Used LS 430s in New York can handle the snow

Buyers looking for a used Lexus in New York should know that even though the LS 430 is rear-wheel drive (RWD), it’s not afraid of the elements.

The LS 430 was released in 1989 and has been redesigned three times over the years. The model is now available with all-wheel drive (AWD), but in 2005 it wasn’t. And yet Forbes tested the car on a snowy day in upstate New York when the 2005 was still new, and the publication says it handled the weather nicely.

The 2005 is a third generation model of the LS 430, meaning it came only with a V8 matched to an automatic transmission. This is common among full-size luxury sedans, which rarely come in stick.

To keep all the power of the eight-cylinder on the road, Lexus equipped the LS 430 with traction-control, which seemed to be Forbes’ favorite feature. “With a flip of the traction-control switch and a depression of the accelerator, the needle red-lined on the rpm gauge and the car sprang out of the snow with the alacrity of a mountain goat.”

These days, many cars comes in AWD. But some owners of used LS 430s in New York know this RWD sedan is a real snowcat.