Feel like an official member now w my 2006 LS430
11-24-18, 04:54 PM
#1
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
Feel like an official member now w my 2006 LS430
I am happy to report that I officially finalized my purchase of a 2006 LS430 yesterday. First off, I want to give thanks to all of the members who have given me suggestions directly on this forum and I am also truly grateful for the wealth of information that I found on other peoples' posts. My journey to Lexus ownership started approximately 4 months ago when my 2001 Highlander (which I named White Chocolate - after the former dynamic Sac Kings PG) started potentially showing signs of transmission problems and the oxygen sensor crapped out. It had 187k miles and I have had it since 2010. So between those three issues, I decided it was time to start looking for my next car. I spent about 3 weeks perusing consumer reports (paid for 1 month of online membership), reading various online articles, and watching youtube videos on various cars. However, I think once I stumbled upon this forum, I became enamored with the idea of owning a 2006 LS430. I started browsing various websites (cargurus, craigslist, various local Lexus dealerships) approximately 3 months ago. In this time, I only saw about 7 or so vehicles that fit my criteria (no accidents, less than 120k miles, 2 owners or less, not UL trim) within 150 miles of northern california. A few of them were black on black, which I didn't like. A few others were overpriced (13-16k). A few weeks ago, I went to look at a Flint Mica with 55k and it looked fantastic, but the owner was asking 16k. Then I posted a poll to see how long it took people to find their used LS430's and I started getting anxious, as people started posting that they are still hunting after 1, 2, and even 3 years.
Then approximately 2 weeks ago, a Blue Onyx LS with Ash interior showed up at the Stevens Creek Lexus dealership approximately an hour away from me. It was a base model with the premium package. It had one previous owner, 70k miles, and no history of accidents. The posted online price was $12,998. At first, I kind of ruled it out, as I wasn't sure if I loved the dark color. Also kind of thought the back up camera and ML sound would have been nice. So I kind of put it out of my head. But it wouldn't stay out. My second worry was that the Carfax report showed intermittent service. Then one CL member suggested I plug in the VIN to the Lexus driver's website to see if there is additional service history. And was there! It showed that the previous owner took it in every 5k miles and that it had gotten all of its services done at 2 dealerships over its 12 years in existence. It was starting to look more and more like a contender for my next vehicle.
My girlfriend suggested that I just run down to take a look at it; there's no harm in that. So I scheduled a test drive last Saturday for 3:00p to go look at it and my girlfriend and I roll into the dealership around 3:30p after we got behind schedule in the morning. Our salesperson, Joseph, showed us the car and took us out for a test drive. The first thing that struck me was just how nice the interior looked. First, I thought I would like the Ash interior, but it looked even better in person. Then as I did a closer inspection of the interior, everything looked it was barely touched. The leather did not have any rips or tears and was still soft to the touch and I didn't see even the slightest damage to the panels on the inside. Joseph took us out for a quick 20 minute drive and boy was the car as smooth as I remember it from my other test drives. As we drove back to the dealership, I started thinking about how to negotiate down the price and when I could potentially have time during Thanksgiving week to do a PPI.
However, as soon as we got back to the dealership, another salesperson, Numer, demanded the keys from Joseph. Joseph explained to Numer that he was working with me to see whether I planned on buying this car, but Numer continued to demand the keys in order to do his own test drive. I think his response to Joseph was, "Well he hasn't bought the vehicle yet has he? Because if he hasn't then it's still up for sale." Joseph, my girlfriend, and I all just stood in shock at the nature of his response. As Joseph walked us back into the dealership, he looked visibly irritated and he apologized for his coworker. Then he told me, "Now I really want to figure out how to sell you this car, just so that guy doesn't get it." Joseph explained that if I was willing to purchase the car and he entered in my paperwork first, that would basically give me dibs. I told Joseph that I really liked the car, but I had two concerns. I told him that first, it would coming up on a big maintenance interval and I was not looking forward to paying $1500 to complete the repair. Before I even made an offer, Joseph offered to cut off $1000 of the price. I felt that the price was already in the ballpark, but once Joseph cut $1000 off, I thought it became a solid deal. Maybe I could have found a better deal if I kept looking, but every day that I held onto my Highlander meant that I would be getting closer to a big repair that I wouldn't want to pay for. Then I told Joseph that I hadn't had an opportunity to take it in for a PPI. While Joseph tried to reassure me that the dealership had already done a safety inspection, he understood where I was coming from. He told me that there was a chance that if I decided to wait to do a PPI, someone else would come by and buy the car. For whatever reason, I had a sense that this car would be in high demand and didn't suspect that it was a sleazy sales tactic. So Joseph told me that if I purchased the car, I could then take it to whoever I wanted for an inspection and then if any engine or transmission issues came up, then the dealership would take the car back. I had him put this in writing and then I felt fairly comfortable in making the deal. Except... because I wasn't planning on buying a car that day, I had not 1. brought my check book or gotten pre-approval on a loan and 2. brought any of the items that I would need to trade in my car and 3. had not cleared out my 2001 Highlander. Thankfully, those things didn't stop the process from moving forward. Joseph gave me some bags for the stuff in my Highlander. I spent the next 45 minutes cleaning out my truck and saying my goodbyes to White Chocolate. I will always remember him since he brought me safely from Maryland to California back in 2010. Then came the financing piece. I was allowed to put half of my purchase on my credit card (which I have already paid off and got a butt load of points). Then he offered me financing through Lexus and gave me until 11/23/18 to find my own financing. As we were finalizing the paperwork, we stopped by the sales manager's desk. Turns out that the prospective buyer that Numer had taken out on the test drive had offered full price on the purchase, but because Joseph had finalized my offer, it didn't matter. So if we showed up just another 30 minutes later than we did, the car would likely have been sold to that other person!! However, he also lucked out that day as there was an unlisted 2004 LS430 at the dealership which he commited to. It was Gold and had 125k miles - so I am still happy that I got the car that I did.
As I drove home that night in my shiny new LS430, I started thinking of all of the things that I still needed to accomplish. Never having to apply for an auto loan before, the process seemed daunting to me. However, I went through Lightstream and it was super easy. I filled out their online application and 30 minutes later, I was approved for a 36month loan at 4.33% (My credit is 700+ for frame of reference). They deposited the funds in my bank account 2 days later and I was able to provide a personal check to the dealership. Of course the thing that I was most worried about was the inspection. Because I was able to drive home with the car, I was able to take the vehicle to Lexus of Concord for a inspection. They "only" charge $195, as opposed to some of the other dealerships in the area which charge anywhere between $350-550. If my inspection came back with bad news, I knew that not only would I have to worry about making the repairs to the car, but would also repair my ego for not doing a PPI prior to the purchase. Thankfully, the inspection came back clean minus that the battery failed the load test. Given that it looked like the battery was around 7 years old, I just asked the dealership replace the battery to tie up all loose ends. So now I feel like I can finally report that I am the giddy new owner of a LS430 in great condition. It has been raining over the last few days so I haven't been able to take many pictures. I'll try and post some more pictures in a few weeks after my vacation. But here are some that were taken after I purchased the vehicle. I feel like the lighting just makes it look Black, but I have grown to like the Blue Onyx.
The following users liked this post:
bud13 (08-15-19)
11-24-18, 06:48 PM
#2
Congrats, nice find! One of my neighbors has a Blue Onyx, and I think it's my favorite color on the LS 430. I admire his car twice a day as I walk by it with my dog 
11-24-18, 06:54 PM
#3
Congrats on the purchase! Glad you got the car! I just bought an 05 UL and I love how the 18 inch rims look. But I'm thinking I want the 17s. I was expecting a little bit smoother ride.
11-25-18, 03:56 AM
#4
It sounds like you handled things properly and got a great car (in a fairly rare color combination) at a fair price. It's hard to imagine how you could have done better. Congrats!
11-25-18, 07:03 AM
#6
Forum Administrator
iTrader: (2)
Congrats and looks like a very clean LS!
11-25-18, 07:20 AM
#7
I also used Lightstream. I got $10k for 36 months at 3.39% when I got my LS430 last year. They are a great company to borrow from if you have great credit. Congrats on the purchase, I also have the Ash interior and it has really grown on me. Don't worry about non-nav, it's an easy upgrade on our cars.
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11-25-18, 03:36 PM
#12
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
Thanks everyone! I'm still enamored with the vehicle, though I have to admit, part of me doesn't want to drive it now cause it's so nice. And I'm really starting to like the color
@Romanova I think at some point, I'll follow in your footsteps and add a touchscreen unit to the car. The one you did is looking pretty slick! I heard that auto loan rates bumped up a few points just in the last few months after the Fed increased their rates. I think I was quoted a 3 something just a few months ago when I wanted to see what the rate may be looking like.
@Romanova I think at some point, I'll follow in your footsteps and add a touchscreen unit to the car. The one you did is looking pretty slick! I heard that auto loan rates bumped up a few points just in the last few months after the Fed increased their rates. I think I was quoted a 3 something just a few months ago when I wanted to see what the rate may be looking like.
11-26-18, 06:05 AM
#14
Congrats on working the deal you wanted and nice to see the dealer honoring your commitment to buy instead of selling to the higher offer. Welcome to the club and don't keep it locked up. Get out and enjoy the ride.
