Wonderfully OT: '03 Bonneville or '01 Lexus GS430?
Those are my two options. Both are miraculously the same price. I know that the Lexus is definitely the better deal, but it is in another state and would have to be shipped from me... This would be done through eBay Motors, so I would have a 7 day period of time in which to drive and inspect the car after receiving it to make sure all was as said... The only issue with the Lexus is that it's missing the radio / navigation unit. That I could replace. The Lexus is white, and the Bonneville is dark gray. I like the Bonneville's interior a whole lot better; much sportier and darker. Each car has 115k miles on it. The Lexus has more power for sure, but thus gets fewer mpg... Insurance is only a $5 difference between the two.
The Lexus:
The Bonneville:
I am so stuck.
consider this: what would you rather pay to fix when something Inevitably breaks down?
The Lexus would certainly be the better investment, 'cause even if I have to put some money into it to keep it in prime shape, I'll likely still be able to sell it after driving it for a few years and break even. (I'm buying it for far, far less than the average price on one.)
The Lexus would also be more expensive to repair though, as backed up by evidence from my cousin who looked up some commonly replaced parts in his shop.
if thats the case why not? generally speaking, cars are hardly ever an investment. unless you got a rare LeBaron drop top driven by jon voight.
That photo is made in a studio. Note the view out the windows -- flat, uniform gray, everywhere. Probably from an automotive website. I'd be very wary.
EDIT: Second dead give-away: the color of the side mirrors. White or silver paint. The exterior photo is a dark gray.
These pictures aren't the literal cars I'm looking at; only random stock photos I took from Google. (The pics I have are on my laptop, and I'm at work.) The Lexus' only flaw that's apparent in the pictures is the missing nav unit. The Bonneville has a smallish scratch on the hood.
And its not even close.
Shouldn't you be asking Pete Carrol?
formerly of Oklahoma...
Does the Bonneville have the "Heads Up" Display that projects the speed and radio stations and everything on the windshield? If it does I would go with the Bonneville for that reason alone. I have a Bonneville SSEI and the windshield display is one of the coolest safety features I've ever seen in a car.
Yeah, it does, and I agree. It's really cool.
Only problem with it is you will get really annoyed when driving someone else's car who doesn't have it. I always get confused when I can't find my speedometer on the windshield of my fiance's Jeep.
If you really have to have a HUD, may I suggest an aftermarket one by Defi:
http://www.defi-shop.com/product/basis/basis_top.html
I had one similar to this on my previous car and loved it. HUD is the way of the future IMHO.
That's excellent... How much would one of those cost?
The Defi VSD Basis model can be bought online for around $170 plus S/H, maybe less even as it's been a few years.
I sure hope so, I think these things should be in every car.
As much as I hate to say it, I think you've gotta go with the Lexus. Toyotas were just made so much better during that time.
Short answer: avoid both. At 115k miles, you shouldn't pay much more than trade in.
you never hear a girl say " check out that guy in the bonneville"
I had really bad experience re: a Pontiac Grand Am I owned some years back. Won't go into details, but it prompted me to sell the car and swear off Pontiacs forever (despite the fact that I really loved that car). It was really more the dealership, but still. The dealer is the primary point of contact for the driver. Eh... I better stop there before I go off.
Also... isn't the Pontiac brand going away? Don't know if this would be a consideration regarding future repairs. With 115K, you probably wouldn't have the car for that long I'm guessing.
Well, I think my vote is clear. Good luck!
Once owned a Grand Am. After about 20K miles, he was so frustrated with it, he removed the name plates, filed down the letter "G", and rearranged them. The new name plates read:
Damn Car.
I used to work in a body shop that catered mostly to luxury cars so I've driven a lot of different brands. Lexuses (Lexi? Lexa?) are probably the tightest, smoothest driving cars I've ever been in. I wouldn't worry at all about how it drives. If you get the Lexus, I'm betting you'll love it.
Only two years older and the insurance cost is basically the same? Even without the radio and nav unit, I say get the Lexus.
is a NICE car. I'm sure the Lexus is too, but Dad had several Bonneville's for years, and always has been sad since the company stopped chipping in so he could afford one.
One thing to think about since you've mentioned you are buying for "far far less":
Is that based on what the Kelly Blue Book Value says or what cars are selling for on eBay? If it's the former, it better be significantly less. If it's the latter - then I would make sure there wasn't something terribly wrong with the car (car fax can only show you so much).
I recently purchased a car (April this year) for the first time in a couple of years. I got it for about 15% less than the KBB value indicated - so you could use that as a comp. I am not a big fan of buying cars on eBay, but hey - to each his own.
I actually didn't find the Lexus on eBay; it's through someone we know. But since the sale would be long distance, we're doing it through eBay for the buyer / seller protection policies.
The price is significantly lower than KBB... And the Carfax shows up clean. It's a great deal, and I'm gonna go for it.
I've owned a '99 GS400 forever, and at 150k miles it's problem free and solid as a rock. The handling isn't going to make you think you bought a sports car, but straight line acceleration is impressive. The gas mileage is really the only negative, but when I'm driving the car, the gas being consumed feels like money well spent.
I previously had an Acura I thought I loved, but this Lexus blows it away. I've been so impressed with it (in every way) that when my daughter got her license, I bought her a *very* old LS400, and it's also been a great car. When the time comes in a few years, I'll hand the GS down to my son and buy another Lexus, although I do recognize the Lexus reputation for quality has been tarnished in recent years.
If you're at all interested in modding your Lexus (I'm not) or getting maintenance tips (I am), Lexi in general have a very enthusiastic user community -- www.lexls.com (LS400-centric, but just about everything applies to the GS400, and the same goes for LS/GS430s), www.clublexus.com and www.lexusownersclub.com have been tremendously useful to me. I don't know if the Bonneville has such an active owner/user community.
Cool, those will be good resources. Thank you!
I'm going for the Lexus! It's too good an offer to pass up. Thanks for the input, everyone.