Know This 430 On T'bay?

[Chris Skelton]

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lexus-LS430-Mk-II-90-litre-LPG-cambelt-waterpump-just-done-at-Lexus-Bristol-/291325556664?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item43d45b37b8

Tidy looking 430 on eBay near me, is tempting (just after I'd decided to get a 12 year old Corolla for £600!)

Seems to have come from one of us.

Anyone know the car?

It seems to have a LOT of work done on it by previous (to current) owner.

Is this normal? Rad, suspension....I thought the exhaust was SS, so didn't rot, but it's had new exhaust as well.

Are there 'Friday cars' in Lexus too?

Am wary of the Air suspension as I know it can prove costly to fix, but I also see 430s with 150K+ on them so.......

The LPG bit is what interests me as it stacks up well then against smaller, non lpg cars!

Running about in a 430 at 40+ mpg equivalent is tempting.

[mikeyv]

Did you see that it's Cat D?

Needs careful checking, and must be cheap, as resale can be difficult.

Funny how every eBay write off had light damage isn't it?

If I repaired a lightly damaged car, I'd take pictures galore to prove it, and yet I've never seen anybody else do it....funny that.

[Chris Skelton]

Yes, I'd noticed the Cat D. described as minor bumper.

Though with all the other listed repairs, I did wonder!

I guess the good side is that, with all the renewed bits, it's got less to go wrong!

[mikeyv]

They're looking for six grand though, way too strong for Cat D in my opinion.

I see you have an Elgrand Chris, I like the look of them, are they any good?

[Titch LS]

The LS400 exhaust is fully stainless steel. The LS430 does not have stainless steel back boxes for some reason, so will need replacing. The car in question seems well looked after, but as a Cat D write-off it is well overpriced.

[Cotswold Pete]

Does seem a bit overpriced for 2003 model on the other hand if it is in tip-top nick and you are going to keep it for a long time, might worth a go, but be interesting to know what the reserve is.

As to the repair, a few years back a friend with a GS300 slid on ice and clipped a bollard and put a small nick above the wheel arch. The sort of thing you could have filled and painted over for a couple of hundred quid.

But it was a write off because a full Lexus repair was to replace the whole panel, so it was Cat D as a result as the £3K quote was more than the car was worth. He got it sorted at a local garage, looked as good as new.

If it was a rear bumper job, I would have a good poke about underneath and lift the boot carpet and check for leaks if there was any body crumple damage,

[SHELLDRAKE]

Why does it have 2-Lpg tanks, they will take up a lot of space in the boot, it seems a bit strange.

[Bluesman]

I had a Grand Chrokee Jeep and I used to travel regularly to the Czech Republic I had 3 tanks fitted to it which saved me from haveing to fill up too many times.

If you're buying a Cat D car, there's no guarantee that it hasn't incurred chassis damage. You can find out for sure by investing in a
full mechanical inspection at an approved dealership, or by RAC Inspections.

If you buy a Cat D car, make sure your insurance company knows about it, otherwise they might not pay out if you make a claim.

[n4chv]

I've had my LS430 for a few months now and despite the low mileage at the time (only 44k miles), I ended up having to spend around £1500 putting the air suspension right (1 rear suspension bracket and both front suspension sensors).

LS430s are certainly a big step forward over the LS400 in terms of comfort, refinement and gadgets but they do seem a bit more fragile.

Thankfully, mine is driving beautifully and I am now a very happy owner :-)

[bilmac]

Hi all, might I point out. my car is 2005, has all the extras listed by this guy, plus reversing camera as its the face lift model. and its not cat D

At the price offered, you could buy it, install LPG, and still have money over. bilmac

[bilmac]

Hi all, might I point out. my car is 2005, has all the extras listed by this guy, plus reversing camera as its the face lift model. and its not cat D

At the price offered, you could buy it, install LPG, and still have money over. bilmac

I forgot to say my car also has radar cruise control. bilmac

[Malc]

Just a thought .............. the low mileage doesn't ring true with the amount of work done to repair.

I would check each of the MOTs mileages as a starter ............... also query the gearbox issues that might have arisen from the rad needing to be replaced together with the waterpump.

101k miles with all this work done ....... summat ain't quite right methinks.

Malc

[The-Acre]

I've had my LS430 for a few months now and despite the low mileage at the time (only 44k miles), I ended up having to spend around £1500 putting the air suspension right (1 rear suspension bracket and both front suspension sensors).

LS430s are certainly a big step forward over the LS400 in terms of comfort, refinement and gadgets but they do seem a bit more fragile.

Thankfully, mine is driving beautifully and I am now a very happy owner :-)

Mine's up in the air at the moment waiting for a rear suspension sensor which has virtually seized. Over £300 for the part but the work is easy. The old one was off in just a few minutes. They took them both off just to check the movement, they also took them both apart which was also easy. Which makes me wonder, why can't they just be removed, cleaned and freed up and put back together sealing the joints? After all, it seems that just water ingress is the main issue.

[n4chv]

I've had my LS430 for a few months now and despite the low mileage at the time (only 44k miles), I ended up having to spend around £1500 putting the air suspension right (1 rear suspension bracket and both front suspension sensors).

LS430s are certainly a big step forward over the LS400 in terms of comfort, refinement and gadgets but they do seem a bit more fragile.

Thankfully, mine is driving beautifully and I am now a very happy owner :-)

Mine's up in the air at the moment waiting for a rear suspension sensor which has virtually seized. Over £300 for the part but the work is easy. The old one was off in just a few minutes. They took them both off just to check the movement, they also took them both apart which was also easy. Which makes me wonder, why can't they just be removed, cleaned and freed up and put back together sealing the joints? After all, it seems that just water ingress is the main issue.

I had the same isue with 1 side on the rear where the rear suspension was seized. Part was expensive but labour straight forward enough.

I have read on this forum and other forums that this is a common problem on the LS430 with Air Suspension. Water gets into these units and they seize / stop working. Again, I have read that these parts are not easily serviceable or fixable and best practice is to replace them with new reliable units.

Poor design of the part from the sounds of it (very un-Lexus like). But most cars with Air Suspension tend to be fragile for various reasons. Clearly, Lexus haven't yet got on top of the reliability here.

[Chris Skelton]

....compared with Citroen's much maligned suspension, which -in my experience - rarely causes trouble! Pity the myth says otherwise!

(And Citroen seem to be fading it out!)

Thanks for the responses. Much confirming my thoughts (amount of repairs etc..)

[n4chv]

Just a thought .............. the low mileage doesn't ring true with the amount of work done to repair.

I would check each of the MOTs mileages as a starter ............... also query the gearbox issues that might have arisen from the rad needing to be replaced together with the waterpump.

101k miles with all this work done ....... summat ain't quite right methinks.

Malc

My LS430 was a 1 owner car, almost 11 years old with only 42k miles on the clock which sounded very bizarre given that these sorts of cars are typically used by drivers for higher annual mileages but the MOTs and the mileage checks were all fine.

What did disappoint me though was the items which I needed to get fixed including the front and rear suspension and the electric steering column adjustment.

Having said that, the car is now fine and driving just like I would expect it to.

My previous LS400 still rates as the best ever car I have owned but in time I hope I will be feeling the same about my LS430

[The-Acre]

Just a thought .............. the low mileage doesn't ring true with the amount of work done to repair.

I would check each of the MOTs mileages as a starter ............... also query the gearbox issues that might have arisen from the rad needing to be replaced together with the waterpump.

101k miles with all this work done ....... summat ain't quite right methinks.

Malc

My LS430 was a 1 owner car, almost 11 years old with only 42k miles on the clock which sounded very bizarre given that these sorts of cars are typically used by drivers for higher annual mileages but the MOTs and the mileage checks were all fine.

What did disappoint me though was the items which I needed to get fixed including the front and rear suspension and the electric steering column adjustment.

Having said that, the car is now fine and driving just like I would expect it to.

My previous LS400 still rates as the best ever car I have owned but in time I hope I will be feeling the same about my LS430

I picked mine up today after having a sensor replaced and one freed up. I mentioned that there is someone with a low mileage car that has needed a lot of suspension work. He said that it's likely due to lack of use, which in a way makes sense. Just as not using the parking brake from time to time can cause it to seize, the same can happen to any part. That's one reason for pressing the height button occasionally, just to keep things moving. At least I discovered that these sensors don't always need replacing, but can easily be taken apart, cleaned and lubricated.

I still haven't got around to it but an external transmission cooler has to be the next job, just as a precaution against failure. It's a cheap and straightforward job it seems.

[Chris Skelton]

I'm probably going to stick to a Ser 4, lpg ideally.

Seems it'll be more than adequate really.

But the reminder to keep on top of things is good, Phil!

Had a great experience in a CX Citroen. Showing passenger how it 'went up and down'.......it didn't come up again!

Had to be AA carried home! Just the selector needing a clean under the car!

Miss that suspension though, although Lexus is pretty fine in that regard.

[The-Acre]

I'm probably going to stick to a Ser 4, lpg ideally.

Seems it'll be more than adequate really.

But the reminder to keep on top of things is good, Phil!

Had a great experience in a CX Citroen. Showing passenger how it 'went up and down'.......it didn't come up again!

Had to be AA carried home! Just the selector needing a clean under the car!

Miss that suspension though, although Lexus is pretty fine in that regard.

It may just be worth mentioning that the guy who did mine, who advertises as a Toyota/Lexus specialist, and has worked for Lexus, said that he has never replaced the suspension system on an LS430. And this is always the problem, we hear about the few that go wrong, but not about the majority that don't. BTW Chris, where in Somerset are you, or did I ask you that before?

[Chris Skelton]

Agree. When researching Citroen C6s, (as a long time Citroen fan/owner-DSs/CXs....) I read some bad stories, but also some inside info. Citroen has habit of spoiling their cars by a 'happorth of tar'-i.e. not getting the little things right. Until later.....when reputation is shot!

In contrast, I have this image of teams of obsessive 'Kaizen' operatives in Toyota, trying to get each nut.....perfect! Especially on the earlier cars, when they were trying to outdo everyone to PROVE their cars were best.

And, as you say, Phil, I asked Lexus Bristol (where I live, not far from M5 J18), their engineer said he'd only worked seriously on ONE engine (who drove through a flood!)

I guess the trouble is that, as I feared with my previous cars, the little bits that wear CAN add up to a fair few £££s!

I've come round again to the idea that something special is worth investing in!

[The-Acre]

Agree. When researching Citroen C6s, (as a long time Citroen fan/owner-DSs/CXs....) I read some bad stories, but also some inside info. Citroen has habit of spoiling their cars by a 'happorth of tar'-i.e. not getting the little things right. Until later.....when reputation is shot!

In contrast, I have this image of teams of obsessive 'Kaizen' operatives in Toyota, trying to get each nut.....perfect! Especially on the earlier cars, when they were trying to outdo everyone to PROVE their cars were best.

And, as you say, Phil, I asked Lexus Bristol (where I live, not far from M5 J18), their engineer said he'd only worked seriously on ONE engine (who drove through a flood!)

I guess the trouble is that, as I feared with my previous cars, the little bits that wear CAN add up to a fair few £££s!

I've come round again to the idea that something special is worth investing in!

I think that's true enough, but all parts will eventually wear, and on luxury cars we have to expect high repair bills, otherwise we'd be driving 3 door hatch backs. When it comes down to the nuts and bolts of it, it's a lot to do with risk. I've said before that my first MK2 was a car that I expected to keep for a year, not expecting too much in reliability for an old car. In the end I had it for 5 years without hardly any issues. But, it could easily have gone the other way. So with the LS430 I get to drive sheer luxury, knowing that it's a risk, but having a little more hope being aware of Lexus reliability over the rivals.

[Scribe]

Chris is right. I had two Citroen Xantias (better ride than even the LS, though of course the rest of the car doesn't compare) and had only two suspension issues in ten years: leaking fluid (only when the engine was running, and a cheap fix) and replacement of the spheres at around 75,000 miles (also not that expensive).

[Chris Skelton]

Nice car colour, Mr Scribe!

You're right.

Citroen were clever with their suspension. I recall that Ford reputedly spent $$$s trying to perfect hydraulic seals-and failed.

Citroen took the pragmatic approach- they recognised that seals would leak ....a little...so designed a system that recycled the excess cleverly!

[Scribe]

I didn't know that. And of course you can still drive around when the spheres need replacing. You just lose that wafty ride and feel every tiniest bump in the road.

[Chris Skelton]

Well, not completely! But you're right, the spheres did need re-gas occasionally.

Ah, memories of drifting home in snowbound-silence, windows open, music playing ...in a DS23.......