In another thread, Spacewagon52 says 'Personally, I like the LS 460 but members on here say they are not as good as the 400'.
As far as I know, there is only one member on the forum who has ACTUALLY OWNED a 460 and thought it inferior to the 400. I had a Mk3 for 15 years before changing to the 460 so I thought I would give you my observations on owning both.
My Mk3 was RHD but, in 2012, we decided to move to Holland. Getting the Mk3 registered here would have been crazily expensive so we disposed of it and looked around for another car. We had a 2009 RX 400h for a few months but, as my wife said, 'It's not an LS' .....so we went back to the garage and swapped it for a 2007 LS 460. The 460 had 60,000 kms (40,000 miles) on the clock and had been used first, as the garage demonstrator then, as the personal transport of the franchise managing director. As you can imagine, it was immaculate.
Like the 400, the 460 is the main car in the family........used to go to the shops, pick up cement at the builder's merchants, and to enjoy on long trips.
People sometimes ask if I find the 460 superior to the 400. I don't consider that a valid question........ALL LS models are superior automobiles. Do I think the 460 is an improvement on the 400? My answer to that is 'Yes, in nearly all aspects'.
Things I really like:
The automatic parking brake
The 'Brake Hold' facility.
The heated AND cooled seats
The 'looking round corners' headlights
The Tyre Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS)
8-speed auto gearbox
Lots of electronic toys
Lack of timing belt - it has a timing chain. Although there is no servicing time, I do realise that it will have to be checked eventually. On the US forum, there are 460s with 300k on the clock and no timing chain problems.
Things I miss:
The 'secret' storage box under the driver's seat
The cassette player (I'm an old sod)
My 460 is noisier than the 400 - but there is a reason for it. When I bought it, it had the optional 19" tyres fitted. I've been in one with the standard 18" wheels and, in my opinion, it was as quiet as my 400. I'm, actively, trying to source a set of 18"wheels and tyres.
There is much talk about 'all those electronics - they're bound to go wrong'. Well. back in '97, when I bought the Mk3, I was amazed at all the electronics and thought 'they're bound to go wrong'. :)
In 15 years, the only problem I had in that department, was the lighting behind the radio.
Let's face it......things have moved on from the days of semaphore arms which, if you remember, hardly ever worked! I was in a 2014 Ford Focus the other day and was amazed at the amount of electronics which are fitted as standard.
I've been commuting between Holland and Scotland for 3 months (selling our Scottish house) and this week I came back with the car because it needed its Dutch MOT (at 90,000 kms - 60,000 miles) This is the 'Big' service and includes changing the plugs. Because of the problems reported on the US forum (upper and lower control arms, air suspension) I asked the garage to pay particular attention to these and let me know. They found nothing untoward.....what they did find was worn wiper blades and low battery voltage. Since the battery was only 2 years old (and supplied by Lexus), they replaced it under warranty.
Like most responsible car owners, I check the oil and water every week. Now, this amazes me.......since the last service, a year ago, the only fluids I have had to top-up are the fuel and windscreen wash. The engine and hydraulic oils have remained absolutely steady, as has the radiator water. I check the tyre pressures on the TPMS and they have remained at 2.6 bar (cold) all year.
This is a VERY easy car to own and monitor.
In an ideal world, I would have bought the 460 for 'everyday' and kept the 400 for nostalgia :)
Prices for the 460 are falling and are (or soon will be) in the affordable range. For what it's worth, I thoroughly recommend it.
And.....for those of you still awake......thanks for sticking with me :)