1990LS400

If the thread you are referring to was by "Blake918", he did not connect his Parrot MKi9100 to his 99 LS400 audio system so that the Parrot's iPod/aux/USB function could be used to play music through the car's speakers -- only through the single mono Parrot speaker. I think he was mainly looking for the the Bluetooth function of the Parrot since it works well with iPhone. I think he hardwired the Parrot's power, ground and mute wires to his 99 LS similar to how he installed the Nokia CARK-91H phone kit he had on his 95-97 LS had and I still have in our cars. (Thanks again, Blake, for sending me all those CARK-91 parts! -- wife's still using the replacement cradle you sent.) Maybe you could find a Parrot dealer/installer who could tell you if the Parrot MKi9000 can interface with the ES nav screen -- I'd be surprised (no, amazed) if it did. There are some cool Youtube videos showing how people installed Parrot Bluetooth kits into their mostly European (mainly VW) cars using interface harnesses that allowed the use of existing steering wheel controls and the car's information display. One of the Youtube videos noted that the Parrot MKi9100 can not connect to a Bluetooth phone while a USB memory device is plugged into the Parrot. Usually, where there is a will, there is way.

I suspect that your best bet is to contact VAIS and ask if the SoundLinQ2 is compatible with your existing SAT. After all, VAIS specializes in Lexus. There appears to be an interface harness available that could (supposedly) be used to attach the ISO connectors from the Parrot to your Lexus. Don't know if it would conflict with your SAT connection and don't know how you would find out without buying the Parrot. Maybe a professional installer could figure it out. Even the Parrot website says that it is often necessary to hardwire their Bluetooth kits that have iPod functions into cars, like Lexus, that are not ISO compatible. Also, does the Parrot MKi9000 interface with your nav screen? Doesn't the the SoundLinQ2 do that? There was a thread on ClubLexus a few months ago where an SC430 owner found that his radio volume froze up when he piggybacked a Parrot Bluetooth kit interface harness connector onto a VAIS interface harness connector. Last information he provided said that VAIS was sending him a replacement. Even if you went with the VAIS, you could add a Bluetooth car kit to your ES -- it's not necessary to use an interface harness although an interface harness can reduce the complexity of install.

Wow, the spark plug replacement interval for the 2009 GS, IS, LS is only 60,000 miles or 72 months but for the ES it is 120,000 miles or 12 years: http://www.lexus.com/pdf/service/Sedans.pdf I wonder why the intervals are getting shorter or not increasing with modern technology -- the replacement interval for my 2000 LS400 is 120,000 miles. The two times I had the spark plugs on my first LS replaced - at 90,000 and 180,000 miles - the old ones looked like new when they were pulled out. Odd how recommended oil change frequency is getting shorter too. Oil change frequency under normal use on some Lexus vehicles used to be 7,500 miles.

As I found out earlier this year when I thought I was going to have to call a tow trunk for my 2000 LS400, the electronic throttle position sensor can work intermittently when it starts to fail. Similar to your ES, the CEL and VSC indicators in the LS instrument cluster lit up. By restarting the car a couple of times, I was able to get the TPS working well enough to drive the car home and then to the repair shop the next day. The "TPS" in my LS tested out as being bad and the pedal position sensor tested as being slightly below par -- I had them both replaced. My LS had just over 100,000 miles on it when the TPS failed. 39,000 miles sure is early but $#it happens. It's quite a sinking and scary feeling when you press the gas pedal and almost nothing happens, isn't it? Not sure all this electronic throttle stuff is a very good idea!

SeaRation, I can sure answer that question having owned two Lexus LS cars at the time the basic new-car warranty expired. The basic warranty is four years or 50,000 miles from the "in-service date" -- the date the car was originally sold when new. The basic warranty on a 2005 LS430 sold new in fall 2004 would have expired last year in the fall of 2008. Even the very last of the 2005 LS430's manufacturered would likely been sold by the end of August 2005. In a few days, it will be August of 2009. Do the math.

I saw your other thread asking the nav question but I tend to not reply to a thread unless I actually have a clue about a subject. If you don't have a manual for your nav system, you can get one for only $17.10 from Sewell Lexus in Texas: http://www.sewellpartsonline.com/parts_det...86967&all=Y I've purchased a number of things from Sewell and been quite pleased with their service and prices ... even stopped by their dealership in Dallas near Love Field.

The attached TSIB is about noise during the telescoping of the steering wheel. I downloaded it from the ARRC (Auto Repair Reference Center) which is available at no cost through many public libraries. TSIB_ST001_04_Steering_column_noise.pdf

98ls400loverm, I wonder if the alignment was compensating for worn front front suspension bushings. The strut rod bushings on my similar 00 LS400 were thoroughly worn out by the time I had them replaced at a little over 86,000 miles. The handling had become sloppy with quite a bit of front end vibration and poor tracking at highway speeds. I should have had them replaced about 10,000 miles earlier. Replacing them transformed the car's handling and made it feel like new. Have your strut rod bushings and/or strut rod assemblies (which include the bushings) been replaced? 70-90K miles seem to be their typical life.

Here is a thread about Blake installing a Parrot MKi9100 in his 99 LS400: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...aded&start= Blake called me while driving on the highway and his voice through the MKi9100 was extremely clear -- probably better than I've ever heard from someone speaking on a car handsfree system. The dual microphones of the MKi9000 may look a bit odd and wouldn't hide well but I suspect they are what are providing the exceptionally clear sound quality. I wonder if the two little MKi9100 microphones could be separated and hidden behind the two small microphone grills in the LS430 overhead light cluster but that might impair the sound quality. In the LS, a good place for the MKi9100's display might be all the way to the left on the "shelf" below the instrument cluster -- i.e. below and to the left of the gas gauge. I like the idea of being able to look into the instrument cluster to see who's calling -- a little like what the old "Connects-to" products did to display caller information for Nokia phone kits in BMW trip computer displays. I've also wondered if a bracket could be fabricated so that the MKi9100's controller could be attached to the steering wheel hub where the Lexus phone system "command module" was installed on the LS400 and early LS430. Same as Blake, I don't particularly like the idea of attaching the MKi9100's wireless remote to the steering wheel rim. Maybe I'll try these ideas some day ... my last ancient extra eBay "Eye-phone" just crapped out so maybe this is good time to modernize.

:o The 2004 model year was the first year that the LS had Bluetooth built into the nav system. Prior to the 2004 model year, Lexus offered dealer installed portable and fixed phones that used a hardwired connection to the car's electronics.

If you got 21 pages when you downloaded the 3rd PDF, then you have it all. There is also an adapter harness from http://www.quickconnectproducts.com/Find/find.php Don't know why jainla didn't use it -- might not have been available at the time. If you don't want to use the door speaker for the Parrot kit, there should be plenty of room to hide a speaker up in the drivers side wheel well -- at least there is on our 00 LS and 98 Camry. Using an external speaker can sometimes simplify the installation of a phone kit. I'll attach the audio system diagrams for the 02 LS430 from the ARRC database in case you need them. jainla might show up on this thread soon -- I think he was on the forum earlier today. 2001_LS430_audio_1.pdf 2001_LS430_audio_2.pdf

Here is a link to jainla's spectacular installation instructions for a Parrot into his 01 LS430 Ultra: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...showtopic=34849

I doubt if it is either. I suspect the driver door electrical lock actuator is the problem.

Well, if you still have a problem after the "redo" ... have a friend/spouse/significant other/neighbor pair his/her compatible phone (verify capatibility on the Lexus corporate website) and see if his/her phone works with your Lexus Bluetooth. Buy an extra Bluetooth phone or three at a garage sale, fea market or eBay. Ask your friends or relatives if they have extra Bluetooth phones they can give or loan to you to test your Lexus Bluetooth system. Generally all you have to do to switch phones is to remove the SIM card from your phone and slide it into another phone -- usually takes less than a minute although you might have to make a few settings changes on the new phone. It's not brain surgery and it's easy to put the SIM card back into your old phone. A phone can certainly develop problems in far less than 90 days.

Try other phones to see if they also lose the Bluetooth connection. Blame the Lexus Bluetooth system only when you find that other phones consistently lose the connection. eBay is a good place to buy extra handsets -- just be sure that they are unlocked or that they work with your phone service provider.

A quick way to determine the headlight type is to look at the headlight lenses. The bulb types are stamped in the lenses. Bulb types beginingg with "D" are "discharge" (HID). Bulb types beginning with "H" are "halogen".

Look up your phone using the following web page and follow the instructions: http://lexusbluetooth.letstalk.com/product...=1&model=LS Some Bluetooth phones have limited compatibility with the Lexus Bluetooth system. Are both garage door openers the same exact model? If not, be sure that the second garage door opener is Homelink compatible. It is sometimes necessary to consult the garage door opener owners manual or the opener manufacturer's website for instructions. Programming the remote buttons for most garage door openers requires pressing a button on the garage door opener motor housing. If all fails, give it a few more tries ... timing is everything when it comes to programming the Lexus remote buttons. It's sometimes taken me more than one try.

Heya Jim! I thought turning it off was only an option on the 98+ CBES equipped cars, and 95-97 you are just SOL? I could be wrong. I thought I had read that a handheld tester could be used to modify just a few settings through the predessessor of CBES -- T.I.S. (Technical Information System).

Of course, pressing the A/C button should turn the air conditioner on. What do you think an A/C button should do? I suggest you read your owners manual to discover the function of the A/C and Auto buttons. Just because I don't own an RX doesn't mean I haven't driven a dealer loaner RX a bunch of times.

Here is a thread I found by doing a search where I posted a link on how to repair the antenna: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...mp;#entry215111

Try spraying silicone spray on the antenna while forcing it downward -- that sometimes worked for me when I had a 90 LS. There are threads somewhere on this forum on repairing antennas. I remember people buying replacement antenna assemblies on ebay.

You should be able to turn your A/C on by pressing either the Auto or the A/C button -- no need to continually press one of those buttons. At least on my LS, it stays in Auto mode after it's invoked -- no need to reselect it each time the car is started. Your problem may be as simple as low refrigerant. I doubt if it is good for your compressor to allow the safety mechanism to turn the system off. The A/C system senses low refrigerant and turns the compressor off to prevent damage since the refrigerant also lubricates the compressor. I'd recommend that you get your car back to the Lexus dealer ASAP -- don't keep trying to force the A/C to operate.

Turning off the tilt/telescope feature on a 95-up LS requires a handheld tester with the appropriate program card. Lexus dealers and some independent repair shops have the necessary equipment which, by the way, is quite expensive.

A zillion issues can cause the CEL to illuminate. And the VSC system turns itself off at the hint of a number of problems. Have the codes(s) pulled. This problem may not be related to the previous one.

A Lexus dealer replaced my strut rods including bushings in May 2007 -- about $250 parts and $325 labor. The indie Lexus repair shop I normally use would have done it for a little less but they had a temporary equipment problem. New bushings can be pressed into the existing rods but the labor charge of doing that can be more than replacing the entire strut bar assemblies -- depends if you are going to do it yourself and have access to a press. This article explains why the "semi-longitudinal tension rods and bushes" wear out quickly on the 98-00 LS400: http://www.autospeed.com/cms/A_3041/article.html If you don't know what the strut bars (or whatever you want to call them) are, kneel down and look ahead of a front wheel -- you will see the strut bar running from the wheel suspension towards the front of the car.