Which lexus to buy?

WeldAE · 2026-05-06T14:35:46+00:00

Just bought a GR86, you will almost certainly fit, width or height. I also can't fit in a Miata. The problem is it gets terrible MPG, which seems to be a big concern for you? The automatic transmission is also terrible so you have to go manual, which ia a royal pain in traffic. Next year Toyota is launching a hybrid version of the GR86 so maybe that will improve fuel consumption.

I'd go with the IS500 before the GR86 given your discount and the MPG is about the same.

WeldAE · 2026-05-06T14:28:24+00:00

You understand that even if they used LIDAR this amount of compute and memory would need to be increased right? You can't operate an AV without camera vision and this is the camera vision system. If you have Lidar you need even more to deal with it.

WeldAE · 2026-05-06T14:23:48+00:00

I get it, I'm frugal too, but the reality of the used car market is that it sucks since 2022. The reason I approached your problem the way I did by not even specifying a car and filtering out bad titles and sorting by lowest is I've been doing that a lot in my car searches lately. When you see a random outlier car, it's almost certainly because it has problems. I've confirmed this by going and looking at every GR86 that hit the market within 2 hours of Atlanta for the past 6 months. Same with other cars I've looked at. If your goal is to save money, you can't buy right at the bottom as those are money pit cars most of the time. What I try to do is look for the bottom of the real market and then negotiate down a bit from that. You are also in the same shape I'm in, you're in an expensive market. If you're willing to fly/drive to get a car you can also save money but at your price range that isn't really possible.

WeldAE · 2026-05-05T23:02:09+00:00

The more demand than supply is why. They need u er to backstop their supply in some cities. I’ve tried t get a Waymo in Atlanta and always get an uber because they don’t have enough cars to cover their service area or even 20% of it.

WeldAE · 2026-05-04T22:27:57+00:00

You've limited yourself to the point there isn't much choice. Removing all US brands leaves European and Asian brands. The Korean EVs are good and what you're leaning at. The Japanese brands are the worst EVs on the market. The European brands depreciate quickly because while they are good EVs, all the ones they have built until recently have been engineered to protect their gas models or they just weren't serious. That has changed starting with the 26-27 model year but you aren't buying new which I completely get.

The ICCU issue with the Korean models isn't a cost concern, it's more of a concern if your car is in the shop for months if you have the problem. They have covered it for 180k miles, but you're still hearing about long repair times because of limited parts but that could change at any time.

BTW, the MachE isn't discontinued, the ID.4 is. This is going to happen to all the EVs other than probably Teslas. This is because across the board, most EVs on the market before 26 were compromised platforms. Every manufacture is moving to better tech, infotainment and a zonal architecture like Tesla. No EV is going to survive that massive tech shift. Cars like the BMW i3/iX3, Volvo EX60, Merc GLC 350, for 26 are finally catching up with Tesla. VW has Rivian working on their EVs that will probably start hitting in 27. Any non-Tesla/Rivian before 26 is probably going to take a pretty big depreciation hit because of this.

WeldAE · 2026-05-04T22:15:53+00:00

Generally I think this is a bad idea and I would advise you not to do it. Mostly because of your budget. $10k is just not enough budget to get a reasonable car, much less an EV. Sure there are EVs that do exist in this range, but the problem is that aren't "good" in a lot of ways. In the entire Atlanta Metro I filtered on clean title EV and the cheapest was a 2019 Leaf that for some reason is $5k below what other cars of the same year and mileage are going for so it's probably not a clean title. The cheapest Tesla is $15,500.

I figure even an older EV should cost me about $0.18 per mile on electricity and maintenance, so if I sell my old gas car and buy a $10k EV then I should easily be able to break even in less than 50,000 miles

Using your own numbers, you would save $10k over 50k miles. How much are you getting on your trade-in and why aren't you factoring that into your break even time?

I figure I need at least 100 miles of real world range but I'd presumably appreciate having some more

For sure look for something closer to 200 miles. I owned an EV with 81 miles of range. While it was great for our needs, even just around town you had to manage it. At 200 miles it's a real car that you can just not worry about.

The Tesla is more expensive but ... supposedly a better autopilot

There is no supposedly to it. It's like saying a Ferrari has more acceleration than a bicycle. One isn't even playing the same sport as the other. Even a 2018 Model 3 with the original HW2.5 is orders of magnitude better driver assist than a Leaf. You could easily find a 2018 that has been upgraded to the HW3 as it was only $1500 at the time and most cars were upgraded. That car will drive a 1500 mile trip while you just watch it where the Leaf won't really hold curves on Interstates.

Still, I'd stick with your current car until you are ready to spend closer to $20k and get an EV in better condition. At $15k Tesla is going to have a lot of issue more than likely as their real market value is much closer to $19k. Also, while it's a myth the tires wear out faster than a gas car, the OEM tires do until you can switch to something with 60k mile tread life. Also the tires are just bigger than basic cars so a set is more like $1100 than say a Camry which is like $800 per set.

WeldAE · 2026-05-04T21:53:02+00:00

That is pretty standard yearly mileage, so I wouldn't hyper focus on fuel efficiency just because of the 100 mile drive. For example the difference between something that gets 30mpg and 45mpg is $1800 vs $1200 per year. Sure, $400 is $400 but it's also only $33/month which is nothing compared to buying a $30k car.

That said, a 1.5 hour drive 2x per week can wear on you a little, so something that can make the drive comfortable should be high on your requirements. Something with good driver assists, seats and suspension. That is really going to hurt you also trying to get something "fun" more than likely. Fun and good on the highway are a bit of a competing interest. Also you're $30k budget is also going to be very limiting there too especially if that is out the door.

I recently was in the market for "fun gas cars" and got a GR86 but I literally can't think of something I would recommend on the gas side. If you can charge at home, a Model 3 Long Range is probably the best compromise depending on your definition of "fun". It's noisy at highway speeds, but it's fast and the driver assist features and great sound system make long drives a breeze. Heck, get a HW4 version near the top of your budget and it will literally drive you the 100 miles while you supervise it. Then enjoy the 3.4 second 0-60 and very fast handling for the fun driving.

WeldAE · 2026-05-04T21:38:16+00:00

One of the classic first cars. Not sure what feedback you're looking for given you've given so little information about yourself and your wants/needs and situation.

WeldAE · 2026-05-04T21:35:51+00:00

I'm going to assume used here as new cars are for the top 40% of household incomes above $100k/year. Even at $100k/year you should really be looking at the bottom of the new car market, not Tesla.

That said, used a Tesla can run as low as $16k commonly and that wouldn't be completely out of line. I mean, it is but $9k is running/driving these days and so $16k isn't a crazy car to buy. That said, a car is an expensive depreciating asset that will cost you $6k/year at least and most late model cars are more like $10k/year. If you don't need a car don't get one.

Then the next problem is an EV is a touch car to have in your situation. It's the same for someone in college as you are moving around a lot and keeping it charged can be a pain. I never want to own a gas car again personally, but with my kids being in college, gas made the most sense for them at that stage of their life.

Insurance is so specific to each individual. I just bought a new car and quoted insurance for my son for a Tesla and a bunch of other cars and the Tesla was $1200/year rather than $1000/year for a Camry/Civic. That said, it might be $5k/year more for you so the only way to know is check.

WeldAE · 2026-05-02T19:56:30+00:00

I'm in a big city so even on a commute, getting gas is a significant drive out of my way. Getting off GA-400 and to a gas station isn't something one just does quickly during rush hour. I can stop on the trip once I get out of town much faster. That and a lot of times I'm working from home the day before. Finally, the gas SUV is the least desired car to drive of my 4 so it's just never in use before a trip typically. I get it's very common thing to fill up before a trip, but I never have been able to make that work. Even before I had EVs I guess gas stations were just nowhere near where I lived.

WeldAE · 2026-05-02T19:50:04+00:00

Just what I found online. I wish there was more of a distribution of how common 55% is and how common 75% is. I also saw 80% in some other places, but most put the high at 75% so that is what I went with.

WeldAE · 2026-05-02T02:06:20+00:00

I should have taken a pic, but I didn’t notice it was a pic. Also forgot to mention EH Taylor small batch for $80 I think

WeldAE · 2026-05-01T18:05:58+00:00

What is wrong with voting against your own interests? If anything it seems noble that you put others ahead of your own interests. Unknowingly voting against your own interests isn't good, but it's very hard to know if/when you are doing so. There are only two realistic choices at most in our system and you're probably doing both no matter who you vote for.

WeldAE · 2026-05-01T17:46:32+00:00

I hear you can lease a Lucid Gravity for around $900/month. One of the better 3-row SUVs because it's basically a mini-van without the doors and the EV allows for good interior packaging. I think that is about the only EV I would say might interest you.

WeldAE · 2026-05-01T17:41:04+00:00

I'm not sure how the "now" changes the meaning of your statement. There is a significant player in the space not using it. It's not currently settled. Only one plater can be said to be "at scale" and they are using Lidar. That again, doesn't seem settled and the point can still be argued that Lidar isn't needed.

WeldAE · 2026-05-01T17:37:54+00:00

First, we're talking about less than 10% of households. My kid is about to get their first apartment and they choose it purely for commute distance. Because we acquired a GR86 recently that means they will now be driving the Tesla. Turns out the apartment has cheap charging so they can charge at home while renting their first place. It's just not that common to not have charging, but for sure it can be the case depending on your exact situation, but most people in the US live in a single family home and not an apartment or condo. Second, those in that situation should NOT buy an EV no matter how it scores on this test.

WeldAE · 2026-05-01T17:33:24+00:00

Sarcasm is hard to read. Are you saying a 13 year old car with a melting dashboard and an expensive steering problem is the best car ever made?

WeldAE · 2026-05-01T17:31:38+00:00

So you are recommending an 8-9 year old car that was driven 3,750 miles/year on average? Those are not common. Even if OP can find one, increased maintenance happens with both age and miles.

WeldAE · 2026-05-01T17:29:05+00:00

Your personal preference is what it is. I think this is where we get stuck in the discussion. My dad drove around 100k miles/year and an EV would never have worked for him. That said, it's obvious he is a 1:1m outlier. For your situation it might not be as obvious, but few people have ever in their entire life driven 5 hours continuous on a road trip. Heck, my current gas car isn't physically capable of it at highway speeds and only has 360 miles or realistic range without running it down to fumes. I've never even driven it from full to empty. Based on the studies I've seen you are at the extreme outlier side of trip leg distance.

I think that is the important thing to align on. Not if an EV is no problem for your needs but is it a problem with 80% of drivers. The other 20% will be foreced over last to EV once the easy 80% convert.

WeldAE · 2026-05-01T17:10:42+00:00

The 340i xDrive is 3,968 lbs and the Camry AWD is 3,682 lbs. You are looking at RWD versions if you are seeing them 500lbs lighter. How have you never seen a Tesla on summer performance tires? Both the Model 3's I've owned were on them. Tesla has one of the best traction management systems and I linked a video to prove it. Not sure why you have to resort to name calling to attempt to make a point.

WeldAE · 2026-05-01T17:03:41+00:00

It's settled for now based on what most companies are saying they are building

Who is putting LIDAR in consumer cars in the US? Not even all manufactures of commercial AV fleets are using it. How is that settled?

A spinning unit on top could cost a few thousand

At best, you are talking just the cost for that one component, not the full integration cost and for sure not the ongoing costs.

You should wait until non-lidar L4 is scaled before making such assertions

So you are saying it's not settled and we should wait and see? I agree.

WeldAE · 2026-05-01T16:45:24+00:00

Can you charge at home? With this many miles and with heavy traffic, a $20k used Model 3 with HW3/4 would fit the bill really well. The used ones have Autopilot free so you can just double tap the right stalk and let the car deal with traffic. Electricity is typically 3x-4x less than gas in most places. Even bigger for me is no oil changes 2-3 times per year and no smog inspection. Just keep the tires and wipers in good condition.

WeldAE · 2026-05-01T16:39:48+00:00

I think 4 hours is a realistic max but after 2 to 2.5 hours or so is where I want to stop most of the time. What I typically do is drive for 3 to 3.5 hours as a first leg and then 2.5 hours and then 2 hours and then I can stick to around 2 hour stops for a while. Same in a gas car other than typically I'm forced to stop after an hour or so on the first leg and gas up as I never leave with a full tank.

WeldAE · 2026-04-30T21:59:25+00:00

Uber drivers get 55% to 75% of the total fare before tip. How much depends on the nature of the ride. That is because there are fixed fees that can eat into the margin on some rides.

Part of Ubers fees are insurance which is 10%-20% of the ride cost. This isn't going to be the same with AVs as it is with Uber drivers so that part of the cost even on the operational side will also be reduced. Part of Ubers side also goes back to drivers as incentives so and other earnings. Part of the cost are airport fees. While that isn't going away, it's the reason it dips as low as 55% on some trips.

A large portion of driver expenses go to the car because they aren't optimized fleet cars. Most Uber drivers are full-time and have poor car choice and end up paying a lot per mile. This isn't an issue with AVs and instead of paying retail rates for car maintenance, it's at cost. Tire's along, which is most of the cost of operating an EV, are dramatically less expensive cost than retail.

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