K9crew Posted December 24, 2003 Share Posted December 24, 2003 What a week and it's only Tuesday!! Yesterday I noticed the disk and track numbers in the head unit LCD starting to act up with some of the horizontal lines not showing up for 10 minutes or so. The second digit in the track display is still acting weird. I have the Premium sound system (not the Nakamichi). This morning on my way to work an idiot in a Mazda van made a right turn from the middle lane as I was almost level with his rear bumper in the right lane. I was doing 30mph or so as I approached the intersection, the light had just turned green and there were no cars in the right lane but this moron (who was stopped) decided to turn right rather than go straight. I might have avoided a collision if there hadn't been a vehicle stopped at the intersection on the cross street. Anyway I tried to steer away from the van then cut back to the left to avoid the other vehicle. Once the dust had settled my driver door, passenger door and rear fender were caved in ..... aarrghhhh!!! I drove 2500 miles from Houston to San Francisco a couple of weeks ago without incident (a cracked windshield from a rock in Arizona excluded) and yet after only 10 days in Hawaii some 65 year old Hawaiian without insurance or registration fux up a pristine car!! You guys on the mainland don't know how lucky you are. One day of driving in Hawaii would drive you nuts ... if it's not people driving the same speed across all three lanes or people making turns without indicating or ..... the list is endless. The price of paradise is getting WAY too high!!! Sorry to go on ... it hasn't been a good day!! :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
99lsguy Posted December 24, 2003 Share Posted December 24, 2003 K9, Bummed to hear the news...Sounds like you have a case though! Keep us informed ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VMF Posted December 24, 2003 Share Posted December 24, 2003 damn this is upsetting. same thing happend to a friend of mine while he was standing on a traffic light some bum smashed into his GS and almost totalled it. and guess what? he had no insurance and no license. bum went to prison but no $ were give to fix GS...... there is an option in insurance that if the insurance of the peroson whos fault was that will not cover full repair your insurance should add money for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K9crew Posted December 24, 2003 Author Share Posted December 24, 2003 Thanks for the kind words guys. I was contacted by the idiot's insurance company this morning (Geico) and it turns out that he does have a valid insurance policy but the card that he presented to the police officers had expired. Geico said that he admitted to making a right turn from the middle lane and that it was his fault completely so they're going to cover all costs including my $250 deductible. I have an appointment at the body shop on Monday and they've indicated that they can probably fix my car during the second week of January. In the meantime I'm driving my Jeep since my LS is too humiliated to be seen in public! :( Thanks again and Merry Christmas! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
91ls400 Posted December 25, 2003 Share Posted December 25, 2003 My friends 99 ls400 had a similar problem with the radio LCD. It started like you said, a part of the display worked off and on and more and more faded out with time. Now you cant see anything on the display. Do you think Mikado Technology, the company that fixes the LCD on the 1st gen can also fix this LCD. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K9crew Posted December 25, 2003 Author Share Posted December 25, 2003 I'm going to give Mikado a call (1-888-9-MIKADO) on Friday to ask them about repairing the head unit LCD as they've done on earlier temp/time displays ... http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...hl=lcd+repaired I'll contact Lexus as well to see how much a new head unit costs. Another option is to install an aftermarket head unit but interfacing it with the stock amp, CD changer etc would be a PITA or impossible. Having the display repaired will probably be the most cost effective solution. This LCD fiasco is unacceptable for a $60K car!! I bought a '99 thinking that Lexus would have solved the problem by now ... they sure fooled me!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
91ls400 Posted December 25, 2003 Share Posted December 25, 2003 I hear that the LCD problem is uncommon in the newer LS400's, but 2 out of 3 of the 99's I have seen have the same problem. Very upsetting that something this simple would break on such a great car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K9crew Posted December 25, 2003 Author Share Posted December 25, 2003 This might be promising .... $190 to fix a bunch of problems including a malfunctioning LCD. http://carstereohelp.com/lexus.htm I'll contact this company as well. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
99lsguy Posted December 25, 2003 Share Posted December 25, 2003 k9, Glad to hear the LS will live again! Especially that you'll keep cash in your pocket for more premium fuel needs and that LCD :D thanks for the thread - I'll cut n past it to my Lexus Database (word file) for reference. I too, have the 99LS but it has been perfect so far......knock on wood! Yes, these types of problems should be NON-EXISTENT on this car. I mean, my lowly 1994 Mazda 626 was absolutely bulletproof (mechanically, electrically, etc... ) for 8 years - and this is a LEXUS! keep us updated.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K9crew Posted December 30, 2003 Author Share Posted December 30, 2003 99, Thanks for the encouragement ... :) ... now and before I bought my '99 LS. I still love the car depsite the awful dents on the left side. I had an appointment at the body shop this morning and the good news is that they're going to replace the rear door with a new one since it's more than 65% damaged. They'll paint the new door and bake it in an oven at or near factory temps so the paint should be close to original. Here's a picture of my car after the accident. ] :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K9crew Posted December 30, 2003 Author Share Posted December 30, 2003 I called Mikado today and spoke with Sammy ... he was very helpful and very pleasant to talk to. He's going to fix my LCD on the factory head unit for $150 if I pay for shipping both ways (Xmas special he said!). I think that's a good deal since he promises a one day turnaround and he told me that the replacement LCD will last as long if not longer than the OEM one. Things are looking up! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tansupplyman Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 Certainly sounds to me that the collision caused the radio problem--they are real sensitive you know!!!!!! Sure the problem did not exist before the collision. :P Insurance does cover things like that; my CD changer was changed after my rear-ender!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K9crew Posted December 30, 2003 Author Share Posted December 30, 2003 The LCD was definitely acting up before the collision but thanks for the suggestion though!! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VBdenny Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 Sorry about your car, very nasty dent. Driving around Hawaii in a Lexus sounds like a !Removed!! How fast can you go there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K9crew Posted December 30, 2003 Author Share Posted December 30, 2003 Denny, Thanks for the commiserations! We have three freeways on Oahu ... H1, H2 and H3 and the fastest I've been is 120mph in my '99 Mustang Cobra. The problem is that you run out of space very quickly here so you have to be careful when and where you go fast. For the most part I drive between 65 and 75mph on the freeways but the highest posted speed limit is 60mph on H3. Of course the other problem is police using laser to catch speeding cars. Interestingly, when I drove from Houston to San Francisco last month I averaged 24.5 mpg over 2,500 miles but since being back I'm closer to 17 mpg. My average speed on the mainland for 2,500 miles was around 50 mph according to the computer but over here my average speed per tank is about 26 mph. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VBdenny Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 K9 The 26mph sounds like the NJ turnpike at rush hour. I figured that there probably wern't too many places where you can get on it in 50. That laser stuff the police use is nasty. I have a laser detector but when the beam hits you, you are already caught. I would certainly have your car repaired at Lexus as they typically do excellent bodywork. You will never know it was damaged. One thing to watch out for with your color car is to make sure the color matches in all light. Look during the day, and look under florescent llights as well. The most difficult part of the repair will be in this area. Sounds like you bring your car to the mainland with you? I get about 23 mpg on the Interstates but then again I cruise at about 85mph. In town I am at about 17. Premium is $1.43/gal here but I just paid $1.79 in Syracuse the other day. Luckily, I don't care about gas prices that much I just don't want to wait in lines to get it. Denny Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tansupplyman Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 Wouldn't drive a Lexus without a Valantine One and a Phazer(lazer jammer). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K9crew Posted December 30, 2003 Author Share Posted December 30, 2003 denny, I'll look into having Lexus do the repairs ... thanks for the tip! I bought the '95 SC in New York in April and the '99 LS in Houston in November and drove them both to San Francisco then shipped them to Oahu. I drove almost 4,500 miles in the SC from NY to SF and averaged around 24mpg even with bad wires, rotors and caps (replaced them when the car arrived on Oahu). Now my wife averages around 18mpg. My LS went from 24.5mpg to around 17mpg which just shows that driving on Oahu is for the most part "city driving". Anyway, the mpg numbers are within the range that Lexus provides on the window sticker. tansupplyman, How does that Phazer work? We only have laser in Hawaii ... they tried camera vans for a few months but it was a disaster!! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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