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Oct 15, 2014 | 12:30 PM

dkorean

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Driver School Candidate

Joined: Oct 2014

Posts: 3

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From: CA

Need your lexus wisdom people!

I am looking for a 2ndary car that I can drive for around 10-months to a year.

Long story short, I came across a beautiful 2000 Lexus GS300. Naturally, I was in love.

There is some baggage though... This is where you guys come in!

She has 230k + miles but she can be mine for only around $2k

Here are my thoughts:

1. Well this is a Lexus/Toyota so it just might be a great car to experiment with.
2. Only a car that has been well maintained can still be running smoothly after 230k mi.
3. Its either this or a old honda/toyota with lower mileage but looks like it didn't get the TLC it deserved..!

Any input will be appreciated!

-David

Oct 15, 2014 | 01:29 PM

offbad

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From: CA

pics or this thread is useless.

Oct 15, 2014 | 01:30 PM

monkey92

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From: texas

i picked up a 98 gs300 with 230k miles couple of months ago and replaced all seal and valve cover gasket. it runs smooth and it is still strong other then the fact that i just got a running lean code today. but it runs good for a daily. as long as your is well maintained i think you should be alright. 2000 is also what i paid for mine. but you should also get it checked out by a trusted mechanic.

Oct 15, 2014 | 01:39 PM

dkorean

Thread Starter

Driver School Candidate

Joined: Oct 2014

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From: CA

Quote:

Originally Posted by monkey92

Thank you for this input! I am really torn and scared because of the mileage. I'll go for a test drive and report back!

Oct 15, 2014 | 01:40 PM

dkorean

Thread Starter

Driver School Candidate

Joined: Oct 2014

Posts: 3

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From: CA

Quote:

Originally Posted by offbad

pics or this thread is useless.

I'll take pics when I go check out/test the car.

Oct 15, 2014 | 06:47 PM

JLAWS

Racer

Joined: Jul 2004

Posts: 1,549

Likes: 218

From: Massachusetts

For a $2000 beater car, I'd go for the Toyota Camry or Corolla or Honda Accord or Civic. I'd lean toward the Toyota since the older ones had a non interference engines ( no concern if the timing belt breaks). Maintenance cost is low for either brand and they are pretty reliable.
I could see you spending another $2000 in a short period of time to straighten out the GS00.

P.S I have a 1994 Toyota Camry that I have owned for 5 years. It has 210K miles on it. One of the best cars I have owned and I never plan to get rid of it. Best $650 I have ever spent!!!!

Oct 16, 2014 | 02:03 AM

angus

Lexus Test Driver

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From: WA

Also you should know that there are a list of items that will (or will have already have) gone wrong and could cost you big -

If you are only driving it for 10 mos. it could take you that long to get all the stuff fixed!

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Oct 18, 2014 | 07:38 PM

ttaylor993

Pole Position

Joined: Oct 2013

Posts: 300

Likes: 6

From: TN

There are some things you can check. I'd want a copy of the service history from Lexus.com. The current owner should be able to get that for you. You also might want to get a Carfax report. While not perfect they can be informative and contain info not on the Lexus report. Items that tend to be problematic on this car are the lower ball joints and outer tie rod ends, the VVT-i pulley and the door actuators. Even though it does have an interference motor, breaking timing belts are extremely rare so I wouldn't consider that a significant factor. All and all these are pretty durable cars. Relative to the number of miles that you CAN put on these cars with regular maintenance, 230k miles is not that much. There are plenty on this forum with over 300k miles.

Last edited by ttaylor993; Oct 18, 2014 at 07:41 PM.