I took my '95 LS 400 on the highway for the first time yesterday and the steering felt different than what i am used to. I am assuming that it is speed sensitive by the way it was acting. Around town(below 30) it is really light. Too light for my tastes. At highway speeds it firms up noticeably. So much so that i could feel the tires moving within the ruts of the interstate. It was very disconcerting and I found my comfort level to be 65 mph. The tires were nibbling at every imperfection and I was making a lot of steering corrections. My IROC-Z doesn't do this nor does my Impala LS. I am wondering how i will drive this thing at 80 mph like I do my other cars.
what kind of tires are you running ? Are they inflated to correct pressures ? Has any work on the power steering/pump being performed ? Hoa many miles are on the 95 ? Have you had a Lexus technician go over the car after purchase ?
127K miles. Previous owner says the tires have 16K miles on them. I have got a little bit of an alignment problem. It pulls just a little to the right. Looked at the front tires today and they are wearing on the outside edges. The rear tires are perfect. I believe that these tires have never been rotated. Went to the Lexus dealer and he ran the service history on the car. Car was maintained by original owner fairly well up to 97K miles. EXCEPT timing belt has never been changed. When I take it to them next week they will check further to see if there is a sticker on the timing belt cover. 120K service has not been done either. except for regular oil changes.
Looks like I will be spending about $2K on the car over the next few months catching up on things. With the cost of the car, shipping, sales tax, windshield replacement, radio LCD's, timing belt, plus major 120K service I will be at $13K which is exactly where I wanted to be.
The Lexus dealer here says the 120K service is $1375. That sounds like it is a little cheaper than what I have heard you guys talk about. Their timing belt change is $475. And they don't even check them until 90K now. All the ones they checked at 60K were in great condition so they won't don't include it in the 60K service anymore. They don't even recommend changing out the water pump as a precaution.
During the recent fires in the San Diego area, the cleanest air in the county may have been inside my LS. Driving through dense smoke, I could smell nothing (other than the usual subtle leather smell in my car's interior). It took only a week or so for my '01 to remind me of the impact on my air filters which I promptly changed.
Here's a shot of the engine air filter before and after the change.
I have a 98 LS 400 in need of bad pads? The car has 69k miles. My question - my local guy (non-Lexus dealer ) wants to put Raybestos pads on the car - should I let him, or should I purchase OEM pads and have him install the Lexus pads? Thanks
What you REALLY want is brake pads that stop you the quickest. And if you often do long downhill runs you don't want the pads to be subject to fading. Ask the guy behind the counter at NAPA which ones will do that best.
Has anyone driven the '04 LS 430 regular and sport suspensions? Both Car & Driver and Consumer Reports picked the LS 430 as their best choice, but both commented on sub-par handling with the base suspension. I hope and suspect the sport suspension may be like that on the Camry SE - firmer than the other Camry models, but still smooth and nice. I will drive both, but would appreciate having your thoughts before then.
I found the excellent detailed LS 430 review by New Car Test Drive. They state that the sport suspension is still smooth, not harsh like the Mercedes various others. I would still appreciate your views, and I will post my impressions after I drive both versions.
For fsmmcsi: Without going back and re-reading the C&D and Consumer Reports reviews, do I remember correctly that both tested the UL option car with the air suspension, rather than either the regular or the Euro?
I own an '04 LS430 with sports suspension and its handling reminds me of driving my old '97 BMW 5 series (it did not have sports suspension), except the LS feels bigger and still manages a very smooth ride. There is no doubt that if you was on some very bad pavement that you will feel a harsher ride but on any decent road it will still have an awesome ride. Another '04 LS owner who has the sport package swapped out the factory tires (Bridgestone summer tires) for some Michelin Sport Pilots (All season tires) and said it made that ride even better as well as quieting down road noise and he said, the handling was just as good. Probably going to be my next upgraded I've owned nothing but German cars for the last 10 years and this Lexus is the best car (so far) I've ever owned. Whenever my wife gets the chance she uses my LS430 and leaves her E320 parked in the garage.
Well, today we had about 8 inches of snow here in Pittsburgh (my best estimate since my wife said "WOW"). Anyway, it's the first real snow since installing NOKIAN WR "all-season-with-a-winter-bias" (my term, but they should adopt it as their slogan) tires on my 2003 LS430 now with 3000 miles.
The news is good. While the car did not initially go up my steep driveway like a 4X4, once I "trampled down" the snow with my wife's Explorer, the car did climb. I can tell you after owning Mercedes "S" class cars for the prior 12 years that we lived in the house, that NONE of them EVER climbed in this type of weather. I did have to turn off the VSC thingie so the tires could "spin and chug" just a little to get it up, so whoever put the "off" button on that was smart. With the VSC on, the car just sat no matter how hard I mashed on the gas. Once up my steep, deep virgin snow covered driveway, my biggest hurdle, the car rode EXCELLENT in the "regular" snow on the streets. I was totally afraid to drive my 1990 LS400 in snow back then and my "S" Class cars (I had 4 of them during the prior 12 years) as well. Between the tires and VSC (which I left ON after getting up my driveway), this car should serve me well. I live in Pittsburgh and we get nasty winters on steep hills. But I never liked front-wheel drive cars and my wife drive's an Explorer...I did not want TWO AWD vehicles. I think, finally, I have found my cake that I can eat too. Great RWD ride with reasonable snow confidence.
It still remains to be seen how long the NOKIAN tires will last. I can't imagine they'll last LESS long than the OEM Dunlop tires that people say (here on the up and down hills) they are only getting 20,000 out of. I'll be happy with 30K out of the Nokians, which I plan to leave on all year. It costs $100 each time to mount/dismount...so for $200/year it doesn't make sense to switch twice-a-year I don't think. And the Nokian ride in dry weather seems the same as the Dunlops, with better rain traction too
Have you ever seen a Rolls Royce driven by a Young guy?
Have you ever seen an older man driving a Rolls who didn't have a much younger and beautiful women at his side?.....It is strange how all those older guys have daughters but no Sons riding with them.
Hello everyone. I live in the Boston area and we received 2 feet of snow this weekend. My 1991 LS400 was perhaps the scariest car I have ever driven in the snow. No traction and no control. Any suggestions in regards to specific winter snow tires that may ease my nerves. Any information would be most appreciative. Thanks
Whatever the most current version of Blizzacks is will really help your problem.
I lived in CT. before moving to the West Coast, We had 2 rear wheel drive cars and a steep hill to climb to get out of our driveway...The Blizzacks solved the problem it was like night and day.
A second generation of these tires is now available, you will be amazed at the difference.
Hello to all - I'm a new LS owner - just purchased a 1999 LS400 local 1-owner w/37,950 miles for $25,250 (traded in by a doctor for a new S-Class)- The sticker shows that new it was $58,900 - Has Nak, Hids, Htd seats, e'thing but Nav (not impt to me)- paint (black) is almost showroom perfect, interior (ivory) is perfect, every piece of paper and service attached - (oh and as a bonus, the doctor installed a built-in K-40 radar detector)
The car was the doctor's wife's vehicle, and has all records from original sale in May 1999, and has had all services done at local Lexus dealer(conveniently only 2 mi fr my house)- I called the Lex dlr and checked to be sure ething was perfect and ckd out and it did, so I pulled the trigger - felt $25,250 was a good price - I negotiated down from the $28,975 the Merc. dlr was asking and the Lexus dealer wnats at least $28,900 for a '99 LS400 CPO w/ 57,000 miles (and it doesn't have Nak or htd seats)- so feel I got a good deal - (a low-mile, 1 owner, perfectly maintained $59K LS400 for the cost of a new 6 cyl accord or camry.
I've researched and learned a lot from great folks like you on this board and want to say thx for your advice and help over the past few months.
Any advice or suggestions to a new '99 LS400 owner? - what about cleaning upkeep? (like 'california water blade' or 'california duster?'
Thank you all again for contributing to such a helpful and positive board.
Does anyone understand the logic behind the shape of that little visor above the mirror on my '01?
I can't seem to get that thing to block the sun no matter how I adjust it. It might work better if it were shaped differently...taller at the sides rather than shorter...more of a bow tie than a diamond.
A good set of all season tires will be a great help. Almost as important, is the use of the traction control off switch on the dash.At a standstill on slippery roads it can be almost impossible to get underway. The tires want to spin....the traction control says,oh no you dont, and the car practially goes nowhere. Turning off the traction controll by pushing the button labeled as such,will allow the wheels to move and your snow, or all weather tires, will get a chance to move you down the road, Any time you turn the car off and restart, the trac. will be engaged again.Or you can push the button again to re-engage. Hope this helps. WWEST.....anything to add,please correct me if needed.
I agree with acco20 about the use of snow tires on rear wheel drive cars. A set of 4 Blizzaks make a dramatic difference on my E320. Tire Rack and Car and Driver have good comparisons of FWD, AWD, and RWD with and without snows. A lot of people would choose snows over SUVs if they realized the difference.
I caution the use of traction control, or lack there of. Turning off the traction control helps in the situation of sand or the initial acceleration. The big problem is that cars with stability control will have this system turned off when the traction control is off. In the situation when turning off the traction control gets you going, turn the traction and stability back on when moving.
Bags of sand in the trunk near/over the rear wheels. Sometimes used the sand under the tires to help me get unstuck.
In the earlier Lexus models turning off the Trac was about all you could do to get up and going on a slippery surface. The newer models do not dethrottle so quickly so you have time to modulate the throttle lightly to overcome trac activation and get the car moving.
I noticed that the A/C indicator lamp is regularly flashing while I have the climate control set to "auto". I can't find anything in my owner's manual to explain it. Any of you know what this means? Thanks. Jeff
A/C compressor clutch is enabled, always is in "auto", and the compressor is not turning as fast as the engine speed dictates. Most likely not turning at all.
Does this mean the compressor is likely shot? I really like the car but have considered getting a new one for years. I'm not up for a $1500 repair on a car with a $3000 book value. At least I can't complain about the car while I've had it.
Welcome to the club of Lexus owners. I own a '99 like yours except mine has the Nav. It now has 82K miles and looks and feel like new when it first graced the floors of the dealership in Nov 1998. At 37K miles, that car is practically new ! 4+ years and only 37K miles. You got a great deal. Last year I bought my '99 with 59K miles for $31K; the same car (42K miles, and CPO) was listed for $37K at another Lex dealership, so you can see that yours was a good deal at such low miles.
With all services done, you have absolutely NOTHING to worry about. The next service is at 60K miles and should set you back b/w $500 - $1000, depending on the Lex dealer you choose. Shop around. Otherwise, I have nothing else to offer, but a warm welcome, and in making a good automobile choice that should last you for a long trouble-free time.
I have a 1995 LS400 and it has been a joy to own all these years. No problems whatsoever except regular services according to the book, changing the battery, tires and burnt out tail lights. It now has 101K miles.
This last time I brought it to the dealer, he listed 6 "under the car" items that he said I should fix. I am not sure if he is listing these because there is nothing else in the engine compartment for him to make money on or if they are REALLY in need of fixing. Hence I need your help.
My plan is to keep the car another year until the new 05 GS is out. So please tell me if ALL the below listed items(with price to fix)need to be fixed now or which items should be fixed in order of seriousness, or if the listed items are just normal wear and tear for a car this age.
Valve cover gasket leaking - $615 Oil pan gasket leaking - $280 Dipstick O-Ring leaking - $110 Front strut bar bushings torn - $770 W/Align ball joints loose - $570 Rear Carrier bushings torn - $465
Total to fix all is $2810. And I really have no idea how serious any of these are. So please, any advice would be greatly appreciated. And thank you all for running such a helpful and positive discussion board.
I agree the ball joints should be fixed first. They are the one item on your list that should be fixed ASAP and can as they wear more prove to be a safety problem.
I have had all my bushings replaced to improve serious ride degradation which I was experiencing. The oil leaks should not be a serious problem as long as you regularly check your oil level in case the leaks get excessive.
I purchased my 1998 LS (with air suspension) new that will cross over the 200K mileage mark in the coming year and have seen a number of typical wear issues on a LS.
Thank you for your advice. You two have given me a good perspective to the list. I will get the ball joints repaired very soon. Since my wife drives this car, safety issues if any, should not be compromised.
The car rides fairly well right now, so the bushings will be repaired when the ride starts to deteriorate. Or maybe it has already degraded, I may not have noticed it because it happened so gradually. I will take another look.
There is no oil on the floor of my garage. I am assuming that the oil leaks are probably not excessive or serious at the moment, but I will keep an eye on it.
If I repair the ball joints and the bushings and keep an eye on the oil leaks, my car could be as good as new again. Tighter steering and a better ride, and maybe even allow me to drive it to 200K miles, just like yours jamefletcher2. Lexus, what a car!
Thanks again guys, your advice is very much appreciated. And wwest, you are right, where do we go nowadays to get advice without getting our pockets picked.
Nokian WR all-season (with a winter bias) tires! I installed four of them on my new (bot Sept '03) LS430 and they are WONDERFUL. I live in Pittsburgh where we get nasty winters on steep hills...including my garage at the bottom of a steep slippery blacktopped driveway. My old Mercedes S320 (1993 and 1999 models) NEVER went up that driveway in snow, period. It was a major lifestyle hassle. I heard about these NOKIAN tires on the Lexus bulletin boards and bot them! As I stated, the WR tires are an "all-season" tire...so you can leave them on year round. They come with a 50,000 mile warranty...so they don't wear out like the soft Blizzacks do, and you don't have the hassle factor of changing winter to summer tires. It's AMAZING how well my car goes up my snowy, icy driveway from a dead stop at the bottom.
I will say that the jury is still out on the wear factor. But so far this is the best $700 (with mounting) that I've ever spent on tires. Makes my RWD LS430 almost as "winterable" as my wife's Explorer. OK...not quite...but close enough.
Anyone ever had an honest,pleasant and reasonably priced service experience with an independent garage that is knowledgeable and trustworthy in the New York metro area.? if so,kindly share your experience.We would all appreciate hearing about any garage...or dealer..anywhere...that one could recommend for honesty,fair prices and good service.
I have a company apartment on the Hudson in NYC and when my LS in in NYC I use Manhattan Lexus. Their hourly rate is on the higher side for Lexus dealers (but so are their cost in Manhattan) but I have not had them try to load-on extras like some other Lexus dealers. I have found them to be honest and so busy that the last thing they need to do is add-on extra work.
The only two Lexus service departments that I have used that were certainly better were Austin Lexus in Austin, Texas and JM Lexus in South Florida.
Just checking in to see how you are doing with the car.
I took delivery of a GX470 in black with ivory leather on Friday. My wife wants to be much more proactive in driving the SUV from now on and didn't want another LX because she's not comfortable driving an suv that big. The GX is nice - rides great and handles a lot better than the LX. The back-up camera is real neat and gives you a wide angle view of what is behind you.
I think I'm going to take the LS430 with sport suspension in April when my lease ends. They had only a demo LS available for sale at Ray Catena on Friday - in Flint Mica. It's great in that color and I may well go with that color. There were two parked just outside the exit door on north side of dealer that were being picked up that day. One was in burgundy and the other in black. It looked spectacular in black (with ivory). I'm now wondering how wise it would be to have two black vehicles. I still want to see this car in cypress pearl as I love that color as well.
By the way Ray Catena is about to build another Lexus dealership in Freehold NJ on Route 9 - right next to a MB dealership.
Lastly - I thought you once said you had Dish network. If so did you know they have two new HD receivers that just came out - the 811 & 921. The latter is also a tivo unit with dual tuners (so you can watch one show and record another at the same time) and has a 250GB hard drive. It's the first HD Tivo type unit I know of. Both have DVI outputs. I just ordered the 921 to mate with a Samsung DLP TV I bought.
Hi, we are well. I have not been driving at all, as I have been spending a ton of time closing the year's trading books.
The GX470 is great, she'll love it.
I wished I had dish, as I wanted VOOM for my HDTV. Speaking of which, I am trying to get the Mrs to agree on a 50" Fujitsu plasma for the bedroom. This is hard, as it took some work on the 64" HDTV that's occupying the living room.
Not to steam up the LS430 people. Kiplinger rated it the best for 40K+ vehicles:
I also have a problem getting the MRS. to agree on electronic buys. So I know exactly what you mean. But it's a set of toys I can't resist. I held off on Plasma because I think it will be a passing technology. Did you read of Intel's TV chip last week? It's LCD based and will bring the price of LCD TV's way down in a year or so plus improve what is already a stunning picture. But LCD TV today doesn't cut it yet for me because it doesn't handle motion, hence sports, all that well. I've got the football game on right now and the HD picture on this Samsung is spectacular.
I've read about voom. Are you disastisfied with it? Dish Network says they will have about 50 HD stations before too much longer. But they only have CBS as a network so far for the local stuff.
I'm never surprised about LS430 awards. The car is great and I'm not even considering anything else right now.
My 2001 LS Ultra is now 39 months old and I'm thinking of upgrading to the 2004. Stupid really since I've never had a problem with the car and its just in perfect condition. Yet, we get bored.
I'm sucked into Ultra so I'm limited to ecu, saddle or black interiors. Ecu is too light for me and Saddle, too orange. So black is it. That further limits my exterior choices.
Has anyone seen Briarwood? Is it brownish green? How dark is it. I suppose Flint Mica is ok. Anyone have that?
I have 04 LS430 Black with Black. 17" Chrome wheels and tint--really like the look. My wife has 04 RX330 Flint Mica with Black interior--it looks real good. I think you will be happy with either Flint or Black with Black interior, just be sure to add the chrome wheels
I have a 2004 LS in Briarwood. I would best describe it as a Pearlized Bronze. The color is beautiful, and shows no dirt. I have chrome wheels and gold trim. Everyone who sees it comments on the color. One other attribute is that you will be able to find your car in the parking lot, as Lexus is only making 3% in this color.
Comments
http://info.detnews.com/autosconsumer/autoreviews/index.cfm?id=12- 235
I am assuming that it is speed sensitive by the way it was acting.
Around town(below 30) it is really light. Too light for my tastes.
At highway speeds it firms up noticeably.
So much so that i could feel the tires moving within the ruts of the interstate. It was very disconcerting and I found my comfort level to be 65 mph.
The tires were nibbling at every imperfection and I was making a lot of steering corrections.
My IROC-Z doesn't do this nor does my Impala LS.
I am wondering how i will drive this thing at 80 mph like I do my other cars.
Just some trouble-shooting questions....
Previous owner says the tires have 16K miles on them.
I have got a little bit of an alignment problem.
It pulls just a little to the right.
Looked at the front tires today and they are wearing on the outside edges.
The rear tires are perfect.
I believe that these tires have never been rotated.
Went to the Lexus dealer and he ran the service history on the car.
Car was maintained by original owner fairly well up to 97K miles.
EXCEPT timing belt has never been changed.
When I take it to them next week they will check further to see if there is a sticker on the timing belt cover.
120K service has not been done either. except for regular oil changes.
Looks like I will be spending about $2K on the car over the next few months catching up on things.
With the cost of the car, shipping, sales tax, windshield replacement, radio LCD's, timing belt, plus major 120K service I will be at $13K which is exactly where I wanted to be.
Their timing belt change is $475.
And they don't even check them until 90K now.
All the ones they checked at 60K were in great condition so they won't don't include it in the 60K service anymore.
They don't even recommend changing out the water pump as a precaution.
Here's a shot of the engine air filter before and after the change.
http://www.dustbird.com/lexus/filters.jpg
http://www.caranddriver.com/article.asp?section_id=15&article- - _id=7359&page_number=7
I've owned nothing but German cars for the last 10 years and this Lexus is the best car (so far) I've ever owned. Whenever my wife gets the chance she uses my LS430 and leaves her E320 parked in the garage.
The news is good. While the car did not initially go up my steep driveway like a 4X4, once I "trampled down" the snow with my wife's Explorer, the car did climb. I can tell you after owning Mercedes "S" class cars for the prior 12 years that we lived in the house, that NONE of them EVER climbed in this type of weather. I did have to turn off the VSC thingie so the tires could "spin and chug" just a little to get it up, so whoever put the "off" button on that was smart. With the VSC on, the car just sat no matter how hard I mashed on the gas. Once up my steep, deep virgin snow covered driveway, my biggest hurdle, the car rode EXCELLENT in the "regular" snow on the streets. I was totally afraid to drive my 1990 LS400 in snow back then and my "S" Class cars (I had 4 of them during the prior 12 years) as well. Between the tires and VSC (which I left ON after getting up my driveway), this car should serve me well. I live in Pittsburgh and we get nasty winters on steep hills. But I never liked front-wheel drive cars and my wife drive's an Explorer...I did not want TWO AWD vehicles. I think, finally, I have found my cake that I can eat too. Great RWD ride with reasonable snow confidence.
It still remains to be seen how long the NOKIAN tires will last. I can't imagine they'll last LESS long than the OEM Dunlop tires that people say (here on the up and down hills) they are only getting 20,000 out of. I'll be happy with 30K out of the Nokians, which I plan to leave on all year. It costs $100 each time to mount/dismount...so for $200/year it doesn't make sense to switch twice-a-year I don't think. And the Nokian ride in dry weather seems the same as the Dunlops, with better rain traction too
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,eyes_on_the_road,00.html
Just saw how gorgeous the SC430 looked in the T3 movie. Guess having a blonde fox driving it made all the difference...
Have you ever seen an older man driving a Rolls who didn't have a much younger and beautiful women at his side?.....It is strange how all those older guys have daughters but no Sons riding with them.
Go figure.
I lived in CT. before moving to the West Coast, We had 2 rear wheel drive cars and a steep hill to climb to get out of our driveway...The Blizzacks solved the problem it was like night and day.
A second generation of these tires is now available, you will be amazed at the difference.
I'm a new LS owner - just purchased a 1999 LS400 local 1-owner w/37,950 miles for $25,250 (traded in by a doctor for a new S-Class)- The sticker shows that new it was $58,900 - Has Nak, Hids, Htd seats, e'thing but Nav (not impt to me)- paint (black) is almost showroom perfect, interior (ivory) is perfect, every piece of paper and service attached - (oh and as a bonus, the doctor installed a built-in K-40 radar detector)
The car was the doctor's wife's vehicle, and has all records from original sale in May 1999, and has had all services done at local Lexus dealer(conveniently only 2 mi fr my house)- I called the Lex dlr and checked to be sure ething was perfect and ckd out and it did, so I pulled the trigger - felt $25,250 was a good price - I negotiated down from the $28,975 the Merc. dlr was asking and the Lexus dealer wnats at least $28,900 for a '99 LS400 CPO w/ 57,000 miles (and it doesn't have Nak or htd seats)-
so feel I got a good deal - (a low-mile, 1 owner, perfectly maintained $59K LS400 for the cost of a new 6 cyl accord or camry.
I've researched and learned a lot from great folks like you on this board and want to say thx for your advice and help over the past few months.
Any advice or suggestions to a new '99 LS400 owner? - what about cleaning upkeep? (like 'california water blade' or 'california duster?'
Thank you all again for contributing to such a helpful and positive board.
Jeff in Nashville
I can't seem to get that thing to block the sun no matter how I adjust it. It might work better if it were shaped differently...taller at the sides rather than shorter...more of a bow tie than a diamond.
Am I the only one with issues?
Actually not useless, just more trouble than worth.
I caution the use of traction control, or lack there of. Turning off the traction control helps in the situation of sand or the initial acceleration. The big problem is that cars with stability control will have this system turned off when the traction control is off. In the situation when turning off the traction control gets you going, turn the traction and stability back on when moving.
In the earlier Lexus models turning off the Trac was about all you could do to get up and going on a slippery surface. The newer models do not dethrottle so quickly so you have time to modulate the throttle lightly to overcome trac activation and get the car moving.
With all services done, you have absolutely NOTHING to worry about. The next service is at 60K miles and should set you back b/w $500 - $1000, depending on the Lex dealer you choose. Shop around. Otherwise, I have nothing else to offer, but a warm welcome, and in making a good automobile choice that should last you for a long trouble-free time.
This last time I brought it to the dealer, he listed 6 "under the car" items that he said I should fix. I am not sure if he is listing these because there is nothing else in the engine compartment for him to make money on or if they are REALLY in need of fixing. Hence I need your help.
My plan is to keep the car another year until the new 05 GS is out. So please tell me if ALL the below listed items(with price to fix)need to be fixed now or which items should be fixed in order of seriousness, or if the listed items are just normal wear and tear for a car this age.
Valve cover gasket leaking - $615
Oil pan gasket leaking - $280
Dipstick O-Ring leaking - $110
Front strut bar bushings torn - $770
W/Align ball joints loose - $570
Rear Carrier bushings torn - $465
Total to fix all is $2810. And I really have no idea how serious any of these are. So please, any advice would be greatly appreciated. And thank you all for running such a helpful and positive discussion board.
Basically they is no pace you can go to get an honist opinion, everyone you ask will want your money above honesty.
I agree the ball joints should be fixed first. They are the one item on your list that should be fixed ASAP and can as they wear more prove to be a safety problem.
I have had all my bushings replaced to improve serious ride degradation which I was experiencing. The oil leaks should not be a serious problem as long as you regularly check your oil level in case the leaks get excessive.
I purchased my 1998 LS (with air suspension) new that will cross over the 200K mileage mark in the coming year and have seen a number of typical wear issues on a LS.
Thank you for your advice. You two have given me a good perspective to the list. I will get the ball joints repaired very soon. Since my wife drives this car, safety issues if any, should not be compromised.
The car rides fairly well right now, so the bushings will be repaired when the ride starts to deteriorate. Or maybe it has already degraded, I may not have noticed it because it happened so gradually. I will take another look.
There is no oil on the floor of my garage. I am assuming that the oil leaks are probably not excessive or serious at the moment, but I will keep an eye on it.
If I repair the ball joints and the bushings and keep an eye on the oil leaks, my car could be as good as new again. Tighter steering and a better ride, and maybe even allow me to drive it to 200K miles, just like yours jamefletcher2. Lexus, what a car!
Thanks again guys, your advice is very much appreciated. And wwest, you are right, where do we go nowadays to get advice without getting our pockets picked.
I will say that the jury is still out on the wear factor. But so far this is the best $700 (with mounting) that I've ever spent on tires. Makes my RWD LS430 almost as "winterable" as my wife's Explorer. OK...not quite...but close enough.
Daryll40
if so,kindly share your experience.We would all appreciate hearing about any garage...or dealer..anywhere...that one could recommend for honesty,fair prices and good service.
Honesty, fair prices, and good service?
Pittsburg PA is the closest I would start looking.
I have a company apartment on the Hudson in NYC and when my LS in in NYC I use Manhattan Lexus. Their hourly rate is on the higher side for Lexus dealers (but so are their cost in Manhattan) but I have not had them try to load-on extras like some other Lexus dealers. I have found them to be honest and so busy that the last thing they need to do is add-on extra work.
The only two Lexus service departments that I have used that were certainly better were Austin Lexus in Austin, Texas and JM Lexus in South Florida.
I took delivery of a GX470 in black with ivory leather on Friday. My wife wants to be much more proactive in driving the SUV from now on and didn't want another LX because she's not comfortable driving an suv that big. The GX is nice - rides great and handles a lot better than the LX. The back-up camera is real neat and gives you a wide angle view of what is behind you.
I think I'm going to take the LS430 with sport suspension in April when my lease ends. They had only a demo LS available for sale at Ray Catena on Friday - in Flint Mica. It's great in that color and I may well go with that color. There were two parked just outside the exit door on north side of dealer that were being picked up that day. One was in burgundy and the other in black. It looked spectacular in black (with ivory). I'm now wondering how wise it would be to have two black vehicles. I still want to see this car in cypress pearl as I love that color as well.
By the way Ray Catena is about to build another Lexus dealership in Freehold NJ on Route 9 - right next to a MB dealership.
Lastly - I thought you once said you had Dish network. If so did you know they have two new HD receivers that just came out - the 811 & 921. The latter is also a tivo unit with dual tuners (so you can watch one show and record another at the same time) and has a 250GB hard drive. It's the first HD Tivo type unit I know of. Both have DVI outputs. I just ordered the 921 to mate with a Samsung DLP TV I bought.
The GX470 is great, she'll love it.
I wished I had dish, as I wanted VOOM for my HDTV. Speaking of which, I am trying to get the Mrs to agree on a 50" Fujitsu plasma for the bedroom. This is hard, as it took some work on the 64" HDTV that's occupying the living room.
Not to steam up the LS430 people. Kiplinger rated it the best for 40K+ vehicles:
http://autos.msn.com/advice/article.aspx?contentid=4018597&sr- c=msn
Have a safe and happy holidays!
Paul
I've read about voom. Are you disastisfied with it? Dish Network says they will have about 50 HD stations before too much longer. But they only have CBS as a network so far for the local stuff.
I'm never surprised about LS430 awards. The car is great and I'm not even considering anything else right now.
Happy holidays to you and your family as well.
I'm sucked into Ultra so I'm limited to ecu, saddle or black interiors. Ecu is too light for me and Saddle, too orange. So black is it. That further limits my exterior choices.
Has anyone seen Briarwood? Is it brownish green? How dark is it. I suppose Flint Mica is ok. Anyone have that?
A number of posters have commented on Flint Mica all seem to love it and it would go good with Black