tiger430

I struggled with the choice between these two for quite a while. The MB dealer told me the E was much safer than the GS. After research, this didn't prove to be the case. The MB looked a little old stylewise and didn't ride as well. It was also about $8k more. The choice was obvious but for some reason it took me a few days to decide. I now have tentatively decided on a Mil. silver with light charcoal interior. It that a good combo? I thought about a black interior, but living in Alabama, the summers would be brutal with that interior, I'm afraid. Someone tell if this is a good color combo before I order this car. Thanks.

GS430 GUY

I opted for Silver/Black on my GS430 (coming next month I hope) since the Charcoal wasn't dark enough for me. It's all a matter of taste. I would go to www.lexus.com and do the 360 view of the interior with the color you want. To me the black is great and on my car presently I have black interior and had the car down in Miami for a year, to me it wasn't a problem. Yeah it was hot but heck when I had my old car down there with a lighter interior it was hot too. To each their own, whatever decision you make decide for yourself, you are the one who drives the car day in and day out.

GS4Will

first of all, welcome. price, safety, look, performance(speed, breaking), gs430 is a soild winner

as far as color choice, silver/blk, or sil/grey are both good combos. i had a silver/grey before on my 98ls400. the only reasons that took the car was because the dealer made me an offer i could not refuese. though my favorite combo was sil/blk. imho, such combo gives you an elelgant, sporty with a hint of bad boy in you.

though weather is a valid consideration; like 1sicklex said, the temp diff will not change that much because of the shade of leather. with grey leather, conditioner is recommended more than the blk to keep them supple.

the borttom line, pick what you like so that you will enjoy 110%.

zz231

i agree with the rest, i like the silver/black combo better. but again none of us is gonna be driving your car. you're the one who's gonna be in it every day. so if you like the black interior then go for it. the grey interior isn't gonna be much cooler in the summer. either way, you have a winner.

Manaray

The GS's interior looks awesome in black. But other cars, like the ES300, the "Black" interior doesn't look good (it's a REAL dark grey whereas the GS is BLACK).

LIke 1SICKLEX said, tinting the windows will help a lot. I would also tint the WINSHIELD with a VERY VERY light tint...it would be basically for UV protection...I don't know if the GS's glass already has UV protection but I tinted my windshield anyways and it looks tight! (makes it harder to look inside the car)

zz231

isn't it illegal in all states to have the windshield tinted? i would love to tint mine, but i've had way too many tickets for too dark tint on my windows. i had to remove it and put lighter tint on. i think every cop around here knows me by now. lol.
cops suck here in the dc area. they will pull you over for anything.

mooretorque

Tiger430, my 430 was special ordered originally as MilSil/charcoal, but after a month's consideration I changed to black int for a couple of reasons. 1) More contrast to ext car color (tho the charcoal does look good, it is actually a semi-dark gray and I had lived with that color for the last 7 1/2 yrs in my 93 SC) 2) somewhat easier to clean.......the bases of the seats in my SC had lots of very difficult to remove scuff marks. Black can show dust and dirt but the flat color minimizes that AND can of course be vacuumed off easily.

I live in Arkansas and, though our summers aren't quite as brutal as yours, they are bad enough. I don't think you'll find that much difference in interior temp with either black or charcoal. Tint and a windshield block (can be bought spec fitted to make/model windshield) are pretty much mandatory for us in the south anyway.

Bottom line: as Woody Allen once said, "....the heart wants what the heart wants.....", so get the color that you want. Take care of the leather and everything will be fine.

BTW, changing my order added a month to my wait, but getting precisely what you want is always woth the wait. The wait will never be as long as the length of time that you have to live with a compromise.

D-MAN63

I have Silver/Black combo on my GS. With tinted windows you get a nice look of the inside with the darker leather.

Cops in nyc are pretty bad at cracking down tinted windows. They act like having tinted windows is like selling crack or sumthin.

RealMarty

I, too debated between the black and the gray interior. Frankly, I like the way the black interior looks because it's monochromatic rather than the two-tone gray.

I didn't do any additional tint because it's a lease and because the GA cops are nuts about illegal tinting (my stepson got a ticket yesterday and has to remove his before his court date in April). So, I didn't feel the additional benefit from the legal-level tinting was worth it. Am I right about that? I'm not sure.

I went with the gray because
1. I can't believe the interior isn't 10 degrees hotter with the black
2. The black seat has got to feel hotter on the back of my legs during shorts season
3. Black shows more dust and dirt.

After 3 years the driver's seat does show the result of wear and it's darker than the passenger seat which is used much less often.

So, what am I going to do on my 430 in June? Right now I'm leaning towards gray again...but I could be swayed.

LexusLady

Tiger430:

Congratulations on your choice of car. I too was choosing between a number of awesome cars before getting my GS430.

I started out looking at the BMW M5, Benz CLK55 and E55. But the sticker price on those was something we were not prepared to do, (have a son going to college next year) and the dealers were asking "above" sticker. Next on the list were the BMW 540i, Benz CLK430, E430 and Lexus GS430. BMW 540i I just didn't like. Found the ride too hard, and the interior too spartan. CLK430 dealers were asking up to $5000 over sticker, add to that an 6-12 month wait. E430, well, just looked like an old man's car. All it took was one drive of the GS430, and I was sold!!! And of course - I'm sure everyone on this board will agree - the Lexus is just darn hard to beat. Value for money, reliability, performance, good looks and style....

I love my GS430, had it since December 29, and I've no regrets. I originally wanted the Millenium Silver/Black interior with a factory spoiler, but was told I'd have to wait for one to come from the factory. My second choice was Crystal White/Ivory with factory spoiler, and another dealer in the state had one, and I got it within the week. I was worried about the lighter colored interior, but overall I'm happy, and time will tell how it holds up.

C.

theanimala

Well, my car is a '98 purchased used with the Ivory interior. I like it the best because I think it has a more sophisticated look, and since there is absolutely nothing sophisticated about me I enjoy it. Regarding the wear, after 3 1/2 years, I dare anyone to see any marks whatsoever, my interior looks brand new and shows no dust. I'm sold.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

<soapbox>
Since you're in the land of big government, remember they're there to protect you, you poor innocent victim. Your tint probably has something to do with your upbringing and the government probably has a program for that too.

You should move to the South. Georgia, Texas, Alabama... these states rule!

I lived in PA for 12 years and got lots of tickets and constantly had to look out for them. What a joke. They're just revenue generators, and IMHO should be out catching real crooks and people who don't pay their child support, etc., rather than people doing 70 in a 55.

And PA was TAME compared to Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, Massachusetts, etc. I swear Massachusetts deliberately has ridiculously low speed limits all over the place (e.g., 35 on four lane divided highways, no kiddin'!) so they can write tickets like shooting fish in a barrel.

</soapbox>

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

I have silver/gray, and while black looks cool, it shows EVERY spec of dirt, and IMHO it shows wear worse. Gray (like silver exterior) hides dust/dirt.

In the end, it's a personal thing. I'm lazy when it comes to cleaning cars so silver/gray works for me. I do love to look at black/black cars though - just don't want to have to wash/wax one!!!

hawkatl

I have a silver/black 98 GS3 that I bought used about a month ago. It looks new inside and out. This past weekend I added an aftermarket wood package for the console, gauges, vents, etc. It really warms up the interior and gives it a more luxurious feel. It only took a couple of hours to install. I live in Atlanta, so we will see about the heat this summer, but I park in a garage at home and work, so I'm not too worried about it. I love this car!!!

LexusLady

hawkatl:

Where'd you get your wood package from?

I got mine from exoticwooddash.com, and was really impressed with the match!

C.