A long story about my mods
06-13-01, 01:05 PM
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Below is the history of the mods to my GS400 and the related problems.
Bought my 1998 GS400 brand new in Nov-98. The dealer was anxious to get rid of 1998’s to make room for 1999’s – I paid $42.5K (no nav, chrome wheels purchased 1 yr later).
1st Modification – Exhaust
In Feb-2000 I had an exhaust system installed (Sebring). They removed the entire stock system, took off the resonators and everything else. There was no noticeable performance gain, but there was a significant amount of new noise. Hated it – took it off right away. Cost $600 – resold sold mufflers for $300, so for $300 I found out that I don’t want to change my exhaust system.
2nd Modification – RMM LSD and T/C
In late August 2000 my wife became pregnant, so I figured one last thing for myself before all my $’s go to my child. I live in So. Cal, so I went to RMM in Huntington Beach and they took me out in their GS400. I liked it! They told me that the main performance gains come from the T/C and LSD combo. Their opinion on exhaust was changing it didn’t really add much in terms of performance. I didn’t opt for their intake either because I had read several negative reviews. So I had them install the T/C and LSD w/3:76 gearing.
The first time I punched it off the line, there was an intense spinning and squealing of the rear tires. The guys at RMM said doing this mod would drop about a second off my 0-60 time. My 0-60 times were actually worse because I was spinning the tires so much. Maybe I should have known this, but if you do this modification, you need to put wider wheels on the rear (RMM suggested I go up to 275’s on at least an 18” wheel). I didn’t want to change the stock wheels, so I went out and got Nitto drag radials on the rear (245/45/17). Now that I had traction, my 0-60 time dropped about .8 seconds.
3rd Modification – SRT HFI Intake/ECU
Installed this in January 2001. I love the sound (quiet during regular driving & intense when you step on it) and the performance gains were definitely noticeable.
All in all I was happy with my car. Then while driving home on 2/28/01 (in the rain no less) the nightmare began. All of a sudden, the car would not move. It would start, I could put it into gear, but the gears would not engage. I looked at the transmission fluid level and it was almost non-existent. I had it towed to the Lexus dealer in Woodland Hills. I told them somehow it got low on fluid, which I didn’t understand. I always park the car in my garage at night and in the same spot at work, never noticed a fluid lead and I follow the service schedule religiously. They called me the next day to tell me that my transmission was completely shot and that it would cost me $4K for a new one (an additional $1K if the core was damaged) and it would not be covered under warranty because of all of the mods (somehow the tech was able to tell that I changed the T/C – he said he noticed the stall speed seemed different from stock GS4’s). I then called the guys at RMM who suggested I call a service rep at Longo Lexus. I had Longo take a look at it and they told me the T/C was bad. So it’s off to RMM with the car. Up until now, nobody has dropped the transmission to see what the true problem really was. RMM looks at it and tells me that yes the T/C is shot, but so is the transmission pump. Now we’re at the question of what came first, did the pump go out causing the fluid to run low and kill the T/C or the other way around? Either way it didn’t matter. Lexus was not going to warranty the job. RMM shipped the T/C to Precision Industries, and even though they may not have been obligated to, they rebuilt it (customer service appreciated!).
Now the most annoying thing was that no Lexus dealer in the country had a transmission pump. I had to wait 3 weeks for this stupid little $239 part to come in from Japan! Finally it comes in; I have RMM install my stock T/C (the rebuilt Precision Industries T/C came back about 2 weeks later) and the new pump. The car is running ok. But RMM told me the transmission fluid looked very bad, they had flushed it a couple of times and that I should do the same in about 2 weeks. Two weeks later I took the car to a transmission shop and had them change the fluid. They told me that there were a lot of metal shavings in the pan. Now I’m thinking, how long before the transmission does go.
So have I learned my lesson? Will I change the car back to its original condition (I saved all stock parts)? Hell no! I’m a friggin’ mental patient! I decide to have the transmission rebuilt by Level 10 with a valve body upgrade too. I should have my car back by Monday or Tuesday next week (6/18 or 6/19). In addition I’m having the transmission shop install a cooler to help keep the fluid cooler.
I don’t know if the mods I did caused these problems. I think it was just the fact that somehow I got low on transmission fluid and that caused the chain of events. Now would this have happened if I hadn’t done the mods? Maybe, but who knows.
The thing that really bothered me was that the Lexus dealer in Woodland Hills, without doing much of an inspection told me right away, you need a new transmission that will be $4K. The appropriate response, IMO, would have been “we’ll take a look at your transmission & if we determine that the T/C caused the damage, you’ll be out $X.” I think I could take them to small claims under the Magnuson Moss Act, but I don’t have the time to deal with filing a case and going to court. I’ll just ***** here in the forum.
That’s my story for now. Thanks for reading. Sorry to be so lengthy.
Kenny Lynch
Bought my 1998 GS400 brand new in Nov-98. The dealer was anxious to get rid of 1998’s to make room for 1999’s – I paid $42.5K (no nav, chrome wheels purchased 1 yr later).
1st Modification – Exhaust
In Feb-2000 I had an exhaust system installed (Sebring). They removed the entire stock system, took off the resonators and everything else. There was no noticeable performance gain, but there was a significant amount of new noise. Hated it – took it off right away. Cost $600 – resold sold mufflers for $300, so for $300 I found out that I don’t want to change my exhaust system.
2nd Modification – RMM LSD and T/C
In late August 2000 my wife became pregnant, so I figured one last thing for myself before all my $’s go to my child. I live in So. Cal, so I went to RMM in Huntington Beach and they took me out in their GS400. I liked it! They told me that the main performance gains come from the T/C and LSD combo. Their opinion on exhaust was changing it didn’t really add much in terms of performance. I didn’t opt for their intake either because I had read several negative reviews. So I had them install the T/C and LSD w/3:76 gearing.
The first time I punched it off the line, there was an intense spinning and squealing of the rear tires. The guys at RMM said doing this mod would drop about a second off my 0-60 time. My 0-60 times were actually worse because I was spinning the tires so much. Maybe I should have known this, but if you do this modification, you need to put wider wheels on the rear (RMM suggested I go up to 275’s on at least an 18” wheel). I didn’t want to change the stock wheels, so I went out and got Nitto drag radials on the rear (245/45/17). Now that I had traction, my 0-60 time dropped about .8 seconds.
3rd Modification – SRT HFI Intake/ECU
Installed this in January 2001. I love the sound (quiet during regular driving & intense when you step on it) and the performance gains were definitely noticeable.
All in all I was happy with my car. Then while driving home on 2/28/01 (in the rain no less) the nightmare began. All of a sudden, the car would not move. It would start, I could put it into gear, but the gears would not engage. I looked at the transmission fluid level and it was almost non-existent. I had it towed to the Lexus dealer in Woodland Hills. I told them somehow it got low on fluid, which I didn’t understand. I always park the car in my garage at night and in the same spot at work, never noticed a fluid lead and I follow the service schedule religiously. They called me the next day to tell me that my transmission was completely shot and that it would cost me $4K for a new one (an additional $1K if the core was damaged) and it would not be covered under warranty because of all of the mods (somehow the tech was able to tell that I changed the T/C – he said he noticed the stall speed seemed different from stock GS4’s). I then called the guys at RMM who suggested I call a service rep at Longo Lexus. I had Longo take a look at it and they told me the T/C was bad. So it’s off to RMM with the car. Up until now, nobody has dropped the transmission to see what the true problem really was. RMM looks at it and tells me that yes the T/C is shot, but so is the transmission pump. Now we’re at the question of what came first, did the pump go out causing the fluid to run low and kill the T/C or the other way around? Either way it didn’t matter. Lexus was not going to warranty the job. RMM shipped the T/C to Precision Industries, and even though they may not have been obligated to, they rebuilt it (customer service appreciated!).
Now the most annoying thing was that no Lexus dealer in the country had a transmission pump. I had to wait 3 weeks for this stupid little $239 part to come in from Japan! Finally it comes in; I have RMM install my stock T/C (the rebuilt Precision Industries T/C came back about 2 weeks later) and the new pump. The car is running ok. But RMM told me the transmission fluid looked very bad, they had flushed it a couple of times and that I should do the same in about 2 weeks. Two weeks later I took the car to a transmission shop and had them change the fluid. They told me that there were a lot of metal shavings in the pan. Now I’m thinking, how long before the transmission does go.
So have I learned my lesson? Will I change the car back to its original condition (I saved all stock parts)? Hell no! I’m a friggin’ mental patient! I decide to have the transmission rebuilt by Level 10 with a valve body upgrade too. I should have my car back by Monday or Tuesday next week (6/18 or 6/19). In addition I’m having the transmission shop install a cooler to help keep the fluid cooler.
I don’t know if the mods I did caused these problems. I think it was just the fact that somehow I got low on transmission fluid and that caused the chain of events. Now would this have happened if I hadn’t done the mods? Maybe, but who knows.
The thing that really bothered me was that the Lexus dealer in Woodland Hills, without doing much of an inspection told me right away, you need a new transmission that will be $4K. The appropriate response, IMO, would have been “we’ll take a look at your transmission & if we determine that the T/C caused the damage, you’ll be out $X.” I think I could take them to small claims under the Magnuson Moss Act, but I don’t have the time to deal with filing a case and going to court. I’ll just ***** here in the forum.
That’s my story for now. Thanks for reading. Sorry to be so lengthy.
Kenny Lynch
06-13-01, 02:33 PM
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I just kind of expect problems to come up when I mod my car.. not to say thats what messed up your tranny. Im similar to you... if something breaks on my car it might suck at the time, but that just means I get to upgrade it to something better 
If I broke my stock tranny I would be mad and excited at the same time. Hope everything works out with your level 10 tranny.
If I broke my stock tranny I would be mad and excited at the same time. Hope everything works out with your level 10 tranny.
06-13-01, 05:29 PM
#5
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that sucks man! now i'm kinda glad i sent my TC back, because lets say that happened, my mom would go NUTS!! even if it wasnt the TC's fault!!! absolutly NUTS!!
06-13-01, 06:26 PM
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I'm hoping it was not the T/C's fault. Everyone I've spoken to (SRT, Level 10 & RMM) believes the root of the problem was the tranny fluid got too low, which would hose any transmission. I'm sure I'll be checking the fluid every other day.
Crazy as it sounds, I'm actually putting my T/C back in once the tranny arrives from Level 10. I miss the launch. I'm told the new tranny will add even more horse power to the rear wheels. Hopefully with the cooler and my constant checking of the fluid I'll be ok.
Crazy as it sounds, I'm actually putting my T/C back in once the tranny arrives from Level 10. I miss the launch. I'm told the new tranny will add even more horse power to the rear wheels. Hopefully with the cooler and my constant checking of the fluid I'll be ok.
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06-14-01, 07:22 AM
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Kenny,
What a story! Can you believe how much could happen to our beloved Lexus. I had a long story about my GS4 too...
The only thing you did not do it right was you should have RMM remove the TC first before you brought it back to the dealer. That way, they have no choice but give you a new tranny. They had no aftermarket parts to blame on.:eek:
What a story! Can you believe how much could happen to our beloved Lexus. I had a long story about my GS4 too...
The only thing you did not do it right was you should have RMM remove the TC first before you brought it back to the dealer. That way, they have no choice but give you a new tranny. They had no aftermarket parts to blame on.:eek:
06-14-01, 11:15 AM
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biggie27- I sent you an IM about the cost
JacobT - I thought about having RMM (or a local tranny shop) put my stock converter back in, but I didn't think the tranny was blown the night I had the car towed to the Lexus dealer. I was going to have this done and go to another Lexus dealer, but then I found out service records are logged into a national registry. The next Lexus dealer would be able to see that I had the car at one dealer, with their diagnosis (customer needs new transmission - customer refused work at this time). For a job as big as a tranny replacement, the service manager from the 2nd dealer would most likely contact the service manager from the 1st dealer and ask why the work was not done there.
JacobT - I thought about having RMM (or a local tranny shop) put my stock converter back in, but I didn't think the tranny was blown the night I had the car towed to the Lexus dealer. I was going to have this done and go to another Lexus dealer, but then I found out service records are logged into a national registry. The next Lexus dealer would be able to see that I had the car at one dealer, with their diagnosis (customer needs new transmission - customer refused work at this time). For a job as big as a tranny replacement, the service manager from the 2nd dealer would most likely contact the service manager from the 1st dealer and ask why the work was not done there.
06-15-01, 07:12 AM
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I kinda still want to get a TC. . . Has anyone else had similar problems? If so speak out PLEASE! TC's are usually much harder on the transmission atleast not hard enough to make the transmission break. If mine does break I'll be looking for a manual transmission swap. Think its possible?
06-16-01, 02:17 PM
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KLynch - very sorry to hear about your problems.
Can't say I blame the dealer to be honest, I've never heard of a serious problem with an unmodified transmission. And if they'd done as you suggest, then if they came back to you and said 'the TC caused the problem' - you'd probably still be suspicious and then maybe RMM and the dealer would be in a pissing contest.
Possibly you didn't quite get a good seal somehow when you had the TC and LSD installed, and maybe it didn't leak in your garage because it only leaked under load.
Anyway, glad you're getting it all fixed now.
Tell me though, what does a 'valve body upgrade' do for the trans, and who makes it?
Good luck with the reworked trans, etc.
Can't say I blame the dealer to be honest, I've never heard of a serious problem with an unmodified transmission. And if they'd done as you suggest, then if they came back to you and said 'the TC caused the problem' - you'd probably still be suspicious and then maybe RMM and the dealer would be in a pissing contest.
Possibly you didn't quite get a good seal somehow when you had the TC and LSD installed, and maybe it didn't leak in your garage because it only leaked under load.
Anyway, glad you're getting it all fixed now.
Tell me though, what does a 'valve body upgrade' do for the trans, and who makes it?
Good luck with the reworked trans, etc.