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Started digging into the 400 last night and it looks like everything minus the alternator is original. I was actually amazed with how clean everything still was minus the few leaks; inside of the throttle body was spotless! Leaks look to be coming from the drivers side valve cover and the lower oil pan which I'll be taking care of this weekend (pics to come). May be some leaks from the upper pan but depending on how bad they are I may just keep something under the car in the garage to catch what little falls and let it ride. P/S pump is leaking from somewhere but it appears slow (I know that this likely killed the first alternator), will keep an eye on it once I start driving it regularly with plans to eventually replace the various gaskets and such that tend to go.
There's a random miss at idle and at low RPMs under load so she's getting some ignition love before I put her back on the road. Also went ahead and grabbed OEM oil filters and Toyota coolant for both LS'.
Replaced the 2 vacuum lines that connect under the PS pump
New distributor cap and rotors, NGK spark plug wires and plugs
Replaced LH valve cover gasket and spark plug tube seals (RH looks good still, just torqued it down properly)
New engine air filter
Pulled, cleaned, and reinstalled/resealed the No.2 oil pan
I have a new fuel filter I still need to install, but beyond that all I need to do is fill it up with oil, drain off some trans fluid (too full at the moment), and fill/bleed the cooling system. Get some test driving in, see if there are any more leaks to take care of, then wait the 1.5 months to register it at 25 years old as a "Classic"!!!
Got all the fluids in and the cooling system bled tonight and took her out for a quick drive. No more missing and she's smooth as ice! Still need to track down a leak that I assume is originating near the PS pump? Alternator was replaced shortly before I got it so I assume that's what it is. Will pull that and freshen up all seals per "the bible" before she hits the road full time in January.
Deleted the air control valve with a Honda drain plug, but I gotta go back in and replace the RH valve cover gasket that I thought was good as it's the last source of leaks in this thing.
Got new bumper lenses and tails installed to modernize the look a little. Always loved the red and white tail lights on these.
Going aftermarket with these has me second thinking the classic plates. May just go custom with something like "UCF10", which would mean no need to wait until 2019 to go ahead and register it
Installed new hood struts this evening, it now raises itself beyond a certain point. Gates timing belt kit and camshaft seals came in as well so that job will be going down at some point, likely during my time off the second half of December. She'll need nothing more than some suspension love by the time she hits the road. Nothing wrong with it necessarily but I know it's a bit tired after 24 years and 120K miles.
Nice job! Being the owner of a 2000 Platinum Series LS400, I can tell you that your car is not tired even at 24 years old and 120k miles! We sold my LS400 a few months ago with 272k miles on it and the car still ran great!! The 400 models are good for half a million miles or more. Just change the oil when it's due and keep good tires on it and that's really all that needs to be done! Super purchase decision!!!!
The car itself isn't tired necessarily, but I can see it slightly leaning to the driver's side so the suspension definitely needs some love. Will likely go with a good coil over setup, give it 0.5-1" drop to close the fender gap a bit, level it out all around, and just enjoy it. That'll be a little down the road though, I'm going to enjoy it as-is for a bit.
Got her all torn down for the timing belt, water pump, and seal (cam and Crank) replacements. Looks like the tb and wp were done before, no idea why they wouldn't go ahead and do the seals at the same time.
Just waiting on the SSTs to show up to remove the cam sprockets and harmonic balancer so I can finish it up. January can't come soon enough!
Wrapped up the work on the 400 today but wasn't able to fire her up. Lost some fluid when I pulled the water pump so waiting for more of the good stuff to arrive, delivery date shows Jan 3rd
Wow! Good thing you changed the belt now. That wouldn't be fun on the side of the road.
I'm not a huge fan of the DEPO clear lights set for this car, but it looks clean. Did you change the inner brake bulbs to red? They appear to still be white in the photo, which will be misleading to other drivers.
