mikemcgl

Hello Everyone,

Just found this site the other day and am glad I did. I never knew there was a community of Lexus lovers out there.

LS430 Ultra-Lux with ML

I purchased my car new in Nov 2001 and have put 170,000 on it.
It still looks and runs great but the ride is not as smooth as it once was.

I was thinking of selling it and getting a new ES350, which was a loner the dealer lent me and it rides great. I forgot how gentle the rides can be.

But rather then taking on more debt, I thought I'd just upgrade the car I have and make it run like new.

The list of stuff wrong with the car:
Cruise control: a stone hit the glass a few years ago and I never replaced it.
Steering wheel adjustments don't work anymore. It slowing comes out and does not tilt anymore.
Subwolfer makes noises: needs to be replaced.
One tire needs air regularly because of slow leak. Need to replace a wheel.
Any ideas on how to correct the above would be appreciated.

In addition to fixing the above, I was thinking of getting a new drivers seat, replace the other three struts (I just had one replaced $1800), replace the rubber around the windows and repaint the whole car.

Any and all suggestions on how I can get the old work horse back in shape would be appreciated. Specifically, what can I do to improve the ride of the car. Is there aftermarket solutions to upgrading the suspension? I love the ride of the ES350 and would like to get it on my current car.

Thanks in advance for you time and attention. Michael

AlexusAnja

Just get a '04-'06 430 instead. Problem solved...

GLIDESUL

+2 ^^ what trim do you have is it a ul 1800 for a strut. But then again you purchased new hopefully well maintained your problems are at a minimal, only time will tell as far as other parts that have to be replace due to normal wear and tear either way you gonna spend money.

AlexusAnja

For the air to get to 170K, that ain't too bad. I have a CL just to avoid the air suspension. Honestly, haven't missed the ride... love the plush ride.

If you don't go with getting a new 430, I'd say perhaps do a slight cosmetic change by changing out the tail lights to LED lights. I did this with my '99 RX300 a few years back and it just refreshes the look. Like facial plastic surgery, a nice quick tuck.

mewhee

Hi Michael -

That's quite a laundry list you've got there. You said "But rather then taking on more debt, I thought I'd just upgrade the car I have and make it run like new."

The dilemma you face is that even w/ costly upgrades in getting it back to somewhat new, you'll then have an investment which you'll very likely not recoup even if you were to sell it immediately w/ all the repairs. As AlexusAnja said, get a carefully chosen '04 to '06 along w/ trading in your existing ride (after a minimal infrastructure investment) and you'll probably come out ahead.

Looks like there's no way to get around not taking on more debt if you're truly seeking an upgraded ride.

Good luck in whatever you do -

Will and the Fur Crew

abs

The best way to correct all these issues on an older high mileage vehicle is to find some used parts from salvage yards. Things like suspension components, speakers, rims and driver's seats can be had with relative ease. You will want to find a vehicle that has been in an accident and was totaled due to cost to repair but which still has lots of good parts on it. The best place to look for this will be on CoPartFinder.com:

http://www.copartfinder.com/finder/searchMake.do#

Sorry I can't help with suspension conversion ideas, perhaps someone else can provide some input.

Let us know how you make out.

Andrew

particle

`replace the air system with brand new oem mechanical suspension (1500 for everything and probably labor).
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls4...ion-infos.html

`attempt to repair your tilt wheel yourself
http://www.youtube.com/user/jaredten#p/u/1/XgeIzc9Uga4

`HID fogs/LEDS everywhere, etc
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls4...rsion-hid.html
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls4...cs-inside.html

`replace head light covers if necessary , if they are yellowed and pitted this makes a huge difference to the look of the car, alternatively you can buff them with "mag and aluminum" polish for wheels.

`pay to have the car detailed by a shop that mostly does high end cars, not just some random car wash or a dealer (3-500$).


pictures of your car?

miniz

I hope you are dreaming, because it makes zip, zero, nada sense to 'invest' that kind of money into a 9 year old LS with nearly 200k miles on the clock, which, in perfect shape would only be worth maybe $10k-12k on a good day. Yours sounds like a mess and would bring maybe $5,000 as-is. A car is not a house and does not warrant 'fixing-up' (unless its a collectible classic, which yours is NOT).
If you are really thinking about doing things like replacing the drivers seat ($5,000 easily) or repainting the entire car ($7,000-10,000 for a good job, 10k-15k for something like factory and it would actually depreciate the value of the car by at least 40%), then you are absolutely crazy. You should just throw a $10,000 brick of money into your fireplace and watch it burn, if you think this is a good use of money.
It sounds like you have heavily neglected the car. Things like cracked glass, a blown sub, a leaky tire and a broken steering wheel should have been fixed as they broke. You don't let things pile up and they try to fix them all at once, because it will cost more then the car is worth.
What you should do now;
Fix the tire (i.e have it plugged, not replaced!!), the steering wheel (possibly get it done for free), the glass (use your insurance coverage!!), the cruise control, source a used sub from a junkyard for no more then $100, and the get it detailed, then SELL IT ASAP. Get rid of it.
If you are actually willing to maintain a car, then get another LS430. Get 04-06. If you either cannot afford to maintain one or are just too cheap to do so, then please do yourself a favor and get something like a Honda Civic. Few things will break on this car. It would be perfect for you. No gadgets to break. Simple oil change only car.

Bocatrip

If your car was not the UL you might have a fighting chance although it would still be expensive. The air suspension makes these cars too pricey to repair. I agree it would make more sense to look for an 04-06, but if money is an issue, the 01-03 series are still great cars!

abs

Not sure I necessarily agree with all the comments made. Leaving aside a new paint job, it should be possible to get all the parts from the salvage yards to bring this car some more life and at relatively low cost. It sounds like the current owner is happy with the vehicle overall and, knowing it's maintenance history, feels it's worthwhile to invest a small sum to keep the car going. Not everyone will have the funds to step and and buy a 2004-2006 LS and certainly the cost to do that would be much more than the cost to repair the current vehicle. I would agree that spending a whole lot of money on the car makes no sense, but spending a small sum to keep it going if the drive train and body overall are in good shape might make sense depending on parts costs.

Andrew

aypues

a new ES is like 40k with options. why not get a CPO 04-06 LS for 20-25k?? Your list of items to be fixed will just keep growing the longer you keep the car. Better off get one pre owned under warranty and let them take on the expense of the repairs.

mikemcgl

Thanks for the feed back everyone. I appreciate the generosity.

I've attached the before pictures so you have a sense of what the car looks like now.

It's dirty today but I had to take some pictures to put the issue in prospective. I own a great car that was really taken well care of since day one. Not paying $1,800 for cruise control is not car neglect, it's common sense.

The rubber around the rear passenger side glass is a little tattered and needs to be replaced to look great, not the glass itself.

My mechanic tells me replacing the struts will not improve the ride since its air and the current ones are holding the air fine, so that's off the table. The suggestion above is worth looking into.

As to the seat, it's in great shape, but has 9 years of use, so the padding inside is worn. I'm looking into just replacing the padding to improve the feel.

I took it to the auto-body guy a few days ago and he tells me the paint is fine, just needs a few touch ups and the fenders redone.

So I'll share the after pictures when I'm done the fixing up. I hope to get 300,000 miles more after I'm done.

And just for the record, I was offered $21,000 for it about six months ago.

JimsGX

The car looks to be in good shape. However, you should have taken the 21k for an 01 with 170k miles, and ran like a cheetah. The car's not worth that much unless the dashboard was gold plated...

AlexusAnja

+1 ... I would have taken the $21K and ran out of dodge. An '01 UL with 170K is worth only $12K tops. That's 4 years and 70K over anything desirable to most potential buyers.

You should have dropped this for $21K and put in another perhaps $3K and gotten a CL.

Bocatrip

$21K does seem exceptionally generous. Any Luxo car with over 150K will usually be hit extremely hard in the resale value dept regardless of condition.