Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!
Options
Popular New Cars
Popular Used Sedans
Popular Used SUVs
Popular Used Pickup Trucks
Popular Used Hatchbacks
Popular Used Minivans
Popular Used Coupes
Popular Used Wagons
Comments
I've been having this strange problem with the Rain sensor on my '02 LS. Originally, it would come on randomly during the hot summer months. I took it back to the Lexus dealer, and they said there was a bulletin out on it. The sensor was replaced under warranty. Now, it routinely doesn't come on when it is raining...
Another issue..My warranty expires in Sept 05..Is it worth getting the extended warranty? I bought one on my 92 LS ten years back, but the only issue was a couple of $5 dashbulbs wearing out..I'm worried about this car, b/c it is far more complex than the venerable 92 model. I think some of the issues we're having with the car underscore the problem with cramming too many electronics in a car. Your thoughts?
SV
Like all of you in the New England area, I was greeted by about 4 inches of snow on my driveway. I attempted to back my '02 LS430 complete with Michelin Artic Alpin snow tires out, and it got stuck going DOWN 4 inches of snow...My son, driving the 1992 LS( Equipped with worn Bridgestone Blizzaks) pulled down effortlessly pointing and laughing...
Ohhh the indignity..I must say I'm quite frustrated with this car. It's performance in the slightest of inclement weather is abominable even with Snow Tires...Driving the car with the provided 17" Dunolops were an accident waiting to happen. SO now what? Trade in the LS for a 4-Matic S Class? Have any of you had better results with a different brand tire? I'd hate to dispose of the Michelins, as the car only has 19K on it. What do you think the best option is?
Thanks,
SV
I wish you "happy sleding today" in all that white stuff.
What size tires do you have?
Have you thought about getting thinner snow tires just for the winter? That may do the trick. With thinner tires you will have more pressure applied to the ground thru the tires, thus improving winter handling.
Yes I had the TRAC on..It doesn't help on hills anyway. In order to get the car unstuck I had to turn it off. My tire size is 205-60-17. I'm using Michelin Artic Alpin's. I can't believe the difference in behavior between this car and my 92 LS with old (WS-15) Blizzaks (205-65-15)
At the slightest snowfall this car behaves like pig in the snow. Driving with the summer tires is just downright dangerous. Even my 1998 LS didn't behave like this and I never put snow tires on it. I'm really surprised at the ineffectiveness of the Artic Alpins. This is the first time I've gotten stuck going Down a hill..Any suggestions?
Thanks,
SV
The soft fluffy stuff anyone can drive on...
When it snows here in the Seattle area My first move is to install snowchains on the rear of my AWD RX300.
The only good, for sure, answer to 2WD on snow is snowchains.
And if you expect to get around out there with all the other idiots then AWD and snowchains is your best bet.
I've lived, and driven, in NH, MT, OR, and WA and the only for sure answer is snowchains.
Get used to it!
Maybe it's the tires then!
Your 92 and 2004 LS's would have similar sized contact patches with the road and the 2004 LS should be a bit heavier, therefore it should do better in the snow.
Strange.
I suprised a car bought in Iowa came with summer tires.
Check out VW Phaeton first instead of Audi A8.
It'll change your perception on Phaeton.
Enjoy.
NOTE: Right click and save (10mb video)
http://home.comcast.net/~nessal/TopGear-VW_Phaeton.WMV
I would definitely go for the 1999. The 1996 is an incremental improvement from the original LS400. The post 1998 models incorporate a 290 HP V-8 as well as a five speed automatic transmission. My experience with the '98 was quite good. I felt it was better looking and it performed much better than the 1995-97 model. The 1998 was the first year of production, so I'd be more inclined to go for the 1999. I had some issues with instrument cluster in my 98 that the dealer attributed to first year defects in production. It was nothing major, but the dash lights used to blink for no apparent reason.
The options on those cars are fairly standard. Traction control is called VSC (Vehicle Skid Control), but the car really does require snow tires for winter driving. (Bridgestone Blizzacks are highly recommended) I've had 3 LS cars, and I haven't found the traction control particulary helpful. You have the option of getting Xeon Headlamps with a few other accesories, notably the Wood Steering Wheel. Other options include the Nakaminchi Stereo and on some rare models a Navigation System.
Hope this helps,
SV
Are the two cars similarly equipped? Many of the 2000 and earlier LS400's lacked navigation systems whereas most of the 2001's came with them, even though it was optional.
Bottom line - I'd take the 2001 LS430 without hesitation (it was a major re-design and easily a superior car to the LS400) and I'd feel a lot better about it if I knew it had a few optional goodies that the LS400 lacked. But you'll get a great car either way. The LS400 was a more timeless and classic style on the exterior but the LS430 interior is the best in class.
I like the Fort Lauderdale show because even though it is small and has no major "intros" associated with it, it gives one the opportunity to calmly stroll and experience each car first-hand. After sitting in every lux car imaginable I feel the LS430 is still MY personal standard for the lushest interior in the world -- even when compared to more expensive sedans I sat in. Also, I don't know how Lexus does it, but my 6'4" 200++ lb body fits in that car with room to spare.
Lexus knows how to handle a car show -- the LS was fully operational with even the a/c working.. all of the buttons, switches, and displays were ALIVE.. most other car makers had dead cars so that you could not even make seat adjustments when you sat in the vehicle!
To all you LS owners, I think you have made a very wise purchase... and unless competitors come up with something special this year I just might be joining you owners come January.. it is dawning on me more and more each day that the LS IS the COMPLTETE package -- luxury, performance, reliability, and value. It has been a bit frustrating trying to find another car that comes close.
Leases will vary from region to region (wbwynn who's in NC and I found that out in 2001 when we were price shopping and comparing at the same time) even with the same financing bank. The residuals are probably tied to the real upfront payment by other adjustments in the lease. If you buy the car cheaper upfront you're likely to sell it cheaper after 3-4 years - hence a likelyhood for a lower residual. The deal you got on discount off msrp is probably not doable in NJ at this point in a model year (or if it is - it will be 1 in 100 who gets it and it will probably be due to extenuating circumstances of some kind) where the dealerships are more spread out and competition is minor at best. I don't want to drive 70 miles round trip when I have a guy 10 miles away and he's opening a satellite dealership 5 miles away. California and southern Fla seem to have dealerships in closer proximity so the deals are better there.
As for leases - there are always 4 factors that drive the payment. The depreciation factor, the rental payment, the money factor and the residual. You can tug on anyone of them to adjust the overall payment. I look for consistency with prior leases to see what games are being played. In the deal I just took the taxes in the lease were driving me crazy until I remembered there was still a luxury tax in place in 2001. I also look for factors of MSRP to see what the real deal is but you need to strip out the sales tax portion. So maybe a better universal way of checking a lease deal is your total lease payment (adjusted to remove sales tax) plus any downpayment on the car (driveaway cost less security, first month payment, bank and MV fees) plus your residual. Add those up and see what is relationship to MSRP. In my case its about 109%. Bottom line is that driving a hard bargain on a lease is not the same as driving a hard bargain on an outright purchase. It helps but if it reduces the residual by a similar amount you are simply going to pay more for the depreciation in the lease than the guy who didn't bargain hard. The real lease payment is tied to the depreciation. A gross capital cost of say 65k and a residual of 35k is hardly different than a gross cost of 63k and a $33k residual.
Lastly - I checked fleetrates and they were offering custom luxes at $4100 off but it would cost a grand to ship it here which made my deal nearly equal to that and a lot more convenient.
gteach26 - as far as I'm concerned its the best sedan on the planet under $100k and its probably better than some over $100k. Lexus hits the luxury mark about as perfectly as you can hit it.
As for lease vs. buy - I'll give you the quick back of the envelope way I do it - usually to ensure I'm getting a fair lease deal. There are better ways - with present value calculators but this will be accurate enough. Lets say your ultra is $71k MSRP and you're getting it for $66k. I'll assume a 6% sales tax so total upfront cost is $69,960. After three years, assuming you could have gotten 4% on your money than the real out of pocket buy cost is $78,695 ($69,960 + $8,735 that you lost in interest as compounded annually). Now let's go to a 36 month lease deal. Lets say it's $1,075 per month and a 50% residual with a $600 lease acquisition fee. So your out pocket is $675 ($600 compounded annually at 4% for 3 years) + $38,700 for the lease + $2,416 in lost interest on your lease payments (take half of the $38,700 or $19,350 and calculate interest at 4% compounded annually) + $35,500 as a buyout + $2,130 (6% tax on buyout). So from a lease perspective - in this example - your lease and buy at lease end is a total cost of $675 + $38,700 + $2,416 + $35,500 + $2,130 or $79,421 vs $78,695. In this example a pretty close call. Substitute your figures and see how it works.
By the way - residuals are always tied to MSRP not your purchase price. So is your 50% figure on the MSRP or on your price after the $5k discount? If it's the latter than it is even lower than 50%.
Downside-- some days it seems that EVERYBODY is driving a lexus down here.
91 LS430's huh? No such luck here. They are just about all pre-sold through late April here and Ray Catena is a big volume dealer. They have to locate my car but have no doubt they will given their size. It was the same in 2001.
Thanks.
They are a HUGE improvement over the factory All Seasons. It now goes as good in the snow as any FWD I have owned and handles great (the pucker factor is GONE). The WR's are also VERY GOOD on dry and wet pavement. In fact they seem to offer a better overall driving experience than the Factory tires. I do notice a slight increase in tire noise, but not enough to bother me.
I do believe that a large part of the traction improvement has to do with going down in size to the narrower 16" tire. The 17" are just to wide a profile for good snow traction.
Frank
The 2ond. largest Lexus dealer is Longo Lexus in So. California
I do know that Longo has held the Lexus Elete designation longer then any other dealer...I think 14 years.
I noticed you mentioned about your ex-boss not being able to use his EZpass in his A8. I have an Illinois iPass that I use in my Lexus but it does not work in my girlfriend's father's BMW 740iL. I don't know what BMW coats the glass with but it does prevent the signal from going through.
lenscap - the nappa leather also is so rich and makes the interior different. They will get the car in a few weeks. Their search success rate is near 100% and I have a 4-5 week window anyway. But I will take a black on black if the Flint Mica is difficult to get. I think the car looks best in flint mica and black. I never saw the cypress and wouldn't take a chance without seeing it first. I'm not sure if the windshield glass is different on the custom lux. I do know the side glass is though. I'll double check. The A8 and 7series are known to have EZpass (or whatever local jargon is) problems as they have thicker glass on the windshield or they laminate it in some way. I don't know of anyone who has the problem in a Mercedes though.
Needless to say these have turned into absolute "gold mines" for both Southeast Toyota and Gulf States Toyota. Both distributors get part of the manufacturers mark-up for operating the receiving ports but also add a number of "add-on distributor options" onto all Toyota vehicles (USA assembled also) before they go to dealers to pad their margins even more. I also heard a little while ago that JM Family Enterprises was buying Gulf States Toyota.
When Lexus was being introduced the brand was keep away from the two Toyota distributors but to keep JM Family Enterprises happy they made a special deal with them to give their South Florida Lexus dealership "special allotments" that other Lexis dealers don't get. That is why JM Lexis with almost always have the best selection in the country.
Interestingly, originally Toyota had offered Carrol Shelby the option to buy the Gulf States distributorship but he check with his old friend Lee Iaccoca who told him "not to waste his money since Ford was going to drive those '[non-permissible content removed]' back into the sea". Real smart guy, Lee.
By the way, it also is the best Lexus service department I have ever had the pleasure of using.
...and yes, it is JM in fla that had the 91 2004 LS430's a few days back.. they're down to 89 now.
To sell those LS430's in a reasonable time frame they just gotta be letting them go at VERY reasonable prices.
Black on Black is always stunning.
And yes, that saddle (aka orange) leather option is awful.