New Old Lexus Anniversary
03-18-18, 09:51 PM
#1
Intermediate
Thread Starter
New Old Lexus Anniversary
One year three days after first pulling into the driveway with this new old Lexus:
ODOMETER 3/13/17
ODOMETER 3/17/18
DRIVER'S SEAT 3/15/17
DRIVER'S SEAT 3/17/18, 11,000 MILES LATER:
ENGINE 3/17/18, after Miami, Georgia, Virginia, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Washington DC, etc
INTERIOR 3/1718, after Miami, Georgia, Virginia, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Washington DC, car parts, grocery runs, college kids, etc;
OK, enough of that, the point is, you can maintain a daily driver to a pretty good degree without too much aggravation. In the past year, I changed the air filter, did a transmission oil change with Mobil 3309 or whatever it is (12 quarts $65.00 Amazon) and an engine oil change (Valvoline 10/30 dino), a set of brake pads that it didn't really need, and the twiddly needles, cassette, stuff as spelled out in the 2017 prior thread. That's it for the last 11,000 miles.
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls-...old-lexus.html
Gave up on my CD dreams and joined the ranks of all you modern kids. Now I have an LG G6 running through a $4.99 WalMart/China issue cassette adapter with a little spool driver that keeps the Hall Effect generators happy. The LG G6 has an equalizer that just makes up for any fidelity losses through this goofy Chinese trash, and the music is utterly splendid. The phone nestles expertly in the open ashtray. How old am I? I'll tell you how old I am. I have been grooving to my old Fiona Apple "Tidal" and "When The Pawn..." and I have been reacquainting with Alanis Morisette ("Jagged Little Pill") who is apparently STILL thoroughly pissed off with Glen Ballard if that smoking rendition of "You Ought To Know" yesterday is any proof, and I have been listening to my old Doors "Light My Fire" album. Brings the car all back up to that glorious luxury I remember with my first 1990 LS when I was Lord President Boss CEO of my own company in Rochester NY and my Nakamichi 92 LS of just last year.
I am giddy with the joy of music now a part of my experience with this '91:
I will add to this thread over the coming year.
Colin
ODOMETER 3/13/17
ODOMETER 3/17/18
DRIVER'S SEAT 3/15/17
DRIVER'S SEAT 3/17/18, 11,000 MILES LATER:
ENGINE 3/17/18, after Miami, Georgia, Virginia, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Washington DC, etc
INTERIOR 3/1718, after Miami, Georgia, Virginia, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Washington DC, car parts, grocery runs, college kids, etc;
OK, enough of that, the point is, you can maintain a daily driver to a pretty good degree without too much aggravation. In the past year, I changed the air filter, did a transmission oil change with Mobil 3309 or whatever it is (12 quarts $65.00 Amazon) and an engine oil change (Valvoline 10/30 dino), a set of brake pads that it didn't really need, and the twiddly needles, cassette, stuff as spelled out in the 2017 prior thread. That's it for the last 11,000 miles.
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls-...old-lexus.html
Gave up on my CD dreams and joined the ranks of all you modern kids. Now I have an LG G6 running through a $4.99 WalMart/China issue cassette adapter with a little spool driver that keeps the Hall Effect generators happy. The LG G6 has an equalizer that just makes up for any fidelity losses through this goofy Chinese trash, and the music is utterly splendid. The phone nestles expertly in the open ashtray. How old am I? I'll tell you how old I am. I have been grooving to my old Fiona Apple "Tidal" and "When The Pawn..." and I have been reacquainting with Alanis Morisette ("Jagged Little Pill") who is apparently STILL thoroughly pissed off with Glen Ballard if that smoking rendition of "You Ought To Know" yesterday is any proof, and I have been listening to my old Doors "Light My Fire" album. Brings the car all back up to that glorious luxury I remember with my first 1990 LS when I was Lord President Boss CEO of my own company in Rochester NY and my Nakamichi 92 LS of just last year.
I am giddy with the joy of music now a part of my experience with this '91:
I will add to this thread over the coming year.
Colin
Last edited by Amskeptic; 03-18-18 at 10:02 PM.
03-19-18, 01:48 AM
#2
Racer
Very nice.
I agree with so much,especially the music player.All our machines need some electronic upgrading to the music system for sure.
For my older Alpine I got an adapter cable to replace the CD only option with an aux port wire.Added 32 gb to my Sansa Fuze , a portable media player developed by SanDisk and will install this week.Cassette,CD,fergettaboutit,digital is the way to go.
Im also going to add a bargain priced GPS,second hand on offer up are just a steal of a deal,I wont do smart phone until they drag me into that.
I agree with so much,especially the music player.All our machines need some electronic upgrading to the music system for sure.
For my older Alpine I got an adapter cable to replace the CD only option with an aux port wire.Added 32 gb to my Sansa Fuze , a portable media player developed by SanDisk and will install this week.Cassette,CD,fergettaboutit,digital is the way to go.
Im also going to add a bargain priced GPS,second hand on offer up are just a steal of a deal,I wont do smart phone until they drag me into that.
Last edited by spuds; 03-19-18 at 02:02 AM.
03-19-18, 09:54 AM
#4
Very nice post, Amskeptic! I always look forward to these. I too use the cassette adapter to play music from my phone, but I started just listening to regular FM radio instead.
I also recall that you mentioned this before, but out of curiosity - why did you replace the low tone horn on your LS?
I also recall that you mentioned this before, but out of curiosity - why did you replace the low tone horn on your LS?
03-19-18, 01:14 PM
#6
Intermediate
Thread Starter
Very nice post, Amskeptic! I always look forward to these. I too use the cassette adapter to play music from my phone, but I started just listening to regular FM radio instead.
I also recall that you mentioned this before, but out of curiosity - why did you replace the low tone horn on your LS?
I also recall that you mentioned this before, but out of curiosity - why did you replace the low tone horn on your LS?
Good eye. Speaking of musicality, the original horns were too musical and blended in with all the other lovely musical trumpet horns.
I picked up a Camry bleet bleet horn at Pick Apart to make mine now sound sourly dissonant. And it does, a bleep and a honk simultaneously just doesn't blend in.
I gave the nice original horn to my brother's new old My Lexus
Colin
03-19-18, 07:38 PM
#7
Man, as a modern kid let me just say I can't stand the way those cassette adapters sound in this car. I keep a sleeve of about 30 burned CDs in the trunk, in that little compartment above the CD changer. Tapes sound even better but I don't have the time, space, or inclination to find more of those just for the car. I did keep my phone in the same place for a while- with a USB adapter and a cable it all sits in there rather nicely, but I didn't like how far down I had to look on the rare occasions I was using navigation so I have since gotten one of those suction cup mounts. Always a joy to see updates on your car, now I need to figure out how to get my engine bay that clean!
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03-20-18, 09:16 PM
#8
Intermediate
Thread Starter
Man, as a modern kid let me just say I can't stand the way those cassette adapters sound in this car. I keep a sleeve of about 30 burned CDs in the trunk, in that little compartment above the CD changer. Tapes sound even better but I don't have the time, space, or inclination to find more of those just for the car. I did keep my phone in the same place for a while- with a USB adapter and a cable it all sits in there rather nicely, but I didn't like how far down I had to look on the rare occasions I was using navigation so I have since gotten one of those suction cup mounts. Always a joy to see updates on your car, now I need to figure out how to get my engine bay that clean!
It has been interesting to read the reviews of cassette adapters on Amazon, AutoZone, and WalMart. There are buyers where the adapters work and they are as happy as I am. Then there are buyers who are out $4.99 bitterly complaining about the loss of their hard-earned money for adapters that don't work or that sound like hell . . . and it is not necessarily the adapter's fault.
I adjusted my Pioneer azimuths a month ago using the local radio guru's 3000 hz test cassette, and I got the reel drive mechanisms cleaned and adjusted. The adapter is pumping in a beautifully exact signal from the equalizer-tuned smart phone. You can hear all the harmonics of Fiona Apple's bass piano strings with exhilarating clarity. That cheap Chinese junky adapter is doing fine. But there are buyers of these adapters who have dirty or poorly adjusted tape heads, and questionable drives and their cassette units keep spitting out the adapter, and their reviews are thick with disappointment in a purchase that is not the problem.
Reminds me of the Tire Rack tire reviews where people spew nonsense thick and fast about their new tire purchases, blaming the tires because that is where they spent their money.
"yeah, after I slammed a curb and blew out my old tires, these new Bridgestone Ectopias suck, the inside tread wore down in 14,000 miles!" Alignment? Anyone? Oh well.
Colin
03-22-18, 12:25 PM
#9
haha this thread is quickly turning into a cassette adapter and horn topic. the car overall is in PRISTINE condition...how does one keep the engine bay that orderly?!
I've been using my sony cassette to mini jack adapter (made in japan too) for years with decent sound quality but nothing beats a direct wire.
a great way to modernize these cars is to add Bluetooth however that just ruins the romance of the era! I found cassette tape of all my random recordings (read: mix tapes) a few weeks back.
I've been using my sony cassette to mini jack adapter (made in japan too) for years with decent sound quality but nothing beats a direct wire.
a great way to modernize these cars is to add Bluetooth however that just ruins the romance of the era! I found cassette tape of all my random recordings (read: mix tapes) a few weeks back.
03-22-18, 03:39 PM
#10
Driver
Amskeptic,
Your engine bay is exquisite!
I admit, I have thought this for a long time. The top of the intakes on ucf10's strangely remind me of Fritz Lang's Metropolis movie poster of the woman robot.
Your engine bay is exquisite!
I admit, I have thought this for a long time. The top of the intakes on ucf10's strangely remind me of Fritz Lang's Metropolis movie poster of the woman robot.
03-19-19, 02:12 PM
#11
Intermediate
Thread Starter
Two Years Six Days after rolling into the driveway with my new old Lexus, we are now 5 miles shy of 20,000 additional miles since I have owned the car:
ODOMETER 03/19/19
It has been a pedestrian local daily driver sort of car until I knocked out a 3,166 mile trip to upstate New York from Pensacola FL over the New Year. Car displayed effortless cruising between 70-90 mph at about 24mpg:
About 4 below 0*. Car started well, heat was excellent, defroster worked, too bad this model doesn't have the traction control and heated seats of the old one ...
Fuel economy was no more than 19 mpg at sub-freezing temps:
Came home and detailed the car thoroughly to remove all road salt and grime and travel detritus, and performed an oil change:
The only repair performed in the past year was to reinforce every hole in the plastic under pan with epoxy ... ... ... :
... ... ... using blue painter's tape to hold the epoxy across the cracks:
Then drove to Atlanta three days ago, because.
Colin
ODOMETER 03/19/19
It has been a pedestrian local daily driver sort of car until I knocked out a 3,166 mile trip to upstate New York from Pensacola FL over the New Year. Car displayed effortless cruising between 70-90 mph at about 24mpg:
About 4 below 0*. Car started well, heat was excellent, defroster worked, too bad this model doesn't have the traction control and heated seats of the old one ...
Fuel economy was no more than 19 mpg at sub-freezing temps:
Came home and detailed the car thoroughly to remove all road salt and grime and travel detritus, and performed an oil change:
The only repair performed in the past year was to reinforce every hole in the plastic under pan with epoxy ... ... ... :
... ... ... using blue painter's tape to hold the epoxy across the cracks:
Then drove to Atlanta three days ago, because.
Colin
Last edited by Amskeptic; 03-19-19 at 02:18 PM.
03-19-19, 04:06 PM
#12
Lead Lap
i'm still rockin the cassette tape adaptor, VERY high quality pioneer tape deck in the LS 
a high quality CD is still the best way to get the full potential i think but the sound quality from the tape adaptor is still damn good
a high quality CD is still the best way to get the full potential i think but the sound quality from the tape adaptor is still damn good
03-19-19, 06:38 PM
#13
Racer
Im going to let wife drive Blackbird to Colorado from Ca.Just needs to check oil just because,I have no qualms about the trip.
03-20-19, 01:33 PM
#14
Lexus Test Driver
i seriously cannot believe the condition this car is in! this is probably one of a handful of examples like this left.
ive had many ls400s and i haven't been able to keep any of them pristine. i try but the roads here are crap, the weather is harsh, and people are *******s in traffic. no matter how careful i am with them, how well i maintain, they still ending up falling apart in a few years. how in gods name did you do it!?
ive had many ls400s and i haven't been able to keep any of them pristine. i try but the roads here are crap, the weather is harsh, and people are *******s in traffic. no matter how careful i am with them, how well i maintain, they still ending up falling apart in a few years. how in gods name did you do it!?
03-20-19, 01:45 PM
#15
Racer