I've been looking for the right 2005 LS430 Ultra for a while.

Found very clean one for low price here in Canada (about $29k) but has high miles (80k miles). It is one owner, full service records etc... but I've never had a car with more than about 50k miles - ever - and so am cautious. Best ones I see in US seem to be mid to high 30's (i.e. about $36-38k) with around 30k miles (some closer to 20, some closer to 40).

Hassle factor and cost (6%duty plus plus) to bring up to Canada from US is big, so wonder what opinion is on higher mileage LS430?

Not easy to find these in Canada, and Lexus dealers seem to almost never see them - where do they go after lease?? I would have thought that 05'd wouldbe showing up around now...

Are there any major issues I should be careful of (i.e. major servicings done etc...) in looking at the higher mileage one? Any worries about the electrical with all the bells and whistles on the Ultra Luxury?

Anyone want to drive theirs up here and sell it to me?

Thanks for the advice.

 

by the time you get all the responses you need to make the decision the car will be gone.. Buy it.. 80k is nothing for a lexus.... You will never regret it. You have all the service records and if you are comfortable with it .. Buy it..

I have been entertaining EXECUTIVES, from work this week who are used to being in Mecerdes and BMW's.. I took them for a drive in my 05 and they were asking all kinds of questions about the car and wished thiers was like this.. I enlightened them to the biggest secret to the luxury car world and told them they could buy this car for around 30K and they could not believe it...

BUY IT. Buy it...

 

just want you to know I purchased my 05 LS w/ 12,800 miles for $38,000 and paid $1226 to ship it over 2,000 miles from a reputable dealer, car faxed and serviced w/ over 35 high res pics to view. The shipping company I'm using is... dependable auto shippers.. DAS...and they do ship internationally.

I decided to do it because I got the car I wanted w/ 1/3 the mileage, UL package "which seems to be 1-2% of ls 430s" and saved money compared to the the dealers in my aria.

Hi mileage wouldn't concern me if you decide to make the purchase there, but 100k is 100k. try to research some of the repair threads and pay attention to the millage of the average vehicle being repaired. for example the air ride problem thread suggests around 20% have had problems around 100k and another suggests replacing the timing belt around 80k or so. the LS is a great car but it's not bulletproof and repairs are expensive. Buy with confidence but do your research first.

buying long distance is not the best choice for everyone, waiting for the car is stressful "only because I want to drive it, I am not at all nervous about the long distance purchase", but it was my choice.

hopefully some of the extremely experienced guys will give you there advice as well.. I'm only sharing my thoughts and minimal experience, there advice should be key in making an educated decision.

good luck

-Nile

 

Thanks for the input.

For me, real question is whether low miles (i.e. 25k miles) is worth about $10k higher cost - all in $39-40k versus about $30k for one with 80k miles.

Another quickie - any feedback on Barry Goldberg Bethesda Motors, Boca Raton?

 

$32k for an ultra low mile ultra luxury seems really good - most I am seeing are about $35-39 or more. Where did you get yours?

 

I got it from Linden at ace imports "aceimports.com" others on the forum have purchased from there as well and never a bad comment, if your looking for something specific let them find it for you. As well they typically have 2-3 UL models to choose from.

I paid 38k not 32k

-Nile

 

pay little extra and get more... 80k is high for 2005, it sounds like it was abused...
heres my recommendation...
http://motors.shop.ebay.com/Cars-Tru...f14=20041774c2

Buying a car on ebay can be stressful, but well worth it if you do it right!

 

agreed.....

 

The only expensive items to worry about on a high mileage UL is the suspension air struts and the folding mirror motors.

The air struts, only a small percentage of them fail and wear out, but if they fail, it mostly occur around 100k~120k miles. They are $1000 each, not including labor.

Mirror motors too, only some of them fail, but if they do, Lexus only sell the entire mirror assembly, they are $700 each.

Other then that, everything else is bullet proof, the car is good for 300k+ miles with proper maintance.

 

I bought an 80k 2004 Modern Luxury car at the end of 2004, and haven't regretted it at all. Problem free as I approach 101k...

 

so someone drove 80k in one year?!

 

the first ls UL that comes up in killer's suggestion blk w/ 44k is from the company i recommended, I can tell from the background of the pic. I agree w/ killer........call ace imports, talk to linden"or another reputable / knowledgeable dealer", have it shipped and live happily ever after.

 

That's a lot of good input. I confess that despite knowing that the car is good for 300k, I'm still nervous looking at an 05 with 80k (it looks even worse in km, as it's 135k).

There are 2 black on black ones around and one that is black with saddle interior - was this one rare? It looks pretty nice...
http://bethesda-motors-boca-raton.eb...y-2685585.html

I'm going to check into shipping and the paperwork crap to see if that will make my decision for me.

Once I get one I look forward to contributing a little to the community and learning a lot. First thing will be to figure out best way to do ipod and best dvd kit for the ls.

Thanks again for all the input.

 

Call for price means they want to much for it!

 

That car does not have the radar on the front grill and they should have vacumed what seems to be cigarett ashes under the driver seat controlls nice but not perfect imo