Hey guys.... got a few things going on with a 95 LS I purchased a little while ago.
- When the tranny downshifted, it was really discernible. You felt a little 'thump' action going on downstairs. So, I took it into the dealership... they said the fluid was a little dirty but advised that it could go for another 5K miles. They couldn't replicate the problem. I asked that they do a tranny flush, to see if that would solve the problem. They went ahead with that, and..... now when I first drive the car in the morning, and make my first stop at the head of the street, the car lurches, like it's downshifting after the car stops. And when I hit the gas, it revs for a second before it engages and goes. It does this only the first time it's driven for the day. Tranny fluid is at capacity. But on the plus side, it downshifts pretty smoothly (smile). Is this indicative, you think of a bad tranny, or something else may be causing this.... I don't know, maybe some ECU controller?
-The brakes groan. Braking effort is normal, but there's this slight groaning sound everytime I depress the brakes. Dealership response is that this is normal for this model/year... the pads are causing this noise. My '98 doesn't make this sound, so I was wondering if anyone else with a '95 model can validate what they're saying?
The car has 71K miles on it.... everything else seems copacetic.... for now. Thanks for any feedback you guys can provide.

 

My 94 with 90K acts the same in the morning. If I slow down
from say 40MPH and coast to say 10 MPH with my foot "lightly" on the brakes It seems to drop into first gear hard. I do not notice it after I drive it for awhile.

I have only owned the car for a month and thought it seemed a little harsh for such a luxury car but then again wondered if it was all in my head????

 

I dunno about this particular car, but I know some are more likely to shift down at higher RPMS when your foot is on the brake. This is to provide additional engine braking. Maybe that's why you would notice it only while providing light brake pressure.

When the transmission fluid is cold, it is likely to provide hard shifts too. I think it would only happen on the first slow-down of the day because the fluid is the coldest. Probably would only happen within the first few minutes of driving. Anyway, I think it's normal!

As for the brakes, do they sound like they're grinding? After my first brake job, they started making that sound. Mechanic said it's because the pads are semi-metallic (the new standard), and that's just the sound they make, and that's normal too. I don't like it, but they seem to be wearing properly after 40K miles of use so I don't have any real complaints with them.

 

My 95 LS400 is a bit harsh in the morning as well. Now, I start my car and finish a few things (3-5 minutes) before leaving. The warming of the car seems to reduce this action quite a bit. Also, the RPM drops quite a bit, which helps. My brakes squeak in the morning when first leaving garage. After the first or second depression, the squeak goes away. Car runs smooth thereafter. You may want to get in practice of warming car.

 

Hi guys.... thanks for your replies. Let's see the brakes.... the best way to describe the sound is like styrofoam rubbing lightly against each other. Or a geriatric with really creaky joints. This happens all the time. If it's not really a problem, I can live with it, just comparative to the '98LS, that one makes a click the first time I hit the brakes, then no other noise anymore.
The thing is, kjbro, I usually don't drive the car until the temp gauge is up at least up to the 1/4 way mark. Excessive, yeah, but I'm real old school about not driving the car until the engine warms up significantly. I sometimes regret that philosophy during wintertime, when I'm freezing my a$$ off, but that's a whole different story. So... that's why it's kinda puzzling.
The tranny thing.... I wasn't sure if it was actually a mechanical (torque converter) problem, or since its electronically controlled, maybe a computer problem.
I appreciate all your replies.....

 

There's some old TSB about this shifting problem on the early production 2nd gen LS. I beleive between 10/94 to 6/95 with and update ECU, Cruise Control ECU and new spark plugs.
Your brake pads has an update also, from the blue pads to pink in color. But I've seen so many times that the tires can make the grinding or groaning noise too. It's sound like the brake is metal to metal. I hope this might help.

 

Hi VVT-i.... thanks a lot man. Over at alldata.com, I found some TSB's -just like you said- that describe these problems. Printed them out, and am go over all that's applicable with the service adviser. This is great, man, thanks again!!

 

Your welcomes..but the TSB only effect under warranty period 4 years/50,000 miles. The cost to do this will be some$$$$ and it's will be hard for them to do the Goodwill judgement. I used to had a 95 LS and had the same problem, but I have to ignore this problem because the ECU is cost too much and it's only happened at certain speed.

 

I had purchased a 2yr/24K mile warranty with the car, so hopefully it's covered under that. So far, I've had the steering rack replaced, as well as the rear control arm bushings. Keep y'all updated on how it turns out!!

 

As long as your warranty is bumper-bumper you shouldn't have a problem replacing any defective part. I hope everything works out...Good Luck!

 

Just wanted to update this.... turns out one of the pins on a connector was not properly inserted into a connection on the output shaft speed sensor. Presumably, it had gradually backed out over time..... Anyways, all seems to be working well now. If anyone has experienced symptoms similar to what was described earlier in this thread, this might be an additional condition to check for.

 

Which connector is it, my tranny seems to have some quirks, especially when cold and when the ECT PWR mode is on.

 

I wuld be interested to know as well about the pin you are referring to. I have a 95 LS with 114,000 and I have always thought that the tranny sometimes shifts with a mind of its own, especially when cold. I have just gotten used to it. Oh, and I don't warm it up at all, just get in and go, but I go right down a hill and onto the freeway entrance where i sit for 5 minutes at least. The car is almost completely warm by the time I get going.

My brakes make the same grinding noise described above. I took it in for a brake job and they told me there was still 50% left.

 

I'll have to ask the service advisor at Lexus.... those were the guys who diagosed and fixed the problem. Also, I'm not sure if VVT-i's response above might be applicable also to your situation, as far as the ECU upgrade etc.
VVT-i, if you're browsing over here, you may be able to answer this question more quickly about the location of the connector going to the output shaft spped sensor. Thanks.
Oh, DougS68, I had the front pads and shim kit changed at the dealership too, and that completely stopped that grinding sound I was hearing.

 

I have the same exact tranny problem in my 97 LS.
I started by replacing all bushings that hold the rear differential and the tranny itself. That made shifting a lot smoother, but did not solve the" lurching when cold" problem.
I would love for someone to post the exact location of that speed sensor.