K9crew

SW03ES, Are you sure about that? My OEM full-size spare is +45mm ... it's this type http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAP...2473357899&rd=1 Anyway, thanks for the comments and opinions. I'll try to answer/comment on all of the responses. SW03ES, To be honest I would have preferred a silver LS since that's my favorite color for almost ANY vehicle (sorry 99! :) ) but this color has really grown on me. It's sort of "regal" and if you've ever looked at the photo of my LS at the Grand Canyon (signature) you might agree that it's a color that nature could have chosen since it blends so well with the landscape. 445187, Thanks and no ... the wheels/tires don't rub (as far as I'm aware)! 93LSOwner, Good comments and I certainly see where you're coming from. The previous rims were finished in chrome and seemed to match the car well. I was concerned about the contrast between the gold body and silver painted rims. I think the clear aluminum outer ring helps and the silver seems to match the clear head and side marker lights. Overall I like the look! denny, Thanks! The wheels were VERY cheap on EBay ($485 delivered to Hawaii). They usually cost about $175 each (still a cheap rim). I ordered the tires from www.costco.com for $219 each but was refunded $40 since I had them installed at a specialty performance shop. So the final cost with installation was around $1500. blake, Thanks for the feedback and for your honesty. I can't stand that "Fast and Furious" crap so like you I was concerned about ending up with the "ricer" look. I was aiming for a muscular, mature look with improved handling ... Well, Thanks again for you comments ... I really appreciate the effort. If another member finds our discussion useful in helping them to choose (or not change) their wheels then we've accomplished something. :)

1UZ, Thanks for the kind words ... it's difficult to know how rims and tires will look but I think I got lucky on this one!! 99, The car came with aftermarket rims that my wife wants on the SC400. The offset of those rims is +38mm so I'm not sure if they'll work since the OEM wheels on the SC are +50mm. I'm pleased that you approve of the look. The LS is such a classic and classy looking car and I wanted to add to, rather than detract from, the overall appearance. The question about handling is an interesting one and I'm going to wait before I comment on that. I've ordered some hub-centric rings since I have a vibration in the front due to the wheel not being perfectly centered on the hub. I'll let you know how that goes. I will say that cornering is AWESOME and that I can now "feel" the texture of the road which can be good and bad ... anyway, I'll provide an update in a week or so. :)

I installed new rims and tires yesterday ... LS400 wheels (1) .. LS400 wheels (2) .. LS400 wheels (3) .. LS400 wheels (4) .. Wheels: RS Limited (Akunin 18x8x38mm) Tires: Bridgestone Potenza S-03 Pole Position 245/45/18 :)

I'm curious if Lexus did away with the hydraulic cooling fan found on '95 SC400s in favour of an electric cooling fan. Can an owner of a later model SC400 confirm which type of cooling fan they have? If Lexus switched styles, when and why did they switch? Does the SC430 have an electric fan or hydraulic fan? Thanks :)

Luckily we don't have any snow over here ... well, at least not below 9,000 feet!! Rear wheel drive vehicles have always been a problem in the snow and if I lived in a state where snow was common I'd buy an AWD vehicle ... probably a BMW 5 series. :)

I drove my LS from Houston to San Francisco and my SC from New York to San Francisco. I have to agree that the LS is an EXCELLENT road trip vehicle!! I found that it was considerably more comfortable than the SC and it's a vehicle that easily gets 25mpg on the interstate even when averaging 80mph!! :)

I've had my LS since last November and have put about 7,000 miles on it. I have mismatched tires and have ordered Bridgestone Potenza S-03 245/45/18 tires for my new 18" rims. However, even with mismatched tires this LS is without question one of the best wet weather cars that I've ever driven. We've had terrible weather for the past few months in Hawaii but when I'm caught in a downpour (a lot recently) this car feels incredible. I can't really put my finger on why it inspires such confidence ... maybe it's the weight or the limited slip or the suspension, but whatever it is I like it!! :)

Jim, What a great effort and one that I think will be much appreciated by many in the future. Keep up the good work!! I would just like to add a word of warning in response to the following. A voltmeter should be used when testing wiring harnesses rather than a 12V test light. Many electrical circuits in cars today have very low operating currents and the current draw from a test light can be enough to cause thousands of dollars worth of repairs. :)

98, Mikado replaced the LCD with a new (better) one. To be honest I don't know if it's an OEM LCD or if it's manufactured by another company. I should have taken a before/after picture to see if the characters are the same. Sammy at Mikado told me that it will last as long as or longer than the original display. Either way I'm happy with their work ... $150 was very reasonable for a "new" display. If it lasts for another six years I'll be happy. Heck, the rest of the system will probably have failed by then! 93, I think you're right about Lexus and LCD's. They have a bad track record with the A/C controller and now head units. Why are they continuing along the same path? Someone there needs to address this problem since many younger buyers are purchasing 5 to 10 year old Lexus cars. Those buyers may well be looking to buy new luxury cars in a few years. There are quite a few good alternatives to Lexus in the $60,000 price range so Lexus can't become complacent. :)

My head unit LCD crapped out a few months ago with parts of letters and numbers not showing up. Mikado fixed the problem but I noticed another '99 with the same symptoms. It's the fourth one that I've seen like that. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAP...&category=14240 ... hmmmm ... all of you guys/girls with the Pioneer system might want to start saving your pennies ... you'll need about 15,000 of them!! :)

The stock tire rotates about 780 times per mile which at 150mph is about 1950 times per minute. If the rear end is close to 3.29:1 and the overdrive ratio is around 0.7:1 then the rpm would be around 4500. Other rear end ratios such as 3.73:1 = 5091 rpm, 3.55:1 = 4845 rpm, 3.07:1 = 4190 rpm assuming an OD ratio of 0.7:1. Maybe the car is on one of those mobile dynos outside a shop!! :)

pachocco1, Next time you're there remind them of the six or seven phone calls and three faxes that it took to obtain an INCOMPLETE service history! To be honest, if Jason had managed to send me the remaining half of the service history in an unabbreviated form (albeit three months later) I never would have mentioned this fiasco. As for JPI ... all I can say is thanks. That's how you get and keep customers. If I end up in Texas he can be sure that he has one more loyal subject. :)

Level 10 offers a stage 2 and a stage 3 hydrosystem valve body recalibration service. According to the technician there, stage 2 is the street calibration whereas stage 3 is the racing calibration. I want the engine to feel more "connected" to the rear wheels i.e. I put my foot down and the response is immediate. The 2 second delay is driving me nuts!! The owner of the transmission shop has a GS400 and an LS430 and used to own an LS400. He told me that the GS is a completely different animal. The throttle response feels instantaneous because the transmission hooks up much more quickly. That's what I'm looking for but I don't want a GS (I don't like the look of them!) The LS is a great car except for the shifting logic. I feel that the silky power of the V8 is wasted in the cars current form. :) P.S. SK, have you driven an LS400 with the stage 2 HVBRS? I need to do something to make this car enjoyable to drive. I like so many things about it, especially the look, the power and the interior but if I can't resolve the shifting "problem" I'll have to let it go.

pachocco1, JPI has very kindly offered to help me obtain the full service records. I would have happily paid them if it meant that I would have complete, accurate records within a timely manner. That may be the problem ... they don't see me as being a potential future customer since I live in Hawaii. What they don't know is that I may very well move to Texas in the next couple of years and I have no intention of making any purchases at that dealership. I realize that my indignation won't hurt their bottom line too much but the world is getting smaller every day. This is the same dealer that stripped the transmission drain plug. They didn't correct that error or tell the original owner that they screwed up ... I'm not impressed! :)

I'm not happy with the way that my transmission shifts. I left my car with a very good independent transmission shop for two days and they informed me that no codes were present and that the transmission was working as designed. I've been in contact with JET performance and E.L. Prototypes regarding ECU upgrades but ultimately I was referred to a company called Level 10. Level 10 has a valve body upgrade for the LS that makes it drive better than a GS (in terms of shifting that is). They work with team Lexus on their GS helping the car to numerous top five finishes and have a lot of experience with Lexus transmissions. Has anyone here had a valve body upgrade performed by Level 10? Thanks :)

Sorry for the delay in responding to this topic ... I got sidetracked with work and home related issues and didn't get around to responding THANKS SO MUCH to those of you that have replied. I'm going to PM JPI right now to see if he can help me out. 99, thanks for the first hand account and support! :)

blake, the LCD in my '99 LS crapped out about four months ago. I sent it to Mikado in San Francisco and they did an excellent job of reparing it for $150. They install a new LCD that should last for many years. The turnaround was less than one day and I got my own unit back i.e. it's not an exchange deal. Here's the informatoin that you might need. Talk to Sammy ... he was very helpful and pleasant to deal with. Mikado Technology Company 1435 Huntington Avenue, Suite C South San Francisco CA 94080 1-888-964-5236 :)

racerhoze, I don't know which Park Place it is since I've never been there but their address is 1025 Preston Road, Plano, TX 75093. SW03ES, The operator told me that they have managers for each department but no General Manager. Jason Peel is the service department manager. Perhaps I should ask to talk to the owner. I'm sick and tired of having to be a bad !Removed! just to get good service. Each person that I spoke to (three in all) asked me to send the BOS, proof of ID and a copy of the title. I had to send three faxes containing that information. I've been very patient thus far but I'm fed up with dealing with them. I know that I'd never buy a car from them. If I ever end up in Texas I'd drive 500 miles NOT to buy from them!!

Park Place Lexus in Texas SUCKS!!! I've been trying for months to get the service history for my '99 LS from them. I've made numerous calls and sent three faxes with proof of ownership and identity. The problem is that the Hawaii Lexus dealer is an independent entity in the sense that they are not part of the huge mainland Lexus network and so are unable to access the service history for my car. A lady in service by the name of Rebecca was initially very helpful and she faxed me part of the records from 30k to 60k miles but didn't complete the job. I called her three times but only managed to speak to her once. She apologized for the delay (December) and promised to send me the rest. I gave her my address but nothing came so I called again, then called again but she was "unavailable". I finally called her manager whose name is Jason Peel. He made some excuse for her behavior and promised to send me the rest of the records. A month passed and nothing so I called him again. He told me he'd take care of it and finally a completely useless, abbreviated, unintelligible one page list arrived. It's not even close to the incomplete records that Rebecca originally sent. I called Park Place asking for the General Manager but they don't have one. So now what? I've been courteous and patient but it's achieved nothing. I'm hoping that a member here has a very good relationship with their local service person and can help me obtain the service records. Thanks for any help. :)

WOW!!! The most I ever got on one tank is 456.1 miles. I added 19.241 gallons at the gas station so I had about 0.8 gallons left in the tank. My calculated fuel mileage was 23.7 mpg on that tank. That was non-stop interstate driving at 75mph. You must live in a flat state, only drive on the interstate and never exceed 60 mph! If you're getting around 600 miles on one tank, which in my car holds 20 gallons, then you're getting over 30 mpg!!! The only "easy" and accurate way to calculate fuel mileage is to fill up the tank, let the pump click off then slowly add more fuel until the pump clicks off , then slowly add more fuel one more time until the pump clicks off . Drive the car until the tank is low, fill up in the same way at the same pump allowing the pump to click off three times. Divide the miles driven on that tank by the gallons of fuel just added. I do this regularly. With my F-350 diesel I could fill up until the fuel was right to the top of the filler neck. That was the most accurate way to determine fuel mileage since I could fill up to exactly the same mark every time. I don't believe that you can reley on the low fuel light to give an accurate indication of how much fuel is in the tank. As for the onboard computer, the mpg figures are always wrong and always high by as much as 3mpg!! :)

99, Thanks for the input and for offering to help. 1990LS400 raised the issue of the torque converter locking and unlocking. Does anyone know when, in what gears or under what conditions the TC locks up? I had an F-150 that would lock the TC in 2nd, 3rd and OD if the vehicle's speed was above 35mph. The Tundra has a similar strategy. :)

Since buying my '99 LS in November I've been less than thrilled with the shifting strategy so I've been experimenting this past week. Normally I start the engine, put the shifter in D (transmission has L, 2, 3, 4 and D) and for the most part leave it there all the time (not if I want to go backwards :) ). The problem is that if I'm driving in traffic around 15 to 20 mph (stop and go) with the shifter in D the car tends to surge i.e. I'm braking then I get back on the gas and nothing happens for a second or two, then it feels like something engages and I surge forward. If I'm on the freeway doing 60 mph and I want to accelerate around another vehicle I press harder on the gas and for about 2 seconds nothing happens then suddenly the transmission downshifts and the power comes on. For the last week or so I've kept the transmission in 4 and only shifted into D when I'm cruising on the freeway at 60mph. My conclusion is that the car drives so much better that way. It's considerably more responsive for general driving such that when I need to accelerate the performance is immediate vs. a significant delay if I'm in D. The surging sensation in stop and go traffic is non-existent if I keep the transmission in 4 vs. D. I'd really appreciate some feedback in terms of how you drive your car and have you experienced any of what I've described. Thanks to 99lsguy and 1990LS400 for listening to my PM ramblings. I'm in your debt. :) P.S. Even though these transmissions are supposed to have "intelligence" they aren't the sharpest tools in the shed. As far as I'm aware, the Allison transmission found in the Silverado is one of the few transmissions that approaches the driving capability of a manual i.e. it downshifts automatically in turns or when descending steep grades.

99, That's a great quote and since many members here are performance enthusiasts I'm sure that they'll agree with that statement. :) Hey, maybe you should start a "why did you buy an LS?" survey. I bought mine for a number of reasons. The first reason and perhaps the biggest is that I'd never owned one before and I was curious. I will NEVER buy a front wheel drive car again but the choice for a four-door rear wheel drive V8 is fairly limited. I LOVE the interior space and comfort of the LS ... this is a BIG car on the inside. I wanted a car that would be reliable even after 60K miles and I wanted a 32 valve V8. I have to admit that I probably should have bought a 540i even though the interior is significantly smaller than the LS. Anyway, the LS is a great looking car with an excellent reputaion for reliability. The V8 is powerful and smooth and the interior is excellent but the one area that's lacking is the handling. If the handling were improved to anything even close to a BMW then this would be the PERFECT car. I have to admit that the new Cadillac CTS-V is very enticing since it's a big car with a 400 HP, 32 valve V8 (Z06 motor) that has the handling of a 540 (0 to 60 in around 5 seconds!). In addition, it's available with a 6 speed manual. Car and Driver absolutely loved the car. :)

I'll probably get roasted for saying this but think about the consumer that Lexus was/is after with the LS400 and to a lesser extent the LS430. If someone is willing to pay $60,000 for a new car and they're a performance enthusiast vs. a luxury enthusiast they probably wouldn't buy a Lexus. Let's be honest, the LS400 is a great car with plenty of nice features but handling just isn't one of it's strong points (in stock form at least). I knew this before I bought my LS, I REALLY know it now!! I think the LS has the potential to be a great car if a manual transmission was installed in combination with bigger/better brakes, better suspension, more precise steering etc. Since the cost of those upgrades may be prohibitive the only solution (for a sedan) might be a German product ... or the new Cadillac CTS-V 5.7L!!! :)

It's easy enough to remove the serpentine belt and check your pulleys for play and noise. You can spin the alternator, idler pully, A/C etc but the idler pulley would be my first guess ... they go bad on new vehicles let alone older ones. My friend's Tundra had to go into the shop for a new idler pulley during the first six months. Anyway, the pulleys should rotate freely and quietly with no play or lateral runout. :)