devmang

Hello everyone,

I'm new to the forum. I did a little research and the GX 470 seems pretty well received here. There is one for sale near me with 85,000 miles with the third row seat for $11,900. with allegedly one owner. I took a look at it Last Sunday and it seems to be in very good condition both inside and out. I did make an inquiry about it and I'm trying to find out if the timing belt was replaced yet or not, they are also going to send me the car fax. Is there anything else noteworthy I should be asking about specific to this make and model and is the upkeep and maintence.reasonable if you bring it to an independent mechanic.?

Thanks in advance,
Ken

chitown40

Go to the Lexus Owner's website and register the vehicle (VIN) as one of yours. You will be able to view the maintenance history for the truck. That might help you find out if the TB and WP were done.

devmang

Just pulled trigger and gave a deposit pending an inspection by my mechanic. When I got there someone else was taking it for a test drive and think he was coming back later with a trade in. It's only been listed for a few days and the dealer says he's been getting calls from people out of state and I believe him, someone even offered him a deposit over the phone from Indiana. I'm in N.J. Took it for a test drive locally and seemed solid with no strange noises, will take it on the highway tomorrow.
Is there anything out of the ordinary I should tell my mechanic to check for?

devmang

Interestingly enough there was also an X5 for sale which was the same year and about the same mileage for three grand less. Seemed pretty nice too. The 470 is considerably bigger though

EddieK05

And a lot more reliable.

bazzputz

That seems like an insanely good deal, especially from a dealer. Hope it all works out for you, congrats!

devmang

Just had my mechanic check it out and said both front axle boots are leaking and needs a passenger side wheel bearing. He seemed a little surprised the boots were leaking at relatively low mileage for a Lexus and seemed a little suspicious of the mileage. Is this unusual or just something to use as a bargaining chip. Everything else seemed great with the vehicle

tz693

One of my 04 inner boot broke at about 110k.

steevr

Had all the boots replaced last year on my '04 at 89K miles.

devmang

Going to have the wheel bearing replaced on Wednesday as this seems to be the more pressing need at the moment. Did you just have the boots replaced? I don't hear any noises indicating the axles are bad but my mechanic said when they're leaking grease he thinks the axles should be replaced as water or other debris gets inside and doesn't like to take chances and just replaces them. Is this a unnecessarily cautious? I did read some threads where people just repacked with grease, replaced the boot and clamp and everything was ok. Should I just bite the bullet and have the axles replaced or could I get away with just the boots, clamps etc..

ALAN553

I think many mechanics will tell you the labor to replace and repack, it's slightly cheaper to just replace the axle.