ES300

I'm looking at getting one of these boys soon. Is it just a cushier Camry, as I've been lead to believe, or is there anything else that I should be concerned with? I'm in college so I just need a reliable, kind of powerful comfy cruiser.

Thoughts?

I would prefer to say go LS400 because it's objectively better but I know premium gas is like a dollar more expensive in some states.

>that guy who thinks es300 and ls400 share a market

what's wrong with your current car?

Yes it's a cushier camry, nothing wrong with that though, camry's were pretty reliable. these also seem to be the least molested lexus sedans in that era. stance fags seem to prefer GS and LS.

Nothing except it gets 15mpg and I'm tired of repairing things on it.
That's been a relief although I do likr the LS a lot. Stancetrash should stick to the IS and the ES. Leave comfycruisers alone.

What car and mileage? What have you fixed?

All ES's prior to current gen were based on Camry, now Avalon platform.
The V6 is great, I had a 2007 ES350 and it does 0-60 in like 5.6s according to the automotive magazines.
Super reliable comfy numb floaty feeling car, similar to LS in that regard.

When you're talking OLD OLD cars, ES and LS might as well share a market because the price diff b/w a 2007 ES and LS is like $3k, and they both offer reliable unassuming comfortable transport.

Considering replacing my totaled ES350 with a LS.

Basically no cars exist to me anymore except Lexus, I don't know how anybody puts up with their shit being broken all the time.

I Had an Lexus ES300 2001 Platinum edition for 9 years until one winter someone smashed right into it while it was in a mall parking lot. In my experience it was a great car with no major failures, but I had to keep replacing the O2 sensors on the car frequently. Also I've heard people having acceleration problems where the car would accelerate on its own. All in all my experience with my ES300 was great. But depending where you live it might be hard to find one that still has the leather intact.

I just recently bought a higher mile (203k) but well looked after '96 ES300 for $1600. Been very impressed with it so far as far as how well much of the original components hold up. 206k now, just did t-belt/wp, brakes, and rear swaybar bushings and a few other odds and ends Put on some fatter snow tires on Camry steelies as well. I was lucky in that the PO who owned my car for the last 18 years and 175k miles took care of it (changed oil, did repairs when necessary). The suspension on mine aside from those rear sway bushings is all original and still tight with no slop in the balljoints, any of the control arms, tie rod ends, etc. The car still rides well, the rear springs have a bit of sag and the rear struts are starting to make just a bit of noise, but that is nit-picking.

It is head and shoulders above the 2000 Maxima I had before it, which was starting to rot something fierce and at 142k needed a full suspension refresh (rode and handled like crap).

>that fat tires and steelies on a lexus

I like this way more than I should... wouldn't mind if you lifted it a little and threw on a safari bar desu...

...

girlfriend got a 2000 with 275,000 miles on it for $900 from a guy we know in April. I replaced just about the entire front end of the car; sway bar(IT WAS SNAPPED IN HALF), ball joints, control arm bushings, tie rod ends, and CV axles. It is much better now and has a like 282,000 miles on it. Everything works but the interior has some rattles and it still needs motor mounts and shocks. Parts are just expensive and the shocks are gonna be a pain. Overall a good car. You can cross shop camry parts too if you need

The older ES was based on the Camry. So yes, it is a cushier Camry. The newer ones are based on the Avalon, which isn't much classier desu.

If you want a Lexus that was built to be a luxury car first, get an IS, LS, SC, etc.

Just btw the ES300 and GS300 both get about the same MPG, but with the GS you get RWD and a smooth running, bulletproof 2JZ, and more interior room. Plus their styling is much better imo.

If you have to drive in a lot of snow though, the ES is probably easier to drive. With snow tires either car is fine though.

Its not an ES, but there's a 99 Solara automatic V6 with ~204k mi. on Craigslist near me selling for $2000. Someone in another thread told me that an auto tranny with that many miles on it is a timebomb. How long do you guys expect them to last?

ES300 is literally a Camry with wooden wheel and more inspection hours when leaving the factory.

Camrys rule and are the king of economic cars. Most genuine enthusiasts I know use Camrys for daily drivers because they are the definition of reliable and affordable. Seen these cars go to 300-400k miles through regular maintenence and driving.

Well that might be the case for any car with that many miles and an automatic transmission. It's all down to how the car's been used and whether the fluid had been changed. If it shifts good on an extended test drive (to really heat it up, in traffic for example), and the fluid is a decent color and doesn't smell burned, there's no reason to suspect imminent failure. My ES with 207k got regular fluid changes by the PO, shifts smoother than most new cars IMO.

Man two-tone paint looks so good

This. The enthusiasts I mentioned all know how to drive/drift. They cradle their Camrys since the start. These cars run forever if you know what you're doing. The worst I've seen is replaced driveshafts and wheel bearings after hundreds (plural) of thousands of miles.

When treated with respect on the road and with regular oil changes Toyotas and Hondas are quite actually worth buying brand new. You will in most cases get your initial down payment back no problem if you ever plan on selling. But there isn't much reason to get rid of them unless you run out of car space from actually having your lofe together and head straight which is something most Veeky Forums posters on this board will never understand or afford.

This. A Camry is simply a poorman's Lexus.

I know its a little off topic. I'm not OP. What does everyone think of the IS250s?

Thinking of buying the 2nd gen model. What's a good price for a used one (in canadian if possible), and are they reliable? Is it more worth it to buy the AWD ver, or should i just buy it RWD?

ehhh ive had to put way to much money into mine, its a 99 with 114k miles
>imo get an older higher milage ls400