Despite costing more than three times what the C1500 listed for, the Grand Marquis takes it. Hey, it’s hard to beat a full-frame boat of a sedan for comfort and durability. Anyway, let’s jump into today’s battle. Before the Japanese bubble economy burst, three Japanese automakers signaled some serious intent by launching luxury brands. The premise is great – luxury cars that work like Camrys and Accords. But are these posh depreciated sedans still desirable today?
1993 Acura Legend – $2,000
Engine/Drivetrain: 3.2-liter V6, four-speed automatic gearbox, front-wheel-drive. Location: Haverhill, Massachusetts Odometer Reading: 226,969 miles Runs/Drives? Absolutely Oh hell yeah, it’s Acura Legend time. Not only does this neat sedan wear the Ludacris seal of approval, but it was also Acura’s flagship sedan of the early ‘90s. This means it gets all manner of toys while still featuring typical Honda reliability—a big plus for anyone more interested in driving their luxury sedan than they are fixing it.
Under the hood sits a 3.2-liter C32 V6 making an even 200 horsepower. While the four-speed automatic gearbox isn’t the most fun way of putting power to the ground, it should absolutely get the job done. One weird quirk of the Legend is that it uses a longitudinal engine layout despite being front-wheel-drive. Not the most space-efficient move in the world, but it should be beneficial to servicing.
The body of this Legend looks to be in decent shape given its age, although the seller does note that there’s rust behind the wheel wells. Still, the bumpers and body sides look straight, plus the headlights still look fairly crisp. This is one handsome sedan we’re looking at.
Unfortunately, things get a bit worse on the inside, where the leather is really showing the effects of nearly 30 years of use. Not only is the driver’s seat upholstery torn, the front passenger seat also features a tear. Mind you, the steering wheel doesn’t look hideously worn, and the Legend-embroidered carpet floor mats are still present after all these years.
2001 Lexus ES300 – $2,200
Engine/Drivetrain: Three-liter V6, four-speed automatic gearbox, front-wheel-drive. Location: Brookline, Massachusetts Odometer Reading: 193,141 miles Runs/Drives? You bet. If we’re talking reliability yardsticks with fancy twists, we have to talk about the Lexus ES. Based on humble and popular front-wheel-drive Toyota mechanicals, this series of sedans promises luxury car comfort without the luxury car bills. After all, a zooted-up Camry gives you all the benefits of a Camry with all the benefits of, erm, zoot.
Under the hood of this ES300 sits Toyota’s 1MZ-FE three-liter V6 engine pumping out a stout 210 horsepower. Mated to a four-speed automatic gearbox, this smooth V6 effortlessly makes mile markers fade in the rearview mirror. Sure, these engines are known for the occasional sludge issue, but frequent oil changes should keep it in the clear.
On the outside, this ES300 looks alright. Sure, the front bumper has a crack and the headlights are faded, but that seems very fair for a 20-year-old car. It’s the same deal with the scratches, just signs of normal use. I’ve always thought that the frameless windows on this generation of ES were quite neat, and the slim B-pillars ensure fantastic shoulder-check visibility.
However, the real crown jewel of this ES300 is the interior. The leather is in phenomenal shape, with perfectly intact driver’s outer bolsters, a lovely wood steering wheel, and all the luxury gubbins you could realistically want for around two grand. So there we are, choosing between two genuinely sensible luxury sedans—emphasis on the luxury. Neither of these things will go toe-to-toe with a BMW 3 Series or Infiniti G35 on a backroad, but they’ll waft you around in quiet comfort. As ever, choose wisely.
(Photo credits: Craigslist sellers)
Cars For The End Of The World: 1996 Chevrolet Silverado C1500 vs 2003 Mercury Grand Marquis The 2024 Acura Integra Type S Will Be A Second-Hand Icon The Incredibly, Jaw-Droppingly Beautiful Lexus LC 500 Is Changing For 2023 Even Though It Doesn’t Need To The 2022 Acura NSX Type S Is A 600 HP Sendoff To A Car That Makes Dreams Come True Lexus Has Finally Ditched The Stupid Trackpad In Its Flagship LS Luxury Sedan Support our mission of championing car culture by becoming an Official Autopian Member. Got a hot tip? Send it to us here. Or check out the stories on our homepage. I also just find the ES in general to be an immensely boring car. They’re comfy, reliable, simple, reasonable transportation…but there’s just no fun in them at all. If you’re someone who wants comfy basic transportation with a desirable badge then they’re perfect, but they’re just not equipped for spirited driving. The 5-speed autos are still fragile and had problems at the same time (and both 4- and 5-speed autos were in use in the lineups at the same time), so really it was just across the board auto transmission troubles for Honda/Acura. Given the Legend’s Longitudinal FWD layout these had a different transmission design and weren’t affected (same as the 1st Gen RL). Legends and 1G RLs are known for going passed 250k miles with routine maintenance alone. Having been adjacent to several Y2Kish Honda automatic transmission anecdotes, I’m only interested in a Legend I can row myself The interior’s not too bad on the Legend for the age. Could be wrong but I think those are coupe wheels. Speaking of wheels I don’t think the ES owner knows what chrome wheels look like unless my eyes are deceiving me. But I have always really liked this 3rd generation ES – even somewhat more than the 2nd gen that was before the cost-cutting. Still, I might’ve leaned Legend, but don’t really care for the owner’s ad. It’s a daily driver, but been sitting in the backyard? Maybe was the daily driver til those couple issues popped up? That’s fine, but the “you have to admit it’s in good shape!” and “don’t bs me!” irk me a bit. Maybe I’m just petty. I’d prefer an I4 for serviceability, but ya can’t always get whut ya want. Ask Mick. Now voting was a hassle the form didn’t show up on my Firefox on Linux desktop again. So I voted on my cell phone, the sad thing is with that one I can’t login on the site because for security reasons it doesn’t have access to the email account I used to register and Memberful does not span devices with the login or allow a simple login with pass because it then couldn’t track you. I like the website and am so far willing to put up with this, although it rubs me the wrong way. I had this generation of Camry V6 and it was very reliable (with regular oil changes using synthetic) and not that bad to work on. Would do it again if I needed a cheap four door. -Mike Anything in this area has an approximate 10-15 year useful service life until corrosion takes over, less if it’s a commercial vehicle. It’s made even worse in MA by a state inspection process that will fail a vehicle if there are any open rust holes. Not saying NOTHING over 15 years is viable around here, but it’s the exception, not the rule. The underside is always rusty even if the body isn’t, though, so I wouldn’t trust the Lexus just because the body doesn’t have rust.
