Lexus GS300 (05- model) - opinions?

Padraig Mor · 08-06-2010 09:43PM

Eric Cartman wrote: »

that is a lovely motor , always loved the gs300 , my insurance company doesnt agree, but I think i know what ill buy myself when im 25

Only costing me an extra €90 or so a year thankfully.

bryaner · 08-06-2010 09:44PM

Padraig Mor wrote: »

Aye!

When that 15k car becomes a 5k car in a couple of years (months?!), a full dealer SH should make it a lot easier to sell. Turns out that main dealer servicing is a condition of the (1 yr) warranty anyway.

My new wheels!:

Jaysus never thought it was hard to sell 5K motors

EPM · 08-06-2010 09:55PM

bryaner wrote: »

Jaysus never thought it was hard to sell 5K motors

It is when you still have 70k car repair bills...

bryaner · 08-06-2010 09:59PM

EPM wrote: »

It is when you still have 70k car repair bills...

How?? by sticking the oil filter up your ring piece?

EPM · 08-06-2010 10:30PM

bryaner wrote: »

How?? by sticking the oil filter up your ring piece?

Smart feck aren't ya?

That car will have a small enough market when selling on. I would go for the one that had a full dealer history, getting all the recommended checks and software upgrades over one that had been independently serviced.

Not saying there's anything wrong with indy work - quite the opposite - but it would show to me that the owner didnt spare any expense on its upkeep

kurant · 08-06-2010 10:38PM

Padraig Mor wrote: »

Aye!

When that 15k car becomes a 5k car in a couple of years (months?!), a full dealer SH should make it a lot easier to sell. Turns out that main dealer servicing is a condition of the (1 yr) warranty anyway.

My new wheels!:

congrats !!! nice car! and welcome to Lexus world !!;)

mickdw · 08-06-2010 10:40PM

Padraig Mor wrote: »

06ish GS450Hs seem to carry about a 10 grand premium over the GS300, which would buy a lot of petrol!

Im not looking at the hybrid thinking it will give a petrol saving over the GS300, I looking at it because if the figures are to be believed, it is a very powerful car.

dingding · 08-06-2010 10:41PM

Eric Cartman wrote: »

brilliant car to drive and look really well, fuel economy isnt awful either, only thing to do is if your buying from a lexus dealer make sure they update the satnav to the latest maps before you buy, i brought my parents rx400h in for a service before and they wanted 350 euro for the map updates - not a huge issue but its 350 euro you dont want to bother with when servicing the car (that and the satnav is dead handy

Hope you did not update the sat nav as there is a new version comming out next year which is compatible with the Traffic warning system, I forget what it is called.

Eric Cartman · 08-06-2010 10:44PM

dingding wrote: »

Hope you did not update the sat nav as there is a new version comming out next year which is compatible with the Traffic warning system, I forget what it is called.

TMC , TMC isnt used in this country, but even so thats a hardware upgrade and isnt compatible with this age of vehicle , it will only be given to model year 2008 and newer vehicles and at a premium far above the cost of that disc, also afaik all 2010 lexus;s with the navigation have TMC

Eric Cartman · 08-06-2010 10:46PM

mickdw wrote: »

Im not looking at the hybrid thinking it will give a petrol saving over the GS300, I looking at it because if the figures are to be believed, it is a very powerful car.

the electric motors chop the 0-60 time down but nothing further, the 450h wont do 60-100 etc... any faster than the non hybrid equivalent ,

bryaner · 08-06-2010 11:03PM

EPM wrote: »

Smart feck aren't ya?

That car will have a small enough market when selling on. I would go for the one that had a full dealer history, getting all the recommended checks and software upgrades over one that had been independently serviced.

Not saying there's anything wrong with indy work - quite the opposite - but it would show to me that the owner didnt spare any expense on its upkeep

Lol no

I hear what your saying but those motors are pretty bullet proof and the majority of people that own them will have them well looked after so I wouldn't be to bothered to get one in a few years for 5k without a dealer FSH..

mickdw · 08-06-2010 11:44PM

Eric Cartman wrote: »

the electric motors chop the 0-60 time down but nothing further, the 450h wont do 60-100 etc... any faster than the non hybrid equivalent ,

But if Im cruising at 60mph for example with the hybrid system charged, surely the electric motors will give me a boost?

Eric Cartman · 08-06-2010 11:53PM

mickdw wrote: »

But if Im cruising at 60mph for example with the hybrid system charged, surely the electric motors will give me a boost?

they have a speed limit, i think they kick out at 40mph , they basically do the first part of acceleration (the part that would get you as far as 3rd gear say) far faster than a petrol engine, then the petrol engine takes over for the rest , it makes your 0-60 faster but after that they do very little, going up a hill they can give more torque when fully charged but do very little when accelerating from 60

PADRAIC.M · 09-06-2010 12:57AM

actually not really through, all acceleration is a combined output from both mg motors and engine, you can get about 60kmh out of just motors with a very light foot which is an economy thing.. and that full torque range is there at all speeds depending on gear and output torque, its important to understandthat battery always stays above 40pc (an empty battery display on screen is actually only 45pc) so there is always torque availible for acceleration when needed. my two cent... but I know lexus inside out.. :-)

Mr Benevolent · 09-06-2010 01:03AM

What a car. Well wear.

Padraig Mor · 09-06-2010 09:05AM

mickdw wrote: »

Im not looking at the hybrid thinking it will give a petrol saving over the GS300, I looking at it because if the figures are to be believed, it is a very powerful car.

Yeah, 345 bhp isn't to be sniffed at! I suppose it's easy to think wanting a hybrid = wanting to save on fuel.

Padraig Mor · 09-06-2010 09:08AM

bryaner wrote: »

I hear what your saying but those motors are pretty bullet proof and the majority of people that own them will have them well looked after so I wouldn't be to bothered to get one in a few years for 5k without a dealer FSH..

But if you have two €5k motors of similar cosmetic condition, one without a history, the other with full dealer history, which are you more likely to buy?

Chippy01 · 09-06-2010 01:33PM

Confab wrote: »

Lovely cars, I have a hankering for a Mk2.

I just recently moved my Mk2 on. Had it for 6 years and not a minutes' bother with it:):). I just couldn't justify keeping it,:( as personnal circumstances have changed somewhat recently.
If your hankering is strong, you'll find it here - http://www.carzone.ie/search/Lexus/GS300/3.0/201022198271021/advert?channel=CARS (no affiliation to the garage, I would just like to see her go to a good home)

mullingar · 09-06-2010 02:01PM

Chippy01 wrote: »

I just recently moved my Mk2 on. Had it for 6 years and not a minutes' bother with it:):). I just couldn't justify keeping it,:( as personnal circumstances have changed somewhat recently.
If your hankering is strong, you'll find it here - http://www.carzone.ie/search/Lexus/GS300/3.0/201022198271021/advert?channel=CARS (no affiliation to the garage, I would just like to see her go to a good home)

Same colour/Spec as my GS300 (mines a 98).

WTF Did you do to the rear light clusters??

Have her 4 years now and I just cant part with it. Thankfully I only do 10k miles/yr.

galwaytt · 09-06-2010 02:51PM

Padraig Mor wrote: »

When that 15k car becomes a 5k car in a couple of years (months?!), a full dealer SH should make it a lot easier to sell.

I don't believe it will. It'll be a nice add-on, maybe, but that's as much, and if we were talking about a German brand, I'd probably be more agreeable, but on a Lexus, it's in a different (higher) league with regard to reliability in the first place....

Mr Benevolent · 09-06-2010 02:55PM

galwaytt wrote: »

I don't believe it will. It'll be a nice add-on, maybe, but that's as much, and if we were talking about a German brand, I'd probably be more agreeable, but on a Lexus, it's in a different (higher) league with regard to reliability in the first place....

Agreed. Lexus is literally in a league of it's own in terms of reliability. Nothing comes close, it makes a mockery of BMW/Mercedes and especially Audi.

Mr.David · 09-06-2010 02:59PM

Any poorly mantained old car is susceptible to reliability issues.

To hypothetically buy a 10yr old Lexus without a service history based on the belief that they are 'unsinkable' is just dumb.

Granted they are v reliable but things do still go wrong!!

Chippy01 · 09-06-2010 04:05PM

[QUOTE

WTF Did you do to the rear light clusters??
QUOTE]

Ah, you spotted that, did you?
When I first got her, I showed up the chrome hidden behind the black paint on the radiator grill, and I got some chrome light trims (front and rear). Some company on E-Bay called TopTrims, I think.

zulfikarMD · 30-08-2010 10:45AM

I think i will have to change my mind picking E Class Merc by looking at Lexus GS300 executive specs compared with E class Merc!

Padraig Mor · 30-08-2010 11:32AM

zulfikarMD wrote: »

I think i will have to change my mind picking E Class Merc by looking at Lexus GS300 executive specs compared with E class Merc!

Would be a good idea I think! Lexus spec is way beyond anything you're likely to find in an E Class........or even an S Class! I did a lot of research on E65 7 series prior to buying the GS and VERY few of them would have as good a spec as mine. Having said that, some of the features are just gimmicks really. Voice command, keyless entry and ventilated seats are nice to have, but not exactly necessary. My favourite I reckon is the sound system - 10 speakers including subwoofer and it sounds abolutely fantastic!

Your best bet is to get a Sport model if you can (SE-L in UK) - these have the highest spec and don't seem to really carry a price premium. There also seems to be a few about.

Quick summary of main model features (2005 - 2007):

Executive "standard":
Heated electric memory leather seats.
Adaptive xenon lights.
6 CD changer with 10 speaker sound system.
Tyre Pressure warning system.
Auto dim rear view and wing mirrors (electric + folding).
Parking sensors front and rear.
Reversing camera with steering guides.
Bluetooth (phone only).
Auto retracting steering wheel.
Keyless entry and start.
(I think there may also have been a 'base' model with no leather or sensors but have only ever come across one).

Common options on Executive models:
Seat ventilation with perforated leather.
Wood/leather steering wheel and gear stick (less common than ventilation).
Sat nav with voice command (less common than the two above).

Sport model standard over Executive:
Sat nav.
Premium 14 speaker sound system (look for 'Mark Levinson' on stereo face).
DVD player with 5.1 sound.
18" wheels.
Adaptive suspension (standard on all models from 2007 on).

Common options on Sport models:
Seat ventilation with perforated leather (never seen one without this).
Wood/leather steering wheel and gear stick.
Adaptive cruise control and pre-crash safety system (look for a little fob with a car 'radar' symbol hanging down from right side of steering wheel) (fairly common).
Sunroof.

In summary, for best 'bang for buck', get a Sport model with ventilated seats, wood wheel, adaptive cruise and sunroof!

I'm getting about 27 mpg from my GS300 which I reckon is pretty good. GS450H will do (slightly) more and has better resale but costs more.

zulfikarMD · 02-09-2010 08:35AM

Hi Padraig Mor, which dealer is good for sales/after-sales/service etc.. in and around dublin? also, if one goes for any GS300 model prior to 07 it just kills in tax..worth buying 07 onwards model.. Thanks.

Padraig Mor · 02-09-2010 09:02AM

zulfikarMD wrote: »

Hi Padraig Mor, which dealer is good for sales/after-sales/service etc.. in and around dublin?

No idea, sorry. If they are competively priced in the main Lexus dealer (they sure are in Cork), go for it.

also, if one goes for any GS300 model prior to 07 it just kills in tax..worth buying 07 onwards model.. Thanks.

Well the tax is the tax.... Prior to July 08, tax is €1300; after is €2100. I'd be surprised if any were sold at the higher level though. GS450H hybrid has €1600 tax prior to 08, but €630 tax from 08 on so that would be the one to get for tax reasons. Naturally they are in the most demand and will cost you north of €30k (which is still pretty good value TBH). However you could get a 05 GS300 for approx €13k - the difference will pay the higher tax for about 30 years!

edit: range was refreshed in 07. Very minor cosmetic changes. Adaptive suspension added to all models. sat nav screen resolution improved. Maybe one or two other minor changes.

Lexus GS300 (05- model) - opinions?

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