Questions about used high end luxury cars?

Agreed on the snotty dealers at BMW.



We went in to see a 3 and 5 series and the dealer was a fat guy with white hair and a red, dripping greasy face. He acted so much more superior to us and was extemely reserved and quiet. Why would anyone buy a car from them? Okay, my dad doesn't work at an office all day-so what? Why do they care so much? If we can afford it then there's no reason to treat somebody lower than them, it's just not how you sell a car.
 
DCopp said:
Audi A8?
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Much as we love ours, I dunno if I'd recommend one unless a) it's still under warranty, b) you have a great relationship with a great dealership, and c) you have the $ for stuff that a warranty won't cover or for when the warranty runs out. Not much headroom either, due to the sunroof, so this one won't work for Outlaw Titan.
 
I love the Lexus LS, I think its probably my favorite car of all time. They really are great cars and if you treat them right they will last for literally hundreds of thousands of miles. My dad had a 98 that he traded with 160k for an 04 LS, only maintenance was done and I think he had one of the A/C compressors replaced once. The air suspension was starting to loose a little bit of air while parked but it did have 160k on it. When I was shopping a couple years ago I was seriously considering an 00 LS400 or an 00 or 99 740iL because of how much I loved my dad's LS but the fear of expensive maintenances and parts drove me to a new ES instead. In the next couple of years I plan on buying an LS430 brand new and driving it until 200,000 miles. I think people who trade them at 30,40,50k are missing out on the best part of these cars, they get comfortable and improve with age like a good pair of shoes. I love my ES, but its not built like an LS. Rides almost as good though.



I still miss that LS, I havent driven his new one nearly as much (since I don't live at home anymore obviously) but I'm sure its a great car too.



As for headroom, it probably depends on how you are built but I've heard people around 6'3" or so complain about the headroom in the 400s. My dad and I are both 6'1" and we both fit fine.



I've seen 01 430s with 60k miles or so going for high 20s around here.
 
As for headroom, it probably depends on how you are built but I've heard people around 6'3" or so complain about the headroom in the 400s. My dad and I are both 6'1" and we both fit fine.
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Yes, there's probably no substitute for sitting in the cars themselves. Although 6'5", I have long legs so that headroom is less of a problem for me than for other six footers. On the other hand, there is also the subjective perception of space.



Although I nominally fit in it, the Infiniti Q45 gave the impression of being cramped for me. Too bad, as I think that those are the real used car bargains. Not as nice as the LS400s but a lot cheaper used. If that car fits your size and driving style, I'd seriously consider a used 2000 or 2001 with 60K miles.
 
GoodnClean said:
I've seen 01 430s with 60k miles or so going for high 20s around here. [/B]
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That's a heck of a lot of car for the money. Is this fully equipped with sport package, levinson etc? And at 60k it is basically new too for a lexus.



"I honestly don't see that much of a difference in the 740iL and the LS400, both are soft rather than firm for the handling department. The LS moreso, but not by much. If I were you I'd look into a 740i with the Sport package, I wouldn't consider the 740iL a handling car at all. "



I guess I cannot speak for the il's as they are longer/heavier, but just so the poster/buyer knows, our 740i sport is anything but soft, and that was stock. Now it has H&R sport's (don't have Bilstein's yet as the stock is fine for now) and with the big meats on the sport package the car is absolutely on rails. I would say that people looking for a soft ride would not want this car though in sport form with the big meats as they produce a little harsher ride, but much better handling.
 
The 740i is a whole nother animal, but I personally found the 740iLs pretty soft, YMMV. I drove all of em before I bought, LS400s, LS430s, 740iLs, 740is etc



As for the LS' most of them are fairly base without nav in that pricerange but ones with nav and levinson are just over the 30k border. The sport package on the 01-03 LS430 is almost nonexistant, it is very, very rare so they command a higher price. They started selling more sport packages in 04 when they introduced the 18" wheels.



I would say that an LS430 with the sport package is pretty similar to the 740iL. Its not a LOT of difference between the base LS430, but its there.
 
OutlawTitan said:
The Lexus is probably much more reliable and probably cheaper to maintain......but it has that mushy ride that reminds me of the land yachts from the early 70's.
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I don't know if this is a good fit interior-wise, but have you considered a 1998-up Lexus GS, if you crave some sportiness? That is, if you're looking at a used Lexus but wish to avoid the mushy ride. Lots of suspension upgrades are available for this car if the handling isn't sharp enough for you. A late model 7-series BMW won't have handling nearly as crisp.



Speaking of which, this is may be a little O/T, but I remember the 1st-gen ('88-91) 750s being unloaded at ridiculously low prices by their owners in the mid-90s right aroung the 60,000 to 70,000-mile mark. I found out that the major service at that interval supposedly cost around $2500, which back then was a lot of money.
 
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