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I have used Lexus of Omaha ever since I bought my 2010 LS 460L when it came off lease. These guy are great and have always treated me right. I will not use his name but the bald new car manger is top self. These guys will treat you right.

Dennis

 

Congrats on the new car, and I wish you good luck with it.

It looks like you got a real nice car. In my opinion if you are only going to keep it for about a year I would forego the warranty.

 

Congrats! Looks like an amazing car. I have basically the same one in Smokey Granite Mica (dark grey) and black interior.

If you're only holding onto the car for a year not sure you need the warranty. I bought the warranty 2 years ago (at 41k miles) and it expired in August. I never used it. The only issues I had were so minor that it wasn't worth it.

Some thoughts:

• There is a TSB out for the center differential; the fluid that comes from the factory is either too viscous or not viscous enough. If your car hasn't had it done you'll sometimes get a binding or rumbling sound from the center diff if you're turning and the wheel is at or near lock (more prevalent in colder weather). Easy fix is to change the fluid; there are threads here on how to not use the seemingly made-from-unicorn-blood-expensive Toyota fluid.
• I've had issues with the door switches (that activate the dome light); the rubber sticks and sometimes they don't activate. Causes havoc with the easy closer and some other systems; easy $20 part from the dealer; you can change them yourself in 5 minutes.
• Check the aim of the headlights. The LED lights are somewhat prone to going out of alignment; the alignment procedure is in the manual but you may have to take off some engine covers to get to the adjustment nut.
• Make sure the mats, DVD remote control, rear headphones etc. are included. If not these can be found on eBay. If you need mats the Lexus Premium mats are pretty nice but there are other suggestions here for stuff that costs less and looks just as good.
• If you don't have the service history changing all the fluids would be a cheap insurance policy; especially if the car has sat for a while.
• The control arms are a well documented issue (you can search the forums for other buyers guide like posts) but with such low mileage you're probably ok; ditto the brake actuator (although there is some kind of extended service recall on that). The transmission issues don't apply because the hybrid doesn't have the 8sp automatic.
• The Hybrid Battery may be covered under your state's emissions laws (it is in California). I would check.

Other than that it's the standard stuff; wash, wax, clean leather. These are sturdy and (usually) pretty drama free cars. I've noticed I have to stay on top of the alignment a little more than my other cars. Also the windshield is a weird size; I haven't found a sunshade that fits perfectly yet.

They are wonderful cars to own and drive; you will become the defacto chauffeur among your friends so be prepared for that

Enjoy! Welcome to the club!

 

I almost forgot:

I velcro'd one of these behind the volume switches on the steering wheel. Lets you trigger Siri Eyes Free or Google Now for about $40:

https://www.amazon.com/Satechi-Bluet...th+home+button

 

I got the Covercraft sun shade through AutoAnything in July. I am very impressed with the fit and finish of this product. It is supposedly custom-fitted, and I can say it fits my 2014 LS perfectly.
http://www.autoanything.com/driving-...A1228A0A0.aspx

 

DAMN that's a nice 600hL!!!!!! you are basically buying a brand spanking new 2008 LS600hL! very tough to find really anywhere, even here in florida in the land of rich old people. I work at a huge dealership and I hardly ever see them even here, maybe one every month if even that. hard to find in any condition and when they do show up they have a lot of miles on them, which is fine because the LS runs forever. congratulations on your find!

However, I want to play devils advocate for a minute...
being that I work at a dealership, in the service dept, I get to see these cars not only at there best, -but also there worst and I have seen a few that have failed spectacularly.
the car is basically new, but its also staring down the barrel of a double-nickel age factor. if its only got 18k on it, it was hardly driven at all. that means it was driven 1,620 a year.. that's about 4.4 miles a day its whole life @365 days a year, which nobody does that so it means
A. it was a just around town car, on city streets which is HARD miles on any car,
B. it was someones vacation car and only driven a few months out of the year
C. it sat for several years untouched. -worst case scenario-
D. wasn't driven much at all, but still taken in and maintained religiously by original owner and had everything replaced that their service writer suggested -best case scenario- its rare but ive seen it happen. (these are the unicorns we drool for)

typically, super low miles on an old car is never a good thing, but it IS a 2008, not a 1988 so the age factor might not have set in yet. but heres the ****kicker.. its not a normal car. its a Hybrid, and with that low miles that means that battery didn't spend much time charging.
if the battery goes, the car is bricked, bottom line. it doesn't have a traditional starter in it so without the hybrid system functional, it simply wont start. ive seen the nightmare of a 600hL battery replacement first hand in the service bay, and let me tell you, its not a pretty sight, and it happened to be a 2009 model that had 6,000 miles on it, that simply wasn't driven. was actually towed in spider-webbed encrusted with about a foot of dust on it. -where the hell was it stored in a tool shed? and why the hell would someone spend 6 figures on a car just to let it sit in a tool shed? some of the oddball things ive seen here, my god. some people do strange things to there cars. I don't ask questions, I just do my job. anyway, back to the point. its an older car with original parts. so you have the hybrid thing going which is way cool, but if it goes its going to slap you in the face really really hard. id look into some kind of extended warranty if possible just in case, because with a car as complex as a 600hL, some part somewhere in the car is going to decide to no longer agree with the other, and then it begins. then you have the fantastic brake actuator thing, and when the brake actuator gets pissed off its really going to let you know. your dash will light up like a Christmas tree full of roman candles and there will be a nice solid BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP that wont turn off till its addressed, to the tune of several thousand dollars. then you have the air suspension system that also enjoys going bad, but at 18k I wouldn't worry about that for many years as the car hasn't seen enough action to be wore out, same as the control arms that ALWAYS fail on early 3LS when they age and are driven daily.

so you have a silver lining. most of the traditional freakouts these cars have as they age you might not be affected by. even the brake actuator might be fine simply from little use as long as it was exercised regularly. biggest concern is the aging hybrid battery that didn't see much charge time, but since it was a very expensive car and the condition its in, probably means it was very well mechanically maintained under the hood, and its a home run. and the car is so nice and has such little wear if any at all, that if the hybrid battery fails, its actually worth the chunk of change to get it replaced because once its done its done and you wont have to worry about it again for a very long time.

all of the 600hLs ive seen have high miles, no miles, or were absolutely hooned to death. (yes they are old enough to be abused now). we had one here some weeks back that was absolutely beat to death. 08 that was filthy dirty, full of bugs and trash, cracked windshield, loud muffler, body damage all the way around from several collisions that was put back together absolutely **** poorly, and every system you can think of was failing on it. bad actuator, brakes so bad it could barley stop, failing hybrid system, blown air suspension, absolutely deplorable. one of the saddest ones ive ever seen. was a car someone bought cheap at auction that sorley regretted it. whats funny though, as abused used and beaten into submission as it was, it still had all the toys. the remote was still in the center console and all!

anyway, best of luck with that absolutely beautiful 600hL ! seriously sweet ride, and may (and it probably will) it give you many years to come of worry free driving!!!

 

Thanks for all the tips and comments. Looking at its history as far as how often and how it was driven all I can see is that the miles were pretty evenly distributed through the years. Looking at extended service contract options I've not found a company that will cover the hybrid battery. I have found some that will cover the rest of the hybrid components but not the battery itself. I'm not sure what to do in that regard.

I am excited to learn that it will be delivered on Tuesday. I do; however, have some decisions to make as to whether to warrant it or drive it as is.

 

The worst can happen is replacing battery and air suspension. That is the $12k+ risk you need to take

 

The brake actuator warranty has been extended, correct? I'm not too worried about the suspension at this point. I think my biggest worry is the hybrid battery and that too will hopefully be OK. Time will tell I guess.

 

I parked my 430 in garage for 3 month in the summer without driving. When I drove again, the rear had clang sound over bumps. The dealer said the rear shock absorbers need to be replaced.

 

I honestly think you'll be able to simply drive/enjoy your new 600hL for several trouble-free years (at a minimum). These cars are amazingly well built, and to find such a pampered, low-mileage version improves your odds of having zero issues for the foreseeable future. There's a slight risk of battery failure at some point, but this technology is becoming more and more everyday, and the prices for replacement batteries are sure to drop. I believe that very few batteries have failed on the 2008s (based on the scarcity of battery failure stories on this forum, CJITTY excluded, of course).

I don't lie awake at night worrying about my 2008 600hL's batteries, and I'm at 76K miles and climbing. And for me, if they do fail, I will definitely replace them (for around $5k). There's just too much intrinsic value in this car to get too worried about a slight chance of a $5K repair.

Keep us posted please as you take delivery of the car and have it checked out by Lexus. Enjoy!

 

Warranty or no warranty? Regardless this LS 600hL a fine automobile you have decided to purchase. It's obvious this vehicle was well cared for and that's a positive. So drive and enjoy one of the best automobiles you can own.