Ls400 Ownership Advice - Buyer's Guide

[adrian torres]

Hello,

I want to share my experience after 4 years of ownership of my 1997 LS400 in terms of what advice I have learned for people wanting to buy or replace one from an overall viewpoint.

Even though this is a solidly reliable car in terms of frequency of breakdowns, the ownership of a LS400 is neither cheap nor expensive in whole, but costs can be controlled by careful planning and knowledge. I spend on average $300/month on all costs of ownership excluding gas. This is still cheaper than losing money on depreciation and paying interest on a newer car of this class.

Purchasing;

All LS400's are now 15-25 years old. The most important rule is to be patient and do not rush to buy as there are many LS400's in the market. So wait until you see one that you really want.

Condition is everything. Most importantly, make sure that the paint, body and interior trim is in a condition that you can live with. No car will be perfect, but if the exterior and interior has moderate issues such as tears, dents, clear coat fading, rust, collapsed seats, non-working electrics, and loose or rattling exterior parts or interior panels. Walk away. Mechanical parts are easier to fix and deal with than driving with torn seats or peeling paint. You want to feel good driving it, and not obsess about obvious flaws that you can see and touch everyday.

Complete dealership service history is online at lexus.com. Look for consistent maintenance records, and if a major repair was recommended but not addressed such as suspension issues, engine mounts, brakes, and fluid changes. This shows the lack of pride of ownership from the previous owners and will extend to how the owner either took care of the car or treated it poorly to let the next owner deal with.

At 15-25 years, failing rubber parts will be the main items to look for. Powertrain seals, weatherstripping, and suspension parts will have to be addressed if not already.

Know your maintenance intervals and non-specified but routine commonly replaced items such as;

Motor and Transmission mounts 100k (Failure to repair will cause EGR Pipe to break ($1200 repair)

Shocks/Lower Control Arms/Strut Bars/Lower Ball Joints 90-120K

Upper Control Arms (If above was never addressed) 150k

Valve Cover Gasket 120k

Brake Rotors 120k

Timing Belt Pulleys and Tensioner 180k

Check all weatherstripping for wear as this will lead to excess wind noise. This is expensive to replace if using OEM parts.

Make sure the tires are of good quality. Cheap tires is a warning sign as is multiple small dents/scratches from parking lot damage from improper parking.

Look at the condition of the leather and dash. Check for fading or dryness. Later models had UV protected windows, but dry leather will be an indicator of rubber failure in the weather stripping due lack proper storage and extreme heat conditions without proper upkeep.

The 98+ models are safest due to having ESP standard with brake force assist appearing on the final model year in 2000. Note that 90-97 will have trac control only if heated seats are equipped.

Nakamichi/Navigation vs standard Pioneer systems. This is a personal choice, just make sure that before you buy that everything works. The Nav systems are more of a liability as the AC controls are part of it, and Nakamichi parts are cheap but hard to find used.

Get an expert opinion if unsure. Always get a Lexus dealer who has techs that have been with them since the 90's to look over with a pre-purchase inspection or with an experience independent mechanic to look over the all the car and produce of list of items that need to be addressed. Not only can you use this to screen out pitfalls, but you can use it talk the price down and to plan out your future repairs.

There are many LS400's that are properly cared for in the market, however there are much much more poor examples or compromised examples that tend to stay in the market and appear frequently. Take your time and do your research and extend your search radius and you can find the LS400 that will serve you well for many years and save you money in the long term.

Upkeep;

From the beginning of ownership, there will always be a list of items that may need to be replaced or repaired. Just triage it and plan out which items can be replaced over the next 12-24 months. Stick to your budget, and always plan for unexpected items to come up.

Shop around from qualified repair centers, ask if you can provide your own parts. Get discounted parts online such as Sewell Lexus. Repair small jobs such as brakes yourself. Be careful of taking your LS to places such as Sears or Pepboy's. While most times they can perform simple jobs cheaply. There may be times where complications can occur and the job will not be done properly which will warrant a trip to the dealer for expert review.

Insurance:

Insuring your LS400 for comp and collision is critical to upkeep your car. The main reason is to be able to repair your car when a loss occurs. Lower deductibles are important to this as the average claim is between $600-$1400. A $250 or $100 deductible may be expensive but there are ways to get this coverage cheaper. $50/month with high liability limits and low comp and collision deductibles is not hard to find in most states. (Excluding CA, NY,NJ, and FL) There are two kinds of formulas to derive your cost; the original MSRP or the statistics of the average claim on the LS compared to all other cars. Geico and Farmers use the stats which results in a lower price, or most of the other carriers can offer a limit of liability type policy based on the Cash Value. This is allowed for older cars 15 years of age which all LS400 are now under. In most cases filing claims may or may not increase your rate, this is a question to ask each company as everyone has their own rules, and each state is different. However in most cases small claims under $500-800 have no affect especially if they are a fault free (hit while parked) or comp claims(Hail/Vandalism/Partial Theft). There are a lot of LS400's with damage that could have been repaired using insurance but owners were afraid of making claims. Cracked Bumpers/glass, hail damage, large dents caused by unknown or uninsured drivers, etc. I am not advocating making small nuisances claims, but, if someone is paying for the insurance, you should be able to use it, especially if it was not your fault. If you do have to make a claim, be sure it is someone that Lexus or the dealership recommends as you can have it repaired anywhere. I made the mistake of having my car's hail dents removed using PDR. I went to a insurance recommended shop which sublet the labor to a third party. Let say, that I still have interior panels that are not put together right. This car was built with very small tolerances. Over time age will aggravate the parts ability to snap back into place, requiring clip replacement or even the undamaged part to be replaced in order to repair the body.

In short;

Owning a LS400 is a great way to have great car for little money and can be a smart purchase for yourself and your family. According to the HIghway Loss Data Institute, the LS400/LS430 is 60% safer than the average car in the US in terms of injury to its passengers. What is interesting to note that the newer luxury cars such as the LS460 is still safe but the LS460 is only 34% safer than the average. The LS400 is one of the safest sedans on the road ever made. Only an Large SUV or Truck is safer.