It’s showing 155,000 miles? Pah! The 4.0-litre V8 in this famously durable luxury car is just getting warmed up.
Lexus LS400, £3000: The LS400 was the car with which Lexus announced itself to the automotive world in 1989. A few years ago, there were quite a few examples knocking around on the cheap, but such is their sound reliability that buyers were snapping them up, running them, and keeping them. Now their numbers are dwindling.
We found one for £3000 that isn’t without its faults. This owner has had it since November 2014. At its last MOT, in May 2019, it sounded like the tyres needed replacing, and in the past year, they have been, along with fresh brake pads and discs. All other minor advisories (dodgy headlight, ropey numberplate) seem to have been straightened out, too, and the cambelt was changed at 133k miles.
There’s a small crack in the lower right-hand corner of the windscreen – no great drama – but the other problems are only cosmetic. It has a few gentle scrapes and marks on the bodywork to show for its 22 years on the road, but all could be dealt with easily. We’d still want to check it’s not serious surface corrosion, though.
In any case, it’s inside where the luxury really shows. A sea of beautiful beige leather and wood veneers awaits the plucky buyer, and an early infotainment system (with sat-nav!) that is almost certainly easier to use than anything you’ll find in a modern Lexus.
Electric seats, cruise control and an exquisitely wafty ride should make this a solid luxury cruiser. But we’d want to ensure it would glide through a fresh MOT before striking a deal.
Mercedes-Benz S500 L AMG Line, £34,000: For a traditional slice of luxury car, try this S-Class. This long-wheelbase version is powered by a 4.7-litre 449bhp V8 and has sailed through its life thus far with no problems. It’s even being offered with three years’ nationwide servicing from a dealer.
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Love that Lexus. Its design
Love that Lexus. Its design and demeanour is so much... calmer... than the wango-tango Lexi of today.
Otherwise, I'll take either the Smart or S2000, the latter being just about the last Honda with decent styling.
Those LS400s still Look Superb
That's the thing about Japanese styling. It might be a bit surprising at first, even confrontational, but it usually still looks right 20 or 30 years later. And that LS400 is pretty much perfect.
jason_recliner wrote:
Agreed, and i wouldnt mind betting it will still be going strong after the much newer BMW and Merc shown have gone to meet the crusher.