decision

ES300, 2002 with 170K needs minimum of $2,500 work including control arm and cooling system service, power steering service, replace hose. Then will need tires.

whooodat

iTrader: (4)

Do you have the breakdown of the $2500 quote, assuming its from a Lexus dealer? This will help a lot for other CL's to give you some advice as well.

Do you love the car? Did you want to keep it longer? I just had to make this decision on my 98 ES 246k; it had a blown head gasket they quoted $2400 to fix (plus it was like opening Pandora's box) which was worth more than the car. I ended up selling the car and bought a 2008ES.

If your handy with tools you can do the suspension, coolant flush, power steering service yourself to save cash.
Suspension Coolant Flush https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...ns-needed.html
Power Steering Flush

ArmyofOne

I do all my own work, so that wouldnt scare me off. In fact im doing this job on my es now:






my ES has the same mileage and is the same year.

decision

Whooodat,
Unfortunately, at our age, my husband and I are not able to engage in DIY. The dealer quote was much higher, so this is from an automotive shop. Thanks for your info, I believe we will sell.
Too bad Armyofone who replied and has the same model doesn't live next door. lol

thanks to both of you.
decision

NikS

If I was you I would pay for the repairs and keep the car! The Lexus ES is a great car and will last you many many more miles

JeremiahCo

You could easily get a lot more than 170k out of that car. I would say do the work. If it needs all that work it will be hard to sell. You would lose the dollar amount of the work on the lower price you would have to sell it for anyways.

RXGS

iTrader: (2)

decision

JerimiahCo, 100852 my husband and I have been 'discussing' this point. You are correct, much as I don't like it.

ArmyofOne

This.
Here is the rub. If you like the car and it has otherwise been good to you, i say keep it. The devil you know... try to find an indie shop that can do the work cheap, or a family member, friend from church, whatever. If I lived close I would just do it for you but I am in NE TX. I understand not being physically able to do the job, as I really can only do a bit at a time myself, but dont think for a second that you couldnt do this if not for the physical setbacks. Its really just a few bolts holding it all together. Nothing more.

ArmyofOne

Old struts
Reassembly with new parts
Waiting on parts for the rear.


In reality, if I wasnt waiting on parts, and didnt have a bad back, i could probably do all of this in under 5 hours.

decision

Dear Army of one,
What a generous offer, almost worth moving to Texas. lol Thanks!

I am waiting for a more detailed quote and will share what I have learned from all of you. And keep you posted.

acarapella

Hey Decision,

Both places I have lived - Rochester NY and Boca Raton FL have had independent shops that specialize in Toyota/Lexus. The one here is preferable to the dealer, as its a handful of gentlemen that are Toyota lexus enthusiasts and love what they do, for substantially less of a labor rate. They are typically faster, too. Point is, look into that where you live. Maybe you'll find someone.

On a side note, cars are terrible investments, that is, they depreciate and cost money, the opposite of appreciate and pay dividends. If you get a newer car, you'll have problems with that one too.... I am not saying 100% don't, but if you love your ES, find someone to do the work.

acarapella

Also, physical setbacks... perhaps power tools can help? Army of One is right, its not complicated. I am 30 and in good shape... I have thanked God often lately for that, because in the last 12 months I've done easily $7500 in Lexus/Honda dealer repairs on our cars for peanuts compared to that... there is no way we'd be on the road if I couldn't have done it all... we are a one income family of 4 trying to get bye. just last night was both front axels on our Odyssey. Even at 30 years old, my whole body is sore and I am exhausted. Doing it outside, on the ground in 25f weather is a bit harder on me than it would've been ten years ago

ArmyofOne

In my opinion (I wouldn't call myself an expert but I buy and sell more cars than the average guy), it is almost always better to fix what you have than to start with something different if the car has otherwise been reliable.

Some cars are just problem children and need to be gotten rid of, but in most cases, cars of this age don't make it to this age if they are. When buying an older used car, I always shoot for 1-2 owners, no more. If the car has changed hands more than that, chances are people have gotten sick of fixing it over and over. The good news is parts are cheap and plentiful for our cars. Don't spend money on Lexus parts unless it is sensor/computer/emissions related. If its just suspension, you can't justify the cost on something this old, unless its an LS or like an IS-F or something.

decision

Army of One, and others who replied,
Detailed quote from independent garage, over the next 3 years, $7,500 worth of maintenance and it will be 'like new'.
vs. sell after minimum repairs and look for a 2013 Toyota Avalon.
We ran the numbers and they come out the same after 5 years, barring something unforeseen.
FYI... We will be 80 this year. But not ready to be 'old'. :-)

I appreciate all the advice and welcome any more while we continue to ponder this.