Mob4life

Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen!!! I am a new club Lexus member but i have visited the site for many years. The members here always have great info, facts and advice about Lexus and the automotive industry.
I just wanted to comment on the ls460. I currently have a 2004 ls430 which I bought 3 years ago with 56,000 miles. I now have 156,000. I having been seriously considering trading it in for an 08,09
Ls460. I have test driven the 460 numerous times. Other than the advances in technology and styling, it is not that much better than my 430. Case in point.... The glove compartment of the 430
Feels more solid when you open and close it than the 460. The side and seat folders are bigger in the 430 than 460. The dash feels more luxurious than the 460.
Let me know what you guys and girls think. I drive about 30,000 miles a year so I'm in my car a lot. I am gonna wait and see what the next gen ls will look like. It needs to be a home run. The new 2013 s class is coming out next year and it looks like it may be an impressive vehicle. What are your thoughts..?

Shibumi1

1st if your looking at a '13 S Class..why not look at a '13 LS 460 sport?

2nd the 460 has more interior room than the 430.. i also prefer the quality feel of the 460.. imho the 430 feels more camry-ish.. the 460 also has better audio,nav a/c seats w/heat..

i went thru the new car search end of last yr.. reliability was always w/lexus. plus the options u get for the money.. no other company could match it.. the ONLY advantage i came up w/for the benz was being able to say i own an S Class..but when u go in for service. its... damn i have the S Class..lol.. my good friend just got out of an S an he's going to test drive the '11 460 this week after riding in my 460 (07) said it felt much better than his merc.

Mob4life

I am considering a 2013 Ls. I can't wait to see what it has to offer. I just think IMHO that the ls460 is head and shoulders better than a '04 ls430. The LS 460
Is a great car, but the ls430 is a great car that set the standard for what a luxury car ought to be.

Mob4life

I meant the ls460
Isn't head and shoulders better than ls430. My fault.

JFNash

Wait and see what Lexus & MB are going to offer next year.

Definitely new technology is coming to the industry that is going to make the current LS model like an outdated antique. Expect something like more cameras, internet access, more isolation and quietness, better maintenance intervals.

If you are not in an immanent need to buy a car, hold on until the new generation comes out and see what they offer to you. If it doesn't work for you, get yourself a '11 or '12 LS460 or even an LS600hL.

bsl888

Comparing LS 460 and LS430, I do agree the LS430 was a solid, well built vehicle. My brother owns one and it has over 180K miles on it and it's still running well and everything still works. The 460 obviously has much more and better features, but I do believe that there are some cost cutting involved. The 460 was designed and engineered during toyota's expansion era, striving to be #1 volume world wide.

It's funny that you mentioned the glove box. My LS460 had the glove box tsb performed twice due to sagging door panel. The alignment is still not perfect, but better. The design of the door panel, after some time, resulted in the character line not matching well with the other front instrument panels. Hard to believe in a flagship vehicle.

The engineers designed the glove box to have that "soft, closing feel", but neglected to make sure it's solid when closed. I looked at other 07 and 08 LS's and I noticed the glove box "character line" does not match in those vehicles also. I still love my LS, and would not consider owning any other vehicles. I do wonder if my LS460 will last as long as my brother's LS430.

Mob4life

I think as Lexus owners we expect a lot from Toyota to deliver a product that continues to advance in technology, styling, reliability, and road manners. I respect and admire Lexus for the strides they have made since 1989. But I think they may have been a little complacent in continuing improve on their product line. The little things go a long way towards increasing your market share. If you compare an 2002-2006 es to the current es, can you really say an '09 is better than a '04?

Lextrician

the newer es look like ls's but I agree they look better but in comparison I think they have slow down in there pursuit of perfection and put more focus in the hybrid lines.

larrygust

I recently sold my 2006 LS and then bought a 2007 LS. Initially I was very disappointed with the 2007L (with the air suspension). The ride was not even close to the smoothness of the 2006. I determined that there must be something wrong with the suspension so I took it to the dealer. They found that one of the struts in the back was leaking and replaced it under the extended warranty that came with the car (the strut was over 1400). In addition, the tires had some very uneven wear. I replaced them with Michelin MXM4's that I found on e-bay. When the strut was replaced they also did the 60,000 mile maintenance and replaced the valve springs. Wow! what a difference! Now the car performs and rides like a dream. I have no idea why Lexus would use the Dunlap tires as standard equipment, when the Michelins are far superior.

MikeE12345

My new 2011 LS460 SWB AWD came with Michelin Pilot HX MXM4s.

larrygust

Good to hear that Lexus has started putting on the Michelins