Johnhav430

Today is supposed to be a nice day, tomorrow all rain. So, I finally drove the BMW to work, haven't driven it since Dec.

Immediately, the brakes and steering are phenomenal, car is glued to the road, responds to every little movement of the wheel, brake pedal has barely any travel and is extremely firm. Oddly, the sport seats are very uncomfortable, feel like I'm sitting on a rock and something is grabbing me from the sides in my midsection. I feel big in this car too (3 series).

So to contrast with the LS430, no question it has a very smooth V8 and very smooth tranny (BMW is a stick). I kinda like the so called normally aspirated way of getting the torque. The steering is decent (not light like brand new cars), and I'd say the brakes need something more, maybe undersized for the car. It really doesn't handle at all, and imho wasn't designed to, and it is like driving on the road while sitting on your sofa. Once you're used to that, it's comfortable. It will be interesting to perhaps drive each car every other day, get used to the BMW again, and then see how they compare. I know apples to oranges....

tallcaguy

Hopefully, one of these days, you get to drive an 04-06 LS430 w/ Sports Suspension and good tires. Sure, it's still a big comfortable luxury car but the suspension is "active", there's a lot less body roll and it feels nailed to the road at high speeds.

Johnhav430

Yep, if I ever get another one I would prefer to get one with sport....never saw one for sale in person, though....

Today I drove the LS and once again it was comfortable like sitting on a sofa, a serious cruiser, smooth, no vibrations.....the steering is in no way loose nor is there any play, but the wheel is huge and it takes some movement to get the car to respond. My LS' wheel is perfectly centered and the BMW is off slightly a hair to the left--and it was done by BMW in August! Interesting, my buddy is having trouble finding anybody to align the Q5 except Audi--Firestone said they can't, and won't, and take it to the dealer! I think Firestone did a good job with my LS except the camber is -1.9 on the RR....

Can't wait to get the Rydanz Roadster 02's back on tomorrow and glue this bad boy to the road (unless my wife tells me I can't do them again this weekend)!

edit: this is what I've long suspected--the LS430's skidpad number is .73, my BMW is .87. I think my dad's Buick is .82, and that has a 111" wheelbase. So the handling is from another era....s550 is .87, 2016 GS350 F sport .85, 2013 LS 460 F Sport .83

http://www.caranddriver.com/comparis...s-ls430-page-7

edit 2 here's an article where they said they drove each suspension version of the LS430, standard, sport, and ultra....not a lot of detail, though....my curiosity is whether the difference with the sport is like a Maxima SE vs. Maxima GLE back in the day....because we're talking springs, bushings, shocks, still subtle...meaning that's what I would want...no question I'd try to get it next time...

http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/...ttitude-page-2

Legender

I've got the sport suspension on my 2004 and it certainly is a different ride. Moving up form the standard suspension in my 2002 it took a while to get used to the firmer ride. At first I did not prefer it. But I've gotten used to it now.
Each to their own I guess. When I get in the Lexus I want a nice luxurious ride for my road trip. If I want to grip the road and feel every crack in the concrete then I jump in the Miata.
I do confirm the sport suspension is different than the standard.

2KHarrier

I really believe the LS series is one of the best for long-distance commuting. I drove that Veloster for 3 months and every day after making my 70 mile commute, I got out of the car feeling like I got hit by a train. In the LS (even with 150K on it) it rides superbly and gives me decent mileage to boot.

John, your in a good place having 2 vastly different cars to choose from for your drives. Unfortunately, all I have to choose between is an old and soft LS430 and a newer and soft LS430...

Legender

2kharrier... too funny... can only choose between an LS430 and an LS430... most would love to have those choices.
Enjoy the rides..

Johnhav430

As late as the mid 90's, I had two choices--carpooling, or taking the bus. The scary part about that was I had a pager. So I'm on-call, and don't have a car. When I bought the 1998 Maxima, the salesman said, "Hey John, how'd you get here, on the bus?" He must have seen me get off and cross the street. March 2, 1998, what a proud day, my loaded Maxima SE 5-spd with leather and Bose. I distinctly remember being very satisfied with it, and also seeing a GS400 with a wing and thinking, dag that's unbelievable.

Daspyda

iTrader: (1)

Back in the early 90's, Nissan came out with a 4DSC designation for the Maxima - 4-door sports car. The SE with stick was a nice car.

However, that FWD and torque steer - blah!

Johnhav430

So true, just like here and on the BMW forum, there was always an ongoing debate, which was the best one? Many believe the 3rd gen which stopped 1994 was the best--mine lost the independent rear suspension which made no sense except to cut costs. In rain, no matter how easy I went on the clutch, the front tires wanted to slip. I heard in Canada, they got LSD even on manuals.

Ah...limited slip, have never had a car with that, hopefully someday.....(even my 1970 LeMans Sport lacked limited slip, that was a nice ride in 1990!)

NCUser

LS430 with sport suspension definitely does not have cushy ride that Lexus brand is famous for. I like how sport suspension is tuned. Neither hard and bouncy nor soft and leaning.

I wish LS430 had more low end torque but I will take less torque over turbo longevity. I like NA engines. One less item to go wrong.

My only complain about LS430 (and Japanese cars in general) is that brake pedal is soft (compared to E90). My car stops fine under all conditions, including emergency, and mechanics said everything is fine.

Thick and small sport steering wheel of e90 is something I will always miss. But LS430's steering wheel suits the car's image. Steering sharpness also suits the car. I would never call this car a barge.

Also It is not as quiet as I imagined a lexus would be but that may be due to 18" Uniroyal tires the car came with.

tallcaguy

I call it luxury firm. It's definitely not plush. However, still comfortable and it's a lot more stable on freeway ramps. I switched from 18's to 17's w/ new Michelin Premiers which softened the ride a little.

vfr700f2

My GF in the early-mid 90s had a 92 Maxima SE, 190 HP, 5-speed, limited slip diff. That was a sweet car! It won a Car & Driver comparison test, though I can't find a link to it. Enthusiastically-driven, it was really hard on front tires...

Here's a snip from C&D: Here's a link to an Orlando Sentinel test...

I'm thinking about looking at a really nice LS430 for sale without Sport suspension tomorrow. Maybe I can live with it. Maybe I'll add the Sport pieces. Maybe I'll keep looking for a Sport....

Johnhav430

I remember feeling excited my dad was going to get a Maxima in 1990, then he changed his mind. When I got mine, 205 ft. lbs. was decent. didn't it at some point make C&D's 10 Best? I just checked and yep it was 90, 95, and 96. Be interesting to think how many 10 Best cars has one owned, with the exception of the Accord, that's too easy. I've had 2. And I've only bought 4 new cars in my life. batting .500 lol

and as a crazy experiment I did not rotate new tires on my Maxima. The fronts were shot in 22k. comparing the wear and measuring it, this showed the fronts wear 3X faster than the rears on that car..