LS - 1st and 2nd Gen (1990-2000) Discussion topics related to the 1990 - 2000 Lexus LS400

HELP PLEASE! Car died while at a stop

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Old 10-14-09, 02:55 PM
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deekim
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Default HELP PLEASE! Car died while at a stop

So i was driving to get some food and on the way there the radio started tweaking. when i was at a complete stop the radio would be completely dead. while accelerating everything would work perfectly fine and my headlights would get brighter. but when i finally came to where the car died i tried to restart it and it would start all electricity but would tick over and over. i had someone jump my car and went to my friends house. about a hour later the car started up. any ideas on what this could be? i dont think its the battery cuz i just replaced it about 2 months ago.. my alternator?
Old 10-14-09, 03:30 PM
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PureDrifter
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alternator.
and check all the big ground wires.
Old 10-14-09, 03:33 PM
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curepunx
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Just off the bat, i'd say get your charging system tested: Battery, Alternator and check all your cables. I'd recommend autozone or kragen...free and easy.

Goodluck...
Old 10-14-09, 03:57 PM
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Li Ls4
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check the positive terminal and make sure its on the battery nice and tight with no wobbling.

my car started acting funny like that last year, the entire car just shut off on me on the parkway during rush hour. after a few days of trying to figure out what was up and checking to make sure everything was good. i notice that my + terminal didnt look right and for some reason i had a extra 1. so i swapped it and everything was fine again

such a small thing that my cousin and i didnt even put it 2 thought that the terminal was bad lol
Old 10-14-09, 09:19 PM
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trukn1
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As stated above,,1st check positive terminal on battery. Only other thing left is the alternator.
Old 10-15-09, 08:51 AM
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3UZFTE
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If your have a volt meter, with the car running, your battery should measure between 13-14.5 if your alternator is charging. If it were me, and your battery is that new, I think your alternator is returning the juice isn't being returned, but check obvious signs of corrosion on the cables or loose cables.
Old 10-15-09, 09:08 AM
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empinball
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was your tachometer bouncing? if so you could have a bad voltage regulator on your alternator. good luck and be thankfull you drive a lexus not a land rover!!
Old 10-17-09, 11:56 AM
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Alternator, I had the same problem 4 months ago.
Old 10-18-09, 07:56 PM
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shadowless
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alternator issue. i had the same thing happen to my car 2 months ago. however when you checked the battery voltage it read 13v+ all the time. but just because the voltage is high doesnt mean your charging adequately. chances are you arent charging back with enough amps from your alternator.

after you change that out make sure your power steering pump isnt pissing all over your alternator which is a common cause to alternator death on ls400s. if it is i would get that fixed as well.
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