223k miles on the car and it still rdrives like a dream but since the summer there has been starting problems. Alternator was replace, batterie , terminal cables. The car at times will not start for a few tries and then it will start. Car shut completely off while driving last week but then started when put in park. Is this a $500.00 job or $3,000.00 ? Help- wanted to get 300K out of this car.
thanks

 

223k miles on the car and it still rdrives like a dream but since the summer there has been starting problems. Alternator was replace, batterie , terminal cables. The car at times will not start for a few tries and then it will start. Car shut completely off while driving last week but then started when put in park. Is this a $500.00 job or $3,000.00 ? Help- wanted to get 300K out of this car.
thanks

 

Hey Jpet. I have a very similar problem with my 1998. It has to do with the electrical system in mine so maybe yours is similar.

 

My 2000 LS400 had the exact same symptoms when its starter began to fail.

 

Yep, the starter for sure. Our 98 was the same way. Thats a big job, one of the big reasons why my dad traded the 98 in. He drove it around like that for a year or so...I think the estimate was $1,200...maybe $1,500 but that was 15 years ago.

 

I don't think a bad starter would cause your car to die while in motion. How old is the battery? How long ago did you have the alternator and starter replaced?

 

Those two things could be totally unrelated.

He hasn’t replaced the starter. And the alternator wouldn’t cause his no start issue and then all of a sudden let it start.

 

I see that now, misread the post. If the starter is going and you cannot replace it yourself, it's going to be pricey. The shutting down while driving is unrelated to the starter. Not sure which one would concern me more.

 

The "bad starter" on the 2000 LS400 I drove for 11 years absolutely caused the engine die several times while I was driving. And then to be sitting in traffic trying to start the engine was awful too. I didn't mess around when the problem started. I had a professional replace the starter a couple of days later since I don't drive vehicles I can't depend on.

I think the starter replacement cost around around $1,000 at an indie shop owned by a former Lexus dealership service writer when I had the starter replaced about 10 years ago. My friend who owns the repair shop said it was a starter problem as soon as I told him about it but one of his employee mechanics confirmed it.

Have a knowledgeable mechanic check the starter for excess current draw. It's easy to diagnose by someone who knows what he is doing. For an amateur - apparently not.

 

Now I'm intrigued. What is it about a failing starter that makes the engine die? Is it shorting out the electrical system somehow?

 

What does the other end of the battery positive cable connect to?

 

I've worked on another LS that has always had a parasitic drain I could not trace and starts sluggishly when it's not daily driven.

Attached is an electrical diagram from a 1991 LS, but should be similar for 1999 with the starter and starter relay specifically. Are you saying something in the starter fails to cause the inner switch to connect to ground?

 

What symptom does it exhibit when it wont start? Does the engine turn over at all? Does it just produce one solid "click" when attempting to start, or many erratic "clicks"?
My 1998 LS had a weird no start issue where it would erratically click as if it had a dead battery. Battery was charged and had a good connection so I assumed it was the starter. I replaced the starter, still no start, and then I replaced the battery, cable ends, and checked wiring because I couldn't see a problem with any of them prior to replacing the starter (battery was pretty new and had good voltage, terminal ends were okay, and couldn't find any obvious wiring issues going to the starter).
Replacing the starter on a 98-00 LS is WAY easier than the earlier models. The whole intake manifold can be unbolted from the block and lifted out of the way. Injectors and fuel rail lines remain intact, you just have to disconnect the coil wires and move the wiring harness out of the way. 10/10 would do again, took 5 or so hours in my driveway with basic hand tools. Got a Denso starter for like $150 and some lower intake gaskets and cleaned a lot of stuff as i went along. The NON-VVTi UZ's starter is a pain because there's all those spark plug wires and injectors to deal with, and the manifold has to be removed as 2 halves. The VVTi UZ is seriously really easy.
After replacing the starter, battery, and cable ends, the car started but would randomly stall out. It would start right back up but it seemed as though once the engine bay got hot, something would malfunction and kill the engine. No CEL or codes, just died. On a hunch and a recommendation from a kind redditor, I swapped the Crankshaft Position Sensor from my 1997 LS into my 1998 and it idled and reved happily for 20 minutes. Bought a new Denso CPS and all has been well for 6,000 miles.
So thoroughly check your battery, cable ends, the ground wire that goes to the alternator, and Crank sensor (maybe cam sensor too). Your issue is most definitely electronic. I dont think the starter failing would cause the engine to stall out. Sorry for the novel, just want to share what I've learned from my headaches with my LS's.

 

I have a dealer receipt on my 99' where the previous owner spent $1000 at a Lexus dealer for a replacement starter back in 2008, about 25k ago at 127k.

 

Brand new alternator , battery and terminals. The mechanic realizes he needs to solve the problem and is committed to finding out the cause. The car goes back to the garage next week.