mylittlepony
New Member
For the last few months I've been shopping around for 98-00 in Southern California. I'm trying to keep the price below 20k, so that probably rules out most 01 and newer.
First of all, from what I undertstand the 98-00 LS400 and GS400 both use the 1ZUFE engine, though the GS400 has pistons, heads, cam, intake, exhaust etc (and the LS400 is heavier), such that the LS400 has 290 hp and does 0-60 in about 6.5, whereas the GS400 hits 60 in about 5.8 seconds.
I wouldn't rule out an LS400, but I'm under the impression that there aren't any <$1000k go-fast mods for it (I think the Lexone is for pre VVTI cars and the Swift Racing intake/ECU combo is only for GS400s). Will I be giving up a lot of performance (and potential bang-for-the-buck upgrades) if I get an LS400 versus a GS400? (I've driven the GS but not the LS).
Second question: I normally trust Edmunds TMV ("true market value") number for prices, but it seems that the few GS400s for sale in my area are priced well above that.
For example, a 98 I was looking at with about 65k miles was being offered by a dealer for about 19.5k. The Kelly Blue Book for that vehicle was about $22k, whereas the Edmunds TMV dealer retail was $16.8k. The salesman tried giving me this BS about "KBB is the accepted system on the West Coast." Yeah, whatever. I was under the impression that the Kelly Blue Book prices were more favorable to the dealer (and the Kelly has "partnerships" with seller networks in general). Is it reasonable for me to expect to get much closer to the 16.8k number? It seems like there are A LOT less GS400s for sale than LS400s, and the LS400s are actually priced slightly cheaper with year and mileage being equal.
Funny side note to the pricing story; the salesman banged up the GS I was looking at (scratched bumper, dented body behind left rear wheel). Many people probably would've have run away at that point, but I'm wondering if the little mishap gives me some extra bargaining power. I'm taking it to a shop on Wednesday to have a pre-sales inspection (I noticed the brakes were a little noisy on a test drive) and also take it to a body shop to get an estimate for the damage. I'm guessing the dealer might want to avoid the paperwork/hassle of repairing the damage, so maybe I could ask for a price along the lines of 17k - (cost to fix body damage) - (small hassle discount?)
One other question: I've been told to avoid air suspension on the LS400. Is it easy to tell if the car has it? I.e., if it doesn't have it, will the springs be readily visible? Are there any things to avoid or watch out for on a GS400?
First of all, from what I undertstand the 98-00 LS400 and GS400 both use the 1ZUFE engine, though the GS400 has pistons, heads, cam, intake, exhaust etc (and the LS400 is heavier), such that the LS400 has 290 hp and does 0-60 in about 6.5, whereas the GS400 hits 60 in about 5.8 seconds.
I wouldn't rule out an LS400, but I'm under the impression that there aren't any <$1000k go-fast mods for it (I think the Lexone is for pre VVTI cars and the Swift Racing intake/ECU combo is only for GS400s). Will I be giving up a lot of performance (and potential bang-for-the-buck upgrades) if I get an LS400 versus a GS400? (I've driven the GS but not the LS).
Second question: I normally trust Edmunds TMV ("true market value") number for prices, but it seems that the few GS400s for sale in my area are priced well above that.
For example, a 98 I was looking at with about 65k miles was being offered by a dealer for about 19.5k. The Kelly Blue Book for that vehicle was about $22k, whereas the Edmunds TMV dealer retail was $16.8k. The salesman tried giving me this BS about "KBB is the accepted system on the West Coast." Yeah, whatever. I was under the impression that the Kelly Blue Book prices were more favorable to the dealer (and the Kelly has "partnerships" with seller networks in general). Is it reasonable for me to expect to get much closer to the 16.8k number? It seems like there are A LOT less GS400s for sale than LS400s, and the LS400s are actually priced slightly cheaper with year and mileage being equal.
Funny side note to the pricing story; the salesman banged up the GS I was looking at (scratched bumper, dented body behind left rear wheel). Many people probably would've have run away at that point, but I'm wondering if the little mishap gives me some extra bargaining power. I'm taking it to a shop on Wednesday to have a pre-sales inspection (I noticed the brakes were a little noisy on a test drive) and also take it to a body shop to get an estimate for the damage. I'm guessing the dealer might want to avoid the paperwork/hassle of repairing the damage, so maybe I could ask for a price along the lines of 17k - (cost to fix body damage) - (small hassle discount?)
One other question: I've been told to avoid air suspension on the LS400. Is it easy to tell if the car has it? I.e., if it doesn't have it, will the springs be readily visible? Are there any things to avoid or watch out for on a GS400?
