my recent experience as a passenger in a low miles 17 plate one was it's like an old bag'o'bones compared to the Ls400
and the back seat entry requirements are for someone with zero leg issues as it's just too high to escalate oneself up the ramparts
Malc
for me your piccy seems to obliterate most of your text sadly
I found in olden times an air filter would last 2 years motoring, about 20/25k miles
These past few years the air quality has gotten so bad that it NEEDS changing each and every year
Malc
I've had a Mk1 and a Mk2 and my Mk3 is a much better car tbh ....... 19 years of constant Ls400 ownership
Your Mk3 doesn't look too bad on the surface , needs a bit of tlc........... no-one's going to want to keep it for spares I guess ( space etc ) and the option to repair is expensive unless it's bombed out price with genuine UCAs and other parts so expensive when they need doing and at 183k miles that's what's likely next and not too far away
Reading on here other peoples cars with WBAC are at the £50 level offering ...... your £310 offer might be it's value if you can't deal with the restoration yourself
Good luck anyway with it all
Malc
I'm past worrying about mpg these days ... she wafts along in supreme limo comfort and power and never misses a beat
85.1 ltrs sometimes gets about 520 mpg on a good clean run at 70mph and fully loaded, otherwise it's around 420 on a tankful for ' normal ' motoring
Malc
when I had to have a replacement front screen the rare and intermittent ( wind ) noise I had vanished
so maybe it's the screen seating that slightly " gives " with age
Malc
she looks lovely in Aspen Green ( like mine ) ................ welcome to the Club
use her lots, you will love the drive and all about her, use her, use her, use her, she will reward you for many years to come
Malc
and this is why the old'uns Ls400s are in such increasing demand ........ wondrous comfort, speed and reliability and amazingly low cost maintenance
I have been tempted from time to time to gofor a Ls600 seeing they can be picked up for ridiculously low money and some cover stellar miles .... company cars no doubt with a bottomless pit servicing budget ..... which I nor many on here would have ...... so I'll stop thinking about the changeover and stick with my now valued £50 car that I spent about £2k on last year with new all round Toyota UCAs, tyres, cambelt and waterpump change etc ... servicing and MOT ... and maybe another easy cost 100k miles ahead of me and 10 years
Good luck with your potential Ls600, I know Mr Savage on here is very pleased with his beautiful car as are many other owners I'm sure
Malc
a salutary lesson here ...... my son-in-law age 51 is the YOUNGEST professional and competent paint sprayer etc that he knows and is aware of locally in Kent.
There aren't many left much at all anywhere in the country.
The training that new guys /gals get isn't good enough.
An ageing breed and the skills are vanishing fast 👻
Malc
so Lexus really don't bother doing the scheduled servicing then ........... might as well have taken it to a trusted independent who would have done all the work and at half the price or less I guess
Malc
it's simply a very big job on the Ls400 et al ...... replace the belt, check and deal with the pulleys, and replace the waterpump . it's big it's time consuming it's expensive but above all, it's life extending for the car
I know that with the Alfa Romeos I had on my garage forecourt that the scheduled life of a cambelt had to be shortened to 10/15k miles as they just ' snapped '
Visited the Canterbury Alfa dealer once and saw engine after engine on their workbenches being repaired
Malc
and even if you could you might not even notice the wear factor,
Mine when changed last year at 101,500 miles and 11 years looked quite pristine ...... and capable of maybe another ' chancy ' 50k miles
Malc