
The Lexus LS was first introduced in 1989 but it took a few years before buyers were willing to accept a S-Class competitor offered from a Japanese manufacturer. Ironically just as the second generation LS was getting into production, Mercedes was going into the dark era of Daimler-Chrysler when quality went out the door like scruples on Wall Street. As Mercedes mortgaged its extensive history of building bulletproof sedans with squeaky plastic and under-engineered gizmos, Toyota was paying it forward with a line of trouble-free luxury automobiles that have stood the test of time.
Under the hood is Toyota's 1UZ-FE, a 4.0 liter DOHC over-square V8 that puts out 290 horsepower and 300 ft-lbs of torque. That is about 200 more horsepower than the previously mentioned Nissan Versa and about 1000X more classy.
See another car that offers a better ride/dollar ratio? tips@dailyturismo.com
I'll sell you an '01 Mercedes S430 in better shape for even less than this.
ReplyDeleteAnother benefit you guys missed-----the new owner can dump that $50/month scrip refill for Ambien.
ReplyDeleteHear, Hear. These cars are the #1 used car bargain out there. They were amazing when gas was 5 bucks a gallon. Now that gas is 2 bucks a gallon, they are even better, still.
ReplyDeleteFew machines better at soothing their way through the daily commute. Excellent choice for a great price; virtually guaranteed to last another 200k miles.
ReplyDeleteI just picked-up a pristine '03 MBZ S430 CABRIO for $1.5k less than this. Saw a beautiful '05 Infiniti M45 asking $4.8k...that's ultra luxury at <5secs to 60mph. There are bargains galore right now in Lux/performance cars for less than $5k, at least here in L.A.
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