cityylightss

alright so i gave the place a call back. i asked her about what was included and she said the pulleys, tensioner, and oil seals were NOT included but she recommended that i do them considering she charges relatively cheap for labor. she didn't know the exact quote but mentioned somewhere between $750-800 if i included those services. she also told me that she uses all OEM parts and that she will give me the old parts in the new part boxes. my confidence is considerably restored in this shop and i think i will go ahead with the services. she also mentioned that she'd do some inspections for me for free while my car was there (i told her my PS pump was leaking), and that if it came down to it...she'd have someone take me somewhere (ie work) after i dropped the car off. i did some research online and it seems they have pretty good reviews overall. hopefully it all goes well!

so i after looking on craigslist.com i found a shop that specializes in asian cars and was boasting how great their quotes were on timing belt/water pump service. i called over the weekend and the lady got back to me today. she literally told me $550 would cover everything, including parts, labor, and tax. obviously i was both shocked and skeptical. is this just TOO good to be true? i am assuming it is, but at the same time...i know the economy is really *BLEEP*ty and i know there are tons of good deals to be found everywhere. if anyone has any good questions for me to ask her to validate the offer...please let me know. and also please tell me if you think this is a complete scam. it seems like a legitimate shop...and she said they would need the whole day (i know the process DOES take awhile)...but i do realize this is way less than half of what everyone else seems to pay. any comments are appreciated. thanks in advance.

hey everyone. i have a '90 LS400 and i need to do my timing belt and water pump replacement ASAP. i'm at 134k and i'm fairly certain the work has never been done on the car. i was just wondering if anyone could give me a range of prices for this service so i have something to reference. a high, low, and average number would really help. i know there are obviously a ton of factors that could influence the price, i'm just trying to a basic idea so i'm not completely lost when receiving quotes. any help is appreciated. thank you. B)

hey thanks for all the info everyone. i was originally going to buy all the tools and change my own oil this time, but it seems like i have some shopping around to do so i decided to take it in for a change. i just didn't want to wait any longer on 5,500 miles. but next time for sure! can i get any examples of a 'quality floor jack'?

I'm just curious what 'standard' equipment all you DIYers are using out there. I'm starting to get into DIY repairs on my '90 LS 400 and I was wondering what standard equipment I should buy. Ideally, I'll start with a few successful oil changes, then maybe move to a transmission flush, and then who knows from there! I've been reading DIY tutorials on lexls.com and some of the tools/equipment it seems I'm going to need are: socket set, torque wrench, jack stands, ramps, oil filter wrench, pliers, oil pan, etc etc. I was wondering what everyone else seems to use. Do people prefer jack stands over ramps? What lbs ratings do people have on their torque wrenches? Any tips on what to buy, and other DIY tips, are greatly appreciated. Thanks.

thanks for the tips. in regards to the problems i've identified, it seems that most people would suggest fixing my power steering pump first. as i've browsed the site i've found that a common maintenance procedure that i might be faced with soon, if not immediately...is going to be the timing belt/water pump issue. is this something i should be looking into if i haven't had it done already? i need to go through the documents left by the previous owner to see if he had it done at 90k. can i get away with not replacing this for some time...or should i look into it immediately? are rear differential and transmission fluid flushes/refills an issue at 130k? thanks for all the replies. everyone has already been very helpful.

thanks for replies! i've been browsing around and came across the 'power steering above the alternator' issue. i really only hear the sound and replace the fluid every 4 months or so. do you think its leaking enough to actually cause any damage to the alternator? my current alternator has been there for 3 years?

hey everyone. i'm new to the forums obviously. my '90 LS400 is starting to get a little older so i decided its time to join up and starting tackling problems before they get bigger. i purchased the car in 2005 for $2,500 from a friend who was leaving the country. it had around 90k miles on it. yes i know it was as great deal! i've loved it ever since. i've recently decided that its time to do a little work on the car to prevent major repairs. i have about $400 leftover in my budget for this month (it was a cheap month) and decided that I'd like to put it toward the car to try and prevent a $2,000 repair in the near future. it current has 130k miles on it. i haven't done too much work to it in the 4 years i've had it. the only major problem i've experienced in the past 4 years is replacing the alternator. it burned out when the plugs to the battery were lose and the alternator could not send the electricity back to the battery (or so i was told). here is a list of the current problems i have and how i deal with them. 1. Radiator fluid leak. I was told awhile ago that I had a small leak and every so often I'll have my radiator light comes on. I usually just wait for it to come on and then I pour in more of my 'Toyota Red.' 2. Power steering fluid leak. Every so often I start to hear a suspicious noise when I first turn on my car and start turning my wheel as I'm driving. I just add some power steering fluid and it goes away for a couple months. 3. Antenna won't go up. I hear it trying to go up/down every time I turn my car on/off. 4. RPM gauge in dashboard doesn't work. The indicator just stays flat. I think maybe this is as simple as replacing a fuse? 5. Front windows struggle going up and down. I've had problems with this in the past. I'm not sure if whether there is anything stuck down there such as pine needles from a tree I used to park under, or if the electrical system is having issues. 6. Check engine light came on for about 10 mins about 2 months ago. Don't know if something is on its way out, or if it was simply a small, brief malfunction. I can live with these issues, as I have been for a couple years. But I'd rather fix them if they are going to lead to bigger problems. I haven't done any 'real' maintenance to my car for a good amount of time. No real differential fluid flush. No transmission fluid flush. Etc etc. Basically I turn down any offers for additional services when I go to Jiffy Lube to get my full synthetic oil change, except my air filter when its looking dirty. Honestly, I don't want to perform any unnecessary maintenance...but I want to take care of my car. I'd say I find mechanics fairly untrustworthy, but I know that I'm going to have to let them do what they need to do eventually. Before telling me to do something myself, take into consideration that I have no garage and I have no tools. However, I am willing to purchase (cheaper) tools and learn how to fix something if it will save me cash in the end. My question is...where do I go from here? Do you recommend me going to get some sort of an inspection to figure out what problems I have and their severity? Is there some maintenance/fluid flushes/etc you would recommend I do immediately? What would be the best use of my $400? Is there anything you recommend I do myself? Thank you very much for reading the post, and thanks even more for any advice. I really appreciate it. Pete