Dr. Jekyll

iTrader: (1)

The only repairs I've done in 10+ years and 57k miles is the right rear air strut $1,500 and right rear door soft close & valve cover gasket $800 and one O2 sensor for $125. That plus the basic oil changes, plus and filters and she's been a champ!

LuxuryGS3

iTrader: (12)

I purchased my '04 with 100k miles on the clock. Got it 2 years ago come March. Since then I've done Spark plugs (just because I couldn't find it on maint history, but they were still good), valve cover gaskets (one of them was leaking when I got the car), rotors + brake pads, and the 90k maint + tranny/diff/coolant drain/fill.. And none of those were a MUST to do.. I did them all because I like to do my maint early before anything drastic happens. All in all I think all of that costed me maybe 3k? And just recently i've started to throw a CEL for Bank 2 Sensor 1 O2.. Purchased that via amazon for $32 and i'll probably replace it myself. This car really is bulletproof. It runs amazing to this day and it's at 135k now.

Lavrishevo

iTrader: (1)

I have had my 04 since 2012 purchased from dealer and was a 1 owner cream puff.

$250 for a subwoofer, about $1200 in suspension work, and $10 for a door lock actuator motor.

Never a check engine light or any breakdowns over 40k+ miles.

vgdti

Did you do all of them by yourself?

Lavrishevo

iTrader: (1)

No, only the easier things. The LS is not very cheap on maintenance but it's a heck of a lot less then BMW. Especially part cost. I should add I did do a tune up at 110k miles. This was $300 and I have also done a few drain and refill's on the transmission at $100 a pop from the Lexus dealer. Again, nothing major just little easy things. My LS at 143k miles drives like a new car.

Lavrishevo

iTrader: (1)

At 90k miles Lexus does recommend the timing belt water pump service but this is a very conservative recommendation. They really never break. You can go to 120k easily. Its only $200 for the parts but labor is about $600 - $800. Mine was done right before I purchased the vehicle.

StanVanDam

I would go with the 2005 because after doing most of my own maintenance, I am convinced that Toyota's engineers designed the LS430 for ease of maintenance and at low cost. Everything is accessible and is easy to take apart. I like doing my own maintenance, especially if it's easy, so that is my priority.

I've had my 2002 for 7 years and 8 days, drove 69000 km (43000 mi) on it, and spent $5996 CAD (including 13% federal+provincial sales tax) on maintenance, which is $4200 USD. This equals $856CAD/yr ($609USD/yr) and $869CAD/10000km ($977USD/10000mi).

That cost includes 2 major one-time items:

1) Lexus dealer required to repair high pressure line going to the rear evaporator, 7 hours of labor plus parts plus AC recharge. Rear AC unit is only on the Ultra Luxury trims.
2) Independent shop to install new Y-pipe, due to DTC P0430 caused by corrosion between heat shield and exhaust pipe. Every LS430 owner that drives on salted roads should crawl underneath the car, rip off the heat shield clamps, and remove the heat shields. Salt and water collects exactly where the lip of the heat shield is, and that is exactly where the pipe starts failing for everyone.

Excluding those 2 one-time items, my maintenance cost over 7 years and 69000km, including shipping various parts to Canada and 13% sales/import tax, is $2919 CAD ($2078 USD), which is $417CAD/yr ($297USD/yr), $423CAD/10000km, $301USD/10000mi.

The $297 USD per year over 7 years covers these items, which were all DIY, and OEM unless otherwise noted: FIGS trunk struts, 90915-20004 oil filters, oil filter gaskets, oil, engine filter, front and rear cabin filters, seat filters, brake pads, front rotors, Raybestos Advanced Tech rear rotors, B2S1 O2 sensor, serpentine belt, brake fluid, light bulbs, wiper blades, coolant, SimplySpeakers subwoofer foam surround repair kit, and driver door lock actuator motor.

Pretty low maintenance costs considering the car is almost 14 years old.

2007 and above have direct injection - if you have sensitive hearing, the ticking may annoy you.

warminwisc

I would pick the one which I liked driving the most.

SW17LS

Ditto. In the 430 forum people will tell you the 430. In the 460 forum they will tell you the 460. I loved our 430, but time marches ever forward and they're older cars than I want to drive now. The 460 has some common issues, such as control arm failure, but the 430s have their issues too (see above where Lav spent $1,200 in suspension work...well you can repair those control arms for $1,200), and as cars age they get less reliable, meaning the 430s will continue to have more issues (as will the 460, but at least its 3 years newer). The 430 also requires a timing belt replacement at $1,000 a pop which makes up for some potential higher costs repairing the 460.

Drive them both, see which you prefer. They're at their core very similar, the 460 is a little more dynamic but is still an incredibly nice riding car. The 460s engine is somewhat louder because of the timing chain and the direct injection, but the tradeoff there is 100 hp and no timing belt replacements.

Styling is subjective, I think they're both good looking cars but IMHO the 460 is a great looking car. They're different, the 430 looks stately like an old Mercedes, while the 460 is smoother and more emotional looking.

In any event, either car will be WORLDS more reliable and cheaper to maintain than your BMW.

I enjoyed all my LS sedans, but I wouldn't have traded my 430 to get my 400 back and I wouldn't trade my 460 to get my 430 back either.

vgdti

SW15LS, your points are valid. I post in this forum because every one forum is dedicated to a certain model. I did not find one for all LS models. So, there can be bias. I tried the 460 this afternoon. Acceleration was not as smooth as I expected.

Duck05

Our '01 LS was acquired in '04 driven by the wife. She liked it but wanted to move on and ended up in the '14 LS. Both are great cars.....

The '01 we are keeping and has become my daily driver now.

Between an '05 and an '08, the 430 is a better choice IMO. Maybe if the 460 was a '13 or '14 it would be a different story but then the investment level changes dramatically.

Not an easy choice.... If you had posted this in the 460 thread I would have answered the same.

warminwisc

I would think an 03 540 is gona be problematic. Conversely I have spoken to quite a few 010 and up 535 I owners who have had good reliability with their BMW's. the 7 series is more of a gamble. 535 is gonna be a funner driving experience than either you listed.

vgdti

I want to get rid of my current 2003 540i, and try a used Lexus LS430 before moving to a new one LS. I did not have much fun with BMW. Repair cost is OK. But, I do hate to send a car to a shop every a few months. Between reliability and fun: I would say NOW I prefer 80% reliability + 20% fun.

Lavrishevo

iTrader: (1)

I'm The 430 is a nice car to drive. I would not call it boring but it's not a sports car either. The UL's are extremely quiet and luxurious.

In the $1200 I have spent tinkering only $400 due to having a clunk and parts failing. Two lower control arm bushing. The other stuff was front & rear sway bar bushes, lower ball joints, inner and outer tie rod ends and steering rack bushes. Couple more alignments. None of these components had failed but I replaced them anyway. Why? Because I'm a bit crazy like that... I wanted the ride perfect.

The 430 has 2 control arms per side vs the 460's 4. The only ones that ever go out are the front lower on the 430 vs all 16 on the 460. The bushing itself is $80 a pop. You don't need to buy the whole arm just the bushing.

$1200 won't even come close to buying 16 OEM arms for the 460 plus labor and alignment. Forget about it. The reality is the 430 has better reliability scores until Lexus got it right in 2011 then they are about the same. But you are usually talking 35k for a clean 2011 or 2012. Parts are much cheaper on the 430 too. Yes you have the tb/wp job but it's the nature of the beast.

Honestly, I don't consider myself biased I just say it like it is. I like the styling of the 460 better but I prefer the reliability of the 430. You will also see more 460 owners complain about oil consumption (non existent on the 430), engine recalls on early models, brake actuators problems (very expensive) ML amp problems (also expensive), hesitations, and other odd engine things. Also, the interior of the 430 is of higher quality. This has been talked about for years how the leather last longer and the cabin is more quiet and ride is more smooth. My leather looks amazing after 13 years. Really is impressive. I think the ideal time to get one is right after the first owner paid for the 90k service.

JffGRY706

you can find great deals on 430's everyday. a little bit harder to find great deals on 460's. really if all you have to spend is $20,000 then buy the 430. you will have money for tires and spark plugs and a couple of drain and fills for the lifetime transmission. the 430's are super reliable until 150,000 miles. I would still go with the 460.