Neil E

Perhaps 4 or 5 might be possible in Yorkshire. SC430 owners do like a meet but curiously many of them don't like to travel too far. 🙃 We managed to get 7 together for a South East meet and a record 10 at the 2019 Toyota MR2 Drivers Club, Meet in 2019.

Yes leather dye is the way to go. I've used it many times and it works well if you apply it in many light even coats with a sponge or even better as a spray. I can't link to it but if you search you will find good examples of SC430 owners results including my own. There's a bit in here where I covered the sub enclosure but there's more elsewhere on how to rejuvenate the seats. https://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/topic/112580-sc430-project/?&page=6#comments

The gold badged editions were tuned to go slightly quicker. Next day delivery to any dark corner of Cambs can be arranged 🤣

With good Winter tyres most cars would cope just fine even on the snow roads until they get too bad for the snow-ploughs. The end of September/early October is a good time to go as the weather can still be favourable, fewer tourists and fewer midges.🙂

Yes exactly if you want an SC430 to enjoy rather than to look at or preserve in original concours condition then age isn't a problem. They are quite capable of very long service. Mine has 158k miles on it and despite all of the abuse it receives, a good service regime and a bit of attention when required is all that it needs.

I can understand the 'instruction,' I'm a big fan of the LS. I was looking for an LS600 when I stumbled upon the ultra rare GS460. The Toyota Soarer V8 and the LS430 are the quietest and most comfortable cars I've owned. Like the RX, the LS may not be the most engaging to drive but it's a first class way to travel. The RX is no fun (until it snows heavily) but it does everything you expect it to very well. The top spec RX is a comfortable ride with all of the toys and great off the beaten track where my low, wide SC430 would fear to tread.

I don't think there were many produced for the UK market in 2008 or 2009 but a low mileage blue 2009 SC430 was sold to webuyanycar.com by a member recently. No doubt soon to be offered for a little more than £19k. https://www.howmanyleft.co.uk/vehicle/lexus_sc430_auto I don't think we ever got the slightly improved 2010 spec car in the UK.

Yes I still have the mad SC430. I should have sold it long ago but it continues to evolve. Sunny day North West Highlands but the roof is on. It's even been to Lewis and South Uist. Ignoring the driving experience, the RX is really the best vehicle for the job as you can see so much more, it's big comfortable (not quite like the LS) and it will cope with anything thrown at it, Summer or Winter but if you want to have fun, the SC430 is hard to beat....raises a few eyebrows too.😊

🤣 lol, that was funny. Motorhomes are mostly okay to navigate around...until it's single track, it's the really slow F drivers like MR2LAD that get in my way. I'm sure they drive slowly to avoid injuring any midges.🤣 Good stable, LS430 or the ISF, tough choice for a long adventure.👍

If you want to keep it original, ask the dealer for a cost, it may not be too bad or alternatively consider some adjustable coilovers.

3 Fs in the Highlands? I'll delay my trip until October this year, don't want to get held up too much.🤣

Done it loads of times. As stated by others, there are some great driving sections on the NC500 route but there are some awesome diversions off it that shouldn't be missed. If time permits, sample the A939 high road through the Cairngorms too. Better still, do it sideways in the Winter.🙃

I think they are the same for all years. It might be worth asking if someone could weld/replace the fixing or you could try a little strong body bonding adhesive to fix it in place. https://lexuspartsdirect.co.uk/parts/lexus-sc/lexus-sc430-2001-2010/lexus-sc430-exterior-interior/lexus-sc430-bonnet-moulding/

Stunning! Time to enjoy all your hard work and dedication Rob.

Oh Steve what have you done? You could have tried mine first to see if you liked the chopped roof look. Not sure if I should exit stage left in a cloud of shame or claim my vulgar 'de-merit' badge.🤣

I agree, it looks cleaner and updated without the inserts.

I must admit I was very lucky to pick up the GS460. I was looking for an LS460/600 at the time but saw it and bought it immediately. I don't think £6k would buy a decent GS460 but should be fine for a GS430. I've owned the mk2 and mk3 GS430. The later one rides, drives and performs very similar to the GS460. The earlier model was finished to a higher standard but is a bit dated now. I always wanted a V300 Aristo.😎 The 460 has better fuel economy, on a long run I easily get 32 making good motorway progress, it has a little bit more grunt but the 3UZ is equally smooth and quieter in my view. If you could cope with the smaller boot, the hybrid GS450H SEL ought to be a contender but I like 8 cyls. 🙂 Looking at the ever increasing prices of SC430s, the rare and better equipped GS430 is something of a bargain. Good luck with the search.

Rare to see a GS460 for sale. Can I ask how many miles has it covered?

Good choice but not very easy to find now. How many left in the UK - Q4 2020 GS430 237 GS460 15

The in-out Hokey Cokey procedure is for the in car key programming. 🙂

Glad you got it fixed for the trip.🙂 For a simple reset I usually do the same. Disconnect the negative lead on the battery for a minute or two and then reset all of the lost settings but it doesn't always reset the memory seat function. To reset the SC430 seats the procedure below works. I haven't found anything to confirm it but it may be similar for the LS. The LS seats may not beep but try adjusting them to the end of each forward, backward and tilt adjustment. To reset the windows this usually does the trick. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kowPAsiuxhs I've also read that the windows should be rolled fully up and down twice then hold the button for 2 seconds with the window shut. Do it for all windows and that should complete the reset and restore full functionality.

Also consider coil-overs. MeisterR is a favourite cost effective adjustable solution with SC430 owners but it's not the only route to improving the ride. There are lots of threads on the subject. Well worth reading if the suspension needs to be refreshed.

Hi Dan, Does it have the Mark Levinson audio system with an ML/Harmon Amplifier? If you remove the head unit, take some pics of the back of the unit and the plugs, email a Beat-Sonic technician confirming vehicle chassis number /country of origin and I'm sure they could find a solution for you. When I first converted a US spec Beat-Sonic adaptor to work in a UK car it did take some thought and wiring research but it worked just fine with a little modification to the loom. I also emailed Beat-Sonic and they responded in a couple of days with a simpler solution than my wiring hack. They also offered to make a bespoke 'euro spec' loom for me. A few years later and they now supply one specifically for the UK model. Your early lhd car will be slightly different but I suspect the US version MVA-13L adaptor will work with it, perhaps with just a minor wiring tweak or two. There are a few guys on the US site clublexus who have the SC430 without Nav, you may find inspiration from some of their solutions. I eventually 'deleted' the factory Nav in my 2006 UK car and now use Google Maps and others from a dash mounted ipad connected to the Alpine head unit which also has Sat Nav. Anything is possible but it does depend on just how far you are prepared to go with it.

570 whp makes it a thunder saloon + and it appears to have been done properly. If similar power Supras are worth more then it's probably a fair price. More room + bracing for extra shopping and rear passengers too. Not really feeling the body kit but it is in-keeping with 1998.

2005, is it a 55 plate facelift with LED rear lights?