Stumbled upon this forum in my research about the 100 series and I have made good use of the search function learning all kinds of things.
I have an opportunity to buy an 05 Lx 470 with 100k miles on it. It has been well taken care of by a wealthy older couple who have owned it most of it's life. What is a fair price to offer?
Start with what NADA and KBB show then check out the service history on Lexus owners website. Has the timing belt been done? That is a pricey service needed in the 90-100k mileage range. Just a guess is $17-20k
Start with what NADA and KBB show then check out the service history on Lexus owners website. Has the timing belt been done? That is a pricey service needed in the 90-100k mileage range. Just a guess is $17-20k
KBB and NADA are so far apart, often 25-30%, that it seems worthy of a congressional investigation. I think NADA is high but closer to the real world. KBB is so low sometimes that it's just absurd.
We can't help you very much without knowing a lot more about vehicle condition, maintenance history, accident history, rust, etc? Post pics if you can.
For a really nice LX I've found NADA and KBB prices to be way too low.
When I started looking for an LX470 I relied on book prices and got continually
rejected and outbid right and left.
LX/LC's are really nice vehicles and once you get a chance to drive one you are
hooked. If you do research on owner satisfaction and reliability, you know that
it is the vehicle for you - especially when you compare owner satisfaction and
reliability with other similar models.
LX/LC's are kinda rare and a lot of folks know what their market value really is.
I would think the best deals are from a private owner who goes by NADA or KBB
valuation and susceptible to taking an offer between the two. But, I was not able
to find that "barefoot pilgrim" and figured that they knew the market value
especially if they had a nice vehicle.
Generally I think you should narrow down your search to Southern, and South Western
areas to avoid rust issues. This means widen your search beyond local. I found the
LX I wanted and had it shipped from California to N.C. I looked at a 2006 LX with 91K
miles that was about 100 miles from me that spent much of its life in
Maryland that had so much rust the owner took it to a Lexus service center
complaining about rust - this was noted on the Service History that you can view at
Lexus.com. Once rust gets started its impossible to stop and expensive
to try to remove rust.
Also, many of these were purchased by rich folks with a passel of rowdy kids or large dogs
and were cosmetically abused. If you are not overly OCD, you might find something
like this as a good value and could be made presentable again.
I paid 19k for my '04 LC last November, at a Toyota dealership. 1 owner, excellent condition with exactly 100k. An older woman was trading it in for her 4th cruiser, a new 2016 model. Hope this helps some.
I paid $19,000 for an '05 LX 470 with 99,000 miles in PA with the normal salt-belt rust in January of 2014. The timing belt had not been done. I think my deal was okay. I would do it again...
To compare a bit....I just paid $16,300 for an '06 Cypress Pearl LX with 144k miles, one owner, good records, new tires, new timing belt, new valve cover gaskets, new vapor cannister, new emmision pump, very clean, no wear. Very pleased with price. Probably could make money on it now.
To give more info, the older couple traded it into the dealership which is who I'm negotiating with.
As it stands this morning following some negotiation, they are asking $18,790. My target price is $18k. Is there any services you think would be helpful I could ask for to close the gap instead of pounding them on price? I was thinking several oil changes, tire rotations, etc. perhaps?
I haven't seen the vehicle in person yet, as it will require a 4 hour drive, so I don't have absolute assurance on the rust situation, but based on where the carfax shows the car has been, I don't think it will be an issue.
Hoping to wrap up the negotiations today and make a decision to go get it or keep waiting for a better deal to pop up. Additional thoughts/comments appreciated - you guys are awesome!
We agreed to a final price of $19k which includes all dealer/document fees.
I plan to make the 4 hour drive sometime this week to check it out and hopefully purchase it if the vehicle looks as good in person as it does in the pictures. I did find out that the car spent the first 3 years of it's life in Ohio aka Rust Central. The remaining years of it's life were split between Florida and Utah. How concerned should I be? Any tips on doing a rust inspection?
Might have them send you underside photos and maybe save you a trip, and force disclosure on their opinion of rust for the record. At least they should have a lift to get it up for good photos.
For what it's worth, I bought my gray 2006 LX 470 in December 2015 for $21,500 (I think) with 139,000 miles. Timing belt was done at 100k miles and tires were brand new. Three owner, no accidents, Lexus-serviced most of the time.
That wasn't the lowest price in the market, but it was within range. A lot of people know how scarce these are and are pricing accordingly.
Well I got pics back from the dealer showing the under carriage. Looks like there is rust. I am totally ignorant regarding rust and the issues it causes. How much is too much? Will it cause issues in years to come? Is this normal and I shouldn't worry?
We can't help you very much without knowing a lot more about vehicle condition, maintenance history, accident history, rust, etc? Post pics if you can.
Northern guys probably don't flinch when looking at that, but so many clean trucks in Texas and Arizona, I'd not want to try and remove any of those bolts. Is a 2006-2007 no rust truck worth worth another $3-5K to you. That's probably the key factor.
