Looking at two options, any advice? (1 Viewer)

[VoodooFarm]

Hey guys, long time lurker and hopefully a future owner!

Just looking for any advice here, recently 2 different GX470's popped up near me. One is a 2006 with 117k miles, clean carfax, two owner. The other is a 2008, clean carfax, one owner, at 75k miles. The 2006 has had all the major maintenance I've seen suggested here done (timing belt, radiator, and water pump all replaced on schedule, along with a new alternator). The 2008 has had its water pump replaced, but in the lexus service records I see that lexus recommended a timing belt replacement, said a CV was leaking, and recommend a radiator replacement. The service record is for 60k miles and the customer declined the service, and the carfax doesn't log the owner replacing any of those (it's hard for me to imagine he drove it another 15k to 75k miles without that work done though).

The 2006 is priced at 13.9k but I'm sure I can haggle them down. The 2008 is priced at 18.9k but it's an autonation dealer so they don't budge on price. 2006 is a dark blue with ivory interior and 2008 is black with gray interior. I'd like the 2008 for the color combination and lower mileage, but the possible cost of replacing and fixing what's needed on it if it hasn't been done already has me weary. I'm going to ask the dealer to check and see if any of the suggested things were done on it, but I'm not sure if I'd trust them to correctly verify anyways.

Going to look at the 2006 today and give it a test drive, any tips? I know the famous diff lock clunk is what people say to look out for, but do I test for that just by locking the diff and giving it gas? I've read the faq and looked at everything suggested like look for overspray, matching vins, and all that. I'm hoping to have them put it up on a lift as well. It was locally kept though (Florida) so no snow/salt rust to worry about besides maybe some minor rust due to being near the coast. The 2006 has been serviced a lot by a local shop, all the big replacements I mentioned above were done at a local shop and it looks like the owner kept going back there so I'm assuming they did a good job. And I do like that it's local. I'm also taking my OBDII bluetooth reader to plug in myself and see if anything pops up.

I'll probably be looking at the 2008 next week, assuming it's still there.


I apologize if this is ramble-y, but I'm just kind of nervous buying because I don't want to run into any problems immediately. I'm looking to offroad this bad boy (and feel a little safer navigating FL traffic). Just looking for any tips/advice/guidance that hasn't been covered by the FAQ or if there's anything you'd like to add on from your expertise. I've been lurking this place and the FB group for almost a year now though so I'm hoping I can finally be an owner soon.

 

[UltraFJ40]

Hey guys, long time lurker and hopefully a future owner!

Just looking for any advice here, recently 2 different GX470's popped up near me. One is a 2006 with 117k miles, clean carfax, two owner. The other is a 2008, clean carfax, one owner, at 75k miles. The 2006 has had all the major maintenance I've seen suggested here done (timing belt, radiator, and water pump all replaced on schedule, along with a new alternator). The 2008 has had its water pump replaced, but in the lexus service records I see that lexus recommended a timing belt replacement, said a CV was leaking, and recommend a radiator replacement. The service record is for 60k miles and the customer declined the service, and the carfax doesn't log the owner replacing any of those (it's hard for me to imagine he drove it another 15k to 75k miles without that work done though).

The 2006 is priced at 13.9k but I'm sure I can haggle them down. The 2008 is priced at 18.9k but it's an autonation dealer so they don't budge on price. 2006 is a dark blue with ivory interior and 2008 is black with gray interior. I'd like the 2008 for the color combination and lower mileage, but the possible cost of replacing and fixing what's needed on it if it hasn't been done already has me weary. I'm going to ask the dealer to check and see if any of the suggested things were done on it, but I'm not sure if I'd trust them to correctly verify anyways.

Going to look at the 2006 today and give it a test drive, any tips? I know the famous diff lock clunk is what people say to look out for, but do I test for that just by locking the diff and giving it gas? I've read the faq and looked at everything suggested like look for overspray, matching vins, and all that. I'm hoping to have them put it up on a lift as well. It was locally kept though (Florida) so no snow/salt rust to worry about besides maybe some minor rust due to being near the coast. The 2006 has been serviced a lot by a local shop, all the big replacements I mentioned above were done at a local shop and it looks like the owner kept going back there so I'm assuming they did a good job. And I do like that it's local. I'm also taking my OBDII bluetooth reader to plug in myself and see if anything pops up.

I'll probably be looking at the 2008 next week, assuming it's still there.


I apologize if this is ramble-y, but I'm just kind of nervous buying because I don't want to run into any problems immediately. I'm looking to offroad this bad boy (and feel a little safer navigating FL traffic). Just looking for any tips/advice/guidance that hasn't been covered by the FAQ or if there's anything you'd like to add on from your expertise. I've been lurking this place and the FB group for almost a year now though so I'm hoping I can finally be an owner soon.

Personally I would go with the '06. Timing belt is expensive and the records state that they have all been done on time. Mileage doesn't much bother me but lack of maintenance or verification concerns me a bit. Heck, 117K isn't very many miles anyway, our Honda van had over 400K and ran like a champ (I did replace the exhaust manifold twice though).

 

[GXO]

general:purchasing [GX Offroad]

 

[VoodooFarm]

general:purchasing [GX Offroad]

Thanks for the link! I have actually been reading that religiously since I started seriously looking into buying one though. I was just hoping some people would have anecdotal experiences or tips they could give.


Anyways, I have an update already since I went to look at the '06. I think I've ruled it out.

The carfax was clean but the drivers side honestly looked like it was sideswiped. Lots of uniform drag marks down the drivers side, and at the rear they cut down to the metal and even busted out part of the plastic tail light. Lots of trim pieces hanging off around the truck, as well as the truck being covered in sticky tree sap that wasn't removed with their dealer wash but they said they could take care of. The interior was also very worn. I expected it to be worn on a 12 year old 120k car but it looked pretty bad. Main things I noticed were very discolored floorboards, carpet missing and exposing some plastic in spots, and in the rear the carpet was damp like it leaked when they washed it earlier (it was still wet when I got there). It looked like no amount of detailing could really make the interior presentable. Steering wheel was peeled pretty bad too. All around I was not impressed considering they wanted 16.5 out the door. After speaking with the manager and going through the lexus maintenance records and having him walk around the car with me I was able to talk them down to 14.2k out the door, but with how it looked and 117k miles I couldn't justify it to myself. I want to be stuck with this thing for a while and honestly I don't think I would pay over 11k for the condition it was in, even if it was extensively detailed. It looked like the owners didn't care about it at all, but the maintenance records were pretty spot on. I'm pretty disappointed overall, the video I was sent by the dealer made it look nice, but they filmed it at dusk and glossed over a lot and I understand why now.

I did receive pictures for the 2008. I like the color combo better (Black w/gray vs. Drk Blue w/ Ivory) and the pictures are pretty quality and they are close up. Couple spots here and there with some leather wearing but it looks nowhere near as bad as the 06, especially the exterior. And I do like that it has 40k less miles on it. It's an autonation dealer though so I won't be able to haggle with them, and it's an hour away so I'm trying to justify the drive to myself since it's likely I could come back empty handed. Like I said above, the dealer is asking 18.9k for the 2008 with 75k miles that seems like it needs some maintenance (TB, WP, RAD, CV). I'm going to see if I can get an out the door price as well as see if they'll help with maintenance since they don't budge on actual price.


I'm hoping my rambling about this stuff will help anyone in the future. In the mean time could anyone tell me if I messed up by walking away from the truck for 14.2k with 117k miles and all needed maintenance done, even with a bad interior and exterior? Also would anyone have an estimate on how much I could potentially spend replacing a timing belt, water pump, radiator, AND fixing a leaky CV? Would doing it at Toyota come cheaper?

Thank you for any help everyone! I'm really excited and hopeful still. Riding in it today for the test drive basically solidified me getting one, it felt amazing.

 

[GXO]

I wouldn't buy either one and look for a private sale in the $10k range. If 1 hour is too much of your time, then $8000 is too much of your money.

 

[MaverickFiveO]

Hi Voodoo! I hope you can find a GX and join the club! I am a recent member, myself. I can share my experience buying my GX, but I have limited experience in the broader perspective. In terms of purchasing: Look at both services being done on time, but also note if services are recommended out of schedule.

I just picked up a 2009 with 104k miles on it at a local Lexus dealer with all proper maintenance done at the dealer for $18k. I paid at the top end of the range for a good specimen with a great service record, everything works except the down direction of the passenger mirror electric motors, and very clean interior with a couple bumper scratches. (It turned out that the rear differential was bad, but I genuinely believe the dealer didn't know that at the time. Let's just say I won't be using their techs for service, and leave that issue behind us: the truck drives smooth and quiet as a Lexus now.) Two of my best friends are independent mechanics and both are certified on Toyotas. Here in Utah, we have a big crowd of 2UZ drivers that put their rigs to use on trails of all types and my friends see a big range of conditions. The mileage is less of a concern, but the maintenance matters. My friend swears that he would rather drive a 200k mile 2UZ that has had proper maintenance, than a 100k that has not. Even my 104k mile specimen should get me a decade or more of life from the engine.

The one thing that raises a flag for me is that the timing belt is scheduled for replacement every 90k miles. My radiator was replaced at the same time, and the water pump was done at 100k. You may want to poke around and see if you can find out why the dealer recommended service on those components so far before (60k versus 90-100k miles) they are usually due. Even though it has lower miles, if may have seen a tough life. See if you can find out anymore information.

Maybe someone else can chime in here, but in my experience, when service is recommended at 2/3 of the expected lifetime of drivetrain components, I want more info. Either there is nothing wrong and the dealer was trying to make a buck, or there is something off about that particular vehicle and you may be better off waiting and finding a GX with the proper maintenance done on schedule when it is scheduled. Just my 0.02.

 

[phishtaco]

I would try to get the autonation dealer to bring the maintenance upto date. If that is the color combo you like and it’s in good condition. In my experience in looking, the grey interiors wear better.

 

[VoodooFarm]

I wouldn't buy either one and look for a private sale in the $10k range. If 1 hour is too much of your time, then $8000 is too much of your money.

Honestly I would be considering private sales if there was any within a couple hundred miles of me. 1 hour isn't too much of my time though, I just want to make sure I won't get there and it's trashed like the one I just saw. The one near me was really deceptive with the pictures, it was annoying to say the least.


@MaverickFiveO Thank you for laying everything out there from your experience. Like you said with the dealer recommending that particular maintenance that early it does seem like a red flag. Your post did remind me to check some of the smaller things like the power mirrors too, I check the windows and sunroof but completely forgot about the mirrors since it's such a small thing. The whole high mileage with proper maintenance vs. low mileage with spotty maintenance seems to be the consensus everywhere too.

I would try to get the autonation dealer to bring the maintenance upto date. If that is the color combo you like and it’s in good condition. In my experience in looking, the grey interiors wear better.

They definitely seem to wear better from pictures I've seen in the past couple months. Autonation dealers do seem to play ball with things like maintenance or some minor dealer credits so I'm hoping I would be able to talk them into something like that.



But as an update from yesterday, once I got home I looked at listings again and another listing right near me actually popped up. (It was at a dealer I could've stopped at on the way home, so I wish I would've known ahead of time). It's a gold 04 with 120k miles, one owner carfax, no accidents, all scheduled maintenance on the lexus site. They're asking 10.9k as an autonation dealer. It's one of the cleanest looking maintenance records I've seen since I started really looking at buying these trucks, it's impressive. It did go from VA, to GA, and now to FL. But all the locations are right near Air Force bases, so I'm 90% sure some Officer bought it new and has been using it as a daily since 2004 and finally traded it in for a new lexus once he got here. And as a plus it is at a Lexus dealer, so I'm hoping I can go there and talk to a tech about it. Since it's from VA I'm going to ask them to put it on a lift too so I can look at the frame. I don't think it would have rust from VA since it isn't exactly a snow heavy state but I want to be sure.

Wish me luck with this 04. If it doesn't pan out I'll be making the drive to Orlando sometime this week.

 

[Lifted]

Mainentance recommendations go by miles and age. I replaced my timing belt at 78k miles because it was an 07 and by the age it is recommended to be changed.

 

[MaverickFiveO]

Mainentance recommendations go by miles and age. I replaced my timing belt at 78k miles because it was an 07 and by the age it is recommended to be changed.

Excellent point. The dealer may have recommended it by time and the owner was waiting until mileage. Either way, it sounds like that 04 is a better service record. My brother is a Major, and Officer owned vehicles tend to have pretty good lives. Good luck with the hunt!

 

[scooterp7]

I definitely recommend getting it up in the air to check it out. I would also want to inspect the roof. Unless you are very tall, it is difficult to check. On my recently purchased 05, I would have noticed the paint faded on the rear spoiler. You can’t be too thorough checking them out. Good luck with the search. I bought mine from a dealer in Tampa. Good ones are out there. Enjoy the chase.

Scott

 

[VoodooFarm]

Alright, update time for anyone interested!

Went to look at the 2004 and it confirmed what I was thinking. The sales rep before I even mentioned the location changes said the guy was working at the local base down the street, so it was definitely an Officer and the sales rep also said the car was his wife's. It was very obviously garage kept and used as a mall crawler/kid hauler. Paint was almost perfect for being 14 years old, standard ding here or there but in great condition on the exterior. Interior was also pretty good for the 2004. Testing the locking diff incase it wasn't used, didn't seem to have any problems there. Overall it drove great.

BUT

In the lexus service records at this dealership 100 miles before it was traded in, there's a couple things logged I didn't realize until I was combing through them this morning.

1. Power steering fluid is dirty. Recommended change. $177
2. Passenger wheel bearing has play. it would be $990 + Tax to replace it. In parentheses it says discounted price too.
3. Positive battery terminal corroded. $50 replacement.
4. Drive belt replacement recommended. $169.
5. Spare tire had dry rot. Recomended replacement.
6. Front brakes at 6mm, rear brakes are at 4mm. They're recommended to be changed at 3mm.

I talked to the sales manager but since they're autonation they wouldn't change the price and he took a pretty hard stance on really not giving me any sort of credit towards the work that needs to be done. The truck is extremely clean for the year, I don't think I'll find another one in the condition this one is in that's a 2004 with extensive maintenance records. But I'd be paying 13k OTD for it, and then need all the work I mentioned above.

Can anyone give me their thoughts? Is a clean well maintained 2004 with 120k miles worth the 13k OTD? Factored in with the fact that it'll need all the maintenance that I listed above? No accidents, no damage, garage kept, mall crawler.


Some of the maintenance that has been done that sticks out:
In the past the power steering fluid had been flushed at a different lexus dealer. A CV boot has also been replaced. Radiator was also replaced. Transfer case actuator O ring was leaking, which was replaced. The water pump and timing belt were replaced on time as well. So it seems like it's had everything major that it's needed checked off on time up until now.

 

[DSRTRDR]

have you entered the VIN numbers into the Lexus owner's site and checked the official Lexus maintenance records ?

I can only echo the recommendation to look for a private sale

 

[scooterp7]

While I did Purchase mine at a dealer, private party sales are generally easier. You know the total price upfront, no pressure to add extras. This was my first time buying from a dealer. Probably my last unless it is another hard to find good deal. Other people’s experience may be different. Plus 1 on running the vin through the Lexus owners website.

 

[VoodooFarm]

have you entered the VIN numbers into the Lexus owner's site and checked the official Lexus maintenance records ?

I can only echo the recommendation to look for a private sale

Yes, that’s where I got all the maintenance records from that I mentioned above.

I’ve been keeping an eye out for private sales, but as of right now there’s only a couple within a few hundred miles of me and they aren’t in the best condition.

While I did Purchase mine at a dealer, private party sales are generally easier. You know the total price upfront, no pressure to add extras. This was my first time buying from a dealer. Probably my last unless it is another hard to find good deal. Other people’s experience may be different. Plus 1 on running the vin through the Lexus owners website.

With the 04 they tried selling me extras but I told them I can do it all myself. Went over the paperwork with them to come to the conclusion of 13k out the door when it’s all said and done. Dealer fee is $799 and that’s the only real cost factored in compared to a private sale. I’ve been running every VIN on the Lexus owners site. When I pulled it out in the Lexus dealership earlier the sales rep didn’t even know you could do that.


Anyways, the dealer is repairing the wheel bearing since it’s a potential safety hazard, so I’ll probably be picking up this 04. The other minor repairs won’t be an issue, I might take it to the Toyota dealer and see how their price compares for them.

 

[HomersCanyonero]

The rest of the issues seem minor.

Ask to see if anyone here is replacing their oem tires and get one for free. I’m in SoCal and last month I had to clean my garage and threw out 5 stock oem wheels and tires. I just couldn’t store them anymore.

Find a good independent mechanic and you can get the power steering flush and refil, new terminal, and drive belt for half the price. I buy my parts online and take it to a mechanic

 

[VoodooFarm]

The rest of the issues seem minor.

Ask to see if anyone here is replacing their oem tires and get one for free. I’m in SoCal and last month I had to clean my garage and threw out 5 stock oem wheels and tires. I just couldn’t store them anymore.

Find a good independent mechanic and you can get the power steering flush and refil, new terminal, and drive belt for half the price. I buy my parts online and take it to a mechanic

Yeah that's what I was thinking when it came to the other issues. Looks like there's a good mechanic near me that specializes in japanese cars, mainly toyotas. If I get the truck I'll definitely give them a shout. Do you have any recommendations on where to get parts from online?

I didn't realize people gave their OEM's away for free/good prices. I'm planning on upgrading my wheels in the future (far enough down the road that I'd need a current spare to feel comfortable) so hopefully if I do find someone that doesn't need them I'll be able to pay it forward.

 

[HomersCanyonero]

Here’s a post with links to online parts stores and a link to gxor Homer's 2003 GX470 Build

 

[VoodooFarm]

Alright, posting a last update since I finally made a purchase in case anyone was wondering! Not sure if the thread will help anyone in the future, but at least they'll be able to see my decision making process at a minimum.


Back to the 2004 I posted about. 120k miles, full lexus service history, everything you could want done was done mostly (TB, WP, Rad, CV boot, driveshaft replaced, dash warranty fulfilled), very obviously garage kept mall crawler with great paint for a 14 year old car and a great interior that had very little wear. I wanted the truck. It did need a wheel bearing, but the dealer fixed it due to being a safety issue. They wanted to add the cost into the price. It's an autonation dealer so they aren't exactly flexible, and for any add ons it's kind of at the managers discretion. The original manager I dealt with was a hard pass on everything, he wouldn't budge because he knew he could sell the truck easy and I'm sure he wasn't expecting another buyer to come in with full lexus service records printed out and highlighted to go over everything line by line with him. But when I went back to the second time I managed to connect with the salesguy who sold me my first car there, I had requested him by name but he wasn't around the first time I went to look at the truck. So I saw him, took it for another drive, tried talking to him about what was going on with the truck.

He's a good guy so I just laid it out, I'm probably buying the truck but between them fixing the wheel bearing for a grand and it needing a new battery terminal (corroded), a new drive belt, and a power steering fluid flush, it was just a hard sell for me. Explained the last manager didn't want to do anything. Luckily for me, he told me it was a different manager there today (the guy was a lot more agreeable), and after speaking with him they added the wheel bearing repair at half price, and fixed the battery terminal and drive belt for free. With the condition the car was in that was enough to sell me. I was ready to sign the papers. But THEN, their systems went down. Their autonation computer system whatever it was just died. I sat there for an hour waiting and was told I'd need to come back. Talked to the manager and he threw in the power steering flush too since I had to come back a third time.


So overall I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. The truck is grandma gold with ivory interior, but with the condition it's in I can't complain much. I'll feel bad when I start offroading it. I did take a look at a black/gray 2008 but the service history was spotty and despite being newer the paint was in worse condition and the interior was definitely looking more rough. And I won't even bring up the blue 2006 that was just beyond repair. And ontop of the two others being in worse condition, the 2004 was obviously cheaper so I managed to save some cash too which is always a good thing. It is lacking bluetooth/aux but I plan on taking my chances with the phoenix unit in the future. I figure I'll drive it stock for a year or so before I look into adding a lift/beefy tires/bumpers. It drives really well, and everything so far is in normal working order.


I am a little nervous just because of all the electroics in the truck and it being 14 years old. Compared to my daily I didn't realize how overboard lexus went with their engineering. The steering wheel alone seems like it could set you back a grand if the motor broke. But hearing the engine purr when I give it gas is probably the best feeling I've had in a while. Sitting up so high for a change and having visibility and not feeling like I'm going to get ran down is great, I don't think it'll ever get old.


Anyways, if anyone has questions feel free to ask. I doubt this thread will produce much more but I hope it'll be able to help or give insight to someone in the future.

 

[GXO]

You can disable the steering wheel of you want. I have an 03 and it has been on since new and still works fine.