1990LS400

Well ... it is more than a "5 minute code change" to plug in the scan scan tool, find the correct menus, make the changes, and then verify that the changes really were made after the scan tool is disconnected. Lexus dealers already provide many "complimentary" services which you are in fact paying for due to these services being built into the labor rate -- services like fee loaner cars, coffee, soft drinks, pastries, WIFI service, car wash and vacuum, plush waiting rooms with those nice flat panel TVs, etc., etc. The labor and equipment time for the 1,000 mile "free" customization of personalized settings wasn't free at all but was built into the new car purchase price. I see that you recently purchased your 99 LS400. Having purchased a new LS400 from a Lexus dealer, I think I can assure you that people are treated a bit better when they have purchased their Lexus when new from the dealership. The same applied when I bought brand new Mercedes and Volvos -- the dealers seemed more attentive knowing that I had purchased new cars from them and that I was more likely to be a repeat new car buyer.

Well, you could try using an "OBDII scan tool". Please report back if you are successful. Why would you be annoyed if they charged you for changing the customizable settings on a ten year old car? After all, repair shops and Lexus dealers have to pay their employees. This would have been done at no cost only at the 1,000 mile service. A dealer or repair shop may change the customizable settings for "free" if you have your car in for a normal service procedure or other repair. The indie Lexus repair shop I use changed my interior light delay for free I think mainly because no one had ever asked them to change a customizable setting in the ten years they have been in business.

See the attached. CBES.pdf

That's a really nice solution, Steve. I could see buying something like that if only to use it in rental cars. I'm seeing an increasing number of reports on Lexus forums where drivers have been ticketed for holding phones to their ears -- especially in New York. Motorola sure makes excellent products. Lexus dealers in the UK are currently selling Motorola IHF1000 Bluetooth car kits with Lexus logos on them; they are even available with a "bluetooth complementary kit" that includes interchangeable charging cradles and an external antenna connection. Take a look at the one for the IS -- you will have to click on the little photos to see bigger pictures: http://www.lexus.co.uk/range/is/accessories/interior.aspx I've bought quite a bit of stuff from UK Lexus dealers by phone and in person but I suspect that buying the Lexus branded IHF1000 and the complementary kit would add up to some pretty big bucks - I don't know if I want to go there.

Take a look at this thread I started last year: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...amp;hl=Magellan A Magellan GPS mounting cradle like the one on my 2200T has an AMPS hole pattern that fits directly to a common mounting bracket like the Pro.Fit swivel bracket I used. I bought an extra power cable for my Magellan and kinda hardwired it using an extension cable I bought at a discount store. The easiest way to tap into the car's accessory wiring is to use an "Add-a-circuit" (also called a "piggyback") fuse connector at the under dash fuse box - here is a photo but you can find them at many auto parts stores: http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cf...tnumber=071-580 The above thread also includes a photo of the Infinity M35 rental car we had that gave me the idea -- it had a dash mounted Hertz Neverlost GPS system mounted on a bracket. The Neverlost system is made by Magellan. There are AMPS adapter brackets available for GPS devices (e.g. Garmin) that do not come with an AMPS compatible cradle.

I doubt that many Americans understand the tradition that existed in the UK of modifying sedans to create estate cars and shooting brakes. But hasn't that tradition mostly died out with there being so many ready made estate cars available? Relatively few "estate cars" (station wagons) have been available in the U.S. since the U.S. went minivan and then SUV- crazy in the 1980s. Certainly the GS would make a nice estate car -- it has often been suggested that the GS would make the best wagon of all Lexus sedans and give the Mercedes E-class and BMW 5-series wagons serious competition. If you really want to carry your dog in your GS, there are lots of rear seat covers and accessories available that are specifically made for carrying dogs. And what about the Toyota Avensis that replaced the Camry in the U.K? I've ridden in an Avensis Estate several times and liked it a lot and wish it or something like it was sold by Toyota in the U.S. I've always been a huge fan of station wagons / estate cars. My wife and I went to buy a Camry wagon in 1998 but had to settle for a sedan since the Camry wagon was discontinued in the U.S. in 1996. Attached is a photo of that 1998 Camry wagon we really wanted to buy -- sold outside the U.S. as the Toyota Gracia.

I don't have a LS430 but I can tell you that there is a four page diagnostic procedure for the headlight leveling system in the repair manual set for my 2000 LS400. The diagnostic procedure requires a continuity tester, a voltmeter and an oscilloscope. On my LS400, there is supposedly a fuse ("PWR-IG") in the fuse box in the engine compartment that supports the headlight leveling system but I checked and can not find a fuse labeled that way. And there is a "height control sensor" at the front and back of the car -- these are known to occasionally go bad or get knocked loose. And the "actuators" on each headlight. And the ECU for the headlight leveling system -- supposedly behind the glove compartment on my 00 LS400. I guess the first thing to check would be that all the fuses are good -- you don't have to remove the fuses to check them. I did a search on several forums and found little information on headlight leveling system problems -- apparently the system is usually trouble free unless a car has been in a crash and improperly repaired. If you are a new owner, I would encourage you to find a good independent repair shop. I've been using the same indie Lexus/Toyota shop here in Kansas for almost ten years and the service and prices are way better than at the Lexus dealer. But I sometimes use the Lexus dealer too. These are very complex cars and many of the systems in the cars are way beyond what an untrained person can handle. A good mechanic who knows these cars can often quickly zero in on the problem and save you time and money.

Cindy McCain "normal"? She spent her younger years competing in beauty contests. She was born into great wealth and her personal net worth, mainly from inherited wealth, has been estimated at over $100 million. She and her hubby Johnny travel around in her private jet. She's bought and currently owns so many houses that her husband can't keep track of how many. Cindy McCain's wealth is far into the upper 1/10th of 1% of all Americans. Normal? We should all be so "normal".

I posted information about the 2001 LS430 customizable settings in this thread: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...showtopic=50816 One thing you might consider is putting the year of your car in your profile so people can better answer your questions. As you can see in the attachment in the above thread, the headlight shutoff delay can be turned off or set to 30, 60 or 90 seconds. I suspect most people do what I do -- press the lock button on the key a second time to turn the headlights off immediately. Dealers and repairs may customize LPS settings at no charge if your car is in for other work. Normally, customizable settings are changed for free only at the first 1,000 mile service. Regardless, changing the settings can be done quickly. Consider analyzing the LPS list and driving your car a while to see if there are other customizable settings you would like to have changed. I don't have as many LPS choices on my 2000 LS400 as there are on the LS430 but the only setting I have changed is to increase the interior light shutoff delay to the maximum.

That's great news, G Alex. It's nice not to have to buy new headlights, isn't it. As you may have also found, Crystal View may not make worn headlight lenses look absolutely perfect from closeup, but the flaws that are left are not apparent from a few feet away. After driving about 200 miles at 70 mph, I noticed some streaks on my passenger side headlight lens that I did not notice immediately after using the Crystal View kit. I may refinish the passenger side lens before winter. The Crystal View rep I spoke with about the streaking said that it is particularly important to use a light touch when applying the two sealer coats and that one should not go over areas of a lens more than once when applying each sealer coat. Maybe I was too aggressive with the sealer applicator. Regardless, my headlight lenses look incredibly better than before I used Crystal View. I didn't take "before" photos but attached are "after" photos. The streaks I mentioned on the passenger side lens can not be seen from a few feet away.

tpeene, I also have an LS400 manufactured in 2000: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...m&album=131 Replacement of the timing belt and water pump every 90,000 miles on a U.S. specification LS400 of any model year is normal maintenance. The recommended interval may be different in your country. In July 2007, I paid $1,317, ex. tax, for the 90,000 mile service which included the replacement of the timing belt and water pump. The work was done at an independent repair shop. Also in 2007, I paid $582, ex. tax, at a Lexus dealer for the replacement of the front suspension strut bars. The strut bar bushings are often the first front suspension component that fails. I do not understand which portion of the "front suspension" you mean. Does the LS400 you are looking at have steel springs or air suspension? As you noted, the power steering pump on the later LS400 is much more reliable than on the early cars. I had the power steering pump replaced on the 1990 LS400 I owned several times with a rebuilt pump and I do not remember the replacement costing more than about $400. I do not know why the replacement of a power steering pump would cost $1800.

Hey billydpowell, I think the BBS style wheels on your gen 1 LS look great. Your car is a sort of "period piece" and perfectly exemplifies what was considered to be the ultimate LS400 look in the early nineties. Don't change a thing. It's perfect. I would have bought the silver BBS-style wheel option when I bought my first LS in 1990 but the option was too expensive for me. IMO, guys who put newer style wheels on older cars are just p1ssing into the wind. Us old farts know better.

A good site for TSIB information is the Auto Repair Reference Center (ARRC) which is available at most public libraries. I can get to ARRC from my home by logging on to my public libraries website with my library card number and password. I just now checked and verified that there are TSIBs on ARRC for the ES350.

Being the packrat I am, I still have promotional video tapes about the LS, GS and SC that were sent to Lexus owners in the early 1990s. One is "The 1993 LS400: The Pursuit Continues". It has a seven minute run time. I remember that one option it hypes is the first portable handheld phone available from Lexus. I remember that mainly because Lexus had a "fire sale" ($500?) on it's fixed phone system just before the portable phone system came out. Someday I'll have to see if I can connect our old VCRs to our digital TVs so I can watch them.

Driving up the coast on Highway 1 from San Francisco in a two seat convertible on a summer day, stopping at The Tides in Bodega Bay for lunch and to watch the birds.

The Americans and the English -- Two peoples separated by a common language. (George Bernard Shaw) A former coworker of mine at our Portsmouth office attempted for a while in the early 1990s to buy parts for each other's LS400s but we quickly learned that our cars were so different that it was pointless to try. If only I could have taught him the "correct" terms for bonnets, boots, and wings!

Well then, can you tell us which fuse you pulled and verify that the manual tilt/telescope control can still be used after the fuse is pulled. I'm generally hesitant to assume that RHD UK models work like LHD US models.

Yes, you are wrong.

Sorry, but I know little about these hand held testers. I remember checking the price on the diagnostic kit from Toyota ( http://toyota.spx.com/detail.aspx?id=100&g=1 ) quite a few years back but I only remember that it seemed quite expensive. The one time I had a customizable feature changed on my 00 LS (to lengthen the interior light shutoff time), the mechanic performed the task in a few minutes for little or no charge while I had the car in for other work.

On U.S. specification models, the auto-tilt/telescope feature can be deactivated by using a handheld diagnostic tester with an appropriate program card. Since I do not know the year of your LS, I will attach the related TSIB for the 2001 model year. 2001_LS430_LPS.pdf

Whoa Steve, watch that math! It is the 06's that will start coming off three year leases this fall. The 06's were first leased in fall 2005 and those leases will be expiring in fall, 2008. It should be easy to find an 06 LS with mileage under the common mileage cap for a three year lease -- 36,000 miles. That's a tough one. Do you want your customers to focus on your car and playing with the rear seat controls or listening to your presentation? What do the other agents in your area drive while showing real estate to clients? What does your average client drive? What segment of the real estate market is your focus? A rule of thumb around here is that one doesn't drive a car much different or nicer than what the average client drives - whether selling real estate or anything else. The agents we've used for several transactions drive identical full size Buicks but their target market isn't the $5-$20M home market in Mission Hills, Kansas either. I suspect that the agents we use wouldn't even consider driving a foreign car - they seem to be very careful in how they cultivate their image. I suggest that you discuss this question with experienced agents that have been around the industry in your area a long time. It sure is amazing how much the used car market has softened in the five years since I bought my 2000 LS400 in 2003 after it came off a 3 yr/36K mile lease.

Jim, I have a 2000 LS Platinum as well. We love the car. The link you provided apprears to be on an older model and ours seems different but you have me on the right path. Thanks The photos I posted on the thread I gave you the link for are photos of the rear window light module of my 2000 LS400 -- not an older model.

The bulbs are replaced after removing the housing in the back window. Take a look at this thread which contains descriptions of how it is done: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...937&hl=bulb The Search and especially the Advanced Search features of this forum can often be used to find answers to common questions like this.

My 2000 LS400 had similar pinstripes when I bought it in 2003. There were installed by the selling Lexus dealer instead of at the factory. I removed the pinstripes by carefully heating them with a hair dryer while rubbing the pinstripes with a damp soft cotton cloth and car wax. It took about one hour to remove the pinstripes. The steering wheel looks like it has been treated with a vinyl protectant such as Armorall. It is not normal for the steering wheel to be shiney.

I bought the two volume repair manual set from a Lexus dealer that sold them online at a discount. You might check Sewell Lexus: http://www.sewellpartsonline.com/parts.asp...98&pid=1395 One can sometimes find manuals on eBay. Be aware that the manuals are not particularly detailed. Most mechanics use https://techinfo.toyota.com