90LS400Lexus

I agree. The power and comfort of these cars is excellent.

Thanks. I think I will have that done ASAP.

Also too- the instrument cluster lighting and climate control LCD lights are a common problem on the 1990-1996 LS400s. I have heard of this light problem on the LS400s as new as the 1995s and 1996s, but I have seen the problem on more 1993-1994 models for some reason. Perhaps it is where the 90-92s have already been repaired? My car is a 1990 and all of the instrument cluster lighting is still illuminationg perfectly, as well as the LCD in the climate control, but this morning- which was one of our coolest mornings- I seen a little darkenss on the lower corner of the LCD until the cars interior warmed up a little- after about 5 minutes of driving. I guess it is possible that my car already had them replaced, but I am not sure.

According to the ones on E-Bay- it seems like 100K-140K is the mileage that they (instrument cluster/needle lights) start to fade away at.

Also like 99LS mentioned- power steering leaks, starters and front suspension noises seem to be the only other trouble spots.

You may even be able to buy it at your local Toyota or Lexus dealer. I know that my local Lexus-Toyota parts dept. carries it. I am going to go down there next week and pick up a bottle. They also make "vinylex"- which is for the vinyl on the door panels and instrument panel.

No problems whats so ever? No rattles or anything at that kind of milage?

My 90 LS400 has 225,800 miles and still no squeaks or rattles. NONE.

I know this topic is a little old and I am sure the problem has been repaired (hopefully). Anyway- my 1992 Buick Park Avenue Limited did this a while back. It would stall, but start back. Soon, it would take longer and longer to start. Turned out to be a cam or crank shaft sensor. I am not sure if the LS400s have this or not. My old 1991 Honda Accord LX also did this- but it stopped and would not start back at all. Turned out to be the distributor cap, which is a very common problem on the mid 80s to mid 90s Accords.

Thanks, but if you notice in my first post, that the smoke is the smell of gasoline and only does it upon initial startup- for less than a minute. I do not think that anything (even if it was on the exhaust) would burn right at start-up, as the engine would be cold. Also, my power steering does not have any drips from it, so I do not think that it what it is. Thanks anyway.

If you have a faulty gas gauge then you have no idea.

Fill the tank all the way up ,drain it till it stalls and keep a jerry can to fill it up.

If you never get right down to the bottom you may have deposits of silt in the tank but there is a filter in the tank before the pump and after to take care of contaminents.

That will giev you a more precise reading than any other.

Also all gas gauges are made to be a meter not an exact  reading. As tehy all are slow until 1/2 then seem to drink gas. It is no different than any other car as it is made to meter the last 1/4 of the tank more precisely than the first half. After all do you really care if you are 8/10 or 9/10 full. It would make more of a difference on a 500 mile drive ,knowing how much you have as the last half is usually more important

I think you may have my problem mixed up with someone elses. Actually, my fuel guage is fine. It goes to full when filled up and works properly. On one of my replies to someone elses fuel guage problem, I did mention that my guage is slower going up than my other cars, but from all of the other Toyotas I have owned- the slower guage seems normal. My main question is why my car smokes upon initial start-up, with the smoke having a gasoline smell. No oil smell at all. The car runs perfectly, with plenty of power, but still think something in my fuel system needs to be cleaned. Thanks again.

I have noticed when I start my car for the first time of the day- smoke will come from the exhaust pipes for about one minute or less. Normally, I would think would be valve seals and oil burning, but it smells nothing like oil smoke and the car does not use any oil between oil changes. It smells exactly like gasoline- then the smell fades away and does not do it again until the next day- on the first start-up. Does this sound like I need some sort of fuel system tune up? Bad injector? Could my injectors be dirty? I have also noticed what I think is low fuel economy, but I may be wrong. I put gas in the car today and it was on 1/4 tank- maybe a little over. The mileage since I filled it up was 180 miles. Shouldn't I get a lot more than 180 miles to 3/4 tank of fuel? * This was mostly very easy and slow, stop and go city driving however. How many MPG do you get per tank full? According to my window sticker- I think it states 18 MPG city.

Thanks for any advice.

No problem. Good luck and have a good trip.

Thats true. I guess it can depend on what you are used to driving.

I agree. I never know why they changed the name to "RL". Also- I have yet to figure out why they cannot install a V8 engine and make it a RWD car. Toyota-Lexus makes V8, Nissan-Infiniti has V8, so why doesn't Honda-Acura have V8? I have also tried to figure out why in the world that Honda does not make a pick-up truck. They make cars, SUVs, motorcycles, lawn mowers, 4-wheelers, boat engines, generators, etc., but they still have NOT made a truck- which I think is a mistake, considering how popular trucks are now. At least they did decide to make a mid-size SUV.

Honda-Acura is a very capable car company and being a previous owner of a few different Accords with over 200K, they are one of my favorite cars, but they need to wake up. I think that they are missing the boat when it comes to trucks and their flagship luxury car.

just that hose....that's a common leak for those vehicles

OK - Thanks. Is this an expensive / timely repair? Thanks again.

That is for pan drain only.

They will drain 2 - 2.5 quarts of oil and then refill thru the dipstick with new fluid.

That is all they do.

I can reach under there without putting my car on a ramp. Its a small bolt 10-12 mm and the torque is 15 ft. lbs. Just put a shallow pan that will hold 4-5 quarts and drain. Then refill thru tube but leave it about 1/2 quart low till you've had a chance to drive it around a little. You don't want to overfill the tranny. Just be careful and "sneak" up on the full mark.

3 Quarts of fluid is all you need - but I don't think the 90 LS takes T-IV, check the owners manual.

DIY

Goodness gracious. That is highway robbery!!

I will check that manual tomorrow to see what fluid is required. I am going to check my service records tomorrow to see when it was last changed. My transmission still works like new, but I want to keep all of the maintainence up to date. Thanks again.

Hey guys,

Since the "great crash" we've lost some really good posts. I think we'll get em back but I have my own wish list :D

I'd love to see more "detailed" procedures for all the services needed on our beautiful LS's. You know, some really TOP NOTCH stuff!

These would include photographs and COMPLETE documentation for all services such as:

OIL CHANGE (I know, its basic - but important)

TRANSMISSION FLUID CHANGE (pan drain & full flush)

DIFFERENTIAL GEAR OIL CHANGE

COOLANT CHANGE

BRAKE FLUID CHANGE/BEEDING

BRAKE PADS (F/R)

THROTTLE BODY CLEAN (its done somewhere)

SPARK PLUG CHANGES

PCV VALVE

AIR FILTER

CABIN FILTER

ADJUST IDLE

POWER STEERING FLUSH

ANYTHING ELSE FOR 30K, 60K,90K SERVICE!! (WATER PUMP, T BELT, SERPENTINE BELT, ETC)

I could go on & on. I realize some of these are very basic (AND SOME ARE ALREADY DONE) but if each was docoumented very well with step by step procedures it would help many of our fellow LS forum members and hopefully spur us on to more advanced maintenance procedures (alt, starter, ps....)

What do you guys think? Am I full of hot air or is this stuff doable? I know winter is coming on so this may hamper things a bit, but there'e no particular rush. I'd just love to see all these issues done up first rate with complete accuracy!

Anyway, I'll be glad to start with some simple stuff. I'm getting my wife a little digital camera for Christmas and I'll use it first :D . Probably do the AIR FILTER & CABIN FILTER since I just put them in. I'm ready for an OIL CHANGE in a month or so.

The point is - with all the talent out there it wouldn't be a burden for any ONE person :D

I think a camera will really help and is the preferred way, but if not availabe some REALLY DETAILED, STEP BY STEP DOCUMENTAION should guide even the novice thru any given procedure.

Steve, are there certain file size restraints for the photo posts? I don't really know how to add text to the attached photos so give me a quick lesson for that.

Thanks to all of you for this great forum, it has helped me a TON!!

How about the key service for a Lexus with 226,000? :D

Seriously- what should be closely looked at on a Lexus over 200K, 230K or 250K that is still in perfect running order? Any major service that is not required on the 100K-200K LS400s that require attention after 200K?

Thanks.

I have no leaks at all under my car, but I have noticed that the hose on the back of my PS pump is damp there at the clamp. There are no drips at all- yet. Is it just that hose that needs replaced, or is it a more serious problem?

I do not know what all it consists of, but at my local Lexus dealer- on the service chart it reads:

"transmission service" - $58.95

Does anyone know what all this consists of? Just a fluid and filter change?

my boss has a regular TL and its not faster then LS, type S prolly a lil faster and as to the space it feels smaller then my legend! i really think legend was the best acura model even but even legend cant compare to LS. my legend is on stick and has a rebuilt engine and transmission and every part of the car is in the top shape,but even in this shape it cant compare to LS.:) i also drove my GFs moms 2003 v6 camry her 2004 accord and guys... its like night and day. i felt so happy went i got back to my car and was able to press accelerator and feel the acceleration and hear the rev of my V8. i dont think i will be able to drive anything else from now on:)

Of the 2003 Camry V6 and the 2004 Accord, which of those did you think is the better, higher quality car?

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Shouldn't the 96-04 LS400/LS430 be compared to the 96-04 Acura 3.5 RL (Acura's flagship sedan) , rather than the smaller, mid-sized Acura TL? The TL is more like the size of a ES, or GS. Still the RL, is a V6 FWD car.

I HATE to drive any of my cars in the snow, but luckily, we do not normally have a whole lot of snow. Being from Tennessee- we do not see a lot of snow- certainally not as much as the northern part of our country. Some winters we barely get 3 or 4 inches of snow, which has been the case over the past few years, but I have seen about three years with 30 inches annually (for a entire winter) during a few years in the 1990s- such as the blizzard of 1993, 1996 and again in 1998. The normal annual average snow for us is 21.0 inches (which we rarely get for the entire winter season), but I live in the northeastern part of the state, which is higher terrain (1100-2000 ft. in elevation in my area) and typically one of the cooler parts of the state- with the exception of the central Tennessee plateau and extreme eastern mts. Areas just to our east and northeast usually get a lot more snow.

Enough about the weather.

Anyway- when we do have snow and I have to drive on salty roads, when we do have snow- I ALWAYS wash the car very well after the roads dry and spray under the car very well. Since we have not had any snow this year, I have not driven my Lexus in the snow and even if it snows, I can drive my other cars. I also have never seen a Lexus with rust, but I have seen Acuras with plenty of rust from up north. Rust is rare on cars here. The cars here that have rust is where northern cars made their way down here, or they have rust from our typically year-round high humidity. I had a 1994 Lumina that was originally from Ohio. There was a lot of underbody rust scale on this car, due to all of the snow and salt in northern Ohio. I have a 1992 Buick Park Avenue, that is 100% rust free, (typical of a southern car) but I have seen several 91-95 Park Avenues from northern states- such as Michigan, Ohio, New York, etc., that have a lot of rocker panel rust.

My Lexus has also been in very little if no salt as well. It was originally from Florida, but the owners have a second home in Kentucky. I noticed that according to the service records that they did travel in the northern USA, as some of the service was completed at northern Lexus dealerships.

If money is no object- I would just rent a car. This will save you from having to wash the car and will keep the miles down on your car.

Just like everyone said- if you do take your car- just remember to wash it very well when you return to southeastern Virginia. Clean in the wheel wells and undercarraige very well.

Perhaps no one knows how their car rides? :D Just kidding. I guess it was a dumb question. 27 people had read, but no replies. :D

The "s l o w" movement of the fuel gauge is typical of 80s and 90s Toyota-Lexus cars. My old late 80s Camrys, as well as my recently sold 1993 Toyota Camry LE V6 (similar to Lexus ES300) also had slow registering fuel guages. Also too- my 93 Camry would not go all the way to "FULL" when I filled the tank up. It would be just below the "F" line. Very irritating I know.

My 90' Lexus LS400 is also a little slow to register compared to my Buick, but not as slow as my old Camry, nor does it take 30 minutes to properly register and it does go to "F" when full. I think it takes about 2 minutes to go to full.

Thirty minutes definitely seems excessive for a guage to register and then it should go to full. One good thing about my 92 Buick, is that it instantly registers, but the General Motors fuel guages are bad for excessive fluctuations. It could read 1/2 tank and then show 1/4 tank as you round' a curve.

I suspect you may have a problem with your sending unit or guage?

Good luck.

One thing interesting that all European cars do not have firm suspension, but all tend to have excellent handing, even with soft suspension. Mercedes is one of these cars. There are many Mercedes that do have a firm ride, but the larger (and even some of the smaller ones) 1980s Mercedes have a soft, supple and floaty ride- even when new. I have driven a couple of 1980s Mercedes S-Class sedans and while both had a soft, floaty ride, the handling was still excellent.

I never knew there was a seperate A/C Filter. Is that true for all gens or not. I have a 98 and have never looked for a seperate A/C filter. I have changed the cabin filter before.

Seems as though the 1990, 1991 and 1992 LS400s do not have the cabin filter systems.

Although it would have been nice. :)

After having the new Toyota struts installed on my car- the ride is now much more comfortable and smooth. I know that ALL Lexus LS400s have a good ride (even firm suspension/upgraded models, but still not considered smooth for a Lexus), but there still seems to be a wide range of suspension firmness/softness on these cars. I have seen other LS400s with fairly firm suspension- like mine did have when the previous owner had installed KYB struts 6 months ago on the rear, but now is supple, with factory Toyota struts I just had installed and I have been behind some LS400s, with very soft and floaty suspensions.

I thought it would be interesting to see what grade of suspension everyone has on their cars.

I guess the ratings could be :

very firm, uncomfortable for Lexus -

firm -

a little firmer than stock struts -

normal, comfortable, factory-like ride -

a little softer than stock struts (slightly worn)

very soft and floaty ride (excessively worn)

OTHER (explain)

also list the year of your car

My car now has a normal, comfortable, soft, but well controlled ride, since I have had the new Toyota struts installed on the rear.

Yes, it seems as if you have the common instrument cluster light problem. I have never heard of the cluster illumination linked with the climate control display illumination.

The cluster/needle illumination and LCD & backlighting in my 1990 LS400 still work like new, but I guess it is possible that they have already been repaired by the previous owner.

Not to deter you from this great Lexus site, but here is more information about the instrument clusters:

http://www.clublexus.com/forums/showthread...&threadid=40025

Good luck.