I'm looking for a low-mile LS, preferably Sport Suspension, preferably 6-speed trans. I searched every car-ad site, starting in a reasonable distance to home and widening the search until I found some cars. I also searched from Florida, knowing I'll find a better car there and picking it up and driving back to NY is potentially feasible. That search radius got pretty damn big! Not sure what I'm going to do about that.... So I started wondering what a non-Sport was like. Still, finding a worthwhile car locally was tough. There is ONE 430 for sale in my county. and it has 295K mi.

Today I went to see this car, a 2005 in Cypress Pearl with 64K, asking $13K. I think it's a ML, but it also has perforated leather; not sure what's up with that. It's 107 miles away! The ad describes it as a Florida car, the best one around, and plenty of other superlatives.

Cutting to the chase, I think the non-Sport is just fine.

Now back to the car. It is a "Florida car," in that it has always been titled and registered in Florida. However, it was bought in Connecticut, and every time it was serviced, except once, has been in Connecticut. The Florida registration was just a way to dodge CT property taxes.

I drive a 2002 BMW 330 convertible with 164K miles. It has far fewer scratches and dings and chipped door edges than this Lexus. The wheels have less rash. The dealer painted both bumpers and replaced a broken tail light. They didn't do a terrible job, but not good enough, and the bumpers show some minor distortions.

The side mirror adjustment is jerky and sometimes doesn't work at all, the telescoping wheel doesn't telescope, it has weatherstrip issues. It does have fresh Continental tires, brakes and timing belt. It drove nice during a test drive that would have been unacceptably short if I actually was interested in buying the car.

I'm still looking.....

 

Amazing, I grew up in CT, and in this day and age, people are still bypassing the so-called property tax on cars? There was a guy down the street who was busted, had NJ tags for over 10 years. All it takes is a single nosy neighbor or someone who doesn't like you. It's not just nothing, it's FRAUD. Then again, when you see what politicians are busted for (lose their law license and go to jail over stupid amounts like 70k, or 300k, etc.). I always ask myself rhetorically, for what amount are you willing to commit a crime? Hopefully that amount is 10 or more figures, not $2,000 a year or some trifling amount. Get my drift, I feel pretty confident that no member of this forum deals with 10 figures, meaning you just are not willing to commit fraud or a crime period.

Anyway, I still look at cars.com, and it would seem pretty easy to find a nice LS430. The question is the price....happy hunting!

edit p.s. your E46 was my dream car, but I could not quite afford it at the time, luckily....I had to wait and when the E92 came out, ended up getting one...

 

I bought my 2005 almost a year ago through CarMax. They had a pretty good selection of LS's that were all fairly low mileage (mine had 47K on it when we picked it up last May) so perhaps you can look there? My car came out of Dallas, and it cost me roughly 500 dollars for the transfer to Milwaukee. Not sure what your budget is, but by the looks of that 2005 you shared, you're in the ballpark to find a nice low mileage car. Just keep looking and you'll find what you want. They're out there!

 

. 2004 and up all have 6 speed trannys.U should be able to find a much cleaner car. I just bought a 2003 UL with 66k not a scratch or ding on it.and every thing works believe it or not There are a lot of near perfect ones out there.

 

The 04-06 LS 430 is a great car... I am thinking about making a change to a 2006 GS 430 with 36K miles but it is a hard decision because the LS is such a great vehicle and different then the GS 430. My current 2006 LS 430 has 92K miles but it looks in cleaner condition compared to the GS 430 I am thinking about. My main reason is only because the GS was my mothers car and I always maintained it for her and also because of the low mileage. It is tough because my LS literally still looks new inside and out. Bottom line, Lexus rules as long as they have been maintained and garaged...

 

John-- where in PA are you? There are a couple of cars in eastern PA I'd love to know if they're worth the trip. I'd pay up to $16k for the right car, at my door, but $500-$1000 shipping may have to be included in that. And cheaper is better.... I've seen a few cars advertised up to $20k. Maybe they are truly like new but that's still too much.

Harrier-- Carmax didn't have any 430s when I looked but I haven't looked again. Thanks for the reminder.

Lexman-- I started out only looking at 04-06. As I learned more I don't mind the 5-sp itself, but might still not want to give up the other facelift updates. I've seen a couple of ULs that sure look nice in the pics (then again most cars look good in the ad) but I don't think the UL stuff is added value for me. And I am not hopeful that a NY area car will be as nice as I want. I park carefully. Not everyone does.

Thanks all
Kevin

 

XJS-- We looked at a '15 GS-fsport for my wife last year. Neither of us were excited about it.

Since I have considered a new VW GTI or new Accord Sport for me, I also thought about a '13ish GS (350) for a little more $$. Still don't want one bad enough. You have the advantage of a 430, because V8 is always better than V6, but I think in your shoes I'd keep the LS.

Thanks
kevin

 

PS John-- I'm pretty much over the whole BMW thing, but if I ever wanted another, E46 or E39 is as new as I'm willing to go. Trade my E46 plus cash for your 430?

 

Here's the carmax search results. Their prices are pretty steep. $16k plus freight for 98k miles? It is a CL. And 2 cars with miles in 30s and 40s for $17.5k and $22k plus freight. Ehh...

oh and the 17k car doesn't even have 18" wheels.

Idk, maybe the 98k car is worth avoiding all the car shopping BS. Will think about it.

 

Depending on maintenance history, 98K is really nothing on this car. Pull the VIN and see what the mylexus site tells you in regards to maintenance history. Heck, it may have just had the timing belt done... Or, it needs it and that's why they traded it in...

 

True, but there's still wear and tear. Also not necessarily a big deal, but if I found a garage queen at a good price, that's my dream. I will look up the history and call Carmax with more questions.

 

AND....... the 98k mi car at carmax is gone.

btw regarding the green car I drove: absolutely not impressed by the Levinson. Seems like the sub didn't work at all. The factory setup in my BMW is better, even with the soft top and an 8" sub playing thru the rear center armrest opening.

Also the GPS did not recognize White Plains NY. It offered me towns of that name in 2-3 other states.

 

Finding a "REAL" LS430 these days has become a considerably difficult task. Our car's reputation has been around for a long enough time so that enough knowlegeables are out there to scuff them up before we get any chance to get to them. The executives at most Lexus dealerships have first divvy at the best LS430 trade ins. Then....the trade ins that are somewhat edgy and possibly neglected but show well will go to the used car dept. Those that have severe issues but show ok are auctioned.....and those that are very old and tired may go to the Lexus techs that have always wanted them but had found them unaffordable before. The rest..................and many more end up in classifieds for the true enthusiasts to have to sort through to find that "REAL" LS430... Although they produced may LS430s finding the well maintained unblemished example is not all that easy as most original owners trade them in for the newer and latest Lexus. Most one owner LS430 owners do not sell privately but trade in or die and/or give to family. Are good ones out there? Of course, but plan on looking extensively. I have been looking for a nice 05-06 for over 2 years to replace my trusty 01 and only end up seeing garbage or overpriced lower mileage cars that still need a fair amount of work. Still possible but not easy. I however will not be paying high teens for this old car regardless of miles. I am patient. When the time is right, the right car may come along. I love my 01 and it still looks new and is reliable as ever! The hunt goes on.

 

The sub in the rear on these cars are know to go out. In my '04 I used some high quality outdoor silicon and to fill in the tears and it worked pretty good. Not perfect but good for me work with. I just picked up an '05 Cypress Peral two days ago and the sub sounded plenty good.

GPS on these....I don't even bother. If it wasn't for the backup camera I would prefer not to even have it. I use my phone and the Waze app instead...but that's me.

Hope to not start a fire storm with this but research the issues with the suspensions on the UL before buying one. Make sure you know what you might be potentially getting yourself into.

I know you said the 98k mile car is gone but my '04 I got with 112K on it and it got killed by hail at 134k. My '05 I just picked up has 111k and it runs great.

I looked at Carmax as well, they are good cars backed by what seems to be a good company but you will pay for that. I found some but most had at least a $600 transport fee tacked onto the price. $12k - $14k was okay for me on an LS430 but much more than that and I would have stepped up to a LS460. With that being said though, two separate Lexus certified mechanic shops both told me they prefer the LS430 over the LS460 for maintenance. For me, I like the LS430 and will keep mine until the price for the '13+ LS460 becomes affordable for me. Then I'll probably step up to one of those.

 

What were you using as the source material, FM, CD, tape??? The Levinson system sounds best when playing CDs. Did you play around with the settings at all???