430 or 460?

Haylands · June 16, 2018

Go on then... my 2p...

I've owned three 430's both pre facelift and post, and a 460... my view, you need to drive them to make your own mind up...

IMHO The 430 is very much the younger brother of the excellent 400, you can tell Lexus bought 10 Mercedes S class cars, ripped them apart and then built the 400... to me it drives like an S class and I've had three of them as well, I like the S class and I like the 400, and the 430....

Someone at Lexus has been out driving a BMW though...!!! to me the 460 is like a 7 series and I hate BMW's it feels like it is always trying to get away from you, the 430 feels like an old boat to drive, it will waft around all day long but if you want to give it the beans it picks up it's skirt and will show most things a clean pair of heels... the 460 constantly wants to be in front of the next car, it doesn't waft, it goes balls out after everything, it's like taking an excited puppy for a walk, always pulling on the lead....

To me it was no good, the technology was impressive but the build quality was yet another step down from the 430 (which is a step down from the 400) It is the last good looking Lexus though...

For me the 430 facelift with an extra gear, reversing camera and Bluetooth is the ultimate Lexus, a big old ugly bus that does just what I want it to do and is ignored by 99% of other drivers...

What a shame they have made the new crop of Lexi look like they were designed by Zorro, hardly the understated vehicle Lexus owners were used to... Back to an S class next then...!!

The-Acre · June 17, 2018

11 hours ago, Haylands said:

Go on then... my 2p...

I've owned three 430's both pre facelift and post, and a 460... my view, you need to drive them to make your own mind up...

IMHO The 430 is very much the younger brother of the excellent 400, you can tell Lexus bought 10 Mercedes S class cars, ripped them apart and then built the 400... to me it drives like an S class and I've had three of them as well, I like the S class and I like the 400, and the 430....

Someone at Lexus has been out driving a BMW though...!!! to me the 460 is like a 7 series and I hate BMW's it feels like it is always trying to get away from you, the 430 feels like an old boat to drive, it will waft around all day long but if you want to give it the beans it picks up it's skirt and will show most things a clean pair of heels... the 460 constantly wants to be in front of the next car, it doesn't waft, it goes balls out after everything, it's like taking an excited puppy for a walk, always pulling on the lead....

To me it was no good, the technology was impressive but the build quality was yet another step down from the 430 (which is a step down from the 400) It is the last good looking Lexus though...

For me the 430 facelift with an extra gear, reversing camera and bluetooth is the ultimate Lexus, a big old ugly bus that does just what I want it to do and is ignored by 99% of other drivers...

What a shame they have made the new crop of Lexi look like they were designed by Zorro, hardly the understated vehicle Lexus owners were used to... Back to an S class next then...!!

Interesting comments/observations. I do feel that it'll be a 430 for me. Just out of interest, did you notice anything much that was different on the facelift version? I've only had two pre facelift ones.

Tulpen · June 17, 2018

I have to say, Peter, that having spent a lot of time on both this and the US forum, there are only a few people who agree with you about the 460. It's an LS!

Of course, I agree that it is 'horses for courses'.

Haylands · June 17, 2018

7 hours ago, The-Acre said:

Interesting comments/observations. I do feel that it'll be a 430 for me. Just out of interest, did you notice anything much that was different on the facelift version? I've only had two pre facelift ones.

The facelift just has a few more gadgets, I like the front lights more but think they should have left the shape of the rear lights alone... The reversing camera is worthwhile and the Bluetooth works very well, the quality is better than any Parrot I have ever had... it's got a bit more wood if you like that.... It's slightly faster because of the extra gear and does a few more MPG... Shame they added an inch to the wheel diameter as that makes it less comfortable but I think the facelifted wheels look better... All in all I'm happy to pay the bit extra for the facelift.

6 hours ago, Tulpen said:

I have to say, Peter, that having spent a lot of time on both this and the US forum, there are only a few people who agree with you about the 460. It's an LS!

Of course, I agree that it is 'horses for courses'.

It's just my opinion, I like lazy cars and giving the 460 100bhp more than the 430 and a couple of extra gears has taken it too far away from Its roots.... an LS that is closer to a BMW than a Mercedes... I'm not having a go at it, it does what it does very well.... Drive a 400 or 430 blindfolded and you could be driving a Mercedes... they all waft.... drive a 460 blindfolded and it's far more like a BMW..... BMW call it the ultimate driving machine.... personally I find them annoying to drive as you can't relax, they constantly need input from the driver...

I wanted to like it, it wasn't until returning home after many 100's of miles one weekend that my wife made the comment.... "You don't like this car do you..?" She could tell by the way I was driving that it was annoying me, I knew something was wrong but I liked the car so much it took me a while to realise what the problem was....

I'm sure there are thousands out there who will like it as there are who like BMW's, I was just trying to share my own experience.

The-Acre · June 17, 2018

28 minutes ago, Haylands said:

The facelift just has a few more gadgets, I like the front lights more but think they should have left the shape of the rear lights alone... The reversing camera is worthwhile and the bluetooth works very well, the quality is better than any Parrot I have ever had... it's got a bit more wood if you like that.... It's slightly faster because of the extra gear and does a few more MPG... Shame they added an inch to the wheel diameter as that makes it less comfortable but I think the facelifted wheels look better... All in all I'm happy to pay the bit extra for the facelift.

It's just my opinion, I like lazy cars and giving the 460 100bhp more than the 430 and a couple of extra gears has taken it too far away from Its roots.... an LS that is closer to a BMW than a Mercedes... I'm not having a go at it, it does what it does very well.... Drive a 400 or 430 blindfolded and you could be driving a Mercedes... they all waft.... drive a 460 blindfolded and it's far more like a BMW..... BMW call it the ultimate driving machine.... personally I find them annoying to drive as you can't relax, they constantly need input from the driver...

I wanted to like it, it wasn't until returning home after many 100's of miles one weekend that my wife made the comment.... "You don't like this car do you..?" She could tell by the way I was driving that it was annoying me, I knew something was wrong but I liked the car so much it took me a while to realise what the problem was....

I'm sure there are thousands out there who will like it as there are who like BMW's, I was just trying to share my own experience.

Because the Lexus isn't my main car, by that I mean my Volvo estate is more valuable to me because it's practical, the Lexus is more or less a plaything which means the budget it limited. So it means a really good late 430 is likely to be a better buy than an early 460 for the same price. The problem as I've said will be finding a good one. I'm happy to spend around 7k for a very good 430. It also means, as is always the case, I'll loose a fair amount on the GS that I bought in January, but I'm convinced I can't take it with me when I'm gone!

cruisermark · June 17, 2018

1 hour ago, The-Acre said:

Because the Lexus isn't my main car, by that I mean my Volvo estate is more valuable to me because it's practical, the Lexus is more or less a plaything which means the budget it limited. So it means a really good late 430 is likely to be a better buy than an early 460 for the same price. The problem as I've said will be finding a good one. I'm happy to spend around 7k for a very good 430. It also means, as is always the case, I'll loose a fair amount on the GS that I bought in January, but I'm convinced I can't take it with me when I'm gone!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5830347/amp/Son-buries-father-brand-new-66-000-BMW-Nigeria.html