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After a long and exhausting search for a well-kept, low mileage Mercedes E500, nobody was more surprised than me when a couple of weeks ago I bought a well-kept, low mileage 2005 LS430!
Honestly, this car hadn't really even been on my radar at all until, following yet ANOTHER failed inspection of a 2005 E500, I was browsing the internet and saw the car I would end up buying.
So why not any of the Mercs I had seen? Reliability... pure and simple. Although a very nice car, the E series has serious issues with the air suspension - it's just a matter of when it will fail, not if - and the transmission is another key failure point. Both expensive to repair. Oh, and my wife could not get to grips with the electronics controlling the a/c, radio, satnav etc. EVERY Merc I looked at had issues of one sort or another. While admittedly it is a sexy car, high maintenance pouting is not on my wish list.
Then I met my new car. Like a girl your friend introduced you to who isn't particularly sexy but once you get to know her better becomes someone special in your life, she did have that certain something I liked. So, even though I had just done a 600 mile weekend round trip Merc hunting, I decided to jump in my car again and drive the 200 miles to the Audi dealership where she was temporarily staying to see if I wanted to convince her to elope with me.
Turns out I did.
She's a one owner car with a full main dealer maintenance history and only 84,500 miles. In the color combo I really wanted (white with beige interior and maple eye wood). 18" wheels with Sports Suspension (no pesky air suspension to worry about) and the 'basic' a/c controls making for a happy wife - probably the key ingredient :-) And she was IMMACULATE, I mean in about as perfect a condition as you can expect from a 10 year old car. Clean Carfax. Priceless.
The Audi dealer said the former, older owner had traded it in on a new Audi A8. Hmmm. An older, likely wealthier owner, can afford to look after their vehicles. The story was right and fitted with what my eyes were seeing which was good because by this stage I was done looking at cars that had been obtained through auction.
So, we jumped in and went for a drive. I was shocked. I mean This car was as smooth as silk. No suspension noises, no transmission jerks... quiet. All I could hear was.. well, nothing really. This car was something else.. a beautiful ride, powerful brakes, great visibility, luxurious, classy and understated. And did I mention it was quiet? Well, until I flattened my foot and the V8 growl turned up and she FLEW down the road... My wife looked over at me and from the smile on her face I knew it was basically a done deal.
We said we'd think about it and drove to the local Lexus dealership. I handed the VIN to the service manager and he pulled it up and smiled. "Ah, an 05 LS430" he said, "the best car we ever made". I looked at him and asked "did the Audi dealer just call you and tell you to say that?" . He turned and yelled out "Hey guys, what's the best car Lexus ever made?". Two staff yelled back in unison across the floor "'05-06 LS430, yeah baby!". I grinned like a lunatic. The VIN history confirmed the service claims made by Audi. No major surgery and light mileage but she was overdue for the 90,000 mile service based on time frame rather than miles so we understood that we were in for some expense in the near future.
So, back to the Audi dealership, a bit of haggling (they wouldn't move much) but I did get window tinting thrown in and a couple of hours later she was ours. I drove home in shock that I had bought a model I had not really fully researched online although the fact that we already had a Lexus in our garage, a vehicle that miraculously had never given us one issue in 13 years, gave us the confidence that we had done the right thing.
The dealer brought the car to me a week later when the tinting had been applied and my first drive in her was to the Sarasota Lexus dealer to have the 90,000 mi service done - new timing belt, water pump, transmission fluids, diff fluid, Mobil 1 and other assorted wet bits. I received a call from them highly recommending that the spark plugs be changed and the engine de-carboned - it appears the engine had never really been pushed hard and needed a good cleaning. Wilde Lexus were very fair with me on the bill and when I went to pick up the car, the chief service technician who had worked on it went through everything they had done, including the error codes they had pulled (nothing of significance) and told me "you have a REALLY nice car there" and smiled, "best car we ever made, we can't keep these on our lot when they come in". Talk about a decision being confirmed, made in haste or not!
So, due to me picking up a sickness immediately after getting my car home, yesterday was the first time I REALLY drove her. 300 miles of glorious enjoyment in city, urban, freeway and backroads driving. Boy, is this car s-m-o-o-t-h... Just about all you can hear when cruising is some tire noise. Unbelievably quiet in fact. I nearly tried to restart her when she was running already. Tons of power for easy freeway overtaking and I'm thinking I probably got her up to the highest speed anyone has ever taken her on one of the quiet, straight Florida backroads. The lady can move when you ask her to and I might be regularly asking her to lift up her skirt and run, run, run - that v8 growl is addictive! While I wasn't exactly throwing her around much, the Sport Suspension seems to be doing what it should in the bends and there was little body roll on quick freeway ramps. The ride was on the (very) comfortable side of firm.
I'm looking forward to participating on this board, although there isn't really much I want or feel I need to do to my new ride. Maybe a bluetooth audio connection is her future, but that's about it I think.
I'm just glad that a new, unexpected love has entered my life. She's reserved but pretty, sophisticated but with hidden power and is a real class act. The thinking man's choice. Can't wait to get to know her more intimately.
Welcome. Lovely car. Check out the FAQ's and the search function works well. Stay up on the maintenance and it will be the most reliable car you can imagine.
Welcome to the club...and you do have the preferred color combo.
Enjoy the ride and the lack of repairs this car blesses you with.
I've got the 04 with the sport suspension and am learning to appreciate the stiffer suspension.
Quite a bit different than my 02 standard suspension.
Still a great ride.
Congrats, its gorgeous! I myself just picked up one and I wasn't expecting to really get one either. I was looking at 2011 535i/740i's but started looking up the LS430's. I've always loved my parents ES300 the way it drove, and one day I just bought a car off ebay. I'm really glad with my choice, I can't think of any other options for the money that will be as luxurious and reliable. Not to mention I saved almost 30k buying this car instead of another bimmer.
Congrats on the LS430. Wise decision to go with the Lexus over the Mercedes. You won't regret it.
By the way, you're lucky that your previous owner didn't have holes drilled in the front bumper for the license plate. Makes the front end look a whole heck of a lot cleaner. Enjoy your car!
What an incredibly well written post! This gal that you were introduced to will just amaze you more and more as you get to know her.
As we all know, she might not be a supermodel with amazing curves nor possess a coke bottle figured body, but MAN will you fall for alllllll the things she does to take care of you!
SO much more than just eye candy without a brain, this babe will always be true to you, will always aim to please, rarely talks back (lol), and will make you want to spend MORE time with her, especially inside of her.
08-11-14, 07:23 AM
My new-to-me '05 Sport. A love affair begins...
This car was as smooth as silk. No suspension noises, no transmission jerks... quiet. All I could hear was.. well, nothing really. This car was something else.. a beautiful ride, powerful brakes, great visibility, luxurious, classy and understated. And did I mention it was quiet? Well, until I flattened my foot and the V8 growl turned up and she FLEW down the road... My wife looked over at me and from the smile on her face I knew it was basically a done deal. 
