1990LS400

Both our 98 Camry and 00 LS have a radio 1 fuse in the engine compartment fuse box and a radio 2 fuse in the fuse box under the dash -- typical of cars made by Toyota. I wouldn't think one of these fuses would be only for the radio LCD backlight but by all means check them and all the other fuses.

Listed at $138.62 at http://www.parts.com Here are the part numbers from http://www.toyodiy.com 81570 LAMP ASSY, CENTER STOP 81570-24060-A0 WHITE PEARL CS. 81570-24060-B0 SILVER ME. 81570-24060-C0 BLACK 81570-24060-D0 SUPER RED 81570-24060-D1 BLACKISH RED MC. 81570-24060-E0 BEIGE M.M. 81570-24060-G0 DARK GREEN MC. 81570-24060-J1 DK.BLUE M.M. 81570-24060-J2 PEBBLE BEACH EDITION, LT.BLUE ME

Zett123, Maybe I'm wrong about the 01 LS430 having strut rods like my 00 LS400. I don't see them on parts.com or in the diagrams at http://www.toyodiy.com I apologize. Good luck with the stabilizer link replacement.

Did the tinkering involve pulling the radio out or other work inside the dashboard? I assume there is a wire from the radio tied to the dash light level rheostat switch. If that's not it, the backlight bulb(s) could be burned out. I think there are one or more past threads on how to replace the bulb(s) or the entire LCD. Use the following search form and put +radio +backlight in the Find Words field and limit your search to the ES300 forum: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index.php?app=core&module=search

Up through 2002, per the attached document, only one feature could be customized on the LX470 -- the tilt/telescope steerig wheel. Sometime later, the customizable settings for the LX470 were expanded to fourteen - see the attached list for the 2007 LX470. It's odd that there were so many fewer customizable features on the LX than the LS. There are exactly forty customizable features on my 2000 LS400 and sixty on the 2001 LS430. It may be possible to disable the DRL on an LX470 by cutting wires as on some other earlier Lexus models where the DRL was not a customizable feature. The safety benefits of DRL are debatable but I've found them handy to light up the way when I enter underground/covered parking lots and tunnels until the headlights automatically turn on. My 2000 LS is about to turn 10 years old, is at 125,000 miles, and is still on its original highbeam bulbs so the DRL doesn't seem to have impacted bulb life. LX470 1998-2002 CBES_LPS.pdf 2007 LX470_LPS.pdf

All that matters is that you are satisfied with your purchase. It looks nice from the photos. It looks reasonably optioned with seat heaters. Doesn't have the optional wood steering wheel and shift lever that was standard on the 99-00 but the leather wheel is really more pleasant to use than the wood. It's best if it has the standard Pioneer radio -- it doesn't say Nakamichi, does it? 98 was the last model year for the LS that options were more individually available without having to buy them in packages. There are pluses and minuses in that. About the only downside of buying a 98 is that a number of improvements and fixes were done in the 99 and 00 LS. You might check with a Lexus dealer to see if any of the TSIB fixes were done while the car was in warranty -- particularly on the tilt/telescope steering wheel. I'm a "three time loser" with Volvos (P1800E, 145, 240DL in the 1970s). Your 98 LS is in a completely different and far higher category. You will absolutely love it compared to a Volvo 850.

Are you sure the noise is from the struts? 120K miles is EXTREMELY early for strut related noise on an LS. Have you checked other front end components and particularly the strut bars which, if similar to those on my 2000 LS400, last barely 75,000 miles.

Costco is running the $70/off per set deal every couple of months this year so don't feel pressured to buy a set immediately if your current tires have enough tread left to be safe. I agree with "Killer". If your current tires have worn evenly there is no need to do an alignment.

The consoles of most Toyota products are held in place by a combination of screws, bolts and friction fittings. Maybe the attached diagram will help.

You might go back and ask the installer. I'm wondering if your "special harness" is compatible with the Nakamichi subwoofer since I've noticed that some are listed as being compatible only with the standard Pioneer system.

Yes, disconnecting the battery sets off the alarm. The attached two pages for your owners manual explains how your alarms works and how to reset it.

The highest rated all-season tire in Tire Rack's owner survey and one that is particularly low noise is the Michelin Primacy MXV4. Attached is an image showing current pricing at Tirerack.com for size 245/45-18. Costco currently is knocking $70 off per set from their normal pricing. I bought a set this Spring at Costco and they seem quite nice.

If your regular mechanic says that your 92 LS is difficult to work on, I suspect that it is more because of his level of skill and knowledge. I drove a similar 90 LS400 from new to 183,500 miles and it was like new when I sold it to a friend in 2003 who has driven it to over 275,000 miles. Of course, I had the "luxury" of living near a Lexus dealer and, more importantly, near a great independent repair shop that specializes in repairing Lexus cars. My 90 LS was on it's original shocks at 183,500 miles and they were no where near worn out. My 2000 LS is at 125,000 miles and it's original shocks are just fine. If your rear shocks really are worn, parts.com has them for $108.43 each. The early LS400 was not known to have the most reliable A/C system. Mine was on its 3rd compressor when I sold it and I had it converted from R12 to R134a at the 10-11 year mark. The R134a conversion provided enough cold air to "freeze" the car occupants at 100+ degree outside temperatures. In that last five or so years I owned my 90 LS, I averaged around $1,000/year on maintenance and repairs. I thought that was pretty reasonable for an aging car and far less than a replacement would cost. Lexus LS cars are pretty cheap to maintain compared to a BMW or Mercedes but maintanence costs rise as they age. Although my 2000 LS400 is aging far better than my 1990 LS400 did, I expect that it too will become increasingly more expensive to run. If you don't have a good repair shop nearby, maybe the best thing to do really would be to punt your LS and buy that Chevy.

yea im about 5 6" so im short, your having problems finding a good setting too? Maybe give us a photo from the side of your seat raised to the maximum height. My barely 5 foot tall wife drove our 90 LS many times over the 13 1/2 years we had it and she seemed to find a comfortable position where she could easily see out. The 95-up LS has a noticably higher potential seating position than the early LS.

You won't find a fuse that is dedicated to this one bulb. I replaced the shift indicator bulb on our Camry a few months ago -- wasn't all that hard. The shift indicator bulb on the IS300 looks like it is about the same place as in our Camry -- see the attached diagram for the 01 IS. Don't know the bulb replacement procedure for the IS but it was a matter of shifting the Camry into neutral and pulling the shifter surround upward to get to the bulb underneath.

There are a number of past threads about this issue ... haven't seen anyone come up with a solution other than dialing from the phone.

Sorry, been too busy with work to check this forum. I had a similar problem with the fog lights on my 90 LS during the last few years I owned it (sold it in 2003). The repair shop that fixed the fog lights about once each year indicated that the problem was caused by corrosion. Problem is ... I never asked exactly where the corrosion was. They polished it off every so often and got the fog lights working again. I think I was told that a new "fuse block" of some sort would eventually be required to fix the problem but I don't know which one. I'm guessing that the current owner of my 90 LS has solved the problem since he fixed other odd problems. I'll try to ask "Tobywan" if he doesn't see this thread and reply.

I have a 2000 LS400 Platinum Series and provided information about it in http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=31180&st=0&p=202036&hl=Platinum&fromsearch=1entry202036 You can also read about the standard and Platinum Series equipment at http://www.lexus.com/contact/pdf/2000/2000LSspecs.pdf My gallery has a couple of photos of my LS: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index.php?showuser=2157&tab=gallery $11K seems a bit high. I would expect more in the $8,000 to $9,000 range and maybe that is too high. The 00 LS400's with nav seem to be the most likely to also have air suspension. Be prepared to deal with it if it does. There haven't been any navigation updates for the 98-00 nav in over five years but you could always use a portable nav or install an aftermarket nav/audio system if you use an HVAC controller from a non-nav 98-00 LS.

It could be "fine to use" if it is compatible with the specifications in your owners manual. If not, it could be "the kiss of death."

The wire harness is not "inside" the trunk hinge but are attached to the left trunk hinge and flex each time the trunk lid is opened and closed. Unwrap the insulating tape from the wires at the left trunk hinge and flex each wire to determine if wire cores are broken. The wire insulation may not be broken but the wire cores inside the insulation can be completely separated or barely making contact. Splice in new short lengths of wire -- soldering the connections are best but not absolutely necessary. The wires may break again in a few years and you may need to repeat the process.

The recommended spark plug change interval has never been 100,000 miles for any vehicle sold in the U.S. with the Lexus brand. The recommended spark plug change interval for both the U.S. specification RX330 and RX350 is 120,000 miles using "Denso FK20HR11 plugs or equivalents. Maintenance manuals including spark plug change intervals for U.S. specification Lexus vehicles can be viewed in the online maintenance manuals in the Owners section at http://www.lexus.com .

You might be able to "turn this off" by cutting a wire or two but the industry standard has long been for headlight washers to activate when the windshield washers are activated while headlights are on. I drove a Mercedes with this feature for 10 years and never found it to be a problem ... I thought it was a nice feature.

Instructions are in section 4-3, Do-it-yourself maintenance, of the 07 LS460 owners manual starting on page 525. I just looked at the instructions in the Owners section of the Lexus corporate website. Instructions for changing the optional rear A/C filter follow the instructions for the front filter. It is not necessary to register on the Lexus website to view and search owners manuals.

No.

If your phone system is a dealer installed Lexus phone system, on some of these it is important to plug connectors together after unplugging the connectors from the phone ECU in the trunk. I don't know if this applies to the 95-97 LS phone system but it definitely applies to the 98-00 LS. If it is a Lexus phone system, it is a good idea to remove the vent you see when the armrest is open and unplug the handset cradle connectors. Do not cut wires! Always unplug the connectors. If you have a steering wheel phone command module, there is no need to remove it.