Hey Everyone, newbie...
Looking at picking up a LS430 but some of the ones for sale logged in anywhere from 60k-95k miles. What are the most common issues for high mileage vehicles? What are some issues to pay attention to prior to purchasing one that could be costly in the future? Any input would help. Thanks!

 

That's not high mileage for LS430s. They are bulletproof vehicles. High mileage for these cars is like 150k +. Nothing really to look for, just the condition of the vehicle and how good or bad the deal is.

 

I agree with the above statement 110%! The LS 430 is a trouble free car, unless it is really behind in maintenance.

 

The funny part is that these cars don't even need maintenance to survive. I have an uncle who has a LS400 and badly wants it to break so he can buy a LS430 and so he doesn't do jack sh!! to it, NOT EVEN OIL CHANGES, and it just keeps chugging along...

 

Timing belt at 90 k or so is normal maintenance. Dealer service gets pricey, some say brakes and tires wear faster with weigt and being driven hard.

 

^^yup,the 60K/90K maintenance is very pricey!im still saving up the money for the labor.but its been good to me so far.no problems as of yet.

 

Door lock actuators seem to be the expensive culprit here.

If you're handy, there's a DIY from the GS guys:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...ck+DIY&page=13

Can't think of anything else to "watch" for-things that die prematurely

 

Look for VIN numbers imprinted on each body part. If they're not there, that body part has been replaced. If you don't mind previous body damage, not a big deal. However, one never knows if it was a little fender-bender or a total crash with twisted frame that got restressed. We took the easy route and told the broker "no prior damage history."

 

Thanks for the info guys. I can see that the 60k service and the 90k service (timing belt and water pump) is important to have done. Does the tranny need to be serviced at 90k as well or when does that come into play?

 

At that mileage, you're probably looking at '04 or older, and around low $20K's right? The big thing as you're reading is the timing belt at around 90K and that service is about $2400, which includes timing belt, bleed brakes, oil change, filter changes, and they will probably want to do spark plugs too. If you do a la carte, then the timing belt itself is only about a $400 job.

I've only had my LS for about 2 months now, but I've heard they're bulletproof and nothing thus far indicates that mine will not be. Very quiet, acts right, rides smooth.. beautiful.