Make Up My Mind People

[sapper_daddy]

i love my lex and it's in great shape, so here is my delima

it has 192,000 and it's a 94 beige with aluminum alloy

i'll take some pitcures this weekend and post them up to help you guys decide for me some more

the interior has a few stains and the leather is worn but not torn

the tint is bubling and i can easily remove it my self

there is a slight grinding noise immediatly after starting that has something to do with the starter

while warming up there is a bit of valve ticking( i only think it is on one cylinder)

i just put new sumitumo tires on it

i have all the equpiment to do timing belt job minus new plugs wires and water pump (about $250 for that stuff)

i have replaced the sunroof and door handle

i have repaire the reclining seat and the telescopling steering wheel

there is a shake when i apply the brakes

it still gets 25 mi to the gallon

the paint was keyed while previous owner worked in dallas(needs

i replaced the antenna mast

stereo still functions great

makes great power that is expected from a small v8 ohc

total work in the car 1000

amount paid for the car = $0

now i use this as a secondary right now as i want to replace the timing belt before i use it as a daily driver

but my primary is starting give me some serious problems and i could easily fix it with a new motor, head, fuel system and the tranny has been serviced along with new ignition system but it's starting to look like crap

so i've been investigating into grabbing a trans am with about 50K with a 5.7 and a six speed

i can't make up my mind should i get rid of my vehicles and get the trans am or get rid of all of them and try to find a decent lex..........i don't want put out any more than 15K right now but i want something that i don't have to fix all the time, i wouldn't bother me say if it was a 69 camaro with 426 or something like that but neither of these cars are so what the heck should i do, i'll be quitting the working world soon and going back to college so low notes are in favor of course, alright guys go to work!!!!!

[nc211]

As one who has asked this question before.......I say keep the lex, dump the ford, use the proceeds to finish out fixing up your lex and go get that degree. Or, dump them all, and go get a newer LS400 with the knowledge that you now have for what to look out for, and what parts have been replaced. It's just about impossible to beat that toyota 4.0 V8 for dependability. The aux. components on all cars will give out at some point. I'd keep the lexus.

[blake918]

As someone who is also in college with a LS, I wish I would have held off on mine and gotten an Accord or something that has hardly any maintinance costs and is very nondescript as not to attract people with keys or even worse weapons! Mine was paid for upfront, but the maintinance/repairs, gas (short 5 minute city trips yield about 12-15mpg on a good day.), and what have you sees to it that my wallet stays as empty as possible. I couldn't imagine a note on top of it all.

I'd find a nice late model Camry (probably a I4 since the V6s don't come alive until 10,000 rpms or so, and the 4 will sip gas. LOL) with a good extended warranty.

[nc211]

As someone who is also in college with a LS, I wish I would have held off on mine and gotten an Accord or something that has hardly any maintinance costs and is very nondescript as not to attract people with keys or even worse weapons! Mine was paid for upfront, but the maintinance and what have you sees to it that my wallet stays as empty as possible. I couldn't imagine a note on top of it all.

very good point!

[sapper_daddy]

as it does need a little but of work but drives well should it sell for 3000 or so if i was to get something else?

[SRK]

I bought the 92 LS for the family, and of course I drove it quite a bit, while I kept my own car, a 94 Camaro Z-28 with the LT-1 engine. Then I traded the Camaro on the 98 GS and haven't looked back.

Whatever you do, don't get rid of a Lexus to get a GM F-body, especially the LT-1. The only things I didn't fix (and I did it all myself except for the trans and diff) were the crank and pistons. Head gaskets, brakes, suspension, O-2 sensors, driveshaft, starter, alternator, distributor, water pump, and my favourite trans shop did the auto TWICE, and the diff once, complete. When I sold it the oil pressure was below 25 psi hot, and I knew it needed crank bearings. Thousands of dollars. Yep, a fun car when it ran properly, and a disgusting piece of crap when it didn't.

The six speed cars have the bejezus driven out of them, and the clutches fail, and the diffs fail, because they are the weenie 10 bolts. Go figure how GM saved $23.00 using the 10 bolt instead of the 12, and that means owners rebuild the diff every four years or so.

Fix the LS, and enjoy the best ride in the world.

[sv7887]

i love my lex and it's in great shape, so here is my delima

it has 192,000 and it's a 94 beige with aluminum alloy

i'll take some pitcures this weekend and post them up to help you guys decide for me some more

I think the 192K miles say it all. This is a car which will require work, period. Parts are expensive even if you do your own labor. If you are planning on going to school, I wouldn't keep a car with this sort of mileage. I seem to be shelling out $5-600 every six months to get yet another problem fixed on my 1992. These cars will break, Lexus or not. I'm beginning to understand that nothing lasts forever, and it's not in my interest to keep fixing this thing!

-Sam

[LEXIRX330]

as it does need a little but of work but drives well should it sell for 3000 or so if i was to get something else?

Sell the ford...take the money that you get dump it in to your lex. It is paid for. That is a good feeling!!! You could buy a newer car and have problems with that too! At least you know what needs to be done to your car now. When I was going to college I had a 94 Celica GT car ran great...and it was paid for...I drove the wheels off of it!

Don't get me wrong there is nothing wrong with making payments on a car but if you fell like this... " i'll be quitting the working world soon and going back to college so low notes are in favor of course, alright guys go to work!!!!! "

Why not have no Note...at least until you get out of school!!! But if you can swing a new ride I would not get the Trans Am...

By the way !!! Thank you for your service and good luck with what ever you decide to do!!!

[Gumart1]

"i love my lex and it's in great shape"

You said it yourself - so I say keep it. As LexiRx said, you know what is wrong with it, you can buy another and inherit someone else's problems. You are handy and you have this forum and already have most parts so you're halfway there! The mileage means little (ask Blake). I have over 250k on my '91 and it is much better mechanically than the '92 I owned briefly with 100k less miles!

If you absolutely don't have the time, and you said you have up to 15k to spend, then I like Blake's advice on a newer Toyota with an extended warranty. You're actually right at the price point of a '98LS - but that wouldn't leave you with any room to work. Hope it works out - Good luck.

[SW03ES]

192k miles...at this point in your life you need stability and you don't need financial surprises. I agree with Blake, I'd sell them both and get the lowest mileage Camry or Accord you can get and drive it until you're done with the degree and making enough coin to get something that interests you a little more. You can buy a nice relatively new Accord for $15k.

The other option would be to buy a 97 or so LS400 with ~100k or more, and thats going to need to be repaired and maintained and its money you're not going to have while you're in school.

Gumart- Did you get rid of your 98?

[Gumart1]

Steve - I'm almost ashamed to admit I did sell my '98 :( . I'm probably the first LOC member to actually sell his! As you know in the past year I've bought and sold a few (including the 93 ES 5-speed) and loved them all. My '92 is nothing at all like the '98 in performance, and I plan to own one again in the future. For me it was personal, I put on all of 3,000 miles in just under a year with the '98 - not enough time with my foreclosure rehabbing work. I'm enjoying the hobby, and I'd rather learn on the '92 for which I paid next to nothing. I suppose it is like a "foreclosure Lexus". Plus the tutorials are there. I'm in a different situation that you Sapper, so I can understand your dilemna. I still think the 98-00 are the best years to own, and the best body style of all. I would have loved to have bought your dad's.

[sapper_daddy]

alright thanks for all of the great replies...............

i like the idea of the toyota or honda with low miles, definitly something i will go ahead and start pricing around here. it couldn't really hurt me to put anywhere from 900-1200 in the lexus to get it up and running and if finances permit another 500-1000 to make it sexy again......then i think to statisfy my sudden addiction to speed i will yank the new 300 i-6 out of my truck and start building a project 408 stoker motor, it won't cost me phoo to park the truck and do that slowly and it will be fast fun and i can still have someting to haul and tow with, and the lex will be my primary that gets me somewhere without hurting my back or leaking oil on the carport, thanks guys for the advice i have a little bit of an idea of where to go

too bad the f-body cars don't hold up that good or it'd be really nice to grab one

funny that you say the clutches go out on the six speeds (it is true because of how they are driven) last weekend my buddy smoked his clutch going to third gear and still ran a 13 flat................the flywheel is now blue, you gotta pay to play and he's quick about fixing stuff because he enjoys it so much but i'm not up for that right now so let's see what i come up with in the next few weeks

thanks again everybody

[SRK]

Hopefully he also knows that the LT-1 flywheels have no machining allowance, and must be replaced along with the clutch when worn. More joy.