1999 Lexus GS 400 consumer reviews

Have had this car for 5 years, bought used with 85,000 miles on it, all routine maintance kept up on this car, have friends with this same car and they have 300,000 + miles with no problems as long as you use 5/30 syn oil, no leaks and uses no oil mine now has 150,000 with no problems and everything works well performs well on freeway but be careful this car can get you in trouble have had it on test track up to 160 and handled very well. Can be pricey at the pump with premium gas but well worth it. This car is a +++

I've had this car for 7 years...and I still want nothing different. To get today what my car had standard 11 years ago costs high dollar. 300hp, 25mpg highway, touch-screen navigation, xenon self-leveling lights, front and side airbags, vehicle skid control, awesome stereo, 4 door, roomy, leather...and unsurpassed reliability. I used to hate Toyota and Lexus because they lacked style. But, the 2nd generation GS changed that. It STILL looks like a sporty sedan, especially if you just lower it an inch and put some wider 18's on. Style is on par or better with new sedans. As for the review that claimed unreliable at 100K miles; yes, if you use 10W40 oil in these engines because you thought it would provide you more protection, you will blow the engine up around 100k miles or burn oil like crazy (I have seen this exact mentality and incident on this engine). If you use the required 5W30 oil, you will have 170k miles on your engine, and can go 8000 miles on synthetic and still have a full dipstick, like I do. For those reading this review, try and find a remanufactured engine of this style. You probably won't. Becuase of my experience with this car, I now own a 2002 SC430 and am shopping for a 2005 GX470. No, my GS400 is not for sale.

This car is fun to drive on the highway but be careful or it may get away from you. The engine purr is music to the ear although it could have used a high performance breaking system. Had mine for 5 years and all I've done is change the routine stuff.

I bought a 1999 GS400 used with low mileage. For a ten-year old car, it runs silent and smooth, everything works, a joy to drive. Gas mileage about 26-27 at slightly under 70, but it's hard to go that slow: this car can rocket like a star ship. Have not used the manual shift option. Seats ultra-comfortable without making you fall asleep. Handles very well. You can feel the road, it's not as swishy as the LS. Rear-wheel drive versus front-wheel drive in the winter? It about evens out in the end with this car, given the vehicle control system.

These cars have been around for a long time. Problems have ranged from replacing valves and guides to suspension parts. Its no secret these cars are incredibly heavy and bulky. I have been driving and racing luxury touring cars and even sponsored by major brands for 15 years. This car is good for driving from your house in the mountains to church. Plenty of power to climb hills and empty you pocket book at the same time. We tested this engine for hard/medium driving and were surprised to find it wasn't reliable at all. At 100k miles the car was burning more oil than even racers could imagine. Those special valves cost a special price when we estimated how much money it would cost to fix our blown engine. Overall, save your money, Toyota has much better engines than this clunker. The interior is dull and boring for such an expensive car. My wife actually sat in it for 10 seconds and decided she would rather take the one of the other test cars because it was so ugly. I sure didn't mind either compared to other brands such as Audi, Infiniti, BMW, and Cadillac.

Love this car purchased a 99 with 98K miles 3 years ago and I absolutely love it....no problems, whatsover. Smooth ride, smooth handling, and still looks new. The maintenance is relatively low, but the tires can be expensive as i have 17" alloys. Other than that, no major work has been needed except routine maintenance. This car was built to last.