I searched but found nothing, so forgive me if I am asking a stupid question.

I am interested in getting a first gen GS (or possibly ES) but I would like to enter my search well informed. Besides the normal things (brakes, timing belts, etc) what should I be checking when I look at GSs'?

Are there any problem areas?

Both the ES and GS use the same v6 from the camry right?

What is the service interval on the timming belt? At what mileage does other major service occur?


THANKS!

 

The 1st Gen GS300 has a 2jzge engine which is the same one in the toyota supra non-turbo.

some tips based on my experience:
make sure you check all your windows and see if they go up and down. My passenger window will only go up if I use the driver's master window control. the passenger window control will only make it go down( I'm going to fix it this weekend). make sure all the interior lights are working too, if its a burnt bulb you can replace it, but if you're like me and have a bulb holder broken.... I'm not too upset because I'm going to convert all my interior lights to LED, but other wise it would be a pain in the ***. Also check all the fake wood paneling for cracks and fading and to see if its about to come off (unless you hate fake wood and are going to redo that paneling)

For the vehicle service history see if the seller and privious owners have been taking it to a lexus dealership, lexus will have complete service history in their computers. Other wise I would want to have proof of the most recent servicing 30,000/60,000/90,000/120,000 miles etc... or have them do the servicing before buying it if it is due for one.

 

Ok , depending what's been done previously, here's the common problem areas for a 100,000 + mile GS300.

Engine and Tranny mounts, should be replaced at 80,000, most times aren't.
Power steeering pump, look for signs of leakage or seepage around the pulley shaft.
Distributor o ring, look for signs of oil or dirt around the base of the distributor
Oil sender unit, look for signs of oil leaking or seeping around it on the driver side
Radiator has plastic top and bottoms tanks, almost everyones has cracked around 100,000 miles
Tranny fluid should be pink and not stink
look for oil leakage or seepage around the valve covers
Check power steering rack for smooth turning from side to side, loook at fluid color as well
check brake fluid to see if it has been changed at some point as well

First thing you do when you get your GS3 is dump a can of sea foam in the tank.

 

I didn't know that about the engine mounts! thanks turbo!

 

Good stuff so far, thanks.

The power steering thing seems to be a common problem for all lexus models. This seems like a pretty straightforward repair on the non-transverse mounted engines, so should this be a good place to look to get a deal on a "damaged" car?

 

Imo the ES body looks like *** the gs is way cleaner looking,goodluck there are some clean gs here in texas but most are ragged out and overpriced