HELP! Leaving tomorrow to buy DWP GS400
#18
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Sorry for the delay guys! I'm proud to say I'm back in GS after 7 years!!! It was snowing like crazy and we slid off the road on the way there in the junk nissan rental, but made it! I got the car down to 5300.00 and it runs like new, no shake in the wheel and very tight steering and suspension. It does have some issues to expect from a high mileage car. All I have is a picture of it from when we stopped off to eat so shes filthy. It's funny how the brand new rental car couldnt compare to a 220k + 13yr old car.. Love it. **I Looked at that GS430 on craigslist and many others like it, I personally wouldnt own a gold/pewter car but it was a good deal**
So heres a break down of the good and bad.. (I have about 3k I'm gonna invest in it to make it a clean daily driver and I'm happy with my buy)
THE BAD: (I've noticed literally everything wrong with it is somewhere on this forum)
* Timing belt life unknown - first thing I'm fixing.
*Telescopic steering goes up and down, but not in and out.
*Passenger side doorlock has a mind of its own
*Check engine light came on during our drive back.. =/ (hope its like an o2 sensor or something that isnt a huge problem)
*Paint needs touched up in areas & the lower body molding in front of the passenger rear wheel is missing a bolt so its sorta half on there.
*Some minor rust up around license plate
*passenger door speaker not working and the grill covers for the 2 front door speakers are grey??
*LED light on spoiler doesnt come on, but I noticed it has the 3rd brake light in the rear window so being an add on I'm hoping it wasnt hooked up or just needs rewired.
*Center console leather showing wear
* Exhaust tips are oddly off center..
THE GOOD:
*The body is clean and no dents, a couple tiny dings.
*The motor is very strong, doesnt smoke, and still amazes me how quiet it is.
*New windshield, new balljoints, new rims/tires, oil looked good and no leaks.
*Besides what I mentioned above, the electronics all seem to work perfect.
*Leather is in great shape, I was in heaven with my heated seats on and the navigation that was outdated saved us a couple times on the interstate when we were coming home!
*Transmission smooth.
*non-smoker
*Has every option I wanted, I can fix almost all the problems myself, and its paid for... best part.
I made a 2 hour drive and got what I wanted, hell... as a kid me and my buddies whould drive further than that to go to an under 21 strip club and waste a few hundred dollars and had nothing to show for so the roadtrip to get the car was fun and no regrets. Here she is!
So heres a break down of the good and bad.. (I have about 3k I'm gonna invest in it to make it a clean daily driver and I'm happy with my buy)
THE BAD: (I've noticed literally everything wrong with it is somewhere on this forum)
* Timing belt life unknown - first thing I'm fixing.
*Telescopic steering goes up and down, but not in and out.
*Passenger side doorlock has a mind of its own
*Check engine light came on during our drive back.. =/ (hope its like an o2 sensor or something that isnt a huge problem)
*Paint needs touched up in areas & the lower body molding in front of the passenger rear wheel is missing a bolt so its sorta half on there.
*Some minor rust up around license plate
*passenger door speaker not working and the grill covers for the 2 front door speakers are grey??
*LED light on spoiler doesnt come on, but I noticed it has the 3rd brake light in the rear window so being an add on I'm hoping it wasnt hooked up or just needs rewired.
*Center console leather showing wear
* Exhaust tips are oddly off center..
THE GOOD:
*The body is clean and no dents, a couple tiny dings.
*The motor is very strong, doesnt smoke, and still amazes me how quiet it is.
*New windshield, new balljoints, new rims/tires, oil looked good and no leaks.
*Besides what I mentioned above, the electronics all seem to work perfect.
*Leather is in great shape, I was in heaven with my heated seats on and the navigation that was outdated saved us a couple times on the interstate when we were coming home!
*Transmission smooth.
*non-smoker
*Has every option I wanted, I can fix almost all the problems myself, and its paid for... best part.
I made a 2 hour drive and got what I wanted, hell... as a kid me and my buddies whould drive further than that to go to an under 21 strip club and waste a few hundred dollars and had nothing to show for so the roadtrip to get the car was fun and no regrets. Here she is!
Last edited by SC400_2nV; 02-17-13 at 02:50 PM.
#19
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Pretty nice find you got there, price is a little steep as others have noted. Congratulations none the less. I found this thread very interesting as I've also recently purchased a GS400 in similar condition but I reside in Los Angeles. I always look for deals when purchasing anything that way when I hit hard times and I'm in need to sell my personals, I can make some profit.
My '98 GS4 is at 223K, DWP, NON-Heated Seats, NON-NAV, NON-HID:
Cons:
*Car was broken into and ac/heater control, radio and ash tray were taken (REPAIRED $350)
*Needed new CATS (REPAIRED $470)
*Fronts seats and carpet were shot (BLK INT. CONVERSION IN PROCESS/UNRESOLVED)
*Needed new front brakes (REPAIRED $100)
*Needs new Passenger UCA (UNRESOLVED)
*Passenger side lower door molding is hanging (UNRESOLVED)
*DS rear qtr. panel has cracking paint/bondo from previous damage repair. Paint doesn't match (IN TIME)
*UGLY 20" Wheels (REPLACED W/ OEM 6 Spoke and sold UGLY set $170)
*UNNECESSARY Chrome Plating around windows (REMOVED)
*EXTRA Super Tacky Wood trim (REMOVED)
*VERY DIRTY
Other than that the car drives really well and in the next few months I will focus on regular maintenance starting with timing belt.
I paid $2300 for the car initially and have spent a total of $1090. I think I've done good thus far.
My '98 GS4 is at 223K, DWP, NON-Heated Seats, NON-NAV, NON-HID:
Cons:
*Car was broken into and ac/heater control, radio and ash tray were taken (REPAIRED $350)
*Needed new CATS (REPAIRED $470)
*Fronts seats and carpet were shot (BLK INT. CONVERSION IN PROCESS/UNRESOLVED)
*Needed new front brakes (REPAIRED $100)
*Needs new Passenger UCA (UNRESOLVED)
*Passenger side lower door molding is hanging (UNRESOLVED)
*DS rear qtr. panel has cracking paint/bondo from previous damage repair. Paint doesn't match (IN TIME)
*UGLY 20" Wheels (REPLACED W/ OEM 6 Spoke and sold UGLY set $170)
*UNNECESSARY Chrome Plating around windows (REMOVED)
*EXTRA Super Tacky Wood trim (REMOVED)
*VERY DIRTY
Other than that the car drives really well and in the next few months I will focus on regular maintenance starting with timing belt.
I paid $2300 for the car initially and have spent a total of $1090. I think I've done good thus far.
#22
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I finally gave her a bath and she looks great, but then you see ALL the little problems in the paint! I love this color.. Here's a couple more shots now that you can see past the dirt, I just noticed right after I took these that it doesn't have floor mats!
Thanks again for all the help!
Thanks again for all the help!
#25
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Thanks! I've already had a handful of people tell me its a gorgeous car and they guessed I paid over 15k for it so I'm happy I made the trip. Looking to swap out the taillights and stopping by pick-a-part later this week. ClubLexus kept me motivated to buy another one!
#26
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Great Pick-up
Great pick-up! I remember when this thread started, I was hoping you didnt loose your money on some junk GS.
But you definitely picked up something really nice. Definitely keep us updated on your mods and maintenance.
But you definitely picked up something really nice. Definitely keep us updated on your mods and maintenance.
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