some variation on the bearings. My 1998 had a two row (rare) bearing as one of the idler/tensioner bearings.
I ordered a complete thing with bearing for that one ( non OEM probably not the best quality )
It is also important if ordering generic bearing to opt for the rubber lip double sealed, 2RS (selaed with rubber lips) And C3 play ( "increased play" ).

Buy a reputable maker.  SKF , FAG or NTN or similar European or Japanese brand. They cost < 10£
I forgot about C3 and ordered standard (small) play and after pressing in that bearing became tight with no play and that may overstress the bearing.
Had to order another bearing and do it again. That bearing had some small play left after pressing in which is what you want

Feel for you LEXUS 212.  I experienced simmilar thing with my 1998 LS400 ..... Here in Sweden the normal glass fix people do not have anything for these rare old LS vehicles.

However I got hold of a small company that specialize in supplying car glass for rare and vintage cars and after some investigating he could source a new rear window for me. 
He mentioned that his source said it was the last one in stock that had been collecting dust for a very! long time. It cost me about 550£ and was made in CHINA. 
They do not ship them. Instead you have to agree a rendevouz meet when they go for a delivery tour. Mine was 100kilometers from where I live.  
The UK should reasoanbly have simmilar glass supply companies catering to rare and old cars. Probably more than one. Look for them!.

Worse was that the quite special chrome/rubber trim is supposed to be scrapped and a new one fitted.
It is also available at AMAYAMA but cost including shipping in a very large box will be very high. 
I have with many hours work salvaged it in usable shape with a scalpell. Will fit the glass myself probably with friends.
Probably it would be possible to skip the trim and just fill up with the black rubber stuff. 

On 10/15/2022 at 1:47 PM, Herbie said:

One other thing has just plopped into my head re the negative lead. Battery clamps can be overtightened and if that happens the battery post itself can break its connection with the negative plate in the battery case, so make sure it's not the post itself causing the intermittent fault.

It really sound like there is something that is intermittnetly wrong INSIDE the Battery. 
Everything stop working while driving and getting back to life after wiggling on Battery poles should be conclusive if Battery poles and connections looks fine.

A good Battery should solve it.   I do recommend a good AGM Battery . 
Lots of cold crank amps is good but I use a 70 Ah and that works fine even in COLD Sweden.
AGM batteries often charge back up 3 times faster than the standard type and keeps charge better.   
My 1998 is LS400 is sensitive to weak batteries.    

On 11/13/2022 at 10:47 PM, MerchantOfVenice said:

Dear friends, please may I ask what items I should buy like trim etc that might need replacing if the windscreen is going to be changed?

If you look in the repair manual it is often claimed that trim needs to be replaced. I am in the process of changing rear window on my 1998 and with many hours of work and a many scalpell blades I have managed to save the original trim.
The trim seems quite elaborate with a shiny metal part and is not at all generic nor easy to ship .
I have found that this type of stuff is more or less unobtainium these days OR you can get is shipped from Japan for one ( 1 ) months salary or so because it is expensive and very large and fragile. 
Our glass changers here in sweden do not care for super rare cars like these. ABout 40 on the road here.  I got my rear window glass from a guy specializing in glass for vintage cars. The very last one at his source he claimed.
Is it possible to source this stuff in UK stil?.   

Be very carful when deciding what to do with the exhaust. Often mending it locally is smart I think.  Most of it will outlast the car and is of very high quality .

The front Y section though has a not so smart design with a extra layer of thin stainelss steel cover and some insulation in between. 

on my 1998 I found that I had a number of small pinholes in the tubes under those covers.  I bought very thin stainelss steel sheet metal and many stainless steel clamps and wrapped the tubes and sealed the pinholes with that. Supported the tubes also for a foot or so , roughed up the sheets surface and used muffler seal in between.  Been leak free for 5 years now. I do not expect it to last forever but probably many more years.  I also have a 1995 LS400 and that exhaust is flawless and original after 27 years .

Hmm. The noise sounded like a belt or metal rubbing against a stationary object in my opinion.

I suspect it is not a problem with the tensioner.  those seem pretty long lived. 

The tensioner is reasonably a metallic spring with fluid damping to dampen belt vibrations.
I changed these for new when doing a LS400 cambelt because they were in the kit. The old one (20 years old probabaly)  felt fully serviceable though when manipulating it.  
It is perfectly possible that that type of device fails but if it happens it is reasonably that the damping is bad due to leaked fluid or a worne damper. 
Experienced that on other make cars. gnereically speaking after damper deteriorates serious belt vibrations migh arise and very bad things happen.
Spring weakening you discribe in a more or less stationary metal spring is unlikely in a LEXUS design I think.  

On 8/3/2022 at 2:31 PM, Malc said:

unless the mark-up from the garage doing the job is multi times that cost just for the parts ...........  be interested to understand what Lexus main dealer would charge ..... if indeed they would be prepared to even do the job for their customer 

  I think this is a rhetorical Q  .  I doubt a main dealer would want to get involved, just pass it out to their local " provider " and add £200 on top for their commission possibly

Malc

What I meant Malcolm is that 30£ for the parts makes fidling with the loose bearings and pressing in/out not worth the effort. IF you can get these idlers still from LEXUS the price is something different and higher probably.
The fitting work is small thing time wise. I have done this and I could do it in 15 minutes . HOWEVER when the belt is off it is an very good idea to spin the other stuff and listen/feel the bearings for noise/play /rumble.  Alternator, fanbearing, frewheeling bearing on AC can be going bad after many years service. I would replace the serpentine belt if it has a few years or more. Inexpensive thing.  
   

3 hours ago, steve2006 said:

Buying the cheapest parts and shipping including the VAT delivered to your door for less than £30.00.

Agree that this makes sense for "normal people" that have limited experience of bearing choise and bearing assembly etc and have no urge to DIY down to details like some of us...😁.
30£ makes it not worth the effort monetary wise.   

8 hours ago, BlueWagon said:

I think I'm having the same problem - @steve2006 @Mikaelse could you share where you got the replacement bearing from?

 

Is it a straightforward job of release tension, slip belt off, bolt out (left hand thread), press / bash out the bearing, replace bearing and refit?

Yes as you suggest. I used a vice to press them out and in. Not difficult. Take care not to apply force that is not going via the balls. Hence press only on the ring you are pressing into place. Hence you need a large socket or simmilar to do that job well.
I had the luxury of having the cars in my garage over the winter. Hence I could take out the bearings and look at the size and type etc.
For the 1995 it was generic ballbearings that I bought of SKF brand. Any good quality make will work.  I bought the double side rubber lip sealed ( 2RS type ) and the increased play version to compensate for the press fit. Generic name for the increased play is P3.
If you buy noname bearings you may get bad quality ones that will work only for a few years. I paid 6£ each or so.         
On the 1998 LS400 the bearing was on one of the idlers was a unusual size double row type bearing. In that case I instead ordered a new third party complete idler with a bearing installed.   

1 hour ago, Razor61 said:

Thanks, I’ll look into the SKF bearings but to be honest I’ll probably buy them all from Amayama unless there is a big price difference. I will be replacing the inner/outer seals, snap rings and there is a dust cover as well.

IF I suspected that I might get seals and bearings that are kitted and may have been in stock for LS400 gathering dust for 15+ years (NOS = New old stock). 
I would consider buying elsewhere from known brand item for item hopefully reducing very old stock risk.
Grease and rubber does not benefit from very long time in storage. What do you think guys?. 

On 6/22/2022 at 9:16 PM, Tinonline said:

A fair point raised. Running any car is expensive…is it worth running a 400 using a garage? At 90k miles a lot of makes are probably not in as good a place as a Lexus.

I’m glad I’m a home mechanic…sometimes.

I reckon I pay from £100 to £400 per annum. I’m at 98k. Low use.

I am proactive as much as possible. Prices to date are reasonable for the majority of OE parts but it does require shopping around and sometimes importing.

Quality OE suspension parts are a challenge.

I’m in the club that would like licensed parts suppliers manufacturing to OEM standard. Yes we will pay more. There’s a lot of rubbish and counterfeit.

Big name suppliers are also guilty of divesting their top brands to cheap manufacturers or selling out. We find out eventually but not before paying for it.

We are entering the phase of classic car ownership. Yes, even the Lexus requires a rebuild of some scale.

 

Hmm.. I run a 1995 LS400 as a daily driver.  I would not consider letting a shop mechanic work on it. To start it is often some research and a few weeks wait to procure most parts needed. Even service part of  acceptable quality.  Also it is easy to do damage to a 27 years old vehicle and sometimes fixing those mishaps is not easy at all.
I have now a rear window I need to replace on my 1998 LS400. ( someone threw a rock at it when parked is seems) and the shiny trim thing around the window costs 1000€ including everything. Trying to reuse the old one . Will probably be several more days work for me before I get that sorted and 700£ for window etc in total. Okish as long as I look at it as a hobby. If I start counting the work hours at 50£ or so it is not ok at all to be honest. 
I am starting to worry quite a bit about the front windshield blisters I have . If they progress to MOT failure . I have emailed local shops that do windshield. They have choosen to ignore me so far. A windshield for my 1995 or 1998 may be clpse to unobtainium by now. Scary !.  

I have one LS400 with air supension and one with coil springs. 
Both work well after 24 and 27 years stil.  However the coil springs broke due to corrosion damage and needed new springs. 
Schock absorbers stil fine after 27 years! . Put those back in. (Paid about 50£ each for LESJOFORS springs (made in Sweden))

What happens with age. Spring coils can also sag a bit with the years. Especially if you run with high boot and passenger load sometimes. Dependant on quality of design and material.
LEXUS => generally long lived stuff. 
Very visually obvious if they do sag. There are specs on correct ride height
The air supension has been completely flawless and service free. Absoultely no air leaks and works well in every way. If it fails the typical way seem to be that it develops an air leak. 
Reasonably in the rubber spring . You may also have problems with the level sensors or valves but that seems less common on the LS400.  A small air leak wears on the pump if not fixed. 

However. I experience very little difference in ride quality between coil and air springs. I could not even tell the difference probabaly.
Converting to coils could therefore be costeffective and work well if air system starts to give me repeated problems in the future. 

On 4/6/2022 at 9:11 PM, Allen95ls400 said:

Lol no I haven’t I work a lot and only have weekends to work on this dang car and have a lot on this car to fix😂

I have had a some issues with the parking brake on my 1995 and are learning about what not to do. I tend to normally not use it.  IT is probably essential to adjust it as manual says and lube stuff so that it works well and then use the parking brake regularly.
That means in Our swedish climate at least a few times a week or so I guess. The quick WD40 lubricant fixes on wire etc did not last very long.  When the thing seemed to be sluggish to release used it less often and then it got worse fast. 
It may bind a bit and then the thin brake lining may overheat and become bad. Happened once. I have changed brake linings every 3 years or so. 

Hm . I have a simmilar noise on my 1995 LS400 with 120000 Miles on the clock. It is a bit more mechanical and audible mainly when pressing the accelerator briefly when it revs upp a bit. 
Mostly when cold.  Had it as long as I have had the car.  7 Years and about 30K miles.
My guess was something mechanical but I really have no clue yet. will try to find source of the noise since it is slowly getting worse. 

On 3/29/2022 at 12:02 PM, Razor61 said:

Update on the 'VSC Off' issue and this only applies to just the 'VSC Off' light coming on not VSC and ABS lights on....................I'm convinced it is temperature related. Warm weather now and it hasn't happened as much at all, sometimes first thing in a morning when it's cold it will happen (my drive is very much shaded from the morning sun). After that when driving home after a warm day it hasn't happened and it did happen before then throughout the cold days over winter when leaving work.
After a bit of searching on the web I found some posts that pointed towards the battery being the issue, the battery not being 100% and maybe a cell or 2 in the battery is a bit dodgy. Car cranks and starts ok, probably too many cranks at the moment which points towards battery issues maybe. This morning was pretty warm and the car was on the road in direct sunlight rather than on the drive and shaded from the sun, car fired up quicker than normal. More or less on the first crank rather than a few cranks, if that makes sense. Lexus Bolton have a new battery in stock for £100 so will pick it up at lunch, fit it then see if that really is the issue. I've no idea when the battery was replaced so for £100 it's worth doing anyway.
I may be clutching at straws but the more I think about the symptoms the more I think it could be just the battery.

When temperature is higher Battery gets a slight bit more oomph. 

When I had intermittent VSC-off issue it was resolved with a new Battery. The old Battery was good enough to start the car without problems and I was delaying on changing it. 
I got a tip in a forum that the reason for "VSC off" sometimes could be a weak Battery.
And Yes. 
It disappeared for good when I put in a new one. I used a AGM Battery with ample cold cranking AMPS but a standard one would .
The AGM batteries charge back up several times faster than old school stuff. Many short trips to the shop etc will not drain as badly.
I actually use a 70 Ah Battery instead of 95 Ah. It had good enough cold crank data.  
I Use same type in both my LS400 since several years. Works fine even in winter here in cold Sweden. I park outside and do not use a block heater. It always starts. 

IF it was a regular lightbulb. yes take the cheap one with good light and descent life.  It is not. That matters to me.
Replacing a broken Ballast box that ignites the HID lamp is not something I want to risk with dodgy bulbs. 
A new OEM DENSO ballast was a massive 600+£ each 10 years ago. DENSO does not seem to make them anymore?. 
You can buy aftermarket universal ones of different makes. It seems they start at ballpark 60£ +labor these days. 
 

Here in Sweden LS400 is rare and becoming expensive. I bougth my first one in 2015. Looked also at a few LS430. 
The LS 400 and LS430 seem to have increased in value here  approaching a doubling i 6 years for cars in still descent shape and still sub 150 kmiles.