ECUPirate Posted December 18, 2004 Posted December 18, 2004 What do you guys think... I have an opportunity to buy a CPO 2001 LS430 Ultra Lux with 36K miles for $38,800. The car is nice and has lots of toys, but I can get a 2002 model with somewhat fewer options for the same or less money. (I know high people in places...) What makes me nervous about this car is that it has the air suspension, which I've read can be rather costly to repair. The dealer acknowledged this, but naturally said that it's a Lexus air suspension and will basically last forever. Honestly, how long should I expect to own the car before the suspension gives me trouble?
99lsguy Posted December 18, 2004 Posted December 18, 2004 Surely the air suspension will last 5-7 yrs minumum....... If I could get an 02 with even less miles for same or less money...I'd get it. I'm not one for lots of gadgets on my car though......they are usually worth very little when its time for resale.....
1990LS400 Posted December 20, 2004 Posted December 20, 2004 I don't know Roy ... I'm starting to having a lot more gadgets on my current LS. If I had it to do over, I would not have excluded air suspension when I searched for a car last year. I'm starting to warm up to the LS430 and my next LS will likely be a three year old Ultra that has just come off a lease. By 2001, Toyota/Lexus had at least 12 years of practice making LS/Celsiors with air suspension which means that air suspension has likely gotten a lot more reliable. If one can afford to spend $38K for a used car, I doubt if it will hurt all that much to pay for the repair of the air suspension years down the road - and it may never break. The Ultra really "rocks". A co-worker spent an hour playing with the rear seat gadgets in one and now he has bids in on several. (I was good enough last week to not submit a "winning bid" for him when left my PC still signed on with his ebay account!)
RFeldes Posted December 21, 2004 Posted December 21, 2004 I think the "Ultra" would be a winner if you would look at "vincentestsq" post and have the windshield noise problem taken care of under warranty if it has not already been addressed. Hence, I would opt for the "Ultra".
ECUPirate Posted December 21, 2004 Author Posted December 21, 2004 well, this is a resale, and it's obvious that the Ultra option isn't going to fetch the seller anywhere near the $14K price of admission. I guess the question is.. how much is it worth to me, now? I'm a pretty tall guy, but I don't think my arms will reach the steering wheel from the vibrating back seat, and my pockets aren't quite deep enough to hire a driver... Do you think $38.8K is fair? Plan B is to wait until January and see what I see. I had the chance to buy a nicely equipped 2002 for $38.6 a couple weeks ago. So, this wind noise problem with the 2001s... was this just a gasket issue, or was there a structural change made to the 2002s that resolved it? This was just about the only thing they fixed between the model years that I know of. Wood colors... Every 2001/2002 Ultra I've seen has the grey colored wood. What's up with that? Is it special in some way, because I'm rather fond of wood-colored wood. WarrantyDirect.com... I've read good things. They have some pretty compelling aftermarket warranty options. The car I'm looking at is CPO, but if it wasn't I could get a 5/100 bumper-bumper exclusionary policy for ~$1,800. Too bad they exclude 'shock absorbers'. Paying $4,000+ for parts plus labor for 4 shocks would definitely hurt my feelings. Just for laughs, tell me what you think of autolenders.com. They have a few off-lease dealerships in NJ. It's a bit of a hike from here but the prices are quite competitive. All of the cars seem to be modestly equipped, though.
99lsguy Posted December 21, 2004 Posted December 21, 2004 ecu, At this point, I would wait till post Jan 2nd.... Why not, its only 2 weeks and you'll save on property tax :D That "greyish" wood color became popular on the "platinum edition" LS's.....
99lsguy Posted December 21, 2004 Posted December 21, 2004 ecu, Oh yeah....I do believe the wind noise was solved with a new TSB and better (thicker) gasket....that fix has worked okay...I believe.
ECUPirate Posted December 28, 2004 Author Posted December 28, 2004 Update: still haven't seen this car. I had been waiting for the dealer to get it in. I did talk to the dealer again, and went to test drive something else last night. So, the ultra I mentioned before with 36K for $38.8 (silver) or a custom lux with 24K for the same price (but black, which I prefer). Both are certified. I still think the price is too high. They say that the CPO process adds about $3K to the price of the car ($895 for the actual warranty, plus the costs of any repairs). If I could get the same car uncertified for $35.8K and buy an aftermarket 5 yr warranty for $1850, would this be the smart thing to do? Your thoughts?
jbarhorst2 Posted December 28, 2004 Posted December 28, 2004 I believe there is a "dark" wood color also available on the Ultras. I am not sure what the name of the color is, but it is a darker redish wood color. I believe you can only get it with the black interior. Tom
Lexus. Posted December 29, 2004 Posted December 29, 2004 The "marble wood" looks cool. 2001 and 2002 same car. Just get the car with most amount of toys. Just enjoy the creamy smooth ride of air susp and dont worry about failure. If you were that concerned, you might as well get a car that has no luxury features because any component can fail
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