Crusty1

Holy smoke! If I could get 28mpg I'd be in petrol heaven!!!!

Looking to buy a used LS 400 and have a ton of questions. I bought property in the country that is 1 mile on a private gravel road. I'll be settling there long term and want to know how a LS 400 would handle 1 mile of gravel with a few pot holes here and there. I know this sounds corny...why not buy an SUV. I've got 2! I just hate having to drive either of the beasts for just a mile of gravel because it acccounts for about 2-3% of my travel once I hit the pavement. My "deceased" Camry needed a new set of struts after 2 years of this driving out here. Did the work myself and bought free lifetime replacements just in case. Just wondering how the LS would hold up if I wasn't barreling down at 45mph! Thanks.

OK. Hello to everyone. First post. Really want to pull the trigger on a used LS 400...first or 2nd gen. My beloved Camry of 16 years has a fried motor at only 152K. I can drop a JDM motor/tranny in it for less than 1k but that's if I do the work myself. But with gas approaching record prices I really need to know what MPG I can expect from an LS 400. My camry was good for a solid 15/25 on average. I've heard some people say they've gotten 25-28 MPG hwy with their LS 400. It 's so hard to believe---though I want to!--that a 4.0 lite V8r can get better than a 3.00 L v6. That's got to be some awesome Japanese luxury mojo goin' on here. I've got a budget of $5-10K for a cash deal. Prices on Ebay are so tempting because they're bascially selling at wholesale. I want something as clean as I can afford but am willing to the distance and drop a new engine or tranny if I really like the car once I've had it awhile. I looking for a car for the next 10-15 years so I don't have to come out of semi-retirement just to make my payments! Thanks for the great advice in advance. Dennis PS. My dad bought the very first Toyota Corolla in our little town of 10k back in 1971. Everybody laughed at him for buying a "rice burner." We've owned countless Toys in our family every since. With Toyota now the 2nd largest car mgf. in the world...who's laughing now? Lexus is the crem de la crem!