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After finding that I have a broken brake booster and I also ran into an array of check engine lights dealing with faulty O2 sensor or faulty exhaust system. I did bought the car at 220k and I have added 2k miles on it. At 222k some of these problems started surfacing out. The car (98 LS400) I bought was two owner (claimed his family with all maintenance records since 2000) and seems no intention that he would need to purposefully sell me a broken car. Though I can put some money on it, the brake booster rebuild and fix is (320 labor+220 parts) and this exhaust system (God know how much) would might easily go over $1k on the car which I paid $3k. Is it wise to fix this car anymore? I know there are some other issues like squealing noise under hard braking (probably worn out strut bush mounts) and vibrations at 80s to 90s (I guess worn power steering damper), fixing these two would be another $800, I guess. The timing belt went for replacement at 186k in 2015 if that helps.
I have attached the OBD scan and the maintenance records the seller cataloged. Let me know your comments on it.
what did you expect a $3k car with high mileage to cost in maintenance?
An old car will always cost some money to maintain no matter what the street value of it is.
value is subjective, so the question really comes down to you and how much you like the car and want to invest in it.
lots of us here can easily spend the cost to keep the car on the road bc when everything is sound the car is a joy to drive.
a bothersome booster is a small problem compared to bigger issues that other cars tend to have at this price point.
sounds like the owner kept up with the maintenance well enough.
you may have a simple leak on the exhaust. worse is a bad o2 sensor which is fairly common at this mileage.
sorry I cannot see the pic of the OBD codes for some reason...
Cars cost money to maintain. Even a 2012 Honda will require maintenance and parts replaced. Not everything is a lifetime part once you start talking 20, 25, 30 years.
Just about any car made by anyone for $3000 is going to have things that will need to be fixed.
I've replaced the fan clutch, cooling hoses and probably next up is the struts and various suspension components.
try finding someone parting out an LS400 98-00 that you can get those parts from. New, those parts would cost a fortune. But second hand or at a salvage yard, they're treated the same as parts for a Corolla or Accord.
Take for instance this SL torque converter lockup solenoid I needed for my transmission. It was over $300 at the dealer for that part. I found it in the JY and they guy included it in with some other parts I bought and didn't charge me since I bought a 5 lug conversion for my Accord along with it. I put it in and its been working perfectly.
Newer 98-00 LS400s are hard to find in salvage yards, so you'll have to keep your eyes open for them as they come in but good ones do sometimes show up. In some cases, they'll have low mileage ones there due to a front end impact or rear end collision where you can use parts opposite the impact that are still in perfect useable shape.
Try searching Row52.com and typing in your zipcode for nearby LS400s in yards close to you. I use that site alot when I lived in Phoenix and always found a couple within a 20-30 mile radius.
Follow your intuition. My first LS400 was definitely not worth fixing BUT I learned a LOT from it and have a nicely running LS400 now. But the first one... Man. If you feel like it's too many little problems then maybe leave it. Has it been garaged? Does it have a lot of dry rot on the hoses? If so, there's probably seals starting to go too. That's how my first car was and I had to get rid of it after $2000 or so in repairs. Just my experience. For that price, I think you can find the same car with less problems. I know here in FL it's no problem.
what did you expect a $3k car with high mileage to cost in maintenance?
a bothersome booster is a small problem
I must be the exception.I expect a 6000 dollar used car to be in cross country condition.I got really lucky on mine at 2500.Thing is,I wont jump.I will wait and I will look and I will drive a few hundred miles even to see a car.When I buy a used car it has to be the well kept exception,not just any other used car.
Brake booster is the epitome of the junkyard part,+/- 50 bucks and good to go.
Originally Posted by Losiracer2
New, those parts would cost a fortune. But second hand or at a salvage yard, they're treated the same as parts for a Corolla or Accord.
Take for instance this SL torque converter lockup solenoid I needed for my transmission. It was over $300 at the dealer for that part. I found it in the JY and they guy included it in with some other parts I bought and didn't charge me. I put it in and its been working perfectly.
Newer 98-00 LS400s are hard to find in salvage yards, so you'll have to keep your eyes open for them ....
Couldnt say it better,but to add the obvious....If you cant turn a wrench or be a smart parts buyer I cant see owning a Lexus or any other luxo brand.You are a mark at that point,no less.
What makes a car not fixing is if the original paint is a mess, the body has damage of any sort, and interior is no good. If all that is almost perfect the car is worth fixing.
All the rest of the stuff is easy, and way less cost than to make a perfect body and paint. Oh it also helps if you can do most of the work yourself.
OK,looking at the service records your car has been very well maintained and nothing was scimped on.I see an easy 40,000 miles before next timing belt and water pump is due.I would also expect those miles to be fairly reliable.Only thing I didnt notice was power steering pump replacement,did I miss that?
I dont see any 'gotcha's' in your future at all. Brakes,tires,battery,fluid changes and timing belt services, and you should get 300,000 miles with that alone.
I see 3 G's well spent IMO. What other used car gives you all that Lexus does for 3G and routine maintenance minus the pricey timing belt that most cars also need anyway.
If you have a friend mechanically inclined the booster and o2 sensors might let you off the hook for maybe just a couple hundred bucks.If you are at the dealerships mercy,that changes things.
Get the codes posted,plenty of folks here can set you straight just with that.
The PS Pump was never replaced I think. Do we need a replacement for that as well? I read they go upto 300k
The car has been garaged mostly. Infact I drove from San Jose to LA and picked the car and drove back 620 miles on them. I don't know on what gut feeling I did that.
I am with a local shop that charges 120/hr. I think booster replacement is not something I can do it myself, probably the o2 sensors and others I would.I am trying to find mechanic near San Jose who can do Lexus less than 120/hr at this moment.
If you want to learn to do the brake booster go to the local pickyourpart and pull one off a car,learn on their vehicle how to do it.Save 550 dollars.What are your brakes doing?
A code reader is mandatory,buy one now.If not then you cant diagnose problems,and the dealer/mechanic is not your friend.Unless the mechanic is actually a personal friend.
The power steering pump will leak eventually.And take out the alternator when it does.You can make a cover for the alternator to protect it from that leak.
Did you fail smog? Shouldve passed that when you bought the car.Who told you cats are bad and what was that diagnosis based on? What codes were thrown?
The key to high mileage LS400's is all in the maintenance. A poorly maintained car with more than 200k is probably not worth investing in. Your car has a really solid maintenance history and that is worth gold. With proper maintenance like that you can expect to reach 300k without much trouble. From what's in this thread I'd recommend replacing the brake booster and getting a solid answer on what the exhaust system needs. You can list out the things the car needs and decide the order and timing of making the repairs. There is a lot of useful information and how-to information here.
In my opinion the argument that "I only spent $X on a car so I shouldn't spend more than that on repairs" is not logical. The less you spend the more you can expect to pay in repairs. What you want to find is a balance between initial purchase price and maintenance. You can buy a pristine low mileage car for $9k or you can buy it for $3k and plan on $6k in repairs over time. In both scenarios you'll end up with a solid reliable car that will last 100k miles.
Im with John in entire post,but I'll bet you can get by on even less than 6 grand on the expected miles left in your car.
I too think you have a solid platform to work with.Dont get discouraged by what it cost to get it here,rejoice that someone else has already paid it.
You are going to get some really cheap miles going into the end of life on this car,I'd be really surprised if you dont.
Even if you paid too much money for that brake booster,we are talking ONE car payment. Smart money says your cat issue is in fact just 02 sensors.
Going forward,one timing belt and water pump kit,plus accessory belt should get you to 350,000 miles.Get one radiator fluid change.MIGHT need a new radiator,but they are only 70 bucks!!
Drain and replace 2 qts of tranny fluid with each oil change,tranny problems shouldnt be an issue.Flush brake fluid with next pad change.Keep eye on power steering pump,any leaks bite the bullet and get it changed ASAP before it drowns the alternator,then should be good until end times on that.
Im sure a couple more things like cabin air filter and engine air filter,another set of spark plugs,maybe a throttle body cleaning....not much else really that should be any issue,and all im listing is pretty much ANY car maintenance.
SHERL... you have received more valuable information in this post, than you deserve..... quit feeling sorry for your self and just follow the easy repairs.. they are not difficult to do or get done.... be smart and overcome the "mountain" of repairs you are looking at... like eating an elephant, just one bite at a time.. YOU CAN DO IT.
My 99 has 222+ miles, and runs great...
[QUOTE=Sherl;10247264]After finding that I have a broken brake booster and I also ran into an array of check engine lights dealing with faulty O2 sensor or faulty exhaust system. I did bought the car at 220k and I have added 2k miles on it. At 222k some of these problems started surfacing out. The car (98 LS400) I bought was two owner (claimed his family with all maintenance records since 2000) and seems no intention that he would need to purposefully sell me a broken car. Though I can put some money on it, the brake booster rebuild and fix is (320 labor+220 parts) and this exhaust system (God know how much) would might easily go over $1k on the car which I paid $3k. Is it wise to fix this car anymore? I know there are some other issues like squealing noise under hard braking (probably worn out strut bush mounts) and vibrations at 80s to 90s (I guess worn power steering damper), fixing these two would be another $800, I guess. The timing belt went for replacement at 186k in 2015 if that helps.
07-10-18, 03:14 PM
Did buy a LS400 thats too expensive to fix?
