Alfonso

I'd sell the Acura if it's already going to cost serious bucks to fix. Your SC400 engine and tranny should last 300,000 - 400,000 miles with normal care. Here's a thread about that issue. http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...topic=18238&hl= I love my SC400 and am receiving new seat leather today from a Club Lexus group buy. Can't wait to install it. Both front seats, center console (between the front seats) and rear seat, includng installation kit and shipping was $639.

My '92 SC400 has 175k miles on it and the engine and tranny run perfectly. I researched this a couple months ago when I was considering buying a new car. The consensus seemed to be that the engine and tranny should last 350k - 400k miles, although no one had ever seen them wear out unless severely abused. After learning that my engine and tranny were only at the mid-point of their expected lives, I decided to invest some bucks into fixing the things that do wear out on the car, rather than purchase a new car. - Major tuneup at dealer included some minor repairs $1400 - New instrument needles and backlights from http://www.lextech.org ($200 plus shipping) - Front LCA bushings replaced ($470 P&L). - Just ordered new leather for the front and rear seats and console cover from Leatherseats.com through a group buy on Club Lexus. ($650) I'll install it myself. - Trunk lid shocks wear out every 50k to 100k miles. ($42 from Rock Auto and a half hour of easy work.) - Steering wheel cover from WheelSkins ($50 and it took me 3 hours to do a good baseball stitch installation.) Still to do: - Clean, polish, and reseal front headlights - New wheels (moving from stock 16" to 18") - Replace climate control backlights with http://www.lextech.org ($40 plus shipping.) - Install the BFI intake http://www.planetsoarer.com/#BFI And then there are the things that I'd like to do, but probably won't get around to: - Catback exhaust - ECU upgrade - Upgrade torque converter - Repaint car Have fun! Alfonso

creek, I own a '92 SC400 with 174k miles. Last month, I had the left and right front lower control arm bushings replaced. The labor cost was $320 (4 hours @ $80 per hour) at an independent mechanic who frequently works on Lexus. Each front lower control arm has a front and rear bushing. The cost of the four bushings from the Lexus dealer was about $150. Although the front LCA bushings are not listed for 92-96 model years, the bushings for 97-00 will work just fine. The part numbers are: Front LCA front bushing - 48654-24040 Front LCA rear bushing - 48655-24050 The car now rides much, much better. No more suspension bonking on bumps. Front LCA bushings are also available from Daizen (TM Engineering). http://www.tmengineering.net/suspension/daizen/index.html LCA bushings also available from Vlamos. http://vftbushes.com A lot of SC owners like the Daizen bushings, which give a stiffer ride than stock. I wanted the cushy stock ride and so I didn't get them. The Vlamos are said to ride like stock, but they're a lot more expensive. My local Lexus stealer wanted $1,600 for parts and labor to replace the two front lower control arms. Simply replacing the bushings was not an option with the dealer. Here's a thread on ClubLexus where I learned about the SC400 '97-00 model year bushings also working for 92-96 models. http://www.clublexus.com/forums/showthread...ght=48654-24040 Here's a more recent thread in which someone else also did this replacement and liked the results. http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...topic=17211&hl= Good luck! Alfonso

My ball joints were ok and didn't need replacing. Here's a thread where I learned about the SC400 '97-00 model year bushings also working for 92-96 models. http://www.clublexus.com/forums/showthread...ght=48654-24040

You're welcome. Glad if I can pass along any useful information. I should mention that John really likes the Daizen bushings, as do a lot of SC owners. If you want a stiffer ride, they're the way to go. (That wasn't my objective, however.) They don't cost much more than the stock Lexus bushings and they should last forever. Good luck! Alfonso

My control arm bushings were replaced by John at Exact Motorsports in Milpitas. 1624 S. Main St. Milpitas CA 95035 Tel: (408) 416-0061 http://www.exactmotorsports.com/index.htm

I own a '92 SC400. This last weekend, I had the left and right front lower control arm bushings replaced for $320 (4 hours @ $80 per hour) at an independent mechanic who frequently works on Lexus. Each front lower control arm has a front and rear bushing. The cost of the four bushings from the Lexus dealer was about $150. Although the front LCA bushings are not listed for 92-96 model years, the bushings for 97-00 will work just fine. The part numbers are: Front LCA front bushing - 48654-24040 Front LCA rear bushing - 48655-24050 The car now rides 1000% better. Front LCA bushings are also available from Daizen (TM Engineering) and Vlamos. A lot of SC owners like the Daizen bushings, which give a stiffer ride than stock. I wanted the cushy stock ride and so I didn't get them. The Vlamos are said to ride like stock, but they're a lot more expensive. The Lexus dealer wanted $1,600 for parts and labor to replace the two front lower control arms. Simply replacing the bushings was not an option with the dealer.