914eener

I live near Hilton Head SC but am seriously considering purchasing a CPO this week from the Lexus dealer in Dayton OH. For what I'm looking for this is the best one I've seen in 6 months of searching. I've got pics but I'd like someone to give it a visual "once over". If there is anyone that is willing to do that please respond to jonwatkins@sc.rr.com. Thanks!

caddyowner

That's too far for me to visit, but you may want to post your request in the Car Chat and Great Lakes area, also. You may find a person who is closer and still knows Lexi, but doesn't currently own a LS430.

BTW, is it the white/cashmere 04 Premium? (The Autotrader ad mistakenly says ecru.) It looks like a nice car.

914eener

Thanks for the suggestion on the other locations.

CarGuy89

Best way is to use a day of free time to go see for yourself. I was in the same situation as you were. Someone was actually kind enough to help me, but you are sort of just taking their word for it. Nothing beats seeing a potential candidate in person. If your eyes widen and your jaw drops on first sight (like mine did) you know that it's the one.

Another option is to get it sight unseen and have it shipped to you (if you're busy, no one can help). That is what Caddy did and he got himself an awesome car.

caddyowner

I had two inspections, one by member AirTime who took 50+ detailed photos and posted them online and another by AirTime's independent Lexus mechanic. Even after those inspections, the bodyshop charges to fix all the dents and scrapes were $1600 over estimate and one of the steering wheel buttons didn't work which cost about $400 (IIRC) to repair. (No fault to either inspection.) Buying a used car, even CPO, entails risk. Buying one sight-unseen magnifies those risks. I think the only way I'd consider it again is if the car is CPO (although there are stories of bad CPO units) or a personal car being sold by a long-time member of a forum I was on.

CarGuy89

^I hear ya. Mine is CPO and while there are no mechanical faults, I did notice that (in addition to quite a few scratches and dings here and there) the plastic molding in the driver's door didn't line up at the end. Dealer assured me it was a clip...turned out the entire molding had to be replaced. Cost a hefty almost $700 for a slab of plastic... Just glad that everything else is great.

I agree with buying from someone trustworthy on the forums, esp if they posted a few pics of them cleaning the car (you know it was well cared for then). Buying from fellow enthusiasts is the best since they are the only ppl in the world who are as paranoid about their car as you are.

914eener

Car was sold Saturday. Kills me that these dealers leave the car up for days/weeks after they have been sold.

caddyowner

I called all Lexus and quality used car dealers within 300 miles and told them what I was looking for. The only problem is getting the calls and emails to stop after you buy a car. LOL

It takes up to a week for most dealers to get a car listed online as they usually have an outside service do it. By the time the ad shows up online, it's often long gone. They also leave the ads up until the final paperwork is done or to just generate additional sales leads.

I set up daily alerts on autotrader and checked cars.com frequently in a national search.