New to forum- Looking at buying an LS

[Bob Turner]

Hi Everyone,

I am new to the forum but not new to Lincolns. I used to own an '86 Mark VII which I sold a while back and I really miss it. I wanted to buy a Mark VIII but may not pursue one since it would be hard to find one with LOW miles and continuing warranty coverage.
So, I will probably buy an LS in the near future. I have seen 2001's going for $21K with 16K miles on them.
I haven't driven an LS yet, so I will have to do so. I would probably go with the V8 and auto trans. I know that when the car was introduced, the 5 speed was only offered with the V-6. Does anyone know if they offered the 5 speed with the V-8 in 2001 or 2002?

I look forward to learning more about these awesome American luxury cars!

Bob Turner :cool:

[pro-five-oh]

Hey Bob,

Nice collection of cars! No, sadly the LS was never offered with a 5-spd stick and the V8. Poor product planning by Lincoln, in my opinion.

The LS is a nice car, but doesn't have the punch of a Mark VIII. Then again, finding a 1998 Mark VIII with a warranty isn't easy either.

Good luck!

[Bob Turner]

Thanks, pro-five-oh. I appreciate that.

The Mark VII's definitely have more power and I wish they still made them.

I will probably take a couple LS test drives starting next weekend to see how they are.

I will probably stick with the V8 and the auto trans.

What are you driving? I saw that you sold your '91 LSC a while back with those Cobra wheels on it....

Bob

[pro-five-oh]

Hey Bob,

I was driving my project car a 1988 Cougar with a 5.0HO and a lot of Mustang 5.0 goodies on it. Now I am driving a 1993 Mark VIII. Absolutely love it. I am surprised that Lincoln made such a hard core muscle car/GT car and expected to sell it to the usual Lincoln crowd. Its a pretty sweet ride, but its a 10 year old car! :(

Go test drive an LS, it's a lot of car for the money with good power, handling and a nice ride. The new ones have a lot more power (275hp?) and an optional THX sound system. Just don't expect it to be a BMW M5 with a Lincoln grille. ;)

[Bob Turner]

Right on. I just read that the new '03 will have 280hp. I am seriously thinking to buy one in the near future. I never had a new car before, so why not? I like the Sport version but not sure on the color yet. I still haven't driven an LS because I hate the sales people and I know that since I am not ready yet, I will be disappointed when I leave the dealership......

Bob :cool:

[lsondubz]

The 2003 LS8 Sport is definitely a big improvement over the rest. That is definitely the one to get if you decide on an LS.

[pro-five-oh]

Check out this month's Car and Driver. Even with the power upgrades, I think the LS was second to last...I tend to agree with C/D's opinions.

Drive an LS V8 and a BMW 530 back to back. I think the LS's power will eventually sell you on the car, but its interior and overall dynamics will still make you wish it was like the Bimmer.

[351CJ]

I've read C&D for over 30 years and they just do not want to admit that the LS is as good as it is. Look at the things they complained about on the winning Mercedes. What in the world would C&D say if the LS they tested had all those problems. "Weird steering, brake and accelerator feel, transmission is reluctant to downshift, lots of road noise, both the hood and deck were inaccurately aligned, the back seat was relatively uncomfortable, crosswinds produce exceptionally large force variations in the wheel rim when you're trying to hold the car straight. Brake response is non linear." They had some of the same complaints aboout the LS and dinged the LS severly for them. But with the E320 they overlooked its faults when it came time to hand out the points. Then look at the PT Cruiser fold out advertisement, got to take care of the advertisers in C&D first.

Now let's look at their value ranking. The LS got a 5, the Mercedes a 7. The LS was a Premium Sport with almost every available option including the THX sound system & DVD nav. C&D sort of forgot to mention this. The Mercedes listed for $6.5K more and doesn't even have a V8. In addition, you can expect to get $3K to $4K off the LS, depending upon incentives. You'll be lucky to get $1k off the Mercedes or BMW so street price wise its more like a $10K difference. A pretty well equiped V8 Sport LS will MSRP for $41K - $42K, or $15K less than the Mercedes (discounted street price) and $12K less than the BMW.

I have an '00 LS V8 and will be gettng a '03 LS. I test drove a 528i and an E-320 before I got my LS. The BMW drove nice, but was too small, too hard edged and had a rather spartan interior for $12K more (discounted). The E-320 (in 2000) was the old generation and it drove like a truck compared to the BMW or the LS.

The LS is sort of like an americanized BMW, which is what I want. If I really wanted a BMW I would have just got one. I've driven several Mercedes and I just don't get them. They are trucks. You buy a Mercedes to impress your neighbors.

Go drive them yourself Bob and make up your own mind, don't belive all the BS in the car rags.

[Bob Turner]

351CJ,

Thanks for you impressions of the LS. Is that LS article in the Feb issue of Car and Driver?

I WILL be buying an LS. I do like the BMW M5 but can't afford the $80K for one.

At this point, I refuse to test drive an LS only because I am not ready to buy. I know I will be disappointed to walk out of the dealership without one, so I won't do it!!

I may go new but I will probably end up with a used '02 with 8-10K miles or so. I think this is a realistic approach. We'll see.

I have been reading Road and Track since June '86 and they seem to always downplay American cars in their testing. I try to stay away from foreign cars since I always seem to find an American car that is comparable.

Sincerely,

Bob Turner :cool:

[351CJ]

quote:Originally posted by Bob Turner:
351CJ,

I may go new but I will probably end up with a used '02 with 8-10K miles or so. I think this is a realistic approach. We'll see.

Sincerely,

Bob Turner :cool:


Bob, you should look hard at a leftover 2002 LS. The incentives are incredible. Right now you can get $2,500 - $3,000 rebate (depends where you live) PLUS 0% APR financing for 60 months. This will save you $3,500 to $4,500 in finance charges over 5 years compared to 4.99% APR. On top of this there appears to be some secret dealer cash in some areas as people have bought '02 LS's for up to $1,000 below invoice before the $3K rebate.

What this all means, is if you are condisidering a used LS and will be financing it, a new '02 may run only a 2K - $3K more than a used one, which of course already has 1 year off its life.

As of a week ago there were about 4,000 leftover '02's still on dealer lots, so I'd expect almost all of them to be gone around the end of March.

[ February 12, 2003: Message edited by: 351CJ ]

[mikeb]

Bob

351CJ is right. Look at the left over 2002's. I just picked one up a LS8 Sport Edition for less than 36K, and that included tax, title, everything. Plus FMC financed it all at 0% for five years. If you buy a used 2002 you'll have to come up with some sort of down payment plus pay the interest at whatever the going rate is for used car loans. With a deal like that I wouldn't pay off this loan even if the Lottery gods smiled on me. One more thing, the 2002's come with 36 month free maintanence.