urbanspan Posted February 4, 2010 Share Posted February 4, 2010 Hello fellow Lexus owners. I am a proud new owner of a 2003 LS 430. The car has been terrific in the three weeks I've owned it. However, I live in Michigan (it's cold) and I'm finding that upon starting the car, occasionally it idles higher than normal (1 1/2 rpms or so). Once it warms up a bit, or when I shift into gear, it settles down to a comfortable/more normal level. It's not too concerning, but I'm just wondering if this is normal in cold weather, or if it could be a symptom of some sort of problem. The car has about 108K miles. Any advice would be greatly appreciated! J Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landar Posted February 4, 2010 Share Posted February 4, 2010 Hello fellow Lexus owners. I am a proud new owner of a 2003 LS 430. The car has been terrific in the three weeks I've owned it. However, I live in Michigan (it's cold) and I'm finding that upon starting the car, occasionally it idles higher than normal (1 1/2 rpms or so). Once it warms up a bit, or when I shift into gear, it settles down to a comfortable/more normal level. It's not too concerning, but I'm just wondering if this is normal in cold weather, or if it could be a symptom of some sort of problem. The car has about 108K miles. Any advice would be greatly appreciated! J If it is 1500 RPM's then yes, totally normal. It will even do that in the summer. Just a cold engine. Now, wait until you discover the delayed shift when cold. ;) Congrats on the purchase and welcome Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urbanspan Posted February 4, 2010 Author Share Posted February 4, 2010 Hello fellow Lexus owners. I am a proud new owner of a 2003 LS 430. The car has been terrific in the three weeks I've owned it. However, I live in Michigan (it's cold) and I'm finding that upon starting the car, occasionally it idles higher than normal (1 1/2 rpms or so). Once it warms up a bit, or when I shift into gear, it settles down to a comfortable/more normal level. It's not too concerning, but I'm just wondering if this is normal in cold weather, or if it could be a symptom of some sort of problem. The car has about 108K miles. Any advice would be greatly appreciated! J If it is 1500 RPM's then yes, totally normal. It will even do that in the summer. Just a cold engine. Now, wait until you discover the delayed shift when cold. ;) Congrats on the purchase and welcome Aweome, thank you very much for taking the time to help put my mind at ease! I really appreciate it. Delayed shift when cold? Can't wait for that (at least I'll be prepared)! Thanks again! J Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landar Posted February 5, 2010 Share Posted February 5, 2010 Aweome, thank you very much for taking the time to help put my mind at ease! I really appreciate it. Delayed shift when cold? Can't wait for that (at least I'll be prepared)!Thanks again! J Well, maybe the 2003's don't delay the shift but on my 98 LS400, the transmission delays shifing from 2nd to 3rd until the RPMs hit 2500. But this is only when cold and only for the very first 2->3 shift. It is that way to allow for proper warmup. Oh, another thing I need to warn you about. Owning a Lexus 'may' turn you into a hyper-critical car owner, expecting perfection from your machine. Hey, after all it is a Lexus. Yeah, but still engineered by human beings. So, try to ignore the small quirks and just enjoy the ride! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urbanspan Posted February 5, 2010 Author Share Posted February 5, 2010 Aweome, thank you very much for taking the time to help put my mind at ease! I really appreciate it. Delayed shift when cold? Can't wait for that (at least I'll be prepared)!Thanks again! J Well, maybe the 2003's don't delay the shift but on my 98 LS400, the transmission delays shifing from 2nd to 3rd until the RPMs hit 2500. But this is only when cold and only for the very first 2->3 shift. It is that way to allow for proper warmup. Oh, another thing I need to warn you about. Owning a Lexus 'may' turn you into a hyper-critical car owner, expecting perfection from your machine. Hey, after all it is a Lexus. Yeah, but still engineered by human beings. So, try to ignore the small quirks and just enjoy the ride! Right on Landar...thanks again. I am coming into my 2003 LS430 from a five year romance with a '97 Infiniti Q45. I traded it in with 270K miles. I put the last 125K on the car, with only routine maintenance (aside from a $230 fuel injector).....it was a dream the entire time. I must admit, I really liked the firm seats, very comfortable (I'm still trying to get used to the pillowy LS). Definitely a different ride and feel, but I'm sure over time I'll adapt and appreciate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
05silverls430 Posted February 6, 2010 Share Posted February 6, 2010 I can confirm the high idle as well. I've experienced it when the engine is cold on both my former '03 and my current '05 LS430. Nothing to worry about. Congratulations on the car! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jtbel Posted February 6, 2010 Share Posted February 6, 2010 My '97 LS400 idles high in the mornings or whenever the motor is cold. I really, really don't like moving the car before the idle goes down because there is a bigger clunk sound when putting it into gear when the idle is still high. I think it is made worse because my driveway has a tilt, downward away from the house. The way I get around this is with a remote starter. When we're almost ready to leave, we'll start the car. It has a 15 minute time limit, so if I take longer than that it will shut off. If it does, it is warm on the restart. I'll probably be looking into getting the tranny mounts soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sgretchko Posted February 6, 2010 Share Posted February 6, 2010 I had the clunking problem on my 97 LS w/ 175k, replacing the transmission mount solved it. The mount is only $35 or so. While I hear it is a fairly easy DIY task, independent shop charged me $175 to replace engine and trans mounts. The repair returned the car to its original smoothness and is highly recommended. Enjoy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jtbel Posted February 6, 2010 Share Posted February 6, 2010 Where could I get the mount for around that price? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urbanspan Posted February 8, 2010 Author Share Posted February 8, 2010 Terrific advice, thanks to everyone for sharing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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