1990LS400

Which, Steve, is why I haven't been participating much anymore in these nonsense threads. I do have to wonder and be concerned about what is causing so much irrational anger among so many people. It sometimes seems like I am inhabiting a completely different country than these angry people. I suspect that one of the reasons that I'm not particularly worried about the current world situation is that I have quite a bit of information about how the centuries have gone for various lines of my family. This information seems to help me view the current world situation as just of blip in time. Let's have a little Rudyard Kipling!: If you can keep your head when all about you Are losing theirs and blaming it on you, If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, But make allowance for their doubting too; If you can wait and not be tired by waiting, Or being lied about, don't deal in lies, Or being hated, don't give way to hating, And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise: If you can dream - and not make dreams your master; If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim; If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster And treat those two impostors just the same; If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools, Or watch the things you gave your life to broken, And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools: If you can make one heap of all your winnings And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss, And lose, and start again at your beginnings And never breathe a word about your loss; If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew To serve your turn long after they are gone, And so hold on when there is nothing in you Except the Will which says to them: 'Hold on!' If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue, Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch, If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you, If all men count with you, but none too much; If you can fill the unforgiving minute With sixty seconds' worth of distance run - Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it, And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!

It's absolutely normal. My 2000 LS400 does the same thing - especially noticeable on cooler mornings.

According to the instructions I'm reading, the negative battery cable must be disconnected while reinstalling a Lexus radio with CD changer. If the negative battery cable is connected while the radio is being reinstalled, the radio prematurely goes into its initialization routine and "Vibration during initialization may cause problems in the radio receiver assy." So, try this: disconnect the negative battery cable, remove and disconnect your radio, reconnect your radio, reinstall your radio, and only then reconnect your negative battery cable. And maybe before you try what I am suggesting, put it into ship mode again.

What exactly is "It" anyway?

I searched too and cannot find a tutorial. Based on the attached diagram, it looks to me that replacing the shift indicator bulb in your ES would be the same routine as what I did to replace the shift indicator bulb in our 98 Camry. I had to do enough disassembly to allow me to pull the shift indicator (P-R-N-D-2-L) up the gear shift shaft so I could slip me fingers into the mechanism and unplug the bulb. I don't know if you will have to do this on your ES. I searched ClubLexus and didn't find a tutorial there either - this is the best I found there: http://www.clublexus.com/forums/es300-and-es330/494849-bulb-burnt-out.html Replacing the shift indicator light in our Camry was pretty easy and, based on the comments in the ClubLexus thread, it must be easy on the ES too. Don't forget to peal the bulb cover off the old bulb and put in on the new one before you insert the new bulb.

It sounds like the last thing you need is more speculation on the cause of the problem. Is there a Lexus or Toyota dealer nearby? The 99 Lexus ES300 and Toyota Camry V6 are vitually identical mechanically. A Toyota dealer mechanic would likely be cheaper than a Lexus dealer mechanic. Both should have access to detailed diagnostic procedures for your problem.

The following thread has information on how to disable it: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=45258&st=0&p=290560&hl=++lexus%20++link&fromsearch=1entry290560

I doubt it. While some companies have manufactured lower content products specifically for Costco, those products have had model numbers, bar codes, etc. that were specific to Costco. I think you are OK as long as you buy a product model that is also available elsewhere. I've bought 12 tires at Costco in the past 18 months - 8 Michelin MXV4, 4 Bridgestone Blizzak WS70. Issues I have with Costco are that the one near me 1) does not have a road force balancer, 2) does not have balancing weights that are suitable for my LS400's summer OEM chrome wheels, 3) their staff does not seem very knowledgeable - one of their tire tech's told me that he had never heard of road force balancing and his "tire school" diploma was on the wall! I ended up taking both sets of my LS wheels/Costco tires to the Lexus dealer to have them balanced. I'll be taking the wife's Camry to Costco in the next couple of weeks to have the Michelin MXV4 tires I bought last summer for it installed - I assume they can handle that.

The wheels and tires specifications for the LX570 have the following footnote: "20-in performance tires are expected to experience greater tire wear than conventional tires. Tire life may be substantially less than 20,000 miles, depending upon driving conditions."

Based on the information in the 2010 RX owners manual, pressing these switches should not have caused any problems no matter what speed you were going. And nobody is going to collect information so that they "know how often you abuse the system". I can't tell you how to keep from inadvertently pressing console mounted switches other than maybe to not flail about if you drop something.

Here is a link to instructions: http://www.clublexus.com/forums/es300-and-es330/168680-es300-a-c-or-cabin-filter-change-97-01-a.html

No, the high mounted stop light is supposed to be off and light up only when you press the brake pedal.

The maintenance and owners manuals may be viewed online without registering at https://secure.drivers.lexus.com/lexusdrivers/home Register to view the maintenance that was done at Lexus dealers. I'm too lazy to look it up but I think Iridium spark plugs were first used on the 99 LS400 and that the spark plug change interval for the 98 LS400 was 90,000 miles. The spark plug change interval for the 99-00 LS400 is 120,000 miles. The original plugs in my 00 LS looked good as new when I had them changed at 120,000 miles but I'm sort of a "by the book" person. Whether you follow the maintenance schedule is up to you. I went almost exactly 7 years before I had the timing belt (and water pump, idlers, tensioner) replaced at the 90,000 mile service and I would not have waited longer. If your front strut rod bushings are original and they lasted 120,000, count that as a miracle. Mine were completely worn out when I had them changed at 80-85K and I should have had them changed much sooner. I plan to have the strut rod assemblies replaced for the second time early next year at the 150,000 mile service. I know that there must be completely honest Lexus dealers out there somewhere, but I would get a second opinion on whether or not the shocks are worn out at 120,000 miles. After 21 years of Lexus LS ownership, it seems like Lexus dealer service writers have no shame. I am not going to intervene while at a Lexas dealership but last week while I had my car in for tire balancing I heard a service writer tell another customer in the waiting room that both his front and rear brakes were dangerously low. The customer told the service writer that he would check them himself and looked at me and laughed after the service writer left. Oddly, the same bimbo service writer told me over 25,000 miles ago that my front brakes were completely worn out and dangerous. Of course, they were not worn out and still are not - I check pad thickness regularly. Beware of "upselling" when you are at a Lexus dealer!

In case you didn't already find one, here is a diagram for the 93 SC400 Nakamichi system. It's from the ARRC website. 1993 SC400 Nakimichi diagram.pdf

Hey Paul, I've been enamored with ultra high-end Mercedes sedans since the 60's. The short wheelbase Grand Mercedes 600 of the 60's and 70's (see attached photo) is my all time favorite ... got to watch the interior being installed in a 600 pullman cabriolet in the Sindelfingen Mercedes plant when I was a kid. They were the Maybach of their day and my idea of what a "luxury car" was and is.

You have to remember that your GS is eight model years old and that technology constantly changes. Bluetooth barely existed in the 2004 model year. Fords didn't have it. Toyota introduced Bluetooth first on the 2004 LS430 - the most expensive Lexus sedan - and it eventually trickled down to less expensive models. And there were very, very few Bluetooth capable phones available in 2003 when the 2004 LS430 went on sale. My LS is four model years older than your GS and I would be thrilled if my LS had the electronic architecture your GS has which allows adding all sorts of features using interfaces from Parrot, VAIS and other companies. My previous post included a mistake in that the Sprint based dealer installed phone system in the U.S. was discontinued during the 2002 model year - not the 2003 model year. The 2003 model year dealer installed Lexus phone system in the U.S. used only the Cingular/AT&T Nokia 6310 which was the first and for a while the only phone certified to work with the 2004 LS430 Bluetooth system. Prior to Bluetooth, if you bought a Lexus phone system you were limited to either having a fixed phone or just one portable phone model. "Scan" finds only the stations that have been pre-set. Set multiple pre-set stations and scan will find them. "Seek" finds the next higher frequency station.

I thought that cars in the ES350 price range were usually considered to be "near luxury" or "entry level luxury" cars. Although the differences between the Lexus ES and the Toyota Camry have been increased somewhat over the past ten or so years, they still have much in common and the Camry certainly isn't considered to be a luxury car or even an entry level luxury car. Maybe the ES will be seen in a little different light after the larger Avalon based 2013 ES is introduced. It really gets down to what you think a luxury car is. To some, the ES is a wonderful luxury car. In some circles, the LS is not considered a luxury car. Just buy what you like and don't worry about labels. Besides, as I've said before, if a car doesn't have accommodations on the order of what is shown in the attached photos, then it is not a luxury car at all.

I think 2007 was the first year that Bluetooth was first available on the GS with navigation on U.S. spec models and I'm assuming it was the same for Canadian spec models. Dealer installed non-Bluetooth phone systems were available in the U.S. through the 2003 model year here on some models although the Sprint-based 2003 dealer installed phone system was not highly regarded due to Sprint's poor coverage and service. The 2004 model year was the first that Bluetooth was available on the LS430 - positive about that since I tried to get a demo of it on the LS430 in fall of 2003 back when the Bluetooth SIG was near where I worked here in Kansas before it moved to Seattle. Bluetooth was so new in 2003 that Lexus certified only one phone to work with the LS430 bluetooth system - the Nokia 6310i. Regarding your radio question, it's probably explained in your navigation manual. If you don't have one, you could try to find the information in the online navigation manual on the U.S. Lexus website: https://secure.drivers.lexus.com/lexusdrivers/info/my-lexus/resources/submit-owners-manual-search If you want Bluetooth you could install a Bluetooth phone kit. Conversion harnesses are available for the nicer Parrot Bluetooth phone kits - Mki6000 series and up - that make installation completely "plug and play". Some of the Parrot kits also provide music streaming from a variety of sources including through wireless A2DP: http://www.quickconnectproducts.com/Find/find.php

I would have thought that your CPO car would have come with the check list which includes the item "• Engine oil replaced and proper level" which would indicate whether or not the oil was changed. Did you get a packet of documents when you bought your car?

Register in the owners section of the Lexus website and then look at the service history for your car: https://secure.drivers.lexus.com/lexusdrivers/home

What the #!@# does that mean? Different mechanic?

There is a lengthy thread in the SC430 section on ClubLexus about a Parrot MKi9100 install. It's probably from a couple of years ago but you can find it by searching that section for "Parrot". A lot of people hide the Parrot display in the ashtray but I think it would be more useful if it was higher up. I have long planned to install a Parrot MKi9100 in my 2000 LS400 but my old phone and kit hasn't given up yet. When I do install the Parrot, I will mount the display on the left side of the instrument cluster just below the fuel guage so I won't have to take my eyes off the road as much. If you have any mechanical skill (and time), consider doing the install yourself with an interface harness from Parrot. It's probably a "7" on a 1 to 10 scale of difficulty. I have had very poor luck with "professional" phone kit installers and ended up repositioning most of the components in two cars. Edit: The ClubLexus thread on installing a Parrot MKi9100 in an 02 SC430 using an interface harness is at http://www.clublexus.com/forums/sc-430/441563-1-stop-bluetooth-ipod-solution-for-02-sc.html And here is a thread where I supplied documents from member jainla about installing an older Parrot in an LS430 without using an interface harness - hardwiring it: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=59114&st=0&p=380651&hl=parrot&fromsearch=1entry380651 Search this forum for "Parrot" and you will find other threads.

How I spent my Columbus Day holiday ... The Hyundai/Equus dealer is a few blocks away from the shop that replaced the tint on a side window this morning so afterward I test drove a "base" 2011 Equus. "Base" means air suspension, nav, power reclining/heated rear seats, rear audio controls, etc. etc. Noticing that the left rear tire on the LS had gone flat from a roofing nail in the tread, I then visited the Lexus dealer where I had the tire fixed, all four tires road force balanced and test drove an LS460L. The LS460L I drove was an all wheel drive version with nav and without a rear seat power package. I drove the Equus further and harder than I drove the LS460L -- mainly because I found the Equus more enjoyable to drive and much less "numb" than the LS460L. The really weird thing is that I found my 11+ year old 2000 LS400 more enjoyable to drive than the LS460L. And the Equus was by about the same margin more enjoyable than my LS400. Laugh if you like but I'm thinking there's a Hyundai in my future.

I went from Blizzak WS50 to WS70 where the tread design was completely different. If I remember correctly, there isn't as much difference between the WS60 and WS70 with both being directional tires unlike the WS50. I think I remember that WS70 has a slightly narrower tread in some of the corresponding WS60 sizes where the same size was available in both models. I say "was" because a Bridgestone representative told me that the WS60 was going to be continued in some sizes but that the WS70 replaced the WS60 in others. By the way, I was amazed how helpful the Bridgestone representative was when I asked about the WS70 several months before they went on sale and before the specs were made public - they emailed me an advance copy of the specs for all sizes. I wonder if your car would be too "tail happy" if you got a set of the 17" OEM wheels that were standard on the 07 IS350 and then put 225/45-17 Blizzaks all around. Your car's electronic gizmos (e.g. VSC) should still help prevent spinning out unless you get too crazy. And 17" Blizzaks would likely cost substantially less and last longer than 18" Blizzaks on your current wheels. Maybe look for a set of used 17" OEM wheels on Craigslist or see if your dealer has some. I bought a set of new "take off" OEM wheels from the local Lexus dealer 21+ years ago and the dealer sold them to me very cheaply - but of course I had just bought a new LS there. Each November when I put snow tires on my LS, it's like I turn a switch in my brain and completely change my driving style for four months -- no more screaming around interstate cloverleafs at the limits of adhesion. If you do what I'm suggesting, you might have to sign a release at an installer/tire seller since the rear snow tires would be narrower than standard. I was surprised that Costco had me sign a release when I bought a set of H-rated Michelin all season tires -- the car came with V-rated tires. Did they think I was going to exceed 130 mph? Oddly, Costco didn't require a release when I bought the T-rated (118 mph) WS70's for my LS.

The Mini and Smart are "premium" cars? I thought they were inexpensive niche cars. The basic Smart car sells for over $4,000 less than a base Elantra and a base Mini sells for less than $4,000 more than a base Elantra. Three things that would make me leave Lexus for Hyundai? --> Content for the money (value), technology, reliability. My 2000 LS400 is now at 143,500 miles and I plan to keep it until 2015 when it will be at around 200,000 miles. Will I buy another 3-year old off-lease LS? In 2015, that would be a 2012 LS460 and I would prefer a fairly basic "L" but with the low end rear seat toy package. However, I think I'm more likely to buy a 3-year old off-lease 2012 Hyundai Equus with all the bells and whistles which I suspect will cost about half the price of a used 2012 LS460L in 2015. I'm kind of looking forward to "fly under the radar".