Peligroso

Hello everyone,

I think I have landed in the right place here to ask questions about the Lexus, looks like there are a ton of great links and information that I already marked as favorites, but I need advise before I pull the trigger on buying this car, here is where I am:

I have been looking for a used car for my 17 year old daughter, my budget is $4000 with everything, car, tax and tag. for that price, I have seen many compact sedan and mid size sedan that are between 1999 and 2004, but they all have anywhere from 120k to 180k miles. Most of them tell me, no need to replace timing chain, others tell me they don't know if the timing belt or timing chain has been replaced. So either way, if they can't prove it was done, I don't think I can trust them, as it will be an expensive fix if it breaks after I take ownership.

Well, I came across this Lexus ES300, owned by an adult woman, I think she is in her mid 50s to early 60s from Australia... looks like she purchased the car a couple of years ago here in FL instead of renting a car. The car had some issues and she took it to the mechanic to get everything done, she spent about $2000 fixing the following: Timing belt, water pump, all gaskets that were leaking oil, spark plugs, wires, cap and rotor, break, tires and axles. She even has record of it, as it all was done in one shot. She even drove the car from in a 6000 mile round trip to California and claims the car has no issues what so ever and it is mechanically perfect.

I test drove the car and it felt strong engine, tight steering, very comfortable inside, the leather was very very clean, head liner still in place and no signs of water leaks on the sunroof at all. The transmission feels good, no slipping or dragged, it shifted right on the money.

There are a couple of issues with the car, it has a small crack on the windshield, which i priced out already and it will cost me $180 to replace it and install it. and somehow, on the right rear taillight, right above it, there is a small dent, I think it is there from someone pushing it. but you can't tell it and I don't care for it. Oh, and maybe one or two light bulbs in the cluster is burnt, which I already looked at the link on how to replace those =)

The lady was asking $3750, we settled with $3000, as she did not want to budge any more, but as we were talking numbers, I realized the car was a 1992 model with 188k miles. I thought it was at least a 96 or 98, I guess the car looked so good that I got exited and didn't even bother checking the year and mileage.

So the question I have and the advise I need, with all that work that she had done to it and has record of it:
- Is this a good price for the 92 with 188k miles?
- Is this a good year lexus or should I look at a newer one?
- What else will need to get done to the car to make sure it is mechanically sound?

Thank you in advanced!!!

The pics are from the seller's posting and she took pictures almost on every states from Cali to Florida... i guess to prove she drove it all the way here without any issues. =)

nx200tmb

I think you should get the car inspected at a mechanic, and maybe do a compression test on the engine to make sure it is good.

If all is well...this might be a good buy.

vintagelex

From the photos it looks good, and $3000 isn't a bad price if everything is in good shape. It's good that the timing belt was done, this way you don't have to worry about it for another 60,000 miles. There are a few things I would check for before buying though:
1. Check how the coolant looks, if it's really old and dirty that's not a good thing. These engines can develop headgasket problems if the coolant is not changed regularly.
2. Get under the car and check for any rust, although these cars don't really rust much and if you're in Florida rust shouldn't be much of an issue.
3. Have the suspension inspected. If the struts have not yet been replaced, then at 180,000 miles they will almost certainly need replacement. And definitely have the car inspected before buying, I think it costs something under $100 at the dealer and it can save you lots of money in the long run if they find that something major is wrong.

But overall these are great cars, I'd say if there are no real major problems then go ahead and buy it, you will like it for sure!

JetsonES

Check all the rubber components under the hood and in the suspension. 23 years is a long time for anything made of rubber and although the individual components may be cheap it will add up quickly, especially if you do not perform the work yourself.

tomf

I'd pass on a car that old. (That being said, my son drives my old 95 Camry V6, 215,000 miles, which is pretty much mechanically the same car as a ES300. It drives like it's new). I'd look for a 2000 era ES300 with 120,000 miles or so. These cars will likely last 10 or more years with minimum maintenance costs.

Fritz330

3k is too much.

Peligroso

I ended up purchasing the car, we settled at $2750 and I am a happy buyer.

I took the car to get tested, it passed everything. It all looks great. The previous owner also had the emissions test results from California, which also passed. Overall work after I reviewed the work that was done to the car were $2300, including everything I mentioned on the original post and more. I’ll post the items that were replaced when I get home.

Even though the car is a 92, it doesn’t look that old at all, you can tell it was well taken care of. Tomf mentions is too old, I think it looks and dives better than any other smaller car I test drove that was 2004 and older on my price range. The way I look at it, this lady spend $2300 on repairs that I won’t have to pay in the next few years, that already saved me money.

There are a couple of things that need to be fixed:
- The instrument cluster bulbs, the right side of the instrument cluster is dark. I already read the thread on how to replace them, doesn’t look hard at all, as I have done this in the past for other cars. What I need to find out is the exact bulb or LED to use and where to purchase it from.
- I only received one Lexus key and a non Lexus key, but no remote… it looks like if I use the Lexus key wrong, the damn alarm goes off. it is annoying. I think I either buy a remote or disable the alarm, is that possible? Who wants an annoying alarm?
- The driver side button controller, all the buttons work but one, the front passenger window, it goes down, but not up. I think I can just replace that whole thing for $55, one item selling on Ebay.

Other than that, the car is perfect!! Ah, the daughter wants a newer radio so she can play music from her phone.. lol

Thanks for the advise guy, I’ll post a picture once it is washed and cleaned !

tomf

Welcome to the club.

JetsonES

Cool, that vintage of car should make for an easy stereo swap unlike these newer integrated units. I miss the din standard.

Peligroso

Thank you Tomf ! I am glad to be in the club.

Yes JetsonES, I seems very simple, even though the last time a did a stereo swap was about 15 years ago =). It does look simple though, not like the radio in my 12 Altima, even though it is a simple car, the radio is all integrated and it is a pain in the neck to replace... so I opted to just run a tablet.