New member and owner here. 05 LS430 UL. 148k miles. The timing belt and water pump will be due next year so I'm probably going to do spark plugs and serpentine belt while we're at it. Tires are 6 years old and will be replaced in the next week or two. While we're doing that I'm going to get the wheels powder coated Hyper Charcoal to mimic that early F Sport trend. I have some H&R 15/25mm spacers coming as well. The tint will need to be redone on the car due to poor installation. I also ordered a bunch of LED lights for car. The front bumper and passenger fender will need to be repainted and fixed due to some scratches and chips. The fog lights need to be addressed. Is there a JDM wiring harness available for the corner lights on the JDM units? I may get the hood done as well. Once all that is done I'm going to get it paint corrected and ceramic coated. I've seen the Vline box on Youtube and will probably add that later so I can get the new apps and retain steering wheel controls and backup camera. Question, is the factory bluetooth only for calls, or can I stream audio to the vehicle as well?

 

I am still dithering about between making my first LS an upgrade 430, like yours, or an earlier 460/600.
How does your car drive?
How is the driver's seat - still good?

 

It's definitely a 20 year old luxury car. So if you want that floating feeling while driving, it's perfect.

I thought about the 13+ 460, but the price jump was too much.

 

Thanks.

I can only see a deterioration of the window tint.
Everything else looks good from the images supplied.
How does the driver seat feel?
How does the air suspension feel?

 

Definitely going to get the windows retinted.

Everything else is great! I'll have to recalibrate the front parking sensors, for some reason the driver front is acting up. May do that after the bumper and fender is fixed since you're supposed to recalibrate it anytime you remove them for service.

Next week or two I'll get it on the lift and inspect all the suspension parts for wear. It pulls slightly to the right at 70 mph.

 

Nice car! Is the dash cover just for protection? Good luck and enjoy your new ride.

 

I have 2005 LS430 UL with 165k, so answering Leadfoo. It drives well. Seats are getting a bit worn: I have repaired passenger seat once and it ripped in a different part, 4 years later. I'll get it fixed again, no biggie, just some $$. The seats don't look worn but I guess the leather is not as resilient as it was, and they could use some professional love/cleaning. I love my UL, but the air susp is a bit of a price trap unless you are comfortable switching to coilovers or otherwise installing a non-air susp. As OP said, it is a 20 years old lux car. Expect some $$ and tlc or minor issues (tilt wheel broken, etc.) I recommend against UL at this point due to air susp, soft close doors, and rear A/C. Mine are fine, for now., and I love the adaptive cruise, but parts get more and more pricey if available. $1600 per air strut, etc. Yes, there are options... still...

 

Thank you demark1.

 

I haven't taken it completely off yet, under looks good. a little ooze around the air bag and vent. not torn or splitting

 

Clean! very nice find

 

Any bubbles?

 

Yea they kinda look like bubbles, you know what it is?