Picked Up My Es350 Tonight

[OH_Guy]

When I got home from work, in my driveway was a black GS and a driver that the salesman sent over to bring me to the dealership to get my car. Definitely nicer than looking for a ride to the showroom.

This is my first Lexus. I got Smokey Granite with the black interior. Its got Nav, Premium Plus, HID lights with AFS (very cool), Parking Assist, Sunshade, Wood steering wheel, etc. I choose this particular unit because it already had the Rear Lip Spoiler. I added Sat Radio and the 'Bentley' grille (chromed mesh) because I liked how that looked on one of their demo's; really makes the car look different. The chrome looks great against the dark gray paint.

I managed to drive home safely despite playing with all the little buttons and screen controls. Next step is to read all the hundreds of pages of owners instructions. I'm really looking forward to taking a long trip in it. I came home from the dealership on route 80 and the car was so quiet and smooth.

[mhawkin1]

Congrats!

Now.... go somewhere and get a clear bra before you start seeing chips on the front bumper. :)

[dcfish]

When I got home from work, in my driveway was a black GS and a driver that the salesman sent over to bring me to the dealership to get my car. Definitely nicer than looking for a ride to the showroom.

This is my first Lexus. I got Smokey Granite with the black interior. Its got Nav, Premium Plus, HID lights with AFS (very cool), Parking Assist, Sunshade, Wood steering wheel, etc. I choose this particular unit because it already had the Rear Lip Spoiler. I added Sat Radio and the 'Bentley' grille (chromed mesh) because I liked how that looked on one of their demo's; really makes the car look different. The chrome looks great against the dark gray paint.

I managed to drive home safely despite playing with all the little buttons and screen controls. Next step is to read all the hundreds of pages of owners instructions. I'm really looking forward to taking a long trip in it. I came home from the dealership on route 80 and the car was so quiet and smooth.

Congrats on the new lex B) Welcome to the club You will find LOC to be very informative and a great place to hang around

[OH_Guy]

Congrats!

Now.... go somewhere and get a clear bra before you start seeing chips on the front bumper. :)

Interesting, one local Lexus dealer makes a big deal out of selling them; the other two don't.

The paint is a disappointing aspect of the car; my 6 year old Audi has paint that is still flawless.

I like the Starfire/Gray combination. Wanted that until I saw how light the carpet was. No way it would stay clean in Cleveland winters with all the crap they through on the roads around here getting tracked into the cars.

[mhawkin1]

I know what you mean about the interior color; the Lexus all weather floor mats pretty much remedy that issue. Anything north of Tennessee you pretty much need rubber floor mats!

[SW03ES]

Congrats! Yes get the clear bra. Your Audi is old enough that it probably doesn't have low VOC paint.

I'd love to see a picture of that grille...

[JGTNewLexusOwner]

When I got home from work, in my driveway was a black GS and a driver that the salesman sent over to bring me to the dealership to get my car. Definitely nicer than looking for a ride to the showroom.

This is my first Lexus. I got Smokey Granite with the black interior. Its got Nav, Premium Plus, HID lights with AFS (very cool), Parking Assist, Sunshade, Wood steering wheel, etc. I choose this particular unit because it already had the Rear Lip Spoiler. I added Sat Radio and the 'Bentley' grille (chromed mesh) because I liked how that looked on one of their demo's; really makes the car look different. The chrome looks great against the dark gray paint.

I managed to drive home safely despite playing with all the little buttons and screen controls. Next step is to read all the hundreds of pages of owners instructions. I'm really looking forward to taking a long trip in it. I came home from the dealership on route 80 and the car was so quiet and smooth.

Congrats OH Guy! Welcome to the Lexus ES350 club! Enjoy the car. I agree with those below about the clear bra...too late for me. The paint chips aren't that noticeable but when you detail your car, you will definitely see 'em! But I love my ES!

[RosevilleJohnson]

We too recently picked up a 2007 ES350. Very nice, really like it. It's the graphite w/black interior. It doesn't have the clear bra - the one at the dealer that had one was not very appealing - maybe just a bad installation? It looks like most members of this group like them so we're now thinking about it. To me, it's similar to the clear plastic people put on their palm pilot, or the plastic covers on furniture or lamp shades - I just love the look of the car w/out the clear bra. But I know I may be sad when the chips start showing up. We don't do much highway driving so maybe we'll be okay. Just thinking out loud.

Also - I've seen posts re: the window tint - do most reputable shops know about the rear window antenna being impacted by the tint? Have a great Thanksgiving everyone and we're so happy to be part of the LOC!

[mhawkin1]

To be honest - if I had the graphite color, I am not sure I would get the bra. In my opinion, the lighter the color of your car - the less noticeable the clear bra. I saw a bran new obsidian ES in the showroom and the bra looked shotty.

I am also very sensitive to chips; I didn’t realize the difference in the low VOC(?) paint….. it seems all of my other cars (minus the Prius) had pretty durable paint…. and these two cars chip very very easily.

[OH_Guy]

Congrats! Yes get the clear bra. Your Audi is old enough that it probably doesn't have low VOC paint.

I'd love to see a picture of that grille...

To: SW03ES

I posted pictures of the grille in Member's Gallery under "Chrome Mesh Grille".

The dealer reuses the "L" emblem from the original grille.

To: MHawkin and Roseville Johnson

I agree. One dealer had a red ES in the showroom with the bra and I didn't like the line where the bra ended. I was afraid over time that edge would get rough, hold dirt and really become obvious.

The more I have the car, the happier I am I got the black interior (especially here in Ohio) because the carpet wil stay much cleaner on the sides of the trans tunnel and outside footwells. And with the ventilated seats, the summer should be better than a solid leather seat. I get the biggest kick out of the steering wheel that moves out of your way. It amuses me everytime.

I do wish the car had better (bigger/more) interior lights and more storage (that instruction manual takes up the whole glovebox.

[JGTNewLexusOwner]

Congrats! Yes get the clear bra. Your Audi is old enough that it probably doesn't have low VOC paint.

I'd love to see a picture of that grille...

To: SW03ES

I posted pictures of the grille in Member's Gallery under "Chrome Mesh Grille".

The dealer reuses the "L" emblem from the original grille.

Great pics OH Guy. Man, I like that...I didn't even know that you could get a different grill as an option. Did the dealer do that special for you? Is it like the GS grill?

[OH_Guy]

Congrats! Yes get the clear bra. Your Audi is old enough that it probably doesn't have low VOC paint.

I'd love to see a picture of that grille...

To: SW03ES

I posted pictures of the grille in Member's Gallery under "Chrome Mesh Grille".

The dealer reuses the "L" emblem from the original grille.

Great pics OH Guy. Man, I like that...I didn't even know that you could get a different grill as an option. Did the dealer do that special for you? Is it like the GS grill?

Thanks. My dealer did that although they don't 'offer' it when they try to push things on you during closing and they don't show it in their Parts department.

They had it on one demo model and I really liked the way it looked. By comparison, the standard grille started to look a little Avalon-like to me.

They gave me the grille and Sat Radio install as part of the incentive 'to do the deal today" after we discussed the cash price.

If you Goggle "Custom Lexus Grill" and look for 'chrome mesh' on the websites you will eventually find it. I think it is made by J&S and retails for about $219. The dealer was asking $299 for it.