430SLOwner

Did you end up passing on the car? If so, was it because of the miles?

Hotboy1

To me, the UL and any 430 with Nav is undesireable. When my '97 kicks the bucket, I plan to get a 04-06 with standard audio so that I can upgrade to an aftermarket unit that has Nav/SiriusXM/HD radio/bluetooth. I have a lifetime subscription to Sirius/XM that costs me nothing and I'll be transferring it to the new vehicle.

Eduardo253

To make everyone feel better I bought a Lexus LS 430 UL for ,8k at 190k miles on it

ontheroad

Hey all. I got a dealer selling a 2004 ls430 UL for 12 grand. Its got 154k on it and lexus records up to a little over 140,000 miles. Rear airs done at 110k, timing belt at 90k.
Absolutely mint southern car. All lexus scheduled services, fluids etc. Shipping to me is 450 bucks. Im in new england and its hard to find one no less rust. I see people getting better deals with lower miles but thats private sale. The dealer I would be buying it from has really good facebook and google reviews and sound on the level. Also backed by carfax.
Im actually looking for the UL so its a rare find here, if I waited I might find the same car with 100k for maybe 14 grand. I do minimum driving and am in a health situation thats limiting.
I cant really travel and get some of the smoking deals others here have got. Opinions on buying a ls430 with 154k miles is a good idea or not?

caverman

Is it a bit high on price, probably, but if it checks off all of the boxes then don't quibble over a $1k or $2k. Unfortunately the used car market is still high right now and that bubble will probably burst before too long but it is what it is at the moment. I'll say that I bought my current LS at 110k and have I have 167k on it now. It has some very minor cosmetic/annoyance type things but all in all it's a solid car and I plan to keep it for the foreseeable future, probably well into the 200k range. I can't think of any other car I would replace it with any where near this price range.

ontheroad

Thanks, so I was interested what would happen when it got in that 180k range, which for me would be years. Thats the thing the market is nuts. I would love to get one like you did at 110k.Your right about nor quibbling about price.
I also found out it has a dealer "sticker" on the engine saying the timing belt and H2O pump was done at 90k. Not masking tape but I am a bit concerned about that since all service intervals were done at lexus. But I didnt see anything like tie rod ends, belts etc. So Im wondering if the more major work he had done else where. Documentation of timing belt is critical. What have you had to do to it in your time owning it?

caverman

I'm on my second LS. The first one I had for about 2 years and went from about 110K to 135K. I did nothing to that one other than maintenance like spark plugs and trans oil drain/fill. I did have to replace door actuators and tilt wheel motor on that one as well but those are not really major in my opinion. The one I have now I've also don't mostly preventative stuff with only the starter being an issue that I consider a major problem. I've replaced things like door actuators, spark plugs, radiator, trans drain/fill, brake pads, headlight leveling motor. Some of those things would definitely cost some money if you can't DIY. My biggest expense so far was having the starter replaced. That one was a little more than I was willing to tackle in my garage so I paid a shop to do it and that bill hurt but hopefully that will be the only one like that. So far I haven't had to do any suspension work at all one either of them that I've had. I am also putting aside some money to have my Timing Belt/Water Pump done again in the next year or so.

ontheroad

Other than the starter, which toyotas usually last forever, thats not terrible. We all gotta expect some kind of repairs on a car this old. Im so tempted to go with this ls ultra with 150k.
A lot of people are scared off buying a car with high millage but at that point a lot of stuff that would have broken did and the owner fixed it. I'v never heard of a air suspension going 150k miles.

ontheroad

So I found another car with all service records, 40, from lexus one owner up until 4000 miles of me buying it from dealer. 138,000 miles. New engine mounts, suspension bushings, torque converter, timing belt, h20 pump. Lexus multi point inspection recently. MAF sensor, bunch of stuff. But only one rear air strut replaced at 50k. Others are all original. Car is in mint, and I mean mint condition. Probably should pass. But I was thinking of accumulating low mileage struts on facebook and other places. Its a little bit of a gamble. I could get Arrnot struts but that might compromise the comfort of the car and not be adjustable, which I dont mind. Only problem is they wouldnt match oem ones already in car that havent gone.