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Hi everyone. I was cross shopping some cars to move up to from my 1GS. I settled on buying a BMW 330i but then the IS300 caught my eye. I looked at one at a local auction and fell in love with the overall style and comfort of the car. I started to look around locally and found one at a dealer I'm interested in.
Can I have some advice on if this is a good deal?
--The dealer wants 7,500. I plan on putting a substantial amount down but financing the rest.
--The car looks to be in really good shape, but I wont see it in person until Monday.
--The only thing that I am hesitant about is the mileage. 161,000...some are saying its not worth financing a car with that many miles. However from owning a couple of 1GS's I know all about Lexus reliability.
If the maintenance light isn't on, you're good! haha. I'd probably start with changing some fluids and while you're doing that you can check on tune-up parts and maybe some bushings.
damn man! i think you may be able to talk them down a little bit. it looks to be in pristine condition though. like chris4.3 said, do some research on it (maybe car fax) and go from there. that price is a lot to ask for 161k+ miles, but that's one of the positives in owning a Toyota/Lexus, they hold their value really well! i just traded my 03 is with 220k+ miles and got $3000 for it although it booked for $4.5k. still not bad for trade value to a dealer. hopefully you can talk them down a G. good luck!
^I Agree with cp2 I would do some research, be patient because you are going to be pissed if you buy it and then find one for much cheaper. Yes the car is really nice, and its a lexus so yes its reliable but I just went on craigslist and found a few. Not sure if you want a manual or not but here's some links, i'm out of Mass so not to far from you,
Thank you for the input guys, after a some thought I agree. Within 2 years I could easily put 40k miles on it, and then I'd kick myself if I found a lower mileage one for cheaper.
Trider, thanks for the links dude, my area sucks for finding clean examples so I'm going to start looking around and I'll travel if I need to.
Thank you for the input guys, after a some thought I agree. Within 2 years I could easily put 40k miles on it, and then I'd kick myself if I found a lower mileage one for cheaper.
Trider, thanks for the links dude, my area sucks for finding clean examples so I'm going to start looking around and I'll travel if I need to.
I just purchased a 2002 IS300 manual, with 164,000 miles. Flew to Chicago to buy it and drove it back home, near Cleveland. If you've researched this engine enough, you should have no hesitation about the mileage. This car drives so much better than my 3 year old Hyundai. You can probably get it for nearly $1,000 less.
Mike, I'm pretty familiar with the non vvt-i 2jz. I'm on my second 1GS, which I am hoping I can sell to one of my buddies this weekend. I just want to make sure I was getting a good deal for the money.
My two babies (RIP Black Car) (Trying to sell the white car)
Hey everyone, thanks for all the input. I found a minty fresh 01 with service records dating back to 2003. Loving it so far. Already have a bunch of plans and reading as much as I can about these cars.