KY350

Just follow the recomended handbook service schedule. There is no need to do anything differently unless you have a problem or the car is driven very hard (ie track work). WRT power steering pump, I'm sure you can have your reconditioned by a mechanic for less than 1/2 what the dealer charges to replace it. Alternatively, you may be able to find another one on ebay. Either way, get the power steering pump leak fixed asap, before it generates further problems with the alternator, which will get very expensive to reapair.

Zdeno - I sympathise with you over the problems you are experiencing. However, I find it very amusing that you appear to be answering your own questions. If you have known of a power steering pump issue, why didn't you get it fixed immediately. After only one day on this board, I understood that the power steering pump problems can lead to significantly costlier repairs if not attended to immediately. It appears that you have been neglecting your LS of necessary repairs. I'm sorry that I cannot tell you what specifically is the problem with your car, but my advice to you is to take the car to a mechanic to be checked out immediately, before your problem goes from bad to worse. Hopefully someone else may chip in with a specific fix for your problem.

Craig - I was speaking to a friend about your problem. He advised me that he knew of a Toyota MR2 Turbo that had exactly the same problem that you have. Changed everything associated with the fuel system, but still no improvement in performance. In the end, it turned out that the catalytic converter had colapsed and this caused significant performance loss. I don't know if this is the case with your LS, but I guess at this stage you'll be willing to test everything to fix this problem, so I thought I'd pass this info on to you.

Brilliant job Lexls. You've made it easy for us to upgrade our LS models by easily comparing differences between years on a single page. Thank you.

Craig - RFelds makes a good point about speedo inaccuracy. If your LS does not show any engine check lights on the dash and it accelerates as well as other 1991 models and it sounds good doing it, then perhaps it is just your speedo that is inaccurate. The fact that you cannot beat the Tempo is a worry, but are you sure that it was not a modified Tempo that is as quick as the LS? Again, If you know of another early 1990's LS owner near you, go perform a few side by side runs yourself. Check both the speedo and tacho readouts at predefined speeds in each gear against the other LS. Alternatively, if you do not know any other LS owners near you, then get a few friends together and race against their cars. As long as the other car is slightly slower than yours, and you know how long the other car is supposed to take to get to 100km/h, then you can compare its time / speed with your LS. It is preferable to do this test against another auto, so as to eliminate any driver skill / or lack of, to gain a true representation of your cars acceleration capability. Finally, perhaps someone on this board can tell you what rpms your car should be doing in 2nd gear when it accelerates to 100km/h (about 62mph) flat out from standstill. I am assuming that the tacho reading is accurate for this test and does not give an inaccurate reading to match an inaccurate speedo display. Good luck.

Glad to hear that the acceleration problem is fixed. Now go find a Ford Temp to race just to make sure!

I might try Mobil 1 next service and see if I can get better fuel economy. Only got 16mpg on the last fill and I was driving conservatively (had a couple of 90-100F days and the AC was working overtime, so that doesn't help)!!!! BTW, what viscosity M1 should I get, keeping in mind that I am in Australia and in summer (now) its up to 100F and winter is usually only as low as 40F, unless I make a trip to the snow, which I probably will next winter season (5F)?

Hope it is the fuel pump / filter and you can get to the bottom of this Craig. I suspect that once the problem is fixed, you may spend a little more time acting half your age!!!! Good luck.

Craig - sorry about the slow response, but i timed my car to 100km/h (by counting as my watch does not have a seconds hand) and I counted to about 9s. I have a 91LS

VBdenny - I was in exactly the same boat as you. Was not looking for a new car and I happened to be riding in my colleagues 91 LS and he mentions to me that he wants to sell it. He said that with 260,000km it was ready for the scrap heap. I told him its a great car and not a scrap heap wreck. So I told him I might be interested in buying it. Had the car checked out and looked over the service records (Lexus serviced all its life). It is in excellect condition for a 13yo car so I bought it fairly cheaply. Now I love the car. My only critisism are, the braking is not up to scratch and the car leans a little too much and the seats just are not supportive enough.

91 LS requires Type II fluid also, but as unavailable, Type IV should be ok.

Thanks mehullica - I'll get a replacement power steering rack when the pressure builds more and the steering starts to really annoy me.

Hi Tex - good to see you're enjoying the car. There's nothing like good torque for accelerating at high speeds. Your mpg sounds pretty good. I did about 2/3 of a tank at highway speeds and the other 1/3 at city speeds and managed 21.5 mpg.

99lsguy - checked the power steering fluid - level is correct and color is brownish, similar to oil as you mentioned. I was concerned that the brownish color may not be contaminated fluid as my transmission fluid is red and from reading the owner manual, the power steering fluid and transmission fluid are one and the same Dex II. So I guess no flushes in 13 years OMG!!!!! wwest - I'm not keen on removing this shock, but I'll ask my mechanic to check it for me next service. ronsadvice - Your LS is probably within spec if the dealer cannot improve the feel of centre. I also initially thought that this was inherent steering feel of the LS. Happy to live with it if it cannot be cheaply corrected though as my pull is very minor.

1991 LS with 166,000 miles. No squeeks or rattles what so ever. In fact, the air cond compressor is the only noise I can hear inside the cabin on gentle acceleration and it is just about whisper quite.

Hi CandaCraig - had a look at your video. At first I though everything was ok as your car took about 8s to get to 60. Then I noticed that your car got to 60mph without a gear change, which I know is not possible. Then I remebered that your from Canada and your speeds are measured in km/h not mph. So then I timed your run to 100km/h and it took about 13s - way too long to be within normal tolerences. According to our American friends, the LS should take about 8s flat to get to 60mph (96km/h). So I would expect no more than an 8.5s sprint from 0-100km/h. I must admit that I have only had my 1991 LS for 1.5 weeks and the thought of hammering the throttle from standstill to beyond 100km/h has never crossed my mind in this car - I confine the spirited driving to my sports car. However, I will fang my LS tomorrow and time the 0-100km/h sprit for you.

99lsguy - I have not checked the power steering pump, other than from the outside to ensure no leaks when purchasing the car. What color should the PS fluid be when fresh? Ronsadvice - what did you dealer do in an attempt to fix your steering issue? I will have my solenoid cleaned at the next service in another 5000km (approx 3 months away). Is it ok to wait until then? 1990LS400 - yes the power steering should return the steering wheel to the straight ahead position, when I let go of the wheel. But it should not try to correct the steering angle to the stariaght ahead position while holding the turn. My Ford does not do that and neither does my Z, but both will straighten when I release the steering wheel once the turn has been negotiated. Flanker271 - I can steer it with just an index finger and the torque build up is minimal, but enough for me to notice. I wasn't sure if this artificial steering feel while turning was an idiosincrecy of the LS or something wrong with my steering - hence my post.

I took the LS 400 (91 model) for a 400km round trip on the weekend. As you all know, its a great touring car that swallowed the kilometers effortlessly, with cruise control set on the highway. The ride over rough roads is superb and the auto transmission is seemless. Just about the only issue I noticed was that during a constant radius turn, the steering wheel wants to turn back to the neutral or staight ahead position. So the power steering tends to give a little nudge to the opposite direction to the turn. Is this normal on all LS400's? Its a little annoying, but I can live with it.

Congratulations on the GS400 purchase. That's very reasonable mileage on a 6yo car.

Can you advise if you are also getting the orange engine light on together with the trac light? This is happening in my 91 model and my mechanic has diagnosed no. 51 and 55 error codes. These codes are interrelated and I need to change the knock sensor to stop the lights from coming on in the dash. Quote for repair is approx $500 - $600 Australian. As my trac light only comes on intermittently (once a week) and it can be overcome by simply switching off the engine and restarting while at a set of traffic lights, I will not get it fixed, as the manifold must be removed to access the knock sensor which is located in the bottom end of the V configuration of the engine. BTW, Lexus wanted to charge the previous ower $2,500 to correct the trac light!!!!!!

Had my 91 LS since Thur and just took the car for its first petrol fill. Decided to check the tyre pressures as I'm anal about getting even wear and subsequent extended mileage from the tyres. The previous owner had the pressures sitting at 42psi!!! I lower the pressure to 34psi and the ride was not really much softer, but I am weary of wearing out the middle of the tyre prematurely at high pressures.

there is a little buttom at the bottom of the unit that tints the rear view mirror for daytime/nightime driving........ sometimes in certain temperature the tint shield will will be half way on and half way off, just hit the button and it should clear again. if that is not the case, i would check ebay and/or a salvage yard and find a replacement. shouldn't cost you much ← Thanks Silvermate. I have tested the tint shield for night driving and it works fine. A friend who did own a 1990 LS400 told me that the rear view mirror does darken at the extremities as I descibed, but tends to dissappear with heat. So its not an issue for me at the moment as we are just about to head into summer down under. If this issue worsens during the cold months, then, I'll simply replace with another.

I am a new LS owner (1991 model) and was very surprised, not to mention disappointed when I found out that the 400 does not have heated seats. Not even an option on the car, as my car has all the options except electronic suspension which was never offered in this modl in Aust. Can someone advise where I may be able to buy a fair value aftermarket heater for the seats? Also, are there any instructions for installation of same floating on the web that anyone knows of?

Well, I've only just picked up a 1991 LS400 just yesterday and already I have noticed how uncomfortable the seats are. I find that the drivers seat is too firm and really should have a bit more give in it, so that it matches the refinement of the rest of the car. Even my 350Z with its sports seats and less adjustments is a lot mote comfortable. I seem to get a sore backside after just 1/2 hour of driving in the LS. That said, I am very satisfied with the rest of the car.

Hi folks. I registered with this forum today after speding the last week reading all about the LS400. Great forum BTW. I have agreed to purchase a 1991 LS400 with 264,000km (approx 165,000miles). The car is in immaculate condition except for the following: - small scrape and a little associated rust on one wheel arch - should be able to fix relatively cheaply - small amount of wear on the drivers seat with the leather worn on the side support - the owner told me that this has been the same for the last 10 years as the car is always garaged day and night. - trac and orange engine light sometimes appear on the dash (codes 51 and 55 respectively) - need to remove the manifold and get into the guts of the V8 to replace a knock sensor. Thinking of not doing this as the trac light only sometimes comes on. - the extremities of the interior rear view mirror show a little blackening of the LCD panel - will it ever blacken to the extent that I won't be able to see out of the rear view mirror? If so, is this an expensive fix? Every other component on the car is in immaculate condition (ie power steering pump / air cond / alternator / suspension / gearbox / stereo and clock LCD's etc). This car has been maintained by Lexus all its life :D Still has the original SS exhaust after 13 years - wow!!! The timing belt was changed at 200,000km (approx 125,000 miles). When does this need to be done again? My mechanic tells me that Lexus have increased the timing chain interval from the initial 100,000km (60,000miles) to every 150,000km (94,000miles). So by my calculations, I need to see 350,000km (220,000) on the odometer before the next change - correct?