Good afternoon/morning y'all. First post here, so apologies if I unintentionally break any rules.

Kind of in a pickle here, and would like some more experienced answers on whether or not I should consider pulling the trigger on my next vehicle purchase.

It is a 2013 Lexus LS AWD with 94,230 miles on its odometer. Two owners, with minor damage (paint scratches in the rear.) The asking price is 23,999 USD. Mind you, this is in Alaska, so the car pricing might very well be scuffed. There is an older Lexus ES model for half the price, but I'm pretty sure that's for another section of this forum.

I'm not quite sure what else to include with this, but I'd be happy to provide more information if that helps y'all give better advice. I've loved the Lexus feel since I first sat in one, and have the chance to own one as my own.
I'm planning to get a pre-purchase inspection on the vehicle if I do decide to go ahead, but I'm curious how y'all would feel with this price for the year and whatnot.

Any advice/suggestions would be appreciated! Again, sorry for the word vomit. Very new to this forum thing.

 

I woundnt buy a car from alaska,Salt roads and temp extremes , Also alot of roads are unpaved

 

Having lived in the Yukon for a number of years I would buy one from the lower 48 just because of the price difference, GX would be a better choice for that area and just as nice.

 

Does the same apply if I'll be living in a city like Anchorage?

 

Just check the local sites and compare to the prices in the south, that's pretty high mileage for that price depending on condition. If the car has been there for awhile I would pass just because 40 below is the same in Fahrenheit as it is in Celsius and that can split bushings or any axle boot that turns left or right on your first turn coming out of the driveway.

 

Considering you’ll be doing most of your driving in Anchorage, I’d go with ES or GX. The LS is best on the open road, 13mpg in city/combination driving and very expensive repairs compared to ES, which is FWD and should be fine in the city. No matter which model, ALWAYS get a PPI pre-purchase inspection by a shop that knows Lexus BEFORE you buy. Welcome and good hunting.

 

Cheers! Thank you for all the advice!!

 

Get the PPi done before you make the deal. Then if there are any minor issues you can use them as a bargaining tool. I have no idea about the price, you should be a better gauge of what is reasonable up there.

If the car passes the PPI and the price is right, I would go for it. It's a much nicer riding car than an ES.

 

The more receipts you have from the previous owner, if any, the better. 2013 is not the worst model year for the LS460 since they'd corrected many of the defects from earlier models such as the melting dashboard issue. Other problem areas seem to carry on all the way to the final model year 2017, like the dreaded valley plate leak issue (if the previous owner happens to have a record of that getting fixed in the past, so much the better when considering this car).

I'm in California where everything costs more to begin with (so that might affect my idea of price point), but I think $24K for an LS 460 with 94,000 miles is not bad - the car's probably good for many more miles even in Alaska. I'm certain Alaska is a much tougher driving environment than most, and everybody telling you to get an SUV instead might have a point! But I've never been to Alaska so i can't weigh in, that's for you to decide. I'm assuming you'll mostly be driving on proper roads (or else you wouldn't be considering a high-end luxury sedan) and so why deny yourself the driving experience and pride of ownership so many of us get from our LS 460's?

I'm not sure my beloved LS 460 would be my first or even second choice for an Alaska car. But if it were, I'd install pre-heaters for everything even if I had to buy extra power to do it. A block heater, a battery heater, every kind of heater they make would be getting put on her. Naturally the most powerful battery that will fit would get installed too.

Anyway I bought my 2017 LS 460 in May 2023 from a car lot in Costa Mesa, California. It had 69,500 miles and cost me $36,500. They say money doesn't buy happiness, but the joy I felt on the 100 mile drive back to Ventura County sure was pretty close! Since then, I've changed the oil several times, (which I always do with a new-to-me car anyway for the first 3 or 4 oil changes), and had the ATF fluid changed too (that cost me around $250).

But I think the most important thing I did was all before I actually picked out the car to buy. I joined this site before I even test-drove one LS 460, just to discover what possible problems and issues I might have after the purchase, how frequently problems seemed to occur, and what features to look for and features to avoid while car shopping. And this site was one of the indispensable assets to help in making my final purchase decision. Naturally I came to a few conclusions:

The most expensive problems that seemed to happen frequently on cars equipped with it, were problems with the air suspension system. So I wouldn't consider any cars that had it (LS 460's equipped with air suspension are easily identified: the car will have a rocker switch on the center console which reads "HEIGHT HIGH"). The air suspension does seem like a useful thing to have - until it starts breaking down. If and when that happens, repairing the air suspension won't be cheap (for starters, one of the air shocks costs $1,000).
So many LS owners seem to have expensive problems with air suspension, there are aftermarket parts kits available for around $1,000, just to convert the car back to the standard suspension... once I found that out, it immediately became a deal-breaker for me if the car had it.

You probably already know you need to check the car carefully for any signs of rust, is there a bigger deal-breaker? Say what you will about California (and you'd probably be 100% on the money) but rust is not usually an issue here when looking for a used car! So to answer your question, based only on what you've said, I'd buy the car just going on the price and mileage.