Hey guys I've decided to go back to lexus. I bought a 99 ls400 for 3500 bucks good condition minor rock chips in the front hood is faded other than that the car is great leather is cracking a bit but man does this car runs. Nothing against xk8 owners but this lex will leave my xk8 in the dust it flies! 5 speed auto 290hp vvti motor it rides soooooooooo smoothe. Sorry guys but the jag had too many problems the suspension was totally shot and it only has 103k miles. My new lex has 108k on the original suspension and you don't feel a single bump. I'm still keeping the xk8 and it will be my project car. I have too much money into it to sell it because I will get nothing for it. I have over 10k in the car in repairs. I will continue to follow the forums when I can but I needed a reliable daily driver because the drivers in my city are crazy some lady had mad road rage and almost rear ended my bike at over 65mph. I want to thank everyone for all the help I learned a lot from you all! God bless this forum and the people who are so helpful.

 

If the xk8 is still going to be in your garage and a 'project car', you'll be around the forums You can't beat the top-down experience on a cool morning driving to work or going to breakfast with someone special.

Good luck, and don't give up on the xk8!

 

yea the Jag is HIGH MAINT but sure nothing like it when it is running right. No Lexus around that even compares in looks and grace.

 

wow welcome to the world of the bland!
lexy are good solid cars but wow my fridge has more character.

i find the ls400 faster than an 8 hard to swallow unless the 8 is either
shagged or the drivers is not trying

 

I don't mean to hijack this thread, but I'm a 'noob XK8 owner and have a question: These cars are solidly FORDS (e.g. my 2005). What makes them more troublesome/unreliable than Fords? Is it because they're 'exotics', not Taurus's?
Just wondering..

 

Congrats Lexus are super cars! I actually thought about the SC430 but the rear seats are smaller than ours and it is not nearly as sexy. Now the 92 / 2000 SC400 is just as nice as the XKR.. actually was the sweetest car until the XK8 was built.

Enjoy both!

 

My friends Taurus has been in the shop a lot more than my '97 XK8 and mine has more miles on it.


Dave

 

Best of luck Jdub, hope you enjoy your new ride.

You'll always be welcome here and hope to see you around.

Thanks
Jim

 

Wait, if I have this right, you're "going back to Lex" with a $3500 example that "blows the doors off" the XK8 and you're arguing how much better of a car it is? Here? I'm not sure you're going to get much support on that one, though I recognize the sense in keeping a beater Japanese appliance around for daily use. However, I daily my XKR and have few issues, as others on here do as well. Sorry yours hasn't been as easy to keep going, but glad you're hanging onto it. Keep it moving or your matters will only get worse- these cats need to be kept active.

At least you didn't ship yours abroad, dump $35k of questionable mods into it, ship it back home, then decide to sell it for a heaping loss!

 

Thank you everyone for the kind replies but you'd be surprised how fast this sedan is!!! Keep in mind it does not weigh as much as the xk.

The xk is a very very heavy car solidly built body I will definitely say that. A lexus is not a "beater" while it may not be the nicest looking car it's VERY COMFORTABLE.

Rides like your floating on a cloud and maintenance doesn't kill me! Just had my starter, upper/lower intake manifold gaskets, valve Cover gaskets, spark plugs, timing belt, Tensioner, water pump, and idler pulleys all done for 765$ out the door.

Parts from rock auto for all this came to only 277$ with shipping included!!!!!!!!!!

This car is a good car. I had one before a 94. Next time I see an xk I'll rev the engine and fly down the expressway and let you know the results doubt that will be anytime soon though as they're very rare.

I raced an early model sc400 (two door version same motor/tranny) and was neck and neck with him an sc400 from 94. The sc400 had the older model engine only 240 hp and let's face it guys they're automatics you just push the pedal to the floor so whoever is faster is faster.

I have a new engine in my xk8! So no problems there no cel! Car runs like it should! In 98 lexus boosted the engine from 240bhp to 290 with a full time vvt engine and 300tq.

From a stop this car will burn the tires and just take off (without traction control on) soon as I shift into 2nd I look down and I'm at 60. I have always loves lexus and don't knock that motor. Look the up the 1uzfe they have gotten 2700hp out of that tiny 4 liter motor and the cylinder sleeves are very thick.

Overall my experience has been great with it but I bought it knowing it's quirks but knew that these were all minor wear and tear problems. I will be fixing the xk8 suspension and then eventually trying to fix the convertible top.

I was scared she was going to fall apart and couldn't afford to keep sinking money into her knowing something else could go wrong. I know the Ls400 they have passed the million mile test before they brought it over here into the US.

It was the toyota celsior in Japan and they put Mercedes lead engineer out of business. To show you how smooth this car is look up lexus champagne commercial. There's and article a man from Texas who had 550k miles on his Ls400 and said it's just needed usual repairs timing belt brakes etc and he stated I quote " she has never once let me down and been great to me and the way I see it this is just the beginning."

I will be back here and will also try to help others with any issues or problems.

Thanks everyone and happy motoring!!!

 

First of all, if you get rid of a convertible for a hard top, you ARE GOING to regret that.

I would drive the convertible on days you want, the hard top or days you don't.

The XK8 is not a slow car , it just needs a tune to remove the factory timing curves, and will applaud you after that. NIGHT AND DAY DIFFERENCE.

 

Sounds like a salty attitude. First of all my top didn't even work and it started leaking water into my car! I'm glad you take pride in your jag! I do as well but I'm just saying I NEEDED SOME THING RELIABLE. I do know how to fix things myself and I have torn into other motors. I've done a timing belt on a toyota camry. I do not appreciate the negativity. Next topic this car has a sun roof!! While not as nice as a convertible if I want to see the sky above me I can press a button and open it. It works fine. I am NOT knocking jags I'm just saying there are a lot of maintenance problems that I do not have the time to deal with at this point in my life. As I stated I am keeping the car I will be fixing it over time. It needs a lot of work. Why would I dump another 2 or 3 grand into when I can buy a nice reliable second vehicle for that price that would get from point a to point b? Don't want to argue and I guess ban me if you must.

 

Sorry you feel you're having to deal with negativity from some people on this forum, but your initial post, especially dealing with each car's performance, was a little like the "red flag in front of a bull" analogy, and actually, from what I can see, didn't get that horrible a response. As with most things, it comes down to what your needs and expectations are vs. the reality of what you purchased.

I have no ax to grind; I purchased my 2000 XK8 after a good deal of research on this forum. I have a Ford Freestyle daily driver that serves me well, but is as much an appliance as it is a car. Having owned several Jags in the past, I knew they could/would be a challenge to keep running and frankly, if I didn't have a garage where I can work on it, I wouldn't have bought it. I don't know (or care) what it's faster or slower than, I just know that I enjoy driving it and am willing to put up with the problems of ownership. It's a decision to be made on an individual basis.

Lexus makes a very fine automobile that pretty much does what it says it will. I almost owned an SC400 myself, and still think they're great cars. As have many others on this forum have done, I wish you the best with yours and am glad to hear that you're keeping your XK8. I hope that you can get it to the point where it provides you with some measure of enjoyment as these cars seem to do with so many others on this forum. If you're really, truly lucky, there'll be a Lexus forum half as good as this one.

 

why is he trying to sell his "new" car to us. If you did you leg work in looking into Jags before you got the one you had you would have known these come with a need for some upkeep most of the time.

 

Ford money but very few Ford parts.

 

I did my investigation/research into jags read through these forums before I purchased the vehicle. Any car at 100k miles will need maintenance I'm just stating at this time I do not have the finances to keep the xk8 as my daily driver. As I said it will be a project I plan on fixing it. I'm not trying to "sell" my new car to you, I'm just stating I found a nice reliable vehicle for a reasonable price. You don't have to be so negative and have such a bad attitude. You think for one second I didn't like driving that jag? I sure as hell did! It is a very beautiful and stylish car but as I said I am 23 I cannot afford or have the time to do the necessary repairs to have the vehicle as a daily driver. it is going to cost me a lot of money to maintain at this time. Many Members use their vehicles As dailies and others use them as weekend cars which is what I plan to do once the car is fixed so why don't you get off my *** and have some respect. The Lexus forum is actually pretty helpful. I suppose I will deactivate my account now because I can not post anything on here without getting a negative response. happy motoring and thanks for all the help goodbye

 

I guess I missed all the negative comments you feel you are getting. Most seem pretty reasonable to me.

Glad you have it worked out where you can get what you feel is a more reliable car and still keep the Jag. They are fun on the weekend for certain.

Enjoy both your rides and good luck.

 

Jdub - so sorry you feel there is negativity towards you and your new ride.

Personally I don't think its been as bad as you make out, perhaps a few getting a little over sensitive to a few remarks you may have made?

Please rest assured, we're ahppy that you're happy with your new ride, good that you may be keeping the xk8 and hopefully we can help.

No one here is banning / removing you from this site, you'll always be welcome unless you decide to leave, it is after all your choice.

Happy motoring, hope it all works out for you.

Jim

 

You don't think any of those comments above or negative Japanese beater? Well I have a Japanese bike that puts over 170 to the rear wheel that will blow the doors off all of your cars. Glad to see you guys are obsessed with your cars and think that because you own it its the best. Please ban me. And by the way there's not a lot of topics on the lexus website CUZ THEY DONT EVER BREAK DOWN. AND WHEN I POST A THREAD I GET A REPLY WITHIN 30 MINUTES TO AN HR. I DONT HAVE TIME FOR THIS BS. BAN ME I WORK 30+ HRS A WEEK AND AM A FULL TIME STUDENT. I HAVE BILLS AND RENT TO PAY FOR. IM DONE YOU THINK THESE CARS ARE SO AMAZING WHEN YOU SPEND MORE TIME UNDER THE HOOD THAN DRIVING IT. I DIDNT EVEN PUT 15K MILES ON THAT CAR AND ALREADY DROPPED WAY MORE MONEY INTO IT THAN ITS WORTH. GOOD BYE DELETE THE THREAD AND MY ACCOUNT GOOD DAY

 

Wow

Just a little ott I think Jdub,

Lexus never break down and your forum replies in less than 30 mins when you do post about problems you never have?

All I can say is happy motoring, hope things work out for you.