2021–present
I bought it from Shift — an online used car retailer, now defunct — during Covid. Three previous owners, eleven years old, 136,000 miles. It now has over 210,000 and is my daily driver.
After Series Land Rovers, twin Solex carbs, a rolled Range Rover, and a Pinzgauer through multiple Burning Mans, worrying about a Toyota-engineered V8 with fuel injection seems quaint. Practically a spaceship by comparison.
I’ve had two expensive cooling system repairs, which I will note are primarily the fault of a generic shop called Aero Auto that did poor installation work the first time, causing the second. I use the Lexus dealer now, or a specialist shop with actual Lexus experience. The lesson about specialist vs. generic shops is one I’ve paid for several times across several vehicles and I am tired of paying for it.
The maintenance cost is higher than any of the Land Rovers, which is saying something. But the comparison that keeps it in perspective: I once looked at service records for one of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Pinzgauers. A single invoice was $25,000 for top-end work and drivetrain issues. Suddenly a $4,000 cooling system repair seems reasonable.
It will probably run to 300,000 miles. I expect I’ll own it that long.