pfantom68

Hey guys, my name's Arvin (aka Vin, Vinnie, etc.), and I had a few questions about buying a 1991 Lexus LS400.

First off, I'm no newb to Toyotas. My family has owned several Toyota's and I currently drive a 1991 Toyota Camry (I didn't know what to put in my info, so I put ES250). My uncle also owns a 1990 LS400, so I've spent a fair amount of time in and around a 1st gen LS400.

With that said, I am considering buying my own LS400. I've located a 1991 LS400 with 90k miles in pretty good shape. The only problem is that it doesn't run, and it's about 1200 miles away. According to the owner, the car has fuel delivery problems since the engine will start up but then dies almost instantly. My guess and his guess is that it's something with the FPR or fuel pump.

Now here's the deal... the owner wants $1500 for it, but I think I could probably talk him down to $1300. It would cost me about $700 to trailer it to Michigan.

Now for the questions:


1) Do you guys think it's worth it to buy the car and trailer it to MI for a total cost of around $2000?

2) Other than the fuel pressure regulator or fuel pump, what do you guys think could be the problem? I know its hard to diagnose this when I don't have the car here for myself to describe the problem, but just give me some possibilities, and how much you would estimate it would cost to fix.

3) I know Lexus parts go for a pretty penny, so do you think that if I cannot get the car running, I could part it out and make my money back?

Thanks in advance for all the help.

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

i say u spend money on a plane ticket and check the fuel pump urself before paying 2gs and finding out you have a much bigger problem.

could be a variety of things, clogged fuel lines, dead pump, blocked filter, clogged injectors, injector wiring short, injector ecu dead, random electrical/ignition issue, etc.

as a general rule i never buy a car ESPECIALLY one that isnt running without either looking at it myself or having a friend in the area whos somewhat knowledgable check it out.

RA40

iTrader: (6)

Plenty of good running samples are around, at $1,500, I'd be skeptical. It may be a fuel problem but it may also be ECU-FI related. I think there may be potential problems to work through and that may be $$. It's a gamble.

I'd pass for oen that is local and running.

pfantom68

The owner is throwing in a spare ECU with the car. I don't know much about engines, but I would guess that a new ECU and the same problem means that it's most likely not an ECU-FI problem.

Today is Wednesday, and it seems pretty short notice to be heading down to FL this weekend, but I'll see what's going on. The problem is that if I take a van and trailer down with me to check out the car and trailer it to a local mechanic, the whole trip is still gonna set me back around $500-600 whether or not I buy the car, but I guess it's better than getting screwed out of $1300.

I would actually prefer to work on the car in the comfort of my own garage and take it to a local mechanic here, but that is still a gamble because it still may end up costing me a ton to fix it. Which raises the question: if the estimate is too high, do you guys think I could make back at least $1700 parting out the car?

RA40

iTrader: (6)

If he has a spare ECU, that tells me he's tried to track the problem down and the fuel pump is a first thought fix. Failing that it could also be one of many sensors, a fuel rail, injectors...could be simple but until it is hooked up and an error code given...it's all speculation. I'd still pass.

There are enough first gen LS's out there for parts so unless you enjoy stripping a car down, to me it's not worth the storage space. There are IMO better ways to make a $. If this is what you want...it's your choice.

Khiladi

iTrader: (1)

IMO, not worth it. You can get a good condition running one (albeit with some more miles) for $2K. The time and money spent on this one will probably go much past that, because, as you said, parts are a pretty penny. Could be a good learning experience though. But IMO, not worth $2K.

Stu

Don't do it. Unless you are a mechanic, buy a running car.
I say this in a sincere way, and I could be 100% wrong, but even considering this car tells me you cant really afford an LS400

pfantom68

Okay, so here's the deal as of now; my friend is going to be going down to Miami from Michigan for business in mid-september, so if he can bring the car up for next to nothing, and I may be able to talk the seller down, so even if I can't get it running, around $1,000 is no biggie, and it's a gamble I'm willing to take.

If my friend can't bring it up for whatever reason, I'm just not gonna buy this one. I've made the decision to fork over a few grand more and buy a decent, running LS400 with more miles, since these cars are known to make it past 200k like it's nothing.

And it's not a question of if I can afford it, it's more of me being really cheap. I thought that my level of mechanical skill could get me a nice LS400 for cheap, and it's a gamble depending on what is wrong with it.

denverdog

rather than buying blind, or spending large $ to go there yourself, what would it cost to have it towed to a local dealer or an independent lexus repair shop, and have them diagnose the problem? seems like a lot less hassle, and you'd get a real opinion.

omarg

Personally, I have bought a car in FL that wasn't running. It was a very low mileage 5-speed 92 es300. I think its fuel delivery but have not been able to pinpoint the problem. I don't regret the purchase and finding a manual es is difficult but it has been frustrating. If i were you i'd do what denver dog said. then you might even be able to have it fixed and take a plane and drive it up to mich. I can also attest to high mileage ls400's. Just turned 214k today. I bought mine on ebay for 2175. Its a white 93. Had a bit of rust, bad front tires, needed bushings and a radio and had 210k on the clock.. I have fixed those problems myself(with my dads help) and don't regret my purchase one bit. I have to go against the crowd and say, I'd buy it... but i'm mechanically inclined so... it's just a grand. take it. If not give me the info and I will! haha... no really! I'm in GA. Also one thing that i love about fixer upper's is that i feel as if i saved a car from a terrible ending at a nice price. Just a bit of love can go far.

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

the parts question is a very unstable issue since u could make back back the 1500-2k but it will require a LOT of work on your part on actively selling the major components and misc pieces. not something u wanna get into if u want the car out of ur front lawn anytime soon.

LexusLS

If someone knows enough to try and replace the ECU then they have probably tried all the easier/cheaper stuff first (FPR, pump, etc.). Sounds like he got pretty far into it and is now giving up.

I would be very suspect, flood car ?

Bob