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Vern Dias

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Everything posted by Vern Dias

  1. But this isn't an ES forum..... The Lexus V6 does not require premium gasoline. The V8 requires premium, according to the owners manual. So your experience is not applicable to the LS. Vern
  2. If this is EXACTLY what he did and he did it on the Lexus side of the jumper cables, then he did not hurt the Lexus. All he did is put a short across the 12 volts from the OTHER car. You should probably check to make sure that the heavy cable from the negative battery connection to the chassis on the Lexus is OK. However, this sounds like a bad solenoid contact or starter motor and if so, a jump won't help you to get it started. You will probably need to have the starter and or solenoid replaced. Vern
  3. Believe it. I had a '98 LS400 and averaged close to 31MPG on a 4000 mile trip. Mostly freeway, usually at 70 MPH, but up to 80 MPH (the posted speed limit) on I-25 in Colorado. The car had Michelin tires inflated to 34 PSI. On roughly the same trip with my current '04 LS430, I averaged close to 30 MPG. This car has Dunlop tires, also inflated to 34 PSI. All trips were 95% cruise control. You have two definite issues: 60 MPH is too slow for optimum economy on the LS4XX. And... The car is too new and not broken in yet. You have one probable issue: Ethanol will reduce your milage by up to 5 MPG, depending on the ratio of E to G. You have three possible issues: Low tire pressure, tires with higher rolling resistance, not using premium gasoline. Vern
  4. 4000 mile trip in a '98 LS400, average speed ~65 MPH mostly on cruise control, total trip fuel economy 30.8 MPG. Current tank average in my 2004 LS430, local driving with maybe 25% freeway mixed in running at 19.2 MPG. Vern
  5. 28 MPG is not unusual on the highway. I had a 1998 LS400 that actually averaged almost 31 MPG on a 4000 mile trip from Texas up through Denver to Montana to Oregon to California and back! My 2004 LS430 did around 28 to 29 on the same trip last year. Vern
  6. Just got back from another 4500 mile trip. DFW to Denver to Billings to Salem and back to DFW via SLC. 2004 LS430. Total trip average 28.5 MPG. Using cruise control, mostly on interstates with speeds from 65 MPH to 85 MPH. Last year, I got around 30 MPG on my 98 LS 400 on the same trip. When I started my trip, I noticed I wasn't getting very good milage (25 MPG) using premium fuel from Costco. I noticed a gradual but significant increase in fuel economy and throttle responsiveness throughout the trip. I suspect the difference may have been that I was only using Phillips, Chevron, and Shell premium gas on the trip. When I mentioned my experience to my salesman at Park Place Lexus, he said that several of the techs there had made similar observations based on customer complaints of poor fuel economy and recommended staying away from the discount gas outlets. Particularly here in DFW where ethanol is added to the gas. I don't know if the cheaper gas is affecting the MAF and other sensors or what is happening, but I do know that there has been a significant increase in my LS430's fuel economy and throttle responsiveness during and after the trip. I am going to stay away from the discount fuel places for the next 6 months or so and see what happens. Vern
  7. Did your gas recently acquire ethanol? On my 2004 LS430 using an ethenol mix (E-10, NOT E-85) reduces my fuel economy by 2-3 MPG, decreases power, and throttle responsiveness. I just returned from a 4000+ mile road trip, and found that gas that did not contain ethanol gave much better fuel economy, throttle responsiveness and acceleration. Vern
  8. I would suggest you start by reading the owners manual(s). There you will find an explanation to this question (and probably many others). Have you changed the battery on the dead key? There are a number of interesting things in the owners manual regarding the smart keys, in addition to the tidbit mentoned above.It took me several days to read mine, but the owners manual(s) should be rquired reading in a vehicle as complex as a Lexus. Vern
  9. My point was that we might travel for 250 to 300 miles at 75 MPH non stop. As soon as you get off of Hx you are in city driving, so you don't really get a chance to see true "Highway" mileage. Vern
  10. I'll bet your highway gas milage suffered. You may not have noticed it yet, but it did. There is a reason that Lexi have one of the lowest COD measurements out there in the production car world and that air damn is certainly part of it.Vern
  11. I lived in Hawaii for 25 years. In fact, I was born and raised in Hawaii, and by no stretch of the imagination would I consider Hawaii to have "highways".... Heck, drive 30 or 40 miles in a straight line on Oahu and you will be in the water...:) Combine that with the traffic, except maybe early Sunday AM and I'll bet your cruise control dash indicator rarely get's to light itself up. Hawaii and Maui relieve those distance limitations, but limited access roads are pretty hard to find in those parts..... What we mean here in the central continental US by the term "Highway" is a long (> 200 miles or so and possibly up to 400 miles) stretch of limited access divided 4 lane roadway with a speed limit of at least 65 MPH, possibly up to 80 MPH. (If anyone should wonder where a legal 80 MPH speed limit exits, try I-20 in West Texas and I-25 in South Colorado.) This is where you load up the CD changer with 5 or 6 of your favorite CD's, set your cruise control, and drive for 3 or 4 hours at a single unvarying speed. Under those conditions, I have gotten as high as 31 MPG measured from fillup to fillup in my '98 LS400. If your bladder could handle it :), you could easily cruise for over 600 miles on a single tank of gasoline. Under these, granted, very different driving conditions, the slipperyness of the Lexus body and the effiiciency of the powerplant can yield excellent fuel milage, assuming you use Premium gas, make the right choice of tires (Michelin XVS Energy) and a reasonably high (34 PSI cold) tire pressure. Vern
  12. I am going on a rerun of this trip later this year in my LS430. It'll be interesting to check out how it goes. Granted, 90 MPH in the US is not doable, but there is a 70 or 80 mile stretch of I-25 in southern Colorado with a posted 80 MPH speed limit. BTW, the LS400 had Michelin MXV4 Energy tires at 34 PSI. Vern
  13. I have to disagree with that..... I had a 1998 LX400 for about 5 years and by far the best gas mileage I ever got was on a trip from Texas to Oregon and back via Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. The return was via I5 and I40. Over 4000 miles, at average speeds of 65 MPH and when all was said and done, my trip average was 31 MPG. AC on all the way. My LS400 always turned in the highest mileage on the highway at high speeds.Just my $.02 and my experience so far. Just got a 2004 LS430 and we'll see how it does. Vern
  14. Your Lexus will definitiely run on regular grade, but here is my experience with 2 different Lexus vehicles: 1998 LS400 (CPO): Filled the tank with regular, 2 tank fills later, I needed to accellerate heavily to avoid being hit by another car. Floored it, and: Ping City!!!!! Also, I noticed performance was relatively poor with poor gas milage. Went back to premium for the 5 years I owned the car. Took a trip from Texas to Colorado to Montana to Oregon, and back to Texas. 5000 miles, typical freeway speeds of 70 to 80 MPH, fuel economy for the entire trip: 31 MPG. 2004 LS430 (CPO): Drove it home from the dealer. The car seemed sluggish. Milage on a freeway run of 30 miles at 65 MPH was roughly 24 MPG. I was not particularly impressed with the car. 2 tanks of premium gas later, car was much peppier and a freeway run netted me 32 MPG. So yes, you can use regular. Will it save you any money? IMHO, No it won't because the fuel economy will be considerably poorer with regular. Just my $.02 Vern
  15. Are you are using premium grade gas.... If not, you need to be. Most likely, you are hearing detonation caused by too low an octane rating. Vern
  16. It'a a four speed automatic, and i'm not a fool the overdrive is on. duh If i turn the overdrive off i it downshifts even at higher speeds, so no its not the overdrive ok. Any one driving a lexus ls 400 that experiences a slight drag if its not the overdrive brakes ect.. I just wondered if it was normal, the other car I drive seems to coast a little better... Low tire pressure, possibly? Vern
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