Lexus LS: Problems & Solutions

wwest

Has become:

Only the computer knows....

Without the codes it would take an engineer/programmer several days to troubleshoot a Lexus.

ppb1

I have a 1997 Lexus LS 400 which sustained a front right fender bender in November 2002. My son did the same fender bender in August of '03. Prior to the first fender bender I was getting 20 mpg in the city and 28 on the highway. After the first repair shop fixed it, no change in the mileage. After the second shop fixed it I am now getting 20% fewer mpg. No changes in the type of fuel (brand) or driving methods/conditions. I had it at my local dealer and they put it on the computer and it checked out fine. Any idease as to what may be causing this are appreciated. TIA.

ppb1

nvbanker

I suspect it's unrelated to the accident, whatever it is....

wwest

What's the tire wear pattern look like??

rd1411

You are still within 1 standard deviation of the mean....20 mpg now 16mpg.....28mpg now 23 mpg.....try taking your car on a long trip and use a better grade oil valvoline high milage 5w30....and try v-power from shell

rd1411

what do ect stands for and the rwd button what are their functions

edinphila

Not sure where to turn, but I need help. I am the proud owner of a 93 LS 400 with 106,000 miles and runs like a champ. Now we need a second car. A Toyota dealer has a 1993 SC 400 with only 25,000 miles on it. They want $15,000. I went by to look at it. It was in good shape in and out. A few scratches, etc. This car sat for years, I think. The last time it had seen a dealer for service was five years ago at 19,000 miles. I started it and it ran rough-probably from inactivity and neglect. And, the TRAC light was on. The dealer is offering a 90-warranty and they offered to let me take it to any mechanic I wanted for an inspection. Do I take it to an independent mechanic, or a local Lexus dealer? Or do I just forget it and keep looking? I'm a bit concerned about a car that barely averaged 2,000 miles/yr and only saw a mechanic five or six times in its life. Any thoughts?

rd1411

dont buy the car 93 sc 400....buy your wife a 300es

nvbanker

You should be concerned. If it ran great and all seemed well, or what ever wasn't was easily identifiable and correctable, it would be risky enough. If it runs badly and has serious lights out that may require expensive modules and stuff, the dealer should correct those problems before trying to market it, and especially for that price! If he hasn't he doesn't want to get into it or can't find why it's running badly. Probably has dropped an injector, but could be much worse.

I would pass. Now, for $6,000, I'd take the chance and buy it.

safa

Hi
I have a lexus ls400 1994 W/mileage of 145000.

when I turn on the car and start to drive and engine temp becomes normal the check engine lights turns on and the engine starts to vibrate,It seems that if the car using 5,6 cylanders not the full 8, then when I shut the car off and restart again everything is normal until about 3 or 4 minutes and then same problem occur again.can you please help me W/this problem. thank you

rd1411

sounds like you have some bad spark plug wires...

wwest

the fuel pressure bypass back to the tank.

paul29

My suggestion is to retrieve the fault code/s first. Previous posts will tell you how to do this . When you get the code/s post them/it and I/someone will tell you what the indicated fault is and you go on from there It appears something is switching on/off possibly EGR valve. Good luck

gee35coupe

I changed by plugs and wires. But I used Bosch parts. Now I have a hesitation on tip of the throttle. It runs fine and high rpms are awesome. Sounds like a race car. The bosch wires seemed a little long and I used Bosch +4 plugs. Should I go back to OEM stuff?

My cruise also acts strange. It surges a bit on hills.

safa

Hi
I have a lexus ls400 1994 W/mileage of 145000.

when I turn on the car and start to drive and engine temp becomes normal the check engine lights turns on and the engine starts to vibrate,It seems that if the car using 5,6 cylanders not the full 8, then when I shut the car off and restart again everything is normal until about 3 or 4 minutes and then same problem occur again.can you please help me W/this problem. and now I did read the code,the code no is 55 I checked in the troublecodes.net,code 55=(KS signal)now I don't Know what is that .can any body help me .Thank you

paul29

This is telling you the #2 knock sensor signal is not being sent to the engine computer within a specific paramater. See post #1128 and #1130 for the same problem with the #1 knock sensor.

cacman

I have a 1998 LS 400 with 69k miles on it. When I toggle the TCS button to turn the system on / off, nothing appears on my dash. The slip diff does seem to be working since it has appeared on my dash during a couple of snow storms this year. My question, does it sound like a major repair to get the TCS to work properly? Should this only be fixed by LEXUS, or could a qualified mechanic fix it? Thanks

paul29

Does the trac light come on , during the bulb test phase , when you first turn the ignition switch on ?

safa

Hello every body
I have Ls 400 1994,When I turn engine on my low pressure lamp go on , oil level is full and other thing is when I turn swich on and I did not stating the engine after 1 or 2 min lamp go on .can any one help me? thank you

paul29

Your car has a low oil pressure light and also a low oil level light . Check your manual to verify which one you are seeing .

cacman

The Traction Light DOES light up during the bulb test of the car.

rjbusenitz

I am wanting to change the struts on my 90 ls400, but don't know how hard it is going to be. Is it a pretty straightforward process that I can figure out? or do I need a shop manual? or does anyone have some simple directions? Also, the struts are making a clunking noise when I go over a pot hole, do I need to replace the strut housing as well, or anything else? Where is the best place to get these parts, whether they be after-market or oem.

vcheng

It could be the ball joints, or a number of other components such as bushings in the suspension.

rjbusenitz

I'm pretty sure it is the struts, the car has 150K and they've never been replaced. If I replace the struts, should i replace the bushings at the same time to save labor? or is there some way of determining if it is the ball joints/bushings? How difficult to replace these items?

wwest

LS struts.

You definitely need a shop manual and good spring compressors.

rd1411

The dealer sent me a printout oof the service ever performed on my vehicle....IT DOES NOT GIVE A TOTAL DETAIL IT JUST SAY 100K MILE SERVICE....DOES THAT MEAN THAT EVERY SERVICE ITEM WAS REPAIRED,REPLACED,OR INSPECTED

nvbanker

Whatever it says is included in the manual at 100K, should have been performed.

rjbusenitz

Does anyone have a shop manual or instructions on removing the struts online or in a pdf file? or how much would a shop manual cost me? And any recommendations on buying spring compressors? I've seen some on ebay for as low as $30. will these work?

rjbusenitz

also, any advice on what type of struts to get? i've seen replacement struts that have the adj ride height springs on them (JIC) and others from Strutmasters that claim to work as well or better and are similar priced. any advice?

vcheng

wwest

OEM equivalent purchased elsewhere than Lexus.

safa

hello everyone,
lexus ls400 1994 when I start the car my oil lamp (orange lamp) goes on and another problem is all of the lamps on the rear fenders left and right except the signal lamp don't work and I have one turned on light in my instrument that shows that they don't work I have checked the lamps and the fuse all of them were in good condition can somebody help me to fix my problems? also my oil is full

thank you

megosdad

My sister has a 1991 ES300 which we need to keep going (going through a messy divorce). The only problem is the rear air shocks on the car have failed (system leak) and they want big $$ for the shocks. Does anyone know if you can replace the air shocks with a regular shock (will it share a common shock with a Camery or another car?) The car has 300000 mile on it and it still drives great (except for the shocks leaking). I would appreciate the help because she cannot afford another car.

wwest

Doesn't have air shock....

paul29

If the yellow indicator resembles an "alladin type" lamp then this is your oil level light. Your oil level does not need to be down very far for this to light . As you say the oil is at the full mark on tke stick then there must be a problem in the oil level circuit/switch .

cacman

Did you notice my reply to you on the TCS - It does light up when the car starts - thanks for your help

paul29

The trac system by default is on every time you start the car . You manually have to disable it with the switch after starting every time if desired . When disabled the trac/off light should illuminate ( just a bit of information ). You can check the electronic side for codes by turning the ign sw on and connect the Tc and E1 connectors on the TDCL connector ( don't make a mistake doing this ) Then count the blinks on trac light for the code/s . You can physically check the system for activation by safely trying to spin the wheels on a slippery/loose surface If the trac system operates and the trac light illuminates then it may just be your trac switch/circuit that is suspect.

cacman

The traction system does seem to be operating fine. I have tested the system on snow, and all seems to be well with the system. The switch to turn the system off - does NOT seem to be working. When I toggle the switch ( near the ashtray) it does not appear to turn the system off ( the light on the dash does not light, and when I tested it in snow, it did not seem to override the TCS ) I was hoping it might be as simple as a fuse - probably not the case. Anyhow, thanks for all your help / advice.

deadair

During the recent cold snap (0 and below), my 1993 400 LS display (MPH/Tach/ fuel) does not light up until the heater kicks in - first thing in the a.m. Should I be concerned? Is it a short or faulty fuse.

sv7887

Deadair,

  Sounds like a metal contact issue to me. Sounds like the metal contact contracts during the cold, and then expands once your heater kicks in. I had a similar problem with a Domestic car nearly ten years ago. Have a mechanic check all the connections. I doubt that's a serious issue.

As for the ES300 Shock issue..
Just get the parts from Irontoad.com or any dealer. The parts are inexpensive, and any competent independant mechanic can do the repair.

Hope this helps,
SV

bitkahuna

FYI, I don't believe the LS has a slip diff.

safa

hi I have one problems with rear lamps on the rear fenders L/R side .both of them does not work and I have one turned onb light in instrument for that .I did chech bulbs ,they are ok I checked the fuse too,can any one help me
thank you

sv7887

Hi All,
   Finally got the Engine Mounts replaced on the '92 LS. (Damaged in a 30 MPH side impact..Long story..) The dealer also found a cracked Coolant tank. The insurance company also agreed to fix it.
   So I only got the car back two days ago. I was wonderfully amazed with how the car ran. After 6 visits to the dealer in 8 weeks, I was finally satisified with the post accident repairs. I'd gotten two engine mounts, a new front bumper, LF quarter panel, and whole Left Front suspension out of it.
    Yesterday, I was driving, and the Tach Needle began to flicker, and with a puff of smoke shorted out. AHHHH! How much is this going to cost me this time? Or should I just sell the damn car?

It's hard to believe, given the mileage on this car (87K). I know plenty of LS owners with 100K+ that haven't had these sort of problems. I bet the Lexus service guys are going to have a laugh tomorrow when I call them yet again...They in fact told me to sell the car after the 90K service...

What do you LS owners think out there? Should I just pay up or replace it with something else?

Sorry to whine about this car continously, but as you can tell, I'm really annoyed..It was PERFECT before that lady hit it!!!!

Thanks,
SV
(

gardencar

After 154,000 miles and many years of faithful service, we decided to buy a new Lexus and retire our old LS. Just had it smogged for registration last year, when it passed with flying colors.

This year, however, the state of CA added the dreaded NOX test. This is the most expensive and obnoxious test yet. To make a long story not so long, my car failed the NOX.
Called around to the dealers and some independent shops and got quotes of $277 to $360 just to diagnose the problem and perhaps spend as much as $900 additionally if catalytic converters were needed. One shop even made the idiotic suggestion that I might need O2 sensors, another $600 to $900.

Fortunately, had the problem diagnosed and solved at Prestige Auto in S.F. They replaced my EGR modulator valve and vacuum control valve. They were great guys and the service was terrific. Total cost, $427.00 including a new smog certificate.

newjones

Need to buy a rack and pinion set - how do you know if the rack and pinion set needed is the evo type $700.00 or the wo type $275.00, for a 1990 ls400

paul29

All 1990 ls400's P/S rack & pinion are the evo type (electronic variable orifice). They are just asking if you want a new/rem pressure control valve (evo) with the new/rem unit or you are going to use your existing evo on it .

pcsbob

I am new to the board and would appreciate some clarification on replacing bulbs on the climate control module.

I have a 93 LS 400 that has 1 or 2 bulbs burned out. Some postings indicated owners had found this unit to be sealed and were unable to replace the bulbs. Can anyone confirm that the 93 LS a control unit with replaceable bulbs.

Also can anyone tell me where I can purchase these bulbs. It would be great if someone had a specific part number.

Thanks

pcsbob

cacman

Any thoughts after reading my post # 1208. Thanks for all your help, and your insight to various ?'s/problems.

paul29

Sorry about that , from your reply in post #1208 I assumed you were going to leave it as is . Further , there are two trac bulbs , the trac/off bulb at the bottom of the cluster and the trac indicator bulb which indicates trac action in the center of the cluster , ( are both bulbs working when first turning ign sw on ? ) Now the Trac switch itself is just a grounding switch ie the switch just toggles the Trac function at the ecu on and off by grounding each time it is pushed . The trac function defaults to "on" after the bulb check every time you turn the ign sw on and the trac/off light goes off. I would remove the panel and check that the switch is plugged in , if someone has replaced bulbs/etc they could have left it unpluged , next at the switch check the w-b wire for continuity to ground , if good check continuity of y-g wire contact at the sw (wire unhooked) to ground with sw pushed , if good then the switch is ok . By pushing switch you are grounding the y-g wire which goes to the Trac ecu , try momentarily grounding this (y-g) wire with ign on and watch your trac/off light. Does it come on ?

mgrepairs

'95LS, 150K...yes, the dreaded air shocks! Left rear drops as much as four inches overnight. Upon start up it inflates and works fine. Dealer replaced the shock...it now drops about two inches overnight. It's in there now for the third time. Good people, but there are no codes, and they do not see many with the air system.
Love the car, just want it fixed.