Engine & cooling

Lexus LS400 Engine problems by year

17 complaints filed with NHTSA about the Lexus LS400's engine & cooling. Stalling, loss of power, oil consumption, overheating, head gaskets, timing chains and engine failure.

Engine complaints by model year

1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 61995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001

Year	Engine complaints	Crashes	Injuries
1999	1	0	0
1997	2	0	0
1996	2	1	0
1995	6	1	3
1993	1	0	0
1992	1	0	0
1991	2	0	0
1990	2	0	0

Latest LS400 engine complaints

1990 Lexus LS400 Suspension Engine & cooling Fuel system Transmission & drivetrain Electrical system Lights Visibility & wipers Body, doors & structure

S10 appropriate handling - enclosing an agenda report service history may 2014 - may/june 2016 on black 1990 lexus ls 400. *Smd the consumer stated each time the repair shop performed services on her vehicle, it led to another problem(s). A clamp was missing. A wire left dangling, a hose was not placed on correctly or it was the wrong hose and/or a good hose was torn, broken or tattered. A screw was left missing. A part or component was not put in properly. The consumer stated she was afraid to drive the vehicle...

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more than 10 miles, because it would smoke and leak fluid. The starter was replaced, the door would not close completely, the hood would not shut completely, the fuel gauge did not work, despite having a full tank of gas, the defroster did not work. Also, the oil showed a quart low, the interior gauges on the steering panel went haywire, the interior turn switches were not working as they should, the transmission mount needed to be replaced, the transmission stick was loose, the brake hose and ignition cylinder, control arms and window regulators were replaced. *Jb updated 04/10/2017*js *tr

1996 Lexus LS400 Engine & coolingCrash

Per lexus technical service bulletin eg002-97, which doesn't appear on the nhtsa website but which can be found online by clicking on the link from post #77 at this web page: http://us.Lexusownersclub.Com/forums/topic/15699-9596-ls400-low-idle-engine-dies-and-jerking-thre/page-6 my '96 ls400 has the same engine-stall-at-idle-after-continuous-long-drive problem as every other early production car made with vins before [[redacted]]. Go on the highway, drive 50 miles, exit, the car idle speed drops to where the...

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car stalls out. Put it into neutral, turn the key, it starts right back up, no more problem. Or, drive on the highway, drive 50 miles, encounter stop-and-go traffic, the idle speed drops to where the car stalls out. Put it into neutral, turn the key, it starts right back up, no more problem. I got tapped by the car behind me when at 1 mph I was coming to a red light exiting the freeway and the car died, the light turned green and it took me a frantic moment to try putting the car into neutral and restarting it while stopped in the middle of traffic. This is a clear safety issue that lexus clearly knows about (see eg002-97) but which the nhtsa has done nothing about vis-a-vis a recall, even though lexus themselves fixed the problem in later-production '96 ls400s. The problem is in the engine control module software, resulting in a fix and a new part # for the ecm, going from 89661-50302 to 89661-50303. Doing a google search one can find many forums where people describe having the problem and fixing it with the changed ecm. I just bought the car used and had no idea this problem existed. Lexus corporate refuses to pay for the swapout, saying the warranty period is past. The same problem affected '95 ls400's -- see nhtsa complaints 10692841, 10483633, 10438716, 10067491, etc. Nhtsa - help, make them do a recall & give us the fix. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.S.C. 552(B)(6). *Tr

1996 Lexus LS400 Electrical system Engine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 1996 lexus ls400. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was 116,000. Updated 02/23/16*lj updated 05/04/18*jb *tr

1997 Lexus LS400 Transmission & drivetrain Electrical system Engine & cooling

Vehicle does not start when hot. Starter does not turn. Vehicle was never recalled for nhtsa campaign id: 98v016000. My car has a production date of 7/97. Cut off date for this campaign was 6/97. I believe my vehicle should have been recalled for the repair of the magnetic switch in the starter. A no start condition exists and a fire can result if the solenoid shorts out. This is a safety issue and needs to be addressed.

1995 Lexus LS400 Electrical system Engine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 1995 lexus ls400. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled without warning. The contact replaced the alternator and battery, but the failure persisted. The contact also changed the wires to the battery cables. The vehicle was taken to a dealer. The technician was unable to diagnose the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 214,000. The vin was not available.

1995 Lexus LS400 Electrical system Brakes Engine & cooling

The evening of 3/7/15 my wife and I drove from cedar rapids, ia. To our home in muscatine, ia. As we exited i-80 after almost one hour of constant interstate driving, the car stalled at approximately 5 mph as we came to the stop sign at the end of the exit ramp. We lost power steering and power brakes as well, causing panic. This is not the first time this has happened in the two years we have owned this car. It seems to occur after prolonged interstate driving only. It did not occur that morning because we...

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broke up the trip to cr with a stop in iowa city. This is a horribly dangerous condition and after researching on the internet last night, a very inherent problem with this model and year. Toyota's tsb eg003-96 speaks of it and its remedy, published 10/7/96. The remedy is to replace the faulty ecm with part 89661-50224; a very expensive fix and presumably the reason toyota did not voluntarily recall the car. There was no forced recall either, but should have been due to the many complaints reportedly submitted to the nhtsa and potential deadly consequences of losing control of the vehicle due to faulty ecm programming. Please make this posting available to any potential 1995 ls400 owners and/or force a recall of this vehicle. *Tr

1997 Lexus LS400 Acceleration & cruise control Brakes Engine & cooling

As I was driving, my vehicle started accelerating on it's own. When I had previously checked the speed odometer it said 50. All of a sudden the vehicle started gaining speed. I took my foot off of the gas pedal and the speed kept accelerating. I pressed the brakes and the brakes did not work! The vehicle kept accelerating. I saw a side road and turned onto it. I kept trying to stop the vehicle and it kept going. I thought to pull the emergency brake and it slowed the vehicle considerable, but it kept...

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moving. The engine continued to accelerate. I kept pumping the breaks with the emergency brake on and the car was still moving. It finally stop, but the engine was still accelerating. I put the vehicle in park and the more the engine accelerated. I put back in drive and it continued to accelerate. The vehicle started smoking. I didn't know what to do or what was going to happen to the vehicle. I told my sons to get out of the car. I turn the engine off, the car jumped and I ran away from the car. The vehicle was still smoking. I called 911. The car stopped smoking and remained in place. My husband came and started the vehicle it accelerated and he pressed the gas pedal and it stopped. I drove the car home and parked it. I am not driving the vehicle and this is the reason that I have not entered a vin number. *Tr

1995 Lexus LS400 Electrical system Engine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 1995 lexus ls400. While driving various speeds, the vehicle would suddenly stall. In addition, the instrument panel indicators would randomly illuminate. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The vin was unavailable. The failure mileage was 160,000.

1995 Lexus LS400 Engine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 1995 lexus ls400. The contact stated that while traveling 65 mph the contact attempted to stop at a traffic light when it suddenly stalled. The vehicle was able to be restarted and resumed normal function. The vehicle was able to be driven to the contact's destination. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the failure could not be replicated. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted about the issue. The failure mileage was 172,100 and the current mileage was 172,800.

1999 Lexus LS400 Engine & cooling Acceleration & cruise control

I am reporting this because it might provide a clue to the toyota racing engine problem. On each of two days before I took my 1999 lexus 400 to the dealer for repairs, the engine would race at an estimated 4,000+ rpms and emitted a grinding sound as the car was started. After turning off the engine with the key, the car would restart without a problem. Strangely, the dealer did not record this particular complaint, but stated that diagnosis revealed that starter was failing. I was charged $990 for...

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replacement and repairs. I could not get a satisfactory answer as to why a faulty starter would cause the engine to race. I have driven the car over 10,000 miles since then without a problem. *Tr

1995 Lexus LS400 Engine & coolingCrash3 injuries

I was stop a light waiting to go to get on the highway something I do every morning I know it is a bad turn so I always go slowly all of sudden my car takes off my wheel become very hard my brakes stiffen my brake lights come on my slippery when wet came on my dash was reading about 100 I hit a wall bounce back both air bags deployed my car was no longer moving but it sounded like I had my foot all the way on the gas even after I got my family out of the car it was still going until I went and shut it off I could not understand what happen my car is a lexus ls 400 95. *Tr

1993 Lexus LS400 Engine & cooling Fuel system Transmission & drivetrain Electrical system

1993 Lexus ls 400- dash illumination fails, preventing driver from seeing speedometer, tachometer, gas gauge, engine warning lights and gear indicator. This is a very wide spread problem in this vehicle and a recall is required. *Ak

1992 Lexus LS400 Engine & cooling Transmission & drivetrain

Vehicle experiences ongoing problem with the noisy front wheel bearing, 2 repairs have been completed, the second repair consumer paid for. Consumer smelled heavy fumes from exhaust on acceleration, dealer found no problems. *Slc

1991 Lexus LS400 Engine & cooling

Car was parked in front of my house and caught on fire. Totalled

1995 Lexus LS400 Engine & cooling

MAIN BEARING REPLACED DUE TO KNOCKING NOISE.

Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) complaints and recalls, checked daily. Complaints are owners' own reports and are not verified. How we use the data