My 1990 Ls400

[oakland73rd]

MY 1990 LS400 WONT LET ME SHIFT GEARS WHEN I STEP ON THE BRAKE AND MY BRAKE LIGHTS DONT TURN ON. BUT WHEN MY BRAKE LIGHTS WORK I CAN SHIFT GEARS.WHAT CAN I DO TO FIX THIS WHAT DO I GOT TO SPEND I DONT WANT TO TAKE IT TO A SHOP I WANT TO KNOW IF I CAN FIX IT MYSELF THANX 2 ANY AND ALL THAT REPLY

[Leadfoot]

Is your alternator in good condition? any leaks from the power steering? A low battery voltage can cause things to malfunction. Please check the voltage across the battery terminals with the engine running, anything less than 14.6 volts is bad.

You could also investigate the rear wiring loom in the trunk lid. You can search the forum using the terms "broken wire" and read about it. The posts mainly refer to the reverse light, not the brake lights, but it is a known fault with the early cars (they made the looms just that bit too short) and could be a root cause for your problem.

Good luck.

[steveuk]

Is your alternator in good condition? any leaks from the power steering? A low battery voltage can cause things to malfunction. Please check the voltage across the battery terminals with the engine running, anything less than 14.6 volts is bad.

You could also investigate the rear wiring loom in the trunk lid. You can search the forum using the terms "broken wire" and read about it. The posts mainly refer to the reverse light, not the brake lights, but it is a known fault with the early cars (they made the looms just that bit too short) and could be a root cause for your problem.

Good luck.

Hi,

It might be worth checking the brake light switch located on a bracket above the brake pedal ( you should also be able to overide the brake pedal and shift the transmission by pressing the red overide button at the front of the shift panel)

Cheers,

Steve

[dcfish]

Is your alternator in good condition? any leaks from the power steering? A low battery voltage can cause things to malfunction. Please check the voltage across the battery terminals with the engine running, anything less than 14.6 volts is bad.

You could also investigate the rear wiring loom in the trunk lid. You can search the forum using the terms "broken wire" and read about it. The posts mainly refer to the reverse light, not the brake lights, but it is a known fault with the early cars (they made the looms just that bit too short) and could be a root cause for your problem.

Good luck.

Hi,

It might be worth checking the brake light switch located on a bracket above the brake pedal ( you should also be able to overide the brake pedal and shift the transmission by pressing the red overide button at the front of the shift panel)

Cheers,

Steve

100 to 1 odds: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...hl=TRUNK+WIRING

http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...?act=Search&f=4

Is your alternator in good condition? any leaks from the power steering? A low battery voltage can cause things to malfunction. Please check the voltage across the battery terminals with the engine running, anything less than 14.6 volts is bad.

You could also investigate the rear wiring loom in the trunk lid. You can search the forum using the terms "broken wire" and read about it. The posts mainly refer to the reverse light, not the brake lights, but it is a known fault with the early cars (they made the looms just that bit too short) and could be a root cause for your problem.

Good luck.

Hi,

It might be worth checking the brake light switch located on a bracket above the brake pedal ( you should also be able to overide the brake pedal and shift the transmission by pressing the red overide button at the front of the shift panel)

Cheers,

Steve

100 to 1 odds: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...hl=TRUNK+WIRING

http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...?act=Search&f=4

Then there is always this: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...?act=Search&f=4

[1990LS400]

Hi,

It might be worth checking the brake light switch located on a bracket above the brake pedal ( you should also be able to overide the brake pedal and shift the transmission by pressing the red overide button at the front of the shift panel)

Cheers,

Steve

I'm with steveuk on this one and think it is the switch above the pedal. The trunk hinge wiring problem usually comes with other symptoms including erratic shifting and the "R" indicator light occasionally flashing when in Drive.

[Leadfoot]

Have to agree with you all, the brake switch is the best thing to check first, likely to be the culprit. I misread the post as thought he was driving and having the trouble, rather than just selecting drive.

Hehehe always read the small print????

[dcfish]

Have to agree with you all, the brake switch is the best thing to check first, likely to be the culprit. I misread the post as thought he was driving and having the trouble, rather than just selecting drive.

Hehehe always read the small print????

Well, I just thought I would post it because thewre have been multi-symptoms in regards to the hinge wiring.

It is worth checking out. ;)

[obergc]

Left trunk hinge wiring is the first thing I would check.

[1990LS400]

The trunk hinge problem did not cause the transmission to not shift out of park when I had this same problem where the transmission would not shift out of park.

I had both the trunk hinge problem and a failed switch at the brake pedal on my previous 90 LS. The symptoms of the two problems are completely different.

Not to say that the wire in the trunk hinge might not be in the process of breaking. The person who bought my 90 LS from me told me about two weeks ago that he had to repair the trunk hinge wire again. My first fix of the trunk hinge wire lasted about four years.

[oakland73rd]

THANKX YALL I GOT IT FIXED IT WAS THE BRAKE SWITCH I FIXED IT YALL REALLY HELPD A !Removed! OUT

[logic]

THANKX YALL I GOT IT FIXED IT WAS THE BRAKE SWITCH I FIXED IT YALL REALLY HELPD A !Removed! OUT

No need to embarrass yourself by acting ignorant, a simply thankyou would have saficed.