Yup, the unfathomable has happened. For the first time since I started driving, I will no longer own/be driving a Pontiac...or a GM....or an American car of any kind.
So the GTP has needed new springs in the rear and struts all around for quite some time and I have been ignoring it because at this stage in its life (195k miles), the car needs too many things to make it worth fixing. Then, a couple weeks ago, I noticed (and felt) that the passenger rear side was dropped way lower than usual. I knew the car had rusty strut towers when I bought it almost exactly 6 years ago, so when I popped the trunk and pulled the carpet back, I was expecting what I found.
So with that, the final death blow was delivered to the GTP and it was time to move on. Since I knew this day was inevitable and the GTPs are way too old/beat up at this point to be an option anymore, I had already spent some time last year casually searching to see what I might want for a next car. I was having a hard time finding a replacement that had the ratio of price, roominess, features, performance, fuel economy and cost of parts/repairs that the GTPs did before they became ancient. Of all things, the one vehicle I came across that mildly sparked my interest was the 2013-15 Lexus RX450h. Plenty of room, plenty of features, very reliable, great fuel economy for an SUV (30+mpg in the city) and still had a hair under 300hp with 0-60 and 1/4 miles times close to the GTP, so I'm not sacrificing a bunch of passing power for all the other things I wanted. Only problem was I'd have to splurge (by my standards) around $20k to find one in really nice condition with 100k miles or less. And since I don't do financing, it would be a pretty big hit to the bank account in one fell swoop. There were also surprisingly few of them for sale in the hybrid version vs. the regular ones. I ended up looking at 2 a couple weekends ago and came very close to buying both, but in the end, had to walk away because we couldn't agree on price with either dealership.
I decided settling on a $20k car purchase because I was in a rush was just being financially stupid, so I cooled off a bit on looking at newer/more expensive cars. That weekend while on YouTube, a suggested video popped up that I remembered watching some time ago. It was by "YourCarAngel" and it was an overview of a Lexus ES300 with 596k miles on the original motor (doesn't mention trans) and unrestored interior that was in great condition. I watched it again real quick and it led me to do some quick research on these cars. I liked what I found for what the cars were supposed to be worth, so I searched to see what was available near me. I immediately found this guy:
2003 Lexus ES300 with only 62k miles on it. I went to look at it the next night and was basically pretty sure I was going to buy it as soon as I sat in it. Drove super smooth and was ultra quite. Several times at a red light, I had to check the tach to make sure it was still running. The body had some minor dents, dings, scuffs, scratches, etc as to be expected for a 17 year old car, but overall, still in great shape. The interior, on the other hand...I could not get over how close to new it looked. You'd have to look hard to find any flaws or signs of wear. The car was a great specimen, but that also meant I didn't have much to hammer the price down on. In the end, I ended up paying $5,600. The guy was a reseller with a dealer's license so I did end up having to pay regular sales tax at the DMV instead of the flat $25 fee, so all in was about $6k.
I've only had the car for a week and I am thoroughly impressed with it. I know it's "just a fancy Camry", is not much to look at styling-wise and is significantly slower than the GTP, but runs and drives super smooth and the quality of the materials, fit and finish is SO much better. I had to get into the GTP yesterday for the first time since I parked it last Sunday, and while I already knew the interior was cheap, it felt SO much cheaper after driving the ES300 for a week. So at this rate, despite just being an older entry level model for Lexus, I think this thing might ruin me for good on American cars.
I can't wait to detail this thing because the interior is in nice enough shape that it will come out looking damn near brand new when I'm through with it. ?
So the GTP has needed new springs in the rear and struts all around for quite some time and I have been ignoring it because at this stage in its life (195k miles), the car needs too many things to make it worth fixing. Then, a couple weeks ago, I noticed (and felt) that the passenger rear side was dropped way lower than usual. I knew the car had rusty strut towers when I bought it almost exactly 6 years ago, so when I popped the trunk and pulled the carpet back, I was expecting what I found.
So with that, the final death blow was delivered to the GTP and it was time to move on. Since I knew this day was inevitable and the GTPs are way too old/beat up at this point to be an option anymore, I had already spent some time last year casually searching to see what I might want for a next car. I was having a hard time finding a replacement that had the ratio of price, roominess, features, performance, fuel economy and cost of parts/repairs that the GTPs did before they became ancient. Of all things, the one vehicle I came across that mildly sparked my interest was the 2013-15 Lexus RX450h. Plenty of room, plenty of features, very reliable, great fuel economy for an SUV (30+mpg in the city) and still had a hair under 300hp with 0-60 and 1/4 miles times close to the GTP, so I'm not sacrificing a bunch of passing power for all the other things I wanted. Only problem was I'd have to splurge (by my standards) around $20k to find one in really nice condition with 100k miles or less. And since I don't do financing, it would be a pretty big hit to the bank account in one fell swoop. There were also surprisingly few of them for sale in the hybrid version vs. the regular ones. I ended up looking at 2 a couple weekends ago and came very close to buying both, but in the end, had to walk away because we couldn't agree on price with either dealership.
I decided settling on a $20k car purchase because I was in a rush was just being financially stupid, so I cooled off a bit on looking at newer/more expensive cars. That weekend while on YouTube, a suggested video popped up that I remembered watching some time ago. It was by "YourCarAngel" and it was an overview of a Lexus ES300 with 596k miles on the original motor (doesn't mention trans) and unrestored interior that was in great condition. I watched it again real quick and it led me to do some quick research on these cars. I liked what I found for what the cars were supposed to be worth, so I searched to see what was available near me. I immediately found this guy:
2003 Lexus ES300 Clean Carfax 62k Original Miles - cars & trucks -...
Have for sale my 03 Lexus ES300 with 62k original miles. The car has a clean title, zero...
chicago.craigslist.org
2003 Lexus ES300 with only 62k miles on it. I went to look at it the next night and was basically pretty sure I was going to buy it as soon as I sat in it. Drove super smooth and was ultra quite. Several times at a red light, I had to check the tach to make sure it was still running. The body had some minor dents, dings, scuffs, scratches, etc as to be expected for a 17 year old car, but overall, still in great shape. The interior, on the other hand...I could not get over how close to new it looked. You'd have to look hard to find any flaws or signs of wear. The car was a great specimen, but that also meant I didn't have much to hammer the price down on. In the end, I ended up paying $5,600. The guy was a reseller with a dealer's license so I did end up having to pay regular sales tax at the DMV instead of the flat $25 fee, so all in was about $6k.
I've only had the car for a week and I am thoroughly impressed with it. I know it's "just a fancy Camry", is not much to look at styling-wise and is significantly slower than the GTP, but runs and drives super smooth and the quality of the materials, fit and finish is SO much better. I had to get into the GTP yesterday for the first time since I parked it last Sunday, and while I already knew the interior was cheap, it felt SO much cheaper after driving the ES300 for a week. So at this rate, despite just being an older entry level model for Lexus, I think this thing might ruin me for good on American cars.
I can't wait to detail this thing because the interior is in nice enough shape that it will come out looking damn near brand new when I'm through with it. ?
