97-SC300

iTrader: (17)

That's silly...

That would mean Lexus would have NO CPO program at all in the salt belt states. Every single Japanese car/truck looks like that after a year or two up here.

yakim

What's silly is defending someone who refuses to properly re-condition a car sold as a CPO, be it in the salt belt state or in Alaksa

Chocolate

The rust looks slightly excessive BUT at the same time from the dealer's perspective, they can't afford to set aside every car with rust. It's the type of thing that gets addressed if a customer is unhappy. Most won't look under the car.

RXGS

iTrader: (2)

Thats completely normal for a car from up north. Since you are in Atlanta, I doubt it will get any worse, so your best bet is to leave it alone.

dicer

Funny I have 20 plus year old cars with nothing that bad. I guess the pursuit of perfection died the day garbage paint was used. I bet there are no 2013 Boeing planes with that kind of corrosion. And really the areas of rust are defiantly not prepped or painted correctly, what is the country of manufacture?

hankinid

The northwest isn't even remotely close to the northeast and central Atlantic states when it comes to rust.

Apples and oranges on the cars and planes thing...aircraft have required periodic inspections by an FAA licensed mechanic. FAA visits airline maintenance people and may crawl around aircraft to verify compliance. I'd guess corrosion as in OP's truck would have been caught and repaired well before a C-check.

Aircraft definitely do corrode...check out the cargo hold of a plane that round-trips from SFO to Anchorage 6 days a week with a full load of salmon.

coolsaber

1) If there are visible holes in the cat system then thats an issue that should be checked out. No rust or rust, emission warranties are suppose to cover them for at least more then normal powertrain warranty. I`d get that checked out.

2) Superficial rust is just that. Remove rust, treat the parts and then apply sealant to prevent it in the future. Cars in the rust belt rust. No way around it. Maintain it well, and most likely the rust will only be an issue 2 decades from build date. Right now you wont see any ill effects. But even with rust these things are quite robust. (althought I know that wont resolve fears in you head right now)

3) For the future, remember that CPO, New anything a business offers you PLEASE READ BEFORE YOU HAND OVER THE $$$. In a business transaction, theres the buyer and then theres the seller. The seller wants your money at all costs, and the buyer wants the most for his or her money at the least cost. So inspect the crap out of a contract. In addition, just cause your local used car dealer is also a lexus dealer, does not mean they are somehow different from your run of the mill used car lots or buy here pay here type of operation. Just like you would inspect a Craigslist ad car from a private 3rd party, carfax, inspect on ramps you do the same here as well. Dont let the suit, the name plate, and the expensive showroom fool ya, its a used car being sold in a used car lot, by a used car salesman.

hankinid

No disagreement. Service can be extremely competent at one dealer, and deer-in-the-headlights at another. You're lucky if you can find a good indy specialist in Toyota products within a reasonable driving distance.. I've got one in Boise and one of the mechanics specializes in Cruisers and LX's in all vintages.

I bought my Cruiser sight unseen...flew up, wrote a check, drove home. Dealer's service guy gave me a printout of all services performed by Toyota or Lexus shops since new. 2 days later I took it to LTS Motors in Boise for a post-pre-purchase-inspection. An hour and $100 later they reported no issues, noted fresh rotors and pads all around, and told me to dump the Michelin OEM tires as they may be "scary" in the winter.

Carfax may be incomplete...e.g., I get into wreck, replace the crumpled fender myself, and get a buddy to paint it. No insurance involvement, no Carfax. Same with PO doing diy maintenance...anything the seller claims was maintained or repaired is in the BS category until you see documentation.

coolsaber

oh of course I have seen the carfax being clean and then car being water damaged or some unreported damage. Thats why Its really important to also go and take it an non-seller related shop, put it on the lift, inspect the records and see if they match up.

To share an experience, my CA at BMW at lease end for my e65 lci told me he could make me an awesome offer if I should choose to keep that car. He`d simply lease return, then CPO certify, and sell it back to me all in about a weeks time, as CPOing isnt too hard to do, just gotta check the boxes for the 100 point inspection He gets a sale, I would get my car back plus the CPO benefits all is well.

Same thing with my buddy at Lexus. Usually the vehicles they CPO are the ones that pretty much come in clean, and only a little work is required. If the car runs, stops, and operates as normally they could care less about a rust inspection or any nick nack service points the CPO lists (so long the customer cannot see it). The vehicles that are in need of repair or in bad shape get sent out to auction, unless they have a huge earning potential, ie LX570 with slight driver front damage. They repaired it, and sold it near what a regular non damage history 570 sold for.

Lexus CPO is a marketing scheme, dont mistake it for something else. However what I`d say is that in the CPO programs that do exist, Lexus CPO is probably one of the best if not the best.

dicer

Since 2 cars I have originated from Chicago I can compare, there is no apples to oranges when it comes to proper painting and corrosion prevention and that is the main topic here. I was sarcastically saying the Boeing plane thing, because they have no special regulations for the coatings for them, how come the big rich boys toys can have the best protection and us pee ons get the crap? That is the main point I'm trying to convey.

T4Fun

this is apparently very common on toyota BOF vehicles.
My first gx had it after only 3 months.
2nd gx i sprayed fluid film underneath when i bot it brand new and no rust or corrosion after 2 years in salty winter conditions.



https://www.clublexus.com/forums/gx-...-gx-460-a.html

T4Fun

always always look under a car when buying it for corrosion issues. Never buy a car in winter.

hankinid

No disagreement about painting and rust prevention.

The "big rich boys' toys have tons of regulations on coating the skin of an aircraft. Generally, requirements cover surface prep, pre-primer treatment, priming, and painting.

Aircraft that fly without paint have skins of "alclad" aluminum. Meaning structural aluminum alloys with a coating of pure aluminum as an anti-corrosion measure. Motor vehicles are FAR cheaper than aircraft...maybe that's the difference.

Chocolate

Good to hear. I sent back the POR-15 before using it in favor of Fluid Film, since you can use the FF everywhere including fasteners. I went with the aerosol (~12 bucks online) for ease of application.

dicer

What I meant is they use the best of the best for paint. Not water base garbage paint. And same when a bridge gets painted or a ferry boat, or anyother large expensive ship, all military vehicles etc. Garbage paint is just for our over priced transportation, us worker bees.