hlovepenn

We live in the Largo, FL area and I need a good Lexus mechanic to help me solve a problem of my '96 LS400 running very rich. My former Dallas mechanic believes it's the ECU, but I can't get the car back to him for repair. Any help is greatly appreciated.

I had the same problem with my '96 LS400. Contact the following: http://elliottelectronics.com/ They have all the info you need for removing whatever they think may be the problem, either the amplifier or the radio--very easy to do, just follow the steip by step instructions. I sent them my amplifier first and it checked out okay, so they requested my radio and it turned out to be a volume chip! Cost $80 or so including their shipping--hell of a deal. Let me know if you have any questions. They are fair, honest and very nice to deal with--SUPER!!

I have the common problems with the '96 LS400 ECM allowing the engine to die ater a long drive on cruise. I have not been able to find the 89661-50303 ECM recommended by the TSIB from Lexus, but have found a rebuilt 50300 offered by RockAuto.com. Would this be a good choice? Also, I contacted a company in Davies, FL that rebuilds ECMs and they said they could repair my ECM. In my opinion, that would include the original logic, which is bad and not the updated logic in the 50303. Am I correct in my assumption? Thanks for any help.

I left Dallas on Saturday driving to Fort Myers, FL in a '96 LS400. I filled up in Jackson, MS, and immediately I had Check Engin light, missing and of couse, no cruise control. I stopped several times and disconnected the battery to reset the Check Engine stuff and no go! The next morning, I filled up and ran for a few miles with no problems, so I reset the CE light and had no problems all the way to Fort Myers. This morning, I drive to work and it misses and stumbles all the way--hello Check Engine! I buy sockets and tear into the sparkplug wire harness and make sure all the connections are good. Button it up and do a stress test in reverse and not a miss--perfect. Call my wife with the news, go out for dinner and guess what? Missing--stumbling and Mr. Check Engine! It now looks like maybe clogged injectors--stumbles at low RPMs and runs great at speed! Any suggestions on a great injector cleaner or a great mechanic in Fort Myers? BTW, it evidently has the old ECM--stalls after long drives on cruise control. I changed plugs and wires about 12,00 miles ago. All OEM! Howard Penn 214-455-3406

I recently had a problem with my AC, also and bought a rebuilt AC compressor over Ebay. I found a guru AC mechanic and he knew the problem--a leaking O-ring in the compressor. He replaced it and it has been perfect since. As I have looked at it, if I spend $300 a month on a car that I own and is better than 99% of the other cars, it is cheap! However, it is your money. To save money, find an honest car guy, buy a Chilton's and help him fix your car. That's what I've been doing and it's fun and a lot less costly than going to a Lexus dealer. E.g., I have had my alternator rebuilt twice for about $145 each time--about 90,000 miles per rebuild. Good luck! Let me know if you have any questions.

I have had a '91 LS400 for eight years and 218,00 miles and have had most of the problems possible. I had the clock-temp replaced for about $325 at my Lexus mechanics in Plano. However, there are quite a few units available, rebuilt, on Ebay. To replace, you can find instructions at most audio repair internet sites for removal instructions. As for other parts, Lexus shares a lot of parts with regular Toyota parts. Find an internet site, look up a part for the Lexus and then either type into browser search or go to a discount Toyota site and put in the part number. E.g., for lamps for the LS400 run about $35.00 at the dealer. They also fit the Supra, I believe, and run about $19.00 at a Toyota dealer. AJUSA has K&N airfilters right now for $47.00 shipping incld. That's two Lexus filters. My power steering has leaked for a while, but it has finally stopped and I saved $1200 on the unit. I just bought a '96 LS400 and am having to replace a few of the usual items--hood struts, front struts, etc. By the way, I have replaced my plugs with Walmart platinum Champions and they have worked great! Let me know if you have any questions.