Razor61

Glad it made you giggle😄 I think the noise was getting into the cabin via the transmission tunnel and maybe then through the heating ducts under the seat......who knows. I find Lexus Bolton excellent, I used them 2003 to 2007 for a company IS200. When I got my first 95 LS400 3 or so years ago I used them again and still do for my current LS400 and the IS250. There are a couple of mechanics/technicians that know the LS400 and know their 'stuff' on them and is very important for me.

I did find this post and the noise in the video is the exact noise. Noise is a lot louder in the video though and in my case was there at higher speeds as well but noise goes when accelerating. Loose exhaust was mentioned but discounted and I can understand why as it sounds like inside the cabin not outside or exhaust, when sat in the car. Even outside you can’t hear much with the car on the ground, maybe because the exhaust is tucked in the transmission tunnel. If the car was on a ramp and you were stood directly underneath it would be obvious I guess. https://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/topic/136384-lexus-is250-rattle-under-steering-wheeldashpedals-when-driving-slow-video/

A couple of weeks ago my wife mentioned a vibration/rattling noise in the cabin while driving her 2010 IS250. I drove the car and there was indeed an annoying noise coming from behind the dash on the drivers side, or so it seemed. Noise was more evident when cruising/overrun and in hindsight was a clue. Spent a bit time trying to figured out what was causing the noise, aircon off/on, trying fan speeds, audio on/off and lots of other tests. Nothing found so because the car is under extended warranty I booked it in for Tuesday at Lexus Bolton. Although it’s under warranty there is a diagnostic charge and if it’s a part that’s faulty the diag charge isn’t charged. Agreement with Lexus was that I try and figure out what was causing the issue and it’s not a problem removing the drivers dash trim to try and diagnose it. So today I spent some time looking at the issue ‘properly’. Went to the car armed with spanner’s etc to start removing the lower dash trim and start looking, before I began I started the engine and from outside stuck my head in the drivers footwell and revved the engine. Noise wasn’t from the behind the dash but from underneath the drivers seat. Checked under the seat, checked seat bolts and for anything that could be vibrating. Couldn’t find anything. I then did a Google search for the noise under the seat, I found a post for a GS250 about a metal plate under the car with loose bolts, directly under the seat causing a very similar noise. Armed with this info I had my wife sit in the drivers seat and rev the engine up and down while I looked underneath and pressed/held various bits. When I reached under and held the heat shield on the exhaust the noise stopped. Repeated a few times to make sure, next step was to get the car on the ramps and have a good look. Car on the ramps, looked underneath and found an exhaust heat shield clamp broken. Took it off and started the engine, repeated revving and no annoying noise. I would have sworn the noise was coming from inside the cabin and underneath the drivers seat, I could hear something outside underneath but nowhere near as loud as inside the cabin at all. Just shows how car noises can deceive and the cause can be outside but the noise is heard inside.

Malc, did you replace the temp sensor for the EFI? part number 89422-20010

There is this place that may repair your ecu https://allcarelectronics.co.uk/

Found it, after turning the garage upside down I remembered I’d stored it in a nice dry place in the house. I also have the new correct capacitors, the ECU is in pristine condition though and had only done 65k. I also have lots of other bits for the mk3, some brand new like distributor caps and ht leads and lots of used bits.

Having said that, I’d better double check it’s still there in the garage. Pretty sure it is though along with a mk1/2 ECU and a mk4 ECU as well.

I have a 89661-50310 ECU from a 95 LS400, all working with no leaking capacitors or track damage. I swopped it for a 50351 ECU I bought off eBay mainly to see if it worked, which it did, and so I had a spare ECU. The car was written off a couple of years ago with the 50351 ECU in it and I now have a 98 LS400, I was looking for another mk3 but struggled to find a good one hence the 98 I have. See the post below about swopping the ECU etc. I may be persuaded to part with it😉, pm me and we can probably sort something out. And, I’m not that far away either in Darwen. https://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/topic/122005-ls400-ecu-compatibility-information/

Yes and the condition of the handbrake mechanism, they can stop working properly due to lack of use as well. I had an Audi A4 and the handbrake froze solid during a -5 cold snap because the cables had let in moisture/water. The handbrake cable sheathing ends/seals were knackered on the end which allowed the moisture/water in. If the cables had been in good condition I don’t think they would have frozen solid.

It is, the parking pawl bit I knew about and most of the rest but the bit about ‘do not put in neutral when waiting at traffic lights’ I didn’t know about and the reasons why not to do it. I did do that exact thing, thinking it would reduce the strain on the transmission, I won’t do it in future though.

https://youtu.be/ULcSauSJrsY

It was a DHP car I think, probably not anymore because of the ‘adjustable suspension’

Not for me, although it’s in good condition and could be put back to standard I suppose. This car was for sale a few years ago, without the new additions. iirc its had a bar metal re spray on the sides but not the bonnet, boot and roof(or something like that) and also iirc it had thousands spent on a suspension rebuild.

No problem, I suspected you were after the boot seal so I looked myself. It's listed as you know and I wanted to find out what the shipping costs were, I ended up placing an order somehow (no payment) and I also received an email 10 mins ago to say it's not available.

I vaguely remember seeing this site/company sometime in the past, not bought anything from them though but looks ok to me.

Hopefully it does the job so fingers crossed for you. I presume the water leaking into the boot on the sides must be caused by the channel filling up/pooling and the water working it's way past the seal (up and over the lip inside the seal) or between the top of the rubber seal and the boot lid. I have seen someone drill a hole in the area illustrated below where the water collects, put in a rubber grommet with a plastic pipe running into the boot and out at the bottom to drain the water. This stops the water pooling in the first place I expect. If the car is perfectly level then I would expect the water to run off ok unless it's a monsoon.................but if the car is facing 'down hill' the water can't run off as designed and works it's way past the seal. I fitted a new seal early last year but I still park mine on the drive front first which is slightly uphill and stops the water pooling. It's a pain reversing out onto the road sometimes but I've got used to it doesn't cause much of an issue. I also presume it's the same sort of thing for the water getting into the wheel well, it runs down the inside of the seal and ends up dripping/running into the boot behind the boot lock mech and then runs into the wheel well.

Feedback isn’t 100% but apart from that the seller looks ok, what makes you think the seller is a bit dodgy? Lexuspartsnow list them but with shipping and duty from USA it ends up at £250.Only thing I would be wary of is placing the order only to be told it’s no longer available.

There is one for sale on eBay in Lithuania, £140 plus £45 delivery https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/363405305477?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=k6atoiclQAG&sssrc=2047675&ssuid=im66MZjLQ6G&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

Interesting topic, especially as the oem boot seal isn't available anymore. As far as I can see it isn't available from Amayama and isn't listed anymore on the LPD website.

Part numbers are different but maybe they are the same size and will fit. According to Amayama the 64810-50290 rear screen is still available at approx. £782 plus the import duty and tax etc.

I think it does work because the LS400 is generally known as mk1, mk2, mk3 or mk4. The LS400 is generally referred to in this way, although it is technically incorrect as you say, not a L430 or LS460 or LS600. It’s a ‘LS400’ thing not a ‘LS’ thing. LS430 onwards is referred to in a different way as with many other makes and models, pre-facelift and face-lift. My favourite is the LS400 Mk3🙂

Unfortunately I think this sort of thing was done in times gone by and now it’s only dedicated local garages that continue doing it and other stuff. A good friend of mine, Harold, was an excellent mechanic and served his time as a Jaguar mechanic iirc, he was meticulous and did the job ‘right’. Harold retired around 8 years ago from his own one man band garage and sadly passed away at the start of Covid, nothing to do with Covid though. People took their cars to him after a ‘so called service’ at another garage or main dealer, he despaired at the quality of work done before. Shoddy work, things not done when they should have been done, things not greased or cleaned when they should be, discs and pads thrown on without cleaning the calipers and greasing slide pins, etc etc etc. Its rare to find a mechanic in the same mold as my friend Harold but you may have found one Malc.

The part I bought from eBay, PLATE,COMPUTER METER CIRCUIT NO.1 - part number 83277-50231, for £90 was delivered today. Everything was there and all brand new, circuit board (not the one that stores the mileage), fuel gauge, temp gauge, speedo assy, rev counter assy and some metal clips. I’m chuffed to bits to be honest, I may rebuild the spare cluster I have with all the new parts and fit to the car. I know the spare cluster has a knackered temp gauge, the rev counter needle sticks sometimes and maybe the speedo needle (can’t remember if it did or not now). Judging by the cost of the USA equivalent part, I reckon it would have cost £1500 to buy in the UK and probably more. Regarding the ‘air mix path holes’ mentioned earlier and cleaning them, I didn’t clean them and the throttle body to cure any issues with delayed throttle response because I didn’t think I had an issue. Although I’ve never been happy about the idle………….I know I’ve mentioned the idle speed and how steady it is or not multiple times on this car and mainly the mk3 I had. My thoughts are that the idle speed and how steady it is, is a good indication of the cars engine health, just my opinion though. However, after driving the car for 250 miles or so since I did the work on the throttle body and air mix path holes at the weekend (motorways, A roads, stuck in motorway traffic, round town and to work and back)……………….. I think it has made a difference to a couple of things and an issue I didn’t think I had. The slight delay when pressing the throttle reasonably hard before it picks up, which I thought wasn’t an issue, seems to have gone. It’s difficult to explain this symptom because it’s very subtle and isn’t a big deal at all but you notice when that subtle issue isn’t there anymore. If that makes sense. Idle speed is now spot on and rock solid, checked accurately using a laptop and Techstream plugged into the car tonight😉 New addition to my toolbox. As for MPG, it hasn’t made any difference to the MPG on motorway journeys and is the same at 34-35 at a steady 70. Round town though, driving back and forward to work, which is a mixture of town and A roads, I suspect it has made a difference. Just a feeling I have, that’s all. For the next to nothing cost of cleaning the throttle body and the air mix path holes on a Mk4 LS400 it’s well worth doing, if done properly of course. Depending on the state of them you could be pleasantly surprised at the results.

That figure was resetting the mpg just after setting off, approx 90 miles M65/M6 motorway to M6 junction 10 then maybe 15 miles of ‘normal’ roads to Brierley Hill. Same journey tomorrow then back home on Friday. If I pick a long bit of flat motorway it can average 38 mpg or more, you need something to occupy your time and focus on sometimes when eating up the motorway miles on your own😀

I changed the coolant temp sensor a while ago but I wasn’t looking to see if the mpg increased. Changing it on the 95 MK3 I had made a big difference and was pretty sure it cured the engine dying when stopping after a decent run. I changed it on the current car because of that and it’s a critical bit of the EFI system, there weren’t any symptoms like on the MK3 and probably improved the MPG.