Considering Buying A 94 Ls400 W/ 207k

[Thebeanery]

I used the search function and read all the info in the pinned section: Common Issues and A LS400 buying Guide, which was very helpful.

I am considering purchasing a Lexus LS400 with 207,000 for $1800 from a friend. The car will be used as an extra car, as we already own a 05 Nissan Titan and a 06 Honda Odyssey...... The exterior of the Lexus is in very good shape, with the bumpers needing a minor touch-up due to fading. The interior of the car shows minimal wear and tear for its age. The temperature panel is faded into black, but thanks to this great site i was able to determine that this is about $250 dollars to fix, if i have it fixed at all. The antenna is broken and needs to be replaced.

The transmission was repaired less than a year ago by a reputable shop and is still under warranty. However the car has recently started vibrating while driving. Hopefully it is the transmission mounts or spark plug wires, as I have read about others experience here on the forums. It vibrates at low and high speeds and also in reverse. It is not a very violent shaking but it is not as smooth as it should be.

Is this car with such high mileage worth my consideration? I am aware that I may have to spend some money in order to get he car in better running condition but im not looking for a money pit.

What else should I look at before making up my mind?

Thanks in advance for your help and thanks for providing a valuable resource for future Lexus owners.

I know people on forums love pics but i forgot my camera today. Ill go take pics in the AM.

[curiousB]

Any chance you have a dealer look at the car to determine the source of the vibration? It would be a sinking feeling just buying the car to find that the repair is much larger than you expected. Maybe you get lucky and its something simple like a transmission mount but it could be something more (given tranny was just serviced you might ask the mechanic if he replaced the mount with a new one and if not what was condition of old one).

These cars are expensive to repair when they need repairs. Parts are more expensive and dealer labor rates are high (although a lot of people seem to have good success with independent mechanics). The good news is they need repairs less often because the cars are designed so well. At 207k though we're not talking about a new born but that isn’t overly high for one of these cars either..