considering a 98 LS
 

it's only a G note of course there's something wrong with it. Maybe look for lower mileage/ higher price LS with less problem?...

i'd be more worried about the engine and the transmission being good, rather than the power steering.
Sometimes power steering fixes can be as simple as getting the old fluid out of the system and getting fresh ATF in there.

My 98 was at 281k when I sold it , engine and transmission were fine.
Same with the 99 I daily right now with 250k on it.
The 98-00's are great.

Owners of these cars, at that price point, probably have not maintained the car much at all. If you go up a little bit in price you can find something with the essential stuff done and hopefully some maintenance history. Plus the 99 & 00 cars have a couple cooler features than the 98's :D

$1k for a LS400 may be a gamble, but sometimes you get lucky and find a good one for that price.

I would say it depends on if you are capable of fixing things yourself. A possibly run down LS400 will cost a fortune to "correct" if you have someone else doing the work.

No service records means car wasnt serviced.These,not serviced,are cars with a lot of expensive issues.Constant theme on here......

How much extra money and time do you have? Any used car will require both of those items to get it up to decent standards for most people. Don't expect to pay $1k and drive it for a year or 2 and not do anything to it. The hope is, you're getting a car that's better than $1k. And with a little more money and time added, it would be a nice daily for you. Why are you buying it and what are your expectations?
If you're not comfortable doing your own repairs, or have money set aside to do the same, then not sure you should be looking at older cars.

These cars can handle high miles easily with proper maintenance. It's the only model I would consider buying with that many miles. The key is finding ones with a complete set of service records. You can take the VIN to a Lexus dealer and see if they have any service records for it. If the major maintenance has been done then I'd recommend you take to Lexus for a pre-purchase inspection. Be sure to specify "pre-purchase" inspection. I had this done on mine and the report was very thorough and included video footage of things that were found.

$1,000 for a well maintained solid LS400 could be a very good find. You know it will need some work. Find out what needs to be done now and what can wait a bit then do the math. Once in good running order the LS400's can be anvil reliable.

Good luck and let us know what you decide.

John

FYI - you can go to Lexusdrivers.com and register your VIN on there and create an account and it will show you any past service history performed at the dealer, and you can input your own maintenance as well !

I had to pay 6k for mine. 98' 120k miles, all service done at Lexus dealership, timing belt replaced, CLEAN. There's a reason why it was on the more expensive range of prices for this car.

https://imgur.com/a/7HG0U

If you're looking at a car that's 1k... then I'd be really questioning on what kind of work was put off. I wouldn't be surprised if there are mechanical gremlins, suspension age, transmission age, etc from not being maintained fully.

My car had zero mechanical issues. None. Every light, button and electrical function worked 100%.

Tread carefully at that pricepoint when buying from someone who a) didn't dealer service it or b) didn't OCD maintain it. There's a reason why it's only 1k...

And its a beauty.I think you did fine,it fit your budget and you can look good and feel good getting there reliably for another 150,000 miles easy.Almost any other car is really showing its age hard when it hits 150,000.

I love my 98 LS400, but keep this in mind. The timing belt and water pump should have been changed at about 150k miles. The power steering pump and alternator should be changed at 175k miles. I have had mine for 18 years, and I am beginning to see that the car has reached it's self life. If you can get one that has been garage kept the entire life you might get a longer self life. I am noticing the signs of age that lends for ghosts in the machine. Things like old brittle wiring connections, old sensors, relays, computer capacitors are all things that have a self life. These things can cause problems that require lots of time and skills reading voltages and the like. Like many owners at around 200k miles there is a series of major maintenance jobs that if you survive those challenges you can get another 200k miles out of it. However, we are all new to the 20 year mark on these vehicle and I gamble age will cause a lot of problems.

Scraape,how do you input your own work,I cant find that.Thanks.