scorchGX

I am looking at a couple 2005/2006 gx460s and I would love everyone’s opinion.

Let’s assume options, and price are the same $8500-$9000 and minimal to no rust. Would you go for

1) car with 150,000 miles but 5 owners, timing belt not replaced, and generally a lot of deferred maintenance (I’d assume at least $2500 all in)

or

2). Car with 250,000 miles, 2 owners and complete service records at a Lexus dealership including timing belt done at 200k

my thinking is with car 1, I can get all Maint done and probably increase the resale value of it when I want to sell it in 5-6 years but car 2 will be cheaper in the short term and less likely to give me problems, though it’ll be hard to sell a car with 300k miles.

Davenlei

iTrader: (1)

That is a dilemma since all points are valid. I am assuming you meant GX470 since GX460's were not sold till later.

My worry with the deferred service vehicle is how much it has been abused by someone who does not value maintenance and if they deferred changing oil, brake fluid, power steering fluid, diff oil, etc. for extended periods. That could bring the chance of major repairs if the diffs are not healthy from dirty/old gear oil or if the copper in the brake master cylinder has started to patina/wear from water absorption of old brake fluid (creating light green brake fluid) and such things like that.

You also have valid points about resale value with a 200K mile car vs 300K mile car. 200K would be easier and worth more but it depends on how much money you had to put into it to get it to maintained shape again to see if the extra money you would make selling a 200K car vs 300K car offsets the cost of bringing the car up to snuff.

Also remember these cars are going to be ~25 years old when you get around to selling it (if you keep it for 4-5 years like you say) so most likely the only people who will be looking for these cars as more than a beater will be enthusiasts who already know the durability of the drive train to be able to last 500K+ miles if maintained.

ASE

Assuming both are in similar cosmetic condition ... an indicator as to previous ownership care ... the mileage difference is a consideration. These vehicles are not high maintenance ... fluids and filters are the main thing for longevity ... so an inspection can provide some judgement along these lines.

150,000 miles ... without timing belt replacement ... you should build that into your negotiations ... $1,000 to $1,500 off the asking price ... given the GX has an interference engine where if the timing belt fails ... the engine will grenade. This is a reasonable request ... and replace the Water Pump at the same time given the extra labor will be a minor adder to the timing belt replacement.

250,000 miles ... even with documented standard maintenance history ... this mileage is crossing into the realm of long-term wear components ... like Control Arm Bushings, Ball Joints, Wheel Bearings, CV Joints, Shocks ... etc. where repair can get expensive.

For me, I would go the lower mileage option ... but only if a competent inspection concludes that standard maintenance intervals were (close to) followed.

scorchGX

My decision just got a lot easier.

a well maintained 2007 (theee previous owners all Texas an Oklahoma owned) loaded with 190,0000 miles and a good service history for $8k.

picking it up in a couple hours