Looking for 98-05 GS 300

[Shafaat Ahmed]

Hello, 

This is my first post on the forum. I have been searching on all the popular classifieds for a well maintained Lexus GS 300 from 1998-2005 regardless of mileage. I have been driving a Honda Fit/Jazz back home and after experiencing a refined ride I would something comparable here and after some research I have settled on this car since it has a long wheelbase, has 4 doors, has the Japanese reliability while not being overpriced like the Toyota and Honda market is (The 2JZ is an added bonus)

How is the Mileage of the car (I know its a straight 6 and not a 4 cyl)? How easy are the spare parts for it? How much more is its maintenance (compared to other dailies)

If anyone has any advice/recommendation I'm all ears. 

Thank you

[Frederic]

13 hours ago, Shafaat Ahmed said:

Hello, 

This is my first post on the forum. I have been searching on all the popular classifieds for a well maintained Lexus GS 300 from 1998-2005 regardless of mileage. I have been driving a Honda Fit/Jazz back home and after experiencing a refined ride I would something comparable here and after some research I have settled on this car since it has a long wheelbase, has 4 doors, has the Japanese reliability while not being overpriced like the Toyota and Honda market is (The 2JZ is an added bonus)

How is the Mileage of the car (I know its a straight 6 and not a 4 cyl)? How easy are the spare parts for it? How much more is its maintenance (compared to other dailies)

If anyone has any advice/recommendation I'm all ears. 

Thank you

Hi @Shafaat Ahmed i love those oldskool Lexus's and i am sure there are still plenty driving around and they are generally built to last. Having said that, as for any car you will need to be aware of the maintenance costs involved. I think the only ones you will find will have very high mileage, or are Japanse imported ones. In both cases the maintenance cost will be higher than a regular daily. You buy this type of car with your heart, and not really with mileage in mind. 

 

 

[munkybizness]

@Shafaat Ahmed, the 98 - 05 GS 300 is a cool car and definitely a solid runner. They have a service life of about 800k km IF it's been regularly maintained, driven conservatively, and has not been through major accidents. You'll need to do thorough checks and ask for a service and ownership history.

When you're doing checks, spend an extra amount of time looking at the condition of panels inside the car. For example, if it's been sitting in the sun for 15 years, the dashboard and leather will begin to fray. Yes, these parts can be replaced but those are service costs that you need to account for. And the desert heat along with the greenhouse effect does no benefit to car interiors here.

The next area to look at will be the suspension. Most times, we're so focused on evaluating the engine and transmission, that we don't pay good enough attention to the suspension which should have also been replaced or serviced.

The mileage of any car is highly subjective. I drive a 3.0l V6 Supercharged F-Type, and have had it new to the 160k kms it has on now. If I drive in comfort, conservatively, and only do long-distance runs to AD, I can eke out 8 l/100 km (29 MPG). If I drive it the way it is meant to be driven - aggressively  - this number halves to 14 l/100km (16 MPG). So your driving style will need to stay consistent and conservative. If you spend a lot of time in traffic, doing aggressive start/stops and idling, you'll never see high mileage returns.