r00kie

Hello,
I am starting to research prices for
'01, '02, '03 GS430

I found this on autotrader, does it seem like a good deal:

Price $43500

Mileage 15000

Exterior Color Black

Interior Color Black

Body Style Sedan

Doors Four Door

Engine 8 Cylinder

Trans. Automatic

Fuel Type Gasoline

Drive Type 2 wheel drive

It also comes with the ML stereo system, Nav and tinted windows. Let me know what you guys think. Thanks.

jimxo

You did not say what year the car is

I purchased my 2001 GS430 three months ago with 14,700 miles on it. Every option possible for $39,900

meanboy

I saw this in yesterday's S.J. Mercury newspaper.

2002 GS430
Gold
5k
Has everything 42.9k

Don't know that'sa good price or not but I am not partial to Gold in a GS.

jimxo

If it has everything then that's a great price.

dipstick

If you are patient and search every couple of days on the web, you can buy that car (2001 GS430 w/premium, nav and ML for well under $40k for sure. I paid $34,700 for the same car with 22k miles in December, plus $1,000 for new tires this month. Don't get too antsy and believe those asking prices. Also, the black and silver cars seem to have higher resale.

r00kie

Thanks for the replies. That price is for a 2001.

I am in CA, so I think the price is going to be a little higher, but I will definitley keep looking.

Do you guys recommend getting it from the dealer or a private seller. Would it matter? I am definitely going to have a Lexus dealer check it out b4 I buy it.

I know, I should be patient, but reading these forums daily and listening to all you lex owners having so much fun with your lex, makes me want to be a lex owner myself!

meanboy

You mean you might have to pay less sales tax if you get it thru a private seller? No sure how you can get away without paying any sales tax to the DMV unless the seller says it's a gift and I am not sure how many sellers who aren't relatives that will do that.

One thing I am considering is trading my GS3 in for a used GS4 or LS4 and pay the difference, and only the difference is taxable. That's one thought if you want to avoid taxes some sales tax.

r00kie

what you talking about meanboy

GS4Will

that is a bit too high for LA price....this is one of the most competitive markets in the nation....

keep your option open and look for more choices in autotrader.com

meanboy

good edit there, r00kie!

meanboy

I heard the LA area has good prices on used cars.

Ex996

In a private sale, sometimes you can get the seller to underreport the sales price as a favor, and that results in less taxes to you. Just don't go nuts or it's obvious.

Also, if you're considering cars in the 43k range, why don't you get an '03 for 49k+? Mine was 49,700 thru Carsdirect.

meanboy

Yes, that's true. I was addressing a statement about paying no sales tax thru private party transactions.

It's been edited out so now my response doesn't make sense. I guess I should have quoted it.

kvoman

That is a good deal since the mileage is so low. The price reflects the color combination. The color has a significant effect on prices between two exact cars with the same options.

White is most expensive, Black and Silver are usually least expensive in the pre-owned market.

If you buy from a large authorized Lexus dealer, chances are they have more room to negotiate given a certain conditions since they can absorb and spread the loss/profit better than a private seller. That being said, the price from a dealer is usually a few thousand higher than a private seller.

If you like the car, check out when it was first purchased/registered. If you can get the VIN from the car, the Lexus dealer will be able to tell you when it was first sold. If it's an '01 but purchased/registered in '00, you may not have much left on the factory basic warranty of 4yrs or 50k (whichever comes first) miles so that's something you could bring up during negotiation for the price. If it's from a dealer, definitely check to see if they put new tires on, the stock Bridgestone are horrible and wear out anywhere between 15-20k miles. If they put new tires on, make sure the tires are Z-rated not the cheap H-rated tires. I have seen Stevens Creek Lexus done that on all their GS for retail. I was going to buy a GS from them last year but they refused to change the tires to the correct rating so they lost a sale.

r00kie

The warranty on the '01 expiring this year didn't even cross my mind...thanks for pointing that out!

That's why I love this site! I'll probably start test driving within the next couple weeks.

Edit: ex996 - I sent you a PM