wait are you sure? after looking at pics of a few sc's, some of them have hid's ithink.... oigh.

i think the showing the cash part is agood idea. however, would it be ok to do the negotiating, and when iget the price i want, i will say "i will come back later to finalize the deal" so that i can come back with my dad to buy the car with/for me?

man i need to get this hid/front lip issue straightened out. i will probably go down and check the car out this weekend

 

He's correct. No SC from 92-00 had HID stock. You may be confusing a projector style lamp with HID.

 

negotiating is fine but you have to start low! If you dont start low enough, when he comes back with a counter offer you are more then likely to just screw yourself out of money.

What makes you set on this car? If i was you, i would offer him the wad of cash, if he refused leave your name and # with him and walk away. There are plenty of SC's out for cheap, just gotta be patient and wait for the deal. If that guy doesn't have alot of interest in the car and/or has it marked up he will more then likely call you or yell at you before you leave and either accept your offer or settle with you.

 

could someone confirm this by looking at the pictures? im not sure if im confusing this or not

i emailed the dealership asking if it had a clean title, any rust, and was modified at all and this is the reply:

the car has a clean title no rust, and no modifications and has been on the lot for 1 month

im gonna go and check thsi car out friday after i get outa school

 

If they are saying the car had no mods, you may want to go look at it closely. The front lip is definately an add-on (if it is a 300). This is not a bad thing. Just that things may have been done and they are either not disclosing them or are unaware. As for the headlights, I can't see them well enough to say with any certainity. Also, I am not an authority on headlights and I don't even know if you can tell if they are HID without them being on. The 92 SC DEFINATELY did not come with HID stock. I have a 92 and while my bulbs are upgraded, they are not HID. Remember, you can still get a blue color and not have HID. The way I always understoood the SC was that our regular headlamps are projectors, meaning that the element does not shine backwards towards a reflective surface that creates a headlight pattern. But that our light element resides inside the projector and shines directly towards the road. (How it works beyond that is something I don't know). So, the SC headlights will look different from most other headlights you see on the road because they are not the reflector type.

Now, as for the price they are asking......I think it's a bit steep. The 400's tend to go for more than the 300's in stock form. But remember, the 300's have more aftermarket parts for them that can turn them into MONSTERS!! I think others said that $4500 is closer to what it should retail for. Take into consideration that the $4500 price would be for a good condition car that does have 112,000 miles on it. If the condition of the interior and exterior is immaculate, then a higher price becomes more justified. Just use good judgement when you go to look at it and consider purchasing. Don't be afraid to get up from the table if the price isn't where you want it to be. Always be willing to walk away from the deal and you'll do fine!

Keep us posted!!! Good Luck!!

 

Hey, good to see another New Englander here on CL. GO PATRIOTS!!!!!

You came to the right place for help because you just ran into the craziest bunch of Lexus fanatics on this side of the pond.

The first thing I suggest doing is looking up the trade in value of the car on nadaguides dot com and kbb dot com. You should be able to get it for a price in between trade-in value and private party value. NEVER EVER EVER EVER pay anything anywhere near retail value. I have no idea where in the heck they get those inflated numbers from anyways.

They need to know that you are a serious buyer that wants the car. If you are serious about this particular car then pay to have it looked at as dchesanek said above. This way you will have a list of items that you can negotiate for. Negotiating is nothing more than coming to an agreement that works for both sides. You want the car, but you want it for a decent price. They want to sell you the car for a price as high as they can.

Rule #1: Don't get emotional over the car. Be able to walk away from it and move on. That is your leverage. Go in there with your dad and give them a firm offer with cash in hand (if possible). Make it subject to the inspection. Walk out the door if you can't get your price. If they accept then give them a small deposit to hold the car until the inspection is done. At that point renegotiate based on what the inspection turns up. Look for any major items such as brakes, engine, tranny, safety issues etc and try to get them to fix them or take additional money off. If everything works out then you will end up with a 'new-to-you' ride for a fair price. Good luck.

 

great points! especially on being able to walk away from the car if they dont agree on a deal. There are plenty of other sc300s for sale =)

 

is having cash in hand a really important thing? i feel kinda about carrying that much money in cash

by the way, jeremyp111, could we meet up sometime so i can see your sc and learn what an sc should be like? i'd like to have some sc experience going into inspecting thsi car myself. im in the boston area

also where would i go to get the car inspected? any lexus dealer?

 

I agree -- don't carry the cash on you. That's asking for trouble. Instead, tell them you can pay cash and you can get a cashier's check lickety split. A lot of dealers would rather have the cash up front than hassle with payments.

A manual transmission will raise the value of an SC300 for some people. To others it's a negative point. I recommend the 5-speed, though. Definitely have the car inspected by a third party mechanic. Choose one yourself. If they give you a hard time about it, or they want you to use a mechanic they recommend, they're hiding something. That would be a big neon sign to not buy that car.

112K miles isn't bad, either. Mine had more than that when I got it. Find out if the car has heated seats. Those are neato. HID was not available in 1992, so if the car has them, they're aftermarket. Check to see if they're the real thing and not a cheap "upgrade".

I agree that $5,900 is high, especially for a car in Connecticut. Check to see if it's been abused in the winter -- underbody rust and/or other salt damage. A car's value can vary considerably based on local climate. Check Edmunds.com and KBB.com, but keep in mind they are guides only and not hard and fast. Also, be sure you are checking the car's value as bought from a private party, NOT a dealer trade-in value!

 

Go with someone, like a friend whose car savy, someone who's gonna be inquisitive, ask them ta ask questions and not just stand there and stare, tell him ta think negative. Belive it or not, thats saved me alot of dough, (my friends claim to be certified mechanics while there).

Check out the engine bay, i usually ask for the cars mileage then, (this is where the friend jumps in the car and replys with his outside voice ) btw have him make as much comments as possible while in the engine compartment. hehe

Ask to start and take the car for a spin, listing for any abnormal clicks, whines, etc, again the friend should comment and you should acknowledge hearing what ever they hear. (Try this before and after the drive)-> you can tell of drive train wear by depressing the brake pedal, while listening to the engine/drive train put her in drive/reverse and feel for her pull. If she shifts into gear too sluggishly, (more than 3 secs with 1 being excellent on both or every try) ur gonna be dumping some dough on ur new rides tranny and if acknowledged this should get u a discount so to speak .

Iv been buying and selling cars since i was 15, im 23 now and lowering prices dramatically on any used car buy is the best part its the most fun part of the buying process, i got my 93 sc for $1400, the guy wanted $3600 for her. good guy but a bad negotiator, i can actually say the car was a steal .

Take 3500 have ur friend hold 500, if he dosnt take three ur friend can lend u 500 if it still dosnt happen go back two days l8ter with four, i would suggest not going over that price, there are other sc's in the sea and one would bite someday.

I hope this helps with your buy.

Dot

 

thanks for the advice.

good news, i talked to my bro today (he's 30 and works at a bmw dealership in colorado) and he said he would help me find a car and get a good price on it. we'll see wha he tirns up with

 

Look outside your city too if you really want an sc300. I flew 750 miles to buy mine. Bought it for $2600 with a walbro fuel pump and through independance air, plane ticket was $69. Drove it home without any problems.

 

thats out of the question for me considering my age, my dad would have to come with me and i dont think he'd do that

 

I purchased mine about 3 years ago for $9,000 ,I thought it was alot but it only had 60,000 miles..brandnew timing belt,and just hadhad a tune up..It has never gave me problemsand hasnever ben in the shop besides the usual maintenance and such.. I was going to buy a Chmpagne colored onewhen I was looking for an SC and was trying to buy on as soon as possible but am SOOOO glad I waited because it was plagued with problems.I say be patient and look aroundand the right one will come to you..By the way I also went from a Camry tomy SC and I'll never ,EVER,EVER go back to FWD!!