amcdonal86

Between that and the normal halogen bulbs. I looked in your thread, though, and it looks amazing!

I'm pretty sure it's 149.

86'; Ten thousand foot runway......It'll take about 9,950 feet.......The last 50 feet is a bit tricky though.......... Really? I read somewhere that it takes a Crown Vic Police Interceptor about 1 mile to get to 120 from a stop. But maybe that figure is inaccurate. Where are you getting your info?

Precisely. Because of this, I don't think it is unreasonable for a college student to have this kind of car. If you're really anal like I am, you'll probably spend a lot on repairs. But all of the repairs I have made so far could have been omitted by someone who is less scrupulous, and the car would've still driven fine. When I was car shopping, I was choosing between my LS and a '99-ish BMW 540i with a 6 speed. I would have enjoyed driving the BMW much more perhaps, but the maintenance costs would have destroyed me!

Wow, it's hard to even tell the difference from those photos, but it looks great!

Anyone have any idea how much distance it takes to get to 120mph in my '97 LS? I'm thinking of sneaking onto the runway of a local airport and going crazy!!!!!!

Why not the full 149? :P At 125 mph, you're already past the point of no return, right? :):)

Maybe I missed something. Are your footwell lights not turning off when you lock the car?

If you can find that thread, I'd love to see it. I kind of like the yellow fog light look. However, turning the fog lights on on my LS400 makes a strange vertical stripe like pattern on the headlight, which I do not like.

I actually kind of like the halogen look on a car this age.

I would bet that it's pretty hard to bend a wheel with such a high profile tires on it as the LS400's! :) But not impossible!

My tires are only rated for 112mph. :( Otherwise, the fastest I've gone so far is about 85.

I do. It sounds like my experiences with our 1992 LS400 and 2000 Camry have been very similar to Jim's. They are both reliable, dependable vehicles, but both parts costs and mechanics' labor charges are much less for the Camry. But, the main reason the Camry has been cheaper to own is just because it is newer. Ours has about 80,000 miles and we have never had to do anything to it besides regular maintenance. No unexpected repairs, ever. Quite different from the 92 LS400 which has required replacement of several suspension components, power steering pump, alternator, power window switches, antenna, etc, due primarily to its old age. The LS has 150,000 miles, but many of those repairs were done much closer to the 100,000 mile mark. If you are worried about unexpected and expensive repairs, I think you have answered your own question. In my local classified ads, there are several 2000-2001 Camrys with under 100,000 miles that are all priced at $6500 or less. You'd spend at least that much on a decent 90-95 LS400 with similar mileage. Don't forget that the parts for the Camry and Corolla are much less expensive. If I was in your situation, with a limited amount of money, and a limited amount of time I could be without my car while it's at the mechanic, I would choose a newer Camry or Corolla. I can tell you from experience that newer cars are much less expensive to own. I guess it depends. I found my '97 with 91k miles on it for less than $7500 in superb shape, and I just spent about $1000 in repairs/maintenance to get it in perfect running condition. I don't anticipate having to do any unexpected repairs for a couple years now (120k mile service). But then again, minor issues I can repair myself. I was coming from a '94 Miata, which nickled and dimed me like no other, but still ended up only costing me $0.30 a mile in the long run. Here is a list of the stuff I had to replace in 3 years and 40k miles: CAS O-ring (122k) Clutch & rear main seal (122k) Rear brake calipers/pads (127k) Motor mounts (130k) front brake pads (130k) convertible top (130k) driver's seatbelt receiver (130k) shifter boots (130k) catback exhaust (rusted out--133k) tns relay (135k) timing belt and water pump, radiator (140k) driveshaft (143k) oxygen sensor (147k) EGR tube repair (147k) valve cover gasket (153k) coolant hoses (157k) This is a car (Miata) that is supposed to be "bulletproof." So you can see where I'm coming from. Again, I don't expect the LS400 to have nearly as frequent repairs. I think $0.25-0.35 is a good estimate for cost per mile for this car. (I do expect insurance and gas to be more, though.)

I'm thinking of doing that, but I've used them in the past and they have a VERY short life. Like in less than one year, both of them blew out.

Wouldn't you think the two problems were related? :P Coolant should never be consumed. You must have a leak in your cooling system somewhere. Check your hoses and radiator! I may be wrong, but I believe the temp gauge is for coolant temperature. If your coolant is bone dry, it would probably just show the temperature as being lower, when in fact, your engine is probably overheating.

John2, does this mean that the traction control function will eventually not work anymore if it is used too much (i.e., it runs out of compressed nitrogen)?

I wouldn't characterize the LS as being a "quick" handling car. It is many good things, but quick it is not. I have driven many standard mid-size FWD sedans that handle in a much sportier manner.But then again, that's not why I bought the LS400. :)

Why? They're ugly as sin and front wheel drive. AND the interior is one of the ugliest available (I mean, what is up with that center console?!).

It sounds like most of us misread your original post. Be patient, somebody should chime in soon.:)

As a college student myself, I think you need to consider the ownership costs of any car. From what I've calculated, the Ls400 has cost me about $0.50/mile so far (gas, insurance, depreciation, maintenance, etc.), but that's because I've only owned it 2 months and did a few suspension related repairs and also got new tires. I think that the car will probably end up being something like $0.30-0.35/mile in the long run, maybe >$0.40/mile if the price of gas goes up by 50% or so again. Assuming you drive around 12k miles per year, do you really think you can afford $4200 per year for the car ON TOP of the purchase price? If you can't, maybe a car is not a good idea for you. I really don't think that a Lexus is any more expensive to own than the average used car. I hope this helps. (P.S. My girlfriend is much more impressed with my LS400 than she was with my '94 Miata!)

How many miles are on the car?

Here is a slide show tutorial that I found helpful detailing how to remove the strut rods. http://photoshow.comcast.net/watch/Fj9WH6CM

http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...showtopic=54323 There is the thread. I was actually trying to fix a creaking noise I heard when I drove over large dips in the road, but through the process, I replaced the strut rods/bushings. It immediately cured a vibration problem that I had at highway speeds that was not cured by an alignment or a wheel balance. I hope that helps.

So you had the exact same problem? Thanks for the tip! Let me find you my thread that explains in details the problem that I had and then parts that I replaced to fix them.

For me, it turned out to be the strut rod bushings.