CanadaCraig

Hi 90LS400Lexus!! :)

I never took note of that UNTIL I bought MY 93 LS in October of this year. Very odd - indeed. In fact - 'LS400' doesn't appear anywhere ON or IN the car. I wish it did!! I did see a '94 LS [on ebay - I think] that DID have 'LS400' on the trunk - but maybe that person put that on himself. Maybe the idea behind it was to get people to focus on the name 'LEXUS'. Acura got rid of the 'Legend' name [so I've heard] because they wanted people to remember 'Acura' and not [as they were doing] the name 'Legend'. Stupid move - I think - but there you go.

Craig!! :)

ps maybe we should paint all of our '94 and older LS's a bright yellow to match the colour of those 'no-name' brand foods. [taking a chance that that joke is funny where YOU live!!]

Hi Everyone!! :)

My '93 is in the 'shop' as we speak. I'll let you know how it turns out. I'm using a 2000 LS as a courtesy car. Gee.. I hope MY LS doesn't feel like crap when I get IT back!! lol [i won't - I'm sure]

As to the subject - I've never EVER seen an LS with cloth seats. [either in person OR in a photo] Does anyone have a photo of an LS with cloth? I know [from reading one of your messages 1990LS400] that YOUR LS [the one you just sold] had cloth. Do YOU have any interior photo's of your car?

OR anyone else - of course.

Craig!! :)

Hi Guys!! :)

I can't quite place my '93 LS400. Is it considered the equal to a MB S-class and BMW 7-series OR the MB E-class and BMW 5-series? OR is it somewhere in between? [or below all of those cars]

What do you think??

Craig!! :)

Hi RCRFAN3!! :)

I appreciate you letting me know.

Just to clarify [since there are several styles of Bridgestone tires that use the Turanza name] the tires you now have on your car ARE the Bridgestone Turanza LS-V's? Is that right?!

That being the case - I'm really glad to hear how happy you are with 'them'. It sure helps to hear from someone who has first hand experience. [and who has no motive - one way or the other - like a tire saleman may have - to say the tires are good or not!!]

Hi Denny!! :)

RCRFAN3's message kinda puts the icing on the cake - don't you think? His opinion - along with the TireRack survey 'thing' - has finally brought me to the point of saying, "Bridgestone Turanza LS-V's - here I come!!" lol

Craig!! :)

Hi Everyone!! :)

Thanks!!

Just so you can understand [if you don't already] WHY I'm leaning towards the Bridgestone Turanza LS series of tires [specifically the LS-V's] click on the following TireRack links.

To see the 'Grand Touring All-Season Tires' Survey Results [bridgestone Turanza LS, Michelin MXV4's, etc.] click this.....

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyresults/gtas.jsp

To see the 'Ultra High Performance All-Season Tires' Survey Results [Michelin Pilot Sport A/S, Pilot XGT-V4, etc.] click this.....

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyresults/uhpas.jsp

AND..

To see the 'Standard Touring All-Season Tires Survey Results' [posted merely to impress upon all of 'you' WHY I'm leaning towards getting Bridgestone Turanza LS tires. Even the LS-T is rated #1 - overall - by those who own them] click this.....

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyresult...lts/touring.jsp

[You may have already seen ALL of those survey's!!]

Not easy survey results to ignore. [as least as far as I'm concerned]

At first - I had my little heart set on getting the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S tires. But they are SO expensive. AND I would have to replace the spare tire - too. Buying 5 Pilot Sport A/S tires is - so I have [all but] concluded - out of the question.

The Michelin Pilot XGT-V4's and MXV4's are certainly liked by many people - but they're not top rated tires. And what a person thinks of a tire depends greatly - I think - on where they LIVE. IF rainy-days are few and far apart - then tires that are good on dry concrete may impress - even IF they're not that great in the rain. [if that makes sense]

Craig!! :)

ps thanks for the info on the a/c filter location - obergc!! [by the way - what tires did you have BEFORE the MXV4 Plus XSE's?! AND what did you think of THEM?!]

Hi Denny!! :)

Thanks for the reply!!

Just so you know - I have no intention of replacing the gas cap gasket. I just thought it was odd that it was mentioned in the maintainance schedule. Even the transmission and differential fluid is only to be inspected.

Any idea where the a/c filter is?

As for tires - I've been wracking my brain trying to decide. Money is an issue - so tires like the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S were soon dropped from my list. And not too many people seem to like any other Michelin tire. [other than the one's I've got - the X-One's - oddly enough] I don't like the X-One's on my car. Being a T-rated tire - they're far to 'squishy' or 'mushy'. [or whatever you want to call it!!] It feels like the tires are almost flat - sometimes. So much so that I keep checking the pressure - but it's fine. More than fine - in fact - at 35 psi. Why the Turanza LS-V's? Well... they're certainly rated VERY highly by those who have already bought them. According to the TireRack.com site - the Turanza [in it's catagory] takes the top three spots. The Z is number one. The V is number two. And the H is number three. I've decided to get a V speed rated tire. Not only did the LS come with V's - but the spare is a V [the original Goodyear GA] which means I won't have to buy a 5th tire. [as I would IF I bought Z-rated or some other speed rating]

But I'm worried. I sure hope whatever tires I end up getting are quiet AND much more confidence-inspiring then the X-one's.

What do you have on your car now - exactly??

Thanks!!

Craig!! :)

Hi Guys!! :)

According to the owners manual for my 1993 LS400 - I would [based on how I drive] follow Maintainance Schedule 'B'. [as most of us would] On that 'schedule' it states that I am to replace the fuel tank cap gasket every 6 years or 60,000 miles. [96,000 km's] I've never heard of such a thing AND have never heard anyone ever talk about it. Have any of you replaced it? It must be pretty important since THAT is mentioned and the timing belt is NOT. [there is no requirement to EVER change the timing belt OR to even inspect it!!]

Two other things...

What is a charcoal canister and where is it - exactly? ['we' are supposed to inspect 'it' every 6/60] Also - where is the air conditioning filter that 'we' are supposed to replace every 12 months/15,000 miles. [24,000 km's]

Update:

I'm taking my LS in this Monday. [Dec 1st] Lot's of work to be done. The valves are going to be adjusted. The transmission and differential fluid changed. The 'water in trunk' problem resolved. [hopefully] Fuel tank looked at and cleaned. [i'm guessing] AND the CD player put BACK into the car. [now that it's fixed - so they say] I'm also thinking of having the spark plugs replaced along with the fuel and air filters. If all works out as planned - my next 'thing' to do with be to get new tires. Still favouring the Bridgestone Turanza LS-V's. [unless anyone here has anything negative to say about those tires]

Craig!! :)

What do you THINK it could be - Joe??

Craig!! :(

Hi ToddLS400!! :)

Good Points!! But do you want to know what's ironic.... Hyundai OWNS Kia!! [and DaimlerChrysler OWNS a significant 'chunk' of Hyundai!!]

That $35,000 MSRP is the Canadian price - by the way - so it's probably more like $28,000 or so US.

I can't see myself buying a NEW Kia anything [or Hyundai - for that matter] but USED?? Chances are that $35,000 Amanti [as unfair as it may be] will most likely be worth close to $20,000 CDN two years from now. Now that's not bad - if you ask me. And you'd still have 3 years warrantee left!!

You're right - of course - about the engine. It should make more than 200 h.p. But then again - the 'all-new' 3.5 litre V6 in the 'all-new' Chevrolet Malibu only produces 200 h.p. So maybe that's the best 'yesteday-technology' can do.

So.... were you surprised by what the Mystery Car turned out to be.

Craig!! :)

Hi Guys!! :)

There is an 'all-new' car for model year 2004 that is surprisingly similar in SIZE to the first generation LS400. So much so - that it almost seems more than just a coincidence!! [although it probably is]

Can you guess what car I'm talking about??

Here are the 'stats' for the first generation LS400 and the 2004 'Mystery Car'.

Lexus LS400 [Mystery Car]

length .............196.7" [196.0"]

width................ 72.0" [72.8"]

wheelbase.......110.8" [110.2"]

front track..........61.6" [61.8"]

rear track...........61.6" [61.4"]

The 'Mystery Car' is 2.8" taller [58.5" vs 55.7"] and 232 lbs heavier. [4,090 lbs vs 3,858 lbs]

The 'Mystery Car' has the same size tires as the '93 and newer LS400's. [225/60-16's] And it even has an 'electroluminescent instrument cluster'!! [among many other features]

Before clicking on the link - see you if you can guess what the 'Mystery Car' is.

Mystery Car Road Test

Here's the link to the car's specifications. [on the manufacturer's homepage]

Standard features and Specifications

Hopefully some of you will be as amused by this as I am. I guess I'll have to re-think what I think I hear the name of the 'make' of this car!!

Craig!! :)

Hi Guys!! :)

Thought some of you might enjoy reading THIS....

Lexus LS430 Road Test

Craig!! :)

Thanks tansupplyman!! :)

Do you think BG-44K would help with a problem [such a my 'bad gas'] that ALREADY exisits? OR does it only help in keeping a problem from happening in the first place?

Thanks!!

Craig!! :)

Hi Guys!! :)

Two times now - when I've started my '93 LS cold - the engine struggled at around 200 r.p.m. for about 5 or 6 seconds before shooting up to the usual 1500 'warm-up' r.p.m's. And both times I could smell 'varnish'. [when I got out of the car - as I usually do - waiting for it to warm up a bit]

That can't be good - can it?

What does that mean? I know it has something to do with 'old gas' [which may still be present in the tank - even though I've already filled it up 5 or 6 times since I bought it] but should I be as worried about it as I am? Is it the beginning of a nightmare? Can I buy something to clean 'it' up - like a fuel additive?

I'll be taking my car in [again] next week sometime to have the valves adjusted - and will talk to the service guy then. But I'd like to at least have SOME idea of what's going on and what to expect.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Craig!! :)

Thanks for keeping us informed - Matthew!!

Just curious - now that I re-registered - using the same name, password, email address, etc., will I have control over my previous messages IF and when the old messages ever show up? [if that makes sense]

Thanks!!

Craig!! :)