Overview & Reviews

User Reviews:

Showing 1 through 10 of 43.00

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  Stellar Commuter / Superb Highway Cruiser - 1998 Lexus LS 400
  By Charlie - June 29 - 9:30 am

  Wow! What a pinnacle of design coming from before the year 2000! Buying a used ls400 for less than $20k must be the best way to get such a refined ride without paying four/five times that for something new that will be comparable. I bought mine for $14k with low miles and it is the best vehicle I have ever purchased to date. Everything about it is so great! I studied engineering and when I found out about how many engineers and designers went into building this and for how long the design process took plus the incredible budget it had, I instantly knew this car would really be something else and boy was I right. This isnt something that was put together in under a year with newly graduated engineering students to turn a quick buck. Everything about this vehicle really shows the design process, thought, and effort that went into making it to final production. I could go on about the history but there are many articles that you can find about it. I will now just write about my experience in owning it. The first thing that I noticed was how quiet the cabin is when I shut the door. Instantly I was sheltered from the outside world. The stillness and calmness of my surroundings was the only thing present. I knew this was going to be one comfortable ride from there on out. When I started the car for the first time, the start was strong, confident, and fast in turning the engine over. The 4.0 V8 came to life and the tales are true. It is a very balanced engine. I couldnt tell that the engine was running after the initial start up. The car I bought was well taken car of. The man before me was 72 years old in 1998 when he bought his LS400. I knew I wouldnt have issues with this vehicle. I have never driven a v8 and only been in trucks that had a v8 or sports cars as a passenger. This v8 was just different. Tuned for comfort, its incredible how smooth the acceleration is and competent this engine is at getting the whole car moving. I was instantly hooked! I dont want to go to v6s anymore after this. The transmission is impeccable in its timing to shift. I can only tell when it shifts from first to second but only barely. After that, its a mystery when the engine gets to its fifth speed. I had to google the specs to know when it shifts. Its that smooth! With close to 300 horsepower, you can get up to speed in a couple of heartbeats. Perfect for keeping up with modern vehicles and drivers who act like the highway is some kind of race track. No issues speeding up to merge. The brakes do a phenomenal job at doing the inverse. Actually, I had to slam on them when a car cut me off at an intersection yesterday and they did their job at erasing my speed and preventing a crash. I am thankful that the braking performance was that good. I am a fan of large capacity fuel tanks and this v8 sips on gas. I was a little nervous of going down in fuel efficiency especially from a car from the 90s but regular driving I am hitting at least 21 MPG combined. Which is the same as my last SUV from the mid 2000s with a v6. This is a perfectly acceptable efficiency for me. On the highway, I have seen almost 25mpg which is still pretty great. I live in a very mountainous state so I expect the MPGs to be closer to 30mpg on a flat stretch of road. Coupled with 22.5 gallon tank, yeah you can go far! This is great for peace of mind when travelling in smaller highways when gas stations are far from each other. Yes it is premium so the price is steeper but hot dang, i dont mind. If it was 15mpg like my truck, I would reconsider this truck but with a range over 400 miles its not too tough of a bite to swallow. The suspension is articulate in controlling the vehicle and absorbing the imperfections of the road. Going over speed bumps you can feel the suspension swallow the force of the vehicle going up and down. It is like riding on a cloud. My coworker saw me drive and could see the vehicle floating on its tires. With the tires it has and the suspension, this is a supremely vibration free ride. Going back to the interior, I really enjoy how thoughtfully placed all the central controls are. Everything just makes sense! The placement must have taken several design sessions to get just right and they did the job. Everything is grouped in priority and relevance to each other. No funky controls cluttering up the dash. The steering wheel is polite and will move out of its way when you are trying to exit and will position itself when you insert the key getting ready to drive. The seats are highly adjustable and will remember their settings once trained. Going into reverse, the side view mirror shifts down so you can make sure your parking job is perfect each and every time. The trim and material selection is top tier and nothing rattles around. It gives the feeling that this vehicle was well put together. The cabin is solid and insulated. The seats are comfortable and the leather is soft and supple. There is plenty of space on the horizontal front but vertically things get limited. I am 5'10" and have just a couple of inches of headroom. I can't wear my cowboy hat while driving. A bummer for sure but no big deal. I sit really straight up anyways and if I inclined a little I could save a couple of inches. Taller people might struggle more. That is the only really negative of the interior. It does have cavernous leg space however which allows you to spread out gratuitously. The exterior design is classic and timeless. I have already gotten countless complements from friends, coworkers, family, and even strangers (one driver rolled down his windows, nodded and gave me the a-okay sign with his hand). I did buy a vehicle with impeccable paint with no scratches or anything signing that it has aged outside. It is a beautifully designed car and quite the sight to see when driving around, you just dont see many of these anymore in the condition mine is. I can see why BMW and Mercedes started to sweat with the release of this vehicle. An gorgeous design from Japan. The germans werent the only ones capable of making a work of art. So far this vehicle has been a joy to use. It has become my new daily and that was the reason why I chose this. I realized that I am going to spend a large number of hours in this vehicle living my daily life and decided that I needed something that would spoil me during those hours with comfort. I wasnt interested in paying close to a mortgage payment for a new luxury car so new it was and a used LS400 in great shape might command a premium but it is still vastly under the price of new. That was all the justification I needed to look for a show room condition LS400 and to pay that much. I paid $14k, the price of an modern entry level domestic hunk of junk. I fully expect this vehicle to drive me at least a decade, and more probably, and for that price, it cant be beat! If you have the chance to find one in great condition with low miles like myself, please do yourself a favor and jump on it! You wont find those any more in the coming years....

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  Rusting and peeling paint - 1998 Lexus LS 400
  By Lexus owner - July 5 - 7:10 pm

  2 inch rust bubble at the drivers side roof meets the windshield. The paint is peeling at two places on top of the rear bumper. I have to check if these items are covered by warranty but I doubt it. I never expected these items to happen to a Lexus. I live in California. The air conditioner is also weak even though it has been recharged and checked. I had to cut the factory floor mat as it was too close to the accelerator even with the tabs. The floor mat would depress the accelerator. The engine gunned once and I saw the floor mat against the accelerator. I sent in a complaint but got nowhere. Check your mat. Bad gas pedal design as the mat cannot slide under the pedal.