Mourning The Death Of My Sc400

[LexSC400328]

hi everyone...today i have received horrible news...my SC400 will be passing away soon. the first day i registered the car, my MOM took it out for a joy ride before i could look at everything and she drove it for over an hour with no coolant in it! :(

i get a phone call saying my engine is smoking and i INSISTED she turn it off immidiately...i guess immidiately wasnt quick enough...for the radiaor had a big hole in it, the radiator hoses had new cracks, and now he worst news of all...the head gasket is demolished.

for over 2 months the car ran beautiful...i fell in love with it..it became my pride and joy. i washed this car every day and cared for it like it was a human being. im only 17 and you would think i would be beating the hell out of it to show off to my friends but i was the complete opposite...i respected this car for how incredible of a machine it was and drove it slow and took care of it.

just recently the motor started stumbling and i posted a topic about it where it had MAF codes coming up...it turns out i fixed the codes with a new sensor...but the stumbling continued..

as of today, the mechanics had sad looks on their faces when i showed up and they say " son, the head gasket is completely fried" repair cost est. $3,000.00..estimated life span...no idea...they say the gasket was ruined from some sort of "overheating" as soon as he said that i knew what happened...(my mom's doings) he said it had just gotten progressively worse and now its near the breaking point...so my options are as follows

1) drive it until it passes away...(very soon)

2) find something i like and have him put stop leak in it to buy me time to trade it in.

i will never forget my pride and joy, first sports car, first lexus...i cant stand to let it go but i am left with no choice.

1993 Lexus SC400

--/--/93' - 11/5/08' :cries: :cries: :cries: :cries: :cries:

[dick0149]

hi everyone...today i have received horrible news...my SC400 will be passing away soon. the first day i registered the car, my MOM took it out for a joy ride before i could look at everything and she drove it for over an hour with no coolant in it! :(

i get a phone call saying my engine is smoking and i INSISTED she turn it off immidiately...i guess immidiately wasnt quick enough...for the radiaor had a big hole in it, the radiator hoses had new cracks, and now he worst news of all...the head gasket is demolished.

for over 2 months the car ran beautiful...i fell in love with it..it became my pride and joy. i washed this car every day and cared for it like it was a human being. im only 17 and you would think i would be beating the hell out of it to show off to my friends but i was the complete opposite...i respected this car for how incredible of a machine it was and drove it slow and took care of it.

just recently the motor started stumbling and i posted a topic about it where it had MAF codes coming up...it turns out i fixed the codes with a new sensor...but the stumbling continued..

as of today, the mechanics had sad looks on their faces when i showed up and they say " son, the head gasket is completely fried" repair cost est. $3,000.00..estimated life span...no idea...they say the gasket was ruined from some sort of "overheating" as soon as he said that i knew what happened...(my mom's doings) he said it had just gotten progressively worse and now its near the breaking point...so my options are as follows

1) drive it until it passes away...(very soon)

2) find something i like and have him put stop leak in it to buy me time to trade it in.

i will never forget my pride and joy, first sports car, first lexus...i cant stand to let it go but i am left with no choice.

1993 Lexus SC400

--/--/93' - 11/5/08' :cries::cries::cries::cries::cries:

that sucks man... i know what you mean, mine means the world to me as well. good luck to you

[sidex]

3k $. Why so expensive? It is necessary to change only that a gasket and to polish a head. I do not understand.

Good luck to you.

[Cwallbball10]

That really sounds bad, and I'm sorry about that. If you lived in Texas, I have a parts car with complete Engine/Transmission that I could've sold to you for close to nothing.

[LexSC400328]

well hey thanks guys for reading my situation...(i wish i lived in Texas) its bothering me so much now that i think more about it...i put so much time into this car, i put a 500 dollar quality exuast system on there, tinted the windows, bought HID's, reconditioned the whole interior, :(

and it does bother me a lot knowing what a DAMN good motor this thing has in it that is now essentially useless...but about replacing one..im not sure if its possible i just know what the mechanic told me and he said its a 20 hour job with a very expensive part..so right now im jsut lookin around on autotrader just lookin for sometihn cheap and reliable and economical to hold me off before i go to college in about 9 months...

once i find sometihng i like somehwat that i can afford...the garage said to let them know and they will put some stop leak in my car to buy me enough time to trade it in (which my deeeeeeeply religious grandfather completely disagrees with and says god will know im being dishonest if i do this) but however i have no choice..i deliver pizza for a living and i need a car so who knows... <_<

[Lethal_Threat]

well hey thanks guys for reading my situation...(i wish i lived in Texas) its bothering me so much now that i think more about it...i put so much time into this car, i put a 500 dollar quality exuast system on there, tinted the windows, bought HID's, reconditioned the whole interior, :(

and it does bother me a lot knowing what a DAMN good motor this thing has in it that is now essentially useless...but about replacing one..im not sure if its possible i just know what the mechanic told me and he said its a 20 hour job with a very expensive part..so right now im jsut lookin around on autotrader just lookin for sometihn cheap and reliable and economical to hold me off before i go to college in about 9 months...

once i find sometihng i like somehwat that i can afford...the garage said to let them know and they will put some stop leak in my car to buy me enough time to trade it in (which my deeeeeeeply religious grandfather completely disagrees with and says god will know im being dishonest if i do this) but however i have no choice..i deliver pizza for a living and i need a car so who knows... <_<

I feel for you buddy, but honestly it would be easier on your pocketbook if you found a parts car with a motor in good condition, brought the new motor/trans to a reliable private mechanic and have the motor swapped out. Even just fixing the engine in that SC4 would still make it more reliable/cheaper than any other vehicle you would trade it for. Find yourself a private mechanic used to dealing with the motors in the Toyota Tundras and he could easily deal with the motor in your car. Surely dont go through lexus for parts, search them out through outside dealers. If you cant find them at a good price i will get them for you at cost. The only reason i would do that is because you obviously love your car, i want to be able to help you get back behind that wheel. In the end if you can fix your car, you'll keep another SC4 from hitting the graveyard, and that is worth every last bit of the trouble its gonna take to get it running again.

-Julian

[LexSC400328]

I feel for you buddy, but honestly it would be easier on your pocketbook if you found a parts car with a motor in good condition, brought the new motor/trans to a reliable private mechanic and have the motor swapped out. Even just fixing the engine in that SC4 would still make it more reliable/cheaper than any other vehicle you would trade it for. Find yourself a private mechanic used to dealing with the motors in the Toyota Tundras and he could easily deal with the motor in your car. Surely dont go through lexus for parts, search them out through outside dealers. If you cant find them at a good price i will get them for you at cost. The only reason i would do that is because you obviously love your car, i want to be able to help you get back behind that wheel. In the end if you can fix your car, you'll keep another SC4 from hitting the graveyard, and that is worth every last bit of the trouble its gonna take to get it running again.

-Julian

hey bro thank you so much...but however today i have better news. my grandfather calls a private mechanic used to dealing with toyota motors...and the estimate is now down to 1,500.00 :D i can almost afford that right now even though it will compltely clear out my bank account i feel it is worth it because there is no other car like an SC400 around here. no other car would replace my SC4 in looks, reliability, or sound for that matter. so i believe im going to save up for about another week or so..then hand my baby over to this garage and make her good as new again.

however this now comes with a catch, because when the garage found out i wasnt going through them, they said "ok fine but you owe us umm lets see...ah here we go $600.00 for the time and labor we spent looking for this problem" but whatever, i think i will be okay. so im absolutely doing everything in my power to keep another SC400 alive. :)

[Lethal_Threat]

I feel for you buddy, but honestly it would be easier on your pocketbook if you found a parts car with a motor in good condition, brought the new motor/trans to a reliable private mechanic and have the motor swapped out. Even just fixing the engine in that SC4 would still make it more reliable/cheaper than any other vehicle you would trade it for. Find yourself a private mechanic used to dealing with the motors in the Toyota Tundras and he could easily deal with the motor in your car. Surely dont go through lexus for parts, search them out through outside dealers. If you cant find them at a good price i will get them for you at cost. The only reason i would do that is because you obviously love your car, i want to be able to help you get back behind that wheel. In the end if you can fix your car, you'll keep another SC4 from hitting the graveyard, and that is worth every last bit of the trouble its gonna take to get it running again.

-Julian

hey bro thank you so much...but however today i have better news. my grandfather calls a private mechanic used to dealing with toyota motors...and the estimate is now down to 1,500.00 :D i can almost afford that right now even though it will compltely clear out my bank account i feel it is worth it because there is no other car like an SC400 around here. no other car would replace my SC4 in looks, reliability, or sound for that matter. so i believe im going to save up for about another week or so..then hand my baby over to this garage and make her good as new again.

however this now comes with a catch, because when the garage found out i wasnt going through them, they said "ok fine but you owe us umm lets see...ah here we go $600.00 for the time and labor we spent looking for this problem" but whatever, i think i will be okay. so im absolutely doing everything in my power to keep another SC400 alive. :)

Shoot me a pm or call me if you need parts, or to find out if i can get them to you cheaper, goodluck with it buddy. 985-xxx-xxxx(modified by Moderator)

[UCF3]

$1500, that sounds better. That includes parts and labour? What else did the Mechanic say you need to replace?

[LexSC400328]

yeah it sounds closer however he says if he;s taking the thing apart i might as well

1) replace both head gaskets

2) polish and clean up both heads

3) replace the timing belt

it sounds about right..i would basically have a brand new engine at that point which would be awesome...NOT cheap however = /

guess we'll see what he says..i just dropped it off tonight to be worked on all monday and tuesday so ill keep you guys posted

[Lethal_Threat]

yeah it sounds closer however he says if he;s taking the thing apart i might as well

1) replace both head gaskets

2) polish and clean up both heads

3) replace the timing belt

it sounds about right..i would basically have a brand new engine at that point which would be awesome...NOT cheap however = /

guess we'll see what he says..i just dropped it off tonight to be worked on all monday and tuesday so ill keep you guys posted

No, not a brand new engine, the damage is already done, even polishing the heads and changing the gaskets wont fix the detriment to the engine from overheating. For the engine to literally be like new you would have to rebuild the rotating assembly; e.i. crankshaft, pistons, conrods, all bearings, valves/seals, so on so forth. The work your getting done wont give you a new engine, but one that works. Don't go into it thinking it will run better than before, it might, but its unlikely. While he is tearing it apart, it would be wise to change the idler pulley bearings, water pump, thermostat, and do an ignition overhaul, plugs, wires, caps, rotors.

[zeus87gn]

Hey man, just got back on here and read your news. I'm sorry to hear what happened.

I literally know exactly how you feel. I had the same thing happen to me when I let a friend borrow my 35k mile Kia.

It cost me more to get out from under that thing than I care to discuss in public.

$1500 is about right if you get a used motor installed. Especially when these are available: Lexus engine - ebay

I wish you were closer, I could help you change it out.

As previously mentioned, don't bother trying to fix what you have unless you go through the engine with a complete rebuild. I have tried engine head rebuilds with with only mediocore results. The one I mentioned above I sold running (after a head gasket replacement) and heard tell it let go a short time later, my brothers died after a standard valve job when no overheating took place. Putting fresh compression on top of an overheated (overstressed) set of crank bearings, rods & pistons is just adding insult to injury.

[LexSC400328]

well i am very happy to say that i have excellent news.

i got a second opinion (the 1500$ garage) and they ran some tests...they wrote on my receipt that there is "NO evidence of a blown head gasket" they went on to say that the problem! was the original wires that the first garage ($3,000.00 ) had put on. apparently the wires were installed faulty and one of them was rubbing against the timing belt causing it to essentially RIP. here is a picture of the while "Tom's Auto " expertly installed.... <_< <_<

now my baby runs like an SC400 SHOULD and there is no sound out there like the growl of a healthy SC400. :D

let me just say im very grateful for the help/concerns of Julian (Lethal Threat- your SC is nasty bro :D ) UCF3, & wallball & sidex...i had this idea to make like an SC400 collage of the best pictures of all our SC's. let me know what you guys think .

thanks again

[LexSC400328]

well i am very happy to say that i have excellent news.

i got a second opinion (the 1500$ garage) and they ran some tests...they wrote on my receipt that there is "NO evidence of a blown head gasket" they went on to say that the problem! was the original wires that the first garage ($3,000.00 ) had put on. apparently the wires were installed faulty and one of them was rubbing against the timing belt causing it to essentially RIP. here is a picture of the while "Tom's Auto " expertly installed.... <_< <_<

now my baby runs like an SC400 SHOULD and there is no sound out there like the growl of a healthy SC400. :D

let me just say im very grateful for the help/concerns of Julian (Lethal Threat- your SC is nasty bro :D ) UCF3, & wallball & sidex...i had this idea to make like an SC400 collage of the best pictures of all our SC's. let me know what you guys think .

thanks again

[Lethal_Threat]

well i am very happy to say that i have excellent news.

i got a second opinion (the 1500$ garage) and they ran some tests...they wrote on my receipt that there is "NO evidence of a blown head gasket" they went on to say that the problem! was the original wires that the first garage ($3,000.00 ) had put on. apparently the wires were installed faulty and one of them was rubbing against the timing belt causing it to essentially RIP. here is a picture of the while "Tom's Auto " expertly installed.... <_< <_<

now my baby runs like an SC400 SHOULD and there is no sound out there like the growl of a healthy SC400. :D

let me just say im very grateful for the help/concerns of Julian (Lethal Threat- your SC is nasty bro :D ) UCF3, & wallball & sidex...i had this idea to make like an SC400 collage of the best pictures of all our SC's. let me know what you guys think .

thanks again

I think i speak for us all when i say its a relief to hear that it was just a faulty install dealing with your spark plug wires and not an overheat failure. I'm overjoyed to hear that your pride and joy is up and purring away again! Treat her good buddy, she'll do you right lol. Thanks for the mention bro, i've only just begun with project LETHAL Threat ;)