1990LS400

It's is difficult to put a value on a 12 year old low mileage car like that. How is the car equipped, where is it located, has it been properly maintained, what is its condition ... is it flawed with dents and dings or like new, has it been wrecked, etc., etc. I remember recent threads on both this forum and Clublexus where someone gave $3,000 for a 1998 LS400 with 994 miles which at the time had a Kelly Bluebook private party sale estimated value of $8500 at that mileage. He had to put another $3,000 into it immediately to get it on the road. Low mileage cars like this are not as unusual as many think and are more often found in retirement/2nd home areas like Scottsdale AZ and south Florida.

There is not much to worry about if the car has a full maintenance history and appears to be in good condition. A plus of buying a base model is that there is less to go wrong but even the fully loaded 2001 Canadian LS430 (with power rear seat package) didn't have navigation if I remember correctly. You said the car has 100,000 "miles" - is it a US import? If it helps for comparison, I bought my 2000 LS400 in 2003 at 38,000 miles and it is now at about 133,000 miles. Other than normal maintenance, only two components have failed in all that time. Either the TPS or PPS (I forgot which) failed and I had both replaced both since one was weak. And an overhead interior map light failed. I just checked and saw that the total cost of repairs for those two incidents was just less than US$1,000. This amount does not include the cost of regular maintenance, tires and an extra set of wheels for winter use. If the car you are considering does not have a complete and up-to-date maintenance history, I'd pass on it. I see you have a 05 C230. I suspect an 01 LS430 will be less expensive to run than your C230.

It's nice to see that the owner of a relatively new, originally $110,000+ list price car is concerned about the prices of filters! http://lexus.sewellparts.com shows OEM cabin filters for the 08 LS600h for $42.99 if you register with your forum member name. The cabin filter is shown under "2008 LS600h Accessories" ... "Service". I've bought quite a few parts from Sewell and have been happy with their service and prices.

Since you didn't supply the model year, I randomly picked 2005 and attached a driver door diagram for a 2005 RHD RX300.

"Once a year" servicing and oil changes would not be acceptable for U.S. specification Lexus vehicles that are still under warranty but I know that different service intervals are specified in other parts of the world. Do you have the maintenance schedule for NZ for your RX? I can see "5?388" on the odometer in your instrument cluster photo which I assume is in kilometers -- I can see why your Lexus dealer might say that "once a year" servicing is acceptable if the vehicle is driven so little. Radiator coolant and especially brake fluid are usually replaced based on calendar time as well as mileage so check to see what your maintenance manual says about those items.

I'm curious about why this "feature" would be such a big deal? My 2000 LS400 has this feature you want and I think I have used it maybe once - just to see if it worked - in the almost eight years I've owned the car. The only similar feature I really care about is the "miles until empty" (not sure if it is called exactly that) which is the "Driving Range" on your RX's trip information display. I often nearly drain the tank on long trips to minimize fuel stops since pumping gas is not my idea of fun or an efficient way to spend my time.

First of all ... have you checked all the fuses in both fuse boxes? ... under the dash and in the engine compartment. On many/most Toyota vehicles there is a Radio 1 fuse and a Radio 2 fuse. I don't remember which is where but one is in the fuse box under the hood and the other in the fuse box under the dash. When one is out (I forget which one) the radio display still works but there is no sound.

The warning light above the speedometer looks like the check engine light (CEL). The VSC warning light often comes on with the CEL and doesn't mean that there is a problem with the VSC -- VSC seems to turn off as some sort of safety feature. You may need a code reader to determine the problem. Many issues can light up the CEL. On some models, just a loose or defective fuel filler cap can cause these warning lights. Your car is "probably" safe to drive if the engine is running at the correct operating temperature and all fluids are at their proper levels. The struts that keep the bonnet (we call it a "hood" in the U.S.) open tend to wear out and are easily replaced - perhaps a five minute job each. I replaced them on both of my LS400's at about the five to seven year mark. You can get them from a Lexus dealer and some have found aftermarket replacements on eBay for less money.

Hughes, you may have set a record for one of these odometers lasting so you might as well replace it. I looked up the part number for a 92 LS odometer on http://www.toyodiy.com which indicated that it is the same as for the 90 LS I drove for many years - part number 83121-50010. I didn't find the part number at Sewell but this website has them: http://www.lexuspartsnow.com/parts/lexus-odometer-assy~83121-50010.html The price looks high even with inflation -- I think I paid about half that for one in the late 90's. I recommend calling Sewell and asking for a price -- they are usually a little lower on price. Register on the Sewell website for better prices. These odometers can work intermittently until they fail completely and sometimes make quite a bit of racket while they fail. Maybe they can be fixed but I've never heard of anyone fixing one.

While the part numbers are different, the basic concepts are the same. Have you taken off the steering column cover and tried to determine what is causing the steering column to only click and not tilt?

The following wonderful website page discusses how to reposition the RPM needle: http://www.lexls.com/tutorials/electrical/clusterdisassembly.html

The mechanical odometers are prone to failure. The one on my 90 LS failed at about 125,000 miles. Here is an old thread about them: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=15656&hl=odometer

Maybe the fix is similar to this one for a 97 LS400: There are a lots of videos and forum threads on this kind of issue but I don't remember many specifically for the GS.

Disconnecting the battery can actually cause the "VSC off" warning. The following thread has the procedure for resetting the VSC on the LS430: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=55589 The VSC reset procedure is different for the 98-00 LS400 and is documented in the owners manual.

eBay ... plug and play ... fully integrates with your nav ... around US$250.

Right! Well ... try to look under the bottom of the seat from the rear. Two of the large connectors are pretty easy to see ... might take a flashlight and a mirror. Do you know anybody with an inspection scope? I've got one of these: http://voscope.com/page11.html -- cost me about $300 is lighted and lets me see into small spaces.

It's the extra two quarts of water sloshing around the radiator and the additional electrons careening around the engine compartment causing the racket. I mainly know the RX from getting them as loaners but memory I always take away after driving or riding in one is the engine noise. It's not all that noisy -- just more engine noise than in other Lexus models I've been in.

I did some reading which seemed to indicate that the U.K. relies more on rock salt and that the U.S. has moved largely towards calcium chloride derived from salt brine. A significant amount of sand is also used on roads here in the winter but I've noticed the amount of sand used on roads varies a lot in different parts of the U.S. Maybe the these deicing materials are the difference. I paid $3.15 for a gallon of high octane gasoline yesterday here in Kansas. The current exchange rate between the U.S. dollar and the British pound seems fairly reasonable these days in terms of relative purchasing power compared to the extreme highs and lows of the past.

I've never tried a glass polishing kit but I haven't read many, or even any, positive comments about them on auto forums. Maybe they would work better on headlights than on windshields in that one wouldn't have to look through swirl marks on headlights.

Have you tried moving the drivers seat all the way forward, lowering the front of the seat cushion to minimum height and raising the back of the seat cushion to the maximum height and then looking under the seat for a loose electrical connector? I just did this on my 00 LS and I can see and reach at least three electrical connectors under the seat. There may be more but it's about 20 degrees in my garage right now and kneeling on a garage floor to look is not fun! Did a "professional" remove and reinstall your seat? Maybe he could figure it out.

How would a tow package make the engine louder? It's at the back of the vehicle. In theory, any added weight would reduce fuel economy but but all the components of a tow package probably weigh about as much as a three year old child. You won't notice it and it won't whine like a three year old! :whistles: Even if you never tow anything, it can still be handy to have a receiver trailer hitch. You could plug in a bicycle rack for example which is the main thing I use the receiver hitch on my LS for. There are also storage boxes and racks that plug into a receiver hitch for carrying stuff which is a lot quieter (no wind noise) than carrying stuff on the roof rack. I'd say ... count yourself lucky!

Most headlight lenses these days are plastic. Plastic lenses usually take a number of years to degrade and then they can usually be refinished with a "permanent" coating like I and others on this forum have used. I used a Crystal View kit on our plastic headlight lenses to make them look and perform like new in August 2008 and they still look great. Glass headlight lenses, however, cannot be refinished - when there're dead, there're dead. Pitted and warn glass lenses like the glass fog light lenses on our Camry cannot be repaired when they get worn. Plus, plastic headlight lenses are more resistant to breakage from road debris ... e.g. a rock thrown up by another vehicle. I've had glass headlight lenses broken by stones but (knock wood) never had a broken plastic headlight lens. The main downside I see with modern plastic headlight lenses is that they are not compatible with headlight wash/wipers (they scratch the plastic lenses) which are more effective than pressure headlight washers.

In a thread on the UK part of this forum in which Jon Evans of evansweb participated in, another member said that a height sensor rod from an LX470 can be used: http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/index.php?showtopic=65709&st=0&p=712412&fromsearch=1entry712412 "LX470 part is 48906-60010", per the above UK forum thread. I've seen a bunch of LS photos on the UK forum that seem to show vastly more suspension and body corrosion than I've ever seen on LS cars of similar vintage here in the U.S. snow belt. What's with that?

I've got a set of four new (last Spring) Michelin MXV4 all season tires for my 2000 LS400 -- very nice -- but I the MXM4 may be the closest to the MXV4 that would fit your IS350. I had a set of Bridgestone RE750 summer tires for my LS before I bought the Michelins. The RE750's were the best handling tire I've ever used on an LS but they didn't last long (22,000? miles) and I wouldn't have dreamed of using them in snow ... i.e. I value my life. I've used snow tires on every rear wheel drive car I've owned since the 1960's except a few I owned less than one year. My 00 LS is currently on Bridgestone Blizzak WS70 winter tires. A set of winter tires for your IS350 would likely run you $800 to $1,000 and you could double that if you want a second set of wheels to put them on. It is a small price to pay for not having to worry or contend with moments of terror while driving on snow and ice.

What is your problem? Do you need a replacement headlight unit and want something less expensive than OEM? Are you looking for just the bulbs?