Hi,
Here is a little bit of background about me:
I bought a 2002 IS300 in December of 2005. I enjoyed driving it so much. Went to test drive the IS350 two weeks later and ended up driving it out of the lot (Talk about purchasing on a whim). I am in love with the car, but I can't help but drool at what Lexus has in store for their AMG/M3 killer.

I have been a 'lurker' absorbing so much useful information from this site ever since I got my IS350 and I felt it was time to introduce myself to this friendly society and ask this question:

Let's say I want to get the IS480 or IS500 (whatever it will eventually be called), it is supposed to be due out by the end of 07 as far as the rumor mill goes. To finance the car I intend to use the IS350 (it will be fully paid for by that time) as trade-in (I am hoping to get 36K either by trade-in or selling to third parties) and finance the rest (supposedly the IS480/500 is around 50K or so). Is it financially sound to actually keep driving the IS350 in the mean time? Or would the car retain more value if I garage it with it's current mileage (7.1K miles roughly) and drive a $2,000 to $4,000 beater in the mean time? My point of view is spending money on a temporary beater, and reducing my insurance by defining the IS350 as the 'weekend car' I come out slightly ahead. Any advice?

Thanks,

 

I don't know what option your IS350 has, but IMO I don't really think your car will worth $36K by the end of 07 or early of 08. You can get a brand new barebone IS350 for maybe $39K.

And for the "weekend car", I will say it depends on your insurance company.

 

I say just drive it. Life is too short.

 

If that's your plan then sell the car now and drive a beater until the IS500 comes out. It's just going to go down in value the longer you keep it. Right now the market is still good for a used IS350. But maybe when the IS500 comes out there will be allot of people who will want to trade up and the market will go down.

Just my opinion and I have bought and sold quite a few Lexus.

 

Mod your IS350 to the IS480/500s performance level and save some coin.

 

I agree with al503. Just drive it. EOY is a long ways off and there's no guarantee it'll be out then.

Edit - sorry misread that; end of 07, not 06. In that case I definitely say drive it. 1.5 years of an IS is alot of fun

 

I don't think the IS500 wil be $50k either, my bet sticker will be ~$60k. I mean, add Stoptech, forged 19's, a body kit, and suspension to a 350 and you are out 10k right there.

 

Not gonna happen. If you had ZERO miles on it and garaged it right now, you wouldn't get 36K for it... Remember, there will be NEWER IS350's out ('07's and '08's) that will retail for that much, as has already been mentioned.
I wouldn't count on that, and that's IF you'll be able to get one - getting a 350 was hard when they were first released, and even now you have to do some searching to get exactly what you want.
It's not financially sound to drive ANY car. My advice to you would be to drive it - the IS480/IS500/ISF is rumored to be forthcoming, but no one knows for sure if it will be. Enjoy your car. We have to stop thinking of cars an 'investments,' and think of them instead as 'expenses.' As for the insurance question, you'll have to contact your insurance company because the rating factors differ greatly from company to company, and even more so from state to state.

Javier

 

I don't think $50K is that far out of the question. Base 350: $36. Add $14,000 for the bigger engine, brakes, suspension. I do agree that with typical options, it will probably be closer to $55-$60K.

 

It's not out of the question, but I would say that it is unlikely... Consider that an M3 retails for a full $20,000 over a fully loaded 330i... If we were to use the same logic (remember that the MSRP will be more than just the cost of parts - there's 'cache' and 'prestige' involved), adding only $14,000 to a fully loaded IS350 (for which the MSRP is around $44-46,000) brings us to $60,000 on the dot.

Javier

 

330 sedan starts at about $36.6K base MSRP without destination. M3 starts at $48,900 base MSRP without destination. You also have to remember that a bimmer coupe is usually $2K more than the sedan. Therefore, 330 coupe would be closer to $38.8 compared to the M3 coupe at $48.9

I'm not sure where you're getting the $20K difference.
So if a fully loaded 500 is going to be $60K, then it should be fairly easy to find the 500 with typical options somewhere in the $50's.

 

Oops, I was looking at the M3 convertible, not the coupe... Regardless, I still used your $14,000 figure to estimate the price, not my $20,000... $44-45,000 + $14,000=$59-60,000. Also, remember we're talking about BASE MSRP here - a fully loaded M3 Coupe (not convertible) has an MSRP of $58,000+, and actually SELLS for that much. I have no idea how many 'options' Lexus would offer on a car like this, as it would in all likelihood be extremely rare. Anyway, I'll stop speculating for now...

AAAANNNNYYWAY - I think the OP can see where we're going with this - don't try to play the numbers game. Drive your car, because none of us know what's coming (or how much it's going to cost )

Javier

 

you'll need to go back and redo your finances to see what works out best for you. the key in this situation is to minimize the amount of financial loss and come up with something you can live with. obviously your best choice is to sell the car today, buy a beater, and invest the difference so that you can best afford the is500.

i don't know how your insurance plays a part in all this, i've never heard of already low insurance going down any further just because you don't drive it. but anyway, i can tell you this. if you have to go thru all these kinds of iterations just to figure out if you can get into a car, you need to think twice about whether you can really afford to get into one. your entire financial portfolio plays a role, not just your car finances.

 

How about a freindly compromise and we can say $55k?

 

So let me summarize:
* IS500 will be roughly around/at least $60,000 as best as the educated guesses out there.
* The IS350 will constantly depretiate on time basis, and wear and tear --> Today is as high as I am going to sell it.
* Expecting $36,000 is way too ambitious for the IS350.
* Carpe diem and enjoy what I have.
* Converting to reduced insurance may not significantly reduce cost.
* Bottom line, owning a car is bleeding money.

Thanks folks, this was very informative... I wonder how I will react when I see the new IS500. If there is a significant boost in horse power, along with some nice extra features inside I just may take the plunge and pick her up. In the mean time I will continue to enjoy driving my IS350!

Regards,