Im turning 17 soon & am planning on buying my first car in a year or so. Im looking to save 4000-5000 dollars before march next year To put money down on a 06-08 Lexus GS. Since i will be 18 i will be able to inance the rest on a 36 or 48 month loan. Im aware of higher interest rates too. As of now i drive my moms 07 Infiniti G35X. I also was thinking about an 07-09 Lexus RX350 but thats only if theres a big difference in insurance costs between the GS & RX. my question is, do i need to look out for anything with the GS? or should it be ok overall? (PLEASE DO NOT TELL ME TO BUY A HONDA OR TOYOTA)

 

Personally, I can't advise you to buy any 10-12 year old car if you can't buy it flat out. No one wants to make payments on a car that may have a repair that may cost more than the car is worth. These cars don't break often, and yes they are more reliable than germans, but parts are still expensive. As what to look out for, water pumps, struts/shocks, and 2006 300s have carbon buildup problems. More reports of transmissions going bad are coming out, but I think that has more to do with people really putting a lot of weight into the "lifetime fluid" thing. I'm sure there are other issues but those are the ones that come to mind. Not a super common problem, but I had a starter go and it cost me $700. Two weeks later, an O2 sensor is bad and the sensor alone cost me about $130.

 

the cars im looking at cost from 10-13 grand, i doubt i will run into a repair THAT expensive & as for buying out cash that was the original plan but i dont want to anymore, its not like im looking at long financing terms so im not worried about that, but thanks for your advice the transmission failures kinda put me off, i dont want to get one thats about to fail nor do i know how to identify a soon to be ruined transmission. so i think the RX350 is my best bet maybe... do you do your repairs at the Dealer?

 

Rx350 can have waterpump issues as well and leaking steering racks occasionally. Its also a a completely different car than a GS, not sure if you can really compare them. That being said my moms 2008 with 126k that we've owned since new has been pretty good, and yes I do for most things. For brakes or filters I do it myself, but for major repairs or oil changes, the dealer gets it. Surprisingly it's not that much more than my independent and in some cases it's cheaper, and when I bring it there I get a loaner and the money I pay can be used to my next purchase frol that dealer, they run a rewards program. As for the finances, you seem pretty dead set on doing it so you do you.

 

But overall the RX should be problem free right? i dont expect it to be problem free but no major issues? & lmao i realize that they are 2 different cars but im simply just looking for a nice, reliable, luxury car. Infiniti also has been on my radar especially the M35 but i dont like the ride handling of Infinitis & excessive power on my moms Infiniti. I feel tense in her car, im looking for something loose, Quiet & smooth so i decided on Lexus. Im looking to keep this car through many years of university.

 

If you just want something luxurious and reliable, you could probably find an 07-10 ES with a lot less miles for about the same price as a GS and those are nice if you just want a comfy luxury car, the 04-08 Acura TLs have gotten really cheap as well and those are good cars. If you really want a GS try to get a 350, or 430 or 460 if you can find one they're all reliable cars. Realize if you live where it snows that RWD can be a pain in the winter.

 

The transmission issues have been discussed here extensively, so if/when it comes time to take a GS for a test drive, read up on the usual symptoms and look out for them. When you find one that has a good tranny, be sure to change the fluid soon after you get it home since most owners don't (as 02SDGS said, a lot of people believe in the "lifetime" trans fluid, so most probably are still running with tranny fluid from the factory fill). As for maintenance, it's not bad at all. If you take care of the car, all you'll need is a new coolant pump every 80,000 miles, oil changes every 5000, and trans/differential fluid every so often. If you can do the maintenance yourself, the GS is extremely affordable. Wear and tear items (wheel hubs, brakes, shocks) aren't cheap if you get OEM parts, but they rarely need replacement so I wouldn't think they'd be a deal breaker. A member put around 300,000 miles on his GS350 in six years, and documented the repairs, maintenance, etc. in this thread: https://www.clublexus.com/forums/gs-...nd-issues.html

And as for the RX350, I doubt it'll be any more reliable than the GS350 since they have essentially the same engine (RX doesn't have direct injection though, as I recall)

 

I always loved the ES350 thats the car that made me fall in love with Lexus. But after extensive research i found that the car has a lot of cheap materials & rattles & have heard of many transmission issues. I was steering towards the ES350 & would of been satisfied with that but i heard of all the issues & it kinda forced me out of wanting one.

 

Sounds good to me, ive been praising Lexus & there build quality/reliability for a longgg time (Even tho ive heard quite a few issues as of lately regarding interior parts, rattles & leather etc) but im hoping whichever car i go with it will last me several years. But thanks for your advice! i will look at the link u provided, i heard of the older GS going over 300,000 miles but never heard the GS350's doing that much. So thats good to hear that there has been one.

 

I still think the ES350 is a good car for you to look into. Transmission flare issues, ignition coils and water pumps seemed to affect the earlier models. See if you can find an 09-11 ES350 with the bugs worked out.

I used to have an 05 ES330. I was always eyeing the 07-09 RX350 as my next car to upgrade to. After looking at several of them, every single one of them had a leaking steering rack. The interior was very similar to my ES, so all I was getting was a higher driving position and extra trunk space for what would have been $5000 more.
Insurance was cheaper but fuel consumption is higher. I did the calculation and the ES and RX will cost the same per year for the amount of kilometers I drove annually.

I settled on my 07 GS350. Your right, the interior quality in the GS is a much better than the ES350. I also get more power, RWD (no torque steer!) and more features for slightly less $ than an ES or RX of the same year would cost (in my market there's no demand for the GS so its cheaper). So far, I'm liking it.

 

If your looking to learn how to fix cars this might be a good opportunity. I learned on my old ls430. It'll keep most repair jobs low in terms of cost and not much break on Lexus.

If your not opposed to older style interiors might want to give the 01-06 ls430s a look or even the ls400s. Smooth, plenty of power, and quiet.

 

And the 3GS has plenty of creaks and interior noise. My 01 IS300 had less interior noises at 15yrs old, than my GS does.

 

^ would have to agree, my 2002 GS was a bank vault compared to my 3rd GS, until I put felt in certain areas around the dash and center console. Now it's silent

 

An older Ls, Gs or Sc are options for a young person. Your insurance rates are gonna be through the roof. Maybe look into a Nissan.

 

i would pay cash to do not finance , if you need to finace you cant afford it, just trying to save a head ache