Lexus LS: Problems & Solutions

alcan

Try Tim here:
http://www.ackits.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi

paul29

Stay with R 12 as long as you can get it . Converting to R 134a will raise the following issues (a) hoses may have to be changed to barrier type (b) any pressure sensitive sensors will not work as designed as you are changing system pressures. ( c ) If you change gases the lube oil will also have to be changed to a Poly or PAG type , (d) your condensor will now be unde rsized for the new gas and will not cool you as before or they will try to sell you a new type condenser ( expensive) , (e) o-rings and compressor seals may or may not be compatable with the new lube and if they fail ( it won't be immediately ) you are into major dollars and nobody including the installer will warrant a claim on your conversion it will always be your fault . If the system is tight , and you haven't had to add gas or very little before , R12 @ $100? a can is still the safest and most economical way to go. I have other vehicles with OEM 134a and none can match my 91LS for cooling capacity with the R12.

hyperopt

Check other AC components for failure before blaming any AC problem on AC compressor as the compressor is the most expensive item in an AC system. You should change all O-rings and rubber hoses while you're at it as these are common leak points and stay with R12 until you absolutely cannot do so.

1991ls400

I am not sure where you're located, but I just recharged my gf's AC (Honda) yesterday, and it was only $86.20.

$86.20.....included evacuating the system, 2.2 lbs of freon, labor, and tax ($80 plus tax).

If you only need 1.25 lbs, it's heck alot cheaper and SAFER to stay with R-12 than convert over to R-134. Conversion means big $$$.

rd8a

I had a 91 Cressida and converted when the a/c started to give me problems. The truth is there is a noticeable difference in cooling power. R-12 is definitely better. As long as you don't have leaks you're not doing the environment any harm either!

rd8a

Folks, I need some advice. Should I change the timing belt now? How about valve clearance, plugs, distributor and cables?

rockland

I purchased a 1999 Lexus LS with 49K on the odometer. The car was certified as OK by the selling dealer and I also had it checked by the Lexus dealer. On getting it home, I parked it on my drive with the car's nose pointed uphill. On starting the car, I applied the brake and then shifted to drive. With car in drive, I took my foot off the brake and while I was moving my foot to the gas peddle the vehicle rolled backwards down the modest incline. Quick braking saved me from going through my garage doors! Before I go to the dealer, what is the likely problem and what needs to be done? Thanks in advance.

pontoisele

Hi,
My LS-1994 model does'nt have CD button, just radio and tape only.I want to add cd player to it. Some one already have experience w/ this matter, can give some advise about what kind, how much and how to install it.Your advise will be greatly appreciated.Thanks
Can post on this town hall or mail your advise to:
mle204@hotmail.com

imagine24

Rockland,
Timing belt is rather critical as a broken one can cause all amount of havoc. The deal is (and they never tell you this) but water pumps can crap out before the 120,000 timing belt change (mine did on extended warranty thank God). They will replace the water pump for the price of the pump as all the labor has been done (the chest is open so check my left lung too). Another thing you might think of (again, they don't tell you), is to flush the power steering fluid and clean the screen.

Good luck!!

hyperopt

rd8a,

LS timing is humongus and should last for more than 60K. My first generation LS has 117K on original belt and still going. I check the condition of the belt regularly though.

jeffmust2

at 66k miles a few years ago and it still looked new according to the tech.

I feel safe going 90k for the TB replacement on the LS; that's what I plan to do with my '98.

ferraro1

Hey~
My 1994 LS has this very apparent snapping/popping sound fro the front end when i apply the brakes , and I did a test and noticed the sound occurs when I press the brakes moderately hard not when light braking. The sound happens it seems just once (after startup) it is not repititious but seems to be getting louder, It will just go pop/snap and this is generally at low speeds (like in a parking lot). The wheel is usually turned but not always, if that has anything to do with it. If anyone has some sort of idea on what could be causing this please post, I want to have an idea of what to expect before I head into Lexus.

Thank You,
Paul

q45man

Snapping, popping on braking either front tension rods or upper A arm bushings or both: common wear items in a 9 year old car.

ferraro1

Q45Man ~
Thank You for letting me know, however when I head into Lexus what am I looking at paying for each of these items, what is the least expensive and what is the most. I just want some sort of idea idea so I am not totally shocked I had the Lower Ball joints replaced a few months ago, are those also commonly replaced at this age?
Thank You,
Paul

q45man

Depends on the local road condition and how well you keep tires balanced [inflation and tire brand].
Most lux car suspensions are shot between 70k and 100k....the soft isolation rubber hardens and breaks down from wear, ozone and lack of proper lubrication/treatment [Wurth Rubber Care].

Tension rods are around $150 each plus an hour or two [they vary in design and price depending on year]. Upper A arms are expensive [lots of expensive strong metal]....a thousand ought to cover it.

Be glad you don't have air suspension the shocks are $900 each.
Have you changed your shocks and gotten at least an annual alignment? Rack bushings and rack shock absorber, sway bar bushings?
Keeping the TIRE/WHEEL radial force imbalance at 5 pounds or below is important to lowering stress on suspension.

Then there is the complicated rear suspension and its bushing wear!

gburns3701

I have a 1992 LS400. When I turn on the AC I hear a whine coming from the engine compartment. The faster I go the louder the whine. Shut off the AC and the whine goes away. Any thoughts on what is causing the problem?

roddmod11

Dextron 3 is OK to use in our Lexus transmissions, according to the Lubegard website.

Check it out, I was talking to the owner of a large transmission repair shop and he has only Dextron 3 for all cars and adds Lubeguard to make the fluid work in all transmissions.

http://www.lubegard.com/automotive/index.html

q45man

The Toyota T4 is a higher quality product [temp and oxidation resistance], using generic [just meets specs] Dexron III with Lubgard Black may get close to to the slip/chatter lock up rating but the Dexron will not maintain suitability as long.

But if you flush the tranny every year or two the cost differential will even out.

Just remember you are dealing with something that costs close to $4,000 to replace so chose wisely!

q45man

Be careful about how much Black Lubegard you add to ATF start out with half an ounce per quart and work your way up to a maximum of 1 oz per quart over a few weeks. You may like it better at 3/4.
You can always pan drain 3 quarts out and refill to optimize the exact chacteristics you want!
The newer 5 speed AT use a different stick slip lock up ratio than the older 4 speed units.

The are details most owners wouldn't feel or know what they feel during a shift.

The tranny ecu measures the ATF temperature and the load and compares them to a look up table in a PROM [the exact chacteristics of say T-4] and sets the pressures to duplicate a perfect shift.
As the tranny wears or the ATF changes [from age/dirt or different types] the specs are wrong and you get hard / soft/ funny shifts].

The newer "drive by wire" no direct connection between accelerator pedal and throttle are even more sensitive to ATF type and spec!!!!!!

paul29

Lubeguard (no disrespect) did not design or build your transmission , the Lexus division of Toyota did and they specify T4 fluid. If T4 was not available at any price then by all means make your own , otherwise whenever you are tempted to subtitute , reread the last paragraph in q45man's #818 post.

roddmod11

I didn't say use it I just said check it out, BMW adds the stuff at the factory before they ship their cars out, if you were on their site you would see that it is a fix for a Sabb trans problem, and if call your local trans shop you might find that they use this before they tear into many transmissions. This company has the respect of many auto techs, maybe the engine and power steering products would be useful.

pontoisele

For Lexus Owner info: talked to Lexus Customer Satisfaction Dept.3 days after accident asked for an inspection.Lexus promised will do within 2 weeks.Insurance co.officially declared car total loss 3 weeks later and moved car from the towing site.5 weeks after the call, lexus Rep, in atlanta called and said can't find the car for the inspection.Provided phone info of insurance Co.rep. in charge of this case, same time w/ pictures.Wrote 3 pages letter including 3 pics then certified mailed it on 7-18-2002 to Lexus according to "Lexus Owner Manual Lemon Law Info".End of July ,received calls from Lexus said no problem found on air bags (of course ).Do not say why does'nt work. Asked copy of report and new location of the car.Answer negative.Asked for a written response.Will update when answer letter come.
If some one want see pics, please get to this site :
www.geocities.com/tle1042002/accidentpage.html
Ps: This Lexus ES 300-1997 bought w/14000 miles on 1-12-2000 as preowned from Hennessy Lexus in Atlanta, GA,and serviced by same dealer.

jeffmust2

...good question why the bags did not deploy.

You might go over to the Toyota Camry board in Town Hall and ask about any similar experiences over there on front end damage with no bag deployment. The ES300 was (and is) very similar to the same year Camrys.

lexie88

I have 91 LS400 with 72k miles, white grease has been leaking out from my rear CV boots (4) clamp area for almost 12 months. I wonder how urgent to have this fix and how much that would cost? The Lexus service advisor said it is not that urgent to fix that. Please comment .

wwest

The problem is knowing exactly when it is an urgent matter, knowing when there is no lubricant left. Absent knowing that answer I would fix the CV right away, especially if you often run the "wet".

I believe if you browse around on the internet you can find CV boots that have a seam so you can DIY.

tubal

Hey all. I just bought a 1991 LS400. While driving on the freeway, the ORANGE oil light on the bottom of the dash comes on. The first time it happened I started to pull over and it turned back off. Lately it's happening more often, and if I let off the gas it will turn back off. Can someone tell me what this light is and what I need to do to fix it?

Thanks.

paul29

That is your oil level light . Check your oil , you are probably down 1/2 qt or so. At freeway speeds the oil level (which is low) is lowered more with the oil which "hangs" in the heads and the float switch then turns the light on.By slowing the engine speed , the oil drains to the pan and shuts the light off.

wwest

I don't disagree with paul29 but with a 91 LS you may have enough sludge accumulated (storage/miles/etc.) in the upper engine areas to severely restrict the return flow. You might want to have someone pull a valve cover and check.

paul29

Possible, but using my own 91LS as an example with absolutely no build up of any kind in the heads , the same situation as tubal's happens.

tubal

I check the oil every time I fuel up, and it was half way between the marks last time. I'll add some oil next fuel-up and I assume it should take care of it. I'll keep you posted.

lexus_fan

I am tired of changing my pads every 6,000 miles and my discs every 20,000 miles.

I have a 92 model in the UK, and I drive in lots of stop start traffic.

I'm trying to find alternatives to getting Lexus pads again (as I feel they are too soft and wear out way to quickly).

I have found a site called rockauto.com, which looks really good. The pads I have seen are made by Raybestos or Wagner. Are they any good? Do I go for ceramic enhanced or standard ones?

Does anyone know whether brake pads for US LS400 would not be compatible with a UK LS400?

It shouldn't make any difference, I guess.

Thanks,

lxusrules

How do you wear our your brake so soon?
My first pad lasted 90K miles and I still have my original rear pad.
I heard that Lexus pad is one of the longest lasting...
I love this car, except it's AC is blowing warm air, I need to take it in to check. What are the possibilities?

thanks

blackout

check this out..I replaced my rear rotors and brake pads. @ 85k. in fall of 2001.
back in april 2002, i replaced my front brake pads(napa)and then had the rotors resurfaced. now i have 119k and every time that i apply the brakes, the steering wheel starts to shimmy -left right-u know what i mean. oh, i forgot to mention that before the shimmying, i started to hear the infamous screeeching sound from the brakes. u guys think its the napa pads? I did read in here somewhere that they were okay. i am not sure they are now. i just put them on in april..do i need to resurface rotors(front two or all) or resurface and replace front pads?Talk to me.

dealerflorida

85 K plus miles, rotors turned once already? May I suggest new rotors please. Turning, or re surfacing is just not that good after once or twice around. Factory correct rotors are truest, and most suitable.
Why risk having problems? just use Toyota (Lexus) pads, it is a sure thing and they last so, so long, further justifying their cost. My 97 LS had 80K miles (112.000 Kilometers) on original rear pads!. There are plates inside the calipers, and certain clips and pins (Found in later models like my 97) that should also be changed for a perfect brake job.
e-mail Ryan who runs Lexus parts website (www.irontoad.com) for brake part pricing. I priced NAPA for rotors and quality pad's. Prices were pretty close so I went with original Toyota parts. We get what we pay for, and for pads you will receive the extra cost for original pads with longevity, guaranteed.
Good luck Gentleman
Sheldon

blackout

Thanks for your reply but,
I dont beleive you got my question.
I have new napa pads(ceramix)front. only turned front rotors once @ 85k. when i apply brakes now, i get screeching and slight shimmying. my questions is-what gives? resurfaced the rotors once and at the same time put new pads. Is it the napa pads that suck?

wwest

The "better" the brake pad is for braking purposes, the louder it will screech. Many Porsche drivers use "good" pads for best braking at the track where loud screeching matters little, and change back to "street" pads otherwise.

You can quiet the pads by,

1. chamferring the leading and trailing edges at about 30 degrees.

2. Applying red goo, brake pad backing plate compound sold at NAPA.

3. Use metal and/or paper shims between the pad backing plate and the brake pistons. NAPA has a good set o fthese and so does Lexus.

Slight shimmying is likely caused by one or both rotors not being turned quite correctly.

blackout

Thanks for that bit of info, atleast I have a better understanding of what is or what could be the problem. What I will do is have the front rotors inspected, like u said, there is a possibility that they probably werent resurfaced correctly.THanks again.

dealerflorida

The screeching sound could indicate worn pads to the point that special metal pins (Attached to pads) are touching the rotors, creating a sound only to be heard as a "heads up" as to time to change. This would tell me you let it go too far without a visual check. Yes, certain pads actually screech to drivers delight (In Europe they will have it no other way!) for us North Americans though, we like it quiet, and screeching is usually a indicator of pads with the "meat" gone.
For shimmying, sorry another turn could make matters worse. There is a tempered surface area (Thickness) on rotor able to handle the constant pressure, heat & contact of pad during braking. When turning, braking etc. this area is used up, and when turning this area is actually removed. Say for example you turn again and you even solve the shimmying problem I think you will have rotor's that will be unable to offer good performance & last long or endure proper braking. I also consider, for you, the out of pocket cost to remove, turn (Cut) and re-install the rotors, are you doing this yourself? if not it has to cost $ each time you do it, to a point were new rotors would be cheaper, and also offer 85K more driving miles.
Let us know what you decide and the outcome, interesting what path you take and the results I say.
Sheldon

wwest

Are riveted brake pads available for the LS? I don't think I've seen any of those for about ten years now. With regards to "turning", most rotors are heat treated, surface hardened, to enough depth that the rotors can be turned at least twice before being discarded.

dealerflorida

On my 1997 there are electric sensors that touch the rotor when pads are worn too thin. This must trip a indicator light of some sort, although I have never seen it come on. Older and or less engineered cars just have a tab of metal that touches rotor and creates a constant sound warning it is time to change pads.
Rotor's can be turned twice, only if turned correctly, and only if prior to the turning the rotor has a somewhat even surface to work with. I regularly see rotors with such deep gashes and indents (1/8 inch) that I just trash the rotors and start new.
My daughters 2000 Civic had severe shimmying. I turned rotors and installed new pads. The shimmying came back and I found 1 pad severely worn within 2 months. I replaced rotors and pads, however I purchased after market rotors (Auto zone, low quality and price) and pads. Once again within 6 months shimmying and screeching. I then purchased all new brake parts from Honda dealer (Including new rotors) 12 months have past and running fine. I wish I had installed original Honda parts and changed rotors first time around.
Sheldon.

blackout

thanks for your input, but what I dont understand is why my pads screech when I just replaced them-4 months ago. They are ceramix pads from NAPA. which I purchased because i have read that they are also good for Lexus LS400(96ls400). i only resurfaced my front rotors once,when i put the pads on. now, I dont mind buying the rotors , but the cost of resurfacing is half of what 1 rotor costs. how much do you pay for your ls400 rotors?

wwest

Your new pads squeech because they are HIGHLY effective at braking. You can go to less effective pads that will be quieter but I would suggest you try the 3 steps I suggested above first.

ange6

new to the message boards and new to lexus with a 95 ls w/ 30k. this car also has what has been described as snap/crackle/pop sounds from the front suspension and only on the first brake application. from previous posts it sounds like tension rod, upper A arm bushing, and/or ball joint wear. question being, is this a problem that needs to be addressed asap or can it go awhile (car appears to drive, handle, and stop perfectly). also is 30k premature to have these symptoms or is age taking a toll on these parts as well? 2nd question. on cold starts there is a metallic clicking noise from the engine associated w/ engine rpm. relatively quiet and goes away in a minute or so. anything to be concerned with there? Thanks for any and all help. Lastly, anyone know any good indepentant mechanics in the phoenix area?

dealerflorida

Sorry I do not remember cost for rotor's, pad's were $48.00 for each set front & rear. Go to www.irontoad.com and ask Ryan for a estimate on rotors, he sells genuine Lexus parts at discounted prices to the general buying public (Non mechanic, non dealer).
Ceramic pads? I have heard they require special rotor's, have you asked Napa about this? perhaps the ceramic pads are not well suited for use with ordinary rotor's?
wwest post #836 gave great advice, I wonder now if your technician put back the plates and shim's? I have seen people toss them out and not put them back in with new pad's this would certainly create a problem with screeching.

Post 843 Congratulations, and enjoy your new auto! 30K is very very low miles for a 1995 year model. Have you performed a carfax check to verify the mileage is correct? When you first start a car the oil is cold and not fully distributed around upper engine parts. Some, although very little and very short lived noise might occur. If it is very loud or lasts more than a minute check it out with a pro.
For supension noise, it will get progressively worse (Not better) and in any case the car should be put on a lift and the suspension components should be looked at. A tech will put force and pressure on the various pieces to see just how loose and worn they are. This must be done with the weight of the car off the wheels, (Thus on lift). So if the components are not super worn or loose you can still drive a while, or you might find them dangerously close to failing, causing the car to be unsafe to drive as is. I am on my third LS 400, all of them have had the popping noises etc., I did not replace the components car's drove fine. I did have them checked out thoroughly though.
Sheldon

ls400boi

My '90 LS was in storage until last week when I brought it to an qualified Lexus specialist who swapped the air suspension for a standard setup, replaced a rotted out EGR pipe, and changed the rear knuckle bushings. Then 50 miles after paying the $2,150, the TRAC OFF and CHECK ENGINE lights appear simultaneously. I'm thinking it could be a bad TPS. Could the problem be linked to the work done? Any ideas/approximate cost of repair? Thanks!

wwest

Is Trac off, it always does that with engine check.

ls400boi

I don't think it's meaningless, because I've pressed the TRAC OFF switch, restarted the car, turned the TRAC back on, etc. All I get is TRAC OFF and CHECK ENGINE lights on, no matter the position of the "TRAC OFF" switch.

wwest

According to Lexus anytime the engine check indication is "on", Trac is automatically disabled. I don't understand the logic in this except maybe assumption that engien problem might be ECU not "talking"to Trac.

By meaningless I meant fix the engine problem and the Trac gets enabled again.

ls400boi

Thanks wwest, for answering my question. But here's another.
So after getting the air suspension removed and the standard suspension installed, I tried the "sport" button, and no light illuminated. Makes sense. The technician also removed the bulb in the "height" selection on the dash. So I thought everything was okay, because the technician said he would remove those bulbs, as obviously those functions no longer exist.
But today, I start the car up and the "Norm" light on the instrument cluster starts blinking. I hit the sport button, and the sport light comes on steady.
Then I hear what I think is the air compressor, going, like it used to when I would flip the "height" switch to raise or lower the car.
So I thought the air suspension was dead, but now it's come back to haunt me.
If anyone could shed some light on this bizarre problem, or tell me if it could be somehow related to the check engine warning, I'd appreciate it.

paul29

You will have to get the code or codes which have turned the check engine light on . It could be as simple as an oxygen sensor or even the oxygen sensor heater on the main OS. Your car has four OS sensors.