wandawoods

Reid, thanks for the head-up! WOW, I did have the car VIN checked, and it didn't indicate any accidents in the past! also, service record shows 90K service was done at 84258 mile. my totaled 94 L4 was black on black, very sharp! 99lsguy, in fact, wife likes the 97 black (because it's the least expensive one !), and I do like the 5-spokes wheels on Michelins! I don't mind higher mileage since 90K service has been done! we drive so little per year anyway (average 6~7K a year for all my cars), and NAV is not important to us. unless something drastic happens, looks like it's going to be the 97 black....

thanks for the input! black car is fine with me, especally I already have a white 96 SC4. the 98 white has only 71K miles on it, I guess what's why it looks newer. the wheel design on 98 black is identical to my 96 SC4, and I don't really mind it. i do warry about the NAV can go south when time goes by, and I bet it's costly to upkeep. plus, it will be primary for local driving (we rarely drive out-of-town) which makes NAV less useful to us.

time to make a decision: 97 LS4 97K: $13500 (KBB $14900) 98 LS4 87K w/NAV: $17000 (KBB $17500) 98 LS4 71K w/o NAV: $18000 (KBB $19000) 1. the 97K/87K have 90K service done including TB+water pump replaced. 2. the KBB prices represent private party value in execellent condition. 3. they are TX or FL cars; all have service record 4. both 98 come with 1-month/1000mile warranty 5. it seems that the 97 has the best ratio of asking vs KBB price.... what would you choose?

well, got the $11K insurance check on hand now, ready to thraw in a few $K cash and go for a 98 LS4 found these 2 on ebay: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAP...item=2474919974 http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAP...item=2474329205 both are way below KBB private party prices. one in FL, one in TX which means no rusty bottom. questions: 1. any1 done a DYI for TB change in VVTi engine b4? is it more complicated than traditional 1UZFE? the one in TX has 87K, it's time for TB change pretty soon 2. does NAV worth it? is it prone to failure after years of use?

yours are exactly like mine when I got my 94 LS4 9-months back. the air sus is going bad on you. to replace all 4 air strauts will easily cost you over $3K! the best advice I can give you is to convert them into hydraulic struts, namely Straut Master. their products are direct replacement for air strauts without any structural modification. http://www.strutmasters.com/ rear pair of hydraulic strauts will cost you about $400, and 3~4 hours labor to put them in. removal of rear seats in order to get the strauts mountings is pins in the butt. not all shops are willing do these conversion, but Henneke (?) will do it. if DYI, http://www.lextreme.com/ascon.htm good luck!

well, guys & gals, it's final. Allstate is cutting me a check of $11K for total-loss of my 94 LS4 (118K, with all factory options). they will also pay me retal car coverage seperately. looks like they did use the KBB's full retail value + local sales tax as the settlement amount which is fair enough for me. I'm shopping a 97 or 98 LS4 as replacement. leaning toward a 98... again, thanks for all your inputs and advices!

WOW! I surely can concur with all the frustrations jumping out from those words. it seems that all MBs referred were all late models purchased brand new. nowadays, when I see someone in MB passing by, I always think aloud in pity " good luck, fella, I hope you know what you're getting into!".

well, bite the bullets and change all 4 to straut master and get them over with. at least you will have peace in mind for the rest of the car life. at 168K, the remaining air strauts can go bad anytime, anywhere, and more than likely it will happen at the worst time, in the worst place. the thing about air sus is that a single bad straut can make your car almost undriveable, and you just can't buy replacement straut anywhere near u. expect to pay 4~6 hours labor to get all 4 replaced. if you want to DIY: http://www.lextreme.com/ascon.htm

other than the 3 lex I own (LS4 was totaled last week), I also have a 93 mercedes 400SEL (my 77-year old dad is the primary driver), and I used to own a 88 420SEL. I must say I will never buy another MB again! not over my dead body. that's how strong I feel about MB. timing chain ($1K by itself) on both s-class broke prematurely (rated 120K, broke before 90K), bent-valves was the result. costed me $4K x 2 to get them going again. I continuously suffered from major and minor problems here and there with both MB, and it seemed that the cars spent more time in the shop than in our drive way, let alone on the road. I did hear a lot from various mechanics trashing MB as strongly as praising Lex! IT'S SCARY TO OWN A BENZ, BUYER BEWARE!

well, maybe I am ahead of myself in term of getting a newer LS4 to replace my 94 LS which got rear-ened a week ago. the whole thing still depends on how the insurance stuffs resolve. I probably would go for a 97 or 98 LS4, and I am aware that the 1UZFE VVTi appears in 98 LS4 or newer. any input about VVTi vs. the traditional 1UZFE in 90~97 models? your input can make my purchase decision of either 97 or 98 much more easier. also, is VVTi an interference engine which makes the timing belt service much more critical? also, do we still stick to the 90K rule for TB change in VVTi? thanks for your advices in advance!

got the body shop estimate back yesterday. the prelim figure is $10,500 which is about he original market value (KBB says $8400/$10685 private/retail) of the car, not yet discounting the loss of value due to this major accident. of course, I don't wish to get it fixed. rather, I surely like to take the cash to buy another LS4 if Allstate will go alone. will see what happens after I talk to the adjuster on Monday.

guys, thanks again for the overwhelming responses and advices! we are still feeling OK physically. no soreness or pain developed overnite, and my son is still jumping up-n-down and running around as restless as any 7-year old boy can be! from car stopped to the monent of impact, it was about 10 seconds. to be honest, when I recollect, the impact was not that great as one can image by looking at the damage. the rear end looks pretty bad, but the car still drives perfectly (I did drive 5 miles to drop it off at the body shop without problems) except the left muffler may hit the pavement at road bumps. it's amazing that not even the wheel wells got deformed and mud guards are still there without a scratch, and all rear lights are still working! this LS impacts so well, I'm definetly buying another one to replace it. can't say the same thing about the nissan. the front end was totally demolished, one front wheel was almost parallel to ground, and one side of front bumper was siting on the ground, and both air bags deployed. anyway, will see how the insurance thing turns out, and report the outcome back to the forum. thanks again, and every1 keeps safe!

thanks for the link. KBB did ring up $8400 (private) to $10685 (retail) since my LS was fully loaded (air sus, traction, Nakamichi etc..) with all available options in that year. any1 has experience what insurance usally will go by?

to my amaze as well that allstate (not even my own insurance!) did response very promptly. they will send an adjuster over bodyshop for estimate by Tuesday. will keep my fingers crossed the adjuster will say 'total-loss'. Allstate did offer rental car coverage, but since you all know I still have 6 cars (including SC4 & ES3) left at my disposal, so I will rather take the $15/day allowance for rental car. it looks like I will be driving SC and ES for a while till this thing get settled.

thanks for all the inputs, guys! I was amazed how the rear end crumbled so well. there is no deformation whatsoever to the passenger carriage. that goes to tell you how well the LS is designed. the car is already in body shop, Allstate (the nissan's insurance. the driver admitted fault out right to police and Allstate) contacted, things are moving alone. my 7-year old was in the car in his car seat and buckled (thanks, GOD!), we both feel fine. I guess for now (just happened 4.5 hours ago) we can't really tell we are truly fine or not. will see..... thanks again for your concern and inputs!

well, sorry to say that my 94 LS just got rear-ended pretty bad by a Nissan quest. I was stopping and waiting for opposite trafic to clear to make a left. Nissan got ticket issued, so I will assume it's totally his fault. his nissan front end is also totaled. from the pictures above, do ya think insurance will bother to fix it? (94 LS400 fully loaded w/all options, about 117K) if yes, should I accept it? if total loss coverage is granted, what will be the reasonable offer to go by? I would take a resonable offer paying toward perhaps a 97/98 LS..... thanks in advance for any imput!

acf, if you have original toyota red coolant in there already, you must top off with the same kind of red coolant (Organic Acid Technology, dyed red) which should be mixed with dis-stilled water at 1:1 and it's sold at Toyota/Lex dealers only. u don't have to change the housing for thermostat. can't recall whether I have to buy the gasket seperately or not, but it can't be more than couple of dollars.

water (or should we say 'coolant'?) pump is part of the engine cooling system, and it's driven by the timing belt mechanically. just check your coolant level at resorvoir. if low, DO NOT just add water. go get a gallon of toyata long-life red coolant ($15~$20 per gallon), and mixed it with 1:1 dis-stilled water. NEVER, NEVER top off red coolant with green coolant which basically will destroy the longevity of the red coolant.

well, when you get everything apart, most of the old coolant are gone anyway....why not do the complete 'flush-n-refill'?

http://www.lextreme.com/timing.htm lextreme page does have the part list at the begining of article by moderator VFM. rotors/caps/wires/plugs are really optional, but you may choose to do them at the same since all of them need to be unpluged or disassembled in the process. in fact, I would recommend to change out the thermastat and it's gasket too. thermastat is cheap, and it will cost a lot of time or labor to replace it alone. also, remember to go to toyata dealer to get two gallons of long-life red OAT coolant and two gallons of dis-stilled water for 1:1 mixture. essentially a coolant flush-n-refill job is part of whole 9-yards too!

TB itself should last 120K, but to be safe, replacing it at 90K is recommended by Lex dealers nowadays. however, seized water pump can break the TB regardless age or mileage, that's another reason why you should change water pump while replacing TB. u don't want an old water pump to break your just-replaced TB. in fact, while you are at it, changing the pair of disbributor caps/rotors is not a bad idea either since they need to be apart in the process of changing TB according to local Lex dealers here, GEN 1/2 IUZFE engines in LS4/SC4 are non-interference engine, meaning no bent-valves if TB breaks.

http://www.lextreme.com/timing.htm review this article by moderator VFM (hosted by lextreme), and you will know where the water pump is. actually it's burried inside the front of the engine, you can't see it without disassemble engine front end. that's why water pump is usually replaced when timing belt is changed. sorta killing 2 birds with 1 stone. u don't want to pay the labor (easily 6~8-hr times $60~$80 an hour) 2nd time just to change water pump or timing belt.

review this thread: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...?showtopic=6420 and make your own conclusion. if you do want red OAT coolant back, make sure they do a 100% complete flush of the green coolant including the 50% volume trapped in heater core and engine block otherwise the red coolant is reduced to 2-year 30K life expectancy.

used LS400 buyer guide corrections and add-on’s are wholly welcome by more knowledgeable members!

here is a picture showing distributor caps are off to expose distributor rotors inside CAM shaft. I got them changed while TB replacement was done.