Bite the bullet? Reliable daily question

LS - A good office commuter?

  • yes

  • no


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Jkpt

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Aug 28, 2020
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Hey fellas,

I'm in the market for a daily driver with not a very big budget, a coworker of mine is selling his 2006 LS V8 with ~90k miles on it, he bought it last year and is looking to upgrade for his family. I'm hoping I can get some honest opinions from you all on whether this would be a good car to use as a daily commuter. I'm very interested in the car, I mean what's not to like? It comes with the v8, RWD, black exterior, stock all around, overall it's just a nice looking car. I'm trying not to get too hyped over something that may be a large financial mistake.

I don't want to spend hours over my weekends wrenching on something just to make sure I can get to the office on Monday morning. A lot of the videos I've seen that include these cars, it seems the comment sections are filled with people saying these things are junk, unreliable, and "touchy". I know the car that's up for sale had the transmission valve body replaced in ~2010, which appears to be a weak point (the trans, and I am aware of the coil issues)

-Coworker just replaced the heater core this year
-Installed an Alpine head unit
-New tires
-Raybestos pads and rotors

Some current issues on the car that he told me about:

-Squeaky upper control arm bushings
-Passenger window won't roll back up (gets caught on torn weather stripping, he said he tried searching for a replacement but couldn't find anything without buying an entire door)
-Some sort of feedback noise from his head unit ever since he replaced the heater core (still don't quite get this one, he said it's RFI related, stereo wires got rerouted right next to the blower control)
-Broken fog light (he's got replacement, didn't put them in yet)
-Leaking motor mount (Did not know mounts could leak, if that's the case I'm worried that'll be an expensive fix assuming it's some sort of hydraulic mount)


Anyways, bottom line this car is right in my budget range which is why I'm here. I love the car, I think they're gorgeous and his in particular is extremely clean...Cali/AZ car for all its life, no rust at all, and an 06 which I know the earlier years had their own issues. I just don't want to jump into buying it if 2 months down the road I'll be right back in this same position looking for a more reliable form of transportation.

TL/DR: Would you buy this car if you needed a reliable daily? Or should I go the kia/hyundai route.
 
They are great cars if well maintained, but I would pass on this one.
 
I’ve never had any of those issues you mentioned with my car. I think you should purchase a nice used Toyota Camry. My LS is a daily driver that I like very much but it’s taken a lot of effort to make it “reliable”. That effort is the hobby for me. I’ll keep it as long as the transmission holds up.
 
They're not junk, over-featured and under-engineered for the era is where its mistaken for "junk" tho as said above they do require upkeep, but far less maintenance than a marriage and we don't say the wife is.., well, its subjective.. I too restore and customize my 2002 sport for a hobby, and I am passionate about LS's; and the guys here at LVC make it possible with any concern on upkeep. If your garage is your mancave and knowing how much LS's can be bought for, take into consideration. Hate mechanics, troubleshooting or being in garage? That factors too. Has it ever been wrecked? Id pass on it if so, sounds possible. You can find $1000 car on Facebook Marketplace daily that will last you 6 months maintenance free, I see them everyday. Go with your gut, I don't at all regret my LS and prob never will, hope to be purchasing my 2nd one today or tomorrow. Good luck
 
I love the LS, great looks, great handling, great leather interior and the body is just sexy. Mine is 2001 LS with Sport package, and was passed on to me from my elderly parents (in their upper 80's) who bought it in 2004. It's been a 'Grandma's grocery getter' mostly, and is super clean with everything working at 115k. I've decided to keep it and fix it up a bit as an something else to tinker with (however the bride wasn't happy) My point is that I would NOT recommend one as a daily driver simply because of the complex systems, price and scarcity of parts and age of the vehicle. It's just a matter of time before you start having problems. Even your 2006 is pushing 15 YO. I insured mine through Haggerty as a classic to get the price down for insurance, but I'm now limited to 3.5k per year mileage.
 
At some point in the future, I will have to choose another vehicle as my daily driver because this LS will eventually wear out. When that time comes, I will not purchase another to use as my daily driver and the only reason is that parts are becoming more difficult to find. With any daily driver vehicle, repairs need to be made quickly so you can get it back on the road in a timely manner. I would not invest in the uncertainty of that future. I do love my LS as it's been a mostly reliable car for me. The bigger problem might be that I'm hooked on driving a V8 and nothing else will suffice.
 
It is a wonderful car, a blast to drive, and I have driven ours to and fro from work for weeks at a time in the last 3 years, but I would not buy one now for a daily driver. Good parts are expensive and are becoming impossible to find. If I had the the car you described, I would consider replacing those control arms before they ruin the front tires, I went through that nasty and expensive surprise late last year. For a daily driver, I'd Pass.
 
I still have mine (although I did try to sell it a couple of years and then it glitched on me so I pulled it from the market until we figured out the evap leak issue). I do use it as my primary vehicle, but I don't commute for work (I only drive it once a week or so) and I'm not sure it would be my first choice for a daily driver. It sure is comfortable, and fun to drive, though.
 
Agree with everyone here. Don't buy one in 2020 as a DD. Every LS today is worth probably less than 2 grand except for a small minority of garage queens with no mileage.
 

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