amcdonal86

You can register your Lexus on the owner's site at lexus.com. Then you will be able to look at the maintenance history and get a general idea of what's been done. You can always call a dealer for more information. Try Lexus of Wilmington. When I called them, they were incredibly helpful!

Probably not. Don't worry about it.

BTW, how much luggage can be packed into this trunk? Can you guys give me an estimate (like 4 large suitcases + 2 carryon size bags--something like this)? Thanks!

I took my car out yesterday to become familiar with its handling characteristics in the snow. To my surprise, it was very controllable and smooth. It was easy to correct oversteer (that featherlight steering actually does have a purpose!!!), and very easy to steer with the gas pedal. Overall, though, I'd rate it a C or D as a snow car. The traction control really inhibits the car in the snow, and it was hard to get going on a 5% grade with 1" of loose unpacked snow. This, of course, is with all season Yokohama Avid Touring S tires. I'm sure it would be fantastic with dedicated snow tires, but then again, so would most cars. :)

I'm not sure, but I'm pretty sure this violates the terms that you agreed to when you joined this forum.

curiousB, thanks for that writeup. It is very helpful! So the power outlet actually has a lower power capability than the cigarette lighters? Sounds kind of counter-intuitive!

Not according to Wikipedia. First gen was limited to 155, which explains why the poster was able to go that fast.

What percentage tint are on your windows? Stupid me. I see it now on your first post. Wow, it really doesn't look stupid with different levels of tint on the windows!

I think your binding explanation is logical. Without having read your thread and watching the video, it didn't sound like a suspension issue to me, but I probably wouldn't have guessed steering. Glad you fixed it! If I ever run into that problem, I'll know what to do!

How can you beat that? Isn't it electronically limited at 155? :P

Haha, I was thinking the same thing! Maybe a dry lubricant like graphite would work, but that could get all over the interior.

I don't know about labor, but the parts are about $215 shipped for the pair. It took me about 4 hours to do, but I'm not sure what an experienced mechanic would charge. Here is a slideshow showing the exact process: http://photoshow.comcast.net/watch/Fj9WH6CM This slideshow should also give you a good idea of what the strut rod is. Actually, I just thought of something. A tell tale sign that your strut rod bushings are bad is that when you go over a big sudden bump, the steering wheel seems to jump out of your hands a little bit. (Mine used to do that before I replaced them.)

I haven't tried it. I think a lubricant might add to the problem. If you want to try it, please do and let us know if that works!

See this thread for the fix!!! http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...showtopic=55728

I'm sorry, I must have misread your post prior to mine that called you a jerk. :( I apologize. landar, he means that LED's take a very minimal current to cause them to light up, while normal filament bulbs will take a little more current before you see them start to light up. Therefore the LEDs are a better indicator of whether there is current going through the circuit or not.

After several weeks of trying to solve the problem of the creaking armrest (you know, that nasty creeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaakkkk sound when you apply pressure to it with your elbow), which led me to put little rubber cabinet stops on the armrest, scramble to replace to original rubber stops with the factory parts, and try installing some storm door weatherstripping along the edges of the armrest. None of these solutions had any effect at all. Then I spent a good 30 minutes today really trying to diagnose the source of the creaking. After careful testing and analysis, I narrowed it down to the interface between the catch of the top-most level of the armrest to the actual handle for the upper-most level of the arm rest. I took a little medium sanding block and sanded those interfaces, and VOILA!!!!! No more creaking!!!! It's that easy! It's a very simple fix and now my cocoon of serenity is complete at last!!!!! My theory is that over time, those surfaces rub against each other so much that they become polished. When they become polished, they grip against each other, and when you lean on it, the static friction is overcome in steps, resulting in noisy creaking.

Did you need a magnifying glass as well? I could barely see them. I could not get them to enlarge no more than a half an inch. :( Yeah, it was kind of a pain to look at. Lexus was SOOOOOOOO cheesy with their wording back then. "You've been passing people your whole life. Why should the open road be any different?"

Hahaha, I've never seen a hole in that area quite that big. That's pretty shocking! I wonder if it affects the function of the airbag at all. Originally when I saw my brother's car like that, I was sure that the car had previously been in a wreck.

Looks great. I am always amazed at how sleek that gen of the ES has looked. Even '92 models look pretty sleek and have aged well.

Haha, I have a bad case of shipwright's disease as you described.

Wow, thanks for sharing those links. I just spent an hour looking at the '97 brochure. I would love to have a hard copy! I will look on eBay sometime.

It has come to my attention through reading various threads that for UCF20 I LS400s there is a slight distortion of the dashboard that occurs just above the passenger's front airbag cover. So how many of you are card carrying members? I sure am!

Or tires. Had a front tire that was getting old on our 2000 Avalon, and was thread seperation. New tires solved the problem.. Rides better than a new Accord... Well almost.. It could be a number of things. But it seems like nobody ever replaces these strut rod bushings, and after 90k, they're all toast. I had a horrible vibration problem on the highway when I bought the car. I had the tires balanced. That improved it a little bit. Then I had the strut rods replaced. HUGE improvement. Finally, I had the tires replaced, which gave me a very very small improvement. Now it rides like it's on glass!

Anything new will be incredibly expensive, not to mention hard to find. I'm not sure exactly what you mean by "middle console," but in any case, I'd probably try contacting local junkyards to see if they have any LS400s that match your description that they are parting out.

Is replacement pro-rated? Seems to me like a warranty like that is more trouble than it's worth. But honestly, after having run over a black cat yesterday in the dark at 50 mph with my low beams on (it was already dead, but its eyes were glowing so it freaked me out) I think it would still be worth it. That dead cat could've easily been a newborn infant, a honey baked ham, or even a sack full of cash.