As you may know, I have a black 2008 LS460 RWD with ML etc etc I bought just under 5 years ago. It only has 72,600 miles. My next door neighbor had a white 2011 LS460 no ML, but a very nice car. He had 99k+ miles. Saturday we were walking the dog and he comes outside and says: "See my new car!". At first glance I'd have never known it. He bought a white 2016 CPO, non ML system just as before. He hands me the key and says get inside. Why me??? Now I have the fever.

 

It's why if someone offered me, I would say no thanks. I love my 2007, it's in really nice shape, I desire nothing else right now but, you let me drive a 2013+ and that would be all over.

Give me at least 2-3 more years with my car...LOL

 

the 2013s are really making my mouth water as well

Lots of L's but they are all AWD which I hate

I can live with the air suspension but AWD I don't think so

But I will do the right thing and wait 2 years to allow some more price droppage

 

If you're not having any issues with your car I would say keep it 2-3 more years until the 2013+ comes down in price some more. I honestly don't know if there's enough of an "upgrade" to go to the 2013+. I contemplated this same move but couldn't get myself to pay that much more for not much more.

 

I tend to agree. You get 80-90% of the goodies, but at a price of only 40-50%. Of course, that's easier said than done - I'm very susceptible to temptation by a newer, shinier object ;-) That's partly why I specifically went for an LS600hL loaded with every known amenity. At least I won't be lusting after options I don't have...

 

I've got 96K miles on my 2008 that I paid for in full in May 2017. I'm testing the sale waters on mine and will only let it go for my reserve price. It is wonderful car and still looks GREAT but I always have the itch to upgrade. I should see 2013/2014 LS460s around Mid $20K by next year.

 

Yeah a lot of AWD LS460s in the Northeast. I want also want rwd for a smoother ride, less weight, more power and lower maintenance cost. I DO NOT want air shocks though. I'm hoping car dealerships will price the rwds MUCH lower than awd due to the climate.

 

Your 2010 does not have Blind Spot Monitoring . Are you lusting now??

Do the pre-2013 4LSs have rear cross traffic alert??

 

You're in trouble now LOL. Lots of nice upgrades to the interior I agree.

FWIW, AWD vs RWD has no bearing on the ride. I drove an AWD LS460L with air suspension and it rode exactly like my RWD LS460L with air suspension. It does change the feel of the drive, you can feel the front wheels being powered in the steering and dynamics, but from a ride comfort standpoint they're the same.

 

Thanks, I should clarify. I want a smoother drivetrain feel with RWD. I had a 2007 GS350 awd. When I went to test drive it I was hoping it would not drive like my old 2000 Audi A6 where it felt a tiny bit like an suv with 4wd engaged. To my surprise the drivetrain was VERY smooth. It is not smoother than my rwd LS460.
I won't completely rule out an AWD LS460 but I know most of them are probably driven regularly in the snow and salt.

 

Here's the thing. I AWD is something I might want. Is it really that bad ? I drive an hour each way to go to work, some days I deal with snow and NEED to get into the office. My RWD LS does ok but, nothing like a AWD would do.

I knew there was issues in the 2008/2009 AWD models, Wasn't most of those issues (noise/clicking/loss of performance) fixed by the 2013/2014 models ?

 

Get a set of snow tires and rims and you will be good. You can find a set of oem 18" for dirt cheap

 

I have an AWD '11, and I love how it drives. I've only had it out in snow a couple of times, and it handles very well.

Where I really notice it is in the rain. I drove home in heavy rain yesterday, and one of the highways I take tends to flood. It was just standing water yesterday, but where my RWD Cadillac used to feel very loose and twitchy on that stretch of road, the LS was rock solid. The Caddy had good tires (Michelin Premier A/S), way better than the MXMs that were on it when I first got it.

I've had many RWD cars over the years, but in this case, I'm glad I went with AWD.

 

Yup, the AWD in these really is a phenomenal setup.

Ran through some heavy rains along the coast over the summer with standing water on flat road, and she cruised right through it at 60mph like it wasn't there. Standing water in a turn? No problem. Still had to slow but felt much more confident in the corner than in a RWD vehicle. It's heavy, you lose some power, you lose some fuel efficiency, but when the moment comes that AWD is preferable over RWD it's very nice to know that it's there.

 

From a drivetrain smoothness standpoint, the AWD and RWD LS are also the same, I've owned both. The difference you feel with the GS and the LS is not AWD vs RWD, its the GS vs the LS.