9 Used Lexus Cars You Would Not Want to Buy
1. Upholstery Gone Wild
I have no clue what this is, but it has Lexus wheels, so I assume there is an ES300 under there? This is what happens when you lose control and crash into a vat of glue, before driving thru the wall of an upholstery warehouse. I assume this is an "art car," except it isn't good at being art or a car. If you live up north, you can bet this car will be warm inside in the winter under all that vinyl. You get extra seating on nice days on that rear seat/pumper, and plenty of downforce from the sprint-car-sized rear wing.
2. Lexus SC300/400 Donk
These are actually two different cars, first seen on a Craigslist ad in the San Francisco area by ClubLexus member MattStarr, which explains the poor image quality. These poor Lexus SC luxury sport coupes have been lifted on their suspension, much like a 4x4, in order to squeeze 24" wheels and tires under them. At least the dark red one looks as if it can be fixed in a weekend with some labor and junkyard rims and tires. The green one needs a paint job as well. Either of them, if they were driven much like this, may need new axles and CV joints, as well as ball joints, tie rod ends, struts, and possibly wheel bearings.
3. Low Mileage Lexus LS
The owner of this late model Lexus thought he had a great parking spot right out front. Chances are it is still parked there to this day. Chances are the inattentive owner was just on his normal daily commute and turned where he normally would, totally missing the huge patch of wet cement, the pylons, and the flag man. Chances are this was wicked expensive to clean up afterwards, not to mention the cost of having the crew re-pour the concrete.
4. SC430 Rock Crawler
Rock crawling and cruising the boulevard are activities that could not be further apart. The Lexus SC430 convertible is a car that is made to drive with the top down through the main drag, showing off how cool you are. The Lexus LX450/470/570 is made for getting off the beaten path in ultimate luxury. Some crazy person mated the two vehicles together to create this, and then added an exocage on it for even more trail cred. You would think something like this would be a huge draw on a trail, but all the pictures you find are of it driving around town.
5. IS300 Ute
In Austrailia there is a whole class of car-based, light duty trucks called Utes, like the Chevy El Camino and the Ford Ranchero. Neither Toyota nor Lexus has ever dabbled in the car/truck hybrid body style, but some enterprising owners have. Now you can get the goods to market quickly, down the twistiest road, and be in the lap of luxury all the while. This IS300 does not have much room in the bed, and most of that is taken up with stereo speakers and amps. If you want to haul some tunage though, this is the truck for you.
6. SUV Boulevardier
At the opposite end of the SUV boulevard cruiser is this LX570 that has been transformed into a convertible. The luxury SUV convertible is the answer to a question few people ask, but those few people have way too much money on their hands. Build a Nissan Murano Crosscabrio, or Range Rover Evoque soft top, and you can charge those handful of people a large premium for it. This LX570 custom was listed at a United Arab Emirates dealer for more than $250,000, though everything there is much more expensive than in the USA.
7. Slammed Pink Lexus
You have to be careful buying any car modified by someone else. Though this one is a professional job built for the SEMA show in 2015, who knows what corners may have been cut in order to meet the deadline. It is slammed, which already makes it a bad choice for a driver (unless it's on airbags), and on huge wheels with super low profile rubber, which is going to ruin the luxury car ride. Then, it is painted in the shade of pink usually reserved only for bathrooms in houses from the 1950s. Chances are this Lexus has none of the luxury or sportiness you would be buying a Lexus for.
8. Shorty SC400
Why, why, why? Why are Lexus luxury sport coupes so often screwed up in so many different ways? This one made the rounds of the internet a few months ago, but it is still here on eBay for now, and someone may actually have bought it. What is it? Just an SC400 with the trunk cut off and a flat piece of metal Bondoed in place, with trailer lights. The seller claims it was not rear ended, which means he just cut up a perfectly good car for nothing.
9. Two for One
This one is hard to even fathom. The wedge-shaped nose of the Lexus SC, and a sudden brake dive, must have been all it took for the Honda Accord to get up and over the top of it. Even if the used car lot is offering a two for the price of one deal, just walk away. It is nice to witness just how strong the Lexus is built though.
To keep your Lexus from becoming one of those cars no one would possibly buy, check out the How-to section of ClubLexus.