you bought a $75k car for $13k used. What were you expecting? A ES350 is not the answer. A Camry with warranty is your answer. Either save up or buy a Nissan Versa.

 

It appears to me, from other posts made by On the road, he wants a premium car that is low priced and will only require infrequent and inexpensive repairs. Don't we all, but that's just not reality.

 

Its a 2010, threres nothing within 150 miles of me like mine for sale. They go for around 16-17k with about the same miles in mint condition in boston, however at that milage you dont know whats going to go out next.

I definitely expect to pay for repairs and at that milage multiple ones, but dont expect stuff like engine mounts at that milage to go bad. Unless I read this forum before hand.
But multiple 3,000 dollar repairs are not expectable. I basically thought I was buying a Toyota which this clearly is not. But the ES 350 is basically an Avalon and is. Buying a used car at that milage is a crap shoot, and I totally expected to put a few thousand dollars into it.

I paid 15,500 for it from a dealer who inspected it and delivered it as Im unable to drive because of medical condition and seemed fine when I test drove it when I got here. It was only after that night I got a spike in tinnitus and couldnt figure out why I was getting them from driving it. Then I figured out I was reactive to vibration and it was doing that because of the engine mounts.
Obviously I got ripped off, but I have to cut my losses and get out, I'm just hoping I can get around 13k for it to buy a es350. Bluebook is 13k from private party but the used car market is overvalued, so they go for more than that. Im just hoping the AWD and milage might get someone to bite. Or maybe even go down to 10.

 

Members recommend a prepurchase inspection no matter where or who you buy a used car from.

 

Try Carvana, CarMax, etc.

Of it does not drive well or makes weird noises that will be a red flag to anyone looking to purchase it. Good luck.

 

I was in a similar situation with my 2007 LS460...it just got the point where the repairs just piled up all at once. I had 179,000 miles on it, was burning oil ,needed a brake actuator, interior was wearing out, needed tires, brakes. I would have replaced it all except for the oil usage problem (it was burning a quart every 1,000 miles). I ended up trading it in and was given $7,000 for it back in 2018.

I now own a Toyota Avalon. I haven’t had to do one single repair on the thing and now sit at 101,000 miles. Nothing. So a Lexus ES350 might be a good idea for you, but it’s nit going to feel the same as the LS460, I can tell you that. You won’t have the headaches, but you also won’t be having the excitement/joy of owning an LS460. But it is nice not to have to worry about a car anymore.

 

What's the cost of the motor mounts?

Thanks...

 

Dropped my 2010 460 at an indy this morning to have it done - it's going to run me about $2,200 all in (with taxes etc). I'm having engine and transmission mounts replaced, alignment, oil change and tire rotation. I don't remember the break down of parts vs labor for the mounts but going by the book it's a pretty decent amount of hours. The DIY crew here have ways to do this in 3-4 hours but I am nowhere near capable of even attempting that.

 

I'm not sure I understand the logic here from a financial perspective. If you do engine and transmission mounts at an indy mechanic, you should be somewhere in the $2,500 range. Control arm probably another $800-$1200. So let's say $3,500. If you paid $15,500 and willing to take $10k, you'll lose $5,500 which is more than the cost of doing the repair and you aren't going to find an ES for $10k in this market so you're going to pay even more than what you're selling the LS for thus compounding your losses. If you sell your LS for $10k ($5k loss) and buy an ES for $15k, you've just sunk $10k in additional cost into the transition away from the LS. Plus buying any car is going to cost you sales tax - on a $15k car that's probably somewhere in the $1k range on its own.

If you hate the LS, that's one thing.. but it sounds like you know it has the potential to be the luxury car you want it to be. It just needs some repairs to get you there. The LS is in a completely different stratosphere compared to an ES from every perspective - ride, size, road presence, etc. I'm not saying the ES is a bad car, but it's no LS. Not even close.

I dropped my 2010 460L off this morning at an indy shop to replace my mounts - they went bad about 3 years ago but I've just lived with it. I toyed around with buying a new car but finally found an indy I really like and trust and decided dropping about $2,500 was the equivalent of 4 months of a car payment ($600/month). I haven't had a car payment for 5+ years, so for me doing the mounts equates to a 4 month break-even. Obviously everyone's situation is unique and I'm only trying to share the way I view mine from a financial angle.

 

So what you just said makes complete sense and is what I struggle over with the decision of selling it. Right now I just figured out the ride height button is only working in the front and by 3/4 inch or so.
Also I can't notice much of a difference between sport and comfort mode. Wash boards on a dirt road are still rather harsh. From what I read here that is a sign of failing air suspension. Could just be ride height sensors, but Ill let the shop figure it out before I sell. At 125k I cant believe they are the original shocks but if they are they might fail soon.

 

If you are potentially needing to also replace air suspension that is going to be a hefty price tag from what I've read on here. My LWB is not air ride so I don't know much about it other than it's pricey to replace. I can tell you I just picked up my car from having motor and transmission mounts done and the car is so silent and still at a stop light that I had to look at the RPM's to make sure it was running. I'm mad at myself for waiting so long to replace them (3+ years) because I have totally forgotten how great the LS experience is meant to be.

 

Lexus labels the switch as HIgh. It should be labeled comfort and firmer. It's not meant to be a big lift like an off road truck. The change in height is normally less than an inch and varies, the level of comfort is hard to tell as well as it is varied by the computer as you drive. But they are both there and seem to be working. If there's no dash light or code thrown, they are fine.
Put some time into finding a few indy shops and getting phone or text estimates. Maybe Uber is the way for you to get to hospital and give up driving altogether.

 

jrmckinley, do you mind sharing the name of your independent shop that replaced your tranny and motor mounts? It feels about time for mine to be replaced and I'm in SW Florida. Thanks

 

So is ride height high more firmer? And low ride height comfort?

Uber is a good idea, but Im not sure what the difference is between being the passenger or driver. I know on mine the steering wheel and seat vibration it doing it. Its great yours got smooth after fixing the mounts, makes me think of doing mine but its probable time to sell. Did you replace your air suspension recently? How do you know yours is good or do you just wait?

Would anyone know what kinda money I could get for my ls460? I was thinking of listing it a 12k to make it sell faster, Id hope someone would buy it at that price/

 

Your posts are starting to sound like something a troll would do. You've had a good 20 responses in this thread alone. If you're truly having this much trouble figuring things out, you may be having cognitive decline. I watched both my parents go through this. Medical intervention helped them.