I purchased my sc400 about a month ago.Actually I wanted a BMW but When I saw this Lexus sport car I had to buy it.NOw I'm having big trouble with the car.This is my only car and this monday it's gonna go for a head gasket replacement.Yes the head gasket is leaking collant into the oil.I bought 2 head gaskets.I don't understand why this car has two head gaskets and the mecanic told me that i should replace a lot of other parts including a new exaust manifold and new valves.He told me that those parts usually blows when the head gasket blows too.It sounds to me like I'm heading for big engine troubles.My car has only 106k miles.I don't think an engine should wear out arfound 106k miles.I want to know a few things.Is there a way to put an Ls engine in an SC.I heard that LS engines are failsafe engines but these Sc cars come with those cheap Toyota Supra engines.I know Toyotas have the most unreliable engines in the world.That's why I mostly trust gm cars.But I tought Lexus was different.But I was wrong.Whats best to do here get rid of this car by selling it like it is or part it out?It's gonna be tough to sell this car at $10000.That's what I paid for this lemon.BY the way when coolant leaks in your oil does that make your A/c smell like crap.Mine started smelling real bad.The only way I'm keeping this car is if I can put an ls engine in it otherwise I won't keep it.Cause i won't spend so much money changing an exaust manifold and valves and things like that on a $10000 car.One other thing.This car has to exausts.Is this how these cars where made or did the previous owner put them like that.Also does that mean I have 2 CAthalic converters and 2 exaust manifolds?is there a way I can make this into a 1 excaust car?

 

Sorry about your bad used car shopping experience. I alway recommend people to get the inspected by certified shop before spend the hard earn money on a used car. Or you can go to Lexus dealer and pay for inspection.

Your SC400 comes with a V-8 engine,one of the most reliable engine out there(not the I-6 engine).


Yes, you can put a long block from the LS400 into the SC400,but you will need to swap some main components.

Toyota/Lexus are well known for the most reliable car in the world, not the worse.

You can make it to one exhaust car, but it will cost a lot more than you think.

 

Sorry to here about your troubles!

First of all, if your car is indeed a SC400 and not a SC300, you already basically have the same engine as the LS - A 4.0L V8. These engines have been known to go 300,000 to 500,000 miles with little to no major problems. It is one of the most reliable, longest lasting engines ever designed by any manufacturer. The SC300 has a 3.0L I6, but is also a very very stong engine that last forever with little to no problems.

I'm no mechanic, but i know a little bit. It could also be possible that the car was not shut down promptly when the first headgasket went. If it was ran too long and the coolant got too low, it could have overheated and damaged those other parts you mentioned. The first headgasket also might not have been installed properly. If the head was warped at all, and wasn't shaved, the head gasket wouln't seal properly, but the mechanic should have known that. I've seen two headgaskets go (One on a Olds and the other on a Chrysler), but the gaskets were replaced and everything was fine.

From everthing I've experienced and read, it really is an anomaly for a headgasket to go on a Lexus at that mileage. I'm not sure where you've heard that Toyota's had the most unreliable engines? Toyota's have always had very very reliable, long lasting engines. A well taken care of toyota engine should last twice as long as a GM engine.

I don't know what to tell you to do, If it were mine, I'd take it to a Lexus dealership and see what they say. I the car is in good shape, I would fix what was wrong and drive it for another two or three hundred thousand miles!

Hope that helps out a little, someone else may have a better suggestion though!

P.S. I was looking at Beamers also, but you will need lots and lots of money to keep those on the road.

 

What the hell are you talking about????

You mostly trust GM cars and you were trying to buy a BMW??

Dude, sorry to hear about your "problems," but you are way off base...

CV

 

That is the most craziest SHIETE I have ever heard.....unless he lives in The GM Plant and never ventures out. But he did ask why he needs two head gaskets?

 

My guess is that he is just trolling. I've been wrong before though. If you only buy GM, why did you buy the Lexus in the first place. And, why are you at clublexus?

CV

 

As a moderator I have to play it nicely, but I agree with you...

 

He doesn't know how to use the space bar, either.

 

Ok I'm gonna send the car to replace all that junk I need to replace on it but let me tell you one thing.For the repair bill that i'm going to have to pay now I can buy a 91 or 92 ford Tempo,Taurus I even saw a buick century by that price.And I have proof that Gm cars last longer.What kind of car do you see at a classic car show?Chevy,Dodge,Ford Mercury Chrysler but you never see a 1958 Toyota Tercel!!!If you ever saw one let me know.I'll drive over at that show to see it for myself.Because I don't even know how a 1958 tercel looks like because I never saw one.By the time I was born they already went out!!!And by the way does my car have the Toyota supra engine or not.And what kind of other parts do I have to change to put an Ls engine in this Sc.I want to make this car drivable again for atleast 3 years.Oh and also the transmission light started to flash too.It started doing that today but only when I hit the gas really hard does it flash for a second or so.When I accelerate easy it doesn't flash.What could it be.Could it be that my transmission fluid level is low.Let me know before monday what to do so I can tell my mechanic please.And yes I wanted a BMW.I always trust gm cars but I don;t know what came over me to want to buy a BMW or a Lexus.But anyways!!!

 

I'm speechless

but i need to add more words than that to be able to post here and i'm sure a ton of people are going to respond to this fairly quickly.. but, to answer your supra question..... the answer is NO. Supra had a I6, not a V8 (your car has the V8). If you are talking about the n/a supra (NOT turbo) then you are thinking of the SC300 that has the same engine, if you are referring to the supra turbo then someone gave you some bad info, 'cause there is no other car with that engine. It really sounds to me that you didn't know what you were doing when you bought the car and probably did get a lemon which is very unfortunate, however, take some time and go check JD Power and assoc. website, consumer reports, etc. and do some research.. you will find that Lexus is #1 out of any car company (domestic and foreign) for reliability.
And also the Tercel was not in production until 1978, that's why you haven't seen a 1958 Tercel.

 

trust GM cars? Thats crazy. Futhermore, I am sure that any '58 or whatever year domestic car you are talking about has no, or little, original parts. Find me a 1994 mercury sable that has 159000 miles that is in better shape than my LS; with the same service record. Anyway, I don't want to flare tempers here. I have noticed on this forum that there do seem to be more complications with the SC series than the others. The LS seems invincible. Maybe the SC is too sporty for its owners own good. Any opinions on that? We should not even compare GM cars to Lexus. BMW is a decent competitor though.

 

I'm not seeing any more or less problems with the SC.
Most of them are common and shared with the 1st and 2nd gen LS - bushings, PS pump leaking onto the alternator, crack in window frame, etc.
It all depends upon how well they were treated and maintained.
Now that they have depreciated down to the 4-digit level and have had multiple owners, you are seeing some of the not-so-common problems, like blown headgaskets.

Mr.Magic would have done well to have checked this web page (so he knew what to watch out for) before buying his car, but it's too late now.

 

I got a 1958 Toyota Tercel up for sale. It's a " T" body if you know what I'm talking about. It's got an I-8 engine with 358 cc, double overhead cams, dual VVT-i, twin turbo, twin supercharger that will out run your GM in revesve( the big three doesn't want 1958 Tercel in U.S)...lol...Yes, she's a 1958 Tercel and a true classic straight from Japan that's why you don't see them at the classic car show... Let me know if you are interesting about my Tercel. I will give you a good deal since you're a car guy and know a lot about cars.

I know a Chevy Taurus is a great car and it was a number one best selling car back in the day. I like the way Chevy has done to the new Sonata and the MX-6. I think they are great looking cars.

Anyway, sorry about your Lexus SC400 with the Supra engine....

 

Cool! Hey does yours have a flux capacitor in it? And, I remember that on the 1958 model it was really hard to change the turn signal fluid. I think that another member here posted a cool mod on doing this so you don't have to remove the transient fuel belt distribution mechanism to reach the drain plug. However, I do think that the engine for the 58 tercel is often swapped with that of the Lexus GX 470. The weight distribution is about even. Good luck!

CV

 

While we are talking classics, I would dearly love to have a Toyota 2000 GT.
If it was good enough for 007, I could probably make do.

Price check please!!