Hi I am a new fella here, I love saying that at my age, Well he we go I approx 5 years ago wanted to get my wife a nice driving older car just to monkey around with, I ended up getting her a 92 Mercedes 300E, a OK car but it just did not have the pazaz I was looking for she wasnt happy with it either, It was just to "plain Jane" so we are selling it and I came across these Lexus LS400 SERIES and we do like the 90-94 years we were told that these first generation models are a very nice running item. So my question to you fellas what year is good, depending if it was taken care of of course.

I have looked at a very sweet all burgandy, burgandy leather etc 91 and I can do alot of tinkering with it it has only 115,000 on it. But I here the 93-94 came with the better brakes etc.

Now just to let you guys know I am a 60,s kid and I am in to the HP . I am also a Jeep guy i had a 2002 Jeep Wrangler I DROPPED IN A 375 hp plug and play hemi, with new running grars transmission, I put it up for sale it sold in 2 days for 35,000. I just got done building up a 98 XJ Cherokee I placed a LT1 corvett in it but it is mine. I has MILD hp RATING OF 275 . I hunt and do a little 4x4 with it and alot of showing off, not bad for a 57 year old gezer huh?
I say all this to let you guys know I understand gar "lingo" so fill me in fellas, I will not mod it out to much make it look a little sweet.

I am checking out bazzani exhaust, to see what they have for exaust, I had a set on a Mustang Cobra and they are so nice....so what say ye guys?

 

Ok to answer you question,, the first gen LS was probably the most reliable that Lexus put out in the fact that in alot of ways, Lexus overengineered the car. LOL!!! It is a great car and performs very well. The 93 and up models did come with the better brakes, but if you looking for aftermarketmod parts,, good luck. They are pretty hard to find,, they do exist, but are hard to find.
It is the concensus that the 98+ model year is probably the best model, performance, power, braking etc. that it there is, so I would recommend a 98+ model if you can get one. Not that the other years were not good for this car, but you will find that alot of members here like the 98+ model year.

 

the LS and the 1UZ motor powering it have massive potential, but rarely are exploited because of a prohibitively high development cost

u COULD drop in a 2JZ motor tho >.>

 

PureDrifter is always too quick to reccomend a motor swap! He forgets that most of us don't have the knowledge, patience, time, and dedication to take on this type of endeavor.

The 1LS is a great car, especially for the money they can be bought for, but take it from a guy who has now spent a considerable amount of time modding it: the 98+ cars are SO much better. There are just so many little things that they improved upon, that you can't really "fix". For example:

- Better headlights with factory HIDs
- Seats that are more durable.
- An extra glove compartment
- Wood steering wheel and wood shift **** (I love this so much, I am really considering having American Stitches make me a wood steering wheel for $450!)
- Nicer gated shifter


The other thing is, you mentioned that you want a car with some horsepower.. The 98+ LS400s feel SIGNIFICANTLY faster than the 1st gens. Just look at the threads here about how our first gens are very slow coming off the line. The 1UZ easily wins the "World's most under-used and under-rated V8" award. The 98+ also have VVTI, which translates to much more usable power, more torque that you can feel, and better gas mileage.

If my 94 LS400 was completely stock, I would sell it and buy a 98 in a heart beat. But now I have invested too much time and money into it, that it doesn't make sense.

THe 0-60 time for my first gen, which I think is in quite good condition, is damn near 10 seconds. The 98+ should be just under 7 seconds. Its a big difference.

 

sunseet, first gens are supposed to 0-60 in 7.8-8.3 depending on conditions. If i had the money, i would get a 98, but they are still too expensive for me. 1st gens are probably best value for money, since they are gettin old. You can find a super clean one easy. Personally i don't think a 98 is worth 3 times a 94. Yeah xenons are nice and so is 0-60 in 6.5, but with a 1st gen you can get about 90% percent of the LS experience for 30% of the 98's price.

 

I completely agree with your above post. I wouldn't trade my 1st gen LS for a 3rd gen @ 3-4 times the cost. My 1st gen was boned cheap. And I like the styling better.

If the Original Poster likes the 1st gens. I'd say pick up a 93-94 and call it a day.

 

Agreed - to each his own. I drove a 2000 and it was really different. I like my 95 - I say I'd swap for a 98+ but at the end of the day maybe not. I see so many choice 90-94's here in Houston that look brand new. They have clean lines. I myself didn't choose the LS because there are so many mods available. Rather I chose it because it is unique I like when the Bimmer, Benz and Audi folks give my ride a second look

 

Welcome to CL. The LS is a great car - most reliable in the world according to Consumer Reports. I have a 1995 and drive it daily. I just drove it again to Florida and back to Houston. They are great road cars. My LS is nothing like when it was new and that's fine - now it is unique and definitely a drivers car.

There are many differences between the 90-94, 95-97 and 98-2000. Many of which pertain to performance, comfort and safety. As you get closer to the 98+ all three are more apparent. Modifications are not widely available for any year due to high development costs and the low numbers of folks that would buy the part (as Pure Drifter said). Most available mods are basic however you can create many yourself as I have done - sounds like you are into cars so maybe this won't be a problem. The best thing about this board is there are many experts and you can search for specific threads.

The first thing I did was visit the LS photo gallery and looked at the different styling ideas - from there I was pretty much hooked. Welcome to CL - post your pics and ideas.

 

I have a 97 LS400 and I have to say it is by far the best car I have ever driven and I have driven a few nice cars. I really could not believe that a car so beautiful to drive had as much guts and power as it does. A testament to the engine, I know that guys in Australia use the Lexus V8 in a lot of racing cars. Since owning my LS I have loved every second. Although I hear the 98+ are better in some ways, I prefer the look of the 97. All I can say is that you won't go wrong with any of the LS400s. Enjoy!
Ewen

 

Thax for the infro fellas...but I wasnt meaning I wanted to make this Lexus I will buy a "hot rod" I should of clarified what I said, I was in to Jeeps for the
pure pleasure of doing sometthing different....Now I did drive the 91 today I was looking at and it was impressive to drive, to say the least it has 116,000 miles on it all Burgandy with burgandy leather and interior.

I was just wondering if the exaust can be opend up a little I would not want to tinker with the car hardly at all they drive so well , now this is mainly for my wife we do not drive a car that much, for one reason she is a flight attendant so any long drives we fly. I can pick this car up for $4,000 .

It does not have the bells and whistles that some have I have been told to stay away from all trac and the air ride. So I maby picking this up on Monday.

 

all trac (toyota awd) was never available on the LS.

exhaust is a great first mod, best bet is some V8 mufflers (take ur pic) and having custom piping done from the cats back using an X-pipe to replace the (most restrictive part of the whole exhaust) Y-pipe and center muffler.

id recco 2.25" tubing, crush bent works, mandrel is a LOT more expensive and u wont really notice much difference at all if ur motor is stock.