I gotz another one
2002 LEXUS SC430
Some backstory: So back in 2002 I was in langara for first year college (cheaper than going straight to university), this Asian guy showed up with in a white sc430 with this smoking hot blonde girlfriend. He parked in front of me and he seemed like the happiest guy on earth.
I was driving my dads Sentra XE (manual door locks, manual windows, no air con) and i was a big, fat, single nerd who played way too much starcraft. After seeing that dude roll up, I wanted to be that guy. Basically this is the car that lit a fire underneath my ass to improve my life and cemented Lexus in my mind as an aspirational brand.
I finally bought one in 2016 for $9,800. It was an 2002 EX USA car, probably had like 3-4 owners but a clean carfax. Everything worked, and continued to work during my entire ownership (written off in 2019)
Performance: 3UZ-FE, an evolution of the historic 1UZ-FE that was in the LS. Velvety smooth v8, the only engine rated for aircraft usage due to its ultra low vibrations. 288hp, 317ft/lbs is quite adequate for daily use. Lexus put a very very restrictive exhaust system so it sounds completely muted even at redline. Steering was very heavy, but very numb. Suspension feels like its broken. Not sure why they would tune this car with such a harsh ride given its nature but i guess thats the "sports" part of the Sports Coupe (SC). It can take corners, but you feel the weight and the body rolls quite a bit.
Interior: GORGEOUS. Real thick Spanish leather. Honestly the best and thickest leather ive ever experienced in any car. This was right after the japanese economic bubble burst so it was designed/built during the tail end of the glory days where money was no object and they were able to spend something stupid like 1 billion dollars on the first LS.
The wood is thick, and they had likes yacht like features where you press a button and it covers up all the infotainment with this 2inch walnut veneer.
Take a look at most of these 2002 SC430's that are on sale. The interior really held up well for an almost 25 year old car.
Exterior: hahahah..... 68style said he couldnt tell which end is the front end. Other people said it looks like an upside down bathtub or a melted potato. WELL YOURE ALL IDIOTS. Its not a melted potato, its EPIC looking. its a very very distinctive shape. nothing before or after ever looked like this. Long overhangs, super low green house makes it look like a custom tuner car. I really like it! i like it more with the top up because it looks more organic.
Reliability: probably the most reliable lexus to ever lexussusuus. After my silver one was written off, i found a white one and bought it for my father in law. His was just as bulletproof as my old one. Everything works, try saying that about a 20+ year old german car.
Value: Brand new this was 80k back in 2002. Or basically over 120k today with inflation. To get one for around 10-20k is an absolute steal if you want a taste of old school toyota.
I loved mine so much i wrote a reader review on truthaboutcars
https://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/20...2-lexus-sc430/