aypues

PCS wasn't standard with UL. There were 2 versions of UL:
1) UL with PCS
2) UL without PCS.

They started making them with PCS in late model 2004's. They weren't available in the beginning. Most UL's came with PCS, so it's fairly rare to see one without the plexiglass Lexus logo coverplate up front that indicates it has PCS.

thinkin

Laser vs radar cruise are two different systems that for practical purposes accomplish the same thing. A 430 without PCS but with dynamic cruise will have laser and with PCS the function is combined with the radar system with no need for the cost of a separate assembly.

Amusingly - and confusingly - Lexus often references it as "Radar" cruise either way, and at least on 04+ the dash says "Radar ready" regardless of which technology is present (strictly speaking, radar uses radio waves. Laser-based systems are "lidar").

All ULs will have one system or the other depending on whether they have PCS or not and it doesn't make any real difference to the driver.

Gene01

Yes, it IS confusing, and thinkin has it right when he says that Lexus makes their little contribution to the chaos by calling both DRCC and DLCC by the term "radar" on the instrument panel display.
Let's see if we can clear it up -
For '04 to '06, LS430s were available either with or without the PCS (Pre Collision System) option.
I understand that PCS was not actually installed on '04s until around Jan '04, though.
None of the other packages (Base, Premium, or Modern Luxury) allow PCS.
UL and CL without PCS had DLCC (Dynamic Laser Cruise Control).
UL and CL with PCS had DRCC (Dynamic Radar Cruise Control)
DRCC and DLCC do about the same thing, but use different sensors.
DLCC has a "glass eye" in the lower part of the passenger side of the front bumper cover.
DRCC has a rectangular plastic shield surrounding the Lexus logo in the center of the grille.
From my research on Auto Trader, I would say that approx. 25% of '05 & '06 UL cars have PCS, but YMMV.

quixotic

Does the Mark Levinson go out because of electrical issues? Weak speakers getting blow w/ the volume too loud? or something else?

The ML was one of the primary reasons I was looking at models w/ the Nav. Otherwise I wouldn't even want Nav since I already have an aftermarket tom tom.

The way I understood it, you couldn't retrofit the equivalent of the ML system because it has more speaker locations.

Kira X

iTrader: (24)

It's not electrical issues that cause them to blow out from what I've seen. The speakers/amp are weak and seem to be poorly made. Playing music with a lot of bass at high volume will blow them out pretty fast.

I think the ML may have more speakers over the base stereo but I can't say for sure.

Bocatrip

The speakers have issues from being poorly made and age. Not sure about how the amps fail. I do know from posts on this forum, aftermarket speakers are not always compatable with the factory amp and can cause havoc to the amp on top of it's fragility.

BT3100

Love my 02' UL.
I was in the same boat three years ago when I bought my car. Choice was between a UL with 102K and a base model 03' with 77K. Same color scheme. The 03' was cleaner but they wanted $18K. I picked up the 02' for $13K from a Lexus dealer and could not be happier with the car. I put 82,000 miles on her so far and here are the repairs I have completed.

* 90,000 service (done by Lexus during purchase - we split costs)
* Battery
* Brakes
* Tires
* Oil
* Air Filter Changes
* Y pipe replacement

with the exception of the Y pipe repair which cost me $200 (did the work myself) all else has been normal wear and tear items.

I love the UL. It rides like a dream (much better than base model IMO). Many features that I really enjoy. Love the Dynamic Crusie.

thinkin

Regarding air suspension, not everyone realizes it not only gives a smoother ride, it makes the car quieter due to the extra mechanical isolation. That coupled with the double-paned glass on the UL (which is also on the CL) make the UL ride like a ghost.

Sport mode - which really does cut body roll and improve transient response - and height adjustability are other benefits I enjoy all the time, and it is terrific to have the rear a/c unit on hot days. The air purifier, side shades, rear seat massager/console/etc are a bonus and push the car "over the top".

I appreciate that some don't want the extra complexity and I don't think you can go wrong with any package LS, just know there are real advantages to the UL.

jayclapp

Agree entirely. I think the UL gets knocks from people believing a few failures are common to all the UL's. Someone reads something bad and they pass it on as existing in all UL's. Kind of like rumors. But, then again, some will choose to believe that I have one of those "exceptionally good" UL's.

Kira X

iTrader: (24)

You make a good point about the air suspension being quieter. My car was extremely quiet on air, even though the struts were leaking. I hear more noise now that I have coilovers but it's not that noticeable.

I loved the sport mode too.

ultm8mind

iTrader: (3)

My 04 UL with PCS gets no complaints from me, I've had the car for 2 years and can't remember anything serious going wrong with it. Just took it in for her (0k service and everything checked out as it should, no worries, no problems...Mine has almost 100k on it also, the last 40k of which I put on the last 2 years...still smooth, although the RADAR Cruise slows down before I'd like it too, lol...

thinkin

I'd also mention that some of the most common (and not cheap!) trouble spots of the LS430 span all packages down to the base - retracting mirrors, power tilt/telescope steering, trunk struts, etc.

If you want the absolute least possible trouble you are probably better off with a Base or Premium, but it is a very different car at that point.

warminwisc

Pretty lucky when the concerns are folding mirrors(some DYI posts) lid struts, power steering wheel.

Kansas

Have you adjusted the "vehicle to vehicle distance setting" to medium or short by toggling through the three settings with the DISP2 switch on the right side of your steering wheel? Three arcs in the cluster display = "long"'; two arcs = medium; one arc = short. It's explained in your owners manual.

thinkin

Ain't that the truth. Compare it with common Mercedes owners' experiences...!