rdefabri
rdefabri New Reader
6/3/15 12:17 p.m.

119,375 Highway Miles, Less than 9,000 a year! Not modified, clean and clear title in hand. Normal wear and tear for age - front driver seat has rip in leather, all other seats in good condition.

The Good: Body is in decent shape, no rust or major dings on the body. Some oxidation on the lights, which happens to these cars.

Fully loaded, with everything in working order (6 CD changer, stereo, cassette player). Stereo LCD panel doesn't show display, which again is common on these cars for some reason.

4.0L V8 (1UZ-FE, 300HP, 310 lb/ft torque) with 5-speed automatic, with E-Shift on steering wheel, vehicle skid control and performance modes. Traction control + stability control and brake assist.

Factory HID headlights and fog lights, dual heated front seats, wood dash, new brake pads at all corners.

Timing belt changed at 80,000 miles.

Platinum Series includes: Unique 16" 7 Spoke wheels, black chrome emblems, perforated leather seating surfaces, platinum embroidered floor mats.

The Bad: Windshield is cracked. The header flange that meets the exhaust pipe has rusted and the car sounds like it has an open exhaust. I had this welded a few years ago, but it was a temporary fix. The tires need to be replaced, at least the back two (front two look, maybe 70% tread). The car sits quite a bit (I work from home) and the calipers are starting to freeze up - I greased them but it's still a little "sticky". Caliper replacement is pretty simple and cheap if you do it yourself - they work but need to be used more to loosen up.

The Bottom Line: This car has the 1UZ-FE engine, and 2000 was the last year of production before the 3UZ-FE was used. The 1UZ-FE engine is far more overbuilt than the 3UZ-FE (6 volt mains, studs instead of bolts, thicker block inner sleeve space, thicker rods, etc.) - it's a stout and sturdy engine. Some notable comparisons here: http://www.lextreme.com/3uzblock.html

The 1UZ-FE was allegedly based on a CART / IRL engine design, and the 3UZ variant was used in the Lexus Grand-Am cars. People tend to over look the sporty nature of these cars, the engine is a gem and it's a decent handling car.

The car is a driver, but it does need work. I've owned this car for almost 9 years, it's been a workhorse, but I've since replaced it with a Kia Rio (yes, a step down I know).

Asking $3000 or best offer. Not sure how to post pics, I don't have a URL, they are stored locally on my laptop. I can email if needed.

Svenska94Aero
Svenska94Aero New Reader
6/3/15 1:55 p.m.

Location?

DrBoost
DrBoost UltimaDork
6/3/15 7:59 p.m.

Are the pics hosted on photobucket?

akylekoz
akylekoz New Reader
6/4/15 7:21 a.m.

I would be all over that...next spring. Unless you want a V70XC.

SEADave
SEADave HalfDork
6/4/15 11:27 a.m.

I was looking at Lexus's (Lexi?) earlier this spring, and $3k for a GS400 with 120k miles is a steal, even with the issues noted. This was the fastest sedan sold in America the year it came out (although BMW put an end to that pretty quickly).

Not sure I buy all the seller's 1UZ-FE>3UZ-FE talk, but still GS400's (and GS430's) are one of the most reliable cars out there. About the only known weak spot in the earlier GS's is the integrated brake master/booster. The part is really expensive, and many upgrade to the GS430 part when it fails, although I'm not sure exactly how and why.

old_
old_ Reader
6/4/15 2:44 p.m.

from what I hear the 98-00 cars are more desirable. despite having slightly less torque they are actually faster than the 01+(3uz) cars. in addition the 01+ cars have a very laggy drive by wire throttle system vs. standard throttle cable for the older models. The 01+ cars also no longer had e-shift (manual control of the auto tranny with steering wheel buttons)

rdefabri
rdefabri New Reader
6/4/15 7:32 p.m.

Hi all - sorry for late reply.

Car is in NJ. I don't have Photobucket set up but I could do that easily, or email photos.

All noted above is accurate - '98-'00 most desirable. Car has e-shift and it's very quick. I love the car but it's just sitting as I work from home. That's taken a toll - it needs a better caretaker.

Body is sharp - no dings, but some minor paint chips on hood.

Let me know if any questions!

DrBoost
DrBoost UltimaDork
6/5/15 7:43 a.m.

I sent you a PM. It will be in the email account you used to register here

rdefabri
rdefabri New Reader
6/5/15 9:37 a.m.

Got it - let me know if any questions.

rdefabri
rdefabri New Reader
6/8/15 7:36 a.m.

bump

rdefabri
rdefabri New Reader
6/15/15 1:59 p.m.

Car is sold! I was about to put it in the 2015 classifieds, but someone stepped in last minute to purchase it.

Thanks all!

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