Recently looked @ 04 LS 430 Base Model that independent dealer wanted $16,999.00
Car had 120,000 miles (2) owners
Inside was really clean but front bumper/hood/rear bumper looked like the lived on a gravel road. All three panls need resprayed.

oil changes every 5k for last owner, high mileage driver.
no other notated maint done.
Interior switches & Guages ,,radiowork fine
a little front suspension issures
I figure the following
100k major service est $1500.00
Shocks/ suspension parts $1000.00
Front Respray........................$900.00
Tranmission svs..................$250.00

Est costs........................................$3650.00

I'd figure Id offer him $12,5K- $13K tops

Sound about right???? Or lower?

 

To be honest I would probably pass on it if I were you unless you need a car asap. I have been searching for a while and I found some 04 ls430 for 14k from private owners. with about 110-130k miles range AND they all were at least a modern luxury ( nav, park sensors, rear camera, bluetooth, ac seat). I doubt a dealer would go anything lower than two grand on their asking price. If it needs all that maintenance work, look for another one that i cleaner so there is less work and money to put out. Good luck on your search

 

You should probably pass on the car unless you need one right away. If you have to buy it, I'd offer like $11,000, maybe less. Base models just don't have enough features in my opinion. It's like riding in a 95 LS400.

 

You're right on a number of fronts. Yes, I need a car as I recently sold my company truck that was killing me. I looked at this car as a nice change instead of a new lux car. My org thoughts," I can do a lot of this stuff", until this weekend as I started to catch up on the Maint on my Classic Merc Cougar.
I'm 64 . and I don't need all this headache!!!! Ialso looked a an older modelSC400 that was a maint headache also. Too bad, I liked the Black Cherry LS430 but it goes down in flames. I need a reliable road car for the next two years, Looking @ a Honda Crosstour to hold me over, dealing -$6,000 of MSRP.

Thanks for the help

 

You're welcome!

The maintenance can be a killer on these cars and even on the SC400's. Parts are pretty expensive too. It's always easier to find a really clean car that needs no work done, rather than a car that needs a ton work.

If you can get the LS for $11,000 or less, it might be alright.

 

Crosstour Outback or Venza. I'd take Venza. I think the Crosstour is a slow seller for a reason.

 

No Question...absolutely a Venza...the Crosstour has been a design disaster for honda.

 

Venza seems more practical with better cargo space, but some folks prefer the comfort of and larger size of the Crosstour. My niece compared both and decided on the Crosstour.

 

For get it!! Keep looking. The car is worth 8K wholesale and 10K retail. The services and the panels (repair and paint) will cost 4K alone.

 

can you show me a 04 for 10k? My wife has recently got rearended in one of her cars and its total loss. We are trying to look for 04-05ls but the problem is she is being picky with colors. She only wants flint mica, white or cashmere green. The ones we are finding in our price range around 17k all base models with no nav. The ones that have nav have over 100k. I'm looking for a 04-05 with 70-80k.

 

these are the only sub $10k cars on autotrader http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-s...ce=10000&Log=0

 

I'd be interested to hear what this dealer actually sells the car for. I'll bet it's north of $15K even without a flake of paint on her.

 

theres one 04 for 10k and it has 145k...everything else listed is 01-02....

 

Yep couldn't agree more. 2004 LS430's with 110K - 130K miles seem to be going for $14K - $16K from private party sales and they all had Modern Luxury. Trying to wait for the right one to come along that catches my attention. Good luck with your hunt.

 

The 2004-2006 LS 430 are talked about as being the pinnacle of Lexus reliability and are reaching a status as an extremely desireable vehicle, all of which adds to the high used car sales price. I have a 2005 with 48K miles that the dealer wants me to trade in and it flat out isn't going to happen. A great car!! You won't regret purchasing a used one.