kcasto

Hello friends,

I recently purchased a 94 LS400(black on black) as my first car. Definitely like the look- got it for $1000 at an auction. Hasn't come without a bit of trouble though as I've replaced the brakes, battery, tires, also had issues with the ball bearings.

The most immediate problem came driving today however- was driving for roughly 1hr 30 mins in the rain so the defrost was on. Quite suddenly my radio starts to die and my instrument panel flickers- then the car just shuts off. If I throttled the electrics would be fine but if idle it would almost die...which it did when I got to a red light

Anyways- I'm guessing the problem is with the alternator? It's a brand new battery so I don't know what else it would be. Car started fine again with a jump. Either way I'm sure I should get it tested, if it is a dead alt, is it something that a novice like myself would be able to figure out how to fix?
~edit~ I should also add, that it seems like the previous owner had speakers hooked up in the trunk as there was a leftover wire running to the hood. It's not connected of course but perhaps something could be off with the outputs of certain things. Then again I'm just guessing

Second problem- theres a strange issue with the braking. It isn't all the time, but alot of the times after I've come to a complete stop and start to accelerate theres a thumping from beneath the car- 4 or 5 thumps as the car starts to go but then it clears after that. The ABS and brake pad warning lights are also on though I'm not sure why- the brakes like I said are new.

Thanks for any help!

deanshark

First, welcome to CL and good choice for a first car, but it can get expensive for a first car. It's very common for the alternator to give those symptoms when it's on it's way out, soon. Usually they start to go b/c the Power Steering Pump is leaking and the fluid goes into the alternator. (VERY common) Check your PS pump for leaks. Take a look at the "newbie" thread at the top of the page and you'll see "The First Gen Power Steering Bible". Very helpful and informative. The alt. isn't bad to change at all, ya gotta learn sometime. I think there's a DIY on how to change it on Lextreme.com, or you can search here and something will come up. The Search feature is your best friend here.
The noise in the back, When you changed the brakes did you put the shims back in and in correctly? I also get a clunk with mine but it's just 1 clunk when I let off the brakes. My problem is this; http://www.lexls.com/tutorials/suspe...abushings.html Check that to see if they're are bad on yours.Take a look at all the tutorials on lexls.com b/c you'll definately have at least a couple of those repairs coming up.

kcasto

Thanks for the input.
I'll look into the power steering that never crossed my mind. After watching a few guides on youtube the alternator seems like a simple enough job even for me

As for the brakes- my local body shop did the removal/install and he's a very good mechanic so I assumed he did the job I asked for correctly, though it's possible he didn't. It's something I wouldn't mind learning to do certainly but I couldn't even tell you what a shim is not sure it's something to go diving into

deanshark

If you paid someone else to do the brakes you should bring it back to them and find out why those lights are on, especially if they weren't on before you got the brakes done. Were they on before? Your best bet, seeing how this is your first car, is to buy a service manual and do most, if not all, the repairs yourself. You will save lots of money on labor charges and gain some knowledge along the way. The manual will tell you step by step with how many bolts to take out, where they are, everything. You will feel confident enough to just "dive in" to any repair, as long as you can twist a wrench. I found mine on Ebay and paid under $200 but it has saved me thousands, and thousands more, already. It also tells ya how to diagnose almost any problem you can have on the car, mechanically. How many miles on the car?

billydpowe

iTrader: (1)

Dean, this might help him also:

http://www.lexls.com/

http://www.*******.com/parts/g_U_199...0L-AEPGKA.html

thats strange, now I cant open this link from in the forum.

billydpowe

iTrader: (1)

this system will not let me give him the link... it is a toyota do it yourself link
maybe you know how to do it

www dot
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0
y
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dot
com

yea! type this in,,,, using a real dot.

kcasto

thanks, speaking of wrenches- would you happen to have a list of the essential tools I should have to start? best to see what i need as I go? The car has 168k

billy: thank you as well, i have looked at a bunch of the lexls tutorials however. some are a bit vague but very informative for the most part.

I should also add: the A/C unit has been broken since i got it. It blows a continuous stream of very hot air, Even when the unit is pressed off hot air still comes out and makes it noticeably hotter in the car. The defrost and some other lights simply stay on as well.

edit:

also, whenever i put the key in a loud beep comes through the speakers..from googling it seems its related to some sort of carphone? not sure though since i see no evidence of a car phone anywhere in the car..

deanshark

Your A/C might just need to be charged, or.... hope you have deep pockets, nothing with the A/C system is cheap. Good thing summer is almost over.

Never heard of the beep you're talking about but most, if not all, the first gen LSs are wired for a car phone. The wires are in the center console under the storage box. Do you have an antenna mounted on your back window?

Tools....WOW, Those,...can get pretty pricey. Best bet to start off with is just get a boxed 1/4" - 3/8" drive ratchet/socket set, a set of wrenches, and some screwdrivers. (Flat and philips) Most of the bolts on the car are 8mm, 10mm, 14mm. Not sure how your financial situation is but to start off with you can get "cheap" tools at Harbour Frieght and then later on get the good stuff like Snap-on. I use alot of Craftsman, (Sears) they have some nice mechanics tool sets in the $300-$400 range. Seriously, you don't really need too much for tools to do the basic work on this car. Eventually tools will pile up as you need them over the years and most "specialty tools" you can rent from Autozone. If there's a tool that you're only gonna need a couple times, try to borrow it. Usually if I need to borrow something 3 times, the 3rd time I would buy it instead of borrowing it, again. That's the way all my tools added up, and then my X-wife got rid of them all.

Those lexls tutorials are awesome, a big help.

kcasto

It most likely needs to be recharged considering the previous owner was a bit lax on the maintenance. I don't really need A/C the window works fine for me, I just hate how hot it becomes very quickly inside the car with even with the blowers and everything off.


I also think I'm gonna snag these guys:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1994-...item2567358f86

seems to be exactly what I need.

Thanks for the advice about tools too man. Not tryin to be the best at fixing cars or anything just enough to get the job done so my car serves me well for a few years.

Anywho, I'll be taking it to autozone for a charge test tomorrow

deanshark

Awesome, those manuals are exactly what you need if you want to fix or test anything on the car yourself. That's also an extremely good price, especially b/c it includes the wiring diagram. You don't usually see all 3 as a package. But, it's already been sold, a few hours before you posted the link. Keep looking for some more, they're out there, ya just need to look. Around that same price is good even if it's without the wiring diagram. Used is fine as long as there's no missing pages. About the alternator, I don't know what your budget is but, seeing how this is your first car, it can't be too high. If you need an alternator you could get a used one from the junkyard for alot less then new or remanufactured. I got mine from a JY in Ma. for $25 and it's been well over a year and no problems.

kcasto

I bought the set actually, just waiting for it to come in the mail

No, it's not high. I'm a full time student with a job of around 30 hrs/week. Was gonna fork out the $100 or so for a new alternator but if I can find a suitable one for much less why not. Speaking of which the charge test at autozone confirmed the alternator wasn't working- stayed at around 12 w/ the car running. Can I only look for 93/94 ls400s or would other models work?

deanshark

Good that you got it. Wait till you see the size of the books. Holy cow big.
$100 wouldn't get you a new/remanufactured alternator. It's been a while but, I remember being young and on a tight budget and always using junkyard parts whenever I could. Idk where you are in Ma. but this place has an alternator for $39; http://www.usejack.com/ If you get one from the junkyard ask them if they tested it and then after you get it bring it to Autozone and have them test it just to be possitive that it's good. No sense putting it in and have it bad. Good luck.

kcasto

Well, just to update a bit. FInally got a chance to look at it a bit more.

This happened last week however:

One of my courtesy switches was a bit bent and one night the open door light stayed on for about 24 hours. Anyways, the car was dead when I tried to start it and needed a jump. So we jump it let it run for a bit and take it out for a drive. It was night so the lights, etc were on...the car would start to shut off (batt light) when idling. So we take it back to my house and it idles ok with the lights off and I left it on for a bit hoping to charge it..Was almost completely dead by morning.

Fast forward to today, I finally was able to get under the hood;

Seems like there were mice in the air filter. Found some nesting in there clogging the majority of the tube..

The fusebox was a bit of a mess as well. The covers for the FL fuses were off and most look fairly old. Figure I'll just replace all of them..The ALT fuse was broken a bit seems like some idiot tried to just pry it out. Couple fuses (airsus) were missing as well. The last idiot that owned it was running a 100A sound system to the trunk.

I was also a bit concerned about the bat cables..the nuts/bolts on the negative connector are a bit rusted but otherwise seems to connect fine...could this be giving me problems?

So yea, gonna replace the fuses and air filter first and see what problems if any it alleviates.

Edit:
I also believe the previous owner was jacked or at least broken into. There are small but noticeable markings for what is most likely crowbars on the passenger door. I've also found broken glass in that window.

deanshark

Those darn door switches, they're put in a stupid place. They should be up front like almost every other car out there. I had a problem with mine one night, I had the door panel off and that's what hits the darn switch. The next morning th....well, you know, dead.
It sounds like your alternator isn't charging right. At higher RPMs and lights off it works good as it spins faster. Try doing a search for something like "alternator not charging battery", there's alot of threads with your same symptoms. Someone just had a thread about this, the alternator checked out fine when they brought the car in and had it tested, but it was actually bad. I had a couple that did the same thing. (other cars I owned)

trukn1

Since you stated that the ALT fuse was broken, this is a BIG part of where your problem lies. That fuse is for the alternator and is seems like you may have an arching spark at the higher rpm's which is why it hasnt died. Replace that fuse and your problems SHOULD disappear. someof the other fuses like the AIRSUS fuse being missing is not a big deal. sound like your car came equipped with factory air ride and it may have since been converted to shock/springs once they wore out. Replacing airbags on our cars can be costly and the conversion is pretty common once they wear out. Unless your car STILL has an airsuspension, you willnot need that particular fuse.