Barneyboy1

Hey everyone, kinda new to ClubLexus, but by far my favorite Lexus forum .

I have a GS300 2000 that is in very good condition. I'm trying to figure out how much money is worth putting into it. The car itself is in very good condition and has always been taken care of with regular oil changes, brake changes, timing belt replacement etc. That being said, it does have ~205,000 miles on it, and I can tell that the front struts will definitely need replacement soon. My father has also advised me that the ball joints would need replacement.

All work on the car would be done by me, so the only cost of repairs would be the parts, and the time it would take it. That being said, I'm wary of putting too much into costly parts like the struts, when the engine itself has 205k miles on it. It doesn't exhibit any signs of a problomatic engine, but i'm assuming it's burning oil, as the oil has been lately needing to be topped off before it needs a change, where that has never been previously necessary. I will be doing the brakes today, but I'm just curious what point you guys feel it's worth stopping at for cost, as the car does have signs of normal wear, like minor rips in the leather seems, and paint chips on the hood, etc.

Thanks!

GS3KID

depends on how well you continue that maintenence. these engines have gotten into the 300k-350k on stock engine with minimal to no main repair. (reportedly)

but as for bushings they go out often and those ball joints should be a HUGE priority a $60 DIY can turn into a $1000 repair quick.

mista714

^ maintenance is key to a longer life span. Have your car regularly maintained regularly oil change etc. Be sure to check your fluids every now and then wouldn't hurt.. My dad had a 2000 gs with 285k ish ran good until someone t boned him.

Mcon

iTrader: (1)

Check your valve covers specially the left side if you look the engine from the front. That valve cover leak oil after a few years. Is normal in this engine and valve covers. You can't see the oil leak in te back of the engine because the oil leak still in between the spark 5 and 6. But in general is a excellent engines, I love it. Good look with you repairs.

DMPesso

I second this. The oil on the V6s will always leak in the valve covers. Every GS300 I have ever had and anyone i know with a V6 Lexus has had leaky valve cover gaskets. Infact my friend is currently replacing the valve gaskets on his ES300 now and has to remove the IM to do so. That should fix your oil leak issue. I would say as long as the tranny isnt shifting hard and nothing else is wrong besides the leak and assuming its in good physical condition, no amount of money is too much if you are using it to make the car drive smoother and more like a new car. The car if you were to sell it wouldnt be worth hardly anything but if you spend like $2,000 at most for a suspension refresh and tuneup the car will drive for another couple years easily which will repay that money you spent fixing it by driving a worry free and most importantly payment free car.

Agent$mith

iTrader: (2)

I have been contemplating this as well. I have a 2001 Lexus GS300 and been spending quite a bit of money on it lately.

I would at it like this. You're spending about 500-1,000 a year on repairs on the car vs. having to spend $450 a month on payments to a new car that will then depreciate. I may keep my car till it hits the 250-300k mark and then sell mine.

GS3KID

I don't know what the market is like in your state but I know here in Utah the used car value seriously depreciates after 10-15 years and when your car hits 175k+ miles with all due respect our cars won't be worth anything with those miles or age. The 2gs is still one of the least problematic cars on the road and it's still iconic an beautiful car o have. I want my GS to see a second engine at least before I would be ready to move on..... Unless I pick up a 2005 GS for a steal dde01

mulasien

You do realize that the GS300 doesn't have a V6, right? In fact it is a completely different engine than the ES300 with absolutely nothing in common between the two. I would go so far as to say that issues plaguing ES300 engines have absolutely no bearing on GS300's.

Agent$mith

iTrader: (2)

Damn GS3KID. You are making me think about it more. I bought mine as an off-lease vehicle from Lexus since 2003 and have kept it really nice. I paid about half the car's worth at that time and now it is worth around $5k. Maybe I'll drive it til the engine breaks and then sell it to the junk yard?

GS3KID

that's totally up to you I've come to the realization and appreciation into keeping my GS after going back and forth on selling it because of mpg alone. my job was far away and it really made me hate the car. but i moved close and my love is renewed.

i know the suspension woes turn off a lot of people but any car you get will need major suspension repairs/services ON TOP of faulty engine tranny designs, ecu, timing problems life span etc you'd find in newer cars. the GS generally doesnt have these issues

and Agent$mith if you run your car into the ground i bet you'll make a decent amount of money parting it out on your own.

DMPesso

Whoops my bad I meant 6 cylinders. But in general most of the people I know who have the 6 cylinder Lexus engines have the valve cover oil leaking issues.

DMPesso

And that's my point also. I can deal with all the suspension issues but tranny and engine problems is where I pull the plug which is why I left Honda and Acura for Lexus and never looked back. Bulletproof engine and tranny on the 2gs!

GS3KID

exactly and its so unfair that a POS (same era) honda has a better resale than a "middle aged" GS

TableSyrup

I haven't read every response, but I'd start with Timing Belt and Front Lower Balljoints for sure.
Those are the two most critical, that could be catastrophic failures.
Neither are all that hard to do... if you have a moderate skill level you'll be fine. Really not hard.
I would say if you can do a brake job you can do both of these.

Timing Belt
(Water pump, tensioner, and tensioner pulley at the same time since you stare em in the face... front crank seal and front cam seals not a bad idea either.... total this entire job is a couple hundred +/- some depending on brand you buy... you can get everything as one kit also... starting at $140)
~4 hour job +/- based on skill level

Front Lower Ball Joints (total of $35+ per side depending on brand)
~1.5 hour job +/- based on skill level

From there....

drain and refill your trans at least... maybe consider dropping the pan and change the filter also
Maybe change the rear diff oil

Anything else based on drivability... if you have bad bushings or struts.

I just went through the entire front end on mine, as well as Timing belt (and related), and rear carrier bushings in the rear.
She runs and drives like a brand new car - and I didn't spend much on parts.

I'm at $204k and I'm confident I could get another 100k without even being aggressive about it

DMPesso

Yea I never understood that but maybe it's because Honda is a much cheaper car and cheaper to buy parts for and the used demand is higher for them and you know used car values are all based on supply and demand combined with reliability reports and cost of ownership