Cost of owning a LS400

Hey everyone, I'm in the process of selling my motorcycle to have some cash to buy a car. Currently I'm interested in a integra I found, However I'm in college and will probobly be moving out soon and got to thinking I would have more use out of a 4 door sedan.

I've always liked the LS400 but figured since it's a luxery car it will come with luxery priced repairs.
my question is this. "What is the cost of owning a Lexus LS400?"(1991-98)
as far as parts and repairs compared ot other cars.

I would really like to own a LS400 but currently dont think I would be able to afford the repair and parts bill.

it is a "lexus" so be ready to spend a bit more on parts but its not like having a benz. but it still is a toyota so some toyota parts will work. on my 98 (will b 2yrs this thanksgiving) with lil over 117k I have spend prob 1200~, o2 sensor, power steering pump, break pads and rotors. oil I do my self. will be doing tranny and diff oil soon which wont be expensive. I could use upper control arms their 230ish per, tie rods at 50ish. just a few to name. take your time looking and you should be good, lexus is very good with their cars and how reliable they are.

Thanks for the info.

I understand the LS400 can run... well pretty much forever, given it was taken care of.  Been trying to research on the cost of parts and upkeep on the LS400 compared to other imports and other sedans.

tryin to gauge what the price difference in parts is between a lexus vs an acura,nissan, chevy etc.

my dads friend owns a 01 BMW 3 series and spend about $1800 just on tires but im sure they were low profile stocks. and a radio replacement for his 3 series was roughly $800.   I'd hate to see the price on an axle or suspension.

my cousins acura had a CV axle that needed to be replaced and only ran him about $50.00     im sure the quality and or price between acura and lexus is night and day but by how much?

sure few others will chime in with other prices for you. if anything just do random searchs of parts from window motors to headers to climate controls to get a idea. tires "can" be pricey. I have 18" eurolines my hankooks were only 180per lowpro as well. once new wheels happens ill be looking at 250 to 300 per tire just cuz ill be getting a bigger tire and bit better quality, it just depends on what tire you buy, I coulda spent 300 on run flats instead of 120 lol

the ls400 is [I]relatively[/I] bullet proof. there's a short list of commmon issues but outside of that, and assuming proper maintenance, there's not much that goes wrong with them. the worst common problem, imo, is a dead starter which requires a ridiculous amount of work to change. the power steering system also  causes some headaches, but if you do it right it's a one time repair that isn't hard or all that expensive. theres a few quirks with electrical components but they can be taken care of without the price tag getting out of hand.

Well, the question your asking depends partly on the condition of the car your gonna pickup. Because if you buy a poorly maintained car, then you end up spending more money than one that has been serviced and maintained regularly. I'm assuming your gonna lower it, considering you asked your question on this website. A lot of factors to consider. Like a daily driver that is lowered puts more strain on mechanical moving parts. Thus quicker wear and tear than a factory car in factory form. Which raises the cost of owning that car. And when I mean daily, I mean your only car you drive every single day to and from work and rack up miles with it. But overall the LS400 is definitely gonna cost more to own vs. the Integra. The Integra is a basic, to say the least, compact car vs. full size luxury loaded car. 8 cylinders vs. 4. Two valve cover gaskets vs. 1. Four more spark plugs. More consumption in fuel. Just a few things like that which makes it cost more to own. It's a no brainer if cost and budget is in mind. All cars are cash pits, especially modified ones. But you could save a lot of money if your a do-it-yourselfer. The labor for repairs at a shop is what's gonna kill you. 
 
Don't get me wrong. I'm not trying to stray you away from an LS400 or anything. It is a reliable car. But that's not your question. I'm just layin it out. And just saying to really think it out and make a smart decision. But I think you've already answered some of your questions. Good luck on your decision.

thanks for all the advice and info everyone, 
If I can find a good LS400 it will be my Daily driver but as far as mods go I think it will be pretty basic for a while. IE: Tint, lights, wheels.

Im honestly surprised at how how cheap some thigns are for the LS400 compared to other cars.  I assumed with the Lexus being a luxery car, special tires would be needed and at their cheapest would still be expensive. Was really surprised that decent tires were only 180 even for lowpro.

Parents Hyundai Veracruz just had new tires put on it that were pretty basic tires and each tire was about $220

Thanks again for all the advice so far everyone.

Is there anything in particular I should look for besides powersteering,starter, and knocks and tics from the motor?

what year are you looking at?

from what i've been able to research on, I've been advised/learned that the year to shoot for is 93 and up without air suspension.

so looking at 93-97.   dont think i'll be able to afford the 98 with the face lift though i like the look of the rounded head lights.

Well I have owned my UCF10 for over 4 years now and I can honestly tell you the cost of owner ship is relitivly cheap. But it does depend on the condition mine was a second owner who kept perfect records. I bought mine for 3500 and i have put that amount back into in repairs. But I choose to do some preventive maintance and to be honest I have been extremely happy with it.
 
I have replaced all the major headaches that his platform is prone to suffer from power steering, alt, batt, timing belts and all the hoses as well as water pump and ignition. One word of advice is do not cut corners on parts. If oem parts are out of the price range go with a reptuable second choice. Above all stay away from the Major auto parts chains they are great for domestics but horrible for imports.

[QUOTE=Pinoy09;394100]from what i've been able to research on, I've been advised/learned that the year to shoot for is 93 and up without air suspension.
 
so looking at 93-97. dont think i'll be able to afford the 98 with the face lift though i like the look of the rounded head lights.[/QUOTE]
 
asked this question so people can speak on the chassis they know. as far as the ucf10 it's been pretty much covered. there are some updates for every year but 10s pretty much have the same common issues afaik. not sure about any additional/different issues with the 20s, but the power steering and starter are common to all 1uz ls.

Thanks for the info everyone. 
A while back I had found a 94 LS400 with 60,000 miles but the dealer was wanting $6,00 for it. I originaly offered my truck and my motorcycle for it but he wanted cash along with the trades but I told him no and That i wanted to test drive it before we negotiated further. after test driving it and taking it ot my cousin at Toyota they did an inspection on it and found that it had been wrecked hard in the front and fixed,  was mis-firing, needed a new PS pump and brakes all around.  I offered the bike alone but needless to say the deal didnt happen.

What year did dual front air bags begin comming on the LS400?  any personal opinions/experiences with the cars safety features?
 
Thanks again for all the info.

Found a white LS in the area. 97 model with 167,000 miles.  they are asking $7,500.   the body is pretty straight and clean but the interior could use a good cleaning.   Is this the average price for a decent LS?  seems a little high given the milage and age.  

Though its from a stealership they are askin $10k for financing or $7.5 cash.
would it be best to just keep lookin around or is this the average I can expect?  what year model did they begin having Front and passenger air bags?

To be honest I think it is best to look around and avoid the stealships if it is possible. You will wind up overpaying because the dealer will try and rape you as apposed to a private party. If you look around you can probably find some older man/woman who has one for sale and isnt asking too much. Thats how i found mine.

i own a RHD civic and my ls, I dont drive my civic much any more.  Its just as fun to drive my Ls as it is to drive my civic.  maintenance/repairs are more expensive on the ls but less common.  i think it evens out.  I love both cars just as much, so its a toss up on witch one to suggest.  Buy the one you like most

Hey guys, I found this in the area, I havent been able to come across any private owners of yet but thought this looked fairly clean and wanted some insight on it.

Its a 1994 LS400 with 174,000 miles for $5,500
Has nice black interior, silver in color.    ultimately I want black on black but can settle on tan interior. To me everything looks good in black.

Thoughts?
[URL]http://littlerock.craigslist.org/ctd/2448446798.html[/URL]

Thats way too much for that, my friend just grabbed one with 142k on the clock for 2k. needs a power steering pump and sunroof motor other then that the car is clean

I paid $4500 for my 97 LS400 about 2 years ago and they still sell for around that here in cali. with about 140-175k miles.

Hey guys, was wondering if I could get some opinions on this LS I found. 
Its a black 95 LS400 for $3200,  I have no idea how many miles are on it. Waiting to hear back from the guy.

Whats the condition and what maintainance has been done on it. Seems kinda low price and the over all condition of it will be the greatest factor.

well I found out the 95 has 200,xxx miles.   

for afew hundred dollars more I feel that I may be able to find a better deal or atleast lower miles.  any advice?

Keep looking man texas has few LS400 bro. 

[QUOTE=Pinoy09;399431]well I found out the 95 has 200,xxx miles.   

for afew hundred dollars more I feel that I may be able to find a better deal or atleast lower miles.  any advice?[/QUOTE]

just noticed the link that i posted for the 95 ls for 3200 just dropped to 
$2200   the cars has 200,xxx miles on it but looks alright from the outside.
think its a deal or should i just wait it out for a better one?
 
[URL]http://littlerock.craigslist.org/cto/2491322498.html[/URL]

well I guess it good deal. Get Vin# have someone check the history car of LS400 before u buy and make sure all maintenance is all good bro. And your set!  

[QUOTE=Pinoy09;399604]just noticed the link that i posted for the 95 ls for 3200 just dropped to 
$2200   the cars has 200,xxx miles on it but looks alright from the outside.
think its a deal or should i just wait it out for a better one?
 
[URL]http://littlerock.craigslist.org/cto/2491322498.html[/URL][/QUOTE]

found a 91 ls400 in the area with only 150K miles for $2500.
 
would you guys suggest to stay with 93 and newer models or are the 91 and 92 fine?
 
[URL]http://littlerock.craigslist.org/cto/2503631420.html[/URL]

[QUOTE=Pinoy09;400531]found a 91 ls400 in the area with only 150K miles for $2500.
 
would you guys suggest to stay with 93 and newer models or are the 91 and 92 fine?
 
[URL]http://littlerock.craigslist.org/cto/2503631420.html[/URL][/QUOTE]

i would stick to 95+ and up but it's up to you mang. I can say that 91 isn't bad deal I guess.

I know this is beating a dead horse, but thanks alot everyone for all the advice and direction.

not entirely sure what everyone's opinion is  on the early model LS400 but I found one for sale that seems to be a single owner car but was wondering if theres any cons to the 91 that would make it one to avoid.

[URL]http://littlerock.craigslist.org/cto/2510356432.html[/URL]

Also, I found this 1994 model that seems pretty clean but the front seems to have some damage, (assuming some kind of debris guard came loose in the front?)     [URL]http://www.satterfieldmotorco.com/web/used/Lexus-LS-400-1994-Bryant-Arkansas/849786[/URL]

Advice?
Thanks again everyone.

if you have to ask, probably shouldn't own. Like I stated on these threads before: Is if you can afford to buy it twice you can afford to keep up on it. Generally it is the reason why a lot of these cars all the way up to Ferrari are beat. People bought them cause they could afford the payment but couldn't afford to do the small things that come with ownership. 

I have seen my fair share of pristine maintained cars, to it was just another car to someone and treated it like a 500 dollar car. So I say vin check with a dealer for service records! If they don't have a big receipt  up keep on them, probably shouldn't own it. Think of if you were going to sell the car you are looking to buy. Would you feel comfortable selling this car with the lack of (fill in blank)

I do this on every car owned except a project car. And even with a project car, is the body straight, it can be accidents but is it repaired good. and more importantly has it been mechanically kept up. On projects i know replacing bumpers and repaint and roll of fenders is gonna happen anyway, so be it. 

But if you are asking cost on ownership, it sounds like you want a more dependable car than a VIP Project. SO, keep those in mind and find your self a decent one or two owner LS. DO NOT settle just cause its the only one or you are tired of looking.

Happy hunting