AZ Mike

I am experiencing the same vibration on a '99 LS with 80 k miles. I have Michelin XSEs that are still in good shape with plenty of tread that are about 5-6 years old. I wouldn't call these tires "cheap".....is it more likely the tires, or alignment or steering/suspension components?

I experience this same 60+ mph vibration felt noticeably in the steering wheel. Tires are in great shape. I have not had an alignment in some time, so I suppose that is something I can try.....but wouldn't you feel an alignment issue all the time, and not just at speed? Are there any steering/suspension components I should take a look at? I.e., any susceptible to wear/breakage and could cause this type of vibration? LS is 12 years old, but only 80,000 miles on the odometer.

I use irontoad.com for Lexus parts. They sell Toyota factory brake pads and parts. I have bought several things from them even recently and they are professional, fast and inexpensive.

x2 for irontoad.com

2-3 years back, I had the front brake pads replaced during an oil change at Lexus. At the time, they told me that I had 10-15% wear left on the rear pads. Last December, I replaced the rear brake pads when I did the timing belt change. They still had 30-40% wear left when I put them on. Was the Lexus service writer being dishonest with me, or did my brake pads magically increase in thickness, rather than decrease, over time? lol

Cheap insurance. Why risk killing the engine? My '99 only had a little over 60k miles, but was well past the 6 year interval, so I went ahead and replaced timing belt, water pump, idler pulleys, serpentine belt, etc. last December. It was not an easy job, but very do-able for someone with minimal wrench turning skills. How did the old belt look? Definitely not new, with edges of teeth rounded off a bit, but didn't look horrible. But, the thought in the back of my mind that I was overdue and that if the timing belt snapped my engine would be toast nagged me. So, I have new parts and peace of mind, and do not need to worry about it for another 6 years.

What.....am I the first one to experience this???

It's a sensor located at the bottom of the tank. Replace it or disconnect it. It's hard to get to because the front inner fender shroud is in the way.

Thanks!

well i hate to burst ur bubble here but mobile 1 isnt even in the top 5 motor oils, valvoline and amsoil are among the best syn. oils on the market, mobil 1 is much like fram filters...they are not that good but spend a lot of money in marketing,but if u want the best filters go to napa and get a filter made by wix and oil made by amsoil,valvoline or even royal purple, the only advantage synthetic oil has is it doesnt break down like conventional oil

http://www.galttech.com/research/cars/best-motor-oil.php

I know that motor oil is like religion to some on the board......they have consummate faith in their favorites, and no others will do.

However, the reality is, they are all motor oil. Use the proper weight and classification as shown in your owners manual, and your car will be just fine.

I know people who have hundreds of thousands of miles on vehicles using plain old dino oil on regular intervals. I even have an old '94 Grand Cherokee that has never seen synthetic that has 175,000 on the clock and is running strong. Seeing as most don't keep their vehicles for that many years or for that many miles, and you can get that life and better awith conventional oil, what more is synthetic oil really giving you?

That being said, I do use synthetic oil on my Lexus and my Honda S2000. Primarily so that I can use a longer oil change interval, but also for a bit of that placebo effect thinking that the tight tolerances of the S2000 will do better with synthetic.

But, when it comes down to it, that is all you really get from synthetic oil......an oil that can last longer and offer longer oil change intervals. If you don't run a synthetic for a longer oil change interval, it is a waste of money in my opinion.

I realize I may get flamed, and that many of you will post up your links to test results, most of which come from your favorite oil's marketing department. But all those "tests" aside, answer me this: how many of you are aware of any vehicle engine that has had proper oil changes and other maintenance, and has broken down, and it can be proven that it is a particular brand of oil that has caused it? I see many posts suggesting that some oils are magic elixirs, and that others are poison for your engines. However, I am not aware of any engine that has received proper oil/filter changes and other maintenance, and has crapped out due to a particular brand of oil, whether it is WalMart house brand, Pennzoil, Mobil 1, Amsoil, Castrol, or whatever.

Just my "not married to any brand" 2 cents.......

There is a filter, and it sits just above the pan. It's easy to replace and you'll do a good 50% fluid change in the process. Most new filters come with a gasket for the pan too.

I called the local Toyota dealer and the service advisor said there is "no filter to change. It's a metal screen." They said $69 for drain and add. Does my 94 LS400 really have a replacement filter? Is he mistaken?

Since the filter IS a metal screen, as in many transmissions, some will merely clean them IF there is anything caught in them. There is no paper/etc. element like in an oil filter.

For those who want to change more of the tranny fluid during a drain and fill, do something that I discovered by accident. I had the front wheels up on ramps for a few days while doing some other work. I pulled the tranny drain plug, and since it was still dripping out when I was finishing for the evening, I left the plug out overnight. Turns out, about 5 quarts drained out instead of the typical 2 quarts on a level drain and fill.

What.....am I the first one to experience this???

Why is it so expensive on the Lexus? I've had shops replace my timing belt/water pump on other vehicles for only $600 including parts.

Lexus Service.....good, but pricey compared to others

Job requires a good bit of teardown. Takes more time to get to timing belt, water pump, etc on this vehicle than others I own. Since you are doing a front end teardown, it makes sense to replace whatever needs replacing and may need replacing while you are in there. Makes no sense to save $50 by not replacing a part when it is either going to cost you several hundred for the labor or several hours of your own time.

I replaced timing belt, water pump, pulleys, etc myself in January. I don't recall, but probably $200-$300 in parts buying OEM online. I did not do it all at once, and had a couple of snags, so I have no idea how many hours it took. I will guess a lot more than a Lexus mechanic takes to do the same job. lol

All the advice was sound until 98ls400lover's. Not that there is anything wrong with Mobil 1, or Mobil 1 Extended Performance. But to claim that one can hear oil breaking down, without any empirical evidence, just sounds silly.

Agree with curiousB. If you want to really know what is going on, start having a used oil analysis done at each change. Once you have a baseline, you can better evaluate what is really going with each change. The downside is UOAs cost money. If you get them done, you have empirical evidence you can point to. Without them, you have nothing more than speculation (not unlike most oil posts on this forum).

OK....my washer fluid reservoir is full, but for the last few weeks, I have the red dash light on and the message that my fluid reservoir is low. Has anyone experienced this? Is this a bad sensor?

avoid canola oil :D

I use a torque wrench. Just needed the torque spec. Thanks.

Apologies....tried using the search, but with the new search format, I could not seem to limit it to a specific model. I am looking for the manufacturer recommended lug nut torque for a '99 LS. Thanks, and happy Memorial Day!

George,

There are no magical mysterious differences between conventional and synthetic oils; synthetic flows better and lasts longer before breaking down.

The only reason to be concerned about switching is if you have any current oil leaks. If conventional oil finds its way out of your engine, you can be certain that synthetic will, and at a faster rate. This is for two reasons; higher lubricity allows it to flow better into small places, and it tends to clean better than conventional, so any sludge deposits keeping a seal closed or from leaking faster may be cleaned up allowing for even more of a leak.

If the car's seals are good, and the car has had routine oil changes throughout its life, there is no reason to be concerned about switching to synthetic.

As for the oil - I'm curious if anyone knows the Mobil One synthetic recommended oil change interval. I brought Mobil One into the Lexus dealership and now 5k later they say it doesn't make a difference - that I should still change the oil every 5k or 6 months. Are there any official sources on this? I'll be calling my warranty company to see if they have guidelines...

Your recommended oil change interval is listed in your owner's manual. It is either 5,000 or 7,500 miles depending upon your driving circumstances. Do you think there will be a "more official" source than the manufacturer? Unless you want to send your used oil into a lab for analysis, you are best off sticking to the intervals recommended by Lexus. If you do send it to a lab, you can determine exactly how long you can go for an oil change interval with a given oil. Due to the cost of the analysis, you may not save much, if any, for any extended interval you determine based on the analysis.

I really wonder how important premium gas is. Most of the comments I read are conjecture and warm feelings. “My Lexus deserves nothing less” is hardly a scientific argument. What evidence is there that premium is any better for the engine?

Modern computerized engine controls adjust and optimize air/fuel/spark each cycle. These engines are already very finely tuned. Sure premium fuel has slightly more energy available but does it translate to better MPG? Maybe a bit but the true test would be $/mile that would balance out the extra cost of premium over standard gas. Has anyone done a clean A/B test and computed the $/mile of each?

I’ve run regular for >1 year in a 2004 LS430 with no perceptible difference in performance. Last time I checked the engine was still under my hood.

Directly from the owner's manual: "Select premium unleaded gasoline with an octane rating of 91 or higher for optimum engine performance. However, if such premium type cannot be obtained, you may temporarily use unleaded gasoline with an octane rating as low as 87."

Yes, your car's computer/emissions will adjust for fuel more prone to pinging. HOWEVER, in so doing, your engine is NOT operating at optimum performance due to the adjustment that is made to correct for the fuel. Generally, this will result in a slight decline in horsepower and fuel economy. In all likelihood, the use of regular unleaded will not damage anything, just lead to the aforementioned losses.

FWIW, the octane rating has NOTHING to do with "energy", as you say. The octane rating is a measure of the fuel's ability to resist predetonation (pinging).

The owner's manual says to change the spark plugs at 90,000 miles/72 months. Just so happens I have a 10 year old LS400 with only 63,000 miles on it, so have never changed the plugs. Out of curiosity, I pulled one of the plugs (original; Denso Iridium Long Life) today to have a look. Gap is perfect, just a little light brown over the upper portion of the ceramic....in other words, looks perfect....especially for 10 years and 63,000 miles! I can't see how time alone can deteriorate a plug........but then again, I certainly don't know everything. And, it seems kind of weird since I have never had plugs in for 10 years in any motors I have ever owned. Any reason to change good looking plugs just cuz they've been in for 10 years? I venture to guess the answer is "no", but I am allowing my anal retentive side to ask......

Just something I learned by accident when I changed my timing belt........I used ramps in order to remove the plastic splash trays from beneath the engine. While I had the car up on the ramps, I also removed the tranny drain plug so that I could do a drain 'n fill. As it turns out, with the front of the car up on ramps, I drained out about 5 quarts of transmission fluid vs. the 2 you typically drain when it is level. Just thought I would throw that out there if you are looking for an easy way of draining more tranny fluid at one time.

fleets use oil analysis to dermine oil change intervals, but for the average motorist, oil analysis is too expensive and inconvenient. The cost of the oil analysis is almost as much or more as an oil change...

22.50 charge from Blackstone labs....

Which is exactly why I didn't say that you HAVE to have a used oil analysis done. The vast majority of people do.....and should.....follow the oil change intervals as prescribed by Lexus in the owner's manual. For those who think they either need to change the oil more or less frequently than Lexus recommends, used oil analyses can let you know for certain what your interval should be. Personally, I see absolutely no reason to change oil more frequently than what Lexus recommends, especially without any factual evidence of the need to do so.

In the case of someone who is performing synthetic oil changes every 3,000 miles, there will likely be a cost benefit to having a used oil analysis done. It would in all likelihood show you that you can easily go 5,000, 7,500, or maybe more miles in between oil changes. Given that the cost of a used oil analysis is less than the cost of 5 quarts of synthetic oil, if the result is stretching intervals out twice as long, there would definitely be a savings.

The 3K mile oil change isn't required anymore if you ask me.

To my knowledge, nobody but oil companies and quickie lube places have ever recommended 3,000 mile oil change intervals. My personal opinion is that 3,000 mile oil change intervals are a waste of money and resources.

My Lexus Owner's Manual Supplement specifies either 5,000 (typical short trip, stop n go driving, or "special conditions), or 7,500 if you drive distances greater than 5 miles and in temperatures under 90 degrees.

For those commenting on the color of your used oil, the color means nothing. If you really want to see how well your oil is holding up, send a sample in for a used oil analysis to Blackstone Labs.

Just read the labels.....some coolants come pre-diluted. I believe the super long life Toyota stuff is pre-diluted, so you don't mix with water.

I may just order up both of them in a week or two.

Would just getting new bearings pressed in be a long lasting option? or just a quick fix? There's no worry of the new ones failing?

Can't say with any certainty how long the bearing will last.....but it looks like the same bearing that was in it.....and so far so good. I would expect it to last as long as the original bearing, but who knows? If it fails early, I'll post it.