1990LS400

Just curious -- did you unwrap the wires at the trunk hinge and inspect each one individually or wiggle the bundle? If the trunk hinge wires have never been fixed, it's just about impossible for the original ones on a gen 1 LS400 to last 19 years.

If you register with your forum ID, http://lexus.sewellparts.com (Sewell Lexus in Dallas) will sell you "Lexus OEM Lower Ball Joint Assembly" for your 95 LS (it would be easier if would put your model year in your profile) for $58 each not including shipping. That doesn't seem too bad for OEM. I've found Sewell to be a reliable supplier that usually has the best prices -- specially when their usually lower shipping fees are considered. Unless you are in the witness protection program , it would also help if you would put your location in your profile ... would help others recommend services and suppliers closest to you.

It looks like the control for turning the keyless entry "beep" on or off. If you don't have an owners manual, you can view it online at https://secure.drivers.lexus.com/lexusdrivers/home

Even with your extraordinary diplomatic skills?

Ask Costco to allow you to sign a release. I was required to do that last year at Costco when I bought a set of H-rated (130 mph) tires for my 00 LS400 which came with V-rated (149 mph) tires - and I didn't even have them install the tires ... I had the Lexus dealer do it instead. It shouldn't be a big deal. If the Costco tire guy does not sell you the tires with a release, contact the store manager. Maybe they don't understand the concept of modern AWD. I found that the Costco tire techs where I live are not very knowledgeable. Even though they have their nice tire tech school diplomas on the wall, none of them understood the concept of road force balancing which the Costco here is not equipped to do.

Are you certain the fog is on the inside? By 7 to 8 years, the outside of the plastic lenses can get very worn and nearly opaque but fortunately they can be refinished to look like new. Here is a thread about clearing the headlights on an ES: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=48640&st=0&p=313668&hl=crystalview&fromsearch=1entry313668 I used a Crystal View headlight restoration kit a few years ago on my LS and the headlight lenses still look great.

Have you considered plugging an A2DP adapter into the audio port of your ES? If you are able to successfully "upgrade the onboard computer system", you will likely be the first.

About all I can contribute is to tell you that there are extremely detailed diagnostic procedures in the repair manuals for these cars. I've been driving LS400's for 21 years / 275,000+ miles and I have never had a problem that a trained Lexus mechanic could not diagnose in a few minutes. My only suggestion is for you to take your car to someone who has the diagnostic information, proper equipment and the training needed to diagnose problems with Lexus cars.

I think you will find your answer in a footnote at http://www.lexus.com/cpo/model_library/LSh/2008.html : "[12]18-in or 19-in tires are expected to experience greater tire wear than conventional tires. Tire life may be substantially less than 15,000 miles, depending on driving conditions. Please see your Lexus dealer for details and other information relating to tire selection."

When it comes to sedans, my view is that the most important aspect is a large and comfortable interior and particularly a rear seat area in which its occupants can really stretch out. Whether an LS460L with the executive rear seating package could be consider to be a "luxury car" is debatable. Attached are photos of what I consider to be "luxury sedans".

$130 seems like a decent price for an OEM part that has a retail price of $229.94. The part number I got from http://lexus.sewellparts.com/ for the "Lexus OEM Steering Damper Assembly" is "45700-50011". Sewell sells the part for $139.11 when you register with your forum member name. Having owned a 1990 LS400 for many years, I just now did some searching on eBay and elsewhere. I found a number of other aftermarket steering system parts but no aftermarket steering dampers for the 90 LS -- doesn't mean that they don't exist.

I've seen maybe five threads over the years from people who reported a similar problem. From what I remember, most of the cars had a non-working dealer installed Lexus phone. One of the features of the Lexus phone system was to trigger the lowering of the HVAC fan to low speed when a phone call was in progress. When one of the phone system components shorts out - sometimes due to water/corrosion - odd things happen including your problem and sending the audio system into permanent mute mode. If your car has an old Lexus phone system, unplug all its components. Do not cut any of the phone system cables and wires! It may be enough to unplug the phone ECU in the trunk. On a 98-00 LS400 phone system, after unplugging the connectors from the ECU in the trunk, it is necessary to plug the two largest ones together to complete a circuit. I don't know/remember if the 96 phone system had similar connectors. If there is or was a handset in the center console, do some minor console disassembly and unplug the handset cradle connectors - they plug into connectors under the vent you see when the armrest is raised. If your car has never had a Lexus phone, it could still be a problem with the phone system wiring -- all LS400's were prewired at the factory for dealer installed phones. I think I remember one case where a different issue causee the problem you are experiencing but I don't remember what it was. The problem has usually been caused by a phone system component going bad. Let us know if your car doesn't have/never had a phone system and I'll look into it further.

A maintenance manual comes with each Lexus vehicle. It lists in detail what should be done at each service interval.

Here are the "official" instructions for cleaning the seats from the 2003 LS430 owners manual: Leather Interior The selected leather is used in your Lexus. Due to characteristics of leather products, some parts of leather may be rough, uneven or scratched originally. To keep good appearance, we recommend you to clean it periodically twice a year. Remove dirt on the leather in the following ways: 1. Wipe it off lightly using a soft cloth (e.g. gauze) dampened with 5% solution of neutral detergent for wool. 2. Wring water from a clean cloth and thoroughly wipe off all traces of detergent with it. 3. Wipe off the surface of the leather with a dry soft cloth. Allow the leather to dry in a ventilated shaded area. Excess of wet may cause the hardening or shrinking of the leather. I suppose you could pluck out the dirt from the holes with a wooden toothpick or similar but I never had to do anything like with Mercedes cars I've owned with perforated leather. Following the cleaning instructions always worked for me

First of all, the probability of something major going wrong is low on your RX at its low mileage -- unless you are planning to tow your 10,000 pound Airstream during the trip. A Toyota dealer should be able to take care of about any problem with your RX (and which is serious enough to fix before you return home) since it is mechanically about the same as a Highlander. Of course, anytime one is on a long driving vacation, part of the "plan" must be to be ready to have a vehicle transported a few hundred miles and to be ready to get a rental vehicle or to fly home. You might want to record the locations of Toyota dealers and independent repair shops in the areas in which you will be traveling. Whether you have an OEM or aftermarket navigation unit, it would be a good idea to install the latest map and POI updates. If you have an aftermarket GPS unit, most of them accept custom POI files. For example, I added a custom POI file containing all the Lexus dealers in the U.S. to my old Magellan GPS -- image attached. I've even set my GPS to chime when I'm within maybe 1 mile from any Lexus dealer and to chime again with a different sound when I am within about 250 yards. You can get custom POI files for just about any interest from GPS enthusiast websites (e.g. GPS Passion) and sometimes directly from sources like restaurant chain websites. Some portable GPS units will even play your own sound clip (e.g. MP3) when you are near a location in a custom POI file. Also, you might want to check out cell phone coverage if you will be off the beaten track. There are still vast areas of the western U.S. that have zero cell phone service. If you are going to be in the middle of nowhere, consider getting an external antenna for your cell phone -- can make a huge difference. And does anyone take long driving trips these days without a wireless/WiFi enabled laptop PC or iPad? Aren't we spoiled these days by all the gadgets? I've been driving "foreign" cars for virtually all of my 45 years of driving and never worried about finding places to get them fixed while traveling far from home and supporting dealerships.

It could be because the fuel pump is electric and because already weak (e.g. corroded, cracked) electrical connections can fail in high humidity (e.g. rain) conditions.

If you "can't afford locksmith at the moment" how are you affording to put gas in your car? Call a professional and get it over with -- at least you will know where you stand.

I would suspect corrosion somewhere in the electrical system. Have you cleaned the battery terminals and cable clamps recently? The battery terminals and the insides of the cable clamps should be bright and clean. I bought a tool at a parts store made for cleaning the terminals and the inside of the clamps - cost just a few bucks. I removed the rest of the corrosion on the clamps with water, baking soda and an old tooth brush. After reattaching the clamps to the terminals, I coated them with a thin layer of petroleum jelly. It's hard to believe doing something so simple can make so much difference.

Sorry, but your location - "somewhere else" - is too far to drive. :whistles: Where is "somewhere else"? Are you in a witness protection program?

that offer would be hard to pass up! and I would furnish the Corona!

I calculated the cost of yesterday's oil change on my 00 LS400 - prices include tax: $35.71 for 6 quarts of Mobil 1 synthetic oil - purchased at Costco $ 4.32 for an OEM oil filter purchased in a 10-pack at a Toyota dealer $ .00 for an oil plug gasket that was included with each oil filter $ 1.40 for one bottle of Corona Extra (La Cerveza mas fina) $ .06 for one slice of lime (1/8 x 50 cents) ------ $41.49 Total, not including 1 hour of my time which included consuming said cerveza and listening to Tom and Ray Magliozzi on Car Talk on NPR Not included is the 5 minutes it will take to swing by and drop off the old oil at Jiffy-lube the next time I accumulate the 5 gallon maximum allowed for 1 drop off. Also not included are the prices of my tools. I've think I can say that my socket wrench set is fully depreciated by now since I bought it in 1971 for use in rebuilding the engine on my long gone 1956 Mercedes 190SL.

And after the speed is set, "up" to increase speed and "down" to decrease speed. Each quick "up" or "down" tap of the lever changes the speed in approximately 1 mph increments. The Toyota cruise control system design has to be most intuitive and easiest to use cruise control system I've ever experienced.

Attaching a hitch to the "exhaust mounts" is probably the most common way that trailer hitches are attached to vehicles - including the OEM hitches sold by Lexus dealers outside North America. The hitch on my 00 LS400 is also from etrailer and attaches to exhaust system mounts. I use the hitch mainly for hauling bicycles on the same $50 bike rack I bought when I had a hitch installed on my first LS in 1990.

How did they check the battery? Checking only the specific gravity won't tell you if the battery is good. It usually takes 30 to 60 minutes to test a battery by charging and discharging it. I would think that the next step would be to have the charging system checked to see if the voltage regulator is defective. It shouldn't take long or cost much. I had my favorite mechanic check the charging system on my 00 LS400 last fall and I don't think he spent 10 minutes doing it. I've had more than one battery test "good" when it was not. LS400s seem to go through batteries fairly quickly. I've been driving LS400s for 21 years and have had only one battery last more than four years and some batteries - even some expensive name brand ones - have lasted barely a year or two. I also remember one of my defective batteries overheat when there was nothing wrong with the charging system. It's odd that the battery light would go off when you hit the brakes -- maybe someone else can explain that. I've had internal connections inside batteries break more than once causing a momentary failure when turning a sharp corner or hitting a bump in the road. If you have not found out already, you should know that the power steering pumps on the 90-94 LS400 are prone to leaking with the leaks sometimes causing the alternator to fail. Check the fluid level in your power steering pump and verify that it is not leaking fluid on to the alternator. If it is leaking, have it replaced or rebuilt ASAP. Some people fashion plastic guards out of plastic bottles and attach them to the top of their alternators to deflect leaking fluid.

3500 rpm is "screaming" at 65 mph. I'll check our 98 Camry later today but I think its engine runs at something like 2600 rpm in O/D (4th gear) at 65 mph. Does your overdrive switch have any effect when you click it on and off? Edit: I checked today and our 98 Camry V6 engine runs at a little less than 2400 rpm at 65 mph in 4th/OD gear. I don't know if its gear and final drive ratios are the same as in the 92 ES but I know they are the same as in the 98 ES.