you guys are making me want to toss my 99 for an 03...STOP IT


that interior is beautiful!

 

DBOX wat up bro!

 

haha, whats the deal man?

so did u decide to get the GS? i hope so man, it's the better car for sure!

 

Hey guys...about to get back into the Lexus mode here. Had a 99 GS 300 that I bought new and sold after 3 years for a 96 Impala SS. Let me advise...Never go from a Lexus to a Chevy. What was I thinking? Anyway, local Lexus dealer I have been dealing with will give me an 03 GS Sport Design, Nav/Lev for $1700 over invoice. Haven't exactly figured out my cost yet but wanted to know what others have been paying? Since I have had about 5 black cars it's time for something different so I think it is going to be White with the Saddle interior. Looks pretty awesome in this combo! Dealer has two identical ones in stock, plus a black and grey one without the Nav/Lev.

Might be getting it VERY soon so I will keep you posted. Is this a good deal? What does everybody think of the white/saddle combo? Is the Nav system user friendly?? How does the Levinson system sound...it sounds awesome in the SC430 but I dont' think I have heard it in the GS. I don't need to test drive the car...sat in it and knew it was for me, since I had a 99...this one just felt like it was 'right".

Anyway....comments, thoughts, suggestions???

 

How much is the invoice ?
You can pm me if posting that price is "forbidden"...
Just curious... thanks....

 

Coming from an LS43, I feel the GS3 SportDesign:
(+) fun to drive , especially with the E-shift
(+) excellent brakes
(-) underpowered
(+) turns much flatter than my car
(-) but harsher on rough road surface
(+) Lexus nav easy to use
(+) ML sounds great , on GS3 they even put a center speaker on the dash (even LS43 doesn't have center speaker)
I pm'd you about the price.
Good luck...

 

I just love the stock Euro-tuned sport suspension system. It handels a lot better than regular GS3's.

 

Gewe..

yyou can go to www.carsdirect.com adn find out both invoice and "regional" prices on any car..well, almost any car

 

I've been quoted $38,223 for a new 2003 GS300 SD. This is the invoice price for the vehicle as configured. This is without the NAV. Didn't know that the LEV came with the NAV... Maybe you're paying a premium for adding the NAV?

I agree that the white/saddle looks awesome. Anyone who has seen this combo on the SC430 knows how great it looks. I looked at a black/saddle and white/saddle side-by-side and decided to go with black instead, though (will be my 4th black car ). Just looked a little more like my style, but to each their own, of course. Good luck.

 

NAV and LEV are always packaged together. I used to own an '01 GS300, and the dealers never offered one without the other. Also, the LEV system sounds great in the GS.

Re: the saddle/black interior, I now have an SC430 with that combo and I never get tired of it. The interior blows me away every time! The GS saddle leather is actually a little bit nicer because it's perforated. I'd say go for it!

 

I had the Nakamichi in my 99 GS300 and I thought it sounded great. Is the CD player/changer still the cartridge type in the glove box or have they at least done a single slide in type? I have test driven the LS400, LS 430 (used) a GS 430, and a used SC430. I keep going back to the GS300. Even though it is due for a restyle the current one is aging well and will continue to do so. Plus this car just seems to "fit" me right. For those that have the Nav system....can you turn the screen completely off and does it have a night mode that changes the intensity of the screen?

As far as the LS430 and SC, both great cars but I can't help but notice that the LS is really, REALLY an isolation chamber. Didn't like the fact that pretty much every control for the radio and heating and A/C is controlled on the touch screen for the Nav. Car feels like it is riding on glass...which is great, but I like at least a little road feedback when I drive. SC was awesome but I just can't justify spending that much on a basically two seater car. The dealer let me take one for a weekend to try out and yes, it turns heads, drives awesome, Levinson sound system betters my home stereo etc etc...but....insurance costs are kind of high and the fact that I live in Seattle would mean top up most of the time too.

 

To be perfectly clear, the GS SportDesign leather is perforated whether you choose saddle or black.

 

It is the same on the GS w/ Nav / ML.
Basically, for A/C: driver & passenger temp, air circulation have separate control buttons outside nav. Other than that: fan speed, a/c direction all in the nav.

For audio, ASL, radio station preset memory, equalizer, balance/fader control are in the nav.
Volume control, seek / disc change, radio station change, and audio source have special buttons outside nav.

Just imagine you're flying a Boeing 777 with its full glass cockpit compared to Cessna with all the analog buttons and gauges. :P

 

I think Lexus would be wise to roll that suspension into '04 as a Sport option on the G3, maybe including 17" wheels. It's probably too much to expect a 20 hp boost but the car needs it (badly!). It would also be decent to see the Saddle interior offered in the G4 next year or maybe a G4 SportDesign trim upgrade? Since the BMW 5-Series is a new style for '04, Lexus needs to jazz up the GS series to compete until the '05 redesign. And how about bringing back the E-Shift in the G4? I just hope the Lexus brass doesn't consider '04 to be a "hold on" year for the GS.

SC

 

I am EXCITED!! About to go take delivery of a new GS 300 SD White/Saddle/Nav/Lev!

I will be back to post more very soon.

Whoo Hoo.

Ken