inspector1

I am wanting to purchase a late model LX. Need more room than my 94LS. Die hard lexus fan. Any rec's on a better year than any other.

My goal would be to find a 1998-99 with fairly low mileage?

Also, any other tips, rec's or thoughts based on your experience?
What to stay away from, repairs, etc.?

Thanks very much

Inspector1

RPH74

These cars are pretty much the most reliable cars around. The only repairs that I have made on my LC is the starter contacts and a clamp for my CV boot in 2 years of ownership.

inspector1

Thanks again for the insight. Looking forward to buying one.

bsjoiner

I would get the 2000 over the 99 because of many safety upgrades and the wood steering wheel and shifter. The ML stereo is better than the Nak too.

LexusChris

iTrader: (1)

The Mark Levinson came out in 2001 actually.

bsjoiner

My mistake the ML did come out in 2001 but the Nak got small revisions and a slightly different headunit in 2000.

Grd4Spd

i picked up a previously owned 99 470 with ~70K on it.....

praise -

1) tows my sports car on a tandem axle trailer (6000+lbs) without a problem (~10-11mpg @80mph).

2) tows my motorcycle and trailer (loaded with gear) without problem.

3) awesome climate control.

4) handles fantastic while towing.....had a couple of narrow misses with road kill/evasive maneuvers....the car handled precisely.

5) luxurious.

6) quiet, comfortable

7) looks great.

8) personally i like the simple (read: no DVD/navigation goodies) dash.....but thats personal preference.

9) reliable....."hey its a toyota!"


criticism -

1) faulty starter - i just replaced mine

2) crummy Nakamichi system - however thats not a real issue for me as i always upgrade my OEM sound systems as a rule.

3) weak roof rack system -

i purchased the largest Thule cargo carrier....





....only to have the thing oscillate violently (bounce up and down) at 45-55mph (could not go faster). had to pull over, reload and relocate the carrier to the far left (or right) of the OEM rack system. thank god i had he sun roof open....otherwise i would not have heard it and i would have ripped free and taken flight with all my gear!!


thats all i have to offer at this point.....not sure how it will perform in the snow (i live in a mountain resort community)...but im told its at its best in these elements.

regards,
terry

stealth470

Wow, thanks for the tip on that Thule cargo carrier... I just picked up a 2000 LX470, and I was about to go spring for the exact same box for the ski season!

Maybe the box just needs a spoiler for some downforce, like an aftermarket carbonfiber piece for a Civic or something!

Anyway inspector1, after being where you are, doing research, and picking it up, I'm very happy with the 2000. I knew Lexus was as good as reliability was going to get in general... I specifically avoided the nav system option to keep the cost down, since I heard it sucked. I figured I'd integrate an after market in-dash LCD...

Reading the TSBs, I've only discovered one advantage to going to an 01: The [engine?] ECU is flash-programmable... cool, but how many revs of code are they really going to develop for it, and how much of a difference is it really going to make?

Grd4Spd

just back from a long trip for thanksgiving....took the ski (3 pair), boots, and a VERY large duffel bag loaded with ski clothing/gear....this all went into the Thule cargo rig i have shown above.......yes i had some oscillation ~70mph......so it kept me out of the "ticket zone" on the way there.......however on the way home i moved the racking even further over (drivers left) and clamped it to the actual bracket hardware on the rack that holds the springy cross piect......see pic below.....



once i did that on the right side front/back of the clamp system there was no problem at all. i also pushed the cargo carrier as far aft as possible, to the point were it would just miss the upper brakelight when the hatch was lifted.....of course all this was after i clamped the carrier it to the middle of the OEM rack! christ, thought i was going to loose it at 40mph with that setup....way too much spring and bounce. also the cargo locks froze in tahoe so i had to get a little hot/warm water to loosen them up......by then i was cold and numb as the temp was ~7 degees.

overall, with a little adjustment and learning about the the Thule rack setup on the 470 i must say works great with the OEM rack system.

regards,
terry

stealth470

Hey, thanks for the pic and all the detail! Its very handy - I'm about to leave on a trip myself up into Canada for some skiing, and I just don't know how I'm going to carry 9 sets of skiis/snowboards/boots with the smaller carrier I've got now (yeah, my car is the packmule in the caravan)...

Seeing that, I'll go after the massive Thule - and take a long look at the OEM rack to see if I can strengthen it with some steel stock before I go... now that I know its at least possible to carry without high winds ripping it off and turning my 470 into a "Spyder" edition (convertable). (=

Cheers!

bsjoiner

I have a 21cu ft. Yakima box and it is mounted to a yakima rack that sits on my factory rack. I use it for ski season too and have never had a problem with vibration even at 90mph (going through Kansas). I am not sure it it is the yakima rack or the yakima box that makes the difference but it has never been a problem for me. If you guys need additional storage space i would reccomend the Stowaway2 hitch carriier. It is great check it out. The additional yakima rack add much versitility and strength to the factory and i think that it looks good too. I can post pics if you are interested in my setup.

stealth470

We're lucky enough to have a one of the brick-and-mortor versions of a specialty rack place here in Portland ("Rack Attack" - they've got an online site, too). I talked to them about it, and after what they said and what you guys are saying, this all adds up: the Lexus crossmembers are a sprung structure instead of a rigid structure (my Yakima stuff has round crossmembers; a round tube is a pretty rigid structure). But sprung = flexible... so when you put something the size of the Evolution 2100 on it, you're basically putting a huge amount of downforce on a sprung rack. It will over-compress, then return, re-compress, return, ad infinitum... hence the bouncing Grd4Spd was talking about.

If you've got a Thule rack on your factory rack, you'll get square crossmembers - also a pretty rigid structure. Hence there's no problem there either.

The Rack Attack geeks said alot of manufacturers are doing sprung racks because they're cheaper, and they soak up some of the impact that would otherwise be transmitted to the body (and therefore the passengers) of a load on the roof. Argh.

I'm heading downtown to order my 2100 now. I'll either adapt my Yakima stuff to the factory rack like you did, or at least carry the parts in the car if I run into problems (since the Canadians don't let me drive over 20mph on a freeway anyway, ).

Since you offered a pic, I'd love to see what the 2100 looks like on the Yakima-on-the-factory-rack... I guess all I need are those pieces to adapt to the factory rail...

Thanks!

P.S. Grd4Spd - very happy to hear that I got the right car to pull a sports car. Got a dual-axle trailer for drag season next Spring, since I'd prolly get busted trying to drive to the track. (=

Grd4Spd

the cool thing in making the Thule 2100 carrier work without issue(pushed over to one side or the other, is that i can fit 2 carriers on there! slam one over to the left side, and one tight to the right......BAM!!! mega room to carry cap!



you can ask you thule rep if they have thule replacement cross bars that fit the OEM carriers....the carriers being the two parts of the rack the run fore/aft of the car......however im pretty confident that the clamping method i have come up with will not require at replacement rack system.

regards,
terry

Grd4Spd

in review i cannot fit two Thule 2100 cargo carrier side/by/side.....not enough room....but i could put another, smaller carrier next to it...here is what the Thule 2100 looks like mounted on the OEM rack, to the side so it will not bounce.....




regards,
terry