I'm asking this question becuz i am movin to Florida and need to take my car and my stuff down. I know i need a hitch so i can tow the tralier but can the car handle the towing???? I dont have enough stuff to need a movin truck plus, it cost TOO much to rent one and tow my lex FROM MI to FL. I was wondering if anyone has tried this or knows if i can do this without ruining my CAR..Thanks alot and I'll see u other Clublexus members down in FL....

 

4' x 8' is a small trailer.LS would be fine after it gets heavier engine oil. I would change tranny fluid and engine oil after towing a long way.

 

Seems like it would be fine unless it is loaded with bricks Seriously though, I can't imagine the vehicle would have an issue. I would run it in ECT Power mode though. You could drain the pan B4 and after since it is easy and doesn't cost much.

 

Shouldnt be an issue for a car of this type.

 

thanks alot....i'll get a hitch and install it by this week

 

It has nothing to do with size; it only has to do with weight. I'd say you can tow up to 500lbs without a transmission cooler, but more than that, I'd add one because they're cheap and effective. That's just what I'd be comfortable with. It's not scientific by any means.

 

grindin' in florida

 

I towed a 4' by 8' trailer countless times with the 90 LS400 I used to have. Even the gen 1 LS400 was so powerful it made towing the trailer effortless.

And yes, steveski, I once towed the trailer loaded to its maximum capacity with bricks bought to build a patio.

The LS400 without a transmission cooler is rated to tow up to 2,000 pounds. With a transmission cooler, the towing weight maximum is over 4,000 pounds.

Lexus publishes this information in the owners manuals for cars sold outside the U.S. but omits it from U.S. manuals.

 

Good info. -- I would confirm that it will be fine. Changing the fluids is probably HIGHLY unnecessary afterwards.. however it isn't a bad idea, and again extremely cheap , esp. if you do it yourself. (Even at a shop it isn't much). --You probably haven't done it in a while so it doesn't hurt.

I would think about the weight in terms of passengers:

The car is designed for 5 people maximum. Say an average weight of 150 pounds (women and men mix). 150 x 5 = 750lbs.

Now of course this weight is distributed differently than towing would be.. so going with the 500lb recommendation of a former poster would be wise. Although I wouldn't think even towing 750-1000lbs would be a problem.

The engine certainly can handle it.. The weak link is going to be the Drivetrain, and that is built very well. It seems the only concern here is the added temperature the extra rear weight will cause the fluids to move up to with a long drive.

As with anything I would just drive it easy, have plenty of speed before attempting steep , long hills.. Let the freeway cool things off.. and a few stops for 10Mins or so could help, but is really overkill

Take some pictures of your towing rig with it piled with your stuff.. We take pictures of everything else.. why not

 

Considering what I have towed in the past with a 84 VW bus, a 90 and 99 Miata, and now a Z06 - the LS400 would be the least of my worries (has weight and torque) for a small trailer.

 

I would put on or have put on a trans cooler the biggest I could find at a part store. I would also have a transmission shop pull the trans pan and cneck if any metal shavings. You probably wont find any thing in the trans. I use mobil one trans fluid in my lexus with a hayden big cooler and don't tow anything I just drive 50,000 miles a year in sales which includes the desert here in Southern California and I usually get around 400,000 plus miles out of the trans. Another good thing to do is to go to the $2.00 car wash and wash first the air condition condesor then wash out the radiator from in side the motor side DON'T GET THE ENGINE WET IT WILL CAUSE PROBLEMS. Flush the radiator at a radiator shop and you are good to go It also wouldn't hurt to run Mobil one 5W30 snythetic oil in the engine to help it work better.

 

i'll take some pixs forsure...i'm thinkin bout putting on a trans cooler but do i really need it and does it really help???hitch is goin on this weekend..movin on march 13...

 

A transmission cooler isn't needed per say, but the transmission does get quite hot during normal driving and I personally wouldn't want to stress it further.

 

According information Lexus supplies in other countries, a transmission cooler is not necessary if the total weight of the trailer and cargo is less than 2000 pounds. Towing a trailer heavier than that would be unsafe anyway unless you are towing a trailer with its own brakes. An LS400 weighs less than 4000 pounds -- things can get "interesting" fast when towing a 2000+ pound trailer without brakes.

I have an LS400 owners manual from the U.K./Europe market from the 1994 model year; this manual contains a lengthy section on how to tow trailers including information on how to calculate tongue weight.

If I can find the manual, I'll see if I can scan and post at least some of the pages on this thread.

I think it was the Lexus South Africa website that used to have a good section about towing with an LS -- I think the information was removed 2 - 3 years ago when Lexus standardized the content of its local country websites.

BTW, I have a Draw-Tite class II trailer hitch on my 2000 LS400. I bought it from http://www.etrailer.com/hitch-2000_Lexus_LS400.htm Current price is $117.

 

thanks...does anyone have a link to a "how to install trans cooler" on an ls400???