godpossessed

All is well. The fan bracket R&R is not all that bad. It includes a bunch of the dissasembly that the timing belt change has, but without the delicate part of !Removed! around with the valve timing. Also you don't have to remove most of the passenger side stuff. Just loosen it. The a/c compressor must be loosened to allow a bolt or two to be accessed but the crank pulley can stay on. If I had it to do over I could easily knock it out in 3 hrs. Thanks everyone. Mark

The drive belt broke all to pieces when the bearing in the fan bracket let go. It was old. I am assuming that the fan clutch is OK but I haven't tried it. It feels smooth with a slight damping of the rotation when you turn it by hand. I'll have it back on the road Saturday and let you know. thanks mucho Mark

Well it's just about done and this is what I believe the minimum to be removed is: Air duct and dust covers Engine under cover radiator fan assembly drive belt fan belt idler pulley a/c compressor (loosen) coil upper high tension cord cover left upper timing belt cover left middle timing belt cover (loosen) left engine wire cover middle right timing belt cover (loosen) The fan bracket may now be removed by slightly lifting the right middle timing belt cover and easing the fan bracket out. hope this helps someone. Mark

I really don't want to do any unnecessary steps. Do I need to remove the alternator? What actually is covering that last bolt and that last nut on the fan bracket? I have 3 bolts and a nut out now. I have the crank pulley off and the radiator out. thanks

The timing belt/water pump is less than 10K miles old. What should I do?

My wife calls me this afternoon to say that the car began ticking and then smoke poured out from under the hood. I open the hood to find the drive belt in tatters. I get a new belt and put it on and then had her crank the car. It was making a slight ticking/bumping sound and the fan was not spinning smoothly. Upon closer inspection I notice that the pulley that the fan bolts to is wobbling like it's on a bent shaft. I'm sure that when the belt broke it jammed up. Could that have enough force to bend the pulley or the shaft? Please tell me that isn't the water pump shaft. thanks all Mark

The guy that installed the last steering rack said that it sounded like the front bushings (I am assuming control arm) were toast. This was in response to a groaning when the steering was turned from side to side. It doesn't seem to be coming from any of the power steering components (pump, etc..) Is this tough/expensive fix? Is DIY an option for a modestly skilled owner? thanks Mark

thanks guys, I think I can do that Mark

The driver's side valve cover gasket seems to be leaking onto my exhaust manifold. How hard is the fix to do? thanks Mark

maybe the alternator?

On my wife's '91 LS there is an intermittent problem with 4 of the warning lights in the dash display. They are the coolant level, oil level, battery and another I can't recall right now but... At any time while driving, these lights can come on all together and if the cruise is engaged, it will disengage it. Any thoughts? thanks Mark

Thanks a bunch!! Mark

Anyone have a link to this info or know it off the top of your head? thanks Mark '91 LS400 I forgot to say FRONT upper control arm on passenger side. thanks

When the car is cold I get this buzzing sound from the area of the armrests. I've pushed on different things to try to effect the noise to no avail. Any thoughts on what it might be? thanks Mark

I hate to suggest this, but I am because this happened to me, but have you checked the keyed lock between the trunk & gas door releases? The first mechanic I had used to ask me to use the ignition key to lock the trunk from that lock, for security purposes, and I would supply him with the chauffeur key, which does not allow opening of the trunk or glove compartment. One day after I got it back from service, in a driving rainstorm, I forgot about it, lost my temper, and went outside to open the trunk with the ignition key, and got soaked to the skin. I wouldn't have gotten so wet if I had remembered to unlock & release the trunk from inside the car! :( DING, DING, DING!!! We have a winner! I dismissed that as a possiblity because the keyhole was vertically oriented, like always. I didn't know that it returns to this position reguardless of a locked or unlocked condition. Thank you sir! Mark

Does anybody have one. Mine no workee and I can't find a dedicated fuse just for that item. thanks Mark

Anybody have a wiring diagram for this?

I got my car back from the local NTB where they installed a PS rack (it's own horror story). When we tried the power release by the driver's left knee, it no workee. Is there an on/off switch for this thing or do I have trouble. Thoughts? thanks Mark

Well, it seems that all is well. No smoke and I seem to be retaining my power steering fluid level. During the time that I was trying to figure this out, I ran the p/s system low several times to the point where I could hear a whining sound. Now that the system is full and (hopefully) leak free, I was wondering if there was an additive that might be effective in preserving the pump after the abuse I have given it. thoughts? thanks Mark

Well I did the job today and it wasn't too difficult. I did use teflon tape on the threads. Put the front of the car on stands. A 10mm socket for the bolts that hold the engine splash guard on. Remove the air filter ducting and MAS/hoses to let a little light in and, using a 17mm wrench, remove the P/S line next to the ACV (don't forget the catch bucket!). Crawl und the car and squeeze the hose clamps on the ACV hoses with your fingers to slide them up. Remove hoses. Take your 17mm wrench and remove the old ACV and reinstall all in reverse order. Took about 45 minutes. thanks again Mark

Thanks to all who pointed me in the right direction to replace the air control valve on my power steering pump. I'm sure this will solve my dissappearing fluid/white smoke problem. Question: When installing the new ACV, do I used a thread sealant of any kind? (Teflon tape, locktite, etc..) thanks Mark

OK thanks. It seems that there is a litlle guy called a ACV. Would this have necessarily been replaced when the pump was changed (2 aftermarket and 1 OEM pump)? Mark

I have been through sveral shops trying to solve an ongoing power steering problem. Is there any way that the PS fluid can get into the intake of the motor and get burn by the engine. i get some whitish smoke on startup after it sit for a while. could that be PS fluid? Thought? thanks mark