ansen

iTrader: (1)

Hello all, I know this is my first post but I need some opinions/advice. I'll try to make this short and to the point.

I've been in the market for a black/black LS430 UL for several months now. I finally found one a month ago that was a smoking deal compared to the rest in the classifieds. It was an 01 with 67K miles and I offered the guy $15000 (his asking price was $15,900). The guy says yes to the deal but when I get there to pay the guy off, he says he can't let the car go because he doesn't have the difference to pay the bank off which is another $4K. So he tells me to give him a couple months to get the difference and we can close the deal.

While anticipating his call, I find another 01 LS430 UL but silver/cream with 63K miles a couple weeks ago for $14,500.

So as I was getting ready to head out to see the silver LS, the black LS guy calls back and tells me he has the payment and is ready for the deal. Unfortunately, his asking price is $16K because someone had offered him that amount. The funny thing with this black LS guy is he told me he would honor the price and he is a man of his word.

I'm a little torn between what I want (black/black) and what is a good deal (silver/cream). My gut tells me the black LS guy is full of crap and get the silver one and use the extra cash to get something nice for it.

willhickey

iTrader: (1)

silver it stays clean too!

Jabberwock

Silver is a good looking car also, get that. I'd bag the dude with all the drama on his black LS, he has already wasted too much of your time.Why go back for more of his potential BS?

DDLexus

Yep. don't deal with people who screw you around like that. I'd tell him you've moved on. Keep looking and buy a car that you're proud of, don't settle. They're plenty of LS's on the market and money talks these days. Your in a great position, use that to your advantage.

LSGarry

Love the Silver Millenium with creme interior and it really does always look clean.
Tell that guy you made a better deal and welcome to CL.

miniz

Why anyone would want a 9 year Toyota ultra soft black paint job is beyond me.... and that doesn't even take into account that the seller is playing games with you AND charging too much for the car. An 01 isn't worth that much. Whenever someone does something like to me I walk (or run) away. He thinks he can jack the price of the car up $1000 and make you wait? If he really got an offer for $16k from someone else, do you really think he would still have the car? NO!!! He is playing big time games and it might be working with you. Don't let him win. Tell him to get lost and go buy the silver one. Believe me, you don't want a 9 year old black Japanese car.

caddyowner

A few thoughts:

- If the owner of the black UL didn't have the $4K to pay off the loan, did he take short-cuts on the pricey recommended Lexus maintenance?

- What price did the owner of the black UL agree to honor: the $15K he agreed to or the original asking price of $15.9K?

- Which car has the better maintenance / accident history?

- If you've been focused on black / black, can you live with silver / cream? You can always pass on both cars and continue to look for a black / black which was probably the most popular combination.

Good luck in your search.

Jabberwock

Excellent point by Caddyowner on the black LS likely not getting required/recommended maintenance since owner seems broke. Another reason to avoid that deal.

LS430inDE.

It doesn't get much more straight forward than this ^^^^

Miniz hit all the targets: Price---I think the $ is too high and he's jacked the price UP while time has gone by! Price is supposed to come down over time! Color---a 9 year old, soft Toyota/Lexus paint, black in color. His personality ---this guy just sounds like a jerk and untrustworthy! You have 3 big negatives there.

I have a silver 05 and believe me...it NEVER looks dirty when dirty, and looks INCREDIBLE when clean. So much so, I put it in my signature after I bought it.

Question----have you closely inspected the black car..painted areas around the grill/hood/etc for defects/chips/etc? How about the glass/windshield? What about swirl marks elsewhere on the paint? Heck..even the GLASS is soft on these Lexus flagships so check for pitting and annoying scratches!

Yes, you are looking at a USED car, but inspect it closely..just don't accept it because it's the black color that you (think) you want.

Even if the black one appears to be in good condition, there's no way I would go backwards on the price (higher) after time has gone by. Just my take on the situation.

Good luck to you! Let us know what you decide!

usermel

I say go with the Silver IF you are ok with not having the exact color you want. The better deal is the silver car anyway! Once the black on black LS430 gentleman had told me he had to pay $4,000 more on the car I would have walked away anyway and never entertained a deal with him regardless! So, and this is just advice buddy, go with the Silver only if you can be fine with that color and arent dead set on black on black. If you must have black on black be patient and keep looking. Confusion means something isnt right in any aspect of life and is a warning of trouble. Stay away from the black on black deal for sure!!! Good luck fellow member!!!!! L.G.N.M

usermel

Great advice LS430DE and miniz as well. Great advice, the guy sounds unstable who is selling the LS430 black on black. And the silver staying clean looking is true. Its the color I originally wanted when I got this LS but, got the color I have now due to it being different(Love it by the way but, next color will be silver)! That said, I owned 2 silver GS' in the past and they just have a clean look. Matter of fact in every car make silver is special!!! Best of luck fellow member!!!L.G.N.M

usermel

All the members who commented gave great advice sir. Heres another exmple to go with LS430DE and miniz and Jabberwocks among others great advice. I actually learned from this one as well. Very Wise thoughts!!! L.G.N.M

ansen

iTrader: (1)

Thank you all for the comments and they are very much appreciated!!!!

I will take a look at the silver this weekend and if everything checks out, it will be the silver. Here is another driving factor to my decision to go with the silver, I live in Vegas where the color of your car means a lot. hahaha.

But to answer some of your questions:
- If the owner of the black UL didn't have the $4K to pay off the loan, did he take short-cuts on the pricey recommended Lexus maintenance?

- What price did the owner of the black UL agree to honor: the $15K he agreed to or the original asking price of $15.9K?

- Which car has the better maintenance / accident history?

- If you've been focused on black / black, can you live with silver / cream? You can always pass on both cars and continue to look for a black / black which was probably the most popular combination.

-I pulled up a carfax on the car at there seems to be a gap in the maintenance.
-He agreed to the $15K
-I can live with silver since my wife already drives a silver X5. I just wanted something different.

THANKS AGAIN EVERYONE! I will surely post up pictures.

caddyowner

Isn't Nevada the silver state, anyway?

miniz

Oh, well forget about black in Vegas! You have to be kidding to even *think* about it. The sun is SO hot, that a black car would be an absolute nightmare. Its always going to be 20 degrees warmer and every possible water spot is going to etch into the soft paint. You would see every single swirl and hologram in the paint due to the abundance of direct sun light.