Need Some Help With A 1993 Ls400

[blake918]

I have found a LS that I'm pretty interested in. It's a 1993 with 124k, black with tan interior, memory seats(I pushed the button, but they did nothing), the body only has 1 ding and some chips on the front bumper, the interior needs a good bit of leather work and on the outside the peeling centercaps are my biggest concern, of course the a/c lcd is gone, their asking $6200.

However, their are a few things that trouble me about the car. First, it it looks as though the rear seat has been removed, and they didn't put it back properly because the back seat is just sitting their...it's not bolted down or anything. Why would they want to remove the back seat??? It has the VIN stickers on every body part if this makes any difference.

Next, I was poking around in the trunk, and while I was looking at the spare, I noticed that everything under the trunk mat was covered in corrosion or mildew (maybe?). Any ideas about this? Also, in the trunk was a bottle of motor oil. The lady insisted that the car doesn't burn oil. It didn't smoke or anything, so this is a little confusing too!

Lastly, I started the engine, and then I went out to the hood and listened. I heard a soft clacking sound. Is a valve adjustment in the near future? If the valves aren't adjusted soon, is their any damage that can occur?

The car drives like a dream :D ! It feels sooo much heavier and solid compared to my ES. The only thing I didn't really like too much is the seats are really springy-is this a common thread? And the V8 B)!!! This thing moves!!! The tranny also shifts perfectly! The shift logic in the LS meshes much better with me than in my ES.

I'm really serious about the car, so any little thing you can post would be great :D .

[1990LS400]

Gosh, you might consider continuing to look. I'll bet you will find an LS in better condition for less money. Heck, I sold my 90 LS a few months ago for $4,500 - not a single dent or ding, looked like new inside and out and even had a new A/C compressor, 134a conversion and a new LCD.

The center caps are fairly inexpensive - lot of on-line sites have them.

I routinely removed my back seat cushion to carry stuff - like coolers and camping equipment. On my 90 LS, the cushion popped right out by pulling two tabs (one on each side) at the front of the seat cushion down by the carpet. It is possible that the two metal spring clips attached to the front bottom edge of the seat are bent or missing. The sping clips pop into holes or slots in the floor.

Trunk leaks are a very common problem. Mine was "resealed" many times at no cost during and after the warranty period by the dealer and it was probably still leaking some when I sold it. A coworker in the U.K. had the same problem with his LS. Nothing wrong with carrying a spare quart of oil in the trunk. I've never driven a mile without a spare quart, a flashlight, a tool kit, etc.

A bit of valve noise is common too and usually no problem.

Most important, is there a service history? Has the engine oil been changed regularly? The transmission oil at least every 30K? Brakes lines and radiator flushed regularly? If the owner didn't take car of the leather, this could be an indication that the car was not well cared for or a dog was allowed to run amuck.

[93LSOwner]

I might be a little help in this situation.

I just bought my first Lexus last week. LS400 1993 146,000 miles. $5,800

Leather: 9/10 because the back seat is a little damaged, from the windshield shattering.

Things need after I bought it:

1. Alignment

2. Rear tires replacement but I just had them rotated. They are not giving me that much trouble right now, but at 80-90mph that’s when they show there sign of replacement. If all 4 are replaced then it will float even on 100 mph.

3. There is that Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick noise from the valves.

These are the problems that I encountered as of now. Since, I bought it last week.

[Wes]

I must agree with 1990. If you have the service record all the other stuff can be taken care of. I just bought mu 94 LS 400 133k for 6900.00. It had all the service records so that told me the person really cared for his Lexus. I still am replacing the front brakes and all the struts but that is secondary to the engine and tranny which is primary. All good service can make sure the Primary stuff was taken care of. Take it to a Lexus dealer and send ut through their mechanics. Cost you some diagnostic cost but 150.00 compared to the cost of the car is nothing. Good luck.

:D :D

[blake918]

Thanks so much for all of the suggestions :D . I think this particular 93 LS might be a little more work than what I'm looking for right now. I did look at a LS that I really liked today. It's a beige 92 w/ 105k that is absolutely pristine; I don't know how they kept the leather so beautiful over 12 years! The only thing it needs is an A/C LCD, but every single LS that I've looked at has had this problem. The price is on the high side...asking $8800, but he said it's negotiable. I wouldn't mind paying a little extra for this car just because it is in exceptional condition plus Lexus service records up to 50K or 60k...I can't remember, but I want to say 50k. Thanks again for all of the insight; now I need to figure out what I'm going to do with the ES.

[blake918]

Here are some pics of the 92 LS that I really like...isn't the leather incredible, but if I do get the car, the crome rims are definantly going for the painted stock 15's! IMO it's(the chrome rims) just a little too much with the beige paint

What do yall think? Naturally the A/C LCD is gone, but it does have the Nakamichi :D .

[93LSOwner]

That is a very nice car looks like 2004 from the inside and out.

[90LS400Lexus]

Blake- I know this post is a little old, but what ever happened to this 92 LS400? Did you buy your current 1995 LS instead?

[blake918]

Blake- I know this post is a little old, but what ever happened to this 92 LS400?  Did you buy your current 1995 LS instead?

This is old!!! Yeah, I went with my '95 instead of these two luxury yachts! That '92 was in excellent shape; it would have been a really nice car. It olny had 104k when I looked at it. The guy was looking at a G35, so, if he didn't sell it privately, I'm sure Cresent City Infiniti has it now. BTW, I looked at this car in Feburary, so who knows where it is by now!

[90LS400Lexus]

Yes, it looks like a very nice car, but the 95' is very nice as well.

[VBdenny]

Last year I bought 25lbs. of fresh shrimp. I put it in a cooler and iced it down, then put the cooler in the trunk. Little did I know that the drain plug on the cooler leaked. Well the next time it was warm I started getting a fishy smell which grew worse quickly. I pulled out the floor mat in the trunk and sure enough, there was about 5 or 6 inches of "fish" juice in the spare tire well. I pulled everything out and cleaned it up and found a rubber black plug in the bottom. I removed it and drained it out then took the hose ans flushed it well. In just a short time it had gotten quite nasty.

After that I decided to take my pick up when getting shrimp. Luckily no other leaks in the trunk.

[1UZ-FE]

did i miss something or is this whole shrimp story totally ramdom? either way, i still learned something: theres a way to drain the spare tire well. good to know, it might come in handy some time.

[blake918]

did i miss something or is this whole shrimp story totally ramdom?

Noo, it's not totally random! The '93 I looked at had corosion all over the trunk, and I think Denny was just trying to say that it may not be as serious as I thought because there is no telling how it happened-it could be a drined ice chest or it could be serious.

90, just curious....why did you bring this post back?