JasonInDallas

That I understand, although you're exaggerating more than a bit when you say "4 times" because normal speeds for me include cruising between 60-70 MPH and I'm pretty sure he'd not driving an LS430 at 280 MPH. What I don't understand is how a BMW 5-series can handle the Autobahn with brakes that are a lot wimpier than the brakes on an LS430. The LS430 has 4-piston calipers, rotors the size of pizzas, and large brake pads. I also had an XJ8 that went 150 MPH, and the brakes were a lot les ssubstantial. I also have a friend with an M5 and those brakes compared favorably with the LS430. I'm not saying this guy is lying, but it doesn't make sense given the brakes on the LS430. They're enormous and should do fine at 150 MPH all day long. Maybe this guy's car just has a problem?

No, although I've been toying with the idea of getting a few year old used M3 convertible. Right now I only have the LS430 which is a great car. I'm not trying to start a spitting contest about Lexus vs. Anyothercar, but I can tell you a BMW is a bit easier to work on for a "shadetree" mechanic. But speaking of Lexus vs. BMW, if I could dream up a perfect car in my mind and make it a reality, it'd be something of a cross between a BMW and a Lexus using the best aspects of each.

I disagree, my 1998 528i was in many ways easier to work on than my 2002 LS430. Plus, since so many more BMW owners work on their own cars than Lexus owners do, there's a lot more free knowledge about BMWs to be found on the Internet. There are countless how-tos about repairing late model 5-series BMWs but precious few about late model LS430s.

My LS430 costs a lot less to keep maintained then past cars like BMW 5-series, Jaguar XJ8 (cost a fortune!), Acura TL, Mazda RX 7. I doubt an LS would cost much more to maintain than an Accord with similar miles. I will definitely buy another. If you want a cheaper option look into a last-generation Acura 3.5RL, although that car isn't nearly as nice as an LS.

I'm surprised the front brakes of the LS430 do not perform well at high speeds, given the layout and size of the components and the overall weight of the vehicle. The front brakes on my LS430 are much more substantial then those on my old BMW 528i which I assume performed adequately at high speed.

I just replaced my front pads yesterday, and since the rotors were fine I left them on. A few thoughts: - The components are extremely beefy and substantial. Better than on any car I've owned and done a brake job on, including a 1998 5-series BMW and a 1998 Jaguar XJ8. Impressive stuff inside. No wonder these things stop so well. - The electronic wear sensor is very similar to what BMW uses, except in this case it starts to wear well before the pads are worn. If I had known before I bought the pads, I would have simply removed the sensor and strapped it to the undercarriage and let the car go another 10-20K miles. But since I had the pads I just replaced them. If your dashboard wear sensor is illuminated, that means the sensor is worn and you'll need to buy a new one. I simply reused the old one as it hadn't yet worn through. On my car the sensor was on the passenger side (USA model). - A traditional caliper depressor does not work due to the unique caliper design. I sort of used a prying method on the old pads while still in the calipers to depress the pistons (4-pistons at that!). - I didn't bother measuring the rotors with my micrometer as they were barely worn. I guess the pads are pretty soft, and the rotors hard. This is unlike a BMW where when the pads are worn the rotors are shot as well. - You'll definitely want a seperate stand to support the passenger side caliper while you remove the wear sensor. - If you've done front pads on a modern car the LS430 will be easy enough, although it is in many ways different than any front brake system I've ever done and I've done a lot of them. - Paid about $50 for the pads, I went with OE (not to be confused with OEM as so many people do). - Pretty straightforward job, I could probably do it in well under an hour if I hurried, although I do have a comprehansive set of tools and some experience working on my own cars. - My old cotter pins were in good shape so I reused them, a good thing since I didn't even know they were used for the LS brakes. - So for an hour or two of work, even a novice can DIY an LS430 front brake job for well under $100. FYI: A cordless electric drill with a 3/8" square drive is a huge timesaver when removing or replacing lug nuts. I use a 1/2" drive breaker bar to start them, then speed them off with the drill used like an air-driven speed wrench. If you have an air compressor at home this won't help you, but I don't so it's a huge timesaver. And since I already have the cordless drill with socket adapter out, I use it for speeding on and off the caliper mounting bolts (which on this car are extremely long and beefy).

Untrue about the BMW boards being active because of problems and kids only, I used to have a 1998 5-series and that board was extremely active because BMWs have a lot more enthusiasts owning them. LSs are generally owned by people who drive them as appliances, and not many enthusiasts own LSs. BTW the last-gen 5-series was pretty darn reliable, at least for a Euro sedan. Only a handful of recurring problems, but of course still no comparison to an LS. Speaking of, I came to the board here today to post about a brake job I just did on my 2002 LS430. While a lot of BMW owners work on their own cars, I doubt many LS owners do especially owners of late model LSs.

Anything with Connoly(sp?) leather smells best to me. Jaguar, Bentley, Rolls, possibly some others. Connoly has a super premium called Autolux that not only smells great but is glove soft as well. I agree with the person above who said Caddy and Lex smell the same.

Brake pads are cheap. Transmissions and engines and torque converters and rear axles and engine mounts and guibos and driveshafts are not. Engine braking is pointless unless you're going down a mountain and run the risk of overheating the brakes. Will engine braking cause severe damage? Probably not, but why wear out expensive components (engine and drivetrain) in order to protect cheap ones designed to wera out (pads and rotors)? Engine braking makes no more sense than putting $100 bills on your shoe soles in order to prolong the life of leather. By the way someone said downshifting at speed would lock up the brakes and add wear to the ABS and pads? Totally untrue.

MXV4+ tires suck. It is not failure to do rotation or anything like that. I've had them on new cars and used cars, and I hated them each and every time. I've had 4 sets over the last 5-odd years. In fact I have a stack of them in the garage from one car or another I removed them so I could install better tires. They're smooth and quiet, sure, but not as much as other tires such as Continental CH95 or Falken Azenis or Pirelli P6000. My theory why so many cars have them is the fleet MPG tax asessed on manufacturers. They'll do anything to get better MPG average over their fleet, so they go with the Michelins.

I liked it better before that stuff.

ties: I'll never again get the Michelin Energy MXV4+ or whatever they are called. They came on most of my new cars (Jag, BMW, Acura, wife's Volvo) and while they ride nicely they have a horrible whine on whatever kind of pavement they use on most Texas interstates. For an all season tire I like Conti CH95 and for a low profile 18" summer hi performance tire I like Falken Azenis which are also awesome in the rain. windshield: Not sure about the LS400, but the LS430 comes with special rain-repellent glass. It's great and no way I'd want to do without it just to save a few hundred bucks.

Lucky for you the evap wasn't leaky! I have a refrigerant sniffer and it's really handy for chasing down leaks.

The reason it'll do 85 in second gear is because it's not a 5 or 6 speed. I'd rather have more gears personally. Hell, I had a 1966 327SS Impala convertible that would do 60 in first gear ... because it only had a 2 speed transmission. Go test drive an LS430 and you'll see what smooth power really is! Or better yet a 12-cyl from Mercedes or BMW. And while I agree the LS400 is plenty smooth, you really can't tell much of anything from this video.

A fin cleaner is a tool made specifically for this job. Can be had for about ten bucks, and it will also do wonders for your A/C unit outside your house.