R0ckworthy

Hello happy forum. I really, REALLY want to buy a LS400 and have it all to myself forever. In particular, the '95 and above LS400. But I have a burning question for all you lucky bastards that already own one: What would you say is a real-world estimate of how much money, per year, on average, it takes to keep your LS400 in good shape? Not perfect shape just well taken care of. I know the engines usually last a hell of a long time and they are usually very dependable, etc, but I want some hard numbers. Can anyone step up and boldly admit how much money they put into their LS400s?

P.S. I'm also talking about daily drivers, not cars that only have 50K miles on them after all this time

StevieA

93 LS400 damage repaired 2008 at 220,000km then sat for 2 years. I bought spring 2010 for 2,500+tax. Nine months later I have $12,000 into it at 237,000km.

But I looked and only a total including purchase of $6,300 was necessary to be driveable like exhaust leak (bad one), tires, brakes, control arms.

The rest was because I love the car (spare wheels, $2k stereo, fixing the unreadable LCD display or the flickering dash lights & needles, leaky PS pump, tune-up, undercoating, shocks & springs, H.O. alternator, starter gear hood struts etc etc.)

Now that I have new summer & winter tires and alot of the typical LS400 gremlins worked out I plan to run to 300,000km (4 years for me) with few hundred $ per year which over 4 years would equate to about $3,500 per year.

Damn my new Caravan cost me $10,000 the first month I owned it in depreciation.

Its all relative

python

iTrader: (4)

that would vary on mileage and driving habits

deanshark

As Python said, it will vary. Also on how it has been taken care of by previous owner. I bought my 93 w/112k on it 16 mos. ago and after 14k miles I only have about $800 in parts into it, normal maintainance, but MANY hours of my time. It needs about $500 more just to be right. But if ya buy one that hasn't been taken care of regularly then you can plan on spending thousands, especially if you don't do your own labor. If you get a one owner car with service records (so you can see how it's been cared for) you're better off. Most parts are expensive but the results are well worth it.

Mega

My 95 has 150k miles on it now, purchased it almost 1 year ago.

I did, and am still doing alot of routine maintenance(not that it really needs all of it, i just like knowing when things were last done)

Anyways, within the last 12 months i have spent under $400.

nssbnz77

iTrader: (3)

i have a 91, sent 1k for in a year! why? full maintenace & other labor/parts. thats less than $90 a month. cheaper than my S55's $250 per month!

R0ckworthy

Yes of course it would. Duh. I know that obviously that's why I worded the question the way I did.

R0ckworthy

OMG you spent $6300 on fixing an exhaust leak, tires, brakes and control arms???? Lol that's a fortune for those small things. How much does the dealer charge per hour? Thankfully most people are reporting a quite low cost of ownership. Sounds like the best advice so far is to look for one that's been really loved by it's previous owner(s).

Kansas

In the last four years of ownership of my 1990 LS400, I averaged about $1,000 per year on repairs and maintenance not including oil changes which I did myself. I owned the car since new and sold it in 2003 at 183,500 miles. It became increasingly more expensive as it aged -- especially after it passed about 130,000 miles.

At 133,000 miles, my 2000 LS400 seems to be aging substantially better than the 90 LS did but I suspect it will follow a similar pattern of increasing repair costs.

The problem is, R0ckworthy, you could end up with an LS which has had deferred or improper maintenance. If you really want an LS, try to find one with particularly low mileage, and most important of all, a completely documented maintenance and repair history including documentation of every single oil change.

From my experience, you are better off buying from a private party Lexus enthusiast who bought his car new or when it was nearly new.

StevieA

Agree with Kansas, hindsight is 20/20 I just knew Lexus were good quality and jumped on one. Would have been wayyyy better off getting one that was loved by previous owner

BTW the above included the purchase price + tax of $2,825 so the repairs were just $3,475 which included 8 tires not 4 and 4 of them were Michelin Primacy MXV4 V speed rated plus an extra set of wheels. And the exhaust leak was a new Y-pipe and 2 oxygen sensors. NONE was done by Lexus dealer

R0ckworthy

Oh okay that makes a lot more sense now. Whew!

R0ckworthy

Thanks Kansas, I appreciate your info, that kind of nittygritty, detailed info is exactly what I'm looking for about this car. Also, isn't it nice being able to research cars this way online? Forums, to me, are one of the most powerful tools the Internet has to offer. You can actually talk to real people who've owned what you're looking for, and know exactly what you, the consumer, needs to know, in order to make an intelligent buying decision.

Most people still do their "research" simply by walking into a car lot and talking to some ******* salesman.

RA40

iTrader: (6)

It will vary and IMO, 99+ is the better choice. The 430 being newer will give you many more options but it comes with a price.

This is a good thread to read through on other members fixes:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls4...o-your-ls.html

BunthaKev

I just bought my 92 ls400 for $800. it needs motor mounts. ($80 each at rockauto.com) none of the windows work(diagnostic time and what ever parts at $50 each possible total of $400) inner tie rod end( $15) rockauto.com)Dash dosn't light up but needles work. ($2 dollars for each high grade capacitor. total of three. Interior is garbage like all the seats and dash( that depends on how much you want to spend) I am an Automotive Technician so every thing is DIY. so far the car cost me $1100 to own fully inspected. Motor has 195K and still runs like a dream. I couln't believe how smoothe it was even with a vibration from the engine due to bad motor mounts. I'm gonna vip this thing and keep it for the next ten years or so. (I got another 200k left on the motor. Probably another $250 by the end of the year for a few oil changes, tune up and timing belt and I'll be around $1500 to own it. After getting all the things squared away I'd say the car would cost around $600 a year if you average it out over the course of 10 years. which=Cheap.