shawnmid

Hey guys, first off thank you for taking the time to read over my post. Sadly, my problem is what brought me to the forum which I hate for my first post to be a desperate plea for help but here I am :/ . I actually just purchased this LS400 from the second owners and I bought it based on the idea that the transmission needed replaced. Well the transmission is actually in good working order. The entire car is actually in great condition with only 160k and it is a 93. The timing belt was replaced at 90k at a reputable Lexus dealership. My problem is that the LS has absolutely no power. It is extremely sluggish. The exhaust on the drivers side where the pipe from the motor meets the first catalytic converter was separated. Well today, I had that pipe welded back in to place. Part of this sluggish issue (before having that repaired), the catalytic converter would get red hot. The pipe leaving it would get red hot first and then it would start to heat up that first catalytic converter. The exhaust shop that I took it too said that they believed that it was not the catalytic converter but that the motor was burning "too rich". That it was pushing too much fuel. Well I bought everything to do a tune up and as soon as I got in to it, I realized everything was new. The plugs are in good shape, wires are new, rotors and cap are good. The check engine light is also not on.

The car just has absolutely no pick up and go. Once you get it up to about second gear, it does start to pick up but over all, the symptoms of sluggishness are pretty consistant. They are not up and down. I appreciate you folks who took the time to read all of this and any help, I would be eternally greatful.

Thanks,
Shawn

ROLEXUS400

iTrader: (2)

I know you said the check engine light is not on. So im going top assume you mean its off when the engine is running,but does it come on and go out when you cycle the key?

steve2006

Check the ignition coils,there are 2 one at the front of the engine and the other on the drivers side of the engine opposite the battery,this is the one that normally fails so you only get 4 cylinders firing and glowing cats.
Also check the condition of the HT wire from this coil to the distributor as if not routed correctly this can arc.

shawnmid

Well that is another issue. The check engline light seems to be completely gone. As it does not come on when the key is slightly turned on or completely on. All of the other lights come on except for that one.

As for the coil, I will definitely check on that first thing tomorrow as well as the wire between the coil and distributor. With it having so little power and the fact that it has been driven, is there a possibility that the motor could be damaged? I mean it isnt leaking anything, it isnt over heating, but could a valve have collapsed?

RA40

iTrader: (6)

Sorry to hear, take it to a dealer and have any codes read.

89Reatta

Where are you located shawnmid? Go get your codes read (for free somewhere, NOT at the dealer!) and report back the code numbers, then we might be able to help. Also helpful if there are no codes, certain problems won't throw a code. Do this ASAP!

deanshark

If the CEL is not working you might not be able to pull codes, being a 93. I hate it when people take the light out just to sell the car. Did you buy it from a dealer or person? If you have the right meters and such, I would check your O2 sensors and maybe the AFM. Just a thought b/c they say it's running rich.

StevieA

Does it start easily? Idle smooth or rough? Is acceleration poor ONLy when trying full-throttle?

I have a multi-page thread here with power problems on my '93 that turned out being the hood insulation sagging down and blocking the air intake near the hood grill. Easy thing to check there - cuts horsepower in 1/2. Mine was only sagging an inch or so would have never noticed if someone didn't tip me off. Removed the breather extension that lays over the rad & went for a spin and my car was a rocket again. I have the hood insluation glued and taped back out of the way now

LEXY650

hey i was reading your post and i seem to have the same problem. however on some day my car has ***** for days. burns rubber for about thirty seconds...need new rear tires now as i take advantage of the little days it does haha. but other than that its really slow. used to it now but if the problem could be fixed it would be wonderful. let me know if you find anything!

shawnmid

Thank you guys! I'm gonna give it another crack tomorrow. First I'm going to go take it to have the codes checked and I'll let you know what I come up with. You know, the more I look at this, the more I think the guy knew exactly what he was doing. I checked the bulbs today in the dash and they were all in place but for whatever reason the check engine light is non-functional. The guy who I purchased it from has owned the car for the last four years and he is an "electrical engineer". This clearly seems to be something electrical. He had told me that the "transmission was sluggish" but again, the transmission is definitely not the issue. I'm just hoping that the motor isnt some how damaged and I have to through getting it replaced. That is the one major item that always attracted me to the LS's because of how bullet proof these V8's are. If the cylinders have been out of commission for quite some time and they kept driving it, could they have caused it to be a permanent issue?

Thanks,
Shawn

shawnmid

It does start easily and it idels smoothly, acceleration is poor no matter what.

Bali26

The check engine light is sometimes hidden by black tape on inside roof of cluster.

Garage7RP

iTrader: (1)

Replace the check engine indicator bulb with a good one and run the codes. It seems like it has something to do with the ignition and timing. How is the temperature gauge? Is is running hot?

shawnmid

No it runs cool. I mean it is perfectly centered at all times. It doesnt smoke, the underside of the car doesnt have a single drop on it (no transmission fluid, brake fluid, steering fluid, oil, radiator fluid).

shawnmid

Btw I am in Kansas City, Mo.