dxt45

a couple things to keep in mind: The average car dealer wants to make a minimum of $2k on any used car....luxury and Lexus dealers usually want to make more. They typically play on people walking into the showroom, so do heavy research on internet pricing beforehand. Find out how long they have had the car...if it's a "just in" car, they'll be asking top dollar, if they've had it for more than 30 days, it's likely they'll break even or take a loss to get rid of it. Find a dealer that is stuck with a car....and they'll do anything to sell it. Typically, you should be able to negotiate anywhere from 5-10% off the asking price. Shoot for the lowest number possible, and work up from there.

wow, that's sweet. That's what the 7-series should've looked like.

Did you check your fuses? ← I've replaced almost every fuse on the car....are the power locks and trunk release on the same fuse?

just picked up another lexus toy.....check it out! PICTURE 1 PICTURE 2 INTERIOR

I did do a search on this and couldn't find what I needed, so I'm asking the experts here.... on my 92 sc300, the remote trunk release (from the driver's compartment) doesn't work. The gas relase one works....but not the trunk. I know it's electrical, and the car was jumpstarted a few months ago when I bought it. The power door locks do not work either. ???

nope...I found this out the hard way....took the back seats out, and realized it was solid metal in between me and the trunk.

You're right, it's 10 times better than the SC430...much more of a real sport coupe.

That is an incredible deal!! I see them go for more than that wholesale all the time. If everything checks out, BUY IT!!!

Only thing missing is the rear wing.... Pic 1 Pic 2 Interior

I'm just getting ready to put the SC300 on the road...and taking a nice 2000 mile trip, I hope this car takes regular...because I'm sick of premium prices in my other car! Is it ok to run regular in these motors?

well...I thought I was done with the car, now it turns out I have to replace the radiator and a/c condenser. Who knows what else...this car has been garaged for 1.5years...and I'm trying to get ready for a road trip next week. yikes. Anything else I should do as preventive maintenance? I changed all the fluids....new tires, brakes, etc.

I finally found a good sc300....got a 92 with 108k miles. I haven't really even had it yet, because it's at the shop getting all the fluids flushed, new tires, sc400 wheels, new sc400 bumper, etc. I wanted to get a 5spd, but my friend had a good automatic...so I got it. I love the car, I guess I'll have to drive it for a couple of weeks and see if I want to keep it. Will this car make a decent winter car?

as far as customer service, which is what it's all about, it's definitely Verizon. I've gone from Nextel to Cingular to Verizon in 2 months, having the blackberry with both cingular and verizon, and cingular screwed me so badly I will never do business with them again. let's just say my $69.99 bill came out to be over $1100.

food

I've finally made the decision to go with lexus, after a long post and lots of help in the general discussion area, and I thought I had decided on the SC300, but from what I've heard the 400 motor is a better motor, and just as good gas mileage? From people's experiences, which is the better car to buy? (92-96)

Could be, hoping not. It's had 2 owners, and from what the guy told me, he's replaced pretty much everything that usually goes wrong with them, from tires to the window regulator to timing belt to PCV valve. I'm going to check it out, I've been looking for over a month now for the right car, so I can easily wait another month if I have to. Anyone on the forum live near Boston and want to check this car out?

Cool. I'm going to drive this car in a week or so, thanks for all your guys help. I hope to become an active member of the forum here, hopefully not in the same sense as on the SHO Forum...... only other question, are the SC300's as bad in the snow as, say, a camaro?

Who performed the preventive maintenance? If done by an independent shop instead of a Lexus dealer or Lexus specialty shop then the car could now have aftermarket brake pads, spark plugs, plug wires, water pump and coolant etc. which will degrade the reliability / durability of a Toyota / Lexus. There isn't much advantage of owning a Toyota / Lexus if the car is filled up with Ford and Saturn car quality aftermarket parts and fluids. What do you know about the driver? If you don't know anything because the car is on a used car or dealers lot, that's another bad sign as the car could have alot of suspension and steering linkage wear including bushing wear due to aggressive driving. It could be a real challenge for you to find an enthusiat car like a SC300/400 that has not be driven aggressively. ← It's actually at a used car dealer, but I called the former owner (now a BMW owner) and talked to him personally, he's not young, and he put 30k miles on it from 1998 to 2005. The work was done at an independent shop, but from what he said it was replaced correctly with OEM. It was also driven in an area where the roads are fairly good.......I would not want to buy one in Cleveland, that's what has killed my saturn. The dealer warranties all the vehicles as well for 6 mo/6000 miles. Not a Lexus CPO, but better than nothing.

Man, there's a lot to this. I'm coming from owning a Ford SHO in past times, so anything that doesn't break weekly is reliable, and my Saturn is breaking monthly, which is too much for me. I was hoping maybe a well cared for used lexus would be extremely reliable, from owners I've talked to locally they are, but again, you guys are the experts. I did find a good deal on a 92 SC300, timing belt changed, brakes, ignition (plugs/wires), water pump, all as preventive maintenance, 100k miles, also the PC valve I think it is, was replaced, as the bad one was causing the car to burn a little oil. All oil changes were done. My only hesitation is it has had coolant flushes done as preventive maintenance, and I know on some cars that can be bad for the seals in the system to pressurize it like that. From what I have heard, brakes, pc valve, and those things, are the first things I would have to replace. Is this a car worth going for?

That is the MOST uninformed comment i have EVER heard you make. the end. <_< DXT45, you have an email. ← ArmyofOne, thanks for the email. To Monarch - I am not looking for a beater car, but I'm looking for something that's going to have more predictable reliability than the Saturn, as I have already had some problems at 40k miles, even with all oil changes done, i.e., I'm caring for an American car like I would for a German car. My question is, with the ES and SC 300 models, if I find a decent 100k mile car, is it going to be a worthwhile investment, and do they truly live up to their reputation of being "bulletproof"?

I drive a Saturn right now, can't stand it, finally made the decision to switch over to Japanese. I'm looking at a 92-95 SC300 or same year ES300. From everything I've heard about them they're amazing, but are there key things to watch out for in these models, any key things I should know before jumping in and buying one? any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks! Doug