Description
Hi
Welcome to the sale of this lovely Lexus LS400.
I bought the car recently as a bit of an experiment to kick off my fledgling You Tube channel - Collecting Modern Classic Cars (check it out!).
I wanted to buy something which ticked a few boxes:
1) something I hadn't owned before
2) something I could use as a daily driver
3) something that would do motorway cruising well
4) something that would be reliable
5) something that wouldn't depreciate
6) something 'interesting'
I spotted this LS400 and thought, "that's the one".
It has only had one owner from new. He did swap the car from his business name into his own when he retired but it's a one owner car.
The gent who owned it clearly liked the car to have kept it so long, and indeed there is a note inserted in the last two MOT invoices saying “customer has instructed to undertake any works necessary to pass the MOT"... there aren't many people who would do that on a 20+ year old classic car.
For all of it's life the car wore the registration mark 41 GB... nice.
A quick summary:
- 197, 500 miles and still going strong!
- long MOT
- super reliable
- lovely wafter/ cruiser
- practically everything works!
- no beauty pageant winner but super solid
- will get you wherever you want to go
Now then, before we start she is not a concourse show queen. The bodywork has some faded panels and patches which contrast against say the FNS wing as an example and the wheels need a re-furb but she is super solid where it matters and I kind of like the 'patina' of faded paint etc. If you want a pristine example then please look away now.
More importantly the car is totally reliable. I've driven the car on long journeys etc and it is nothing short of amazingly comfortable. I could bang on forever and a day but perhaps the best way to get an idea of what it's like is to have a look at the videos I have done on the car on my You Tube channel? There are videos on why I bought an LS400, driving impressions videos plus a quick walk around video.
Mechanically the car is fit and ‘all there’. The engine pulls with real vigour and fuel economy on a run is over 30mpg which shows how healthy the car is. The only things I think worthy of mention are an exhaust tick (leak) which can be heard when using 50%+ throttle (which you hardly ever do) and a suspension rumble when braking over bumps at low speed. Apart from that the car drives pretty much faultlessly for its vintage.
There is an invoice for the cambelt and tensioner at 173. 5K miles) now 197. 5K.
The interior is a lovely place to spend time. The steering wheel and drivers seat have patina (wear ha ha) but carpets are very good, plastics etc are amazing and I've spent so many hours on the interior improving and cleaning it now smells super fresh and lovely in the here.
Pretty much everything electrical works too! The electric steering column works perfectly, as does the air con etc. The drivers heated seat doesn't work (passengers does) and.... that's about it...
For added practicality there is a reversing camera fitted.
The 6 disc CD changer and Lexus Premium Sound System are simply astonishing for a car of this age.
The car is fitted with the Dynamic Handling Pack (DHP) alloy wheels which look much, much better than the standard alloy wheels. They do need a refurb now as the paint is flaking. Tyres are very good all round and the car has had recent brakes etc.
There isn't much service history remaining with the car but recent spend of several thousand pounds is all documented plus the original owners manual. The owner (sadly now deceased) never intended to sell the car hence not keeping the early paperwork, and indeed due to (ridiculous) GDPR rules it should have been shredded anyway.
I wouldn't hesitate for a moment to take this car anywhere - it feels rock solid and super fit. there are LS400 examples knocking around with over 1 million miles on them, and cars with 500, 000 are reasonably plentiful. This one has much, much service left to give.
Given the cars vintage it can now be insured on a classic car policy - it is a Modern Classic Car after all so between that and 30+mpg capability it would make for a very interesting, and cost effective, daily driver if you wanted?
The MOT is due in November 2022 so the car is ready to go now and enjoy. I'm not aware of anything that needs doing or money that needs spending on the car in order to jump in and start wafting around.
So why am I selling the car? Simple really. After buying the Lexus I stumbled across an old Volvo that has covered nearly half a million miles and I simply had to buy it. My immediate mission is to get the car over the 500K marker and then keep racking the miles on. In doing so I am using the Volvo for practically every journey which means other cars in the collection aren't going to get used for a good while. The Lexus is too good a car to just leave hanging around for its turn hence letting someone else get some enjoyment from it.
As I say if you want a garage queen then you'll need to look elsewhere but if you want a solid example for not much money (and only rising in value) then I'd love to hear from you.
If it helps I will happily deliver the car to your door (I love driving in case you can't tell) but of course the car would need to be paid for in advance of setting off. I make the offer because I know some people find it hard to travel to buy cars and I'm always up for a road trip... and an excuse to put more miles on the Volvo!!
Thanks for reading through this and please feel free to ask any questions you may have and I hope the videos are of use.
