Ascari_2

Hi all,

I am considering an LS430 and have pulled the history on it (attached to this thread). Looking at it, it seems like there are a lot of little things that kept going wrong with it. Is this just a picky car owner or are a lot of these problems just really unusual for a 430?

Thanks

jrmckinley

To me, this looks like a unicorn and a no brainer to buy (even without knowing the price). Here's what I can tell you with 95% confidence:
- First, this is most likely a wealthy old person's car. It only has 35k on the odometer!!! They're driving less than 3k miles per year (look closely at the records) and getting all service done at Lexus. They even did the water pump at like 30k miles...! The only reason to do this is based on the age of the car- I think Lexus says every 90k or 10 years, whichever comes first. But I can tell you that a lot of people wouldn't replace it at 30k miles if it's not leaking. And the report showed no indication that the Techs found it leaking... it said the customer wanted it replaced. This is gold!
- Most or all of the other stuff I glanced at were extremely (and I mean extremely minor). Nav update, AC oscillating not working properly, headlights seem dim, etc. The beauty is they got all of this stuff fixed.
- JM Lexus where they have gotten a bit of the services done is a pretty good dealer
- My bet is they're old, picky about the car and took it in for any and every little thing that seemed "off".

Assuming it's in your price range and is equipped how you want and a color you can live with, I'd buy this in a heart beat. I bought my 2004 in May of 2008 with 70k miles- it now has 245k miles.. I live in FL- I always see these cream-puff LS's being driven by 80-90 year olds and always wonder when the cars will start hitting the market. Some folks are gonna get some absolutely mint and well maintained cars.

Ascari_2

Thanks for the feedback. As far as the water pump, the history states:

• UPON VEHICLE INSPECTION FOUND WATER LEAK COMING FROM THE WATER PUMP ASSEMBLY

So I am pretty sure that was a necessary repair. As for the other things, just odd to see so much stuff being picked apart and (more importantly) the dealer actually finding fault with all those components. Almost seems like the car was built on the wrong day when all the expert assemblers were on a retreat. They even replaced the main oil seal because of a leak. Also has 2004 rims

RA40

iTrader: (6)

Looked at a few of the pages, I'm with jrmckinley about this being a car owned by a meticulous type. I know someone who is similar, the slightest off note the car is in the shop to be checked/fixed. Theirs mechanically is excellent. Interior and exterior has some wear and still better than many other 430's with similar miles.

tallcaguy

I wouldn't touch this car. LS reliability is legendary. Many people in this forum have these cars for years (and lots of miles) w/ zero problems other than normal maintainence. In less than 30k, the battery, tilt, mirror, master brake cylinder, etc. A rear main seal at 29?? There's also the cracked dash, fried subwoofer and peeling trim. Can steady hot FL sun and not much driving do this much damage?

tallcaguy

Sure low miles but age is very hard on a car if it isn't garaged/covered, maintained well and driven regularly. I would not buy an LS that doesn't have a good history and dealer service record. The long list started too early for this LS. Maybe a lemon. Even if the owner is picky, there shouldn't be as many repairs needed so soon. If the owner's wealthy (meaning it gets garaged) then why the cracked dash, damaged steering wheel and peeling trim? New Michelins at 18k? Is that heat or an owner that outruns "the heat" (cops)? Maybe the dealer was greedy but a rear main seal at 29k? What's the asking price?

tallcaguy

Dealer switched rims at 4,800 mi per customer request. Expert assemblers may have just come back after a holiday bender. Am guessing problems here are too much sun and not driven enough. Rear main seal at 29 is a flag. An LS with a long history of problems is going to be expensive and frustrating. A good well maintained LS is a bargain and will be fun to drive for many years.

jrmckinley

Can you send us a link with some pics of the car? Would be helpful to see the overall condition.

Also, to my knowledge, there's really no such thing as "2004 rims" - as the 2004, 2005, and 2006 all came with a couple of rim options (17 inch or 18 inch, then polished vs. chrome). If they changed the rims from the 18" 5 stars (which makes the car look way better IMO), it may have been because they thought the car rode too rough and wanted to improve the comfort. Having owned both rim options, I can say I couldn't tell a difference in ride quality and much prefer the look of the 18" rims.

Bocatrip

Sorry, but I did not get the year of the car. What year and trim group is it? There seems to be many many repairs that are not maintenance items.

LS430FL

seems like a lot of little weird things went wrong with this car. However, the good news is basically the whole car has been replaced so you are getting a basically new car! I have lived in FL for 15 years now. Batteries every couple years is totally normal. I actually also service at JM lexus and they offer lifetime guarantee so you bu once and they replace forever. Sometimes they replace my battery less than two years and I don't even ask. They test it and if its below spec they just tell me and swap it out for a new one. My guess is half the little stuff was fine but they wanted to keep the customer happy so they replaced it. The guy was coming in with an LS which was top of the line at the time so I am sure they wanted to keep whoever the owner was happy.

jayclapp

If you don't like it, don't buy it. Simple enough, your choice.

Johnhav430

This appears multiple times, what does it mean?

~ ~CUSTOMER IS IN A SERVICE LOANER @ $35.00PER DAY

Who's paying $35? That's one thing I don't agree with at Lexus, lounge is always full because they don't seem to dish out loaners. Whereas BMW loaners are given for everything. Like last Friday my service was $69 and I had a 428i gran coupe for 2 days. Again, it's not like I would enjoy driving a RX350, just that one can pretty much go about their routine when a free loaner is given.

jrmckinley

In my experience, this is created for 2 reasons:
1) The customer was requesting a loaner during service period where that particular dealer would normally not give a loaner (ie- oil change). My local Lexus dealer doesn't offer free loaners for minor services such as oil changes so they would likely charge for it.
2) The dealer has to document the cost of the rental (even if they're giving it to you free) in the event that you keep it way longer than the intended time frame. I always see a "price" of the free loaner per day but it gets zeroed out after the credit they give. Have seen this at my local Lexus dealer and my Toyota dealer (had LX 90k service done at Toyota last week- and they did it this way).

As a sales guy, I always look at things from the sales angle- one rule of selling is you never give something away without documenting the value. By showing you the value of a rental car and then giving it to you for free, it enhances your experience because you appreciate the service and you now tie a dollar figure to what you have received at no charge. It also plants the seed that you may have to pay that rate in the future for a rental if you aren't having a "major" service. My $.02

Ascari_2

Thanks for all the input. This is a 2005 mercury metallic with black interior. Comes with a CL package. They are asking a bit over $15k for it.

Jayclapp: easier said than done. The car is about 1000 miles away from where I live. So I am thinking of hiring a PPI inspector to go out and do an assessment since I don't know anyone down in FL.

Johnhav430

I have to laugh, I had a '16 BMW for 4 mos. because of the Takata airbag. It was through Enterprise. when I asked for a receipt (guy wasn't giving me one automatically, I am not paying, but I like it to prove I returned the car), it came out to over $9k as it was $94/day. I said surely BMW is not paying the number on this paper? The guy said actually, they are (note to self, buy Enterprise stock if they are public). It was an interesting program, they paid for the CDW, it was not optional, BMW picked it up. Different mindset, I guess. Which is why I can't for the life of me understand why Lexus' customer service is so good. But in reality it doesn't help when you are sitting there for 45 min. or 2 hours. BMW has the best snacks and designer water, yet nobody is there lol