sosa_seven

I have narrowed down my search for a gs300 I can afford to two in my area. The fist is black w/ tan leather very clean one previous owner with all the service records. It has 95,000 miles on it and the dealer wants $14,900 for it.

The second Is also black w/ tan leather however the dealer has no service records. He said he could give me a car fax on it however. This model has chrome rims and 89,000 miles on it. The dealer is asking 15,499 for this GS.

My question is what do you recommend that I look for in buying a High mileage 1999 GS 300??

Thank you

sosa_seven

any one???

bluelex

wow give us a bit 2 respond it is holiday season u know.. even tho the second one has less miles u know more about the higher mileage one, which is a safe peace of mind...even if the carfax comes up clean it doesn't mean nothig has ever happen 2 that car...i would go with the 1st one..but have u looked up and down at the cars 4 any marks that might look like it had body work? do that on all angles of the cars...plus which one looks like it was more taken care of ? also check 4 tire ware ,take both 4 a drive and hit it hard 2 c if u here anything.. and 14,900 is what they r asking so thier is always a little room 2 move thier..let us know how it turns out...

Blue98Gs3

iTrader: (1)

My advice, if you are not in a situation where you need a car immediatly, wait for a better one. I bought my 98 GS300 with 34k miles, all records, everything, chrome wheels, spoiler...18500. If you wait, it will come!

bluelex

thats an even better point or advice than i mine....i was just giving my advice between the 2 u mentioned. if i were u i'd wait a bit keep looking if u can other wise than just go 4 one of these if u need it now...

sosa_seven

If properly maintained how many miles do you think I could get out of a 1999 GS300 ?? Also what are some major maintenance issues that will arise after the car rolls over 100,000??

Thank you

bluelex

key thier is is IF properly maintained....if u keep up on most everything and get it serviced regulary and get the 90k servc done ot what ever is the next servc after that..good gas. good oil changed on time all the time . man it should last u till the grand kids come around...no joking i have friends who have gs's with 150k miles and its running like new cus he is **** about keeping up 2 snuff...thier was a guy on a proir post with a gs with close 2 200k and running strong.. and guy who had a 91 ls400 with over 300k and its running strong...how long do u plan 2 keep the car is a good question....

Blue98Gs3

iTrader: (1)

Bluelex is right, if you keep a lexus properly maintained these things will run forever!

sosa_seven

Thank you very much guys for you're input I appreciate it. I plan to keep my car for about 4 years than I want to sell it to get a newer model.

Do any of you have the scheduled maintenance chart for the gs300???

chuckisc

Schedule Maintainence is vary depends on the dealer in the region. Your next big one will be the 100,000 Mile. Call and check around. Different dealerships will have minor differences in what they recommend their customer to get done on the vehicles. think of $1000 to $1500 for this service, so you can have more room to bargain with the seller!!!! Since the service will come up REAL soon!

But, just wait and look man, you will find one BETTER!!!! Trust me!!! And once you find it, you'll know!

whitelotus

chuckisc is right... there will be better ones out there than that... BUT maybe not for so low a price. I paid quite a bit more for my '99 with 47k, but then it already had some expensive mods, it was super clean and it had full service records. Don't count out a private party sale either, the economy being what it is, you could get someone desperately needing to sell.

Whatever you do, if you're not a mechanic yourself, make sure you get it checked out thoroughly and don't place all your reliance on the Carfax. One guy posted about a car which came up with a clean Carfax record and it turned out it had been in a major accident, as evidenced by a dealer's body shop records.

That said, go with your gut. I could have held out for a better deal, but this car had everything I wanted and a good solid history, and so I was willing to pay a little more to have it now than have it later. (Then again, I had just sold my car a few days before, so I guess close was good enough given the situation.) Still, I couldn't be happier. Best purchase I ever made.

(Oh, and one last thought- if buying from a dealer, you might be able to get them to do the 100,000 for you as part of the deal - it costs them a lot less to do the service than it does to knock off $1000-$1500 off the price.)

Indio

iTrader: (1)

If you are still considering buying one of these cars I would do this, get the vin from both cars and take them to your local Lexus dealer, tell them you are considering purchasing one of these cars and they will probably look up dealer service history for u. Both cars are due for 90k service that will include a timing belt (don't play around with this, you break a timing belt and you will bend the valves) also look to see if either car done the 60k service, this will give you good insight into how these cars have been maintained.Good luck and as Bluelex says the miles should not scare you if the car has been well cared for.

johnee78

iTrader: (4)

Use it to your advantage to get the lowest price from the dealer.Also make sure that you get your service done at a lexus service center.My 93 gs300 has 139,000 miles and it runs like a new car.If you maintain and take care of it, it will take care of you.Good luck.

D2-AUTOSPORT

Blue98- you should be looking over ur shoulder for flashing blue and red lights..........because u STOLE ur car man.

Sosa- the best things about the cars ur looking at is price!! You could very well get them for 13,500-14.500k which is a great price for a 99 GS. Carfax is good for knowing where the car has been, but it is not a bible for accidents. As others have said, take them to a trusted mechanic for inspection, and mileage is NOTHING for the vehicles!

Good luck and hope to see you back with ur new GS soon!!

Blue98Gs3

iTrader: (1)

DGot: I got my car from a guy that was bipolar, a little of a weirdo, but really paranoid about the lex. He had every squeak or rattle fixed, had the tranny swapped at 20k, and through all this lexus tried to pacify him with a set of chrome 17's and spoiler. He thought the guys at lexus lied to him, so he decided he was going to file it as a lemon, the court date got pushed back 2 days, he showed up, toyota did not because they didnt get the notice, therefore filed as a lemon due to them not showing up. Week later toyota takes him back to court, the judge tries the car out, takes his lemon settlement away. The reason for him filing was not only because he thought they lied to him, but he was convinced that when he would step on the gas, it would jump 7 mph from a dead stop.... Therefore, the lemon settlement was taken back, but it was somehow still on the carfax record. So i come along this blue 98 lex gs300 with 34k for 22k in the paper. Thinking to myself, this is a steal, but the parents dont want to pay that much, so i wait for a great gs with 80k miles for around 15-16k on autotrader and all the net auctions. Look in the paper 3 weeks later, still there, tell my dad to call and offer a lowball. After a week of negotiations, he lets it go for just over what the dealer was going to pay for it for him to trade it in, 18500. I'm guessing that the people looking at the car before me were scared off by the lemon report on the carfax, but my dad did some research, found the records, bought the car, and got the lemon off the record, therefore i got one hell of a car......I LOVE MY LEX!!