USLEX

Hi All,

Here is what I have arranged and need to make a decision by this Monday. Please chime in with your toughts.

My 07 LS460 Levinson, Premium Package, Advanced Parking Guidance, Power door closers, chrome Lexus 18" wheels.

for a:

New 08 LS600h but has about 4K miles on it. The story is this car was the regional Lexus Manager's and has not been titled. It has Premium Package II, Precollision System. Precollision, MSRP- $117,000.

All said and done with my trade in, I calculate they are selling me the LS600h for $90K Out The Door.

I am asking if you were to walk in to a dealership and work out this deal for essentially $27K off MSRP, would you consider this a good deal?

Should I pull the trigger on this?

Are there still tax rebates for Hybrids?

rominl

iTrader: (4)

i don't think there are rebates anymore, but you should double check

more importantly, what are they giving you for your ls460. it's all number games, you need to make sure your trade in is good as well

given the current economy and sales, personally i say 85k is what i will pay. sorry, i don't care if it's titled or not, but if it has 4k miles, it's used to me.

USLEX

Thanks for the input Rom. I wish I could get it for $85K considering the economy and for a "new" titled LS600h with 4,000 miles but they say they are selling it below cost at 90K. The trade in is what KBB has listed for my car. It is a little more actually. I thought I was doing well for $27K less MSRP which is $10K under invoice.

Anyone else have any input?

Johnny

Honestly, in Canada 4,000 miles would be considered used. Between 3,000 to 5,000 kilometres (2,000 to 3,000 miles), the car becomes a demo. I bought mine with less than 1,400 kilometres or about 870 miles on the odo. The previous owner turned it in as he found the car too big for his needs. Here's something to think about; I paid over $10K less than your dealer is asking for that 600. Mine has APGS, door closers, adjustable rear seats and 19" wheels, etc., but lacks the fancy interior like semi-aniline leather, side shades, shiatsu massage seat, rear entertainment center etc... How is the 600 you're considering tricked out?

USLEX

Hi Burn,

I thought my description was clear but it is hard to clearly list is considering it has so many options with the Premium Package II which has everything you mentioned that you lack.

So here is a more detailed list of what I have on the table:

Preferred Accessory Pkg (PIO):
Includes Cargo Mat, Cargo Net & Wheel Locks.

Premium Package II:
Includes 4-Zone Automatic Air Conditioning, Lexus Link Communication System w/Hands-Free Telephone System & 1-yr of Safety Plan Service, Climate Controlled Rear Console, Entertainment System, Additional Wood Interior Trim, Advanced Parking Guidance System, Rear Side Impact Air Bag Restraint System, Heated & Cooled Power Rear Seats w/Memory & Power Rear Side Sun Shades.

Rear fridge, I am not sure about but is standard on 2009 with this package.

Stabilizer, Avtive Power, I am not sure about but appears to be standard on this package since I cannot add it with Premium Package II.

Pre-Collision System:
Includes Dynamic Radar Speed Control.

Wheels/tires:
19"

Burn, considering you got a larger discount than I did when you bought. Did you have a trade in or any other issues? I see you own a LS600h so your opinion is much appreciated.

Nospinzone

Lex, I don't want to get off topic, but why do you need to make a decision by Monday? If this is a dealer imposed deadline, all kinds of red flags should be going up.

USLEX

You're right Nospin, I kind of imposed on myself since I told him I was going to look at it after my business trip on Monday with my wife and have it checked out before I bought. He said he would he have it by Monday and had approval from the management but needed approval from the owner of the dealership since they were selling it below Invoice. After further conversations asking if there had been any damage, he said there were some paint chips which they had "fixed". I asked him if it was one of those touch-up vans that do spray touch-up and he said no they had it done professionally at their body shop which raised flags since I suspect body damage from an accident rather than just paint chips. You know dealerships will go on the cheap with a touch-up van service rather than a real body shop unless there is damage they want to hide however this is a very high end car so who knows. Not sure if a Carfax wil help in this case since the car is legally new due to not being titled at all even with 4,000 miles on the ODO. After further pressing that I didn't want any hassle over the agreed price, he said he was "confident" he could get this price. Almost too quickly agreeable since car salesman are not the most honest.

The more I read the responses here, the more I am leaning to just drop it especially after reading all the reviews by the web searches I have found. Frankly, my LS460 is more than I really need in options such as Advanced Parking Guidance and NAV.

I do like the Radar Cruise though which I don't have. I really don't care about the Precollision system, the rear side shades, rear fridge, or DVD rear entertainment. For that matter, although the Nav screen "looks" nice, I found portable GPS units that I can buy and already have are cheaper to update and of course more mobile.

The more I type, the more I am convincing myself to not close this deal. I would like to hear from LS600h owners and those that have traded up give me some advice.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

pretty much how i feel. in the end you make the call how much you like the car, but what is their "cost"? i mean, their manager drove the car, they expect you to help eat the cost? that's basically how i see it

luxury1

I would say don't do the deal. While the LS600 is different in some ways, it is the same car in many ways to what you have now. To take a financial hit for something that is similar doesn't make sense to me.

If I were you I would wait until the LS is at least refreshed or the next total makeover to trade since then you will be getting something that is truly different.

Gojirra99

I won't be trading for another LS until the next redesign at the earliest for sure.

USLEX

I think I will shoot for $80K OTD and see what happens. Thanks for the input guys.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

that's a good starting point