is it really common or just a highly publicized issue whenever it happens because of the location... either way i'm gonna knock on wood for myself lol (and i have)

 

It’s really common according to everything I have seen and according to my Lexus mechanic. My 98 LS400 had a bad starter when we traded it

A starter is just a very common failure on an older car

 

oh wow really that soon? i'd normally like to attribute something like that to being the first year of a new model but i can't imagine they made serious starter revisions between 1997 and 1998... maybe that's the problem, they never really addressed the original 1989 design lol

 

Not as common as in other cars HOWEVER it's mainly because it's such a high quality unit they selected. It gets attention because it's a pain, in some ways though I prefer it since you don't have to get under the car/it can be done by a novice with very basic tools.

My 430 at 270k was on the original, my RXs needed starters at less miles. I've only done a few UZ starters, I don't look forward to a UR starter but those also appear to be very high quality. GM/ford have very poor quality units, Chrysler is hit or miss.....my truck and Jeep we both still on originals at 162/300+K miles but my friends Jeep is on 2


The worst starter placement I've ever seen is Bentley. You need to remove the transmission to do it, I'm not looking forward to owning mine since it will constantly be in the back of my mind.

 

It did have 165,000 miles on it when we traded it lol

 

oh lol i see... i was under the impression you guys didn't hang on to that car for longer than a warranty period... well then that's nice it got plenty of original owner use! i tell ya man if i found a magical genie one of my wishes might just have to be send me back to 1999 to pick up a brand new LS 400 and a Supra Turbo!

 

No my dad bought that car out of the lease, he traded it in 2004 on the LS430 so it was 165k in 6 years, he was in sales and drove a ton back then

 

Sure, but....who cares? I think it's already aced the class. 230k miles towing very heavy loads with 15k OCIs, he doesn't check fluids regularly, etc. etc. Still going. Not slowing down. Never changed the transmission fluid, etc. That's the true Toyota toughness for ya. I don't think the 3.4tt would still have rods at this phase personally under the same (crazy hard) use, age, and 230k miles.

Plus you don't keep your cars anyway. None of this matters in the slightest. You get to enjoy all the newest and the best. Or, you get to see if the newest and the best turns into crap.

LX570 is for sure behind etc etc but there's something about them, and/or 200s in general. I know exactly what he means when he says he doesn't want to sell it.

The graphics are so dated but damn if the V8 isn't fun, today I was being driven around (I'm driver 99% of the time) and having my head thrown back into the seat repeatedly all while listening to glorious V8 sounds and feeling the solidity of the truck. Lol it's just such a friggin' tank. Owners all get it.

I guess 200s are rare around here but the family loves it, one of my cousins in a GM engineer (drives a sweet Silverado) and was fascinated with it, had all kinds of AHC questions for me.

 

My LS430 starter clicked once....about 3 years ago.... never an issue since.

That's just the insanity/magic of Lexus LS reliability.

 

At this point, 227k miles, I feel like I’ve gotten my money worth. It’s a “if she blows, it blows” mindset. I’m not afraid to put it on the highway and throw a trailer behind it at any moment. A lot of things on that “recommended maintenance list” I skip over.

I do have a vehicle with a turbo that I race and for that reason I stay up on its maintenance.

We bought the LX 570 solely off how reliable my Tundra has been over the years. And in addition to that, I just picked up another 5.7 Tundra. Like you stated, the 5.7 is a tank. My best friend sold their GLS and Escalade because of poor reliability and both of them were under 100k miles. Like he called me on speakerphone with his wife listening and said “we need something reliable. We’re done with the Escalade.” So I said well get a LX. It may have little less tech and 3rd row a little smaller but it wont live at the shop. 2yrs later, they still love their LX. They are officially done with Cadillac and Mercedes (had a E350 as well).

The transmission in the Escalade went up in smoke 2x. One instance he called the shop to check on his Escalade, the person over the phone said which one is yours. We have several of them here. The AC went belly up as well. Same happened in the GLS.

I will take a little less tech over reliability.

 

Yeah, I'd say so!

Drove the wheels off that car. Lol

I put 70k on a car in a year doing outside electrical sales.

 

The 1UZ starter gave us some trouble with our LS400'S.

​​​​​​It was one of a few choices about the car that bothered me, another being the power steering pump being located above the alternator. It was prone to leaks. The one on my car had been replaced multiple times by the time I bought it. I had to replace it within a week or two of buying the car. It was on it's way out again a couple years later when I sold it.

 

The UR and UZ are high end motors in higher end cars, more complicated for sure. I also don’t expect a Toyota/Lexus to be cheap to repair, parts that are of high quality usually cost more. I agree with you where the place of the UZ starter motor is located, that is a unique place..but Toyota does claim that they did place it under the manifold for reliability reasons, and Toyota also claims the addition of the auto-crank features helps with reliability. Out of curiosity, as per the turbos, it would interesting to see how a Toyota Supra in the 1980s was packaged. My guess is that they were packaged with a higher degree of complexity just like a modern Toyota.

UZ starter failures aren’t that comment. Definitely not a weak point.

I doubt your 5.7 will just blow like that. But 227K is quite a bit of miles.

 

I would feel the same, but I have no doubt that your Tundra is even close to being done... not even close.

I've had good luck with GM, GM trucks especially in my life. I'm absolutely aware, though, that many have problems. Nothing is like an LX570. It's all that efficiency crap, 35 speed transmissions, etc. etc. that pulls other brands down. There's a '22 Yukon Denali in my family that's been flawless, and the last Yukon before that lasted twenty years and was still going fine when donated. If the new one turns out to have problems and/or be a disappointment I'll report it on here.

What makes 5.7 engine so desirable and just a brick is that the best "tech" it has is 25 year old oil actuated VVTI. 5.7 has zero fuel economy bullshyyt. Not even direct injection BS, carbon buildup to think about. You can absolutely beat the snot out of it, we do ours too but just with regular driving and off roading. Not quite like you though haha. But I love knowing I can just kill it and it will take the abuse. LX570 is even stouter than a Tundra IMO at least. It weighs just as much or more. They cut the trans cooler out of the later Tundras but all LX570s have them.

Agree, our 2014 LX has 130k. Like I said, that mileage on that vehicle and that V8 powertrain worries me about as much as a rain storm. It's been flawless, except the ball and chain fried the alternator jumping it once lol. I say the graphics are so dated, and they are, but I bet that screen works fine for the next 20+ years.

 

True Toyota toughness as long as it not one of the Toyota engines that are very sensitive to maintenance like I mentioned earlier.