lexluxury

Noticed that car drove slightly stiffer when driving away from shop. Felt like there was a bit of a drag. Air suspension switch was turned off before car was put up on rack. Forgot to turn it back on before I drove away. Short distance away, noticed flashing "High" (Height?) warning on dash. Car seem to be running roughly. Pulled over, and turned on air suspension switch. Car felt normal again, ran normal again, but steering remained slightly stiffer than pre-repair. Is there any chance that driving the car a short distance with air suspension turned off would have affected alignment (thus creating some kind of drag?). Had alternator installed today. I can't see how that would have any effect on steering. Overall, what happens if you drive your car three or four miles with the air susp turned off? Would this create problems or damage? Thanks.

thanks all. went with a reman original for 200. autozone was too far away for me to get to for the duralast...only got a 12 month warranty on this part, but i had to get it done. he said they've been getting their parts from this supplier for 5 years and have had few problems....what are the odds? i checked the description on the box for what had been done on the rebuild...they put in a lot of new parts -- brushes, seals, i don't remember what all -- but looks like they only 'tested or replaced with new' several other components (regulator, etc.). we could see through the vents and looks like they replaced almost everything (cld see new coils, new regulator, etc.). another fun day with the car!

thanks all. will look for denso this AM. if i don't have to drive to far to get it, this might work. i got about five miles yesterday before all the warning lights started coming on...darn! thank god it doesn't cost an arm and a leg to install. thank god for that.

thanks SRK. your option sounds great, but won't work for me here in Los Angeles. i need to get this fixed...and am pretty sure it is the alternator. i called autozone, because i'm not about to pay almost 500 for this part from the dealer. autozone has a reman duralast with a lifetime warranty for 165 and i can get it installed for not much -- $60 or so. the guy i talked to used to have his own repair shop and seemed knowledgeable. he listened to all my 'symptoms' and said he thought it was the voltage regulator, but that it made no sense to try to fix just that, would have to take it apart, etc., and that i may as well replace alternator. he will run tests on it tomrrow and look over wiring, connections, belt. said they did not have denso, which others have recommended. i know there are difference in quality on this part. should i go with this? i can't lose another day with being out of a car which is why i am tempted. it's got a lifetime warranty, for one thing..thoughts?

Autozone? My Lex parts service quoted me $489. Seems high. Can I get one somewhere else for less. not sure how much more time I have. Car died once today...all lights coming on (battery, trac light off warning light, another warning light on dash says "ABS"). I'm not using headlights and radio isn't even turning on...battery is a Sears Diehard and was checked only a month or so ago and rated 'excellent'. It's not the battery.

won't even pretend to be able to follow the logic of some of these posts, but want to toss this out for what it's worth. my mechanic told me that a mass air flow sensor that has failed will cause backup in the manifold and that lots of white smoke (not a little, a lot) is the result. this is exacly what is going on i even took the spark plugs off to see if they were wet and found the num 7 and the 1 cylinder spark plugs drained with fuel so i took them out and switch them around (the injectors) to see if the others would help the 1 and 7 cylinders and with them changed it still drained the 1 and 7 question what is a cam sensor this is what the guy i bought the car from said was one of the things that the dealer told him needed replaced can it case this problem ? and if so do you know the location on it? ← ←

disconnected battery. buzzing went away. does this mean you were correct? i think so. :-)

Can you give us some follow=up? Did you finally replace the ECM and if so, did this work?

Is this the sound (high zzzzzeeeee sound) that an alternator makes when it is going out? May have gotten water on it during cleaning of the area.

well, replacing the fuel filter did not solve the problem. a day or two later, after i shut off the air, kaput. bob, just a note, but my car does this just in 'around town' driving. in other words, i'm not moving at high speeds on any freeways, just stop and go traffic. on occasion, if i run the air and then turn it off, this happens. not every time, but even once in a week or two is a problem that i do not want to have. how do i find one of these 'reflashed' ecus? might be worth a shot. or, rather, how do i figure out what # part i need? can someone point me to where i read up on service bulletins by lexus? my car did not start doing this until summer ... so the ageing process makes sense. uote=95LS400Bob,Nov 6 2005, 12:10 AM] It's an ECU problem. Throttle bodys that are dirty don't wait for 30 min or more of highway driving before showing a problem....nor do they fix themselves as soon as the car restarts. Probably the best question is the "why" the ECU starts doing this. It certainly didn't do it when it was new. It has to be an aging process...maybe something to do with the circuit board itself...from the many hot and cold cycles it has done over it's lifetime. And this could very well be why many of these same cars get the "P0" check engine lights after a cruise. ←

will clean fuel filter first, then the throttle body(?), and see what happens. might try the ecm solution rec here if these things don't take care of it.

i too have had an encounter with an alien, and this creature told me the air ride was worth it. i would not trade it for anything. anyone who says you can't tell the diff has never ridden in a car with air suspension. i would fork over 400 for a new air strut in a heartbeat (and yes, you can buy them rebuilt for 400). you absolutely do not have to replace 'both', although it's recommended. why? the air leveling system will adjust for any extra firmness in suspension caused by one new strut. if you like a cushy ride, go with air suspension. you can't wander around worrying about whether an air strut is going to fail on you and what the cost will be ten years hence for god's sakes. at any given moment, in any car, and in lexus for sure, you can have a failure that will cost you the price of a strut and a half (or two). you go with what you like. enjoy the now. the future doesn't exist. yet.

having similar problem. if anyone who owns a 94 ls400 has figured out what the 'real' part number for the ecm (ecu?) w/b for this year, please post. i'll wager that if everyone on this board with this problem contacted their state's atty general (consumer division), that lexus might do something about this. i agree it is dangerous. happened to me again today in heavy traffic...i was able to pull off to the side, but since i have power steering, that was VERY hard to do. started right up again, as it always does.

for those of you who think you can save some money by going to cheaper places? think again. friend with ls400 had oil change at jiffy lube. they didn't replace the gasket (at the drain plug) and it leaked all over the place. i should have learned from his experience but did not. same problem with a sears oil change, and the only reason it was caught was because i happened to have the car looked at somewhere else for another reason and those people told me abou the gasket. i had leaking oil and a completely corroded seal. now why would anyone put an OLD gasket back on when their aftermarket part is sitting right there. also paid them for changing out the brake fluids. well, guess what. two weeks later, someone else advised the brake fluid needed to be flushed; it was filthy. i got my money back, but learned my lesson. either a diy, or you stand right there and watch every single step that mechanic makes with your car. they must have taken me for a fool. wrong.

update: mechanic says it is not, but i'm getting them replaced anyway. will post the difference in ride (if any) here.

Symptoms: Sometimes when pulling away from the curb, or backing up to park, feels as if one of the rear wheels is going over a good sized rock a few times (it isn't). Sort of a hippity hop feel. Would you wait a few weeks, or month, or get it in today. Somehow, I think I know what you are going to say.

would you know if the '94 ls400 has a cabin filter? my mechanic told me it didn't, then said, 'oh wait' maybe it does. he said he'd know after he got in there to see. apparently, some of these cars were made with a place FOR a filter, but don't actually have one (according to him).

sometimes people working in parts depts. at the lexus dealers will take pity and tell you of a few indie mechanics in your area that are factory trained. some won't tell you a thing either. just depends. took me forever...a LOT of phone calls before i found someone i felt was honest and reliable. i did google searches, posted here, called dealers ALL over the area and tried to finesse my question to get an answer, looked at 'best of' in local magazines (for names of auto shops and then followed up with those listed). in the end, it was all by chance. someone at a dealership knew of someone else ... i also got one good referral off this board (in response to a post i put up, like you). so keep going. patience and persistence are key. in the end, it's worth the effort.

have air suspension and love it.

my motor mounts were changed WAY before 94K.

Hi All -- for those of you who are SoCal folks and looking for an indie mechanic, you should know about Foothill Ind. Auto Works in La Crescenta (near Glendale). George is the owner, and he is a former Lexus mechanic (he worked for 5 years in a dealership). Just got my car home after he worked on it and it's great. He charged me about 1/2 the dealer quote on the same item. I finally have an alternative to the dealer!! Highly recommend him. If you need more detail, send me a message...

the 350 included parts and labor, if i didn't make that clear. i also confirmed that there is nothing wrong with the sway bar bushings. that's not what the dealer told me, but we went over it again and again and the indie mechanic said, "i'll put them on if you want, but there's nothing wrong here.' i have HAD it with my dealer. period. this last experienced just finished them off. ←

do you recall how many hours labor you paid for (rear carrier bushings)? i'm getting quoted around 5 hrs, plus parts (aftermarket). his labor is really reasonable, compared to dealer. yes, he said what you are saying...that aftermarket are fine and make a big diff in price (650 v. 350 for rear carrier bushings). no mention of wheel hubs. he doesn't sell up, which has been my experience with the dealership every single time. i don't know why it never seems to occur to them that they're driving business away with that tactic, but it never seems to. Odd.

PLSE HELP -- one guy says the entire sway bar bushings need to be replaced, that I can't do just the bushings themselves (separately). does this make any sense whatsoever? i was quoted these 'entire' pieces at roughly 170 each. apparently there are left and right sway bar bushings? now, the 2nd guy, who says nothing's wrong, says just the bushings can in fact be replaced. who is right? please reply soon if possible! ←

Ah, now I can picture it. My concern is one guy saw it sagging and another one didn't. Doesn't sound that complicated to me..thank you. Also, he saw rear carrier bushings were worn/torn. Any idea of what reasonable amount of labor would be on that repair? That's why I'm getting that clunking noise. Thanks SRK!!