Greetings. I may have found my unicorn LS460. It's a 2016 rwd. There's probably under a year left of the OEM warranty. Never been wrecked, one owner, under 30K miles, photos look incredible, and Lexus owners site shows all the basic stuff being done. The only mechanical thing was before it was originally sold, the fuel gauge didn't work, and it was repaired. It's 200 miles from me so an easy drive. They'd like to take my car as trade, which is fine. I'll gladly walk away from the deal if they don't trade me fairly. Otherwise, I think it's the car I've been looking for these past 5 or 6 months. It's an independent car dealer. I called the local Lexus dealer to inquire about having a PPI done, but they said it would take all day. That won't work.

What would you guys recommend with regards to an independent inspection? My initial thought is with warranty, any issues can be done here at the local dealership, so why have an inspection done? Also, I'm going to consider getting a Lexus extended warranty so I can be assured of peace of mind for a few more years.

Thoughts appreciated.

 

I think you are correct, go for it JMHO.

 

Assuming it has a "clean carfax", I would check for body damage.

 

If you'd like, PM me the VIN, mileage, and color on your trade and I'll shoot you back what to expect on trade. You can also do the same for the one you're looking at as well and I can give you the nuts and bolts for the whole thing.

 

Must be that swb black on black one for $43k Shoot for that budget I'd try to look for a 2015+ LWB rwd. I know you want black on black though.

 

Yep. I don't want an L. No need for the extra length of the car. Since I'm not in the back, the front has all I need. I couldn't go today, but if the car is there next week, I'll go look. ;-)

 

Thanks for the offer. I've looked it up on KBB and unless there's a better way to find out value, I have a good idea. As for the car I'm looking at, it's a decent price. I wouldn't say it's a best price.

 

I'd take a minute and throw your car up on cl or somewhere else and try to get a few more $$ for yourself rather than trade it.

 

Its a good thought. But depending on the amount of the trade, the tax ramifications will be less.

 

KBB is in the ballpark, but that's not how dealers value trade-ins. They're going to run an MMR on the car and see what true auction wholesale is. That's what I have access to. Good luck!

 

Understood. If we can’t make a deal, another will come along. Thanks again.

 

my local dealer has been using the KBB instant cash offer. They fill it out with you sitting there and then pay you that price. You can negotiate a little but so far anyone I know that has traded there has gotten around that price which is less than the KBB "trade in" valuation you do by filling out all the info on your specific car then choosing from the good, fair, rough categories.

 

They will almost always try and be under the MMR number. As much as they think they can get away with. Remember, these people aren't there to be your friend, they are there to make as much money as they can. Your trade is always valued in wholesale dollars. The MMR is what they know is the limit of what they should put into the trade. What it tells you as the buyer is what the number should be. Like you said, they'll undercut it routinely.

 

I thought the same thing when I had the SWB until I got the L. The L takes everything great about the LS and improves it. It rides better, feels more special inside, wow factor is huge for people who ride in the back, It looks much more substantial and truly a full sized luxury sedan from the outside...that extra 5 inches does a lot for the car.

Having the LWB now, I would never recommend anybody get the SWB over the LWB. its only me in the car 90% of the time and the improvement is really surprising.

 

LWB is rare in other countries where parking spaces are at a premium. That’s why Japan kept on offering the SWB of the LS600 until end of production.