DiggerJim

You'd have to do a hell of a lot of repairs on the LS to cover the $26K price delta (you said it was twice the price of the LS you're looking at). Not sure you could find anyone here who has done that much work on their car no matter what the mileage. Buy a Carchex warranty if the warranty is that important to you - you'll be able to get a Titanium plan which covers everything except for the normal maintenance items. For a couple thousand or so you'll have the same warranty as the ES and you'll have an LS

ShamanLS

So I did a test drive for the Avalon today and it was really nice :O

It certainly was much smoother than the Impala but that's probably due to the 17" tires in the avalon (20" in the impala). Also, the isolation was really good. It's very quiet.

But I didn't like how the car accelerate violently whenever I slightly press the pedal. The calibration doesn't suit a luxury car. It's actually similar to my Yaris in this part :\

On the other hand, the LS460 (LS430 as well) is much different. The pedal calibration is perfect ! It makes the car accelerates gently and whenever extra power is needed, just press the pedal more and you'll get it. Even in hard acceleration, it's still gentle and smooth !!


The guy had reduced the price for the LS460L to $24.5k. I think it's really good given that the car is fully optioned (except for the air suspension)

I'm just afraid of the hesitation in acceleration that I noticed when I've driven the car. I need to further investigate this issue

Btw, would you recommend me checking the car in Lexus dealer or a regular mechanic?? It's almost half the price for and I know some mechanics with long experience

ShamanLS

Not sure If I can get an extended warranty where I'm living (UAE). That would be really reassuring


I need to check it properly with a mechanic and focus on the known expensive issues like the control arms, brake booster and actuater.

What I'm worried about is the hesitation in acceleration that I've noticed. I hope it's not a serious issue

aaauae

Drop me a PM with your number , i'll help you out i am in UAE aswell

ShamanLS

I hope you provide extended warranty :P


Guys I think that the car was in SNOW mode when I drove it. I'm just not 100% sure because I was focusing in many things at the same time x_x

Will SNOW mode make the car exhibit the hesitation behavior??

I'll be going again today to check it one more time

roadfrog

If it was in "snow mode", yes. The car will be a dog in that setting. Also, try the car in the power mode (pushing the switch forward).

ShamanLS

Well I went today but the guy didn't let me drive the car for some reason

But I've noticed that the power lumbar support has 4 ways (?) the up/down buttons do not seem to work. It just makes this motor sound, but nothing changes. Also, when I press the forward direction, the cushion shrinks and when I press the the back direction, it expands !! It does the opposite

Also, I tried the audio system and it works greatly. So, I can assume that the amplifier is ok ?

Overall, I like the car very much. We agreed to meet again on Saturday to properly check the car with a mechanic. If everything goes well, I'll purchase the car !

So guys what do you advice me to focus on in the checkup? other than the usual things (control arms, brake actuator...)

CRowe14

Why didn't he allow you to drive it? You say "for some reason", but what reason did he give?
I'm not quite sure I follow what your saying regarding the seats.
Amp could work today but honestly could malfunction next week. It is something you should keep in mind, as they sometimes can go bad.
Can you access mylexus.com?
You should start there and educate yourself on the cars history.
Take the engine covers off and see if the water pump is leaking.
Check color of brake fluid. If darker, it should probably be flushed soon...
Just a few things that came to mind, others will chime in I'm sure.

roadfrog

I doubt he can. As you know, I'm in Canada and we can't access it either, unfortunately.

You covered the "what-to-look-fors", that are most common. I will add that, if the vehicle has air suspension, that it also gets checked out.

CRowe14

I forgot you did say that, regarding mylexus.
They should make that universally accessible.
And yes...absolutely have them check out the air suspension.
I should also Sau this though, even if you see a coolant leak, its an easy repair, so that shouldn't deter you, BUT could be a bargaining chip.

roadfrog

Yeah, it would be nice. I have a feeling that it has something to do with our privacy laws or something like that.

ShamanLS

I'm talking about the 4 way power lumbar support as seen in the above image

The forward direction button, which should enlarge the lumbar cushion, actually shrinks it ! the opposite :\

And the up/down button, doesn't do anything other that making a motor noise

But I think these are some minor issues.

One more thing, about the AC I've noticed that after like 10 minutes of starting the car, the air suddenly became normal. It wasn't cold nor hot. It was set on the lowest temperature and on Auto mode. In the beginning it was cold, but changed after some time.

Also, the back seats AC vents weren't blowing the air strongly. It was weak even though I set the fan speed to maximum (the rear fan speed since the car has the 4-zone climate control)

I hope that the AC only needs new filters and then it will be a champ

BTW, the car doesn't have the air suspension (Thankfully ! )

CRowe14

From the sounds of it, the motorized seat functions don't work as they should and there is something wrong.
When you press the up and down button, I believe the entire seat is supposed to move upward/downward. If the motor sounds but no motion, perhaps something is loose, but there is something wrong there.
From reading in other threads regarding the air/heat operation, the remedy usually seemed to be topping off the coolant.
As I said in a recent post, the next time you go see the car, remove the engine covers and see how much coolant is in the basin as well as look to see if the water pump is leaking coolant.
Also a possibility that you have an air pocket in the coolant flow system...

ShamanLS

Only the 4 way power lumbar is acting strangly. The rest operate as it should

So about the engine cover, can I just take it off directly? or is there a specific way?

I assume that seeing any water leaks will mean an expensive repair $ ?

CRowe14

The engine cover(s), plural, as there are 5 pieces, are all easy to remove, however, the push pins that hold the covers in place are disposable, meaning that more times than not, once you remove them, they wont be able to be used again to hold the covers in place once you put them back on.
They are cheap, as there are a few members, including myself that recently purchased about 30 of them for less than $5, but the guy selling the car may have an issue with you doing such, as the covers wont stay in place.
Try removing the pins slowly so that you can try to salvage as many as possible.
In order to see the basin, as well as if the water pump is leaking, you'll need to remove the two front black covers that sit between the front/grill of the car and the silver cover.
You will see the basin with pink coolant and the water pump is located behind the drive belt area.
If its leaking, you'll be able to see a crusted pink residue (dried up coolant) leaking from beneath the pump.
If it is leaking, if you are DIY inclined, the repair isn't difficult at all, as Roadfrog has done his and practically walked me through the process to replace it.
An indy shop may charge $300-$400 maybe and Lexus near me, wanted over $900.
I purchased my part off line for about $55 bucks, 2 gallon of coolant-about $42 bucks and I replaced my lower rad hose $11 bucks. You do the math!!