ToddLS400

Matthew, Those Reflex rims are only $201US/piece at Discount. Those are damn cool looking rims for really cheap. TSW makes awesome rims. My girlfriend has 18" TSW Heaven 7's on her perfect 1993 black Nissan 300ZX convertible. It has 32K true miles on it. Some rich dude bought it for his wife years ago and she never drove it because it's a stick. The car is like brand new. This is not her car of course. This is the new 350Z. I use to have a burgandy '93 300ZX convertible. She use to drive it all of the time so then she wanted one after I sold mine. These rims look SWEET on her car.

This is a new company. I can't even find a website for them. If anybody knows where to get addtional info on MB Design, please post it here. They seem like they will look cool on a luxury car? I sure hope so... MB Design Link - I've always liked the look of chrome on black cars. Polished alloy or silver looks good on silver cars. (That other pic was too big. It ruined the thread.) Some of their wheel designs seem like replicas of Arceo: Arceo Bellestar MB Design Ammo What do you think?

No VMF. I'm paying $1,500 out the door including tax. That's rims, tires, mounting, balancing, locking lug nuts. They're over $1,800 w/tax at regular price. Me and my girlfriend have bought 3 - 4 sets of rims/tires from them so they always give us great deals. You can order with free shipping at> http://www.discounttiredirect.com/direct/home.jsp

Hehe...I just got back from Discount and I ordered the MB Design Link. Jeez, nobody has even voted for that one yet... Do they look stupid or something? I like the Q5's like VB & RX but they said the 18 X 9 would be too wide for my LS400. The chrome Q5's are listed at $399/rim. Expensive! But I can get them to drop the price quite a bit. I'm getting a screaming deal on the chrome MB Links. I'll pay about $1,500 (manager mark down) out the door with Kumho Ecsta Supra 712 ZR rated tires (235/40-ZR18) , locking lugs, mounted/balanced. Regular price was over $1,800. This MB Design is a new company so they are pricing their stuff cheap to get people to buy them. When they come in and if I don't like them, I can choose something else. Discount is really cool about returning stuff if you don't like it and they don't stick you with shipping from the Arizona warehouse. My girlfriend switched up to some nicer (more expensive) Yokohoma tires after 2 weeks and Josh (mgr) didn't charge her anything.

A good rule of thumb is to always change the ATF fluid right after you buy a used car. Unless the previous owner can show you a receipt from a ATF fluid change in the last year. Some people will go 100K before changing their ATF or never change it all. I believe the interval is every 30K? For some reason mechanics overfill our LS400's with too much ATF. That is how mine was when I had the ATF changed. The ATF was burning from too much volume. Too much is bad. You have to keep checking the level as you fill the ATF. A lot of the fluid is up in the torque converter so you can't go by the manual as every car can be different. You can't drain the torque converter, you can only replace and refill what comes out down at the filter. It can take 3 or more ATF changes to completely switch out old ATF. It's a hassle. They should have a drain at the back of the torque converter. Yeah, Toyota type IV is great. Don't buy your ATF at a Lexus dealer unless you like big, thorny sticks jammed... Go to a Toyota parts counter.

Dude, $185? That is expensive.

I'm buying 18" rims/tires today. Which one do you like? Stupid things didn't line up...Just vote by clicking on the circle next to the rim. They are off by 1 down. Don't click on the last circle (MB Design Link) since it is for nothing. Thanks...:)

I'm buying 18" rims/tires today. I'll be putting on 40 - 45 series Kumho Supra Ecsta tires. I've had good luck with that rubber plus they have a 30K warranty. Which one do you like? Here's my final choices: TSW Q5 TSW Reflex MB Design Link

I'm buying 18" rims/tires today. Which one do you like? Here's my final choices: TSW Q5 TSW Reflex MB Design Link

The front looks awesome. They could keep the rear more euro looking I think? Let's face it, Lexus is competing in the Euro luxury market. That was their inspiration in the gen 1 models. I saw a convertible 430 with it's top down on the way home from work this evening. Very smooth... I wish I could afford it... I must wait a few years to get a used one...

2003 Lexus LS 430

I have the shop/repair manual for the '91 LS400. Here's what I've found. code 33 = 1> Open in air mix damper position sensor circiut 2> Open or short in air mix servometer circuit 3> Air mix servometer locked. I can't find 88 yet, but I'll look... BTW, to check your AC system codes: Hold "AUTO" (not "OFF") and the "REC" switch when turning the ignition switch on.

Thanks for the info Rich. I didn't know how to check codes. Mine blinks "temp 00". I believe everything is fine? That's a cool way to check codes without having to hookup to an external computer. Does the check engine light come on when there is a code present? If you wait about a minute or os as it blinks "00", it will go through the fan speed range starting at the # 20 up to 30 as the fan speed automatically adjusts higher from low to high. Then it repeats. Why does it do that I wonder? What do the #'s mean (20-30)?

So it's Toyota T-4 for the ATF? I couldn't get that cross reference from the Lexus guy when I asked.

The best injector cleaner for me is the C5 octane booster that you get at performance shops. I get my stuff from Honest Performance in the Seattle area. It's a bit expensive ($8-10/bottle) but it works. My milage goes up about 3-5 miles per gallon when I use it and it continues to be above average for tanks to follow. You can smell a chemical type of burn off from your tailpipes when using it. I also put C5 in my '93 Suzuki GSXR750 for MORE added power. I can't keep the front wheel down...

I disagree, your LS should start on the first crank. My '90 has 132K on it and it starts on the first crank every time. Is your gas milage down? What's your average MPG (city & highway)? Tune up? Clogged injectors? Air filter? Plugs?

The sulfer/egg smell means your catylic coverter is going out. Time to replace...

No, I got those MTX subs for free. I built 1 box for the boat. That's not that big of deal as I use the boat 2-3X month max. I use to have a Phoenix Gold single 12" sub in my old 300ZX. That sounded pretty good. I will use top quality stuff.

Yeah, the A/C system repair/parts just killed you on $... Did you search for any rebuilt or aftermarket parts?

The custom one I saw on Saturday looked ok. He painted the rest of it black to match the rest of the dash. Car Toys does good install work. I've had a stereo system and an alarm put in at that place. Why doesn't anybody make a dash kit??? I still haven't called that guy yet. I'll do that tomm... I think I may install my own stuff too. I just installed my boat system last weekend. Pioneer CD head unit, Alpine 360W amp, 2 weather proof KLH 100W all purpose speakers, 1 MTX 10" enclosed sub. The system actually sounds pretty damn good. I spent about $350 dollars on everything. Car Toys is giving out 2 free 10" MTX woofers with any amp over $150. I hate doing installs but it saves you a few hundred dollars in labor.

Do the oil change guys get mad when they realise they have to remove the cover? I don't want those losers ruining it. Do they charge extra? It's about the same cost or sometimes cheaper when there is a sale to have your oil change by a garage. I hate having to dump the old oil...Very messy...

It could be your power steering fluid? That power steering pump is known to leak. It leaks ontop of the alternator and ruins it as well. Did you check your tranny fluid level? Maybe there is a gasket breech?

18" Enkei LM1 in chrome. These are the rims that I will most likley be putting on my car in a few weeks.

Oh yeah, all of the speakers will go bye-bye. I was thinking Infinity, MB Quartz, Boston Acoustic, etc.. I think I'm going to put 2 - 12" woofers in a single, ported box with a quality amp (Phoenix Gold?) bridged. I have a very good 360W Alpine amp in my boat that I will use in 4 channel mode for the fronts and rear. That amp is too good plus I'll be using the boat for maybe 2 more months. I need to put on 18" rims/tires before I do the stereo anyway. So I'm about 2 months away from doing the stereo and less than a month away from doing rims/tires.

I got a tip from a friend this weekend on a dash kit. He gave me a # to a stereo shop guy up here in the Seattle area that says he can get dash kits for the gen 1 LS400. I'll keep ya posted... There is also a Car Toys here that will custom make you a dash kit. They charge $150 to construct a dash kit out of your old stock stereo housing. I'm hoping there is an aftermarket kit with a pocket. That's what I really want. I want to have good sound in my car. I'm sick of that el-cheapo Pioneer system. I turn the bass all the way up and I barley get any. The stereo sounds ok at low levels but I like to listen to my music loud and at full range... Maybe I'll get another Kenwood DVD player?