RA051823

Just wanted to give a quick introduction. My name is Dan and I have been looking at a LS400 for sometime. I mainly want a car to take me to and from work that I can use on the harsh winter days or when its raining to keep the miles off my nicer cars. As a car guy, I have always heard this myth about how reliable the LS400 is and have decided to look at a few today. Obviously, I'm hoping the myth is true! The two I'm going to look at are on the opposite ends of spectrum: first car is a 95' and has 261k miles and was dealer serviced up until 2012 @ 205k miles and the other is a 98' LS400 with 133k miles but is quite a bit more (4x). The one with 261k miles has a broken door handle and hood release bracket (hood still opens). Supposedly this car drives straight down the road and shifts smooth and the AC blows cold. My only concern is if 261k is really at the end of its life span? If I could get another 50-75k miles it would be nice. The other car was a local trade it in at a VW store but has since moved to a local small and pop dealer and has been dealer serviced at my local Lexus dealer. Both cars had there timing belts changed about 9 years ago and will probably need to be done again (time). Both cars appear to have had regular fluid changes (trans, oil, and power steering).

Wish me luck! Hoping the cheaper one works out so I can have more money for the other cars.

RA051823

I just got back from test driving the 262k mile 95' LS400 and i'm speechless. Can't believe how rattle free and smooth it drove. The interior was very rough and the exterior was ok but it drove remarkably smooth. I didn't hear any ticking or knocking from the engine and no smoke out the tail pipe when I put my foot down. The car did feel kinda slow for being a v8 but with those miles it can be expect that all those horses are not under the hood like they use to be. Car shifted good between gears and accelerated smoothly. I didn't see any leaks but the valve cover gaskets probably need doing. I'm thinking for the asking price the car is worth it ( about a grand). After all i'm just looking for a winter beater to keep the miles off my Cayenne Turbo. thoughts?

AandSC

There was an LS400 out there that had around 900K miles, so it's hard to say when one of these is at the end of their life. If all the maintenance has been done up to date and everything works, or you can fix what doesn't, it's hard to go wrong.

dicer

For 1K ? For some more you can find one with lower miles and clean all around. I'd keep looking I would not want a trashed interior or body and paint. Engine and other running gear could be in a basket.

A1Posture

One of the best values I ever got was from buying a used 96 LS with 240K for $1500. I took it to 310K and sold it earlier this year for 1K, still running good, no major issues. If you didn't see any problems with the 95' and to use as a winter beater I'd say go for it. Let us know what you decide

RA051823

No doubt it was a fair deal. I decided to pass on it. I wanted a little nicer one for my beater. Prices seem to be all over the place on these cars. Some people are wanting $3-4k for a car with 250k miles is just nuts. There is a nice one at a Lexus dealer but obviously they want top dollar for it. Will see what happens. Kind of taking the wait and see approach.

timmy0tool

iTrader: (7)

i understand you want to simply use the car as a beater, but all my beaters still have a nice interior, working AC, and decent paint all around. then again i live in cali and don't know what snow is. i suppose it's all in how much you want to spend and you are right that the LS400 is the reliable car to get.

keep in mind these cars are HEAVY so don't expect cayenne turbo acceleration but it does hold it's own for it's age! drivetrain is solid when properly cared for so you're on the right track to look for ones that were dealer serviced (receipts to show proof). 90k is the timing belt interval and expect to pay $1k unless you do it yourself for less than half that cost.

why not consider a AWD car like a subaru? there must be tons driving if your area sees snow and for good reason!

RA051823

Not a fan of the Subaru's. Plus, when the weather is real bad I can always drive the Cayenne if need be until the roads clear up. Basically, I'm looking for a reliable and comfortable car to take me to and from work. I just accepted a new position which unfortunately requires me to loose my company car but the pay increase more than makes up for it. Since I will now be putting on 12k miles a year for work I need a good reliable daily I can trust but also has some class and thought the LS400 would fit nicely.

UNCJD

I just bought a 1995 with 252K on it for $500 on Craigslist. Beautiful exterior--one minor dent that I can probably hammer out myself in an hour, with most of that time spent looking for my tools--and great interior. Not beautiful, just great--worn leather, a small tear in the driver's seat. Mechanically, it needed a timing belt/water pump, power steering pump, alternator, PCV valve, and plugs and wires. All of which I did myself. Down now to a minor exhaust leak and AC condenser, which I will also fix myself. I created an electrical problem being an idiot, which I had to get a shop to straighten out for me. Oh, yeah; it also has 4 different tires and a cracked windshield. And a speed sensor.
Not much, right? That's what you get for five hundred bucks. All this work would have been really expensive if I had even Toyota do it, so beware the cheap rides out there unless you're willing to tackle some of this on your own. This seller basically gave away what looked like a beautiful LS because she knew that if she charged more, her soul would be eternally damned to the fires of Hell. But I was looking for a car with problems, so it's all good.
Hope this helps.
Of an incidental note, depending upon where you live there may be a good reason for getting an older car versus a newer one. In some places, you only have to pass smog if your car was made after a certain year. Mine being a 1995, here in North Carolina I only needed a safety inspection. So the fact that my minor exhaust leak is causing trouble codes for the cats on both banks didn't prevent me from passing.
Durability-wise, this is a Toyota product. I can't tell you how many 4-banger Camrys I've seen riding around out there, blowing no smoke at over 300K miles. If a little 4 can take all those miles, these monster V8s should be good to go...as long as they were well cared for. Do yourself a favor and as soon as you buy it, get an oil change and change the PCV valve (5 minutes, nine bucks). Have an independent mechanic give it a good once-over and see what you need. The cool thing about the engines in these things is you can actually check the condition of the timing belt without removing a bunch of crap.