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Just Bought A 91 Ls400 Today


Falcon6

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Hi everyone,

I just bought a 91 LS400 w/ 165K miles. I paid $3700. Everything on the car works and it does not have the air suspension. Of course there are some things that will be needing attention and I will list some of them below as I desire your help to shorten my search for the best solution. I had to drive from Charlotte NC to Canton GA to get the car and I must say that the ride back was awesome.

As I mentioned earlier, here are some things that need attention:

1. Suspension: I have read a ton of posts on this forum concerning the suspension and I think that I know the general direction I want to go but my question is this; I think "lextreme" has a post in the buyer's guide on converting "air" suspension to conventional. I saw that the Strutmasters conversion came with the coil spring already attached to the strut. Can this kit replace a conventional system as well? This will save me from having to compress the new springs etc.

2. Fog Lights: I tried to turn them on but either I didn't follow the correct procedure (seemed like a simple rotating of a knob) or they are malfunctioning. Any ideas?

3. Slightly worn leather: I've read about having leather re-dyed, is this the way I need to go or can I condition back to life. There's just slight discoloration and minor cracking in a couple of areas. If I nee to re-dye then would a regular auto upholstery shop do it?

4. Missing left rear wood grain for door: Any good sources for pieces or kits?

5. What color is it? I don't yet know how to post pics but the car seems to be a Taupe color with matching interior leather. It has a slightly darker shade to the lower cladding. Anyone know the factory color name?

Thanks in advance for your input and I look forward to many years with you guys and my new addition.

Falcon6

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Welcome Falcon6.

I can't recommend having the seats re-dyed. My dealership had that done when I purchased my used 95LS and it only lasted a year or two.

An upolstery shop should be able to solve the problem with a more lasting fix.

Pat

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Hi everyone,

I just bought a 91 LS400 w/ 165K miles. I paid $3700. Everything on the car works and it does not have the air suspension. Of course there are some things that will be needing attention and I will list some of them below as I desire your help to shorten my search for the best solution. I had to drive from Charlotte NC to Canton GA to get the car and I must say that the ride back was awesome.

As I mentioned earlier, here are some things that need attention:

1. Suspension: I have read a ton of posts on this forum concerning the suspension and I think that I know the general direction I want to go but my question is this; I think "lextreme" has a post in the buyer's guide on converting "air" suspension to conventional. I saw that the Strutmasters conversion came with the coil spring already attached to the strut. Can this kit replace a conventional system as well? This will save me from having to compress the new springs etc.

2. Fog Lights: I tried to turn them on but either I didn't follow the correct procedure (seemed like a simple rotating of a knob) or they are malfunctioning. Any ideas?

3. Slightly worn leather: I've read about having leather re-dyed, is this the way I need to go or can I condition back to life. There's just slight discoloration and minor cracking in a couple of areas. If I nee to re-dye then would a regular auto upholstery shop do it?

4. Missing left rear wood grain for door: Any good sources for pieces or kits?

5. What color is it? I don't yet know how to post pics but the car seems to be a Taupe color with matching interior leather. It has a slightly darker shade to the lower cladding. Anyone know the factory color name?

Thanks in advance for your input and I look forward to many years with you guys and my new addition.

Falcon6

You got a good deal. I can help with question #1 and #3 only.

#1

I called strutmasters and asked the same question a few weeks ago regarding my '92 ls400. They said yes, their struts will fit in place of passive factory struts as well as air.

I've heard the strutmasters are a little bit stiff, so I actually purchased the arnott industries struts instead. It wasn't a very informed decision since I couldn't find very much credible info on either. I am probably going to install them this weekend.

#3 I got some cleaner and conditioner from the lexus dealer. clean and condition all of it 2-3 times about 2-3 days apart. Rub the cleaner into really nasty stains with a soft brush, like a toothbrush or fingernail brush. Mine looked great after that! What you're describing is nothing compared to what mine looked like.

None-leather surfaces just clean with a damp, soft cloth. The parts manager at the dealer strongly advised against armor-all or anything like that.

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Hi everyone,

I just bought a 91 LS400 w/ 165K miles. I paid $3700. Everything on the car works and it does not have the air suspension. Of course there are some things that will be needing attention and I will list some of them below as I desire your help to shorten my search for the best solution. I had to drive from Charlotte NC to Canton GA to get the car and I must say that the ride back was awesome.

As I mentioned earlier, here are some things that need attention:

1. Suspension: I have read a ton of posts on this forum concerning the suspension and I think that I know the general direction I want to go but my question is this; I think "lextreme" has a post in the buyer's guide on converting "air" suspension to conventional. I saw that the Strutmasters conversion came with the coil spring already attached to the strut. Can this kit replace a conventional system as well? This will save me from having to compress the new springs etc.

2. Fog Lights: I tried to turn them on but either I didn't follow the correct procedure (seemed like a simple rotating of a knob) or they are malfunctioning. Any ideas?

3. Slightly worn leather: I've read about having leather re-dyed, is this the way I need to go or can I condition back to life. There's just slight discoloration and minor cracking in a couple of areas. If I nee to re-dye then would a regular auto upholstery shop do it?

4. Missing left rear wood grain for door: Any good sources for pieces or kits?

5. What color is it? I don't yet know how to post pics but the car seems to be a Taupe color with matching interior leather. It has a slightly darker shade to the lower cladding. Anyone know the factory color name?

Thanks in advance for your input and I look forward to many years with you guys and my new addition.

Falcon6

You got a good deal. I can help with question #1 and #3 only.

#1

I called strutmasters and asked the same question a few weeks ago regarding my '92 ls400. They said yes, their struts will fit in place of passive factory struts as well as air.

I've heard the strutmasters are a little bit stiff, so I actually purchased the arnott industries struts instead. It wasn't a very informed decision since I couldn't find very much credible info on either. I am probably going to install them this weekend.

#3 I got some cleaner and conditioner from the lexus dealer. clean and condition all of it 2-3 times about 2-3 days apart. Rub the cleaner into really nasty stains with a soft brush, like a toothbrush or fingernail brush. Mine looked great after that! What you're describing is nothing compared to what mine looked like.

None-leather surfaces just clean with a damp, soft cloth. The parts manager at the dealer strongly advised against armor-all or anything like that.

But for some reason, the day after I bought the Arnott Industries struts, they lowered the price by $99. I emailed them regarding this....and the response I just got is:

"Sorry. Nothing personal.

-Michael"

At least a generic 'we value your business' would make me more likely to recommend this company in the future. So go with Strutmasters I suppose.

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Installed the Arnott struts on the front today. One of the shocks was rotated about 10 degrees from where it is supposed to be, so I had to take it to a shop to get it adjusted. This completely defeats the purpose of buying them pre-assembled/bolt on. I cannot reccomend these guys.

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Dan - I wish I had posted earlier about my conversion to Arnott Struts, but I have to say that it has not been a very good experience and I wouldn't recommend them. I converted my damaged air ride to Arnott on all 4 after being told by a Strutmasters rep that my '91 LS will ride like his '96 Maxima with their kit. Well, I was assured by Arnott that the damping force on his conversion kit would be similar to the current air ride.

Installation was fairly easy although they did not include any installation instructions. I also noticed that Arnott's shocks were "made in China" but I gave them a chance. After putting 5,000 miles on them, the ride is consistently too harsh in the front and nowhere near the smoothness of the air ride from before. I've also noticed that I cannot put a load of any sort in the back of the car or I will bottom out over bumps. So I have a firm ride that also fails under load. Crazy. I know the problem is with Arnott as I had just replaced most other front end parts including upper and lower control arm bushings, stabilizer bar bushings, stabilizer links, and strut rod cushions. The only variable I have to admit to is that I now have polyurethane UCA bushings but I still don't have faith in Arnott's kit.

If I had to convert again, I'd go with Strutmasters, but in Falcon's case, since he is not converting, I would buy the OEM shock from Irontoad, Park Place or Sewell and find an experienced shop to compress the springs.

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Dan - I wish I had posted earlier about my conversion to Arnott Struts, but I have to say that it has not been a very good experience and I wouldn't recommend them. I converted my damaged air ride to Arnott on all 4 after being told by a Strutmasters rep that my '91 LS will ride like his '96 Maxima with their kit. Well, I was assured by Arnott that the damping force on his conversion kit would be similar to the current air ride.

Installation was fairly easy although they did not include any installation instructions. I also noticed that Arnott's shocks were "made in China" but I gave them a chance. After putting 5,000 miles on them, the ride is consistently too harsh in the front and nowhere near the smoothness of the air ride from before. I've also noticed that I cannot put a load of any sort in the back of the car or I will bottom out over bumps. So I have a firm ride that also fails under load. Crazy. I know the problem is with Arnott as I had just replaced most other front end parts including upper and lower control arm bushings, stabilizer bar bushings, stabilizer links, and strut rod cushions. The only variable I have to admit to is that I now have polyurethane UCA bushings but I still don't have faith in Arnott's kit.

If I had to convert again, I'd go with Strutmasters, but in Falcon's case, since he is not converting, I would buy the OEM shock from Irontoad, Park Place or Sewell and find an experienced shop to compress the springs.

I too am just replacing the passive factory struts with the Arnott struts. I thought I'd save a few bucks and DIY. In hindsight this may have been a bad idea. Probably should have done just that....have them rebuilt from OEM parts by a good builder. As ususal, pay a little more to get it done right.

This company certainly does not value repeat business, and their product is somewhat dissapointing.

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