Rob_LexusTech
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okay, so I dun did it again. I picked up another Ls400. I really just need to stay away from these things because I have a problem. I need to stop trolling offerup, craigslist, and fb marketplace. I need to not turn my head and look at BHPH car lots I see in my travels, and I need to stop looking at them, "just for fun" because they keep finding their way into my driveway haha. so, last weekend its my day off, im lounging at my neighborhood pool, frying myself in the sun and socializing with people from my neighborhood, and I get a notification. "whats this? 4 new items posted for ls400?" -ive been chasing a good seats for my diamond white 95, and my black onyx 90 I picked up about a month ago, as well as other parts like factory door speakers, a NAK system (HUGE pain in the butt to convert but ive done it), factory chrom turbine wheels, other random parts -yes I hoard ls400 parts as well bc someday they will be unobtanium and I have a pile almost as big as one of my cars in my garage. anyway, something told me to check CL real quick and when I did, I found a gem. "whats this? an imperial jade one owner 2000 in immaculate condition?" well, ive wanted to complete the trifecta now for awhile (having all three styles, 90,95, and 00), but I have my plate full with my ailing 95 and wore out restoration project 90, but figured why not and went to have a look at it. figuring it would be a clapped out abused mess that looked nice (like so many are these days sadly), I was JUST going to LOOK!!!
well, when I got there, it was one of those perfectly maintained senior communities, you know, where every blade of grass is perfect and it almost looks like something from the twilight zone? yeah, one of those places. I pull around the corner and see the car at the end of the driveway. looked mint from a block away, and.. it still looked mint as I got closer.. and closer.. next thing I know im out of my mustang, sweeping my hands across this 2000, checking for bondo, panel gaps, rust, whatever, and the car was pristine. paint is so glossy and nice you can slide your butt across the hood like hot butter on toast. then an 85 year old man in a walker makes his way over to me. "high im Jim Neely" he says, super nice guy that reminded me of my grandfather. "you must be rob" yes I must be, I replied. he hands me the keys. "start her up and lets go for a ride" he says. the second I opened the door, smelled that "old lexus" smell -which im sure you have all smelled before, and I absolutely love, slid behind the wheel and bumped the key, I pretty much knew it was over. the car is absolutely pristine. no stains, cracks, lights out, nothing. it came to life immediately and the ac kicked on. it was so cold and so healthy the car didn't even flinch when the compressor kicked on. we started down the road, and I tried not to panic. every accessory was there, spare tire was never used and still had the chalk marks on it. trunk was bone dry, not only the tool kit was all there, but even the stupid little flashlight that nobody uses but is always missing was not only there, but it worked and he put fresh batteries in it! WHO DOES THAT??!! "son, ive had this car many years and she's been an angel to me, have you ever had a lexus before?" I just smiled and explained who I was, my job, my cars etc. seems like we talked for hours. "oh, I have both master keys for it, and the valet key still in the plastic, as well as over 100 service records for it". he let me drive this car all over town. I spent a half hour with it, ran it on the highway up to 100 mph, and no wobble. took it over bumpy roads, no clicks clunks or pops, nailed it from a dead stop and it took off like a rocket ship with absolutely zero complaints or hiccups. at this point I was seriously loking for ANY excuse possible to walk away from it, and this car showed me over and over again that it was perfect. so perfect in fact that I didn't want the car, I NEEDED this car, because it drives nothing like any Ls400 ive ever had. it wasn't a choice. it was coming home with me. he had it marked 4900, which was a bit more than I could spend, and the negotiations began. I offered him $3000, because well, it was an old car and the Tbelt hadn't been changed in 100k miles etc. he says "how bout 4300"? I say "how bout 3500"? hmmm... he says. "how bout I meet you half way and say 3800 bc I can tell you appreciate the car and that youll take care of it." -I couldn't get those 38 $100s out of my pocket fast enough.
later that day, relizing i now had 4 cars in a two car driveway, i had to kick one off the island. i ended up selling my 90 project car, bc honestly i just dont have the time or the money right now to give it the attention it needs and deserves, and got a little misty eyed seeing it drive away with a kid that plans to stance it, and the 2000 pretty much wiped my LS400 play money fund out completely for awhile anyway. the early 1st gens are special, but i know a decent one that doesnt need a bunch of work will come out of the woodwork eventually.
i wanted a last gen one, and had my heart set on a black onyx/cashmere one with chrome starfish wheels. this one is Imperial Jade Mica/Ivory and has the starfish wheels but not chrome, but it is just too clean and well kept not to get as these are getting harder and harder to find. plus i know its entire history and know it was very very well looked after.
funny, the next day i drove it to work. i pulled into the service drive here comes my service manager with "oh no robert not another beat up old LS" -this is now the 4th one ive showed up with and the other three were pretty banged up and shot out lol. as i pulled up to the black line and the service paper went on it, my manager walks over, looks at it and says, "oh wow man this one is actually pretty sweet!" which is the first positive reaction ive ever got from him when bringing my new treasures into work for a show-n-tell which was pretty cool. one of them was an absolute hilarious specticle of a 1994 $400 moldy turd belching smoke with no mufflers that was so loud it was rattling the windows of the dealership and stunk up the whole service drive manager says "WHY ROBERT WHY??" most of my co workers were laughing and snickering as i got chewed out and honestly it was really hard to keep a straight face myself, as i really just drove it there for nothing but shock value. i was told to make it go away and dont ever bring it back. haha!
anyway, when i brought this one in, it got alot of oohs and aahs, and even impressed my service manager that thinks anything that isnt from this decade is a waste of time, which that alone is pretty much impossible to do, so i know this one is a winner. now, as with every one i drive into work, i get it the traditional inspection, let them rip it all apart, scrutinize it, and show me all the crap that needs to be replaced on it (which truth be told is pretty much always the case and its actually legit considering the neglected turd piles ive rolled up in that probably should have been junked a decade ago). of course i followed it back into the bay, told the mechanic to chirp me (we use zello walkie apps to talk to each other) when it was its turn for the exam.
about an hour later i get the chirp and i head back to the service bay, they put it in the air, and the car was so insanely nice you could eat off the mufflers. not a spot of rust. everything looked brand new. not even any road grime in cracks or crevices. it is all there. all the plastic covers, metal covers, nothing bent rusted or distorted from running over a tree stump or whatever. it was so clean that the under carriage of 2013 ES350 in the air next to it, looked worse. about an hour later it was washed and ready to go. besides recommending the usual suspects (Tbelt/water pump replacement which honestly is overdue), the car was absolutley perfect. my advisor (yes empoyees have advisors like everyone else and we do not get special treatment), who has been with the company over 20 years, said it was honestly the cleanest most mechanically sound LS400 he had seen in a long long time, and not about the clapped out turds ive brought in before, but really all LS400s he had seen in recent memory that nice, even over the other minty fresh 60k mile elderly driven garage queen unicorns that pass through from time to time. i really did get a winner this time.
oh, on another note, the OG 85 year old owner i got the car from, not only was insane about keeping the car up, but was also crazy about the cosmetics of it. when i opened the glove box i found a stack of 6 business cards reading "thank you for parking so close to me, you stupid inconsiderate moron!!" as he was one of those people that park their car way out in the parking lot away from other cars to avoid door dings, and would have that annoying person in a rusty minivan full of kids, park right next to him (which all of us HATE anyway and have all been through). it made me laugh pretty hard. before he retired, he was a motivational speaker, product presenter, teacher, started 4 businesses, and wrote 3 books. he left me a signed copy tucked into the pocket behind the front seat, that i didnt even find till a few days ago.
also found a few other surprises. under the trunk mat, i found a bag full of road maps from all over the country where he had traveled. everywhere he went, he used a highlighter to show places. pretty neat! and the service records. holy cow! well over 100 slips, and he kept everything. i mean EVERYTHING. every oil change, every tire rotation, every part that he had replaced, i even have all the original paperwork from the deal desk when he bought it, along with the window sticker, paper temp tag, and 18 registration renewal papers and insurance cards. its absolutley insane.
well, when I got there, it was one of those perfectly maintained senior communities, you know, where every blade of grass is perfect and it almost looks like something from the twilight zone? yeah, one of those places. I pull around the corner and see the car at the end of the driveway. looked mint from a block away, and.. it still looked mint as I got closer.. and closer.. next thing I know im out of my mustang, sweeping my hands across this 2000, checking for bondo, panel gaps, rust, whatever, and the car was pristine. paint is so glossy and nice you can slide your butt across the hood like hot butter on toast. then an 85 year old man in a walker makes his way over to me. "high im Jim Neely" he says, super nice guy that reminded me of my grandfather. "you must be rob" yes I must be, I replied. he hands me the keys. "start her up and lets go for a ride" he says. the second I opened the door, smelled that "old lexus" smell -which im sure you have all smelled before, and I absolutely love, slid behind the wheel and bumped the key, I pretty much knew it was over. the car is absolutely pristine. no stains, cracks, lights out, nothing. it came to life immediately and the ac kicked on. it was so cold and so healthy the car didn't even flinch when the compressor kicked on. we started down the road, and I tried not to panic. every accessory was there, spare tire was never used and still had the chalk marks on it. trunk was bone dry, not only the tool kit was all there, but even the stupid little flashlight that nobody uses but is always missing was not only there, but it worked and he put fresh batteries in it! WHO DOES THAT??!! "son, ive had this car many years and she's been an angel to me, have you ever had a lexus before?" I just smiled and explained who I was, my job, my cars etc. seems like we talked for hours. "oh, I have both master keys for it, and the valet key still in the plastic, as well as over 100 service records for it". he let me drive this car all over town. I spent a half hour with it, ran it on the highway up to 100 mph, and no wobble. took it over bumpy roads, no clicks clunks or pops, nailed it from a dead stop and it took off like a rocket ship with absolutely zero complaints or hiccups. at this point I was seriously loking for ANY excuse possible to walk away from it, and this car showed me over and over again that it was perfect. so perfect in fact that I didn't want the car, I NEEDED this car, because it drives nothing like any Ls400 ive ever had. it wasn't a choice. it was coming home with me. he had it marked 4900, which was a bit more than I could spend, and the negotiations began. I offered him $3000, because well, it was an old car and the Tbelt hadn't been changed in 100k miles etc. he says "how bout 4300"? I say "how bout 3500"? hmmm... he says. "how bout I meet you half way and say 3800 bc I can tell you appreciate the car and that youll take care of it." -I couldn't get those 38 $100s out of my pocket fast enough.
later that day, relizing i now had 4 cars in a two car driveway, i had to kick one off the island. i ended up selling my 90 project car, bc honestly i just dont have the time or the money right now to give it the attention it needs and deserves, and got a little misty eyed seeing it drive away with a kid that plans to stance it, and the 2000 pretty much wiped my LS400 play money fund out completely for awhile anyway. the early 1st gens are special, but i know a decent one that doesnt need a bunch of work will come out of the woodwork eventually.
i wanted a last gen one, and had my heart set on a black onyx/cashmere one with chrome starfish wheels. this one is Imperial Jade Mica/Ivory and has the starfish wheels but not chrome, but it is just too clean and well kept not to get as these are getting harder and harder to find. plus i know its entire history and know it was very very well looked after.
funny, the next day i drove it to work. i pulled into the service drive here comes my service manager with "oh no robert not another beat up old LS" -this is now the 4th one ive showed up with and the other three were pretty banged up and shot out lol. as i pulled up to the black line and the service paper went on it, my manager walks over, looks at it and says, "oh wow man this one is actually pretty sweet!" which is the first positive reaction ive ever got from him when bringing my new treasures into work for a show-n-tell which was pretty cool. one of them was an absolute hilarious specticle of a 1994 $400 moldy turd belching smoke with no mufflers that was so loud it was rattling the windows of the dealership and stunk up the whole service drive manager says "WHY ROBERT WHY??" most of my co workers were laughing and snickering as i got chewed out and honestly it was really hard to keep a straight face myself, as i really just drove it there for nothing but shock value. i was told to make it go away and dont ever bring it back. haha!
anyway, when i brought this one in, it got alot of oohs and aahs, and even impressed my service manager that thinks anything that isnt from this decade is a waste of time, which that alone is pretty much impossible to do, so i know this one is a winner. now, as with every one i drive into work, i get it the traditional inspection, let them rip it all apart, scrutinize it, and show me all the crap that needs to be replaced on it (which truth be told is pretty much always the case and its actually legit considering the neglected turd piles ive rolled up in that probably should have been junked a decade ago). of course i followed it back into the bay, told the mechanic to chirp me (we use zello walkie apps to talk to each other) when it was its turn for the exam.
about an hour later i get the chirp and i head back to the service bay, they put it in the air, and the car was so insanely nice you could eat off the mufflers. not a spot of rust. everything looked brand new. not even any road grime in cracks or crevices. it is all there. all the plastic covers, metal covers, nothing bent rusted or distorted from running over a tree stump or whatever. it was so clean that the under carriage of 2013 ES350 in the air next to it, looked worse. about an hour later it was washed and ready to go. besides recommending the usual suspects (Tbelt/water pump replacement which honestly is overdue), the car was absolutley perfect. my advisor (yes empoyees have advisors like everyone else and we do not get special treatment), who has been with the company over 20 years, said it was honestly the cleanest most mechanically sound LS400 he had seen in a long long time, and not about the clapped out turds ive brought in before, but really all LS400s he had seen in recent memory that nice, even over the other minty fresh 60k mile elderly driven garage queen unicorns that pass through from time to time. i really did get a winner this time.
oh, on another note, the OG 85 year old owner i got the car from, not only was insane about keeping the car up, but was also crazy about the cosmetics of it. when i opened the glove box i found a stack of 6 business cards reading "thank you for parking so close to me, you stupid inconsiderate moron!!" as he was one of those people that park their car way out in the parking lot away from other cars to avoid door dings, and would have that annoying person in a rusty minivan full of kids, park right next to him (which all of us HATE anyway and have all been through). it made me laugh pretty hard. before he retired, he was a motivational speaker, product presenter, teacher, started 4 businesses, and wrote 3 books. he left me a signed copy tucked into the pocket behind the front seat, that i didnt even find till a few days ago.
also found a few other surprises. under the trunk mat, i found a bag full of road maps from all over the country where he had traveled. everywhere he went, he used a highlighter to show places. pretty neat! and the service records. holy cow! well over 100 slips, and he kept everything. i mean EVERYTHING. every oil change, every tire rotation, every part that he had replaced, i even have all the original paperwork from the deal desk when he bought it, along with the window sticker, paper temp tag, and 18 registration renewal papers and insurance cards. its absolutley insane.
