stever500

I've wanted a Lexus LS 460 for years (as some of you may remember my post), since they first came out. Not really in a position to do it unless I sold both my cars (96 911 C4S and 2001 BMW 740i Sport). Don't want to part with my 911 so this option is off the table for now.

I met a lady a few months ago, we started dating, she has a 15 year old Volvo and was in the market for a newer car, and you know the rest. I tried to steer her to a 2008-2009 Acura RL (my ex wife had one and it was remarkable), 08 BMW 550i or an MB 2006 E55 She was about to buy a used RL for about $25k or so. Then Lexus brand was the only car make she hadn't driven yet.

We looked at an IS350 and Camry eh, uhr, ES350 but she didn't like them that much. She said the LS 460 was too big but decided to drive one anyway on my coaxing. She LOVED it. She was over the moon over it. It was an 09 and way too expensive for her. Her budget was $30k max.

We looked at 07's and 08's for around $30-32k from non Lexus dealers but then this different 09 AWD came around for $35786 ). She's working on getting it now with various financing options and put a deposit down on it. Looks 99% that it will happen. Now I can live vicariously through her car ownership for as long as we date. Yeah!

Dark grey with black interior. About 50k miles. We drove the 09 a few days before at another Lexus dealer with 45k miles that was priced at $42k. The one she put a deposit on looks to be a great deal. It's certified for 3 years. Double-yeah. They want very little money to add extra years to this coverage but she's stretching $5k more than she wanted to spend anyway so that's not going happen.

I'll post pics when and if she gets it. The one weird thing is that the first dealer said if we broke the Nav unit out of warranty, it's $10k to replace. I said $10K!?! It can't be that much. He swore up and down that it is.

The dealer she's buying this car from said it's only $4k for the unit, not $10k. I wonder why there's such a discrepancy in information? Both of these guys were used car mgrs for competing Lexus dealers.

I wish this was the Lexus she bought this week! Sadly, she's getting one a lot less expensive...

thegov3

Having just bought a 2009 LS460 AWD last week, I can offer some advice. Make sure the cars suspension has been checked and in most cases had the struts replaced. They are not cheap. Since you have a CPO warranty they should be covered. But double check. I would also check the history of the car to make sure it was not wrecked or flooded. I looked at numerous 2009 AWD cars and many had a clean car fax, but upon further inspection I could tell that they had been repaired in some manner.
Most of those were the ones discounted to move pricewise. Take the VIN to the nearest Lexus dealer and have them run a maintenance report for you to make sure the required maintenance and recall have been performed. Good luck .

FYI – mine is currently in the shop having the 2 of the struts replaced. It is still under the factory warranty.

stever500

Wow, thanks for that advice. She'd be buying it at a Lexus Dealer so I'll have them run this maintenance report. It was a lease turn in and an employee was going to buy it but changed his mind as his wife said no.

Is it worth buying the extended warranty that covers the 4th, 5th and 6th year (I think)? I think they said it's an extra $1300 or so for the 4th year, $1700 for the 5th year and $2k or so for 6 years of Lexus coverage from the dealer?

Steve

thegov3

An extended warranty is a no brainer on the LS 460 in my opinion. But you said you were buying a CPO vehicle, right? If so, I wouldn’t buy more coverage until I knew I was keeping the car past 100K miles or more than three years. You are good for three years and to 100K in miles. However, CPO will not cover consumables, so make sure the follwing items are in great shape or ask that they be fixed before you take delivery:

Standard Upkeep Items:
accessory drive belts, batteries, filters, fluids, heating and vacuum hoses, lines and tubes, tires, spark plugs, windshield wiper blades (rubber component).

Wear and Tear:
Examples include brake pads, rotors, shoes and drums and manual clutches.

Body and Interior:
bumpers, carpet, chrome, dash cover and pad, door trim, handles, fabric, glass (including windshield), headliner, hinges, interior and exterior trim and moldings, cupholders, ashtrays, covers and vents, lightbulbs, nuts, bolts, clips, retainers and fasteners, paint, rust and corrosion damage, seat covers, shiny metals, weather stripping.

LXurious

Not a smart decision keep shopping. First if she cant afford the warranty either A. Wait and save up a couple of months. or B. Go with an 07/08 and get it because she is getting a flagship vehicle not a IS or Camry or anything else. Everything on the car is an arm and a leg to replace. Maintainence is cheap IMO, but dont cut corners. Also dont go for AWD unless you really need the extra traction.

Dont force her into a bad decision so you can live out your dream, be patient.

ElliotB

How many miles does she drive a year? How many years does she expect to keep the vehicle? We just bought a CPO vehicle and plan to keep it beyond the 3 year warranty so invested in the extended warranty (genuine Lexus - avoid 3rd party warranties). While not cheap, it was a bit less than 'normal' because of the CPO program. When financed, the extended warranty does not add a lot to the monthly payment.

There are many around. I would not overspend. Wait until everything is right.

stever500

She's set on this 09 AWD as we live in the Northeast and get a lot of snow and ice some years. Not sure how much she drives each year. Her 137k mi Volvo S70 is from 1998 - 15 years old. I didn't realize she could get the extended warranty after purchase of the vehicle (if I'm understanding you correctly). We'll look into that. It WOULD be the Lexus warranty of course. Thanks.

patgilm

If she is going to keep the car for a while I would get the extended warranty for piece of mind especially since all 2009 AWD's came with factory air suspension and it is expensive to fix if they go bad (which based on research here they do sometimes go bad). Living in the same climate I agree that AWD would be better for her unless she is used to RWD. In the winter the RWD LS isn't that great unless you have snow tires and I don't think she would want to hassle with changing tires every season.

FLYCT

The Lexus Financial extended Vehicle Service Agreement for a CPO car can only be purchased when you buy the car and must be sold by the selling dealer. It cannot be purchased later.

If the car is still within the 4 year / 50,000 mile original factory warranty you can by a Lexus financial Platinum Extended warranty from any Lexus or Toyota dealer in the country.

If still within the 4yr/50k consider opting put of the CPO 3yr/100k warranty. This should save you about $1000 on sale price. Then purchase a Platinum warranty at a discount from Jerry Johnson at Midwest Toyota.

Of course you should carefully calculate which is best for you.

JR

ElliotB

I believe you can get a warranty for a CPO vehicle any time within the 3 year 100k warranty, but you need to check with your dealer to be sure.

AWD sounds like a good idea. And it appears you got a great deal. Good luck!

NobleSpine

I have seen posts in this forum discussing issues with AWD, so check those out.

ElliotB

I have dealt with Jerry Johnson in the past and he is the best in the business. He has saved me thousands. But for the CPO vehicle I just purchased, it turned out to be a better deal (both for cost and plan length) to purchase the Lexus Platinum warranty from the selling dealer - the rate for CPO vehicles is less than non CPO vehicles.

Prior to purchasing the vehicle I now have, I had also been looking at a 2007 LS460 (from a non-Lexus dealer) and found out that Lexus would issue a warranty on it (costly but still available) even though it was out of factory warranty. You may want to check with Jerry and your dealer to be sure what your options are.

stever500

I'll pass along your comments to her. She's getting the AWD so whether some have problems or not, that's what she's getting. It's pretty much a done deal at this point. She should be picking up the car soon (by Monday most likely).

Hasn't paid for it in full yet and it's got more than 50k miles by a hair so some of the options you listed wouldn't be available to her.

She may get an extended Lexus warranty. Stuff like this is only vaguely interesting to me at this point. I'm just happy to see her in such a nice, newer car. AWD problems? Oh well... hopefully she won't have any. Compared to the $3000-$5000 a year I spend on both my cars (they EACH cost this much to repair), repairs to her Lexus I would imagine being less than this.

Yeah... hooray... a nice, newish car. Yahooooooo! She's soooooooo pleased and she doesn't even own it yet.

RandyV

I look forward to the updates after she gets the car.

No whining when she won't let you drive it, Steverino.

stever500

Ha ha... I sure hope she'll want me to drive it a lot. In fact, when I visit her on the weekends I'm bringing my 911 which isn't that comfortable for 2 people so she'll want to ride in her car.

These are the pics the salesmen sent me from his phone before we even looked at the car. She's taking delivery on Tuesday eve. Really awful pics, but it's all I have for now.









So glad she didn't get a beige interior that's hard to keep clean when it's muddy out. Yeah!


I wish this was the car being delivered instead, though... Damn I'd look good in this baby.


I would have had to sell my 96 911 to get a LS460 of my own so this is a cool thing with her getting one.


Gratuitous 911 pic - I'd hate to part with my "baby"