Hello, I recently came across an 06 gs430 with 169k miles for $4,000. The price seems fair but I was hoping for some insight as to any issues i should be on the look out for as I'm not at all familiar with this generation of GS. I'm a bit worried as generally the first year of any vehicle tends to have some issues. Is this the case with this car? Also, is there any upcoming maintenance I should be aware of given the mileage? I asked about the water pump which i believe is due at 180k but the seller says it has already been replaced. I apologize if any of this info is easy to come across on the web but I plan to meet tomorrow so I dont have much time to do thorough research on this vehicle.

 

 

I have owned 2 of the 06 GS430's , lovely cars, with the exception of a few items 1) HVAC drain frequently clogs up allowing to flood the front and rear floor boards, there have been several tech bulletins issued, whether or not you receive assistance depends upon your relationship with the local dealers.. Front rotors frequently warp, it is usually cheaper to buy new ones , rather than turning, only use ceramic pads. 2) my 2nd car at 175K, suddenly has started hard down shifting from 2 to 1, one dealer said it was a bad transmission, another said it could be an issue with the ECM, since in some cases replacing or rebuilding transmission, did not correct issue even after dealer flashing the ECM..Still investigating it before spending $3500 or more on a reman, rebuild or junk yard transmission, only lites are the ABS, VGSL and VSC. 3) production year 2005 for 06 model has issue with rear wheel bearings failing prematurely.. Autozone has a list of 20+ recalls and tech bulletins on this car. Best Damn Highway Car, ever made

 

 

The GS 430 is an overbuilt, overengineered car that can last decades if maintained. I am fortunate to have a 40K mile, loaded GS430 that has been in my family since day one. Great car.

 

u won't regret it. my 06 gs430 is 173k miles. still running strong.

 

Since no one has said it...

Make sure the following few has been serviced, and the car isn't running rough:

-Timing belt (yes, 3uz still uses timing belts....)
-Spark plugs
-Trans Fluid
-Diff Fluid
-Water pump not leaking (you should see pink residue in the engine bay on the engine's water pump if it is, I haven't had any issues with mine's, but my car's been maintained by dealer w/ all the needed necessities).

That's about it (or as far as I can think).

GL and enjoy!

 

OP you can do this yourself if you make a profile at the Lexus Owners site. Just enter the VIN as one of your cars, and you can access the history. It is free.

drivers.lexus.com/lexusdrivers

Your Mileage May Vary here. Neither of my local Lexus dealers would do a prepurchase inspection, when I asked by phone, for any price. (Twin Cities, MN) I ended up finding an independent Toyota/Lexus shop for that, and they won my business in the bargain.

 

Thank you to everyone who weighed in. I apologize for the delayed response but to give an update heres what happened. I was ready to buy buy but when I got there the seller didn't have the title. Obviously, I had to pass on it and continue my search. I just purchased a 1998 GS400 with lower miles for half the price of the 430 and so far I love it. Despite this, I still greatly appreciate all of the advice and may one day use it if I decide to upgrade.

 

 

It made the 70 mile drive home with no issues other than a slight vibration in the steering wheel. I'm quite certain this is due to a flat spot on the tires though as they are heavily worn and the vehicle has been sitting for almost a year. I plan to look for a used set of eom or aftermarket wheels with good tires sense I'm not a huge fan of the original rims this car has and this option probably wont cost much more than if I were to go to a shop and have all the tires replaced. On the bright side, there are no codes, an upgraded Pioneer FH-P8000BT stereo display (which I cant figure out how to pair my phone to for the life of me), the engine and transmission seem healthy as could be, and the interior is in amazing condition for a 20 year old car. So far I love the car but keep in mind I am coming from that abomination parked behind it so to me the GS feels like a rolls in comparison.

 

 

Thanks! I do love the color. Thats strange, did you ever figure out what was causing the vibration in yours? Like yours, the vibration begins around 60 mph for but continues to worsen as I increase speed. I drove home going 60 most of the way because the vibration is hardly noticeable at that speed but have yet to take mine much above 70 because the vibration did not seem to be lessening.

 

 

If the vibration persists after new wheels are installed I definitely will post in that forum. Any recommendations as to what size wheels would be best suited for this car? Most wheels I come across are 18 or 19 inches. While I'm certain a 19 inch wheel with the correct bolt pattern and offset would fit, how would a wheel this much larger than stock affect performance? Obviously the ride would be rougher but that is not a major concern for me. Does anyone know how a 17, 18, or 19 inch wheel would affect acceleration, top speed, or mpg compared to the stock 16s?