New POD Posted August 23, 2019 Share Posted August 23, 2019 On 6/27/2019 at 10:43 PM, rantingYoof said: While the LS400 in that video of Supernaut's sounds insane, I don't want replace Modified Astra Guy as the anti-social car owner in the street. I once reved ( to 6000 rpm) the MX5 engine on our shared driveway At 5 am. It's got a stainless "cobalt blue" exhaust that is stupidly useless at silencing. It woke up the wife. I had to apologise to the neighbours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rantingYoof Posted August 23, 2019 Author Share Posted August 23, 2019 Does this one have double glazing? It looks absolutely beautiful with all its waftiness.No double glazing that I'm aware of. The whisper quiet cabin insulation is assisted by five silencers. Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fumbler Posted August 23, 2019 Share Posted August 23, 2019 I see, interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rantingYoof Posted September 14, 2019 Author Share Posted September 14, 2019 Update. Whacked it in for the fitting of its shim pads/anti-squeal doowhackies yesterday (total cost just over £100 from Lexus...OUCHIES) and the brakes are sublimely smooth and quiet now. They were smooth before but in my efforts to avoid them squealing I temporarily lost the ability to brake smoothly, like an ass. As the MOT was due at the end of September, I thought I'd go in for a pound and ask them to do that, too. It only went and bloody did a clean pass... 21 years old, 181k, clean pass. That is not just a credit to Lexus but also to its previous owners who have very clearly done it proud ( @sims00 obviously gets a mention). On Monday morning I'll be making the phone call to book in the exhaust works, seeing as I've not had to dip into any of my savings for the MOT. RayMK, Pat Earrings, Schaefft and 7 others 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rantingYoof Posted October 2, 2019 Author Share Posted October 2, 2019 Exhaust booked in for October 11th. First we'll try it out with the two rearmost silencers deleted. I suspect that'll be too obnoxious so I'm likely to splash a bit more out on two boxes. This is the sound I'm aiming for... Hopefully it'll be attainable on my pretty meagre budget. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rantingYoof Posted October 15, 2019 Author Share Posted October 15, 2019 This has now happened. I uploaded a potato to Youtube (or at least, Youtube turned a HD clip into a potato), but the sound is all that matters. The dashcam microphone dulls it slightly, but you get the gist. 1200-1800rpm is the 'sweet spot' for maximum grumble. It still ticks over silently, and cruises at 70mph in the same peaceful way, and even at 50mph in 5th it's still nearly silent, as long as you're on a flat bit of road! But as you can see, when you blip the throttle at 20-30mph like a childish moron it makes a very nice 'browwalllll'. The set up involved deleting the last two backboxes and running stainless steel nearly straight out to new dark chrome tips. £250 all in. I've got the original exhaust, which is in good condition, so the car remains very saleable in the future! Hawkeyethenoo, LightBulbFun, cpjitservices and 6 others 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rantingYoof Posted October 20, 2019 Author Share Posted October 20, 2019 An update after nearly a week of the exhaust being done... It still sounds quite muted when it's just been started up, and cold. As it warms up the sound becomes better, deeper and more prominent. When the engine is properly warm it becomes a joy...hooning it around the Brackley ringroad the other day keeping it in third gear each time made me grin like a moron. The sound is great from 1000-2000rpm, dips away a bit and then picks back up again at some point over 3000rpm, ending in a wonderful V8 roar. It's just as satisfying burbling slowly around town/villages...the sweet spot of 1200-1800rpm means you are always just burbling as you potter about. I officially turned someone's head yesterday...they probably expected to see something far more exciting and interesting than an inflated Camry, but I don't even think they shook their head in disappointment or pity! I've never been an attention seeker before! Well, not intentionally... I wonder how long it'll be before I get bored of this. FakeConcern, Coprolalia and LightBulbFun 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rantingYoof Posted March 13, 2020 Author Share Posted March 13, 2020 Update 'Check VSC' light is coming on nearly every time the car is started up. It still appears to be working, so I'm hoping this is a dodgy sensor. Although I may stop hoping that if the sensor turns out to be hard to get to, or expensive to replace. The judder under braking has returned. I'm hoping that, because I've hit a couple of potholes recently, the wheels just need a realignment/balance. I've read that this can badly affect LS400s (and presumably most cars). I really don't want to have yet more warped discs, as I've been very careful with these, using the foot-operated parking brake (and 'Neutral') after heavy stops instead of just holding it in 'Drive' on the normal brakes. To confirm what @loserone has previously said, it is indeed a good car for breast-feeding in. Wife and Little Miss both seem perfectly happy sitting in the back using a pillow and the massive armrest...the Little Miss so much that she once nearly got me a parking ticket by getting stuck in for a long nurse in a multistorey in MK. I've discovered driving the car in a multistorey is a LOT of fun...it rumbles about quite nicely. MPGs have suffered a bit over winter and mainly because I have a tendancy to hoon it and enjoy the soundtrack. I'm looking forward to being able to drive it about with the window/sunroof open more in warmer weather. Still haven't got the bubbly arch looked at. Not broken the paint yet but I reckon I'm tempting fate. TL:DR - life is still good with Mason II. LightBulbFun, loserone, Coprolalia and 7 others 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rantingYoof Posted March 20, 2020 Author Share Posted March 20, 2020 On 3/13/2020 at 10:28 PM, rantingYoof said: 'Check VSC' light is coming on nearly every time the car is started up. It still appears to be working, so I'm hoping this is a dodgy sensor. Although I may stop hoping that if the sensor turns out to be hard to get to, or expensive to replace. The judder under braking has returned. I'm hoping that, because I've hit a couple of potholes recently, the wheels just need a realignment/balance. I've read that this can badly affect LS400s (and presumably most cars). I really don't want to have yet more warped discs, as I've been very careful with these, using the foot-operated parking brake (and 'Neutral') after heavy stops instead of just holding it in 'Drive' on the normal brakes. Had these issues checked out today. The 'Check VSC' light is difficult for the friendly garage to read because of the age of the car (OBDII?). Basically it gives a number of codes but no live info, so very little data of any use. The error code could be thrown by a dodgy O2 sensor or something else entirely unrelated and unimportant. It may have come about because of works they did (or didn't do) during the exhaust being done. They've reset the warning and we'll see what happens. I'm just going to live with it. The brake judder is a more significant issue, and a potentially expensive one. The new discs have been unevenly worn, probably by the hubs (which are likely 185k old). So any new discs will get worn over time (in this case, six months), unless the hubs are replaced. Hubs cannot be sourced as aftermarket pieces (apparently) so it's Lexus main stealer or eBay. The latter suggests second-hand hubs for an LS400 of 1998 vintage can be bought for £50 a piece. The bearings would be replaced at the same time, at a similar amount per side for brand new OEM-spec aftermarket ones. £200. Then four hours of labour, so £240+VAT. £500ish, maybe a bit north, so the discs don't continue to wear unevenly and become unusable. Ach, well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schaefft Posted March 20, 2020 Share Posted March 20, 2020 Considering LS400s of this vintage get broken and scrapped constantly on FB, it shouldnt be too hard to find a set of them with around 100k miles for very little money (shipping might be the most expensive part of the price). The rest you can really only save by doing it yourself, which probably isnt a fun job at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Snipes Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 Brake judder was always an issue for is200s too. I wss told it was the hub warping but never got a DTI on one to really know for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rantingYoof Posted June 18, 2020 Author Share Posted June 18, 2020 So rather than sensibly look at getting the hubs sorted so the brakes don't warp, I've decided to explore spending money on other things. Exactly two months ago I bought @Hertz's 18" wheels which came off an RX300. For sale thread here: https://autoshite.com/topic/40317-lexus-rx300-18-alloys-for-sale-5-x-1143-£sold/ While I never expected to be specifically told that it's okay to drive 120 miles to collect something you've bought off an Internet, the various relaxations have been somewhat ambiguous in what it would allow someone to do. However, a polite message from Hertz asking if the wheels could be collected before the end of June has prompted me to arrange to collect these next Monday. As I could now technically drive to any beauty spot for some exercise, and seeing as you can have six friends in your garden for a BBQ, doing a collection mission now does not seem to be wholly inappropriate. I'm also desperate to go out for a long drive. The car's only done a 2 mile bimble to the local shopping court and back twice a week for nearly three months...it's on the same tank of petrol that it was on in March. It's MPG is currently suffering, about to dip below 20. Eep. The wheels need refurbishing, and the tyres are shot. My local tyre place will do all four (without tyres) for £220+VAT, and I'm thinking about a dark grey, not as dark as my current wheels but certainly a shade or two darker than standard. Tyres will be pricier than the refurb, although Black Circles have some decent looking budgets in at around £75 each (including delivery, fitting etc), so it looks like a new-looking set of 18"s with rubber could potentially set be back around £600 all in. Not terrible, and hopefully not money lost if it came to it. The very first thing I'm going to do, however, is try to find a local friendly place to pop all four tyres on the car so I can see what it'll look like. If I'm not convinced by how they look I may simply keep them as spares with the car. The only other news I have is that I will hopefully be getting some quotes soon on sorting out the arch bubbling. I've had the car nearly two years now and the bubbling hasn't really got any worse, but I don't want it to break through the paint. I could have a go myself but it'll look like a dog's dinner and the car is too good for that. Anyway, I'll do a live collection (as much as possible) on Monday, although @Jim Bell has frankly set outrageously high standards in this regard so it'll probably be tepid viewing at best. dome 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rantingYoof Posted June 22, 2020 Author Share Posted June 22, 2020 Today we answer one of the least important questions in the world. How many 18 inch wheels can you fit in the boot of an LS400?The space behind the driver's seat is also available, despite my gangly frame. Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk Supernaut and Saabnut 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hertz Posted June 22, 2020 Share Posted June 22, 2020 Hopefully the answer is 4. Have a safe trip see you in a bit. rantingYoof 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rantingYoof Posted June 22, 2020 Author Share Posted June 22, 2020 Hopefully the answer is 4. Have a safe trip see you in a bit.It was great to meet you.Currently eating lunch at a random services on the A50.Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk dome, GrumpiusMaximus, CreepingJesus and 4 others 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Honey Badger Posted June 22, 2020 Share Posted June 22, 2020 Excellent job in bringing the spare set of RX wheels I need closer to the cultural mecca that is Wellingborough. rantingYoof 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rantingYoof Posted June 22, 2020 Author Share Posted June 22, 2020 Full boot, full car, no eco run, air con and PWR button on all the way home.Lexus: Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk Lacquer Peel, Jerzy Woking, loserone and 8 others 11 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spottedlaurel Posted June 23, 2020 Share Posted June 23, 2020 Good score on the wheels, I think they will suit it well. They're a big car and can take 18s without looking daft. I liked mine on the GS300 Sport alloys. Approaching 32mpg is very good. Haven't got a clue what my new one is doing, but if the gearing is similar I imagine you weren't doing much more than 2000rpm at 60-70? I was pleased when I got near to 38mpg out of the RX on the last tankful, but that included some gentle 50-ish cruises on A-roads and it has a lot more technology than an LS..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rantingYoof Posted June 23, 2020 Author Share Posted June 23, 2020 70mph on GPS is 2150rpm with the torque converter locked in. The drive home was via the A50 with lots of phwoarrrrbbbbble acceleration. More miles in one day than the past three months combined. Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dollywobbler Posted June 23, 2020 Share Posted June 23, 2020 Now I'm wondering why on earth I got rid of Mason the First. 29.97mpg my record on a run. rantingYoof 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rantingYoof Posted June 23, 2020 Author Share Posted June 23, 2020 5 hours ago, dollywobbler said: Now I'm wondering why on earth I got rid of Mason the First. 29.97mpg my record on a run. I think you got a bit fed up of trying to thread him down Welsh roads. Before lockdown I was doing 200-300 miles a month on mostly rural rounds around the district I work in. Mason II can be hooned but in the small villages and in the tighter sections you really notice both his width and length. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Honey Badger Posted June 23, 2020 Share Posted June 23, 2020 18.5 mpg for my RX300, almost all round the town. Should I buy a LS to save money? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joey spud Posted June 23, 2020 Share Posted June 23, 2020 This is my sons LS430 with comedy exhaust system. It does sound very nice but the tail pipes are too long and he can't now close the garage door (told him to cut the tail pipes to a sensible length or drill four big holes in his garage door). Impressive car though it has everything even air suspension and double glazing. NorfolkNWeigh 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerzy Woking Posted June 24, 2020 Share Posted June 24, 2020 Any of you LS400 owners want a 6 CD disc cassette thing? Just pm me your address if so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cpjitservices Posted November 8, 2020 Share Posted November 8, 2020 OK so Im on the hunt for an LS400, @rantingYoof I read this thread just now form page 1 to the last, and MEGA SMILES!! Much Want! Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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