pnyboy27

im new to the rx scene, but not so much with the toyota/lexus..i know toyota is well known to make some really strong engines and reliable cars period. so when looking for a nice winter car/daily driver..since i can't quite afford the awd gs..i think id opt for the rx.

so i found a pretty nice dark blue rx300 with gray interior and about 183k miles, for $7900 obo..is that a pretty good and reasonable price for the rx? i did a little researching on this car and read up on edmunds that they had some significant problems with the air/fuel ratio sensor, maf sensor, and problems with the engine oil gelling? this car is being sold by a dealership too..nothing big..just a small local dealership..so im not sure how well the cars been taken care of prior to being put on the lot. carfax showed 2 owners, one owning it for about 5-6yrs..the other 3-4yrs.

i also did a lil reading on here, and consumer ratings on edmunds saying that there are some whos satisfied and not major problems like such. also..when checking the car, i read that i should check the oil, and transmission fluid mainly, besides all the regulars like brakes, tires, etc. are there any other things i should watch for in particular? anything i could use to help knock the price down? or should i just keep searching for a lower mileage car? because i found another with 81k but at about 3k more. and thats black with tan interior.

any help would be appreciated! thanks in advance!

pnyboy27

oh yea..and when/if i do get it..what are some major things i should do first to it? so far i got oil change for sure, trasmission fluid?, coolant?, gas treatment, wash/wax & vacuum! =P i love detailing my babies!

code58

PB- I hate to say this but I personally would be leery of buying almost ANY car with that many miles, especially one that has had two owners and is on a used car lot. They only end up on an independent used car lot when the dealer doesn't want them. IF you have fallen in love with the car, I would say that you need to put $3-4k in reserve for potential repairs (because of high miles and unknown history). You're kidding yourself if you don't. It's a little different buying uncle Mike's RX that you have known since he bought it new and he has meticulously maintained it and has every record from day one and you can talk to him about it. That's not the case here. I wish I had a nickel for every time I've heard of someone who got a steal on a great car and in the next 2 months had to put thousands of dollars into it to fix the reasons the last owner got rid of it. My niece (in last year of college) bought a nice little old lady's Oldsmobile (beautiful shape) for a good price and within 1 month had over $3k in it and the engine blew and left her stranded on the freeway at night. She gave the car away! My 2 cents, but I believe good advice.

bob2200

Even if the car, at 183,000 miles, has gotten great care, you can expect all sorts of things to start going at that high mileage.

You don't mention if you plan to do the repairs yourself. That can make a difference. Repairs on a luxury car can really add up. Unless the engine and transmission have already been replaced, I don't think it is a good risk.

mikey00

Listen to code58. Nothing against the RX but you are buying a luxury car with high mileage that has high parts and repair cost. Problems are to be expected and could easily top what the car is worth. Not to mention that the RX does have a few skeletons in its closet.

salimshah

At 90k [and 180k, and so on], you have a major service, which can run from $1000 to $2000 at the dealership.

Look for the other thread which lists common problems with RX. The ones you mentioned here are something that can be handles for less than $10 and few hours at the most.

GS and RX are so different that you will never be happy with RX when you desire GS.

Salim

sktn77a

iTrader: (2)

No Lexus dealer would sell a 10 year old car with 180,000 miles on it off their own lot, so I wouldn't worry too much about that. But any car that old carries certain risks. Moreover, in today's economy, I think the price is way too high.

Lexmex

I am also going to agree, and I've also seen RX300s out there with less mileage at lower cost. I know the history of my RX300 going back to about 42K miles or so when I bought it used (and most of you have followed my vehicle's history in this forum).

thomas1

I agree too, have seen RX300 with around 100k miles for less than that price....

mikeburnet

as mentioned above no dealer would sell a used vehicle with 183k on the lot. i work for a honda dealer and we very rarely have anything over 100k no matter how nice or well maintaned. as far as price its too much. i only paid $6300 for my 99 with 120k miles 1 owner and all service records.

pnyboy27

thanks for all the advice! and yes..most of the time i will be doing most of the work myself. i havnt quite looked yet, but im sure theres plenty tutorials here to help assist in repairs and installations, right? i know the sc forums does.

so wow..with all that you said..im guessing i should either get this car dirt cheap, like 4k or 5k at the max..or opt for the other one with about 81k. okay..so for the one with 81k, is there anything i can go off of to make the price cheaper? because this dealership(another used car lot), is selling it for $10,980, and according to what you guys got..it seems you were able to get yours at a whole lot cheaper than that..how much would a car like this go for? also, is there anything to watch for in the near future?

salimshah

90k major service will be soon. You need to put aside 1k (ball park) for that

Keep in mind, one can do simple DIY but a major repair/diagnostic may be out of league. With the price being 8k (just an assumption) a 4k worth of transmission or 2k worth of AC repair can put some one in the hole for a long time.

Check this thread out:

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...ms-really.html


Salim

pnyboy27

thanks! now ill just try to talk the dealership down..ill be mentioning all those to him and see if i can get it at 7k or 8k

sktn77a

iTrader: (2)

Ask the dealer if the transmission has been replaced yet, as this is known to be a major problem with this car (negotiating point). Also ask him if the timing belt has been changed (90k or 6 years) - another negotiating point. You should be looking at around 8k if it's in REALLY nice condition. The leather seats are usually beginning to crack at this age also (another negotiating point)!

Bobk528

For a vehicle with such high miles, the price seems really high. I checked Craiglist in my area and there's a few 1999/2000 with about 150k miles and the asking price is $6,800. There is a 2000 with 90k and the asking price is $9,000.