Hey guys, I need your help. My brother had a '93 SC300 which he sold years ago and I've always wanted one. There's a '98 SC400 popped up locally in really good condition, but I'm a little concerned because it has 240,000 miles and is probably on the original transmission. He's asking for $5,500.

What is a fair price? Are there anything else that I should be worried about?

This is from the posting:
"I'm the second owner, original owner used it as a commuter up until 180k. I've owned the car since 2009 and have put around 58k on it. This is one of the cleanest you will find. Car has new wheels and tires. Tanabe springs and KYB struts. Seats have been reupholstered by American Sunroof with Alcantara inserts. I recently replaced the nose cone with a factory unit as the old one was pretty beat up from the miles commuting. Within the last 5k miles I've replaced the timing belt, water pump serpentine belt, radiator hoses and radiator. All with Lexus parts. I'm a former Lexus mechanic and have done all of the work myself. The car drives great and is a nice commuter. Everything works except the CD changer in the trunk. This is a non-traction control car with Nakamichi radio and sunroof."

 

Nice looking ride!! I’d find out what happened to the original 3spoke steering wheel, because that one isn’t the right one for the 98+, it’s a very clean ride with a few upgrades too!!

 

high miles and price.. usually one or the other is okay

 

3 spoke only came on 99+ models....

 

Yeah price is a bit high and it's not completely stock either. Seats have been redone and I don't know what that thing is above the steering wheel. The motor will last as long as the previous owner kept it in maintenance and so will the transmission. Of course check all the typical things you would in any used car but asking 5500 for that is a bit high. Other than that the exterior is in great condition.

 

That's for his radar detector...

 

A tad high but if it is in as good an esthetics condition as the pictures and seller claims, not a bad start.... Mechanical stuff with a car of this age is to be expected so it all depends on your budget and intentions for the car... You may want to negotiate on price but decent SCs are getting difficult to find....

 

Learned something new today!!
I was wrong thinking 98+, why I don’t know

Thanks for the correction!!!

 

[QUOTE=kitabel;10038958]Is this the car you want, or the beginning of a project ("how do I get another 200 hp?")?
If it's not fast enough right now, get a different car./QUOTE]

I'm looking for a 98+ SC400 and keep it pretty much stock.

 

The seller hasn't responded to my email and the listing is gone. Time to keep searching...

I agree the price is high but I'm not quite sure what it should be. Can I even trust KBB to value it correctly? So I know what is a good baseline, what would you price this in it current condition?

 

KBB is not the best way to get a quote on cars. Being a 98+ 400 it is automatically put in the rare category since only ~2400 of those models were made. Now that being said, try to get as much as detail as you can from the owner. Good thing is that the expensive maintenance stuff has been done by the owner so it should put you on ease for future spending for the most part. So on the basis with that, maybe start talking about price from $4,800 and work your way up with that.

 

I'd pass on it because near 250K miles is a sub $3K car IMHO. The missing engine cover also kind of makes you wonder about the kind of service it has gotten and how careless a mechanic had to be to remove it and not put it back.

The 98+ SC4s pop up from time to time so you have to keep looking. Last year there was a 99 SC4 in San Francisco that was for sale for $14K, black on black, one owner, Nak + heated seats, and 32K miles. It sold in 4 days while I was thinking about it; I still regret not buying it. I would say be patient and spend a small premium to get lower mileage.

 

I bought my 98 SC400 for $3k, but had to spend about the same amount on maintenance after getting it home (motor mounts, valve cover gaskets, alternator, radiator, OEM high pressure PS hose). It had 204k miles on it.