deanshark

Well that's a gamble that paid off. Dirt cheap with 140K only needing a $75 ECU? I wish I had that kind of luck. Nice to keep another one out of the JY. Glad ya got it running good again and hope you enjoy it for many years to come. Check that timing belt if you don't know if it's been changed yet.

If you want to answer this; How much was "dirt cheap"?

Bonester

Started it up this morning and let it warm up in the driveway for about an hour. No smoke . So far so good. Got it for 400 bucks at a local auction. Nobody wanted it. It was at the back looking perfect but only had a starting bid of 300$. Checked the mileage and was surprised, started it up and ran it for no more than a min, I did hear a slight clack and shut it off. Got there kinda late so didn't get to inspect the car and with the covid19 the way they were running the auction was kinda silly. Sounded good so I threw a bone at it. Funny thing is once I won the bid, this dude walks up and says yo it has a lifter tick knock. That's why nobody wanted it. Later on I limped it home and sure enough I could hear a scary knock. Tracked it down to one of the covers getting hit by the drivers side cam gear . Purrs like a kitten now. Any sure way to tell if the timing belt needs replacing? Far as I can tell it looks to be in pretty good shape and there are no stickers or dates on the engine cover letting me know the tb was changed. Going to continue to drive and see how it behaves.

Bonester

Yeah buddy no more codes. Would be pretty cool to know exactly what parameters of the efi system those bad capacitors were controlling and their function. I had that same theory .

jaaa

Glad to see it all worked out in the end.

deanshark

$400? That is dirt cheap. And only another 100 to get it running good. PERFECT. Ha, and people are paying thousands to have the same thing. Gotta love it when this happens.
If there's no sticker in the engine bay saying when/if the T-belt was changed I'd be thinking about it soon. It's not the belt that goes but all the other stuff. (water pump, idler bearings)
You can also go to https://drivers.lexus.com/lexusdrivers to see any service history on your car, if it was done by Lexus. Ya just need to sign in, go to service history, and put in your VIN.
Since you're new here, check out the "FAQ" in the sticky section of this forum. LOTS of good info and common problems.

Bonester

I checked the t-belt and it is a "Gates" T190. I don't think it's original? Also logged into the link and checked the service history and this is what I found.

48452 miles

DATE: 02/20/2002

Repair# 0181952
reported by:
Service:
description: INSP. BRAKE LININGS, DISCS, LINES & HOSES 10MM = 100% FRNT BRKS 10_MM APROX REMAINING REAR BRKS 2__MM APROX REMAINING** COURTESY LOANER CAR POLICY ** COURTESY CARS ARE FOR ONE DAY ONLY. ** ANY CAR RETURNED LATER THAN ONE DAY WILL BE SUBJECT TO A $55.00 PER DAY CHARGE. INITIAL HERE(X)_______. NEED A COPY OF A VALID DRIVERS LIC. & PROOF OF INSURANCE. MUST BE 21 YEARS OR OLDERBRAKES DO NOT STOP CAR EFFECTIVELY.CHECK ADVISE ============ REAR BRAKES NEED NEW ROTORS AND NEW PADS. BRAKES ARE UNSAFE TO DRIVE , BUT CUSTOMER DECLINES THIS REPAIRS $ 658.00 ============== IF SENSOR IS DAMAGED DUE TO LACK OF BRAKE REPLACEMENT NEW SENSORS WIL NE NEEDED ADDITIONAL $ 70.00 ============== SEE RELATED COND NO 52 LOWER BALL JOINTS ARE WORN OUT RECCOMEND REPLACEMENT $ 505.00 =========== 4 STRUTS ARE SEAPING $ 792.00 ========== EGR PIPE IS CRACKED CREATING EXHAUST NOISE $ 818.00 ========= 2 REAR CARRIER BUSHINGS ARE BROKEN $ 490.00 ========= ALIGNMENT $ 99.95 ======== RECCOMEND BALANCE $48.00 1 LOWER ENGINE OIL PAN LEAKING AND DIP STICK O RING $ 270.00 ========== VALVE COVER GASKETS LEAKING OIL $ 316.00 -========= CUSTOMER MADE AWARE, BUT DECLINES ALL REPAIRS AT THIS TIME ======= ALSO FOUND RIGHT FRONT AND RIGHT REAR TIRE HAVE SIDEWALL


I can hear the egr leak and a looks like I have a few more things to straighten out on this sweet ride.

deanshark

Wow that's alot of stuff to be fixed, especially with less then 50K miles. Hopefully it's been fixed in the last 18 years. Well, ya have a list of things to check.
The Gates belt is not original and it's one of the cheapest belts out there. I made the mistake with my first T-belt when I bought my first LS400.

Bonester

I hear the "Aisin" kit is the one you want. Going to have to replace the gates t-belt even though it seems fine just incase. I was wondering about how to service these transmissions? I would really like to tear it out and rebuild it better but seems to be working just fine. The oil doesn't look that dark and is a red\ orange looking color. Would it benefit from a filter and oil change? I read the only fluid to use it toyota fluid but the fluid in my car smells like dexron. Going to check on that supposed oil pan leak, might be a crank seal or something. I can see some fluid traces around below the ac compressor. When I hit the brakes hard I hear a clunk on both sides, pretty sure it's the struts\shocks, egr is leaking but you can barely hear it so that's not really an issue yet. The alternator is dry and the ps-pump vave is not leaking, yet. Gonna plug it. I get a clunk whenever I put it in drive, any idean what that is? I was thinking trans mount? Maybe engine mount? Also when I pull into a driveway at an angle there is a clunk same clunk like when I hit the brakes hard.

deanshark

Yea the "Aisin" kit is the way to go. Someone (no names) has complained about the Mitsuboshi Timing Belt that comes with it as poorer quality cuz the markings wore off after 50 miles but, OH, never mind. I wont get into that but you can read about it if ya want in the other thread.
Tranny; Yes, Toyota fluid. You can find the procedure here.
Oil leak; you can check the pan but I haven't heard of maybe 1 or 2 leaking. Usually most oil leaks are from the valve covers. Those bolts loosen by all the vibration. (VERY common) All of my VC bolts were not even finger tight last time I was in there. Tightened 'em up and no more leak. I forget off hand what the torque is but it's in INCH pounds, not ft lbs.
Clunk with brakes; bushings on the rear axle carrier and suspension arms. https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls-...-attached.html The one that cleared up my clunk with brake was the Adus 505. But they all deteriorate eventually.
Clunk putting in drive; Yes, most likely the tranny mount. Another VERY common problem.
I hope some of that stuff on the list has been fixed in the past 18 years. But, for $400 ya can't be too sure. 😀