Buying 2005 Gs300

[davegs300]

Hi everybody, New to the forum in the process of buying a 2005 model GS300, at the moment i own a Merc W211 E220cdi class and are just sick of things going wrong all the time! i realise the the Gs300 will be thirsty on juice compared with the E220cdi but am thinking along the lines that if not so many things go wrong with it then it should balance out, any common problems that i should be looking for would be a great help, many thanks Dave

[tonyricha]

Hi Dave and a warm welcome to LOC, I think you will be surprised by the consumption of your GS, they are not juicy if driven well. The only issue I know of for this year is the ECU seems to fail with horror stories of £2K to replace, please check for re calls on steering rack and rear brakes having been completed but if not I think Lexus will still do them but the ECU was not a re call so beware.

Enjoy your new motor and forget those hard seats, peaky motor frequent problems and smelly re fueling stops.

[davegs300]

Thanks for that reassurnce Tony, Love the looks of the car and think it will be large enough and executive enough for the airport work that i do, i was just a little concerned about the fuel consumption thats all really, will keep you posted cheers Dave

[PGLex]

I have recently brought another Lexus after many years of German cars.

The GS i have (2006) is averaging about 34-35 MPG in the last 3 months. I don't drive particularly hard, but don't hang about either. Round town it does drop a bit, but again take it easy, and you may be surprised.

I have covered about 10,000 trouble free miles, and would have to say its still an absolute pleasure jumping in and knowing i have a 600 mile round trip in front of me.

Effortless driving, and very comfortable.

About a month ago i had a re-call letter from Lexus regarding Fuel pump wiring + Master cylinder seal. So it may be worth checking if your car may be affected by this. I popped into Lexus Milton keynes last week and they still have no parts in stock to do the job, but did say thay are unaware of any problems with these two issues, and that it was a precautionary re-call.

I will be getting mine serviced next week (not at Lexus Milton Keynes as they wanted £450 for the pleasure of changing oil and filters), but am not expecting any issues.

I have had Lexus IS in he past and would say that the overall Lexus driving experience is different to German. You feel like you have chosen a less obvious but better choice, and have been rewarded for doing so with plenty of driver gadgets and ample comfort. Sitting in traffic amongst the sea of BMW, Audi and Mercedes you do feel a little more unique and i kinda like that.

Good luck with the new car

PG

[lexus8811]

Hi Newbie,

I have a Lexus GS 300 Yr 2005 . Funny thing the seller told me it was a 2008, but seat belt clues and no lights on the door mirror

speaks 2005.

It looks nice and rides well but I had an uncomfortable and puiilsh drive, Yes the tyres.

Changenthem after awhile and she ries very well.

Then there is this small star burst crack on the windscreen which obviously have been repaired prior to delivery to me,

Then the Low Pressure lights was staying on, I tried to get them off but failed, seems kile the sensors !!!!

And this was supposed to be a new car that the guy sold me,

The odometer was very low.

Lexuspcl.

[Greggster]

Did you buy a 2005 car disguised as a 2008 car? Confused!

[Ashman7286]

have you considered a late model mk2 gs300. with the earlier mk3's they seem to have a few problems to be aware of but a late mk2 will have had the niggly problems ironed out. to be honest the mk2's don't look that old compared to the newer model bmw's etc.

well that's my opinion anyway. lol

[The Swede]

Hi Dave and a warm welcome to LOC, I think you will be surprised by the consumption of your GS, they are not juicy if driven well. The only issue I know of for this year is the ECU seems to fail with horror stories of £2K to replace, please check for re calls on steering rack and rear brakes having been completed but if not I think Lexus will still do them but the ECU was not a re call so beware.

Enjoy your new motor and forget those hard seats, peaky motor frequent problems and smelly re fueling stops.

Sure, a Lexus is not super thristy, but if driven sensibly, no 3.0 petrol is. My mother drives a W211 E280 and does about 28mpg while not hanging about either.

The question is whether it makes sense to buy such engine to then drive like a retired diesel driver.

The key difference a V6 3.0 will make is the effortless drive and comfort. I wouldn't worry about consumption.

[The Swede]

I actually have a Merc and a Lexus.

I can't compare the cars as they are of a totally different category (S63 vs IS300), but I can compare the service.

And in simple terms, the MB dealers in the UK are AN ABSOLUTE BUNCH OF USELESS PLONKERS. They are mechanically illiterate. The invoicing department DOES know its job however... They're nearly as bad as the Audi dealer network in the UK :tsktsk:

I hence have reverted since 12 years to taking my Mercs to a dealer in Belgium for maintenance (costs 1/3 and is done properly).

With Lexus, I have been pleasantly surprised with the quality of the work and the clear communication on cost of the maintenance in the UK. Will be a breath of fresh air for you.

[Robin Banks]

I bought a 55 SEL, which at some point this year i'll be thinking of moving on to make way for a rx400h, there are better 4x4, but the level of dealer service is miles ahead of the likes of BMW & Mercedes, and i wouldnt consider going back to those german brands. I lurked on here for awhile before buying my car & read about the issues of ECU, and TBH if it hasnt gone bang by now its unlikely too, and people make it sound like its a sure fire thing, the truth is every manufacture has something wrong with there cars at some point & the German brands havent been short of issues.

I would say dont forget these cars were 40K+ when new so although they can been picked up for 15Kish, they still cost 40K car money to maintain. B)

[TonyB]

"I would say dont forget these cars were 40K+ when new so although they can been picked up for 15Kish, they still cost 40K car money to maintain. "

Disagree with the above......and I use Lexus for all my servicing, Tyres, etc. Compared to my Brothers Vectra (UGH!), I pay about a Third more for servicing, So it probably costs me another £300 a year......Lexus even did me a great deal on a new tyre last time £90 + vat............not alot more running cost's for driving a reasonble car........and 35mpg+ on a run.

Plus a model like mine, top spec, best colour combination, Black with Beige Leather, you can pick up for less than 10k......................Make me an offer :winky:

[Robin Banks]

i think you've been very fortunate with your costs, I expect to pay at least £450+ for my 60K service this year, tyres were £145 a piece on the rears & that was from an independent, £180 a piece from lexus, i doubt when it comes to camblet, water pump, cv joints, suspension bushes, steering arms, that these will all be in vectra price range even with 33% increase. If you going to pick up one for less than 10K, then i'd assume its got pretty highish mileage & will be 2005'ish, so it will need in the not too distant future some of the items mentioned being looked at. Just my opinion.

[The Swede]

"I would say dont forget these cars were 40K+ when new so although they can been picked up for 15Kish, they still cost 40K car money to maintain. "

Disagree with the above......and I use Lexus for all my servicing, Tyres, etc. Compared to my Brothers Vectra (UGH!), I pay about a Third more for servicing, So it probably costs me another £300 a year......Lexus even did me a great deal on a new tyre last time £90 + vat............not alot more running cost's for driving a reasonble car........and 35mpg+ on a run.

Well, a Lexus V6 (or any other V6 family car) will never be disproportionally more expensive in maintenance than a 1800cc family car. Luck and dealer (mis)behaviour will affect it more.

It's only once you get into exotic machinery that you get hit badly.

I had a Merc S320 petrol before and servicing was not different to an E class or a C-class. Same goes with parts. I then got my S63 and when I swapped the front discs and pads there... I understood why they invited me to "sit down to go through the bill" : 2800,- GBP !!!

The explanation was "You got to understand, once it's got "AMG" on the part, Merc seems to trebble the prices".

I now understand why you can pick up an M5, AMG or other for such little money second hand and why so many seem completely neglected after few years. :(