93ls400walt

Update!!!!!!! I think I found the de-airing problem. I was letting the car sit as described above. Each A.M. I found that the res. was low. I thought that it was just the air coming out of the fluid. But after two days I thought this can't be right. Got back under the car. I had left the oil drain pan under the P/S pump with some fluid left in it. So I did not notice any oil leaking to the floor. I looked up and saw a steady drip for, the top of the pump. I put a paper towel around and under the res. Found no leaks below it only an oil soaked towel under the res. So I bit the bullet and removed all of the air intake covers and the res. The NEW O-ring I had put on was broken. The leak source for sure. And I am assuming that it may have been drawing in some air also with the engine running and turning the wheels. The fluid moves through the res. pretty fast and furious. Anyway a new O-ring is on and I am sitting here posting while I repeat the paper towel investigation act. To see if any leaks before I do a flush and put the car back together.

Vendor info.should be allowed. It can help us fine deals on parts and service. I am sure we would find out quickly if it is a self serving ad placed by a vendor. And then take action to remove it.

Parts are in and car started. Cleaned alternator with elect. spray cleaner and replaced brush holder. Replaced o-rings in the p/s pump. Start up fine no more battery indicator light. No more p/s leak. Just having a prob de-airing the p/s fluid. Lots of air and foaming in res. of p/s. And whinning with turning the wheel. Will do a flush in it persists. Hope that fixes this.

Thanks, I thought of doing this. I think it will help.

I just cleaned the selonoid screen and replaced the O-rings in the power steering pump in my 93ls 400. 122k miles. I did not have any P/S issues other that a leak that killed my alternator. So I bought the P/S seal kit from lexus. Got it all back together and running. At first the steering wheel was like having no power assist with wheel on the ground. And the pump making a very loud squealing sound. Raised the wheels off the ground And did the right to left turns of the steering wheel was getting massive foaming in the p/s res. even without turning the wheels it will foam. And when I shut the engine off it overflows with foaming p/s fluid. Then a few large bubbles come up. I start the whole procedure again, same thing. The steering has gotten easier, actually normal, the squealing is less but still very loud. I must have turned the wheel back and forth 50-60 times. And started and stopped the engine at least 15-20 times. Each time I shut it off the p/s res. will foam up with fine bubbles. Like a shaken can of warm Coke. Then a few large bubbles come up. I've spent 2 hours doing the turning and starting and stopping the engine. And I still getting air bubbles. Has anyone had this problem de-airing the fluid? Can you suck air through the idle up valve? Or anywhere else? Any tips on de-airing?

Just some light corrosion. Used some elec. cont. cleaner and a fine wire brass brush and the cleaned up nicely. The alternator brush holder was full of the worn carbon dust and the inside of the alt. was full of P/S oil. I sprayed out the alt with two cans of alt. elec. cleaner. ( Autozone ). and changed the brush holder.( Park Place Lexus-Plano online) $15.00 for the part. Put it back together and had it tested at Autozone. Ran it twice and Passed both times. I bought the P/S pump seal kit from Park Place also. ( $24.00 ) Replaced all of the external O-Rings. I don't have a vise or slide hammer. And could not get the rotor shaft out to change the two internal O-rings or the shaft bearing and seal. Sad for that, but the pump worked fine, the issue was the ext. leak. Both are back on the car. Just have to put the Radiator hoses and belt back on. Hope all is well after I fire her up.

The thread makes it sound like a piece of cake. I removed mine last night on 93LS. It was quite difficult. You need to remove the cooling line holding brackets under the alternator to get clearance to let the unit come out. I removed the two mounting nuts and bolts to let the unit move then positioned it so I could get to the nut for the power terminal. I removed the power steering res. cut the P/S return hose as It was stuck and removed the Air Idle Up hoses from the valve on the P/S pump to get access to the power terminal nut. After that was done it's time to get under the car again. I flipped the unit over to expose the snap in connector. Not sure how this really comes out because mine was very brittle and broke. I can still use it though. So be very careful with this part. Next you need to push the electrical wires toward the passenger side tire. Then twist and turn the unit any way you can to try and find a way for it to come out between the wires, frame, power steering and trans lines and the cross sway bar. I also removed my P/S pump at the same time. I've worked on cars for 30+ years and this took me around 3 hours just to get them off. The spaces are very tight to work in. You'll need a couple of short length extensions and one long on if you chose to remove the power term. nut from above for your ratchets. I used 3/8th and 1/2in drives, and a breaker bar as the bolts are on tight. I only had 6 point sockets which are good for not stripping the bolts but limits the angles you can get. You might find 12 point sockets to work better at getting these. Good luck

I've broken a couple of connectors over time. Just the locking tabs. Today while removing the alternator the electrical plug-in connector on the back of it was stuck and very brittle. I broke off the locking tab. After getting it out I saw that the terminals on the alternator were corroded. Anyway do you know any tricks as to keeping these connectors solid and not coming loose over time and vibration?

Well all of my parts arrived today. Seal kit to rebuild the P/S pump. Brush and holder assembly for the alternater. And two large cans of electrical contact cleaner to spray the P/S fluid off the inside of the alternater , New battery. And on a side note new thermastat, radiator hoses, cabin air filters, radiator flush and new fluid, and serpentine belt. I did clean the solenoid screen. And it was very, very clogged. After the car is up and running I'll complete the P/S flush. Only issue is changing all of these things at once wont tell me exactly what the problem was. But these are things I have been wanting to do for a long time. I'll be glad to get them finished. Thank you for all of your posts. I hope to finish this by Sunday night.

I'll post results. I am waiting for the parts to arrive from Park Place Lexus-Plano,Tx

Thank you all for your replies. The P/S leak does not drip on to the alternator. I do think that the res. is leaking a bit but mainly leaks at the high pressure banjo washer connection. So the main leak is below the alternator. I plan on removing the P/S solenoid and cleaning the screen as I have read that this being clogged may increase pressure and cause leaks the fittings. I have been a bit afraid to do the as their have been a few members with problems getting the solenoid off. And I only have the one car. And replacing the banjo washer. I ordered the brush and holder assembly for the alternator. I read the the alternator prob. is the that brush gets an oily film on it and looses contact for proper charging. So I figure since I have to take the alter. out I'll go for the solenoid cleaning, banjo washer and now the resv. O ring at the same time. Thanks for the advise. Walt

This just started. Battery indicator light stayes on for 5-6 seconds after start up the goes out. Now one day later the light stays on at idle and goes off once accelerating. This is a 93ls400 with 122k miles. Yes the PS pump leaks. Any thoughts? thanks, Walt

This was extensive threads on the issue of the 95ls dropping rpm/? stalling coming off the freeway. Seemed to be fixed by a new ECM. There are shops that repair ECM's for 2-3 hundred dollars. Goggle ECM repair. Some have kept the A/C on to keep the RPM up coming off the freeway. The shaking may be a tire balance prob. at the minimum. Or worn front suspension parts. Good luck

Yes, it is a convertible. With both a soft and hard top for the car.

I love my 93LS and am looking for a second one but can not fine the right one now. I found a 91 MB SL300 on the local craigs list. Asking $8500. 0BO 122,000 miles. EBAY has them listed for more cash. Do any of you have knowledge on this car or any thoughts? Thanks, Walt

I know that this is the same old answer. But if you have not done this it would be the best starting point. A full tune up including the wires, caps and rotors. The intermittent power loss may be a coil shorting out. There are two coils and apparently the coil on the drivers side of the engine seems to go first. Also may want to change the underbody fuel filter. And make sure the air filter is fairly clean. Once running use some Seafoam in the tank. I rec. using a full can in 1/4 tank of gas. You seem to have other issues going on but getting the car started first is necessary. Search this forum for throttle body cleaning, And there are Trac/Cel issue threads here. Most are for 95's and up. There is not a lot of 93 issues, which I take as a good sign. The ECM has default modes to override most malfunctioning components. So I think the non starting is at this basic level. Good luck and keep us posted on your progress.

I'll try to post a pic. But you can easily replace any of your vac hoses for a few dollars. I am going to replace each and every on that I can find. Even if they are not loose they may have small cracks after all of these years and loosing vac.

one is directly on the front of the alum. intake very short & S shaped. By the IAC. The other also short & S shaped on the left side of the intake just behind the TPS. ( these hoses are the smallest diameter of any of the vac hoses that you can see. you do not have to remove anything to see them ) Of note. The ls is running much much better. But today with my wife in the car I did have recurrence of the prob. during a much more aggressive acceleration. But to a much less degree than before.

There has been a few threads on power steering. Some have talked of de-airing the system after a R&R of any part. They put the front wheels off the groud and remove the PS res. cap then turn the steering wheel ( with the engine running ) to the right then left to the stop point of each turn. Doing this around 15-20 times the remove any air with-in the system. Also, not sure if in your post that you had the screen filters cleaned.one in the bottom of the res. and one in the selonoid ( sp ) . Use the search feature.

I have had a few post over the past year about my ls that ran fine, smooth idle no missing ect. You could floor the engine in park or neutral and it would hum. But when under slightly more than light acceleration in drive, espically with the A/C on, or one or more passengers, the rpm would drop around 4-500 rpm and the car would stop moving forward under power. Unless you let off the gas peddle then re-accelerated slower. Some others with this have replaced the ECM with good results reported. I was planning on sending mine off for repair for some time, but the money would be needed for something else, so I let it ride. I knew that I had some old vac hoses, loose fitting. mainly the ones connecting to the aluminum air intake chamber on top of the engine. So while at the Lexus dealer getting some maintance parts I saw that they had vac hose for sale. I bought $3.00 worth. When I got home I replaced two short vac hoses. Finished my maint. ( cooling system ) and went for a ride. The car had more power, but I was "afraid " to accelerate harder to check it out. But today I was out and the car was still running better than ever, and found myself on an open deserted road. So I just pressed the peddle fast half way and the car took off, no hesitation. So then I floored it, the trans. kicked down, and the car roared. I did this several times the rest of the way home with the same response. WOW, it felt great. one, to have the car back to better than before, since I had replaced coils,plugs, wires, caps ,rotors, fuel filters, seafoamed the heck out of it. Cleaned the TB and EGR many times. Changed the TPS. I am holding my breath though. I just can't believe it was this simple.

Well I went out to buy them before any responses. Thank you though to those who replied. I bought the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S. I was interested in the Exalto's, I had read some very positive things about them, but I could only find 225/55/16 or 225/65/16. I was Leary of the 55's as my ls rides low already. I think it was a good deal at Costco. $715.00 out the door. With lifetime balance and rotation, pro rated road hazard. In the back of my mind I wish I would have got the Exalto's.

I'd start with a new gas cap from Lexus. And there is a post from Jimmys on page 12 listing " 92ls oil light comes on at speeds over 75" Have a look.

I just replaced all of the vac. hoses that I could get to. Many were cracked or loose fitting. Interesting thing is after replacing the hoses, my ls dosen't have the slight " bogg " down that it had before when accelerating a "normal" speed after the trans. shifted from 1st to 2nd gear. Also replaced the thermostat and radiator cap. Changed the anti-freeze. And engine oil filter and oil. Cleaned and conditioned the leather. I used for the first time a product called Hide food, got it a the local Lexus dealer, $15 dollars each for the cleaner and conditioner. I think it worked very well. Cleaned the leather nicely and the conditioner went on and wiped off great. Left a faint new leather scent. Seats and steering wheel feel smooth and soft.

I'm replacing my tires on a 93ls400. I don't drive aggressively but I do drive 80-90 mph on the freeways. I'm looking for tires that brake and corner well. And give you good road feel. Low road noise would be good also. I live in an area with no snow and very little rain. What tires do you like? Thanks

I have a 93ls also 112,000 miles. Similar probs as described above. Power steering leak, tach and speedo sticking, CD player and tape player don't work. brake switch went out ( the one that lets you shift out of park ) $50.00 DIY job. Also the power steering pump air control valve went out. I feel all of these things were minor. However, I do have a problem with engine hesitation especially with the A/C on or a full load. Where the RPM will drop around 500rpm and you loose acceleration if you try to accelerate faster than just a gentle push on the gas peddle. I think this is a prob with the 93-94ls's apparently rare. I have replaced coils.plugs, caps, rotors ,wires , in-tank and undercarriage fuel filters, cleaned the EGR, and throttle body many times. Also replaced the TPS, since the car throws Code 41, Which it still throws. Lots of Seafoam also. Someone else on this forum had a similar prob with a 93ls. And it was fixed by having the ECM rebuilt. I am planning on sending mine to a ECM repair shop in Houston for $275.00 they will rebuild the unit. Also I replaced the water control valve on the firewall which was leaking, around $90.00 bucks. They car is fantastic though. I have had it for 2 years and love it. I paid $7500.00 for it in 11-05 with 103K miles on it. I would get the codes read before I bought it. Just to make sure something expensive isn't lurking.