LS 430 For Sale on Autotrader

RgrWynne · May 7, 2016

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/used-cars/lexus/ls-430/used-lexus-ls-430-4-3-4dr-cambridge-fpa-201605023541217

Saw this today , has hardly moved in last 5 years. Could be a good buy........or not

Malc · May 7, 2016

............... hardly moved in 10 years actually, bit odd but looks genuine ........ might well be underpriced too for such a low mileage potential classic

Malc

cruisermark · May 7, 2016

cant be good for the air suspension - i flick the switch often just to prevent things from seizing up and creating problems

RgrWynne · May 7, 2016

i must admit that I have also started to do that, but on long motorway drives which I tend to do, the whole vehicle automatically lowers so I guess it is getting used.

The-Acre · May 7, 2016

Personally I would rather have one with 100K + on the clock and full history, and a much lower price. Mileage that low on a 14 year old car really means nothing, there's still the danger of radiator corrosion, and as Mark says, it's not good for the suspension. Even if the low mileage did make it worth more, it certainly isn't worth anywhere near that much. Shave another 2K off the price and it becomes a possibility.

MLW · June 12, 2016

I bought it!

I have been looking for LS 430 for sometime, but having had a Prius which was amazingly reliable, I was a bit reluctant to take a chance.

I think the car is a cracker. I've only done 400 miles in it but everything is spot on. It was owned by an elderly gentleman who died, hence the low mileage in recent years. His son was reluctantly selling it, on behalf of the estate....he and his sister. It was bought from Lexus as a demonstrator in 2003 (one year old) for £45,500. Before he sold it to me, he fitted a new Battery, had a cambelt change done at Lexus, and had it MOTed. It drives beautifully on a set of 4 match Yokohama tyres, which have 6-7 mm on them. I have all the paperwork, all the service history, and all the old MOTs. It was stored in a double garage out of the sun and weather. I am a great believer in 'rough people and rough cars go together'. The seller was a real gent.....straight a die. He even delivered it to my house so I could SORN it till I sold the Prius. It easily passed an HPI check, which was a waste of money, but I knew I had to do it.

I plan to clay-bar and wax it, but the bodywork looks like a 3 year old car. I will have the steering tracked as we have an American Hamilton machine near here that is amazing (only £25). I'll also have the brake fluid changed (£39).

The only iffy point (which he was honest from the beginning about) is a 'slight misting on one rear suspension unit' noted 5 years ago and occasionally commented on. It does drive and lift perfectly. If it needs doing, that is OK, as I plan to keep it for years, as having driven it, I can't imagine driving a 'normal car' so wonderful is it.

Hope this site will help me in the future. Would love a good workshop manual.

Chasdad · June 12, 2016

Sounds a good buy. Shame the ad has expired. Be interested in seeing it

Bluesman · June 12, 2016

3 hours ago, MLW said:

I bought it!

I have been looking for LS 430 for sometime, but having had a Prius which was amazingly reliable, I was a bit reluctant to take a chance.

I think the car is a cracker. I've only done 400 miles in it but everything is spot on. It was owned by an elderly gentleman who died, hence the low mileage in recent years. His son was reluctantly selling it, on behalf of the estate....he and his sister. It was bought from Lexus as a demonstrator in 2003 (one year old) for £45,500. Before he sold it to me, he fitted a new battery, had a cambelt change done at Lexus, and had it MOTed. It drives beautifully on a set of 4 match Yokohama tyres, which have 6-7 mm on them. I have all the paperwork, all the service history, and all the old MOTs. It was stored in a double garage out of the sun and weather. I am a great believer in 'rough people and rough cars go together'. The seller was a real gent.....straight a die. He even delivered it to my house so I could SORN it till I sold the Prius. It easily passed an HPI check, which was a waste of money, but I knew I had to do it.

I plan to clay-bar and wax it, but the bodywork looks like a 3 year old car. I will have the steering tracked as we have an American Hamilton machine near here that is amazing (only £25). I'll also have the brake fluid changed (£39).

The only iffy point (which he was honest from the beginning about) is a 'slight misting on one rear suspension unit' noted 5 years ago and occasionally commented on. It does drive and lift perfectly. If it needs doing, that is OK, as I plan to keep it for years, as having driven it, I can't imagine driving a 'normal car' so wonderful is it.

Hope this site will help me in the future. Would love a good workshop manual.

Hi Michael and welcome to the LOC, we are a friendly bunch and some of us even know how to pull them to bits and put them back together again, with of course the one bolt and washer left over.

We recommend you spend a couple of mins looking over the rules of the LOC, we will be asking questions later.

http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/terms-conditions/

Regards Mike

MLW · June 12, 2016

Many thanks.

I have always been a 'spanners man' and hope to service this as much as I can. Love the satisfaction of doing the job oneself. I have had SAABs, Mercedes, and a Prius; all very good, but this car is a different league...... we shall see after 2 years.

Malc · June 13, 2016

Many congratulations on a superb buying decision, may you have many years of excellent and trouble free motoring

Malc

The-Acre · June 13, 2016

Well done, sounds like you've got a genuine one, and they're thin on the ground! I managed a similar thing as I bought mine from a gent who was retiring, he owned it for over ten years, always kept it garaged and had a main dealer service every September. Enjoy!

Bluesman · June 13, 2016

11 hours ago, MLW said:

Many thanks.

I have always been a 'spanners man' and hope to service this as much as I can. Love the satisfaction of doing the job oneself. I have had SAABs, Mercedes, and a Prius; all very good, but this car is a different league...... we shall see after 2 years.

We would all like to see some pictures. Mike.

MLW · June 13, 2016

3 pictures as requested. How easy is it to adjust the handbrake. It is very powerful. but maybe clicks on a few clicks too many for my taste?

Bluesman · June 13, 2016

She looks great. Well done. How much did they want for that one? Mike.

MLW · June 13, 2016

Got it for £4,500

Bluesman · June 13, 2016

10 minutes ago, MLW said:

Got it for £4,500

Worth every penny. Mike.

Chasdad · June 13, 2016

Very similar to mine. Although I think mine has the makings of a money pit

The-Acre · June 13, 2016

Looks like it just came from the showroom, a fine example. Give some serious thought to having a new radiator to take away the risk of wrecking your transmission.

MLW · June 13, 2016

The anti-freeze looks very pink/reddy but I will change it as we get into September. Underneath the bonnet it all looks tip-top.

MLW · June 13, 2016

I did get some Autoglym leather cleaner and leather balm in a kit from eBay. As the leather is ivory/cream it was a bit engrained on the driver seat and especially the driver's right bolster. The Autoglym stuff is amazing. It cleans really well and the balm gives it a satin protective sheen. I reckon I will get about 9-10 goes out of a bottle.

The-Acre · June 15, 2016

On 6/13/2016 at 10:27 PM, MLW said:

I did get some Autoglym leather cleaner and leather balm in a kit from Ebay. As the leather is ivory/cream it was a bit engrained on the driver seat and especially the driver's right bolster. The Autoglym stuff is amazing. It cleans really well and the balm gives it a satin protective sheen. I reckon I will get about 9-10 goes out of a bottle.

I use the same Autoglym leather products, I have to say they are very good, not cheap, but worth it I think. I gave mine a good going over with Autoglym products a couple of days ago using using a dual action polisher, I don't know why everyone doesn't have one, it takes 10 mins to go over the whole car and the results are so much better than you get by hand.