Timothyj

My local Lexus dealer has a 99 Es Coach Edition , 38000 miles. Good price or not? Have not looked at the car yet, thought about trading my 04 ES, 97000 miles on it, needs some paint work, hood , front and rear, bumpers, small dent on door and fender, car is like new inside, runs like new, think I'll just get mine painted, but would like to buy the 99. What to look for with this car for problems, concerned with the low mileage, engine sludge, seals, gaskets, etc. rotting with age, stuff like that. any tips and info would be helpful. Thanks.

Tim

IamLexus

sounds a decent deal, can you talk it down? My local Lincoln dealership selling a 2001 Coach Edition for $12,000 and it has ~19x,xxx miles hahaha. Also, check the carfax.

01LEXPL

iTrader: (10)

yeah.... nope.

Sure its cheap and low miles but these are the cars that frequently pop up on ebay and sit there for months on end before the dealer realizes its a pipe dream and they go to auction.

Right off the bat you're looking at a timing belt job on that one. With low miles most bushings and anything with rubber based parts will be very prone to cracking/creaking.

Not to mention 'used [aka normal miles] 00-01's which look far better [in my biased opinion] fetch well under 8k in most of the USA. Mostly the northern states seem to be the cheaper priced ones - once you start going south pricing grows exponentially.

Timothyj

Thanks, I will check all that out. Had to work late, dealer closed, I will go sun. morning look at the car, go back after work Mon. and check it out real good. I want to see it in the air and look for leaks, and all that good stuff. Check ball joints, bushings, etc. Take it for a good hard run. The first Lexus i ever drove was a 98 ES with 60000 miles, drove like a new car. See what happens. Thanks for all the tips.

speedkar9

I'd be weary about buying a 13 year old car with only 3 years worth of driving on it. It must have been sitting quite a while, which isn't necessarily a good thing for a car. There are a lot of parts that will degrade because its not getting used. Even if it was a grocery getter, short distance trips cause more wear and tear since the engine doesn't reach operating temperature.

Since these cars are very reliable, I'd rather save money and look for an ES with higher mileage for a lower price. With Lexus, mileage is just a number on the dash .

Nevertheless, if you are intent on checking out the car, look for engine sludge (under the oil cap), flat spots and cracking on the tires (which signifies its been sitting a while), belts, hoses, the battery and tire date code, and recall history. Be prepared to spend another $600 on a timing belt job if you buy it.

JSM

Why do you think that is?

01LEXPL

iTrader: (10)

^ well, far nicer climate & no rust.

The US boggles my mind. You can find deals left/right at the auctions - or complete 'shocks' depending on who's bidding certain cars up.

The ES is 'that car' that seems to not have a middle ground. It's either dirt cheap <5k in NY/NJ all day long, or upwards of 10k for an 01 in FL

Power6

38k miles is tempting, as others have pointed out it might not be that trouble free but the lack of wear is always nice.

I would only buy the 00-01 of this generation. The slight styling tweaks and the additional equipment are worth it. Any later Coach you find will probably have HIDs, wood wheel and Nakamichi too.

Timothyj

Thanks for all the info, I will check this car out, let you know what I think about it. I have a great 04, needs some paint work, car drives like new. Mich. is hard on cars. Thanks for the help.

Tim

hypervish

Try and find out how frequently the oil was changed. I would say ever 6 months is ideal. The low miles likely means short city trips, which is terrible and can lead to sludge if the engine doesn't reach optimal running temp.

I'd check for sluge, but the only way to do that is to pull one of the valve covers. The front valve cover is the easiest, and doesn't take much time to pull. Looking under the oil cap is not a good indicator, because there is a baffle and it won't allow you to see into the valves.

m0098es

Another way you can easily check for sludge is to check inside the cam sensor. It's just two 10mm bolts right in front of the engine. Sometimes you can pull that cam sensor and there *may* be a bit of sludge on it.

IamLexus

Carfax ES300 '99

found the car fax for you.

WheezerMF

I just picked up a '99 with 51k on it. Runs like a new car, even though it's 13+ years old. Do it!!

Timothyj

Thanks for the help with the car fax and other info. I'm going to pass on this one. Looked at the car, looks very nice,but the trunk did not line up with the rear quarter panels . sat high, I thought it was open. I pushed down on it, it just popped back up on both sides, car has some small dents, if the car was without these defects, I would buy it. don't wan't to trade in my 04 Es, i know they would not give me a good price for it. I'll just keep it and get the hood and bumpers repainted and the small dents. My car runs like brand new and the inside is like new. Thanks for all the help with this.

Tim