Lexus have a great reputation for customer service, although the prices are eye-watering, and reliability. Be interesting to see how your LS400 turns out, thanks very much for sharing.
As an aside, the boys at Lexus of Reading certainly did you a solid by doing that inspection for free. They might not accept payment, but I bet a case of beer dropped off on a Friday afternoon would be much appreciated by everyone! 🍻👍
Exactly ..Go do it ..Free means they have invested upfront with their customers and transparent with the cost .Whether You or I like it or not ..a Case of beer or a Platter or M&S sandwiches will be great . Go do it
Have owned a fair number of the usual high end German makes over the years in addition to two Lexi. The service experience from Lexus USA has been far superior to any of the others going back at least a dozen years. Dropped off my LS460 this morning and was given my pick of service loaner vehicles to drive for the day. Last time (and I do mean the last time) I took a vehicle to the BMW dealer for a recall service, they acted as if they were doing me a huge favor by calling an Uber for me. This type of customer service keeps me coming back to Lexus products, in addition to their stellar reliability. Cheers!
That is so true, I purchased one of my Lexus vehicles from Carvana. I took it to the Lexus dealer for a check up. They let me use the loaner for a day because they didn't want me to wait all day.
I owned a 1998 ‘R’ Mk IV LS400 and ran this for 13 years and 235k miles - it is still the best car I have ever owned and even as the car got older, I managed to source new parts for the vehicle but not always via main dealers. Plenty of general garages can work on these cars with no problems whatsoever. My local Lexus dealer who are still servicing my 18 year old LS430 offer me great deals on their servicing and labour rates to encourage me to keep using them for works. Their service is excellent and in my opinion the best of all the manufacturers out there 👌👌👌
there is only one way to get the correct ride back - throw those coilovers in the bin + refit normal springs + struts. your battery clamp is in the boot. drill a hole next to the snapped stud + put a M6 nut+ bolt in [thats the ones with the 10mm head] CHANGE YOUR CAMBELT!!! keep up the good work
Lexus service for me was brilliant . When I broke down in Galway the guys were so good and ended up charging me nothing for cleaning out dreaded egr valve . Same at home in Glasgow where the guys always did more than they needed . Best service I have ever had !!
My mom had a 1995 LS400 that we bought “certified pre-owned” in 1998. That car was unbelievably luxurious in its day. We were the envy of the neighborhood!
I had similar wet issues on an old peugeot 405. Mega cheap solution that fixed it perfectly. Take off the door trim in its entirity and inspect it for cracks and splits. Assuming the surface of the metal is showing rust, paint it with Hammerite (it aint going to be seen under a seal anyway) and to fix the leaking, apply some clear Shower sealant into the seal slot, as it slides into place, use a mallet and if theres any excess you can see wipe it off just the same as you do in a shower. I had a dry car after that until I sold it on after 10 great years and 145000 miles, 10 MOTs with only minor weldong needed and a new ball joint. Cheap and cheerful repair that works
There is a reason why Lexus (Toyota) has the reputation they have, this is a driving proof. I think that with a little work and few hundred pounds you'll be able to drive another 200K miles. On the power steering, it seems that a seal(o-ring) deteriorated, the cheap guy here would take it apart, measure everything and find a generic replacement, if I could not find an original. Perhaps your RUclips prestige can open the door of a rebuilding place and they either give you the seal or tell you what you need.
Regarding the steering rack, he can drive as it is for many years as long he keeps topping it up. I had a civic many years ago that when I bought it the steering rack was leaking already. I got a quote to replace it and I ran away from it. Owned the car for 10 years always topping it up now and then without issues.
Please listen to me (because we usually agree and play with the same cars)…..The instrument binnacle on that car is ingenious. One of the best and simplest designs. The lights reflect and look like they float. You need to fix that. Also, if available, just buy the factory shocks and experience it like you should. It’s brilliant.
Jack, it's a pity the previous owners chose to stuff about with the suspension components, those cars had a lovely comfortable ride in standard trim. Lexus service is legendary, albeit expensive.
Oh and the mishmash with the shocks is definitely a thing. If the front wheels hit a bump, they will start oscillating, then a few milliseconds later, the rear hits the same bump and starts oscillating. If the damping is not chosen properly, front-to-back, then they can combine in uncomfortable ways. If it were me, I'd replace all four with stock (or stock equivalent aftermarket shocks). Just my humble opinion, because you said you want to experience it the way it should be. If there are aftermarket coilovers on the front, they are probably too stiff.
A few years ago I took my GS450H into Lexus Lincoln for check engine light. Turned out to be dirty lambda sensor which they cleaned. They asked me if I wanted them to wash the car, which I politely declined. I asked for the bill and they said no charge! The car was a long time out of warranty and didn't even come from them! Best customer service ever!
Those shock-absorbers are designed so you can reduce the tension in the spring by backing off the knurled spring seat at the bottom. Before you start spending I'd just try progressively adjusting the springs and see if it reduces the fore-and-aft pitching.
Get some second hand or rebuilt shocks for the car if you want it to feel like a Lexus, BCS will not let you enjoy the ride the way it was intended, even with 4 of them.
Hi Jack, not too bad from Lexus (even if they quoted for unobtainable parts!). For your door, until it is rehung (and boot lid), lather the seals in vaseline as a temp fix (MR2 owners have done it for decades on the T-Bars!), aside from that, balance the suspenders and it'll be tidy.
I would only do that if you are going to replace them. If I'm not mistaken that is a petroleum product and will cause the rubber to degrade. I think it causes it to swell first, which would explain why it works (as well as just having goop in there).
Vaseline on weather strips ? 😳 No, no and no ! It will kill the rubber. There is silicone grease specifically available for that. I've been using it for decades on my old car. It works perfectly on rubber seals, re-softening them almost as new. I saved a friend's 1974 TR6 dried and cracking windshield seals with it...
The previous "short-term" owner, who wound the suspension up, could've maybe fitted stiffer springs? I'd see if there are any serial numbers on the springs you can double-check with BC. Mind you, in my humble opinion, for what it's worth, I'd just junk them for some OEN struts.
Glad to hear that Lexus service is still good. We always found them to be excellent. Parts prices can be a bit crazy. Looking forward to seeing how you get on with this car.
Look, prices can be crazy, but if you do the work yourself, at least you save on labour and you have a genuine part. I learn this the hard way. No more rubbish parts. Only genuine or parts with a good name on it eg: Blue print etc.
Another great video Jack, as I’ve said before I had one of these and an LS430 at the same time. I remember being upset in my early ownership at hitting a fox taking people to Cardiff Airport. I thought the damage on the fog light was going to be expensive as it was pushed back into the bumper. When I checked it at home I saw a steel bracket that had actually limited the damage and stopped the unit from falling apart. I’m sure this belt and braces build quality saved me a lot of money as I was able to pull things back into place with just a small crack in the plastic. For everyone who was concerned about the fox, with cubs, I saw no sign of it on or near the road on the way home so hopefully it got away ok. Thanks again Jack. Regards, Bob M. South Wales
@@Number27 Thanks, and you and family as well. I love watching your enjoyable episodes and look forward to more news and trials 🤭 with your interesting purchases. Regards, Bob M.
I own a LS400 and installed BC Coilovers with high end springs. Its wonderful that it handles better but the ride is atrocious in comparison to the old luxury wafty ride. So I suggest you buy front OEM units if you want the lovely ride. It actually handles decently with the OEM units for a big body 90s luxury car.
With your sunroof drains, there are hoses coming from each corner of the roof where you've already cleared the drains. I'm not sure on the Lexus but on many other cars this is a semi-rigid plastic hose that connects to rubber elbow "valves" that exit into the inner wing/wheelarch area. The semi-rigid plastic hose shrinks and pulls out of the rubber elbow "valves" allowing water to come straight out of the drain hose into the footwell. Try looking behind the driver side kick panel but also check that where the body flanges are on the inner wing at the front end of the boot aperture aren't letting all the water in which is then flowing forwards due to gravity and/or breaking. You show the flanges at 7:19 in the video, should be seam sealer but it isn't always sufficient, water gets in the gap between the flanges and rots it then makes the boot and drivers footwell wet
Looks like those coil overs also have a fair bit of preload added to the springs, may be worth trying backing those off a bit as well as dialling down the damping which you have already done.
They are a brilliant car! But, only when original. Unfortunately lots have been ruined by conversions. Here in Thailand they are about 3 times the UK price!
Yes You'll find the boot seal and it's lip need to be cleaned and then silicone applied to the lip before the seal is refitted. I've had this on every LS400 I've had, loved them but spares are getting hard to find now. The rear subframes are subject to rust.
Another great vid Jack. That leak in the footwell? Had same on a Hyundai 'Tucson'. Chased it for months. Long story short. Checked the sunroof drain. Used a long thin fibreglass rod. Not blocked etc. BUT, later found the plastic drain pipe connected to the sunroof dain hole had detached due shrinkage of this old plastic pipe. So blowing it clear and 'rodding' it through never showed up this detachment issue. Just a thought......... Good for you Lexus Reading. Nice to hear of good service!!!!!!
I wonder if any bulkhead drainage tubes are blocked in the engine bay too ?. If they are serious levels of water will drop down the bulkhead into the footwells. My own vehicle had this problem and some years ago a friends Passat was in the same state . The drain holes were full of mud and moss.
Hard ride in the front can be too much pre-load on the springs like motorcycle. Back-off the 2 rings with a C-spanner to lessen the hard ride. Then check the sag.
I for one think thats a very intelligent thing to do - take the Merc & the Lexus to a dealer to see how much they intend to charge & then see how much cheaper they are to fix elsewhere -Brilliant strategy - agree 100%
Always wanted a first gen LS400, from the time my boss had a new one early nineties in upstate NY. Your experience with that dealer makes me want one all over again. Build quality in cars just seems to be a thing of the past...
I had a '94 North America model. The dashboard not lighting up is due to a fault in the wiring harness in the trunk. When the temperature gets low, one of the plugs slips out because it shrinks. It just needs to be popped back in. You might have to do this every winter. When I had mine, Lexus admitted that it was a common problem, and while they charged me (about $60, I think it was) the first time, every subsequent winter I took it in and they did it for free.
Great video Jack, my daily is a Lexus and I find Lexus customer care excellent! I’m in for service three times a year once you get a relationship going with your dealership the price of service/labour comes down! Not the most exciting cars in the world but in my experience they are by far the most reliable.
Agree absolutely, a friend of mine bought a used Lexus from his local dealer years ago, it's done many, many kilometres, always serviced by that dealer. The Lexus looks and runs like new.
The only way to get a perfect ride in an LS400 is to go back to original spec suspension. The designers put many thousands of hours into the LS400 only for people to mess it up with after market parts. Every time people modify a Lexus they make it worse then complain.
Regarding the dash lights, I had the same issue on my 2002 Ford Taurus with 250K miles on it. Before you take apart the dash to replace one or more bulbs, try a frequency input. Pound on top of the dash over the dash cluster with you fist a few times. It worked for me. Take care, from California USA.
When they fitted the new door...check the wiring for the door clips correctly in the door as sometimes when they replace the door the wiring loom is not clipped in properly and water trickles into the footwells. My sister's range rover had this issue and I managed to fix it by clipping it back in n using some high temp gasket silicone.
Regarding the suspension - it can be fairly difficult to sort out by the seat of your pants. Especially if the front and the back were not designed to work with each other. There are some basic equations you can use to put yourself in the ballpark for spring rates, and if you know the unsprung weighs at each corner, and the car's weight, the shock companies can give you a setting that will be close. As a rule, the softer the set-up, the wider the window will be for acceptability. This is because softer set's have lower frequencies, in which the harmonics are more widely spread, so it's easier to find a quiet frequency with no harmonic problems. Harmonic will manifest themselves as is elations, boomy periods or vibrations which seem to come and go.
Aftermarket boot seals on fleabay but removing the old one and cleaning all the crud off it then cleaning the metal boot lip, applying silicone sealer then refitting the seal normally works.
Steering rack is an interesting one. Power steering packed up on my IS250 and saw some eye wateringly similar prices for a new steering rack. Replaced the power steering ECU for a £20 second-hand part just in case and it cured the issue, but the cost of things like a steering rack put me off (relatively) posh motoring.
The values of LS400s have really started to rocket now, I paid £500 for my 140k FSH 1996 model six years ago. Unfortunately I have hacked it up pretty badly in order to fit a rear mount turbo in there and generally abuse it. Oh well, it's still fun!! Great cars
BC Racing is a company set up to support the “Fast and Furious” tuner crowd. They produce cheap, Chinese-made junk that enables you to lower the car so the entire thing can scrape on the ground, which is what the kids like. They also have spring rates far higher than stock, for that miserable bouncy ride. Finally, they have adjustable damping knobs which can be twirled around and around with no apparent effect. Job One should be to source a proper set of stock front struts, and then deposit the existing ones straight into the bin! I bought a Miata that was slammed to the ground with BC coilovers. I was able to raise it to a reasonable (lower than stock) ride height, but it boasts zero compliance even with the knobs twirled towards the soft side until my fingers blistered. I’ve driven it on the track where it feels okay, but on bumpy roads the car skitters over road imperfections and bounces the occupants heads off the roof over larger ones. I’ve since procured a proper set of shocks and springs from a Miata specialist but have yet to fit them. Once I’ve done so, I will have to decide if my conscience will allow me to sell the like-new BC Racing setup on eBay. Although I could probably recover some of the costs I’ve incurred in replacing them, part of me wouldn’t feel right inflicting them on some poor unsuspecting person. If that part prevails they will go straight into the bin!
You should have no qualms about reselling the BC coilovers, as long as you are up front about what they are. Someone is looking for that exact setup. Horses for courses.....
I think they are made in Taiwan, not China. They are not the best, but they are not the worst either -- they are certainly motorsports / track day orientated though. "I’ve driven it on the track where it feels okay" Well, it's designed for track days. You can't have both tight transient response in your MX-5 race car on super sticky Advan A048 tyres, **and** a complaint ride too, it doesn't work like that! Any suspension, like BC, that is designed to offer body control despite the high loads generated by super sticky track day and R-compound tyres is not going to ride well. Conversely, if you put A048s on a MX-5 with stock suspension (assuming an NA MX-5, those were 175mm 14" tyres on a standard one!), the body roll will be horrific, as the suspension will be overwhelmed by the grip generated by the tyres! :)
@@bobmcl2406 Exactly, someone will be looking to build a MX-5 race car or hillclimb car, and while the BC Racing coilovers are not the best of the best (i.e., your KW V3 or Ohlins or so forth), they are certainly OK and will do much better than a stock setup when paired with super sticky tyres. I guess where 576103 or the previous owner went wrong is thinking they are suitable for road car use. As always you have to check the spring rates, calculate natural frequencies and so on yourself (the sportiest OEM setups on road cars tend to be about 1.5-2 Hz suspension natural frequency, so you don't want to go any higher than that in terms of natural frequency -- whereas an S class might be well under 1 hZ!) -- it's a compromise. Between stock and a racing setup, there are intermediate setups of say lowering springs with uprated sports shocks (e.g., Koni Yellow, Koni DFV, Bilstein etc). So you could use something like that to say make a super-soft old MX5 drive like a more modern sporty road car like a S2000. It sounds like 576103's Miata specialist has clued them in on a setup along these lines, which is probably a good choice. The S2000's stock setup is quite stiff (for that good transient response on modern tyres), but not to the level of a BC Racing motorsport-orientated setup. PS. For some amusement check out Gabe's (OneLapHeroes, a racing driver) rant on the ND MX5 suspension being excessively soft: ruclips.net/video/-ICyUZmn1UA/видео.html "A brand new car that drives like a 30 year old car. Mazda set out to make the NA reborn, and recreated all the bad points of a 30 year old car. Totally unacceptable." Seems like what he really wanted was a Honda S2000, but with the miserly fuel consumption of the 1.5L MX5! :)
'Coilover' setups vary a lot! That's why they use inter-changable motorsport springs after all, where said springs are available anywhere from 2kg/mm (road-car-ish) up to 20 kg/mm (rock-solid) at 1 kg/mm increments. Some 'coilover' setups are around 3-5 kg/mm spring rate, giving about a 1.5Hz-1.8Hz suspension natural frequency (depending on corner weight & suspension motion ratio), which is about the same as an OEM setup on a sporty road car like a Subaru WRX or Renault Megane RS (OE setups tend to use progressive rate springs that are not fully linear though). Others 'coilover' setups run 14 kg/mm or more, which is rock-solid and is designed for a racing car, on slick tyres, on a circuit with heavily loaded corners (such a setup is totally crazy and unreasonable for a road car!). Even so, even if the BC setup for a LS400 is at the WRX/RenaultSport road car side of things (based on the sporty dampers they have available), that is still ****dramatically**** stiffer than the incredibly soft suspension the LS400 came with as standard! That's why I doubt BC Racing would have something that is truly suitable for a LS400, as it is out side their wheel house.
I really enjoyed the S Class series & this one is a little gem as well ... Once again Lexus proves it's in another customer care league ... something the German manufacturers just don't get ... that Lexus would still be bothered with an older model speaks volumes ...👍
years ago we bought a 6/7 year old LS400 from Lexus Guildford so it was relatively small money for them. Both Guildford and Reading Lexus support and service was superb. So much so that after years of indifferent or plain poor service for Mercedes and BMW dealers we reverted back to Lexus. When you spend £50k on a new car your confidence in the future service of the dealer is an important thing to consider.
I've had cars with leaking boot seals before and it's been capillary action where water tracks around the flange under the seal. Remove seal, clean flange, a bit of sealant and refit seal. Job done 👍
Regarding your water ingress through the drivers door. I had a bmw with the same problem a while ago, and I also was barking up the door seal tree. In the end tho I found that the plastic sheet behind the door card was missing, so I made a new one from a sheet I bought from b + q cut carefully to fit and fixed in place with mastic, voila, no more leak. Fairly easy fix too.
From what I saw you only adjusted the damping, you will need to reduce the preload on the coil spring with a C Wrench quite a lot, as it looks like someone has wound that right up! Will be worth experimenting with. If you can get it into the ballpark of acceptability it would be nice to be able to find tune the ride. Or just fit standard springs and shocks, but where’s the fun in that!
You should look into Lanoguard as a cheap and very easy way to protect the underside of your car. Some good videos worth watching on RUclips. You would buy whole kit for under £90 and do the job in minutes. My dad just bought it for his Saab and was impressed.
Honestly, go on eBay or any Toyota/Lexus scrap yard and get 2nd hand front shocks for this car - original ones. If you want to experience the car how it is from the factory, get OEM parts and flip the 3rd party BC front suspension. Never watched your channel before but if you handy and have the space, you can replace the bushes, service the suspension and it's done. You can even get the compressor for the aircon on the 2nd hand market - infact I wouldn't bother with new parts unless you plan to keep the car for another 20 years and have deep pockets.
The OEM struts are by KYB. Even though they won't be tuned exactly the way the OEM strut is tuned, for a car of this age I would probably suggest avoiding the OEM unless you really are concerned about a perfect original ride. If the struts for the hood a.k.a. bonnet or the trunk a.k.a. boot start to fail you can also get KYB replacements and easily install them yourself.
FYI, As long as the engine does not have varible valve timing Your engine is not a interference engine,you only need to change your cam belt when it's broke. That leather and dashboard is in pristine condition. I wanted a 1996 through 1997 LS400 to avoid the variable valve timing in my USA market, 1998 adds variable valve timing interference engine.
no wonder the look over was free......the amount they would charge you just for the repairs would truely outweigh everything else, its a lovely looker, and definately worth keeping in tip top condition, i would love to see this done in a 'clever' way. looking forward to an update. good luck with the rebuild mate.
The waterproblem could be the drainage from the AC. At least that was the case with a IS250 from a friend of mine. We cut a bigger hole in the plug right above the transmission and all the water flooded out. No problems since then from what I've heard.
Check the drains in the bottom of the drivers door. On my bmw these were blocked when I bought it and it was flooding the bottom of the door and coming in through the door panel. I stuck the blade key into the drain holes and cured the problem.
I'd try driving it on every setting on the front coilovers, it probably drove fine on them before so one of the settings must match the rears i'd think
It seems you got yourself a cheap one with relatively minor problems. Personally speaking, I prefer the LS430 (I'd like an SC430, but decent ones are pricey).
Without doubt your best bet regarding Sumo’s suspension is to revert to standard using good used parts. There is a 54,000 mile car being broken for spares on EBay right now, buy any low mileage shocks that are not leaking, together with original springs.
16yrs ago i had a Japanese import Toyota/Lexus Soarer 2.5 twin turbo, it needed a drivers side shock, only place i could buy from it was from Lexus…£320!!! For one shock and that was 16yrs ago, id cry now if i had to get one but saying that it was wonderful to drive afterwards.
Great video and considering the mileage not that bad at all. Looking forward to seeing you sort the major issues. That’s the thing with Lexus, they rarely go wrong but when they do main dealer parts prices are unbelievable although servicing even for my 5.0 V8 ISF is very reasonable hence why I still use them over a specialist, owned a 08 ISF for 5 years serviced at Lexus and recently bought a later facelift ISF which is 11 years old yet the dealer treats you like you’re in a new car when you visit. I’ve had every new Lexus model as a free courtesy car whilst my ISF was in for service too. They treat you so well as a customer and make you feel special. I’ve never had that with any other dealer.
Hi Jack at about 11:14 there appears to be a drip onto the corner of the front passenger seat coming from the sun roof.. Or it's getting late and the Christmas lights are playing tricks with my eyesight 🙈👍👍
Just get the replacement shocks from factory or KYB and factory springs. If you want better handling but not harsh go with Koni shocks. BC Racing coilovers....no way...
That leaking rack looks just to be around where you tighten up the play between pinion and rack, you may find it is just a seal, you can do it yourself
The rubber is beginning to go… I have one too. It mostly sits under a cover in the back yard now. Still runs, kind of looks good from a distance, but not sure how much longer it will survive
Fascinating - I run a Lexus great car - not quite sure they are quite as legendary as you sometimes hear, in my case underside corrosion on what is quite a new car. But overall it’s a great car and excellent Lexus service as you rightly say, and glad Sumo getting a second lease of life in your and their care.
Toyota and Lexus are renowned for their after-sales care so you were definitely in safe hands. To get this for free - big respect. I'm sure that an online search is an easy(ish) way to source a 2nd hand Battery clamp/figment. The cost - estimate £50 or under. As for the rest...... leaving that up to you and more knowledgeable Subs to find a solution. Good luck, Jack.
A power steering rack leak was the thing that made me sell my Mazda 3 which also had noisy wheel bearing and other corroded components. The cost for a garage to fix this was over 1000, car worth 700. I sourced part of one from a scrap yard for 150 but sadly a different part of the set up failed a year later. Started feeling a bit unsafe driving it. If that leak worsens the pressure is such that you can loose power steering rapidly and at any speed. Mazda only sold the whole thing as 1 part. I got 400 trade in for it and then I’m shocked to see when out of curiosity I checked its MOT history it’s still on the road. So maybe they found cheaper options. I like the old ls400. It was very well made and very luxurious. Ride was nearly best in class so those springs clearly aren’t quite right.
To be fair to the Lexus dealership,even if you were paying for it,I think it would be correct of them to include in a 'Safety Check' everything they deemed important.Really interesting.Cheers!
Hi Jack, Regarding the waterleakage from the driversdoor: the door isn't properly aligned, allowing to let water past the seal. You can clearly see the door not pressing the seal deep enough. Please do align the door correctly, before you do anything else...
sounds good...in may ways about the same as the merc once you ignore the 3k for the steering rack, so expect a similar outlay i.e between 500- 1k. most items do seem more minor though, so one up to lexus.
Lexus main dealers sound wonderful. I’ve never had a Lexus but if the experience you’ve had is universal then maybe that will change. I’d rather set my BMW on fire than have to take it back to my local dealer.
The intro is more than hilarious😂 List of issues is not long considering the cars age. Would do anti-coilovering the front, with new shocks all around.
My experience after visiting Lexus dealerships/shops in two different Euro countries is that it seems to me that they have the same orders in how to treat their customers (my guess from Lexus Coprorate in Japan).... because it has been such a big difference compared to the usual dealership experience (pick any common major Euro brand) & i´m not talking about when buying a car but when u bring it in to have a problem fixed. Yes...Lexus parts can be very expensive depending upon what part & for what model...this is true....it is what it is. But, the way the staff works with you to solve your problem & fix your car.... this is where they shine & labor cost is in my experience not worse than any other dealership. I´m not a fanatic Lexus fanboy...loyalty goes both ways... But, as long as Lexus keeps up the build quality of their cars & as long as the dealerships don´t act like they are fat & happy...I´ll stick to Lexus.
Watching this one now and streaming on television as I like to do for a bit in the weekend. I like the kind of videos where you go to the dealer (doctor haha) for a checkup. I did the shocks earlier today on the Triumph GT6 ;) and installed finally the wire wheels. Concerning the mishmash ;) on the ride: first thing I would suggest is to get it a bit higher at the front. It is a heavy car at the front and needs enough travel to have some dampening going on! If that doesn’t help, I would go for a standard solution which is fitting original springs on the BC shocks. If not okay, you could tackle the back. If the back at this moment is okay, I wouldn’t change too much at the back. Shocking how many parts aren’t available anymore. Typical a Japanese manufacturer issue. Back in the days when Japanese cars came on the continent, after 3 or only 5 years, the range was often totally renewed, not only facelifted, making finding parts very difficult. That still persists it seems… Cheers from Belgium 🇧🇪
Jack, it's looking like you have the makings of a really good car. Regarding the water leak in the boot. It might be a failed seal in the corner. Remove the seal and inject sealant into the seal groove at the corner positions and refit. Water has capillary action an it can track its way under the seal and all the way up and over the body mounting flange then drip into the boot. ATB, Nick
The coil overs will be spring adjustment that knob on top is for final tuning. The preload is to tight and will need backing off BC should be able to this simply. LS400 shocks are about 5times standard after market shocks. BC coil over shocks are better for final adjustment and longevity . If no history on CAMBELT change it now!!!!!!!!!!!!!! agree with Paul Riggers
A Neighbour had a similar wet carpet issue on his Audi A8 , turned out to be the roof drains down the A pillar, they block and the water ends up inside the car and results in very wet carpets. In an A8 the main ECUs are under the carpet!! not a good idea where, due to the design, its liable to get very wet. My old E46 BMW had similar issues with the drain off points getting blocked, but it was a very easy fix, unlike the Audi!
I have a 2000 LS400 I didn't know it first there was a water issue in the trunk until the spring thaw.. I had this horrible smell coming from my trunk. I could not find the issue and when I started to remove everything in the back, I saw the whole spare tire section was flooded with water... I was told to clean out all the drainage areas which I did but it did not solve the problem. It turns out the trunk hatch was a little raised on the passenger side so somebody removed it and straightened it out for me and that solve the problem but I haven't yet put the spare tire and the mat above that back yet.. my steering wheel column does not go up and down and I would like that fixed. But I'm assuming they'll charge an arm and a leg otherwise I'm happy with the car. But where I live there are lots of hills and some ice in the winter and a rear wheel drive car is not ideal for that kind of driving
Solid car and yes they are built as best as they could be (unlike Mercedes of the same era), insecure battery is an MOT fail as I'm sure you know, weeping shocks are too although it is the discretion of the tester. Steering rack will be a seal or O-ring and not £3000+ to fix. I'd fit some standard front suspension if it can be found used and rebuilt? You can see the dimensions/travel of the coilovers just isn't right at all, spring should be much larger and more open. A good car though, well done.
The roof drains can part in the A post, then water runs into the foot well. It happened to my GS300. I came back of holiday in Canada to find the drivers side full of water. it took a good while to repair and dry out.
Just another thing, regarding the water coming into the boot. My drive is slightly sloping and if I park faced downhill the boot would get water in like yours. What I did was install a drain in the corner on both sides to run the water away, no problems any more.
It'll definitely be the boot seal letting water in there. The current seal may look ok but they fail, common fault. You can buy non genuine boot seals for about £30.
![Luxury UNDER £1000 - Mercedes Vs Lexus, Which is Better? [LS400 Vs S500]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/0kaLMcRWfEM/mqdefault.jpg)
![Luxury UNDER £1000 - Mercedes Vs Lexus, Which is Better? [LS400 Vs S500]](/img/tr.png)
How refreshing to hear of how good the Lexus customer service was. Well done Lexus. Looks like you have a decent car, looking forward to more on this
I really like the Lexus customer service. I go to Lexus Glasgow
Lexus have a great reputation for customer service, although the prices are eye-watering, and reliability. Be interesting to see how your LS400 turns out, thanks very much for sharing.
As long as Jack can fix the water leaks and fix the rust all will be well.
As an aside, the boys at Lexus of Reading certainly did you a solid by doing that inspection for free. They might not accept payment, but I bet a case of beer dropped off on a Friday afternoon would be much appreciated by everyone! 🍻👍
Exactly ..Go do it ..Free means they have invested upfront with their customers and transparent with the cost .Whether You or I like it or not ..a Case of beer or a Platter or M&S sandwiches will be great . Go do it
@@rajmax6922
That is exactly what I do when my mechanic doesnt charge for small things.
You're not wrong but they do get exposure and it's good way to advertise their customer service :)
Have owned a fair number of the usual high end German makes over the years in addition to two Lexi. The service experience from Lexus USA has been far superior to any of the others going back at least a dozen years. Dropped off my LS460 this morning and was given my pick of service loaner vehicles to drive for the day. Last time (and I do mean the last time) I took a vehicle to the BMW dealer for a recall service, they acted as if they were doing me a huge favor by calling an Uber for me. This type of customer service keeps me coming back to Lexus products, in addition to their stellar reliability. Cheers!
I think that is a german premium cars dealerships' global customer policy to treat every customer like s...t
That is so true, I purchased one of my Lexus vehicles from Carvana. I took it to the Lexus dealer for a check up. They let me use the loaner for a day because they didn't want me to wait all day.
I owned a 1998 ‘R’ Mk IV LS400 and ran this for 13 years and 235k miles - it is still the best car I have ever owned and even as the car got older, I managed to source new parts for the vehicle but not always via main dealers. Plenty of general garages can work on these cars with no problems whatsoever. My local Lexus dealer who are still servicing my 18 year old LS430 offer me great deals on their servicing and labour rates to encourage me to keep using them for works. Their service is excellent and in my opinion the best of all the manufacturers out there 👌👌👌
Amazing! It’s good to know how it is still going great!
there is only one way to get the correct ride back - throw those coilovers in the bin + refit normal springs + struts.
your battery clamp is in the boot. drill a hole next to the snapped stud + put a M6 nut+ bolt in [thats the ones with the 10mm head]
CHANGE YOUR CAMBELT!!! keep up the good work
Better still, put the coilovers on Ebay and use the cash to buy a good 2nd hand set of original spec springs. Modifications rarely make a car better!
@@TheMentalblockrock Now that is an advice. Don't ask how I know lol
This guy has no mechanical knowledge whatsoever. It’s almost painful.
@@mark4lev don’t watch it, it will not hurt you then 😂😂. Sorry I couldn’t resist.
Coilovers are better
Lexus service for me was brilliant . When I broke down in Galway the guys were so good and ended up charging me nothing for cleaning out dreaded egr valve . Same at home in Glasgow where the guys always did more than they needed . Best service I have ever had !!
My mom had a 1995 LS400 that we bought “certified pre-owned” in 1998. That car was unbelievably luxurious in its day. We were the envy of the neighborhood!
I had similar wet issues on an old peugeot 405. Mega cheap solution that fixed it perfectly. Take off the door trim in its entirity and inspect it for cracks and splits. Assuming the surface of the metal is showing rust, paint it with Hammerite (it aint going to be seen under a seal anyway) and to fix the leaking, apply some clear Shower sealant into the seal slot, as it slides into place, use a mallet and if theres any excess you can see wipe it off just the same as you do in a shower. I had a dry car after that until I sold it on after 10 great years and 145000 miles, 10 MOTs with only minor weldong needed and a new ball joint. Cheap and cheerful repair that works
There is a reason why Lexus (Toyota) has the reputation they have, this is a driving proof. I think that with a little work and few hundred pounds you'll be able to drive another 200K miles. On the power steering, it seems that a seal(o-ring) deteriorated, the cheap guy here would take it apart, measure everything and find a generic replacement, if I could not find an original. Perhaps your RUclips prestige can open the door of a rebuilding place and they either give you the seal or tell you what you need.
Regarding the steering rack, he can drive as it is for many years as long he keeps topping it up. I had a civic many years ago that when I bought it the steering rack was leaking already. I got a quote to replace it and I ran away from it. Owned the car for 10 years always topping it up now and then without issues.
Please listen to me (because we usually agree and play with the same cars)…..The instrument binnacle on that car is ingenious. One of the best and simplest designs. The lights reflect and look like they float. You need to fix that.
Also, if available, just buy the factory shocks and experience it like you should. It’s brilliant.
Jack, it's a pity the previous owners chose to stuff about with the suspension components, those cars had a lovely comfortable ride in standard trim. Lexus service is legendary, albeit expensive.
Replace the door seal, new shocks all the way around and it'll be fine. Definitely don't want to keep the mishmash suspension 😂
Oh and the mishmash with the shocks is definitely a thing. If the front wheels hit a bump, they will start oscillating, then a few milliseconds later, the rear hits the same bump and starts oscillating. If the damping is not chosen properly, front-to-back, then they can combine in uncomfortable ways. If it were me, I'd replace all four with stock (or stock equivalent aftermarket shocks). Just my humble opinion, because you said you want to experience it the way it should be. If there are aftermarket coilovers on the front, they are probably too stiff.
A few years ago I took my GS450H into Lexus Lincoln for check engine light. Turned out to be dirty lambda sensor which they cleaned. They asked me if I wanted them to wash the car, which I politely declined. I asked for the bill and they said no charge! The car was a long time out of warranty and didn't even come from them! Best customer service ever!
Those shock-absorbers are designed so you can reduce the tension in the spring by backing off the knurled spring seat at the bottom. Before you start spending I'd just try progressively adjusting the springs and see if it reduces the fore-and-aft pitching.
Lexus always seem to score highly on customer care and overall reliability of their cars. Look forward to further progress. 👍
Get some second hand or rebuilt shocks for the car if you want it to feel like a Lexus, BCS will not let you enjoy the ride the way it was intended, even with 4 of them.
Coil Overs are always harder than stock even on their lowest setting.
Might be worth checking the scuttle panel drains too? They could be clogged with crud
I'd second that.
Hi Jack, not too bad from Lexus (even if they quoted for unobtainable parts!). For your door, until it is rehung (and boot lid), lather the seals in vaseline as a temp fix (MR2 owners have done it for decades on the T-Bars!), aside from that, balance the suspenders and it'll be tidy.
I would only do that if you are going to replace them. If I'm not mistaken that is a petroleum product and will cause the rubber to degrade. I think it causes it to swell first, which would explain why it works (as well as just having goop in there).
Vaseline on weather strips ? 😳 No, no and no ! It will kill the rubber. There is silicone grease specifically available for that. I've been using it for decades on my old car. It works perfectly on rubber seals, re-softening them almost as new. I saved a friend's 1974 TR6 dried and cracking windshield seals with it...
The previous "short-term" owner, who wound the suspension up, could've maybe fitted stiffer springs? I'd see if there are any serial numbers on the springs you can double-check with BC. Mind you, in my humble opinion, for what it's worth, I'd just junk them for some OEN struts.
Glad to hear that Lexus service is still good. We always found them to be excellent. Parts prices can be a bit crazy. Looking forward to seeing how you get on with this car.
Look, prices can be crazy, but if you do the work yourself, at least you save on labour and you have a genuine part. I learn this the hard way. No more rubbish parts. Only genuine or parts with a good name on it eg: Blue print etc.
Another great video Jack, as I’ve said before I had one of these and an LS430 at the same time. I remember being upset in my early ownership at hitting a fox taking people to Cardiff Airport. I thought the damage on the fog light was going to be expensive as it was pushed back into the bumper. When I checked it at home I saw a steel bracket that had actually limited the damage and stopped the unit from falling apart. I’m sure this belt and braces build quality saved me a lot of money as I was able to pull things back into place with just a small crack in the plastic.
For everyone who was concerned about the fox, with cubs, I saw no sign of it on or near the road on the way home so hopefully it got away ok. Thanks again Jack. Regards, Bob M. South Wales
P.S. the fox wasn’t taking people to the airport, I was 🤗🤪
Cheers Bob, have a good holidays Mate!
@@Number27 Thanks, and you and family as well. I love watching your enjoyable episodes and look forward to more news and trials 🤭 with your interesting purchases. Regards, Bob M.
@@bobmizen1 I wanted to double-check on those foxy airport minicab drivers 👍👍. (edit:+1)
I own a LS400 and installed BC Coilovers with high end springs. Its wonderful that it handles better but the ride is atrocious in comparison to the old luxury wafty ride. So I suggest you buy front OEM units if you want the lovely ride. It actually handles decently with the OEM units for a big body 90s luxury car.
With your sunroof drains, there are hoses coming from each corner of the roof where you've already cleared the drains. I'm not sure on the Lexus but on many other cars this is a semi-rigid plastic hose that connects to rubber elbow "valves" that exit into the inner wing/wheelarch area.
The semi-rigid plastic hose shrinks and pulls out of the rubber elbow "valves" allowing water to come straight out of the drain hose into the footwell. Try looking behind the driver side kick panel but also check that where the body flanges are on the inner wing at the front end of the boot aperture aren't letting all the water in which is then flowing forwards due to gravity and/or breaking. You show the flanges at 7:19 in the video, should be seam sealer but it isn't always sufficient, water gets in the gap between the flanges and rots it then makes the boot and drivers footwell wet
Yes, I also wanted to suggest that there are many ways that a sunroof can deliver water to the floor, so don't stop looking there just yet.
Looks like those coil overs also have a fair bit of preload added to the springs, may be worth trying backing those off a bit as well as dialling down the damping which you have already done.
They are a brilliant car! But, only when original. Unfortunately lots have been ruined by conversions. Here in Thailand they are about 3 times the UK price!
Honestly, for the money, that seems like a fantastic car.
Yes You'll find the boot seal and it's lip need to be cleaned and then silicone applied to the lip before the seal is refitted. I've had this on every LS400 I've had, loved them but spares are getting hard to find now. The rear subframes are subject to rust.
Another great vid Jack.
That leak in the footwell? Had same on a Hyundai 'Tucson'. Chased it for months. Long story short.
Checked the sunroof drain. Used a long thin fibreglass rod. Not blocked etc. BUT, later found the plastic drain pipe connected to the sunroof dain hole had detached due shrinkage of this old plastic pipe. So blowing it clear and 'rodding' it through never showed up this detachment issue. Just a thought.........
Good for you Lexus Reading. Nice to hear of good service!!!!!!
I wonder if any bulkhead drainage tubes are blocked in the engine bay too ?. If they are serious levels of water will drop down the bulkhead into the footwells. My own vehicle had this problem and some years ago a friends Passat was in the same state . The drain holes were full of mud and moss.
Hard ride in the front can be too much pre-load on the springs like motorcycle. Back-off the 2 rings with a C-spanner to lessen the hard ride. Then check the sag.
I for one think thats a very intelligent thing to do - take the Merc & the Lexus to a dealer to see how much they intend to charge & then see how much cheaper they are to fix elsewhere -Brilliant strategy - agree 100%
Always wanted a first gen LS400, from the time my boss had a new one early nineties in upstate NY. Your experience with that dealer makes me want one all over again. Build quality in cars just seems to be a thing of the past...
Stick a fresh set of kyb shockers on it all round and remove those coilovers 👍
I had a '94 North America model. The dashboard not lighting up is due to a fault in the wiring harness in the trunk. When the temperature gets low, one of the plugs slips out because it shrinks. It just needs to be popped back in. You might have to do this every winter.
When I had mine, Lexus admitted that it was a common problem, and while they charged me (about $60, I think it was) the first time, every subsequent winter I took it in and they did it for free.
Loving this series. It seems that your Lexus is in great shape. So far! Great stuff Jack - good luck with it.
Great video Jack, my daily is a Lexus and I find Lexus customer care excellent! I’m in for service three times a year once you get a relationship going with your dealership the price of service/labour comes down!
Not the most exciting cars in the world but in my experience they are by far the most reliable.
Agree absolutely, a friend of mine bought a used Lexus from his local dealer years ago, it's done many, many kilometres, always serviced by that dealer. The Lexus looks and runs like new.
@@gazzafloss Yeah they are superb cars! Look after them and they can last an awfully long time!
The only way to get a perfect ride in an LS400 is to go back to original spec suspension. The designers put many thousands of hours into the LS400 only for people to mess it up with after market parts. Every time people modify a Lexus they make it worse then complain.
Regarding the dash lights, I had the same issue on my 2002 Ford Taurus with 250K miles on it. Before you take apart the dash to replace one or more bulbs, try a frequency input. Pound on top of the dash over the dash cluster with you fist a few times. It worked for me. Take care, from California USA.
When they fitted the new door...check the wiring for the door clips correctly in the door as sometimes when they replace the door the wiring loom is not clipped in properly and water trickles into the footwells. My sister's range rover had this issue and I managed to fix it by clipping it back in n using some high temp gasket silicone.
Regarding the suspension - it can be fairly difficult to sort out by the seat of your pants. Especially if the front and the back were not designed to work with each other. There are some basic equations you can use to put yourself in the ballpark for spring rates, and if you know the unsprung weighs at each corner, and the car's weight, the shock companies can give you a setting that will be close. As a rule, the softer the set-up, the wider the window will be for acceptability. This is because softer set's have lower frequencies, in which the harmonics are more widely spread, so it's easier to find a quiet frequency with no harmonic problems. Harmonic will manifest themselves as is elations, boomy periods or vibrations which seem to come and go.
Aftermarket boot seals on fleabay but removing the old one and cleaning all the crud off it then cleaning the metal boot lip, applying silicone sealer then refitting the seal normally works.
Steering rack is an interesting one. Power steering packed up on my IS250 and saw some eye wateringly similar prices for a new steering rack. Replaced the power steering ECU for a £20 second-hand part just in case and it cured the issue, but the cost of things like a steering rack put me off (relatively) posh motoring.
Astonishing how much Lexus charges for a rack.
The values of LS400s have really started to rocket now, I paid £500 for my 140k FSH 1996 model six years ago. Unfortunately I have hacked it up pretty badly in order to fit a rear mount turbo in there and generally abuse it. Oh well, it's still fun!!
Great cars
Hey Jack, no wonder the components are weeping, it,s the £8000 total quote.
BC Racing is a company set up to support the “Fast and Furious” tuner crowd. They produce cheap, Chinese-made junk that enables you to lower the car so the entire thing can scrape on the ground, which is what the kids like. They also have spring rates far higher than stock, for that miserable bouncy ride. Finally, they have adjustable damping knobs which can be twirled around and around with no apparent effect.
Job One should be to source a proper set of stock front struts, and then deposit the existing ones straight into the bin!
I bought a Miata that was slammed to the ground with BC coilovers. I was able to raise it to a reasonable (lower than stock) ride height, but it boasts zero compliance even with the knobs twirled towards the soft side until my fingers blistered. I’ve driven it on the track where it feels okay, but on bumpy roads the car skitters over road imperfections and bounces the occupants heads off the roof over larger ones. I’ve since procured a proper set of shocks and springs from a Miata specialist but have yet to fit them. Once I’ve done so, I will have to decide if my conscience will allow me to sell the like-new BC Racing setup on eBay. Although I could probably recover some of the costs I’ve incurred in replacing them, part of me wouldn’t feel right inflicting them on some poor unsuspecting person. If that part prevails they will go straight into the bin!
AM looking at some standard shocks!!
You should have no qualms about reselling the BC coilovers, as long as you are up front about what they are. Someone is looking for that exact setup. Horses for courses.....
I think they are made in Taiwan, not China. They are not the best, but they are not the worst either -- they are certainly motorsports / track day orientated though. "I’ve driven it on the track where it feels okay" Well, it's designed for track days. You can't have both tight transient response in your MX-5 race car on super sticky Advan A048 tyres, **and** a complaint ride too, it doesn't work like that! Any suspension, like BC, that is designed to offer body control despite the high loads generated by super sticky track day and R-compound tyres is not going to ride well. Conversely, if you put A048s on a MX-5 with stock suspension (assuming an NA MX-5, those were 175mm 14" tyres on a standard one!), the body roll will be horrific, as the suspension will be overwhelmed by the grip generated by the tyres! :)
@@bobmcl2406 Exactly, someone will be looking to build a MX-5 race car or hillclimb car, and while the BC Racing coilovers are not the best of the best (i.e., your KW V3 or Ohlins or so forth), they are certainly OK and will do much better than a stock setup when paired with super sticky tyres. I guess where 576103 or the previous owner went wrong is thinking they are suitable for road car use. As always you have to check the spring rates, calculate natural frequencies and so on yourself (the sportiest OEM setups on road cars tend to be about 1.5-2 Hz suspension natural frequency, so you don't want to go any higher than that in terms of natural frequency -- whereas an S class might be well under 1 hZ!) -- it's a compromise.
Between stock and a racing setup, there are intermediate setups of say lowering springs with uprated sports shocks (e.g., Koni Yellow, Koni DFV, Bilstein etc). So you could use something like that to say make a super-soft old MX5 drive like a more modern sporty road car like a S2000. It sounds like 576103's Miata specialist has clued them in on a setup along these lines, which is probably a good choice. The S2000's stock setup is quite stiff (for that good transient response on modern tyres), but not to the level of a BC Racing motorsport-orientated setup.
PS. For some amusement check out Gabe's (OneLapHeroes, a racing driver) rant on the ND MX5 suspension being excessively soft: ruclips.net/video/-ICyUZmn1UA/видео.html "A brand new car that drives like a 30 year old car. Mazda set out to make the NA reborn, and recreated all the bad points of a 30 year old car. Totally unacceptable." Seems like what he really wanted was a Honda S2000, but with the miserly fuel consumption of the 1.5L MX5! :)
'Coilover' setups vary a lot! That's why they use inter-changable motorsport springs after all, where said springs are available anywhere from 2kg/mm (road-car-ish) up to 20 kg/mm (rock-solid) at 1 kg/mm increments. Some 'coilover' setups are around 3-5 kg/mm spring rate, giving about a 1.5Hz-1.8Hz suspension natural frequency (depending on corner weight & suspension motion ratio), which is about the same as an OEM setup on a sporty road car like a Subaru WRX or Renault Megane RS (OE setups tend to use progressive rate springs that are not fully linear though). Others 'coilover' setups run 14 kg/mm or more, which is rock-solid and is designed for a racing car, on slick tyres, on a circuit with heavily loaded corners (such a setup is totally crazy and unreasonable for a road car!).
Even so, even if the BC setup for a LS400 is at the WRX/RenaultSport road car side of things (based on the sporty dampers they have available), that is still ****dramatically**** stiffer than the incredibly soft suspension the LS400 came with as standard! That's why I doubt BC Racing would have something that is truly suitable for a LS400, as it is out side their wheel house.
Check out a Toyota battery clamp, landcrusier or similar, got to be available and cheap at a breakers. And everything else you need for that matter.
I really enjoyed the S Class series & this one is a little gem as well ...
Once again Lexus proves it's in another customer care league ... something the German manufacturers just don't get ... that Lexus would still be bothered with an older model speaks volumes ...👍
Jack, you are such a breath of fresh air and a joy to listen to and watch...thank you!
years ago we bought a 6/7 year old LS400 from Lexus Guildford so it was relatively small money for them. Both Guildford and Reading Lexus support and service was superb. So much so that after years of indifferent or plain poor service for Mercedes and BMW dealers we reverted back to Lexus. When you spend £50k on a new car your confidence in the future service of the dealer is an important thing to consider.
I've had cars with leaking boot seals before and it's been capillary action where water tracks around the flange under the seal. Remove seal, clean flange, a bit of sealant and refit seal. Job done 👍
Will try thanks..
Regarding your water ingress through the drivers door. I had a bmw with the same problem a while ago, and I also was barking up the door seal tree. In the end tho I found that the plastic sheet behind the door card was missing, so I made a new one from a sheet I bought from b + q cut carefully to fit and fixed in place with mastic, voila, no more leak. Fairly easy fix too.
From what I saw you only adjusted the damping, you will need to reduce the preload on the coil spring with a C Wrench quite a lot, as it looks like someone has wound that right up! Will be worth experimenting with. If you can get it into the ballpark of acceptability it would be nice to be able to find tune the ride. Or just fit standard springs and shocks, but where’s the fun in that!
You should look into Lanoguard as a cheap and very easy way to protect the underside of your car. Some good videos worth watching on RUclips. You would buy whole kit for under £90 and do the job in minutes. My dad just bought it for his Saab and was impressed.
Honestly, go on eBay or any Toyota/Lexus scrap yard and get 2nd hand front shocks for this car - original ones.
If you want to experience the car how it is from the factory, get OEM parts and flip the 3rd party BC front suspension.
Never watched your channel before but if you handy and have the space, you can replace the bushes, service the suspension and it's done.
You can even get the compressor for the aircon on the 2nd hand market - infact I wouldn't bother with new parts unless you plan to keep the car for another 20 years and have deep pockets.
Used OEM front struts. KYB’s if you want to refresh everything. Cam belt. Drive it.
The OEM struts are by KYB. Even though they won't be tuned exactly the way the OEM strut is tuned, for a car of this age I would probably suggest avoiding the OEM unless you really are concerned about a perfect original ride. If the struts for the hood a.k.a. bonnet or the trunk a.k.a. boot start to fail you can also get KYB replacements and easily install them yourself.
FYI, As long as the engine does not have varible valve timing Your engine is not a interference engine,you only need to change your cam belt when it's broke. That leather and dashboard is in pristine condition. I wanted a 1996 through 1997 LS400 to avoid the variable valve timing in my USA market, 1998 adds variable valve timing interference engine.
no wonder the look over was free......the amount they would charge you just for the repairs would truely outweigh everything else, its a lovely looker, and definately worth keeping in tip top condition, i would love to see this done in a 'clever' way. looking forward to an update. good luck with the rebuild mate.
The waterproblem could be the drainage from the AC. At least that was the case with a IS250 from a friend of mine. We cut a bigger hole in the plug right above the transmission and all the water flooded out. No problems since then from what I've heard.
Check the drains in the bottom of the drivers door.
On my bmw these were blocked when I bought it and it was flooding the bottom of the door and coming in through the door panel.
I stuck the blade key into the drain holes and cured the problem.
I'd try driving it on every setting on the front coilovers, it probably drove fine on them before so one of the settings must match the rears i'd think
It seems you got yourself a cheap one with relatively minor problems. Personally speaking, I prefer the LS430 (I'd like an SC430, but decent ones are pricey).
Don't worry about the steering rack. It's very minor. Look for some kyb aftermarket struts. Maybe some KYB quick strut(all in one with springs).
Without doubt your best bet regarding Sumo’s suspension is to revert to standard using good used parts. There is a 54,000 mile car being broken for spares on EBay right now, buy any low mileage shocks that are not leaking, together with original springs.
16yrs ago i had a Japanese import Toyota/Lexus Soarer 2.5 twin turbo, it needed a drivers side shock, only place i could buy from it was from Lexus…£320!!! For one shock and that was 16yrs ago, id cry now if i had to get one but saying that it was wonderful to drive afterwards.
Great video and considering the mileage not that bad at all. Looking forward to seeing you sort the major issues.
That’s the thing with Lexus, they rarely go wrong but when they do main dealer parts prices are unbelievable although servicing even for my 5.0 V8 ISF is very reasonable hence why I still use them over a specialist, owned a 08 ISF for 5 years serviced at Lexus and recently bought a later facelift ISF which is 11 years old yet the dealer treats you like you’re in a new car when you visit.
I’ve had every new Lexus model as a free courtesy car whilst my ISF was in for service too. They treat you so well as a customer and make you feel special. I’ve never had that with any other dealer.
As they're virtually new I would sell the silly coilovers and buy a good second hand set of front struts!
Good advice!
Hi Jack at about 11:14 there appears to be a drip onto the corner of the front passenger seat coming from the sun roof.. Or it's getting late and the Christmas lights are playing tricks with my eyesight 🙈👍👍
Just get the replacement shocks from factory or KYB and factory springs. If you want better handling but not harsh go with Koni shocks. BC Racing coilovers....no way...
I bought an ls430 a few years back for my channel and made $2k overnight on it. These cars are amazing. Everything usually just works.
That leaking rack looks just to be around where you tighten up the play between pinion and rack, you may find it is just a seal, you can do it yourself
Check the door inner membrane as this can cause leaks if it comes away when the adhesive gives up the ghost, good luck with it 👍
The rubber is beginning to go… I have one too.
It mostly sits under a cover in the back yard now.
Still runs, kind of looks good from a distance, but not sure how much longer it will survive
Fascinating - I run a Lexus great car - not quite sure they are quite as legendary as you sometimes hear, in my case underside corrosion on what is quite a new car. But overall it’s a great car and excellent Lexus service as you rightly say, and glad Sumo getting a second lease of life in your and their care.
Toyota and Lexus are renowned for their after-sales care so you were definitely in safe hands. To get this for free - big respect.
I'm sure that an online search is an easy(ish) way to source a 2nd hand Battery clamp/figment. The cost - estimate £50 or under.
As for the rest...... leaving that up to you and more knowledgeable Subs to find a solution.
Good luck, Jack.
Thank you Graham!!
Ac compreser is not leaking, if refrigent is still ok.it's camshaft seal and front timming seal its common on UCF20L
A power steering rack leak was the thing that made me sell my Mazda 3 which also had noisy wheel bearing and other corroded components. The cost for a garage to fix this was over 1000, car worth 700. I sourced part of one from a scrap yard for 150 but sadly a different part of the set up failed a year later. Started feeling a bit unsafe driving it. If that leak worsens the pressure is such that you can loose power steering rapidly and at any speed. Mazda only sold the whole thing as 1 part. I got 400 trade in for it and then I’m shocked to see when out of curiosity I checked its MOT history it’s still on the road. So maybe they found cheaper options. I like the old ls400. It was very well made and very luxurious. Ride was nearly best in class so those springs clearly aren’t quite right.
To be fair to the Lexus dealership,even if you were paying for it,I think it would be correct of them to include in a 'Safety Check' everything they deemed important.Really interesting.Cheers!
Go and get a set of good second hand original shocks and springs dump the coilovers then you'll get the nice LS smooth ride.
Hi Jack,
Regarding the waterleakage from the driversdoor: the door isn't properly aligned, allowing to let water past the seal. You can clearly see the door not pressing the seal deep enough. Please do align the door correctly, before you do anything else...
Will do thanks Nico!
sounds good...in may ways about the same as the merc once you ignore the 3k for the steering rack, so expect a similar outlay i.e between 500- 1k. most items do seem more minor though, so one up to lexus.
thanks Chap.. it would seem so at this point but let's see how it pans out..
A great advert for Lexus. It would certainly point me in their direction, if I was looking for a car, which I am not !! Quality, honest service.
Where the rear 1/4 joins the frame inside the boot shut there will be a seam, check the seam sealer isn't cracked.
Sounds like just new rear shocks (if they're weeping they must be almost dead) and sort out the water leaks.
Lexus main dealers sound wonderful. I’ve never had a Lexus but if the experience you’ve had is universal then maybe that will change. I’d rather set my BMW on fire than have to take it back to my local dealer.
Top marks to Lexus, well done. I don't mean to sound like a stuck record but yet again the S Class looks like great value
you'll like the upcoming video where i compare the two Malcolm!!
One thing that I have noticed is that used cars in England are so much cheaper than they are in the US.
The intro is more than hilarious😂 List of issues is not long considering the cars age. Would do anti-coilovering the front, with new shocks all around.
My experience after visiting Lexus dealerships/shops in two different Euro countries is that it seems to me that they have the same orders in how to treat their customers (my guess from Lexus Coprorate in Japan).... because it has been such a big difference compared to the usual dealership experience (pick any common major Euro brand) & i´m not talking about when buying a car but when u bring it in to have a problem fixed.
Yes...Lexus parts can be very expensive depending upon what part & for what model...this is true....it is what it is. But, the way the staff works with you to solve your problem & fix your car.... this is where they shine & labor cost is in my experience not worse than any other dealership.
I´m not a fanatic Lexus fanboy...loyalty goes both ways... But, as long as Lexus keeps up the build quality of their cars & as long as the dealerships don´t act like they are fat & happy...I´ll stick to Lexus.
Watching this one now and streaming on television as I like to do for a bit in the weekend.
I like the kind of videos where you go to the dealer (doctor haha) for a checkup.
I did the shocks earlier today on the Triumph GT6 ;) and installed finally the wire wheels.
Concerning the mishmash ;) on the ride: first thing I would suggest is to get it a bit higher at the front. It is a heavy car at the front and needs enough travel to have some dampening going on! If that doesn’t help, I would go for a standard solution which is fitting original springs on the BC shocks. If not okay, you could tackle the back. If the back at this moment is okay, I wouldn’t change too much at the back.
Shocking how many parts aren’t available anymore. Typical a Japanese manufacturer issue. Back in the days when Japanese cars came on the continent, after 3 or only 5 years, the range was often totally renewed, not only facelifted, making finding parts very difficult. That still persists it seems…
Cheers from Belgium 🇧🇪
Jack, it's looking like you have the makings of a really good car. Regarding the water leak in the boot. It might be a failed seal in the corner. Remove the seal and inject sealant into the seal groove at the corner positions and refit. Water has capillary action an it can track its way under the seal and all the way up and over the body mounting flange then drip into the boot.
ATB, Nick
Thank you Nick, will try that!
The coil overs will be spring adjustment that knob on top is for final tuning. The preload is to tight and will need backing off BC should be able to this simply. LS400 shocks are about 5times standard after market shocks. BC coil over shocks are better for final adjustment and longevity . If no history on CAMBELT change it now!!!!!!!!!!!!!! agree with Paul Riggers
A Neighbour had a similar wet carpet issue on his Audi A8 , turned out to be the roof drains down the A pillar, they block and the water ends up inside the car and results in very wet carpets. In an A8 the main ECUs are under the carpet!! not a good idea where, due to the design, its liable to get very wet.
My old E46 BMW had similar issues with the drain off points getting blocked, but it was a very easy fix, unlike the Audi!
I have a 2000 LS400 I didn't know it first there was a water issue in the trunk until the spring thaw.. I had this horrible smell coming from my trunk. I could not find the issue and when I started to remove everything in the back, I saw the whole spare tire section was flooded with water... I was told to clean out all the drainage areas which I did but it did not solve the problem. It turns out the trunk hatch was a little raised on the passenger side so somebody removed it and straightened it out for me and that solve the problem but I haven't yet put the spare tire and the mat above that back yet.. my steering wheel column does not go up and down and I would like that fixed. But I'm assuming they'll charge an arm and a leg otherwise I'm happy with the car. But where I live there are lots of hills and some ice in the winter and a rear wheel drive car is not ideal for that kind of driving
Is there any plastic weather sheet inside the door ?
Lucas Oil Power Steering Stop Leak will take care of the power steering rack. assuming it's available in the UK.
Solid car and yes they are built as best as they could be (unlike Mercedes of the same era), insecure battery is an MOT fail as I'm sure you know, weeping shocks are too although it is the discretion of the tester. Steering rack will be a seal or O-ring and not £3000+ to fix. I'd fit some standard front suspension if it can be found used and rebuilt? You can see the dimensions/travel of the coilovers just isn't right at all, spring should be much larger and more open. A good car though, well done.
The roof drains can part in the A post, then water runs into the foot well. It happened to my GS300. I came back of holiday in Canada to find the drivers side full of water. it took a good while to repair and dry out.
Just another thing, regarding the water coming into the boot. My drive is slightly sloping and if I park faced downhill the boot would get water in like yours. What I did was install a drain in the corner on both sides to run the water away, no problems any more.
Thank you for the advice.. on the front leak if you watch the latest video you’ll see it’s coming from the screen!!
@@Number27 OK, my reply just might help others with this problem.
It'll definitely be the boot seal letting water in there. The current seal may look ok but they fail, common fault. You can buy non genuine boot seals for about £30.