LS stories, wide open no thread hijacking worries
01-29-16, 06:36 AM
#1
Lead Lap
Thread Starter
LS stories, wide open no thread hijacking worries
I think this can be interesting. Just like the title says.
I will start off. My friend since grade school's dad had only new Lincolns. He leased a new one every 2 years. In 1990 the LS commercials got him and he switched to a LS400. He fell in love (shocker) and then starting leasing a new LS every 2 years up until a couple years ago. Then he switched to RX's because of the ease of entry for him, he is in his 90's. I called him to tell him about my new purchase and he joyfully walked me through all his 11 LS cars and colors. I always ask which was his favorite and like a parent he would never say he liked one over the other. He said he loved them all equal. His wife has had a new Lexus since then also, different models but she keeps them 4 years.
I also enjoy reading (pictures are +1) about Ls460 garage mates that you are passionate about.
I will start off. My friend since grade school's dad had only new Lincolns. He leased a new one every 2 years. In 1990 the LS commercials got him and he switched to a LS400. He fell in love (shocker) and then starting leasing a new LS every 2 years up until a couple years ago. Then he switched to RX's because of the ease of entry for him, he is in his 90's. I called him to tell him about my new purchase and he joyfully walked me through all his 11 LS cars and colors. I always ask which was his favorite and like a parent he would never say he liked one over the other. He said he loved them all equal. His wife has had a new Lexus since then also, different models but she keeps them 4 years.
I also enjoy reading (pictures are +1) about Ls460 garage mates that you are passionate about.
Last edited by Kennyr44; 01-29-16 at 07:01 AM.
01-29-16, 08:27 AM
#2
Lexus Test Driver
My first Lexus and never been happier with a new car than this one! I love it. Maybe too much! I want to bubble wrap it and I park so far away from everything and everyone that I feel like Clark Griswald in Vacation at Wally World.
Can't wait to take my first long trip, stretch its legs. I have yet to "floor it," but that day is coming too, with traction control off! Maybe I'll scare my neighbor!
I plan on keeping this car at least ten years, unless the new LS is just absolutely stellar, although even if I do decide to upgrade, it won't be before three years at least. I was never a "fan boy" of anything ever, but I'm starting to feel that way about this car.
Can't wait to take my first long trip, stretch its legs. I have yet to "floor it," but that day is coming too, with traction control off! Maybe I'll scare my neighbor!
I plan on keeping this car at least ten years, unless the new LS is just absolutely stellar, although even if I do decide to upgrade, it won't be before three years at least. I was never a "fan boy" of anything ever, but I'm starting to feel that way about this car.
01-29-16, 09:17 AM
#3
Pole Position
If I remember correctly (old age creeping in), I first starting seeing mysterious car commercials back in 1989. I was knocked out when they finally revealed the 1990 LS400. The interior was what got me. I always wanted a console that went down the front at a smooth angle to the shift ****. There it was. But of course, back then, the price was way prohibitive. But, not for my father in law. He got the first one out. I'll never forget my wife and I going over to the house at night. He comes out with a flashlight and says, "it looks black, but when I shine this flashlight you'll see it's green". When I got my first Lexus, a 92 ES300(in around 94), we went over at night. When he came outside to see it, I pulled out my flashlight. We laughed about it for years.
I found my 94 LS400 in the newspaper want ads(got in in 98). It was black with tan interior and I was in love! Turned out the guy I bought it from eventually moved about 8 doors down from me. Small world. One of my best friends from college had said that when I decided to sell it, call him first. He had that car with over 300K on it. He's since moved to something else.
Because I didn't want to shell out the bucks on a new 08 LS460 (but I wanted one), I found a deal on a black/tan LS430 which served me well for 6 years. I traded that for my 08 LS460 and we are up to date.
I found my 94 LS400 in the newspaper want ads(got in in 98). It was black with tan interior and I was in love! Turned out the guy I bought it from eventually moved about 8 doors down from me. Small world. One of my best friends from college had said that when I decided to sell it, call him first. He had that car with over 300K on it. He's since moved to something else.
Because I didn't want to shell out the bucks on a new 08 LS460 (but I wanted one), I found a deal on a black/tan LS430 which served me well for 6 years. I traded that for my 08 LS460 and we are up to date.
01-29-16, 10:49 AM
#4
Lexus Test Driver
oh boy where do I start...
ive been an LS driver since 01. all of mine have been pretty old and tired and I got some great war stories.
my infatuatiuon with the LS began at 15 years old. my boss at the time had just bought a shiny brand spanking new 1999 Ls400 with 25 miles on it. he took me for a ride and I fell in love with that car immediately which is crazy for me cause I always wanted classic cars, and coming from a lexus trash talking hardcore BMW/Mercedes family I assumed Lexus was just overpriced cheap junk Toyotas and boy was I ever wrong
when I told my family how awesome the ride the lexus had, no joke, my dad wouldn't talk to me for a few days..
then I turned 16, in 2000 and I wanted an Ls400 in the worst kind of way lol! my folks actually offered to get me a new 328i, but told them I wanted a lexus instead, and they told me that I was on my own. bummer! but this wasn't a choice, I HAD to have an Ls400 and not getting one simply was not an option. as the lexus covenant goes, "if you think you cant, you wont, but if you think you can, you will!" "we can and we will!" so that's exactly what I did. I flat out busted my *** for the next year mowing yards, working **** jobs that nobody wanted to do, and I kept a little picture of an Ls400 in my wallet so every time I wanted to spend money on something else I would be reminded of it. well after a year, yes a year, in the summer of 2001, I managed to scrape up $5,000 but felt pretty hopeless because it was a $68,000 car. then I realized the Ls400 had been in production since 1990 and they actually did exist in my price range so the hunt began for one I could actually might maybe possibly obtain. this came at a good time cause the Ls430 was out by then and the early 400s were not exactly desirable. I managed to find a super early production 1990 with a build date of 8/89 and a 3 digit production number, seriously one of the first in the country. it had about half a million miles on it, was two different colors, ran like crap, shredded interior and was all around beat to death, BUT... it was fully loaded with everything possible, Nak stereo, air suspension, trac and heated seats, phone in the console, k40 radar, the works, and it was in my price range. I bought it and ran. I GOT MY LS400!! ill never forget the look of disappointment on my parents face when I pulled into the driveway with it, they were so angry and embarresed by it they wouldn't even let me park it infront of our house, and to be honest, it was pretty fugly but my god I loved that car, I ended up spending the cash I had left and got it fixed up. that old 90 Ls400 took me all through the last half of my teen years, and I loved it so much I started buying other ones that were really beat up and started playing with them. meanwhile, I started stress testing them to see just how much they could really put up with from a 17 year old punk that was absolutely fearless with a very heavy foot. I soon realized the car could actually do 160 MPH and at the time, it was still a pretty fast car against circa late 90s early 2000s sedans. I started racing them, joined an illegal racing club, and pretty much tried every car I saw and a lot of times id win. I ate corvettes, BMWs, Benzes, and all Hondas acuras infinitys and nissans that thought they had more guts. my kill list grew pretty damn fast to a point that I kept a white out pen and everything that was impressive that I beat id write the make/model speed achieved and date it happened on the center arm rest. I ran from the cops 3 times and got away twice then never did it again, but man oh man it was just amazing what that 1UZ could actually do
when I was 18 my parents split but I was still living at home and kind of goofing off. my mom never really agreed with the snobbery of the neighborhood so acting in defiance she pretty much let me go crazy with my car addiction. soon there was 3 raggedy Ls400s parked in my driveway in various states of disrepair, car parts all over the yard, oil soaked driveway, it was great most days id be out there in the burning Orlando sun under the hood of a 1st gen Ls400 hunched over, covered in grease, smashing my knuckles and swearing like a drunk sailor. man that was the life. anyway as time marched on I kind of got bored with the Ls400 thing and started playing with old Mercedes and BMWs for awhile but lost intrest, I did have some really cool germen cars though, like a 1988 BWM v12 750il, I had a 6.9 SEL benz that was absolutely decrepit but it ran, sort of and it was pretty fast, I had a 1972 Benz 450SLC with a factory 5 speed, which is a very rare option on a pretty rare car that was extremely fun to drive (wish I had kept that one) but I always kept a reliable LS400 around for my daily and trip car cause they never let me down.
then in 2003, I messed up. still driving my faithful 90 Ls400 modded and slammed at that point and looking absolutely awful as a street warrior after a battle, spun out and hit a utility pole at 50MPH, head on. the airbag didn't deploy and caught a nice bloody nose from that. the entire front end of the car was destroyed with frame damage, but somehow, someway, I managed to drive it 4 miles home, with absolutely no coolant, almost no oil, overheating with chunks literally falling off the car as I drove it home. good lord these cars are tough! I didn't kill the engine, and bought a parts car that was wrecked in the rear with a certificate of destruction but still ran okay, and swapped everything over from the front end to my 90, but before that, I figured id take the 91 out in the woods and have some fun with it. I raced it down dirt paths, jumped it a few times, took it threw mud and rolled it over so it had a last hurrah and exiting death. the car landed sideways and let me tell you what a pain in the rear end it was to get it back on 4 wheels. it took 8 people to rock it back to normal sitting position. managed to drive that one home too AFTER rolling it then I dragged the carcass back and took everything off the front of the car and swapped it all to the 90. rebuilding the 90 presented a challenge cause of the frame damage. so what did I do? grabbed a 100 foot steel chain, tied one end to the base of the oak tree in my front yard, and one end to the front of the lexus. i pulled the car so it was touching the tree, threw it in reverse and stood on the gas about 4 times bending it back almost straight, and put the front end back together. i continued to drive that car another 5 years, as my every single day driver, with never having a professional service done to it.
since that time, ive had 4 more Ls400s, all have been a joy to drive, they've got me through every phase of my life, theve been with me through tough times, but not once, EVER have they left me stranded. my passion for these cars has done great things for me, its even landed me a great job at a lexus dealership as the master technology specialist.. i never thought all those years ago, as a teenager, busting my knuckles on beat up $500 Ls400s, would ever end me up here. funny how that works.
however, the Ls400s are getting very very old now, and i will be replacing my beautiful diamond pearl white 95 Ls400, with a 2007-2008 Ls460, but ill always have an Ls400 in my driveway, forever, till i die
so THAT is my LS story, why they are special and why they always will be, to me atleast.
ive been an LS driver since 01. all of mine have been pretty old and tired and I got some great war stories.
my infatuatiuon with the LS began at 15 years old. my boss at the time had just bought a shiny brand spanking new 1999 Ls400 with 25 miles on it. he took me for a ride and I fell in love with that car immediately which is crazy for me cause I always wanted classic cars, and coming from a lexus trash talking hardcore BMW/Mercedes family I assumed Lexus was just overpriced cheap junk Toyotas and boy was I ever wrong
when I told my family how awesome the ride the lexus had, no joke, my dad wouldn't talk to me for a few days..
then I turned 16, in 2000 and I wanted an Ls400 in the worst kind of way lol! my folks actually offered to get me a new 328i, but told them I wanted a lexus instead, and they told me that I was on my own. bummer! but this wasn't a choice, I HAD to have an Ls400 and not getting one simply was not an option. as the lexus covenant goes, "if you think you cant, you wont, but if you think you can, you will!" "we can and we will!" so that's exactly what I did. I flat out busted my *** for the next year mowing yards, working **** jobs that nobody wanted to do, and I kept a little picture of an Ls400 in my wallet so every time I wanted to spend money on something else I would be reminded of it. well after a year, yes a year, in the summer of 2001, I managed to scrape up $5,000 but felt pretty hopeless because it was a $68,000 car. then I realized the Ls400 had been in production since 1990 and they actually did exist in my price range
so the hunt began for one I could actually might maybe possibly obtain. this came at a good time cause the Ls430 was out by then and the early 400s were not exactly desirable. I managed to find a super early production 1990 with a build date of 8/89 and a 3 digit production number, seriously one of the first in the country. it had about half a million miles on it, was two different colors, ran like crap, shredded interior and was all around beat to death, BUT... it was fully loaded with everything possible, Nak stereo, air suspension, trac and heated seats, phone in the console, k40 radar, the works, and it was in my price range. I bought it and ran. I GOT MY LS400!! ill never forget the look of disappointment on my parents face when I pulled into the driveway with it, they were so angry and embarresed by it they wouldn't even let me park it infront of our house, and to be honest, it was pretty fugly but my god I loved that car, I ended up spending the cash I had left and got it fixed up. that old 90 Ls400 took me all through the last half of my teen years, and I loved it so much I started buying other ones that were really beat up and started playing with them. meanwhile, I started stress testing them to see just how much they could really put up with from a 17 year old punk that was absolutely fearless with a very heavy foot. I soon realized the car could actually do 160 MPH and at the time, it was still a pretty fast car against circa late 90s early 2000s sedans. I started racing them, joined an illegal racing club, and pretty much tried every car I saw and a lot of times id win. I ate corvettes, BMWs, Benzes, and all Hondas acuras infinitys and nissans that thought they had more guts. my kill list grew pretty damn fast to a point that I kept a white out pen and everything that was impressive that I beat id write the make/model speed achieved and date it happened on the center arm rest. I ran from the cops 3 times and got away twice then never did it again, but man oh man it was just amazing what that 1UZ could actually do when I was 18 my parents split but I was still living at home and kind of goofing off. my mom never really agreed with the snobbery of the neighborhood so acting in defiance she pretty much let me go crazy with my car addiction. soon there was 3 raggedy Ls400s parked in my driveway in various states of disrepair, car parts all over the yard, oil soaked driveway, it was great
most days id be out there in the burning Orlando sun under the hood of a 1st gen Ls400 hunched over, covered in grease, smashing my knuckles and swearing like a drunk sailor. man that was the life. anyway as time marched on I kind of got bored with the Ls400 thing and started playing with old Mercedes and BMWs for awhile but lost intrest, I did have some really cool germen cars though, like a 1988 BWM v12 750il, I had a 6.9 SEL benz that was absolutely decrepit but it ran, sort of and it was pretty fast, I had a 1972 Benz 450SLC with a factory 5 speed, which is a very rare option on a pretty rare car that was extremely fun to drive (wish I had kept that one) but I always kept a reliable LS400 around for my daily and trip car cause they never let me down. then in 2003, I messed up. still driving my faithful 90 Ls400 modded and slammed at that point and looking absolutely awful as a street warrior after a battle, spun out and hit a utility pole at 50MPH, head on. the airbag didn't deploy and caught a nice bloody nose from that. the entire front end of the car was destroyed with frame damage, but somehow, someway, I managed to drive it 4 miles home, with absolutely no coolant, almost no oil, overheating with chunks literally falling off the car as I drove it home. good lord these cars are tough! I didn't kill the engine, and bought a parts car that was wrecked in the rear with a certificate of destruction but still ran okay, and swapped everything over from the front end to my 90, but before that, I figured id take the 91 out in the woods and have some fun with it. I raced it down dirt paths, jumped it a few times, took it threw mud and rolled it over so it had a last hurrah and exiting death. the car landed sideways and let me tell you what a pain in the rear end it was to get it back on 4 wheels. it took 8 people to rock it back to normal sitting position. managed to drive that one home too AFTER rolling it then I dragged the carcass back and took everything off the front of the car and swapped it all to the 90. rebuilding the 90 presented a challenge cause of the frame damage. so what did I do? grabbed a 100 foot steel chain, tied one end to the base of the oak tree in my front yard, and one end to the front of the lexus. i pulled the car so it was touching the tree, threw it in reverse and stood on the gas about 4 times bending it back almost straight, and put the front end back together. i continued to drive that car another 5 years, as my every single day driver, with never having a professional service done to it.
since that time, ive had 4 more Ls400s, all have been a joy to drive, they've got me through every phase of my life, theve been with me through tough times, but not once, EVER have they left me stranded. my passion for these cars has done great things for me, its even landed me a great job at a lexus dealership as the master technology specialist.. i never thought all those years ago, as a teenager, busting my knuckles on beat up $500 Ls400s, would ever end me up here. funny how that works.
however, the Ls400s are getting very very old now, and i will be replacing my beautiful diamond pearl white 95 Ls400, with a 2007-2008 Ls460, but ill always have an Ls400 in my driveway, forever, till i die
so THAT is my LS story, why they are special and why they always will be, to me atleast.
01-29-16, 02:07 PM
#5
Pole Position
Like most people I am a fan of the LS400. That's the car that everyone kind of circles the wagons around and agrees..high quality automobile, one that stands apart from all others, the car that was stylish and indestructible.
I actually had one in the shop last year, the thing, obviously being so old needed tons of work, but the owners wanted everything fixed - when most would just junk the thing - and even had it painted. When it was finished it was pretty nice, but I had to ask why they went through all that trouble. Turns out it was a generational thing...it had been the grandparent's car...it was passed down to the parents...and now it was passed down to the son and daughter in law. The thing looked new after all that work had been done to it and it was put back into service as an everyday driver. I thought that was pretty cool.
As for my own LS460...I loved the way the thing looked and I was interested in purchasing a high quality reliable vehicle. I talked to a few techs and they praised the car so I bought it. Two years and fifty thousand miles later and the thing has been pretty damn reliable and a total joy to drive. I still get compliments on the car daily, which is weird to me, because for me it's just the car I drive 600 miles a week in. I kind of forget how nice it looks - it's purely a commuting machine to me now - kind of like my old Honda Accord. Yeah I wash and wax it...take care of it...but it's only real purpose with me right now is to be driven, and driven like a taxi. It's doing its job, the days when I wanted to keep this thing in bubble wrap are long gone...and I'm kind of glad...it's funner to just drive the hell out of it (118,000 miles and counting....it will be at 148,000 this time next year).
I actually had one in the shop last year, the thing, obviously being so old needed tons of work, but the owners wanted everything fixed - when most would just junk the thing - and even had it painted. When it was finished it was pretty nice, but I had to ask why they went through all that trouble. Turns out it was a generational thing...it had been the grandparent's car...it was passed down to the parents...and now it was passed down to the son and daughter in law. The thing looked new after all that work had been done to it and it was put back into service as an everyday driver. I thought that was pretty cool.
As for my own LS460...I loved the way the thing looked and I was interested in purchasing a high quality reliable vehicle. I talked to a few techs and they praised the car so I bought it. Two years and fifty thousand miles later and the thing has been pretty damn reliable and a total joy to drive. I still get compliments on the car daily, which is weird to me, because for me it's just the car I drive 600 miles a week in. I kind of forget how nice it looks - it's purely a commuting machine to me now - kind of like my old Honda Accord. Yeah I wash and wax it...take care of it...but it's only real purpose with me right now is to be driven, and driven like a taxi. It's doing its job, the days when I wanted to keep this thing in bubble wrap are long gone...and I'm kind of glad...it's funner to just drive the hell out of it (118,000 miles and counting....it will be at 148,000 this time next year).
01-29-16, 03:24 PM
#6
Lead Lap
Thread Starter
165 views and only 4 stories. No babys born in your car? This is a chance for a lurker to jump in. No flat tire that George Clooney helped you change? I worked next door to a former Nissan dealer when one day they started renovating big time. They were building the first Lexus dealer in Colorado. The commercials with the champagne glasses stacked on the running V8 were on tv. I said I will have one some day. In 2000 I pulled the trigger on a 91. The 430 didn't do it for me so I decided to wait till the intoxicating 460 got to $20k. It was worth the wait since the 91 was still like new. One memory in the 91 is when I took my 16 year old daughter and her best friend to Vegas in it. They drove the whole trip and we stayed at the Hard Rock. We went again as a 21 birthday present. Stayed at the Hard Rock and they out drank me 10 to 1. Her best friend's fiance just totalled his 13 gx460 and walked away without a scratch, but the air bag scared the crap out of him.
Last edited by Kennyr44; 07-01-16 at 05:13 AM.
01-29-16, 04:36 PM
#7
oh boy where do I start...
ive been an LS driver since 01. all of mine have been pretty old and tired and I got some great war stories.
my infatuatiuon with the LS began at 15 years old. my boss at the time had just bought a shiny brand spanking new 1999 Ls400 with 25 miles on it. he took me for a ride and I fell in love with that car immediately which is crazy for me cause I always wanted classic cars, and coming from a lexus trash talking hardcore BMW/Mercedes family I assumed Lexus was just overpriced cheap junk Toyotas and boy was I ever wrong
when I told my family how awesome the ride the lexus had, no joke, my dad wouldn't talk to me for a few days..
then I turned 16, in 2000 and I wanted an Ls400 in the worst kind of way lol! my folks actually offered to get me a new 328i, but told them I wanted a lexus instead, and they told me that I was on my own. bummer! but this wasn't a choice, I HAD to have an Ls400 and not getting one simply was not an option. as the lexus covenant goes, "if you think you cant, you wont, but if you think you can, you will!" "we can and we will!" so that's exactly what I did. I flat out busted my *** for the next year mowing yards, working **** jobs that nobody wanted to do, and I kept a little picture of an Ls400 in my wallet so every time I wanted to spend money on something else I would be reminded of it. well after a year, yes a year, in the summer of 2001, I managed to scrape up $5,000 but felt pretty hopeless because it was a $68,000 car. then I realized the Ls400 had been in production since 1990 and they actually did exist in my price range so the hunt began for one I could actually might maybe possibly obtain. this came at a good time cause the Ls430 was out by then and the early 400s were not exactly desirable. I managed to find a super early production 1990 with a build date of 8/89 and a 3 digit production number, seriously one of the first in the country. it had about half a million miles on it, was two different colors, ran like crap, shredded interior and was all around beat to death, BUT... it was fully loaded with everything possible, Nak stereo, air suspension, trac and heated seats, phone in the console, k40 radar, the works, and it was in my price range. I bought it and ran. I GOT MY LS400!! ill never forget the look of disappointment on my parents face when I pulled into the driveway with it, they were so angry and embarresed by it they wouldn't even let me park it infront of our house, and to be honest, it was pretty fugly but my god I loved that car, I ended up spending the cash I had left and got it fixed up. that old 90 Ls400 took me all through the last half of my teen years, and I loved it so much I started buying other ones that were really beat up and started playing with them. meanwhile, I started stress testing them to see just how much they could really put up with from a 17 year old punk that was absolutely fearless with a very heavy foot. I soon realized the car could actually do 160 MPH and at the time, it was still a pretty fast car against circa late 90s early 2000s sedans. I started racing them, joined an illegal racing club, and pretty much tried every car I saw and a lot of times id win. I ate corvettes, BMWs, Benzes, and all Hondas acuras infinitys and nissans that thought they had more guts. my kill list grew pretty damn fast to a point that I kept a white out pen and everything that was impressive that I beat id write the make/model speed achieved and date it happened on the center arm rest. I ran from the cops 3 times and got away twice then never did it again, but man oh man it was just amazing what that 1UZ could actually do
when I was 18 my parents split but I was still living at home and kind of goofing off. my mom never really agreed with the snobbery of the neighborhood so acting in defiance she pretty much let me go crazy with my car addiction. soon there was 3 raggedy Ls400s parked in my driveway in various states of disrepair, car parts all over the yard, oil soaked driveway, it was great most days id be out there in the burning Orlando sun under the hood of a 1st gen Ls400 hunched over, covered in grease, smashing my knuckles and swearing like a drunk sailor. man that was the life. anyway as time marched on I kind of got bored with the Ls400 thing and started playing with old Mercedes and BMWs for awhile but lost intrest, I did have some really cool germen cars though, like a 1988 BWM v12 750il, I had a 6.9 SEL benz that was absolutely decrepit but it ran, sort of and it was pretty fast, I had a 1972 Benz 450SLC with a factory 5 speed, which is a very rare option on a pretty rare car that was extremely fun to drive (wish I had kept that one) but I always kept a reliable LS400 around for my daily and trip car cause they never let me down.
then in 2003, I messed up. still driving my faithful 90 Ls400 modded and slammed at that point and looking absolutely awful as a street warrior after a battle, spun out and hit a utility pole at 50MPH, head on. the airbag didn't deploy and caught a nice bloody nose from that. the entire front end of the car was destroyed with frame damage, but somehow, someway, I managed to drive it 4 miles home, with absolutely no coolant, almost no oil, overheating with chunks literally falling off the car as I drove it home. good lord these cars are tough! I didn't kill the engine, and bought a parts car that was wrecked in the rear with a certificate of destruction but still ran okay, and swapped everything over from the front end to my 90, but before that, I figured id take the 91 out in the woods and have some fun with it. I raced it down dirt paths, jumped it a few times, took it threw mud and rolled it over so it had a last hurrah and exiting death. the car landed sideways and let me tell you what a pain in the rear end it was to get it back on 4 wheels. it took 8 people to rock it back to normal sitting position. managed to drive that one home too AFTER rolling it then I dragged the carcass back and took everything off the front of the car and swapped it all to the 90. rebuilding the 90 presented a challenge cause of the frame damage. so what did I do? grabbed a 100 foot steel chain, tied one end to the base of the oak tree in my front yard, and one end to the front of the lexus. i pulled the car so it was touching the tree, threw it in reverse and stood on the gas about 4 times bending it back almost straight, and put the front end back together. i continued to drive that car another 5 years, as my every single day driver, with never having a professional service done to it.
since that time, ive had 4 more Ls400s, all have been a joy to drive, they've got me through every phase of my life, theve been with me through tough times, but not once, EVER have they left me stranded. my passion for these cars has done great things for me, its even landed me a great job at a lexus dealership as the master technology specialist.. i never thought all those years ago, as a teenager, busting my knuckles on beat up $500 Ls400s, would ever end me up here. funny how that works.
however, the Ls400s are getting very very old now, and i will be replacing my beautiful diamond pearl white 95 Ls400, with a 2007-2008 Ls460, but ill always have an Ls400 in my driveway, forever, till i die
so THAT is my LS story, why they are special and why they always will be, to me atleast.
ive been an LS driver since 01. all of mine have been pretty old and tired and I got some great war stories.
my infatuatiuon with the LS began at 15 years old. my boss at the time had just bought a shiny brand spanking new 1999 Ls400 with 25 miles on it. he took me for a ride and I fell in love with that car immediately which is crazy for me cause I always wanted classic cars, and coming from a lexus trash talking hardcore BMW/Mercedes family I assumed Lexus was just overpriced cheap junk Toyotas and boy was I ever wrong
when I told my family how awesome the ride the lexus had, no joke, my dad wouldn't talk to me for a few days..
then I turned 16, in 2000 and I wanted an Ls400 in the worst kind of way lol! my folks actually offered to get me a new 328i, but told them I wanted a lexus instead, and they told me that I was on my own. bummer! but this wasn't a choice, I HAD to have an Ls400 and not getting one simply was not an option. as the lexus covenant goes, "if you think you cant, you wont, but if you think you can, you will!" "we can and we will!" so that's exactly what I did. I flat out busted my *** for the next year mowing yards, working **** jobs that nobody wanted to do, and I kept a little picture of an Ls400 in my wallet so every time I wanted to spend money on something else I would be reminded of it. well after a year, yes a year, in the summer of 2001, I managed to scrape up $5,000 but felt pretty hopeless because it was a $68,000 car. then I realized the Ls400 had been in production since 1990 and they actually did exist in my price range
so the hunt began for one I could actually might maybe possibly obtain. this came at a good time cause the Ls430 was out by then and the early 400s were not exactly desirable. I managed to find a super early production 1990 with a build date of 8/89 and a 3 digit production number, seriously one of the first in the country. it had about half a million miles on it, was two different colors, ran like crap, shredded interior and was all around beat to death, BUT... it was fully loaded with everything possible, Nak stereo, air suspension, trac and heated seats, phone in the console, k40 radar, the works, and it was in my price range. I bought it and ran. I GOT MY LS400!! ill never forget the look of disappointment on my parents face when I pulled into the driveway with it, they were so angry and embarresed by it they wouldn't even let me park it infront of our house, and to be honest, it was pretty fugly but my god I loved that car, I ended up spending the cash I had left and got it fixed up. that old 90 Ls400 took me all through the last half of my teen years, and I loved it so much I started buying other ones that were really beat up and started playing with them. meanwhile, I started stress testing them to see just how much they could really put up with from a 17 year old punk that was absolutely fearless with a very heavy foot. I soon realized the car could actually do 160 MPH and at the time, it was still a pretty fast car against circa late 90s early 2000s sedans. I started racing them, joined an illegal racing club, and pretty much tried every car I saw and a lot of times id win. I ate corvettes, BMWs, Benzes, and all Hondas acuras infinitys and nissans that thought they had more guts. my kill list grew pretty damn fast to a point that I kept a white out pen and everything that was impressive that I beat id write the make/model speed achieved and date it happened on the center arm rest. I ran from the cops 3 times and got away twice then never did it again, but man oh man it was just amazing what that 1UZ could actually do when I was 18 my parents split but I was still living at home and kind of goofing off. my mom never really agreed with the snobbery of the neighborhood so acting in defiance she pretty much let me go crazy with my car addiction. soon there was 3 raggedy Ls400s parked in my driveway in various states of disrepair, car parts all over the yard, oil soaked driveway, it was great
most days id be out there in the burning Orlando sun under the hood of a 1st gen Ls400 hunched over, covered in grease, smashing my knuckles and swearing like a drunk sailor. man that was the life. anyway as time marched on I kind of got bored with the Ls400 thing and started playing with old Mercedes and BMWs for awhile but lost intrest, I did have some really cool germen cars though, like a 1988 BWM v12 750il, I had a 6.9 SEL benz that was absolutely decrepit but it ran, sort of and it was pretty fast, I had a 1972 Benz 450SLC with a factory 5 speed, which is a very rare option on a pretty rare car that was extremely fun to drive (wish I had kept that one) but I always kept a reliable LS400 around for my daily and trip car cause they never let me down. then in 2003, I messed up. still driving my faithful 90 Ls400 modded and slammed at that point and looking absolutely awful as a street warrior after a battle, spun out and hit a utility pole at 50MPH, head on. the airbag didn't deploy and caught a nice bloody nose from that. the entire front end of the car was destroyed with frame damage, but somehow, someway, I managed to drive it 4 miles home, with absolutely no coolant, almost no oil, overheating with chunks literally falling off the car as I drove it home. good lord these cars are tough! I didn't kill the engine, and bought a parts car that was wrecked in the rear with a certificate of destruction but still ran okay, and swapped everything over from the front end to my 90, but before that, I figured id take the 91 out in the woods and have some fun with it. I raced it down dirt paths, jumped it a few times, took it threw mud and rolled it over so it had a last hurrah and exiting death. the car landed sideways and let me tell you what a pain in the rear end it was to get it back on 4 wheels. it took 8 people to rock it back to normal sitting position. managed to drive that one home too AFTER rolling it then I dragged the carcass back and took everything off the front of the car and swapped it all to the 90. rebuilding the 90 presented a challenge cause of the frame damage. so what did I do? grabbed a 100 foot steel chain, tied one end to the base of the oak tree in my front yard, and one end to the front of the lexus. i pulled the car so it was touching the tree, threw it in reverse and stood on the gas about 4 times bending it back almost straight, and put the front end back together. i continued to drive that car another 5 years, as my every single day driver, with never having a professional service done to it.
since that time, ive had 4 more Ls400s, all have been a joy to drive, they've got me through every phase of my life, theve been with me through tough times, but not once, EVER have they left me stranded. my passion for these cars has done great things for me, its even landed me a great job at a lexus dealership as the master technology specialist.. i never thought all those years ago, as a teenager, busting my knuckles on beat up $500 Ls400s, would ever end me up here. funny how that works.
however, the Ls400s are getting very very old now, and i will be replacing my beautiful diamond pearl white 95 Ls400, with a 2007-2008 Ls460, but ill always have an Ls400 in my driveway, forever, till i die
so THAT is my LS story, why they are special and why they always will be, to me atleast.
Trending Topics
01-29-16, 05:36 PM
#8
Lexus Fanatic
I just spent the last half hour on the Bimmerfest forums in the 7 series threads, reading the continuing and ongoing horror stories from those hapless members. I still suffer PTSD from my ownership of my 7. I feel so sorry for them everytime I drive my LS. If they only knew........
There IS life after BMW ownership.
Seriously though, if you haven't had the pleasure of seeing how the "other side" lives, treat yourself to a read. It's so very sad. Without exaggeration, 90-95% of the posts involve oil burning, transmission failures, engine replacements, etc etc.
Which pretty much sums up how I ended up in my LS.........a cure for post-BMW ownership. And I couldn't be more happy or more giddy.
I
There IS life after BMW ownership.
Seriously though, if you haven't had the pleasure of seeing how the "other side" lives, treat yourself to a read. It's so very sad. Without exaggeration, 90-95% of the posts involve oil burning, transmission failures, engine replacements, etc etc.
Which pretty much sums up how I ended up in my LS.........a cure for post-BMW ownership. And I couldn't be more happy or more giddy.
I
01-30-16, 06:21 AM
#9
Lexus Test Driver
ive had HORRIBLE luck with BMWs
for a brief, very dark and terrible time in my life, i got a 1988 750IL, which well was, everything terrible and bad that everyone says they are. then again a few years later, then a 1996 750iL (just like the one Tupac died in) thinking it would maybe be better than the 88, besides i only paid $1000 for it that car i swear wanted to kill me, all kinds of issues with the steering, and i eventually got in a horrible accident, hitting a tree and was ejected thru a closed moonroof. (i hot the glass so hard and fast it didn't break my neck) besides a concusion and picking glass out of my scalp for a year after, i wasn't too badly hurt (very very lucky i should be dead), well, i decided i wasn't through punishing and abusing myself and got a 2002 bangle butt 745Li, ive had 59 cars, and used to buy high mile hoopties cheap all the time to play with. both BMW 7-series were spectacular and total failures. the 745Li was so bad that after spending a stupid amount of $ trying to keep it running (actually broke down on me and left me stranded on the side of the road the day i bought it) the final straw was when the entire electrical system failed and caught on fire under the dashboard. i pulled it to the side of the road, quickly snatched the tag off of it, and just walked away and let it burn. only BMW i had that was worth a GOD DAMN was my 1983 635CSi, and even it didn't last very long. i really really like the feel of old bmws, but they just don't work out for me and ill never buy another one.
ive always had a Lexus as my main car, and always some germen POS as a toy car. seems like they never end well. ive had BMWs, Audis, Jaguars, Mercs, and a VW, they all failed spectacularly and never lasted very long, especially the Audis and BMWs. dear god i have some horror stories but me and BMW just don't mix at all
for a brief, very dark and terrible time in my life, i got a 1988 750IL, which well was, everything terrible and bad that everyone says they are. then again a few years later, then a 1996 750iL (just like the one Tupac died in) thinking it would maybe be better than the 88, besides i only paid $1000 for it
that car i swear wanted to kill me, all kinds of issues with the steering, and i eventually got in a horrible accident, hitting a tree and was ejected thru a closed moonroof. (i hot the glass so hard and fast it didn't break my neck) besides a concusion and picking glass out of my scalp for a year after, i wasn't too badly hurt (very very lucky i should be dead), well, i decided i wasn't through punishing and abusing myself and got a 2002 bangle butt 745Li, ive had 59 cars, and used to buy high mile hoopties cheap all the time to play with. both BMW 7-series were spectacular and total failures. the 745Li was so bad that after spending a stupid amount of $ trying to keep it running (actually broke down on me and left me stranded on the side of the road the day i bought it) the final straw was when the entire electrical system failed and caught on fire under the dashboard. i pulled it to the side of the road, quickly snatched the tag off of it, and just walked away and let it burn. only BMW i had that was worth a GOD DAMN was my 1983 635CSi, and even it didn't last very long. i really really like the feel of old bmws, but they just don't work out for me and ill never buy another one.ive always had a Lexus as my main car, and always some germen POS as a toy car. seems like they never end well. ive had BMWs, Audis, Jaguars, Mercs, and a VW, they all failed spectacularly and never lasted very long, especially the Audis and BMWs. dear god i have some horror stories but me and BMW just don't mix at all
01-30-16, 08:35 AM
#10
I've owned a BMW, Audi, Mercedes, and a Cadillac. Initially they were all great to drive but turned to be money pits with electrical, electronic and mechanical issues. Now when I see people driving one those older makes I think to myself, they just don't know. My 460 is more reliable and dependable and just a fine automobile to drive and own.
01-30-16, 09:45 AM
#11
Pole Position
I've been pretty lucky. For the last 22 years I've driven a Lexus. Very proud and lucky to do so. Hopefully it's the last brand I'll ever drive. Well, except for some small 2 door convertible thing I'd like to have for weekend getaways.
01-30-16, 10:30 AM
#12
My first Lexus and never been happier with a new car than this one! I love it. Maybe too much! I want to bubble wrap it and I park so far away from everything and everyone that I feel like Clark Griswald in Vacation at Wally World.
Can't wait to take my first long trip, stretch its legs. I have yet to "floor it," but that day is coming too, with traction control off! Maybe I'll scare my neighbor!
I plan on keeping this car at least ten years, unless the new LS is just absolutely stellar, although even if I do decide to upgrade, it won't be before three years at least. I was never a "fan boy" of anything ever, but I'm starting to feel that way about this car.
Can't wait to take my first long trip, stretch its legs. I have yet to "floor it," but that day is coming too, with traction control off! Maybe I'll scare my neighbor!
I plan on keeping this car at least ten years, unless the new LS is just absolutely stellar, although even if I do decide to upgrade, it won't be before three years at least. I was never a "fan boy" of anything ever, but I'm starting to feel that way about this car.
I think most of feels the same way about our LS. Its a remarkable automobile that most of us are proud to own and drive. I park mines away from other vehicles and no doors dings. Congrats and drive and enjoy your LS.
07-01-16, 05:19 AM
#13
Lead Lap
Thread Starter
There are new members now and maybe some new LS stories or memories. I always had plush sheep skins in my 91 LS400. People made fun of me till they sat in them and wow it was like riding on a cloud.
07-01-16, 06:27 AM
#14
Instructor
07-01-16, 07:53 AM
#15
I had a chance to drive one and I love the way it drives