pollexus

Hello all, I'm wondering if someone may have an answer to my question? I'm looking for a roof rack for my 99 LS 400. From what I can see, there are really no options for it. Am I correct on this? Thank you

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

nope nobody makes one, you'd be running a universal affair if it fits.

whit3b0y

somebody on here has one on his car, but it was not made for the LS. Now one makes one for the LS, Im told due to the size of the sunroof. not enough support fro a roof rack with how big the sunroof is. you could prolly see if a rack shop could mix match and make a custom rack for you. another option is installing tracks in your gutters..... I just decided it wasnt worth it for my LS to be on the mountain. Ill just drive my cherokee

Kansas

A variety of roof racks for the LS have always been sold by Lexus outside North America. Here is the one sold for the LS460 which looks very much like the ones that were available in Europe for my 90 LS and 00 LS.

I'd bet the Yakama roof/ski rack I have in the basement and used on a Honda in the 1980's would fit my 00 LS if I had the longer cross bars.

Unfortunately doors on Lexus cars sometimes have to be adjusted downward to increase the gap between the top of the door frame and the roof -- doing that is actually in the installation instructions that come with roof racks sold by Lexus dealers in Europe.

Mega

Yakima makes one for the 93 ls400. Should be the same.

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

why would it be the same? the chassis are totally different....

steve2006

I don't know about later models but I bought one for $1.50 (UK equivalent) kept it for a while then sold it to an LS owner in Sweden for around $100.
It was a genuine Lexus one.

Kansas

Because the roof structure of the gen 1 and gen 2 and the places where the rack clips attach are similar ... and Yakima cross bars adjust to (slide on) the rack towers to accommodate different roof widths.

I just fished my old Yakama rack out of the basement and set it on top of my 2000 LS400. I don't know why I thought the 48" cross bars weren't long enough to fit the 00 LS because they seem long enough with an inch or two to spare. Maybe it was the Mercedes I drove through the 80's it didn't fit -- I've had never tried the Yakima on my 00 LS and maybe didn't try it on the 90 LS I had.

As I've mentioned in the past, it might be worth a trip to a rack dealer for those who really want a rack. If the Yakama Q-clips designed for the gen 1 LS400 won't fit a gen 2 LS400, the dealer might find another Q-clip model that would work -- fitting a roof rack is not an exact science.

If you want to carry only skis or snowboards, a magnetic rack might work. A store employee once challenged me to remove a magnetic rack from a chopped off car roof in a store display and I couldn't budge it. But I've since learned that some magnetic rack makers recommend not driving over a certain fairly low (e.g. 60 mph) speed while using their racks.

Another idea is to see if a rack made for an LS430 would work. Inno, for example, has racks for the LS430: http://www.innoracks.com/fitguide/index.php

Mega

The roof is basically the same, and the racks are width, and length adjustable.

oldskewel

iTrader: (1)

If the '99 is indeed similar to the first gen, then there is a Yakima rack that will fit. As someone else said, what matters is that the shape of the roof/door channels is the same.

I've got a nice Yakima rack set up on my '91 - discussed below since I know that definitively.

If you search on Yakima.com (or equivalent) for compatibility with the '91, it will say incompatible. But that means it's incompatible with the new (since ~1996) Yakima Q towers and clips. For my '91, I use the previous generation, Yakima SST towers, with Y-clips (fore runner to the Q-clips). I also use a rack extender so I can get 3 feet of separation between the 48" bars. Great setup for bikes, rocketbox, windsurfers, snowboard rack, etc.

You may be able to get great deals on all the older generation Yakima parts on ebay.

Easiest first step may be to find a first gen LS and see if the roof/top-of-door interface is the same shape. That's all that really matters since that's where the Y-clip grabs onto. It has to grab tight without having the door hit it when its closed.

I just found the instuctions - I'm using Y26 Y-clips on my 1991 LS400 with Yakima SST Towers, with a stretch kit.
More compatibility info at: http://www.bikepro.com/products/yaki...s/lexusy.shtml

Kansas

Too make my point, I just spent way too much time converting half of my Yakima from "rain gutter mode" to "gutterless roof mode" -- I've got all the parts for both modes.

Here are photos of half of my Yakima rack set mounted on the front and then the back of the roof of my 2000 LS400 using the same clips I used in the 80's on my "ski car" - a 1985 Honda CRX Si. I didn't expect the rack to fit my LS so well.

The Yakima clips meant for the CRX are slightly too thick at the "U" that grabs over the weatherstrip at the top of the door frame but they fit quite well and allow the front and back doors to fully close with ease. I suspect the clips for the gen 1 LS have "U's" that are thinner and that they would fit better.

Edit: Like oldskewel's my Yakima rack is the old version ... doubt if I could find the clips for it that were meant for the gen 1 LS400 but the Honda clips seem close enough.