General Car Conversation
Lexus Champion
Joined: Oct 2019
Posts: 18,096
Likes: 1,740
From: Ohio
Nice!! Yeah they swapped out the oil pressure gauge for oil temp for 1999, personally I'd rather have the oil pressure gauge because it's accurate. In LX570 the gauge is comically, comically conservative. I've never had nor seen one with a full pressure reading, or above half that I can remember. I think Toyota "splits" it, half is really full, etc so the typical Lexus buyer won't get nervous with a gauge reading extremely high no matter what it is other than gas.
Lexus Champion
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 17,019
Likes: 496
From: Knoxville, TN
TFL.com towed LX570 at just about max weight up that Gauntlet which is supposed to be one of the toughest grades, etc.... They had the gas pinned, LX 5.7 was at or near redline towing 6k lbs, and the oil pressure gauge was less than 1/4. Hah. Right.
Unless I'm totally wrong about a pretty basic thing in cars....
Thread Starter
Lexus Fanatic
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 68,466
Likes: 3,990
From: Maryland
My dad had a 1990 Lincoln Continental, which was basically the Lincoln version of that and he loved it. Not the most reliable car in the world but not bad for the time, he put about 150,000 miles on it in 5 years.
Lexus Fanatic
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 94,328
Likes: 236
From: Virginia/D.C. suburbs
Yes, it was a stretched version of the Taurus/Sable platform of the time. I'm glad your Dad was (apparantly) satisfied with his....a number of reviewers and members of the auto press (including Pat Goss, as I recall) were not.
Lexus Fanatic
Joined: Nov 2011
Posts: 35,382
Likes: 357
From: ON/NY
Thread Starter
Lexus Fanatic
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 68,466
Likes: 3,990
From: Maryland
It was a classy, comfortable car but like all domestic cars of the era, pretty unreliable. His had an air suspension failure among a bunch of other problems. I was a kid but I remember it left him and me stranded in Ocean City one time and he was stuck there while it was repaired and couldn’t go back home to work. Luckily my parents had both cars with them. I can remember watching it being towed out of the Sunsations parking lot lol
Lexus Fanatic
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 94,328
Likes: 236
From: Virginia/D.C. suburbs
Actually an old MotorWeek is out there on YouTube and they speak highly of the Continental.
It was a classy, comfortable car but like all domestic cars of the era, pretty unreliable. His had an air suspension failure among a bunch of other problems. I was a kid but I remember it left him and me stranded in Ocean City one time and he was stuck there while it was repaired and couldn’t go back home to work. Luckily my parents had both cars with them. I can remember watching it being towed out of the Sunsations parking lot lol
It was a classy, comfortable car but like all domestic cars of the era, pretty unreliable. His had an air suspension failure among a bunch of other problems. I was a kid but I remember it left him and me stranded in Ocean City one time and he was stuck there while it was repaired and couldn’t go back home to work. Luckily my parents had both cars with them. I can remember watching it being towed out of the Sunsations parking lot lol
As I recall, Goss (who also owned a repair shop) didn't care for it....John Davis was more forgiving. Anyhow, that probably doesn't matter. What matters was if your Dad was satisfied with it....after all, it was his money.
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Thread Starter
Lexus Fanatic
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 68,466
Likes: 3,990
From: Maryland
He’d have been more satisfied if it was more reliable lol, he liked how it rode and drove. One of the rare cars he bought out of the lease and kept a while. That and his LS400.
It was light blue exterior dark blue interior. Very 90s.
It was light blue exterior dark blue interior. Very 90s.
Lexus Fanatic
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 94,328
Likes: 236
From: Virginia/D.C. suburbs
Yes, I remember dark blue interiors were quite popular on Ford products of that era....that was before the Great Black and Tan Craze took over interior designs.
Lexus Champion
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 17,019
Likes: 496
From: Knoxville, TN
Yes, the Sable from my childhood was 1980s blue on blue. It looked nice at the time.
It was Grandparents’ car, so obviously clean as a whistle. They didn’t stack too many miles on it but I don’t remember them having any trouble with it.
It was Grandparents’ car, so obviously clean as a whistle. They didn’t stack too many miles on it but I don’t remember them having any trouble with it.
Thread Starter
Lexus Fanatic
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 68,466
Likes: 3,990
From: Maryland
Big issue was the air suspension which the Sable didn't have. There were also head gasket issues which were common with that 3.8, alternator and starter problems, and at the end some kind of weird electrical issue which caused all the system alarms to go off, and it had those 90s digital gauges so that was quite the show. It would happen about 15 minutes after you started the car, but at startup and for that 15 minutes it was normal. Long enough that for a trade in they didn't notice lol
Lexus Champion
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 17,019
Likes: 496
From: Knoxville, TN
Big issue was the air suspension which the Sable didn't have. There were also head gasket issues which were common with that 3.8, alternator and starter problems, and at the end some kind of weird electrical issue which caused all the system alarms to go off, and it had those 90s digital gauges so that was quite the show. It would happen about 15 minutes after you started the car, but at startup and for that 15 minutes it was normal. Long enough that for a trade in they didn't notice lol
Really sad Ford’s 3.8 was a mess compared to GM 3800 of the time.
