ill12will8

Also am I supposed to be able to spin the tires stock?

97-SC300

iTrader: (17)

You never had to replace anything on any of the domestic cars you have previously owned?

97-SC300

iTrader: (17)

No. IT IS ILLEGAL TO DO ON THE STREETS.

ill12will8

Yea but these parts are crazy expensive and I know its illegal but I could spin the tires on my grand prix with ease

97-SC300

iTrader: (17)

For any used parts, just look through the Club Lexus classifieds. or PM member "Aliga". He usually has any part you need at a reasonable price.

Maybe you should take the traction control off, it should easily do a nice burnout. Go to Youtube to see for yourself.

Dv8

Yeah. Everything on this car is expensive. Sticker price was 60 grand. They never built the car to be 'cheap' to maintain, nor were there the numbers of **** econoboxes to keep parts pricing down. They also never built the car to be fast. They built it to waft down the road silently, carrying its passengers in comfort. Not spin tires.

DO NOT compare the SC400 to your Grand Prix. The General built that supercharged model for people looking for a cheap thrill. I emphasize cheap. The SC400 probably shouldnt be compared to anything on your car ownership laundry list, so please refrain from doing so.

matrixgts

iTrader: (1)

you put enough money time and effort any car can be you.and you will do all that i mentioned with a 1000 dollar car unless it was an absolute steal,but i doubt that.

OG Dada

iTrader: (10)

Look man, Lexus is still a Japanese car. It is not OVERPOWERED unlike domestic cars, the factory tuning of a Japanese car is perfectly balanced to the entire car. Although the engines can do much more than it's tuned, you need to spend a few extra $100's if not $1000's to get it where you want it. Ever wonder why Japanese cars are called "tuners"??? Go figure...

Here are the important standards that Japanese cars stand for; Aerodynamics, Weight & Engine Performance. (In Leyman terms; Finesse, Diet & Muscle.)

Now think why muscle cars are called muscle cars? Yup, cause it doesn't have Finesse and Diet. To compensate, more muscle=more gas.

Though, SC's are considered heavy, it is still light weight compared to the domestics that came out the same era.

hypervish

I wouldn't compare a Lexus to a Grand Prix. LOL
Big Difference...

MooJohn

The biggest expense on my $800 SC has been $700 more on tires. I might be in for a total of $2k and I really like driving the car. I fully realized up front it is not a race car, it is not a drift car, and it's not a show car. It's just a nice cruiser with rough paint that'll still make me smile from 50-90 mph. Mechanically it's fine (with like-new compression numbers @ 189k miles) so everything else is just stuff I can tinker with later.

I have no complaints on the handling, even on the worn out stock shocks. Anything it won't do would get me wrecked or in jail anyway. Maybe I'm just too old but I don't care what a car will do at 10/10ths - I just won't push it that far. I refuse to slam the car so it will impress other people; I'll keep the comfortable ride. I am not offended by fender gap.

Do you realize what most cars had for horsepower in 1992? GM's v6 was a whopping 135 hp. "Muscle cars" made it to the 225 hp area. Turbo DSMs came with a beefy 195 hp stock. I'm ok with 250 and a proven 4spd auto that was used through the last gen of Tundra trucks. I'd take this car any day over a 20yr old GM car. To be fair I must say I had a 92 GMC Sierra till a few years ago and I had zero complaints about it, plus mods were cheap and plentiful. Sorry, but no Blazer holds a candle to the same gen 4Runner

2jznosht

Ok...all l fanboy sc stuff aside, im gonna talk to you man to man. Dump the SC now before your 1k car becomes as expensive as having a car payment. Sure these cars were bullet proof 10-20 year ago, but parts arent designed to last forever, so if you dislike the car now, you will DESPISE it when parts that inevitably fail begin to do so. When it becomes an expensive money pit to keep running you will dread the decision to keep it.

jadu

iTrader: (42)

sell it. stick with GM. what were your impressions when you test drove it?

greens14

iTrader: (28)

Oh god. This thread is way out of hand. As long as youre willing to turn your own wrenches and are smart about parts, youll be able to maintain your SC for cheap. Use the DIY and google to your advantage. if you need anything outside of engine components or black interior i can source you pretty competitively priced parts. Aliga has everything outside of that.

So far from the sounds of it id say sell it. And POST PICTURES.

97-SC300

iTrader: (17)

I am with you. What is most surprising to me is that people are on here *****ing about needing to replace parts and maintain cars that are (some) 20 years old. Believe me, the guy that sold it to you for $1000 knew damn well it was a POS. I will put money on the table saying he did little to no maintenance on it and dumped his pile all on you. The majority of people who maintain and care for these cars (rare I know..) will not just give it away for $1000.

EDIT:

To sum up this thread,

Even though a 1990's Mercedes S class might cost you under $5000 to purchase today. Parts are still just as expensive (actually more expensive due to the inflation factor) as they were when the car was brand new. This is the same concept. You might have gotten the SC for $1,000, but it is still a Lexus and with that comes the high cost of ownership. Good luck.

2jznosht

So you agree with the dude you quoted yet end with these sleds come with a high cost of ownership? I know its all maintenance, but even those who do turn thier own wrenches and hunt for deals online will spend a ton on an older higher mileage sc...there is really no way around it. The parts just werent designed to last 10-20 years and it seems the toyota quality didnt branch to lexus(im looking at you climate control screen)