newbie16

Hi. I am looking to purchase a GS and am new to Lexus so looking for some guidance. Currently have a 2005 Acura RL with 200K+ miles and now time for a new car. Leaning towards the GS350 and would love to get some input from current owners, especially long time Lexus owners. As you can tell, I like to buy my cars and drive them until they die so looking for good reliability, especially regarding electronics since this is what gave me the biggest issues with my Acura.

Also curious about pros/cons of the 2016/15/14 or 2013, since don't know if I will buy new or used. Sometimes issues with the first year (13) of a redesign. Also curious about options you would recommend, since not clear what is standard and what is optional . All input is appreciated. Thanks

isekii

Are you going to get an FSport or the non?

I think you'd want one of either the Fsport or Luxury Package.
Nav is pretty standard
Parking Sensor + Power folding mirrors

Cold Weather package Not sure if necessary but nice to have in the winter even if the entire steering wheel doesn't get warm.
Remote Start is also a nice feature but unnecessary

I had the 2014 for 2 years and just got the 2015 for 3 year lease.

The only issue I had were the wipers working on and off, which was fixed under warranty.

newbie16

I dont know exactly what comes with the FSport but probably not since I'm really not looking for performance. I'm more concerned about a comfortable ride, good handling and reliability. I drive a lot for work so comfort is key and keep my cars until they die so reliability is the other key. I'm also looking at the Infiniti and sounds like it has a lot of electrical issues so trying to find out about the Lexus. Most cars are fine under warranty, its when it expires the issues pop up. These days many people lease and get new cars every few years so don't experience these issues. Did you have a GS before the 2014?
Thanks for the info

AJLex19

Longtime lexus owner here - the GS is a very reliable car. Previously owned an '01 GS430 and sold it at 126k miles...The GS is probably the most reliable car in the category of competing vehicles. Buying used gives you the best bang for your buck. I own a CPO '13 GS350 and have liked everything thus far (close to 50k miles so far and counting)..

Many of the things that are problems are more minor annoyances more than anything else. Be sure to have any recalls taken care of if you end up with a GS that has an open recall. Spend time with the car to see if you like its details via test drives or weekend loaner.

Look through the forum to get an idea of the good and the bad...everything thing is here from owners being weary about heavy sounding/diesel sounding engine which is normal or lack of up-gradable technology/firmware to beautifully modified GS's that just turn heads.

I have already seen high mileage 2013's making it back into dealership (seen an 80k mi '13 GS and a 100k '13 GS listed here in the Northeast for sale) so reliability and longevity are already showing up.

You may be able to snag a 2015 for a great purchase price as dealers still have a few on their lots they are trying to move. If you care more about comfort, than a lightly used luxury package GS will work great for you: http://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/de...7287/overview/

The bottom line is you just can't go wrong with any version of the GS (used, new, premium, f-sport, luxury). Good luck and hope you join the Club! You won't regret it if you do...!

isekii

Nope my previous car was the 2002 Lexus IS300 which I bought out and sold like 4 years ago for $9000-9500

JellyBean

OP, listen to AJLex19; couldn't have said it better myself. I came to Lexus from Hondas about 15 years ago and never looked back. Go with the Luxury package if you want comfort *and* awesome handling in one package. Remember that the Luxury package includes AVS.

dseag2

The GS is simply a fantastic car that does pretty much everything well. I owned a '13 GS for almost 3 years and 20k miles without one issue. I only traded it because I wanted a coupe.

The only advantage to the '13 is that is has a 6-speed automatic transmission which (even according to owners of later models) is a bit more snappy with its shifts. Later models have the 8-speed tranny. However, later models also have folding mirrors and a power trunk that wasn't available on the '13 models. The GS has a beautiful, well-made interior and exterior that provide lots of luxury with plenty of power and great handling as well. You can't go wrong. BTW, I owned an '05 RL, and with all due respect, this car is light years ahead of it.

KJD3

When I purchased my 2015 F-Sport the dealer had to bring it in from another dealer and they said it would take about a week for them to get it. In the mean time I was given a 2013 GS that was a off lease trade in and had BSM, cold weather package, and navigation. I really liked the car, coming from an Infiniti. When I took delivery of my 2015 I thought that it was an even better car than the 2013. The interface had been updated, so to me it looked a lot cleaner and more elegant. After having my 15 for about 8 months now I wish I had bought a luxury package GS with the Mark Levinson. In reality it is the same as the F-Sport, you still get the sport+ driving dynamic, paddle shifters which I think are standard on all GS's, I'm not sure if the seats are the same or not, and I believe the wheels are the same just not powder coated gunmetal. But you do get fog lights, which I wish the F-Sport came with, the luxury back seat option with the arm rest that has the climate control heated seats and window shades in the doors, which was something I wanted on my F-Sport but my dealer wouldn't allow me to special order one.

If I were you and I wanted a reliable luxury car I would go for the 2015 GS with the ML, BSM, Cold Weather, Luxury, and power trunk packages. The Infiniti's are nice, and I do miss mine from time to time, but they're not very refined. The Q70 is getting very long in the tooth at this point. Lexus has much more to offer than you can get from Infiniti, the one thing I wish is that I could transplant the VQ37 that Infiniti has into the GS.