SHELLYS18

Hi, I have a 2000 ES 300 with 85,000 miles on it. I bought it used (one previous owner) 6 years ago at my lexus dealership. Its been a great car and I havent had any major issues with it. However, the check engine light popped on 2 days ago along with the TRAC OFF light and I'm not sure what the issue is. Anyways, I have the itch to upgrade and found a great deal on a 2008 CPO Lexus IS 250 (it has 46k miles and is covered with a 3 yr CPO warranty) at my lexus dealership. They want 22,500 and will give me $4500 for my trade-in. What do you all think? Is there any reason for me to go ahead and get this new car (other than its simply a great car and will be fun to drive and have) or should I hold on to my ES a couple more years? I have the money and always pay cash for my cars btw. My fear is that my ES will now at this mileage start to begin having some problems and I dont want to put much money into it. Thoughts???

marcoes300

4500 is great for a trade in imo

BradTank

$4500 for your car is a good price for your trade in, but I guarantee you they're simply jacking up the price of the car you're buying to offset it.

No matter what a dealership says they're giving you on the trade in, many times they need to nearly double their money on it to make it worth their while. People are more likely to make the deal if they feel they're getting a "fair" price on their trade in.

My advice is to always sell the car yourself if you truly want top dollar, especially on older cars like yours.

01LEXPL

iTrader: (10)

85k >?! wow, that's nothing.

To put it in perspective, that would be a high mileage [120k+] 00-01 private sale price [based off what i've seen on craigslist all over the US].

The dealer is going to make an easy 3k on this car, factoring in 500$ for a detail & small recondition of the vehicle prior to re-listing it for sale for a grand total of 8k+ [if not more, based on ebay motors pricing from dealerships all over].

imherenow

ya $4500 is nothing for a 85K mileage. you are better off to sell it as privately and make a lot more. Just look up @ ebay or autotrader.com to see how other ES are priced for that mileage range.

Gchutes

In my opinion, it would be better to fix the ES and then take the money to make a down payment on the IS250. However, i believe the IS250 is nowhere near as low maintenance as the ES. To put your car in perspective my 1997 es300 has 234k miles and is still running strong.

Hayk

iTrader: (1)

I would have to disagree, the IS does not need much to run, especially if it's only RWD. The transmission cannot be serviced and the power steering is electric, so all you're left to do is replace engine oil, brake fluid, rear diff fluid, and the occasional air filters.

I would honestly look into repairing your ES, there isn't much that will go wrong at 85k. Although keep in mind that you're coming up to a big milestone, where you'll need to spend about a grand to get it serviced.

GS4_Fiend

iTrader: (22)

I would trade the ES for the IS anyday

Power6

These are the kind of questions nobody can really answer for you...

Nothing wrong with keeping your car, nothing wrong with trading it in. If you have the money and don't need it for anything else a newer car is nice. Or maybe you'll have to have payments, or you should put that money away for something else.

All anyone else can do is offer their opinion, which is typically based on their own personal situation, not yours...