LSPaul

I haven't had time to follow your other issues on this thread, but the instrument panel backlighting issue when cold can be a DIY fix. When I bought my LS a few years back, I searched the archives and found old posts on this forum. Then, I pulled the IP from the car and replaced a couple electrolytic capacitors to resolve the issue on my LS for about $3 in electronic parts. It does require minor DIY skill plus basic competence with a soldering iron and electronic parts soldering. Best, Paul

I can't give you a dollar figure on this one, but it looks relatively easy to get at on a DIY basis, if the '98-00 cars are similar under the dash. Check this forum post out: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=45080 Best, Paul

I'd second the Tire Rack surveys and recommendations, but do also shop Discount Tire's tires.com site (if you live outside an area that they serve retail), as free shipping does make a considerable difference. I've been through enough tires on my other cars (typically a set per year on my Saab 9-5--due to miles driven, not anything else). The early LS size is getting pretty limiting with tire choices, as you've already discovered. The Altimax lines are worth checking out, and TR's reviews on the Eagle GTs are pretty decent. I personally was very disappointed in the Kumho ASX (wear, grip, noise), and the LX will probably too too hard for your taste, given your desire for grip (usually an inverse relationship b/w grip and wear). The Pirellis aren't that impressive, either. Bridgestones usually work well, and I don't know enough about the Toyos to have an opinion. Also, there usually IS a difference, grip-wise, between H-and V-rated tires, due to construction. I would also second Jim's suggestion of finding a set of 16 or 17" OE rims. There are many more choices available in the '93-on 225-60-16 fitment. Best, Paul

What is nice is that the filters are 'keyed', so they only slide in one way. I cleaned mine recently with compressed air (says on the filters not to use water on them) then re-installed. Gently pop off the cover section underneath the glove box, then you can get at the filters, which are behind the cover with the two wingnuts holding it on. You can then pull the filters out, one at a time. They're also hinged so you can get them inserted. Paul '93 LS400 Larry, there are actually two cabin filters in the 93/94 LS. There are instructions on Post #7 in this link -> http://www.clublexus...air-filter.html ...and this link may help as well -> http://repairpal.com...-air-filter-172 From these instructions, it looks like the filters are installed side-by-side such that you have to slide the first one up and over to get the second one in (or out). Like batteries in a flashlight. ^_^ ...and finally, remember that most cabin (pollen) air filters have a directional air flow to them so it is important to note the flow of air and install the new filters accordingly.

"Blown" as sounding distorted or "blown" as no sound at all? Don't leave the speakers out of this. Did you run the fader back and forth from front to rear, and at different volume levels? Still nothing? Beyond possible wiring and/or radio issues, you might want to pull the door panels, remove the speakers and check them on the bench, either with a multimeter or another audio source. I've had to replace one of the Nak door speakers (completely dead) in my LS, and repair/replace the foam surrounds on another ('blown' sound from the cones rattling). Good luck-- Paul

In theory, it ought to swap, but I'm certainly not going to go any further than that. Without a wiring diagram it's going to be anyone's guess as to compatibility between a JDM market engine and a North America-spec engine. I'd try to find one closer to home, versus having one shipped across the planet. If you're in the 'States, there appears to be no shortage of 1UZFEs in salvage yards (errr, at recyclers). Do some dialing in your area or hit car-part.com. Good luck- Paul

Depending on the mileage on your LS, and your willingness to have the air suspension malfunction lights permanently lit (and degree of annoyance because of this), it might be easier to find a used air strut and swap it out (it's a pretty easy job). Otherwise, see if Strutmasters or Arnott could re-man your existing strut. I've gone both ways for the two struts that have failed on my LS: One of the rear airbags failed; that got replaced w/ a reman strut, and on one of the fronts, the shock part failed; that one got replaced with a low-ish mile used part (found via car-part.com). Good luck- Paul

First thing to check is that you don't have the window lockout switch engaged. If it is switched into the locked position, you won't be able to open any windows from the driver's door switch pack, if it's anything like the older LSes. Paul '93 LS

Jim, Yeah, it's been a while--I just now got around to doing it, as I haven't been driving the LS all that much the last couple years, but have spent more time in it this year, as the Saab's well past 300k miles and it has occasional maintenance needs. As Johnny Carson once said, "Better late than *really* late." Highs are good (LOTS of light), but very sensitive to height adjustment--I definitely need to tweak the aim a bit. I haven't taken the original fogs out of the buckets, but may give that a try. The OE fogs are better, pattern-wise, and I also like the amber color. I'll post again if I do get the fogs swapped. I'll need to go back and read more about the roof shims, although it seems to sit correctly. Best, Paul

Hi, all-- A couple different topics--'93 LS here. Sunroof seals: Over the past couple years I've had issues with the glass moonroof leaking in the front corners, soaking the headliner, dripping onto the front seats, etc. I've studied the threads here, and all four corner drains were flowing well. What appears to happen is that the rubber seal on the glass panel appears to have shrunk over time (as one would expect on nearly 20 year-old rubber exposed to the elements), and water would drip around and into the interior. While I could probably source a new glass seal from a Lexus dealer, I ended up tweaking the front corner of the seal, pulling them out and up slightly, which seems to have done the trick. The corners now stick up slightly above the body (a few mm), but it doesn't look bad. The interior stayed dry after a 3" rain over night. Headlights: I finally got around to buying a set of the Eagle Eyes front headlights for my LS for $170ish, shipped, via online auction. The swap went smoothly, the lights are decent quality (Osram H4s are what they came with), and the headlight pattern is as good as discussed way back, here on the forum--nice, high cutoff to the right. Night-time driving is MUCH better now and the light pattern is close enough to a Euro/E-Code pattern that I'm happy. The new lights pretty much need to be a mandatory upgrade for the UCF10s. The fogs? Meh... but with the regular low-beams, one should rarely ever need to use fogs. Aim carefully. I chose to stick with the stock corner lights, as the ones that came with the package didn't look good to me. Here's how the final product looks on my car: Paul '93 LS, 210k miles

You replaced both ignition coils? The top one's easy to do/find (I think that's for the RH bank of cylinders). The LH side coil is down on the front lower side of the engine. When the LH coil failed on mine, it had the same failure mode (not running on all cylinders, cats glowing red due to gobs of unburned fuel). Check your coil-to distributor wires, while you're at it. Paul

As far as finding glass for your car, K's Auto in Cedar Rapids, IA got in a '94 LS a couple weeks back with good glass. I was there last week and got the seats and power antenna assembly. Best, Paul Iowa City '93 LS400, 201k miles

I only received one key when I bought my LS early this year; it was also missing the back shell, battery and push button. I lived with it for a while, but eventually found a used key on eBay for $40-ish, which I used for parts to put mine back together. A basic key (no electronics) was $75 from the Lexus dealer I dealt with, and yes, that $278 figure probably included a new chip to put in the remote receiver (located in the trunk, IIRC). Oh, and I think I'd try to make the Advance folks pay for the parts, since they boogered it up in the first place. Good luck! Paul

Ed: If you're at all handy turning wrenches, the front ball joints aren't that bad a job. I've done all of the fronts (new wishbones/uppers and lowers) at home. Arnott Industries' upper wishbones/ball joints are a very good deal for ~$200/pair, and there's plenty of OE and aftermarket sources for the lowers. You'll need to remove the front air struts to get the wishbones in and out, but it IS a pretty straightforward job. Be sure to have the front end alignment checked/reset afterwards. I did the whole thing over a couple different sessions and spent probably less than three hours doing it all. No major special tools, and there's plenty of instruction both on this forum and on others. As for air versus conventional, I have no personal experiences making the change, but I'd say if your air system's working well, I'd stay with the air ride setup. I suspect it'll be a matter of taste to find the right spring rate and shock setup for the car. As for the lights dimming, check the electrical grounds, clean and retighten them. While you have the grounds apart, a product like DeOxIt (available at an electric/electronic parts supplier or from http://www.caig.com would be a good thing to spray on those connections (cleans/lubricates/improves connections). Best, Paul

A couple different options: 1) Impact wrench (either electric or pneumatic). Rent from a rental supply house or better, buy one. It's one of those tools you don't think you'll need often but you'll find more and more uses for it over time. Don't forget impact-grade sockets; standard ones won't hold up very well. Air: If you have a compressor, etc. already, then it's time to add an impact driver to your collection. Electric: A decent electric impact wrench will run you probably under $150 at Sears (1/2" drive). I didn't have a compressor at the time, so I went this route several years back when removing a harmonic balancer bolt on one of my Saabs. 2) BF(big freaking) breaker bar+ cheater (i.e. long piece of pipe over the end of the breaker bar). Good luck! Paul

Ditto what the others said. The lowers are an easy job, less than an hour per side at home. Even the uppers/control arms are pretty easy to change out. Paul Awesome. Are we talking about the lower ball joints? I was looking at the LexLS.com tutorials and it looked like I had to remove the entire front wheel assembly to get that piece out! Thanks for the help everybody!

Car in question's a '93 LS w/ the air suspension. The issue's not atypical from what I've seen around this forum: In the "normal" ride height mode, once the car's switched off, one can hear air escaping from the area of the left rear strut and subsequently that corner gets the "droopy butt" syndrome within minutes. However, with the system in the "high" position, it holds air just fine, so long as the air compressor's not running immediately before shutting off the engine and/or it's not parked on a steep incline. In posts I've read here, some say that those issues would be with the 'bag, others say the problem would be an actuator not working correctly. Is there any sort of definitive diagnosis and testing guide/sequence out there for the air ride system and components? I've searched the archives and the interwebs but haven't really found anything helpful. Thanks in advance, Paul

In the LS? 90 or so, passing someone the other day on I-80 in east central Iowa. Fastest m/c run? 125 on my old (gone a couple years ago) BMW R1100RT. Fastest run, in general? 153 (probably an honest 150 w/ speedo error factored in) indicated in a Saab 9-5 Aero on US50 in Nevada--"The Loneliest Road", back in '02. Held 150+ for probably 10 minutes before backing it off into the 120-140 range. Very, very stable car--no twitchy lift felt. My average speed for that stretch from Ely to Fallon was 118 or so, per the gas receipts from either end (for mileage and time calculations). 16 mpg calculated from those same receipts. Oh, and the cruise works at 140. "Maturity" and a desire to preserve what's left of my license have brought me into the era of tapping on the cruise, and usually staying under 10 over on the highways. Paul

You might check to see if your local public library has access to Chilton, Alldata or similar online resource. I've been using the online flavor of Chilton's for free, courtesy of the public library where I live (it's better than a kick to the head but inferior to the factory shop manuals) since I picked up my LS a couple months back. It's not complete, but it'll get you most of what you need. Even with the deferred maintenance issues you have, it doesn't sound like a bad purchase, especially if the body's clean and the miles are that low. Enjoy! Paul Does anyone have a link for a free online repair manual? Thanks.

Python, That's the answer I was hoping for. The illustration is what an E-code (European headlight standard) light pattern should look like (source: http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/aim/aim.html). Like Jim, I've had E-code lights on my cars for years, so I'm very familiar with the pattern, and more important, with the quality of the light. The notch and slope up to the right lights things up and off to the right nicely. JDM/UK headlights would be the mirror opposite (notch, then up to the left). I'll be ordering those lights soon! Thanks! Paul

Cool... Do me a small favor: Next time you pull into your driveway at home (preferably flat) and have the garage door down, take a look at what the light against the door looks like. Does it look anything like this? http://www.flickr.com/photos/26066208@N00/3323933321/ This is the kind of beam pattern I'm looking for. If it looks anything like that, then yeah, then I'll all over the Eagle Eyes lights! Paul

Jim, Thank you for the wealth of knowledge, experience and the links. The 9003/HB2s (H4 bulbs) that are in the '93 and '94s aren't nearly as horrible as the orbs of darkness that are 9004 bulbs. I've had lots of experiences with those in both domestic cars and in a few Saab 9000s and 900s I've owned (E-codes make all the difference there). I'm not so worried about the EU-spec leveling mechanisms; I don't have them on either of my Saabs (BTW, the H7s w/ modern optics on the 9-5 model... wow!). The low-beam beam pattern is what really matters for me. With good/properly aimed E-codes, one really doesn't need fogs, IMHO. I could rectify the wiring issue with enough jumpers and relays, if needed, having converted enough 9004-spec'ed Euro cars to H4s (and back) over the years. I'll reconsider the Eagle Eyes lights, especially for the price. Thanks again, Paul Iowa City, IA

Thanks for the reply. Yes, I'd guess that the JDM pattern looks nice and works right in Japan and GB, but isn't appropriate for North America. The E-code pattern would basically look like the reverse of the JDM light pattern, i.e., broad spread, high cut-off to the right. Paul

Hi, all: I've been lurking for some time but now need to throw my first question out there to the group: '93 LS: First Lexus for me, by accident. I was originally going to fix and flip the car, but instead decided to boot one of my Saabs out of the garage and into the driveway--I'm surprised how much I like the LS! I've been busy doing all the deferred maintenance that's piled up (the usual stuff: upper and lower front ball joints, dash lighting, a leaky air strut, etc.) that made this car dirt cheap for me to acquire. Like most of the first-gen LS drivers, I'm of the sentiment that the old US-spec headlight optics are beyond horrible. I've found that finding proper E-code lights for my other cars was a piece of cake, and I have had E-codes in my Saabs for many years; the difference is, pardon the pun, night and day. I've priced new OE Lexus lights from an European dealer and cringed at the $700US tag. I've also looked at and passed on the ricey-looking new headlights on eBay, since I've found nothing substantive out there about the beam patterns. I've also noticed plenty of used JDM lights in that same marketplace. Does anyone know whether replacement European-spec lenses would work on JDM headlight buckets? Alternately, does anyone have access to a parts database where I can check this out, myself? Thanks in advance, Paul '93 LS400, 167k mi