Hello everyone! I recently picked up an 2006 IS350 with ~51K miles. Carfax was clean, but I did not get any service records from the Lexus Dealer in the manuals they gave me. I decided to take a gamble because I got a pretty good price on the car, and it had all the extras and options installed. It drives very well, in fact my B-I-L has a 2010 IS350 and he says it drives exactly like his. The dealer told me that they don't certify IS models very often because they are trying to keep them at a price point. I can see his point there, but I don't know if I believe it.
Nevertheless, I did purchase the 3yr/36K Platinum warranty from the dealership. They said I could get a refund on it if I changed my mind within 30 days, and that is was also prorated and transferable. The price was $1811 for this.
So my questions are:
1. Where should I start on the maintenance? Just the next service after 50K? My brother suggested taking it to a mechanic to see if any repairs are needed that might be covered by the warranty.
2. Keep the warranty? At this point, with the unknown history of this vehicle, I'm leaning towards just keeping it for some peace of mind. Although I would suspect that any Lexus can go 100K miles without much more than fresh oil and gasoline.
3. Are there any big or common problems that I should watch out for in the 50-85K mile range on these vehicles?
My current plan is to drive this car for 2-3 years while it is under warranty, and then sell it depending on what kind of problems I've had with it--if any.
I appreciate the input you guys might have!
PS--I am really digging the car. I am stunned at how fast this thing picks up sometimes. I've got to adjust my driving habits from the old 4-cylinder Civic I had been commuting with.
EDIT: to clarify me not requesting the service records