jainla

I can say the LS is the only car in this class I would consider buying used; in fact I started out thinking I would be buying an S430 or S500 and ended up with the LS 430. It's probably the best car for the money; new or used. If you could pull a clean carfax and a good service history the LS is probably the only car I would consider buying sight unseen. It will be 3 years I've had it next month and I've had absolutely no problems (save the 3 I knew about buying the car) save for the fact that all the bulbs in the tail lights seem to be burning out (lost another one last week). I should just bite the bullet and replace all of them and get it over with. I must admit the UL features in the back are a great conversation piece...."your car has a fridge? really?" And you also become the defacto chauffeur, so beware. Keep looking; it took me about 3 months to find mine. They're out there.

Sound so simple doesn't it? LOL. Seriously though if I won the lottery I could probably spring for the LX 570-they had one there as well and I sat in it while they demonstrated the crawl control...NICE. So simple even the minion could operate it. The minion could probably even buy it. So add #5 to the list...buy stock in oil companies.

I must be blind; you mean the L design on the left side? Or is there a L with a circle etched somewhere like the Maybach ? That's b/c they are all here in So Cal; every 3rd or 4th LS I see is a hybrid. They are popular in NYC too. i drove it again this year at the Taste of Lexus...this year we went on a 3 mile road course through Pasadena. It was so funny, a caravan of 4 LS600's and an LS460, nothing makes me smile like a half million bucks worth of hybrids! They also had an LS460 AWD there but I didn't drive it. The car I drove even had the driver monitoring system but no LKA. After this drive I must admit I'm in a little in love with the LS600h. My inner geek giggled every time the engine cut off down a grade or at a stoplight and then seamlessly turned back on. I was grinning as the car glided up to the stop sign or across an intersection under all electric power. It's so quiet. It's so quick. The hybrid drive makes mincemeat of midrange passing; to say nothing of the lovely roar of the V8 under power. The interior is gorgeous; every surface seems to be covered in wood or leather--even the dash and tops of the doors. In these times it's the only extravagance that seems remotely justifiable. Time to start playing the lotto again. And shopping for an old LX470 to have my minion drive behind me with all my luggage. And I also need a minion.

If you get stuck in any kind of traffic or are mostly stop and go this is typical. If I fill up and then head east (into LA) at rush hour I can see 14.7 mpg. Yuck. When I was commuting against traffic in an almost even mix of freeway and city streets I usually saw 18-19.

Ouch. Hope it has air ride. Height HI! Height HI! I know i have definately killed more in one night! Tequila is a !Removed!... DONT EAT THE WORM!! Why would you drive a car with as much electronics as an LS through water like that...if i had to guess i would say another 3 inches and hes hydrolocked... $12000 is alot to spend on an engine change for stupidity.

I think the Gen 1 is timeless. In another couple years it will be a great classic car. YES! I remember that one. I also remember the very first one with the car driving through the countryside and there were all these 'relentless pursuits' of comfort (interior shots) of performance (whipping around corners with the tach spinning up high) and of safety(the car dodging a bunch of lumber falling from a truck). I haven't seen either of those anywhere on the web. Probably one of the best launch campaigns ever.

Some of the Vaistech adaptors also have a line input you can use to connect other devices; such as a MP3 compatible CD changer or a DVD player.

Most of the issues with the ES350 seem to be the same ones that '07 Camry owners have reported (transmission issues mostly). This is not that surprising considering the common platform. I agree that the ES350 in look and feel seems slightly less fabulous than the car it replaced. Toyota later admitted they cut about 1,000 engineers from their quality control teams and will now have to add them back; we are also seeing this in the unusual amount of TSBs and other issues reported by owners of the '07 LS460. Toyota seems to be correcting the problems though; the second year of both models seem much better. I think it's kind of premature to judge an entire brand by an experience of just one car. Cars are mechanical and everyone (even Lexus) makes a lemon every once in a while. I've heard many stories of people who are very happy with their recent Mercedes or VW and people who say they are a maintenance nightmare. Sometimes it's also just luck of the draw. Toyota seems to finally have hit the tipping point in that they are making too many cars and can't control the quality as thoroughly as they have in the past. I think that's why they are building more plants in the US (so their current ones don't have to run at 105%+ capacity) and hopefully their situation will improve. Every carmaker seems to have a season. In the 70's and the 80's Mercedes made the best cars in the world. In the late 80's and the 90's Toyota seems to have taken the mantle (with Honda nipping at its heals). Now the Germans seem to have bounded back from the quality abyss so who knows who's next? Maybe (dare I say it) Hyundai?

Does the Parrot work? The installers may have hard wired the kit into one of the dash or door speakers; there doesn't seem to be much room in the footwell of the LS430 for an external speaker.. As for the Vaistech kit interfering with the mute functionality of the ML stereo there doesn't seem to be a problem at all. I have had the Parrot and the Vaistech happily co-existing in my car for almost 2 years.

The Toyota Nav system can recognise voice tags and commands but it won't scan your phonebook and create voicetags; that's still a manual process. I think the system only supports voice tags for about 30 numbers; I think the idea is to record tags for the 30 people you call the most. You can still dial the number by voice (I think the command is dial by number); although that's not going to help you if you don't know which number you're dialing. The Voicesignal system is still fairly new and a number of middle tier cell phones don't do speaker independent (or dependent) voice dial so I'm sure Lexus figured it was a better bet to not include that feature. I have also had some variable results with the Parrot system and my Curve so perhaps the technology is not perfected yet for road use (once my phonebook hit 600 entries the recognition seems much slower and less accurate). I'm not sure if the MB or BMW systems can do it yet; but I'm sure this will come to most bluetooth phone systems within a couple years. I don't know anybody who's used the Sync system yet so I don't know how good it is at interpreting commands. If you have the BB in your hand you can assign one of the quick keys to enter the voicedial option and then have the phone connect to the bluetooth system once the call is dialed. It's not the most elegant solution but it does work; sometimes I keep the blackberry in my cup holder and grab it to make a call.

It also seems to be a function of where the car is sold. I honestly have yet to see a non-Nav equipped LS460 (or LS430 or almost any Lexus for that matter) here in Southern California. However where my mom lives in Philly trying to find a Prius or a Camry with the nav system was a big deal; basically they said that a Camry Hybrid with a nav system was probably a 2-3 month wait. I wonder if the Lexus allocation is similar. I'm sure Toyota/Lexus allocates the cars with and without Nav to where they think they will sell. Also while you can spend $65k and not get the nav system (should you not want it) on an LS460 or you can spend $80k+ for a 7 series or S-Class and get the nav whether you want it or not (and the Idrive/command system but that's another topic). Like SW says there are probably buyers who just don't want it and the fuss of having to use the touchscreen for other non-navigation related functions. Also it's pretty much included or required for almost every options package so I'm actually surprised that there were other options on the LS460 without the Nav package. I think the nav is standard in the 460L? Also you can certainly use the system while moving; most of the functions that are locked out of the touchscreen are still available through voice command.

The amp is in the trunk; on the right hand side, behind the trunk liner. Getting the wiring back there is an enormous PITA, so if you just want to finish it at this point you are probably better off buying a small powered speaker and stashing it either under the driver's seat or somewhere in the driver's footwell. You also might be able to run the wire into the driver's or passenger's door and bypass it that way. The two drivers in the dash are tweeter/midrange drivers and might not work for voice. I put a Parrot 3200LS in my LS430 a couple years ago; so if you are obsessed with getting it as close to OEM as possible have fun; you can do it but it's a project. Here is the link. Since I've done the install I've upgraded the firmware in the Parrot and changed to a Blackberry Curve; now the contacts, call lists, etc.. all sync normally like they are supposed to. The Curve also has voice dialing so I bypass the voicetags in the unit. I also ended up moving the mic to a new position right about the rearview mirror (basically where Parrot says you should put it). So far works great! Especially since now we can't hold phones in California. :) Good luck. Where were you thinking to put the control module, out of curiosity? Post some pics when you're done.

Congrats on the new ride; although I will miss hearing about the '95; it was my talisman for how a high mileage LS can (and should) look. I agree about Mystic Gold; there have been similar colors all the way back to the '90 and it basically looks like the LS was made for it. Very handsome; and the car looks like it's in great shape. It's found a good home! It continues to amaze me how modern the first and second gen LS400s look; even today. They never look dated or old; especially compared to their peers. I especially like the solid rear window glass and the fancy way it rolls down.

I had the same experience about a year ago. Battery fine; struggled to start one morning (but started) and was fine; then next morning dead as a doornail. I had been to Sears a couple weeks prior as I actually did kill the battery by leaving the light on...they tested both it and the charger and they said both were fine. It's not the car's fault; sometimes the battery just croaks. I went back to Sears and bought the biggest; baddest battery that would fit in the battery well. I think that a) these cars have a heavy draw when they sit (all those electronics waiting to be summoned alive); and B) the battery is actually pretty small for a V8. My 4 cylinder Mercedes diesel has a battery that's almost twice the size of the one in the LS; and I've probably replaced it twice in 15 years.

Congratulations; the LS is indeed a stunning car. It does just about everything well; in an understated, humble way. I think the LS is probably the best pre-owned car you can buy; period. With a little TLC it should have no problem seeing 250k+ miles. I suspect programming the smartkey is similar to programming the transponder in the older keys; there may be directions in the forums on how to do it but I could never get them to work. When I purchased my LS I called Sewell in Dallas; and after faxing them a copy of my registration ID etc they sent me a key that was pre-cut for my car (from the VIN). I think the smart key has a physical key hidden in it so they would be able to do that as well. They sometimes sell the keys on Ebay at a discount so you might want to snoop around. I think I paid half of what my local dealer quoted me. Once the key arrived i took it down to my dealer and they programmed it for me in about 10 minutes; and didn't charge me a thing; so call your local and see if they might be willing to do the same.

Ditto the advice about the VIN stickers; it's the fastest way to see if the car has been involved in some kind of major crash. If there's a Lexus dealer nearby see if they will do a PPI inspection. I had them do one on my car and it cost about $200; and they also pulled up (and printed out ) the service history. I bet also an indy mechanic might do one. Once the car is up on the lift it's very hard to hide major repairs like bodywork or other damage from a major crash. I had a friend who bought a Passat and heard this clunking noise; turns out when the car was on the lift they saw there had been some kind of accident that tore the transmission and driveline off their mountings....good thing he was able to get his money back! Flood damage might be a little tougher to spot. Certainly all the metal mounts under the car would be dead givaways; I'd look inside some of the ECU bays; the fuse bays; look for anything that should never get wet but is corroded. You might also be able to pull back some of the carpeting; smell for mold. Also things like the screws for the seat tracks inside the car; any springs or other metal parts under the seats etc. Also look in the trunk for the tire jack; mount down screws and nuts, see if they look ok. Although for these cars i would guess a flood would short out some if not all of the electronics; so if they are running you are probably ok. Far more worrisome is the weird mileage reading; how many miles are showing on the car now?

Probably the backup camera and the smartkey from the '04 - '06. Or if I were to win the lotto....HYBRID BABY!!

If you do a search in this forum or the AV forums for MP3 and Ipod you'll find the answers; this topic has been covered extensively. Basically the two most common options are: 1) get thee to an Apple store, acquire an Ipod and either the Vaistech, Lexus OEM, or Dice Ipod adaptors. These put the ipod on the stereo LAN as a second CD changer or MD player. Neat and very slick, again searching the posts will give you the pros and cons of each solution on the market. You could also buy an iPod with a dead battery and/or busted screen and just leave it in the car; it's controlled by the stereo. 2) rip out the Levinson system and start over. All of the technology it uses is proprietary and hard to patch into; the amp is digital and in the trunk (as is the FM Tuner). Also you'll need to keep the touchscreen to use the climate controls and factory Nav (unless you want to replace that too). People have done it; but it's not pretty and all of the interior bits, wiring harnesses etc have to be custom made. There is a slim possibility that the Japanese DM CD units used in later Celsior models might play mp3/wma CDs (I know they play DVDs) but then you have the whole CDR issue again. These units are also very hard to find; I think the ipod is much easier to live with; if more expensive on the front end. Some of the Vaistech units come with 2 inputs, one for sat radio/ipod and one for an AUX RCA unit; and I think they make one unit that has 2 AUX units. This might solve your problem. Hope that helps; I'm sure other people have war stories and pointers....also some guys at Clublexus.com get really into modding their OEM stereos; there are some posts of people ripping out the Levinson unit and replacing it with a double DIN aftermarket unit but it's not for the faint of heart.

I think this is it... http://www.sewellpartsonline.com/parts_detail.asp?id=50633 I found them on this page: http://www.sewellpartsonline.com/assembly....10&year=163 Not sure if the driver and passenger are the same (I haven't looked at mine in a while).

03 is right; removing the trim is relatively easy. I had to do it twice; once to install my Parrot Bluetooth kit and once to install the my SLI. I think it took about an hour to install the SLI. If you look at the third piece of my parrot posting here you can see what removing the wood trim pieces looks like. I covered my wood trim in masking tape to protect it. Also make sure you don't drop the 3 screws for the small console box/CD player cover as there is a cavern under that part of the car...you might not ever see them again. You'll need a 10mm socket wrench to remove the 2 bolts that hold the radio/cd player assembly at the bottom next to the CD player itself. ; and an extender is probably not a bad idea either. Once you've unbolted it the connector you are looking for is directly at the back center; you'll have to disconnect the CD player, put the parrot Y connector in its place and then reconnect the lead going back to the OEM amp. As for locating the kit my '01 has the dual glove box so I put it in the bottom compartment; and I was able to route the cable out the side of the HVAC housing through the slot that holds the retaining pin and into the compartment; it slightly restricts how much I can open the glovebox but I didn't want to cut anything. I'm not sure what you would have to do on an '04+. You could also put the ipod in the armrest/center console box; but the cable between the CD player and the ECU might not be long enough to put the ECU there. There is space for the ECU behind the switches for the transmission and under the CD player; you could then route the ipod cable into the center console box. It would be more of a pain to get to if you had to replace it however. If you want to put the ipod there; the post has instructions and pix as to how to remove the trim surrounding the shifter and the console box itself (that's where I put the Parrot brain). I hope you find the info useful....I've had the Vaistech for 2 years and it's fantastic. Good Luck!

Blake I'm sorry to hear about the accident; it's too bad about the car but it sounds like it gave it's life so that you and your passenger could survive. I hope you both heal quickly! For the 05-06 the only package that has reclining rear seats would be the ultra package; which also tosses in laser cruise control and heated/cooled front and rear seats. The Custom Lux package would also have the heated/cooled front seats and the heated rears; I"m not 100% sure but I think the laser cruise also came on those models. After mid year '04 the Pre collision system was an option on both the CL cars and the UL cars; it replaces the laser with a true radar system that also activates seat belt tensioners and can apply the brakes if the car thinks you might collide with an obstacle. I've heard varying reports on how desireable that feature is; some people really like it; some don't. I must admit I do use the laser cruise but on windy roads or heavy traffic; it does occasionally get confused on windy roads or by dirty cars. Also in heavy rain if the sensor gets wet it shuts off automatically; reasons to consider the radar sensor which is impervious to rain and dirt and betterprotected behind the grill. Good luck shopping for your new car; we hope to see you back here soon!

DrJ I agree completely. I've sniffed around several benz forums over the last year or so and I agree there are certain....individuals who seem to expend energy only on disparaging others and trying to shout down (literally) other people's posts. For the most part we don't do that here. The people here at LOC are much more civilized...it was one of the reasons I considered and eventually bought the LS. As for the Benz/Lexus comparison Mercedes has done a wonderful job over the last 20 years of buildling the brand into a truly aspirational brand. Every year at the LA auto show the MB booth is packed with teenagers; wheras the Lexus booth seems to be less crowded and populated with an more adult demographic. Many of the kids at the MB stand I'm sure will probably never walk into a dealership to buy a new Benz--but they still want to get their picture taken in the cars; whereas most of the people at the Lexus stand seem to be people who would actually walk into the dealership. That said I have to admit I'm entertaining the idea of a w140 benz for a weekend car. It's big, it's inefficient; but it's probably the most over-engineered car ever made. It was a direct response to the first LS400; and I think in many ways inspiration for the LS430. Most of the engineers that participated in the project were fired for the tremendous cost overruns incurred when developing the car. But it does have a certain presence; and it's the last of the old-world Benzes that established the brand in America in the 70's and 80's. Fear not however because the LS will be going nowhere. As it cruises towards it's three year anniversary without a single problem (save a burned out CHMSL bulb) I appreciate it's quiet and polished demeanor more and more. There's no other car I would want to slog it out with on the freeways and traffic here in LA.

The 2001 LS 430 had a couple TSBs, mostly for noise related issues; but overall it's a fairly trouble free car. Some people prefer the 04+ models for the styling tweaks and new features (6 speed transmission, bluetooth). At this point though maintenance (or lack thereof) is going to be a better predictor of overall reliability than anything intrinsically wrong with the design. You have to remember that the 90-06 car series are all variants on the same basic design; I think the Gen II had 25% parts commonality with the Gen I and the Gen III (LS 430) has about 10% parts carryover. I've driven several LS400s over the years and I can clearly see the family resemblance; and you'd be surprised how many parts under the skin are common from one generation to the next (or at least similar in design and execution). The engine is also basically a carryover; with features like VVT-I electronic throttle and more displacement added in over the years. The LS460 is entirely, 100% a clean sheet redesign from the ground up; which I think explains the higher number of first year issues. But those also seem to have abated; the LS regained it's #1 spot in the latest JD Power initial quality survey.

I remember when I had it done at the dealer it was about $600. If I had found my indie guy then i probably wouldn't have bothered to go to the dealer but I had just purchased the car and wanted them to look it over. From what I remember it's a complete fluids change and an inspection (this is for an LS430) which seems to occur every 30,000 miles. The parts aren't expensive but it's the labor that gets you. I agree the dealer over charges for a lot of this; if you are handy or know a good indie you can save a ton. The 90,000 mile timing belt change at the dealer is something like $1500+; I think I'll be going to my indie guy for that one.

I agree with 01 Ultra. I have had my '01 LS430 for almost 3 years and have not had a single problem with it. I too have the Ultra Luxury package with every gizmo under the sun and they all still work. My first real repair of any kind was the CHMSL bulb that burnt out a couple months ago. It just had a new set of brake pads put on it and will probably need tires in another couple months; but any car requires these items. It's not like a Mercedes where the first year can be a real headache; the '01 LS430 was still top of its class in initial reliability. There are a couple small issues that TSB's came out for but these are mostly related to things rattling; Lexus seems obsessed with noise. There was a TSB for a groaning noise in the steering column but other than that nothing huge to worry about. Also mine was a late model '01 so it may have had some of these issues fixed already. Also bear in mind that the engine, transmission, and many major systems of the car are evolutions of the previous 95-00 series cars so most of the kinks were worked out long ago. At this point the maintenance history will be more indicative of future reliability than any intrinsic design flaws. The '04 models have 2 recalls; one for a fuel pump and one for transmission (it gets replaced) so if you pick a car from that year make sure those issues have been addressed. They also have additional features like bluetooth, an upgraded nav system, smart key, revised steering bushings etc. but aside from the 6 speed transmission they are mechanically almost identical to the earlier years. Other than that there's really not much to worry about except cosmetic issues and wear and tear. They are fantastic, well built sturdy cars and I must say even after 3 years I still enjoy driving it as much if not more than the day I bought it. If you want nightmare check out the benzworld forums for the first year of the 00-06 S-Class. Air suspensions dying, command systems shorting out, sounds bad to say the least. I would shop around and see what models and options are out there; also have the car inspected by a dealer or mechanic before you buy. But if find an '01 with a good maintenance history and no major problems no real reason to stay away from it unless you find an '02 or later that you like better. :)