New 1992 LS400 Owner

[Spartan0536]

Hello fellow Lexus Owners,

I am now the owner of a 1992 Lexus LS400 with 82,421 miles on it, garage kept by an elderly man whom took the car only to the dealer for service as indicated by records left behind in his estate. I had my mechanic look at it, had the transmission fluid flushed and changed, same with the power steering, and the A/C system recharged and dyed as there is a leak. Other than that there is nothing mechanically wrong with the car.

I am coming from a 2002 Dodge Stratus SE with the 2.7L V6 aka Dodge's Sludge Monster (seriously stay the **** away from that car and engine), the mechanic said this car is most certainly an upgrade, and I am inclined to agree, but I am still going back literally 1 decade in years, and this car is now old enough to be registered as a Classic car at 25 years old (1/4 of a century). After reading other websites reviews and watching YouTube videos I decided to make the purchase, and it only set me back $1,000 USD. I know a lot of you are going to say "no one would sell you a 1992 Lexus LS400 with 82K miles for $1,000 unless it was borked (intentional misspelling). Well the guy literally had no say as he died and my father bought out his estate and with that the car, which he paid $1,900 USD for. My father paid for all of the mechanic inspections and services plus cut out $900 of the cost, leaving me with the $1,000 offer, which I paid for by selling my POS 2002 Dodge Stratus SE for $1,000. My question now is, was my research well founded or did I mess up big time?

My idea here is to make this a project car, but not in the usual sense of slamming it and or making it look "ghetto/riced". My project for this is to give it a facelift by overhauling the entertainment system, seat cushions, MINOR performance tuning, metallic silver repaint, and modernize the lighting both interior and exterior.

I have planned out the costs for the upgrades MINUS professional service charges where applicable, I am looking at around $3,000 - $3,500 USD (A big portion of that being the professional repaint with minor body repair).

Entertainment: The goal here was not loudness or excessive deafening bass, but something that would make even modern BMW, Mercedes, and Audi driver jealous of in terms of quality)

Receiver: Kenwood DDX574BH (3 Pre Amps)

Front Speakers: JBL GT7-5C's (Component)

Rear Speakers: JBL GTO529's (Coaxial)

Amplifier: Kenwood KAC-8406 4 Way 900W AMP

Subwoofer: Stock Pioneer 8 inch with stock AMP powering the sub (will eventually replace with a Rockford Fosgate P3SD2-8 8 inch Punch sub and a Class D Kenwood KAC-5001PS AMP)

*NOTE: I AM keeping the interior speaker covers, it will look as stock as can be.

 

Lighting:

I have decided NOT to place an HID retrofit kit, I have read about nightmares from all sorts of people and for the cost + headache & potential worry its just not worth it IMO, I certainly could be wrong.

All lighting replacement will be done by Philips and Hella

All interior lighting will be White LED, Glove box will be RED LED (its easier to see red at night when looking for papers, the military uses this) and its ILL ADVISED to use RED for interior lights as you can get into trouble with LE, the glove box, not so much. All external lights will be LED except for the Headlights and Fog Lights.

Headlights: Philips Crystal Vision Ultra's (9004)

Fog Lights: Hella Optilux Extreme White XB (H3C) - I opted for white as they are not lower to the ground like fog lights should be and will be used alongside standard low/high beams for better lighting.

Performance mods:

Still working on this, but they will be mild, as for the exhaust, it will be entirely custom stainless steel, catalytic converter will be replaced with a high flow with new O2 sensors, resonators will be replaced with Magnaflow resonators, and I am debating on the mufflers, either Borla ProXS, Flowmaster 50 Series, or Magnaflow XL Mufflers, all piping will be 2 1/4 (2.25) inch and TIG welded by a professional custom shop (whom I have used before). My goal with the exhaust is to give it a sports tune sound like you would get from the factory (if it were an option). Something that has little to no resonation at low RPM's but gives a bit of a growl when revved, and opens decently at high RPM's.

Thoughts?

[Exhaustgases]

It will just be another junker like all the rest. If it is in pristine condition leave it alone and drive it. If you have to have a project get a project. At the rate these cars are being messed up and ruined there won't be any good ones left.

[1990LS400]

3 hours ago, Exhaustgases said:

It will just be another junker like all the rest. If it is in pristine condition leave it alone and drive it. If you have to have a project get a project. At the rate these cars are being messed up and ruined there won't be any good ones left.

I have to agree.  These were wonderful cars in their day but I can't see spending much on a car that can be wiped out for insurance purposes by a minor fender bender.  There are already a number of replacement parts that are no longer available for the 1990-1994 LS400 and even some for the 1995-2000 LS400.

[Spartan0536]

1 hour ago, 1990LS400 said:

I have to agree.  These were wonderful cars in their day but I can't see spending much on a car that can be wiped out for insurance purposes by a minor fender bender.  There are already a number of replacement parts that are no longer available for the 1990-1994 LS400 and even some for the 1995-2000 LS400.

MY 02 Dodge was "salvage titled" when some drunk fool ran his friends Corolla into it while my car was parked in my driveway. That still did not stop me from driving the car, and the only reason I hate my 02 Dodge Stratus is for mechanical reliability problems that it is known for and has. This is why I like the LS400, its mechanically reliable, and I paid $1000 for it, so if I throw 2-3K into it and drive it for 6-8 years I do not consider that a loss, hell I spend more than that on my gaming PC.

 

In regards to performance mods, I know I will be switching to Iridium plugs and high density plug wires and with a new cap and rotor, I am replacing the fuel filter (not really performance modding but I do this on every used car I purchase as no one replaces them and you really should around 50K miles). I will have the intake and fuel system cleaned professionally by my mechanic as he has the tools; I will be disassembling the entire intake (manifold not included) and cleaning it by hand. All stock grounding wires will be replaced with large gauge wire to smooth out any "surge" (expecting minimal change as the engine is already solid, but its cheap and easy to do). I will also be installing a strut tower brace to help with some body roll, and as for exhaust, I spoke with the guys that will be working on the exhaust and they just said leave everything stock and change the muffler to one that is not a straight through and is packed so that interior resonance is at a minimum so there is that. I am considering a brake upgrade in the form of larger/better calipers and pads, and POSSIBLY 17 inch rims but finding the right style that looks like it would be stock and not look stupid is almost impossible. I am switching the tires to Continental Pure Contacts, i have read excellent reviews on them.

Not really "performance mods" outside of the plug wires, cap & rotor, and tower brace, but it should help. I am having the car professionally detailed as its dirty and needs the work (I can do it myself but I want to be lazy.

I have no intention on making this "souped up", I just want it to have modernized electronics, an excellent smooth ride, and a responsive engine when needed.

[Exhaustgases]

If it really is in top condition, just advice. Don't do anything that can not be reversed. No extra holes, no fender flares, no scrapping up the under belly. You really could have a time capsule and be worth some $ in the near future. You can find these cars with a ton of mods done for dirt cheap, and they have already blown the $ for all the fancy wheels and shock supports and everything else. Shock tower supports will abrade the paint and then a person that wants original won't even continue to look when sale day comes. I know I have passed up so many cars because of children and the garbage they want to do to cars and trucks. If that car is tip tops, and I wanted a project and not a garage queen I'd try to move it for a huge profit right now. What kind of options does it have? I am guessing that since its likely in good shape it is a low or no option car.

What color is it?  Oh and radio mods means goofing up wiring and speaker boxes and who knows what else. Its spend 1 to 2 K on stuff to loose it all in the end.

[Spartan0536]

1 hour ago, Exhaustgases said:

If it really is in top condition, just advice. Don't do anything that can not be reversed. No extra holes, no fender flares, no scrapping up the under belly. You really could have a time capsule and be worth some $ in the near future. You can find these cars with a ton of mods done for dirt cheap, and they have already blown the $ for all the fancy wheels and shock supports and everything else. Shock tower supports will abrade the paint and then a person that wants original won't even continue to look when sale day comes. I know I have passed up so many cars because of children and the garbage they want to do to cars and trucks. If that car is tip tops, and I wanted a project and not a garage queen I'd try to move it for a huge profit right now. What kind of options does it have? I am guessing that since its likely in good shape it is a low or no option car.

What color is it?  Oh and radio mods means goofing up wiring and speaker boxes and who knows what else. Its spend 1 to 2 K on stuff to loose it all in the end.

My project is not to "rice it out" or make it "ghetto"..

The paint is in top shape minus some scrapes which look like clear coat damage so that is easily fixed and it will be.

As for the radio its going to be a Kenwood touchscreen with a backup camera (the Kenwood has the parking lines for it built in), it has an adjustable angle for best viewing, and its NOT motorized for putting in the CD/DVD its a single slot fixed position double din. It also has full Qualcomm bluetooth connectivity for Android and Apple smartphones, built in Garmin GPS navigation, Pandora, Spotify, iHeartRadio, XM ready, and HD Radio, its a significant technology upgrade. 2 of the speakers are currently shot (front drivers side & rear right passenger side) so I am replacing all of the speakers (NOT including the stock sub and amp). I will have the AMP for the new speakers placed at the top of the trunk near the sub as to keep out of the way for maximum trunk space and the AMP has a low and high bypass filter. These are NOT cheap replacement speakers and they each have their own crossover for the component speakers, all of them are Harman Kardon (JBL). Each set is running me around $120 USD. This is NOT designed for mega bass, insane loudness, or sound competition; this setup is designed to make people in modern high end Mercedes, BMW's, or Audi's jealous of the quality, its all about the right balance of lows, mids & high's with little to no distortion and or interference, while keeping the stock look on the doors. I will also be placing sound deadening material in all 4 of the doors, this should help make the car a bit quieter in the interior at highway speeds (I am also replacing the rubber seals on the doors as they are kind of brittle after 25 years, this will also help).

Body kits.... NOPE not going there AT ALL

I am considering rims, but as I said I can not find a set that I like that looks like it belongs on the car from the factory unless I go custom and that is just way too much $$$.

As for exhaust, I am still researching but its going to be a muffler replacement that is very very mild with no interior resonance.

Suspension, I am not putting on a lowering kit, it does not have the air ride suspension and unless the suspension needs to be replaced nothing will be done to the shocks or coils. I will be placing a strut tower brace in the engine bay, this will help tighten the car up on turning, and it never hurts the value of a car. I might replace the sway bars with high performance ones that will be professionally adjusted in order to further tighten up the car on turns to make it handle more like a modern Lexus but so far its pretty much only a strut tower brace.

Ignition: it's getting overhauled, this will help sell the car more than it hurts, the entire ignition will be done by MSD, probably the most reputable aftermarket/performance ignition system company in the world. I will NOT be adding in a standalone system as that is not appealing to other buyers, but the coils, cap, rotor, wires, and plugs will all be MSD overhauled.

Battery: Replacing with an Optima Red Top 800 CCA, & new terminal connectors/contacts

Grounding: Replacing the stock grounding contacts and grounding wires with high density low gauge wires for better surge elimination, increasing the smoothness of the powerband.

Fuel: I will be replacing the fuel filter (seriously people need to stop forgetting about this on high mileage vehicles), I am considering using higher CC injectors matching a 1996 Lexus LS400, I have not heard of any problems doing this so long as you have the ignition upgraded and the ECU re-flashed.

Intake: System will be thoroughly cleaned, K&N drop in air filter will be the only mod.

ECU: Replacing the stock ECU with an OEM replacement that will be sent out to JET systems for a professional re-flash, will be flashed correctly based on mods provided.

Brakes: Considering rotor, caliper and line upgrades, I have heard it's a shortcoming of the pre 1994 LS400's, but my car seems to do pretty well with stock stuff, so it may just end up being better pads IMHO.

Lighting: All lighting will be done within DOT regulation, all are bulb replacement only, interior lights being switched to LED form for longer life and a white light instead of yellow, similar to modern luxury cars like a 2014 Mercedes C300 that my father has. Headlights will be Philips Crystal Vision Ultra, same for the Fog lights. ABSOLUTELY NO NEON OR LED KITS for accent lighting, just bulb replacement with lower energy draw and cleaner/brighter light, all are DOT approved.

That is it, no crazy mods, nothing that makes the car stand out, it will look as stock as possible, just updated to a more modern style, the exhaust is a very very tricky part of it and I have a professional garage looking into it with me to make sure it turns out exactly right where it sounds like it was done by the factory as a "sport tune" or an "F tune" by Lexus.

[Exhaustgases]

I think the whole exhaust system is still available from the dealer, the cost of it would run over $6,000. Just something to think about when modding the exhaust.

Its all good, you can do what you want to it. It will just make mine more valuable.

If you were to research a bit you'd find that with these or anyother car that is modded do not sell for top dollar as compaired to stock. In the end and down the road some years when we see the prices back up to where they were when the cars were brand new, alot of people will be kicking them selves. Yeah maybe these cars won't ever be in that status either, but you really don't know. I'd have forked over some big $ for the right car, but as time goes on it becomes less and less of a chance to find anything.

So what options does it have and what color?

[billydpowell]

sounds like he already has his mind made up, and is not asking for any guidance.... so go for it John.. 

[CELSI0R]

Not bad, John. I like the idea of making everything as if it was equipped from the factory; just make sure you keep all of the original parts that are removed (i.e. exhaust). There's nothing like a clean install.

Just a tip with regards to paint; it would be best to detail the car to get rid of any clearcoat scratches and/or touch up the paint instead of paying for a respray. The 3-stage paint on these cars is very expensive and it's very hard to match the original factory quality. A close to OEM finish will run a bill of about $7k, if done right.

Any pictures of your car? Can't believe you got it for $1k!

[Spartan0536]

 

10 hours ago, Exhaustgases said:

I think the whole exhaust system is still available from the dealer, the cost of it would run over $6,000. Just something to think about when modding the exhaust.

Its all good, you can do what you want to it. It will just make mine more valuable.

If you were to research a bit you'd find that with these or anyother car that is modded do not sell for top dollar as compaired to stock. In the end and down the road some years when we see the prices back up to where they were when the cars were brand new, alot of people will be kicking them selves. Yeah maybe these cars won't ever be in that status either, but you really don't know. I'd have forked over some big $ for the right car, but as time goes on it becomes less and less of a chance to find anything.

So what options does it have and what color?

The car has just about every available option minus the air ride suspension and heated seats (I think that started in 93 though). I have the Nakamichi sound system but 2 speakers are blown and make a constant popping sound, and I have replaced the antenna as the antenna was broken (it was an OEM replacement). Car was garage kept, paint is in very good condition with some light damage from paint swapping but it seems to be nothing more than clear coat damage. Car is NOT a salvage title, it has 1 accident on record, it was for a minor collision that resulted in no body damage and minor paintwork, nothing I am concerned about.

As for resale value, since these cars are well known for mechanical reliability I intend to keep this car for as long as possible, quite possibly to 225,000 miles and its currently at 85,000 miles. I am not expecting the mods to help at all with the resale value, I am quite aware that it usually detracts from the value of the car, and considering the depreciation of the car over the last 6 years, I think these cars will soon become the forgotten legend of the past unfortunately.

I know I am going to be replacing the receiver and audio in the car, and I want it to sound a pure as possible, I am looking for class not loundness or excessive annoying bass overload. The lighting is going to current generation high tech LED for the interior, and exterior lights will be all DOT approved OE replacements by Philips and Hella (Hella is for the Fog lights only), talking about bulb replacement ONLY, no lamp replacement.

The main area of concern for me is the performance side of things, I know I want to do the "sport tune" exhaust, and well 6K for that at the dealer is just well NO, its going to be aftermarket and done professionally by a shop I have used and trusted for years (they built custom drag engines that have won some IHRA championships), my issue is making sure it does not compromise the quietness of the interior while under normal operation but gives a more aggressive tone when "punching it", this often can make a car more desirable but NOT more valuable, again I am not intending to sell this car any time soon. I have been toying with the idea of just replacing the plugs, wires, cap, rotor, and fuel filter just to help with fuel efficiency and leave it there. As for the strut tower braces, those are going in, they do not detract from the cars value and they help with body roll, plus its cheap and easy to install.

I am unsure if I really want to use the larger injectors from a later non-VVTi LS400 and do the ECU replace & re-flash, just seems like a lot for little gain, not sure.

 

4 hours ago, billydpowell said:

sounds like he already has his mind made up, and is not asking for any guidance.... so go for it John.. 

Not entirely made up my mind, looking for feedback from others that may have considered the work, and possible other directions, I do NOT know it all, and so constructive insight is more than welcome.

[Spartan0536]

6 minutes ago, CELSI0R said:

Not bad, John. I like the idea of making everything as if it was equipped from the factory; just make sure you keep all of the original parts that are removed (i.e. exhaust). There's nothing like a clean install.

Just a tip with regards to paint; it would be best to detail the car to get rid of any clearcoat scratches and/or touch up the paint instead of paying for a respray. The 3-stage paint on these cars is very expensive and it's very hard to match the original factory quality. A close to OEM finish will run a bill of about $7k, if done right.

Any pictures of your car? Can't believe you got it for $1k!

I will have pics soon, I am getting it professionally detailed.

Thanks for the info on the paint, this is what I was looking for, I figured it was a costly endeavor, not worth the money IMHO. I am not a big fan of the brown color, but the gold badging at least looks nice with it, maybe it will help keep people from dinging it in parking lots as it looks meh from the outside. :P

 

Yeah I am trying to keep this looking as stock as possible, including the entertainment overhaul, no custom speaker boxes or housings, no oversized subwoofers. The only thing that will stand out over stock is the receiver, but that is intended to give it modern technology which is a preference that I have and its not too expensive to install.

I got lucky with this car, it was bought out of an estate, and my father sold it to me for $1000 after I did all the research, it was a no brainer.

 

BTW anyone have any opinions on the Continental PureContact or ExtremeContact DWS06 tires, in regards to handling, fuel econ, ride quietness and smoothness?

[CELSI0R]

In terms of tires, if you're running the stock rims, I highly recommend Cooper CS5 tires. They're all-seasons that I've had on for a long time, and the ride has been very comfortable. The tires also handle exceptionally well in wet road conditions. Although, note that I don't have the TRAC option and I drive more cautiously in inclement weather. I average approximately 20 mpg ( more or less 70% highway, 30% city ). When you get your tires mounted and/or rotated, double check to see if the rims are in the right direction (left rims on left, and right on right side). Their turbine design aids airflow to improve brake cooling:


That still sounds nice with regards to your audio system plans. I have the standard Pioneer equipment on my car, and I had to redo the original subwoofer last year because it had deteriorated from heat and UV. It's a strange 2 ohm subwoofer, so finding an aftermarket match proved to be difficult. The Nakamichi system had a better setup. You'll be giving yourself some peace of mind, although nothing has impressed me more than the OEM headunit.

Wow at the color combo. I've only seen a brown one once in person, though I'm not sure which color it was (2 taupe shades were offered). It will grow on you, trust me.

When you're waxing the car, put an emphasis on the gold badges. They become very dull over time, if left exposed to the sun without any sort of protective layer. Also, when washing the car watch out for the "Lexus" trunk badge on the driver's side. It is common for cloths, rags, etc to get stuck under there and tear off parts of the badge (especially at car washes...). I've seen a few LS models with only "Lexu" left on the trunk, such as this one:


Sorry for the blocks of text, I rambled a bit.. Hope you find this information helpful.

[Spartan0536]

Its appreciated thanks CELSI0R...

I have considered buying a gold LS400 badge and placing it on the right side of the trunk, but it's not like it irks me or anything that the model number is not on the car.

 

As for the rim direction, I watched something on YouTube about that. Toyota/Lexus really went borderline obsessive on this car, they are each labelled for what side they should be on, I have rarely ever seen any other car with this amount of detail in it stock.

Just found out today that the Alternator needs to be replaced ASAP, as it's failing quick, looks like its Denso time for me; with that I am going to be replacing the serpentine belt as well just to play it safe.

The battery is also looking quite old, I am thinking of replacing it as well, going with an Optima RedTop, I love those batteries they hold up really well.

[CELSI0R]

I agree with you. Approximately $1 billion was put into the development of the first generation cars. I had an aftermarket LS 400 badge on my trunk, but I got rid of it. Only "Lexus" was written on the trunk, because this car is and was Lexus itself in one entity. It seems they figured it didn't need "LS 400," because it would take away from the overall meaning of the brand.

RedTop are AGM batteries, right? I'm a fan of them.. I'm currently using a Die Hard Gold AGM battery [I believe it's this one]. If you're having it changed out by a service worker, make sure they put back any plastic covers you have in your engine bay (or you can remove and hold on to them). The front battery cover and the battery terminal covers are commonly lost or broken due to the negligence of workers.. All of the covers are visible in this image. The main battery cover looks like part of the air duct, but is separate, and the terminal covers are attached to the positive and negative wires.

While we're on the topic of belts, has the timing belt been changed yet? 80k miles is about when it needs to be done. It's a fairly big job, but it's not a huge deal if you wait a little longer to do it on the first generation UCF10/11 cars, because they are not interference engines. Basically, this means that the pistons won't crush the valves, if the belt breaks.

Good luck with the alternator job. It's not too bad. It would be good to check the PS pump as well, because the alternator will fail again if the PS pump is leaking.

[Spartan0536]

Yeah the timing belt was changed at 79K miles by the original owner, its got the official Lexus work stamp in the engine bay saying the date it was changed and the mileage. BTW I was looking at the Cooper CS5 GrandTouring and UltimateTouring tires, not too bad of a price at $85 & $89 per tire, I am looking for quietness and comfort with good to excellent handling in rain as I live in Florida, and when it rains it pours. I don't think I have ever looked this hard for a set of tires before, except back when I was into racing but there I looked for high speed rated tires with solid road and track grip.

Thoughts on the GrandTouring vs UltimateTouring tires in terms of ride comfort, noise, and traction?

[CELSI0R]

Tires are super important, so it's great you're doing a lot of research. Make sure you find what you want, before buying any.

I have had Cooper CS4 tires on my car for about 6 years of daily driving (CS4s were discontinued); however, another one of my family's cars has CS5 Ultra Touring tires, which I drove for a few months this past year.

I don't typically go out when the weather is really bad (heavy rain or snow), but I have been out during flash floods and have had no problems with grip using either tire. In terms of handling and comfort, I have had to make some quick maneuvers and these tires never let me down or made me feel uneasy. Noise is also good. I have never acknowledged any tire noise while driving, perhaps partially due to the LS 400's well insulated cabin. When I open the window, I pretty much just hear wind noise.

I don't know the real difference between the Ultra and GrandTouring tires, so I can't speak for that.

This is a good article on the CS5's handling, in comparison to other tires.

I hope my review is helpful, but definitely gather more info than just my recommendation.