My 96ls Is Overheating! Help

[venmichaels]

I bought a lemon. MY 96 Ls400 is overheating when idle.

When Im driving its fine, but when the car is idle for more than 5 mins with the a/c on the temperature starts rising really fast and the car overheats!!

Can anyone give me some advice??

What could it be??

[eatingupblacktop]

Don't panic, if it's a lemon, well then, make lemonade and cool yourself. Seriously, with your symptoms as you describe them it sounds like not enough air flow when you're not moving. Check or have someone check your fan clutch and the condensor fan.

[venmichaels]

Don't panic, if it's a lemon, well then, make lemonade and cool yourself. Seriously, with your symtoms as you describe them it sounds like not enough air flow when you're not moving. Check or have someone check your fan clutch and the condensor fan.

Im sorry.

Im panicking because i just bought the car..

It keeps overheating on me at lights..

Im mechanically inclined..

Is there supposed to be only one fan blowing towards the radiator or two?

Cause i see only one.. I dont know if this is normal or not..

[venmichaels]

Could anyone give me somehelp?

[marlon08901]

Could anyone give me somehelp?

Hi! I have a 90 LS 400 and althugh I am not familiar with the 96 model you have...but, we all know they are great cars. I know you just got the car and you are freaking out because it does not work as well as you expect it to but remember that it is a 12 yr old car so things are gonna need to be replaced sooner or later. You own a LEXUS so...relax, with the symptoms you got I hardly doubt is a lemon. Think POSITIVE! It can just be one of the fans not working properly or maybe the thermostat is defective. Take it to any local mechanic and they should be abe to fix the problem fairly easy. Good luck and keep us please...keep us posted!

[nc211]

Did you buy it from a dealership, or individual? 1st thing I'd do is contact the seller asap and tell them what it's doing. Get some conversations going, document them for possible later use if legal avenues are to be taken.

We need more infomration on your car though. How many miles, where are you located, did you run a carfax on it, any wrecks? That sort of stuff. I say this for many reasons. If it's a clean car, well taken care of, decent miles, then you could have a few basic and simple problems, like a stuck thermostat and cross-threaded oil drain plug. Very easy fixes and cheap too. But, if it's been wrecked, not well taken of, tons of miles, etc... then who knows? And you'll want a mechanic to look at it. It could be a leaking rear main seal, it could be a blown coolant valve internally in the engine, it could be lots of things. But first, tell us some more information about the car and your location....

PS: Additional information on the car's maintenance history can probably be had from a Lexus dealership and the car's vin number. They keep records via the vin number for whenever it was serviced at a lexus dealership, from day 1.

PPS: I assume you've got a check engine light on? Since it's overheating, i'd figure the light would be tripped. If it is, or isn't, swing by an autozone and see if they'll scan the computer for error codes. Write them down, and post them up here and we can decode them.

[Bali26]

Since it cools off when in motion, your thermostat is probably stuck close. New one is about $20.

[TA in KC]

venmichaels, based on your other post, it sounds like you are having more than one mysterious problem with your car.

We can attempt to help, but our suggestions are only going to do so much good, and may even mislead you. There are many different possibilities as to what could be causing these problems, and what we think are pretty much just going to be guesses, since we are not there looking at the car.

As I stated when I replied to your other post, I think your best option is to get this car to a Lexus dealership or independent mechanic. They will be able to get the problems ironed out and tell you exactly what's wrong. If you decide to do that, please keep us up-to-date.

[VMF]

sounds like your water pump is about to die.

do the timing belt while you are inthat area, along with both pulleys

[venmichaels]

venmichaels, based on your other post, it sounds like you are having more than one mysterious problem with your car.

We can attempt to help, but our suggestions are only going to do so much good, and may even mislead you. There are many different possibilities as to what could be causing these problems, and what we think are pretty much just going to be guesses, since we are not there looking at the car.

As I stated when I replied to your other post, I think your best option is to get this car to a Lexus dealership or independent mechanic. They will be able to get the problems ironed out and tell you exactly what's wrong. If you decide to do that, please keep us up-to-date.

HEllo everyone.

Thanks for all your suggestions.

This site is a big help indeed.

First things first.

I bought this car from an individual. He is ignoring all of my calls now...

I ran a carfax on this vehicle which came up clean.

Only 2 owners. The first owner owned the car for 7 years, and the guy I bought it from had it for 5 years.

He seemed very genuine, and told me that the car was running great with a few miscellaneous problems, Ie. speedometer blacking out etc. I throughly test drove the car before I purchased it. It wasn't untill the next day that the problems started to arise. The power steering had a slow leak. ( i confirmed this with my mechanic)

Several hours later while I was idled at walmart waiting for my girlfriend, I noticed the temperature starting to drift towards the top. Soon after, the car begin to overheat everytime Im idled for more than 5 mins.

The temperature gauge continues to rise at every stop now.

The car is very clean and it appears to be in really good shape.

Everything works great with the exception of the car overheating. I drove the car 30 miles on the freeway and it runs great.

I have no idea whats wrong with the car.. The timing belt was changed at 116k. The car now has 140k.

Relatively low for the year i assume?

I purchased this car because of it's reputation for being the most reliable car on the market.

The car has never been wrecked.

If legal matters should arise, Im not sure how to handle it..

The guy sold me the car and I wouldn't even know how to begin the process..

[venmichaels]

venmichaels, based on your other post, it sounds like you are having more than one mysterious problem with your car.

We can attempt to help, but our suggestions are only going to do so much good, and may even mislead you. There are many different possibilities as to what could be causing these problems, and what we think are pretty much just going to be guesses, since we are not there looking at the car.

As I stated when I replied to your other post, I think your best option is to get this car to a Lexus dealership or independent mechanic. They will be able to get the problems ironed out and tell you exactly what's wrong. If you decide to do that, please keep us up-to-date.

HEllo everyone.

Thanks for all your suggestions.

This site is a big help indeed.

First things first.

I bought this car from an individual. He is ignoring all of my calls now...

I ran a carfax on this vehicle which came up clean.

Only 2 owners. The first owner owned the car for 7 years, and the guy I bought it from had it for 5 years.

He seemed very genuine, and told me that the car was running great with a few miscellaneous problems, Ie. speedometer blacking out etc. I throughly test drove the car before I purchased it. It wasn't untill the next day that the problems started to arise. The power steering had a slow leak. ( i confirmed this with my mechanic)

Several hours later while I was idled at walmart waiting for my girlfriend, I noticed the temperature starting to drift towards the top. Soon after, the car begin to overheat everytime Im idled for more than 5 mins.

The temperature gauge continues to rise at every stop now.

The car is very clean and it appears to be in really good shape.

Everything works great with the exception of the car overheating. I drove the car 30 miles on the freeway and it runs great.

I have no idea whats wrong with the car.. The timing belt was changed at 116k. The car now has 140k.

Relatively low for the year i assume?

I purchased this car because of it's reputation for being the most reliable car on the market.

The car has never been wrecked.

If legal matters should arise, Im not sure how to handle it..

The guy sold me the car and I wouldn't even know how to begin the process..

PS. There are no check engine lights.

PSS. How would I request records of my car from lexus??

[JENunnez]

I looked up parts for your '96 LS400 and I see it uses a fan clutch. When your engine is hot, turn the car off and see if you can spin the fan, if it spins freely with little effort then it's bad. Be careful not to burn yourself while checking this and make sure you have the keys to the car in your pocket. Don't want to loose any fingers. If the fan is tight go for the thermostat, might be stuck half opened.

If you are going to change the fan might as well change the thermostat also.

Hope this helps.

[venmichaels]

I looked up parts for your '96 LS400 and I see it uses a fan clutch. When your engine is hot, turn the car off and see if you can spin the fan, if it spins freely with little effort then it's bad. Be careful not to burn yourself while checking this and make sure you have the keys to the car in your pocket. Don't want to loose any fingers. If the fan is tight go for the thermostat, might be stuck half opened.

If you are going to change the fan might as well change the thermostat also.

Hope this helps.

Thanks for the advice.

[venmichaels]

I just replaced the fan clutch.

The car is still overheating when idle..

Could a radiator flush help?

[JENunnez]

Damn.

Did you check the thermostat?

[venmichaels]

Damn.

Did you check the thermostat?

No not yet..

But I dont think thats the problem.

I know that the Lexus Ls400 needs premium fuel, but what happens if I used regular unleaded?

Does it ruin the car? any adverse affects on the car??

[Threadcutter]

Damn.

Did you check the thermostat?

No not yet..

But I dont think thats the problem.

I know that the Lexus Ls400 needs premium fuel, but what happens if I used regular unleaded?

Does it ruin the car? any adverse affects on the car??

Ven:

Slow Down, listen to what JENunnez is saying!

If your thermostat has failed in the closed position, the car will do exactly what you are describing.

Grade of fuel has nothing to do with it.

When you ask people's advice on this board and they answer you from experience, don't insult them by not listening.

When you have been here for a while, you'll see it too. A "newbie" starts to panic.....understandable.....

Stop and listen. There isn't one person here that won't try to help you.

Do just one thing. Check, no, just replace your thermostat. They're so cheap, there's no reason not to.

Let us know what happens. If that doesn't do it, WE will try something else.

[Bali26]

Since it cools off when in motion, your thermostat is probably stuck close. New one is about $20.

Once again, Its the thermostat dude.

[venmichaels]

Damn.

Did you check the thermostat?

No not yet..

But I dont think thats the problem.

I know that the Lexus Ls400 needs premium fuel, but what happens if I used regular unleaded?

Does it ruin the car? any adverse affects on the car??

Ven:

Slow Down, listen to what JENunnez is saying!

If your thermostat has failed in the closed position, the car will do exactly what you are describing.

Grade of fuel has nothing to do with it.

When you ask people's advice on this board and they answer you from experience, don't insult them by not listening.

When you have been here for a while, you'll see it too. A "newbie" starts to panic.....understandable.....

Stop and listen. There isn't one person here that won't try to help you.

Do just one thing. Check, no, just replace your thermostat. They're so cheap, there's no reason not to.

Let us know what happens. If that doesn't do it, WE will try something else.

I do apologize, I will change out the thermostat today.

i didn't mean to offend anyone by any means..

Can anyone explain to me how to do this?

I'd really hate to take it to a mechanic and get charged an arm and a leg for something simple that i can do myself.

Thanks in advance.

I'll keep everyone updated.

[JENunnez]

Ven please keep us posted on your overheating problem.

Did you get it resolved?

[venmichaels]

I will be changing out the thermostat and doing a radiator flush tomorrow morning.

I will keep everyone updated.

I hope this works! :(

[Harky]

I had the same problem with my 96...it was the fan clutch.

I needed to buy 2 of them before I got one that worked.

When your car is warmed up at idle, there should be a LOT of air blowing at idle.

I saw a huge difference in air movement when i put in the second clutch.

The first clutch was a china knock-off. It fit but it did not look like the OEM unit. It was smaller. and the car ran hot with the AC on.

The second clutch looked different from the first - larger and much like the OEM clutch.

It was more expensive, but it worked!

[venmichaels]

I had the same problem with my 96...it was the fan clutch.

I needed to buy 2 of them before I got one that worked.

When your car is warmed up at idle, there should be a LOT of air blowing at idle.

I saw a huge difference in air movement when i put in the second clutch.

The first clutch was a china knock-off. It fit but it did not look like the OEM unit. It was smaller. and the car ran hot with the AC on.

The second clutch looked different from the first - larger and much like the OEM clutch.

It was more expensive, but it worked!

Interesting...

I purchased my fan clutch from autozone for 70 bucks..

It was manufactured in china.

Maybe I should replace it again?

[venmichaels]

I had the same problem with my 96...it was the fan clutch.

I needed to buy 2 of them before I got one that worked.

When your car is warmed up at idle, there should be a LOT of air blowing at idle.

I saw a huge difference in air movement when i put in the second clutch.

The first clutch was a china knock-off. It fit but it did not look like the OEM unit. It was smaller. and the car ran hot with the AC on.

The second clutch looked different from the first - larger and much like the OEM clutch.

It was more expensive, but it worked!

Did your car overheat with the a/c on or off??

Mine seems to overheat regardless..

It cannot be left idle..

I drove over 40 miles straight on the highway yesterday and the temperature didnt move one bit.

But as soon as I came to a red light in the middle of rush hour, the temperature shot straight up.

Im hoping its just the thermostat..

[venmichaels]

changed thermostat and radiator cap.

My grandfather may have spotted the problem though.

The fan in FRONT of the radiator isnt spinning.

He says that we need to replace the 'relay switch'

Does this sound right???