A Custom Luxury and Ultra Luxury Conversation
I was in the market for an LS430. My requirements were under $18k, under 150,000 miles, CL or UL trim, and near new interior condition with no dash bubbles. After owning a 2023 Lexus, I required that double-pane glass for added cabin quietness and they only had those for CL and above. I didn't care too much about the UL "baller back seat" but I was interested in the radar cruise and pre-collision feature because that has saved me from 2 to 4 rear ending situations in my 2023 and i believe you can only get that in the UL.
Scored a 2005 Flint Mica UL, Black interior, 100,000 miles, near mint interior, with air suspension already converted to coils for roughly $17,000. 2 owners no accidents. Was the price a little high? Sure, but not enough for me to risk passing up that interior condition/mileage/color combo.
Wanted to share general thoughts about on the vehicle after instantly doing a 1,000 mile road trip after purchasing.
Radar Cruise Control / Pre Collision / Alerts: Radar works great at adjusting speed but there's no way to select the follow distance like on my 2023. The default (only) follow distance is obnoxiously far. I checked the owners manual and it's 120 meters. That is an entire football field. What that means is if you want to use cruise control you almost have to be in cross country driving situations because if it detects a vehicle in your lane, it's going to slow you down until there is a football field of distance in front of you. This ends up pissing off drivers behind you, they'll swerve around you, fill the gap which further slows the car down to create that football field of distance. I don't use cruise control for regular daily use, but I thought this was worth pointing out because this was initially a key driving point for choosing the UL.
Bumper sensors alerts: Unless i'm mistaken you have to actively turn it on or off before use. I added a bumper scrape because I forgot to turn on the parking sensor to activate alerting. I was backing up in a tight parking garage using back up cam and apparently got a little cement scrape because the alerts weren't beeping, that's because I had the parking sensor turned off. They don't engage standard. Uniquely inconvenient.
The precollision beeping alerting works, but I think it only engages if you're actively in cruise control and someone switches into the lane in front of you at a slower pace. I don't think it would engage in daily stop and go traffic which kinda negates the point of the feature for me personally since the damn system already enforces a football field follow distance.
Radar Cruise Control Emblem: This is a visual aesthetic thing, but i hate* how the UL Radar hood replaces the metal grill Lexus "L" with that awkward square/picture "L". For the radar cruise control. The modern luxury/custom luxury grill looks more sophisticated, and now after living with the radar cruise I'd happily forego it for the CL.
With the air suspension out and the pre-collision system only activating during cruise control it really makes the UL trim useless outside of the party trick back seat and double pane glass.
Sound System: ML, CL, UL. Doesn't matter. Throw the whole sound system in the bin. Coming from a 2023 with Mark Levinson, I was uniquely disappointed with how much I found the sound system lacking. If you find yourself wanting to shop for a head unit, and were concerned about keeping the original sound system, I wouldn't bother. I'd get a consultation at your local audio shop. I feel like anything would be an upgrade.
Flint Mica: I don't hate it. I don't like it. I am wildly indifferent to it, and I feel like most passerbys are which is nice for going under the radar. But I've already made it up in my head that after I replace the audio system, a gloss black vinyl wrap is on the menu. Between that and the doofy radar emblem, it just lacks the presence I would want.
All black interior with the dark wood accents is absolutely 10/10 from my end though. I know the exotic Bordeaux and Saddle interiors are sought after, but I prefer the black leather on this car.