pj8708

Welcome to the LOC! Another member "intakerGS" is also from the Netherlands. Paul

Paul, what do you mean when you ask if your ES's leather has the "new coating"? I believe the only coating they're talking about is the polyshield coating you need to pay a rediculous amount for at purchase, the junk that they spray on (which just rubs off). These coatings aren't permanent or anything, it's just like "waxing" the leather. My guess is that the leather in the 2010 ES is the same as that of the 2010 Rx... I do know Lexus offered two types of leathers for the ES depending on which package you got, some type of semi-aniline material vs the regular stuff. I believe the semi-aniline leather is even softer than the regular type. I was refering to the "New Coating" mentioned in LexRex's posting.

I have noticed some "jeans" rub-off on the edge of the drivers seat on my 2010 ES350. Can anyone tell me if this model/year ES has the softer leather or the new coating? Thanks, Paul

Hello and welcome. The Nav screen only offers the map screen, on or off, and one of the optional screens such as audio, climate, etc., which only show temporarily and then revert to the map screen. Did you purchase the car from the Lexus dealer Certified Previously Owned? If so, then all the appropriate service should have been done. If not, and I bought it privately or from a used car lot, I would take it in and have it checked out. That's just me. I love my 350 and You should have many years of driving luxury, Paul

Paul

As my father-in-law tells me, he walked to school, 10 miles, up hill, in a 20 mph wind, backwards! LOL I'm glad your Dad was there. We all slept better. Paul

Correct me if I'm wrong, but as you can see by my sig. on the left, I am from Iowa. Here, as of the first of the year, anyone who wishes can wear a firearm openly, anyplace, or carry it concealed at anytime and may use it to protect themselves if they perceive themselves threatened by deadly force with no retreat. I am guessing, a dangerous thing, such as a car trying to push you off the road would be considered a threat upon your life. However, in this scenario, I am talking about an irrational person, who's anger is out of control, pulling out their gun just because you *BLEEP*ed him off. To such people, like this one, law books are not the first thing they consult. Paul

Please keep contributing. We hope you'll hang around! Paul

I could give a rip about Gore. The only thing I gained from his name was a raised awareness regarding climate change. The fraud regarding this subject is unfortunately, what seems to be a natural human failing when as you say, there is money to be made. But, because one student cheated on a test so they could win a prize, does not mean the whole class cheated. Yes, volcanoes have polluted the earth and killed thousand of people over thousands if not millions of years. They can be devastating. On the other hand they provide lava and ash that over time create the most productive and fertile land in the world. They create new earth for man and animals to inhabit. They create minerals for mining, and diamonds to empty your wallet. It should be our goal to take the pollution we create and either stop it or convert it into useful purposes. It seems as though every epidemic, war, conflict, political movement, science discovery has brought with it either free market or institutionalized profiteering. I don't know enough about the carbon tax credits to have an informed opinion. But based upon what we've talked about here on these postings, it is something I have a responsibility to read more about. I am curious how all of you feel about moving away from gasoline powered cars to other types of fuel. Can it be done? Will the oil companies let it happen? What do you think should be done? Paul

The geatest discovery is yet to happen.

Steve, I'm way behind the power curve when it comes to mileage on my 10'. I got it the first of September last year and I just passed 2000 miles last week! I feel about the same as you regarding the pros and cons of what I think is a great car. It does feel heavier and more solid than my 330 did, and the power upgrade is excellent. The one and only thing I wish I could change, would be to trade the wood trim of the 330 and put it into the 350. As you pointed out, the 350 dash and overall interior is pretty plain and I loved all the wood trim of the 330. The 350 is much more quiet and is a joy to handle both in town and on the highway. Maybe I can tell you about my 10,000 mile experience next year. LOL Paul

Any death or accident is tragic, and in this case for someone to die when they were totally unaware of the other parties endangering behavior so they couldn't even take eluding action is double so. But, for me, the car is/was not the problem. At some point it seems as though we have to use some common sense and realize that a machine cannot be engineered that can foresee or respond to EVERY conceivable situation. The human has to take responsibility for their actions. Yes, anything can be improved, but the car beeps loudly when you get out and take the keys already, and yes, it could be made to shut it self off after 10 minutes or so. However, when it's -6' below as it is right now and I want to run in the house and leave the car to warm up, it needs to run longer than 10 minutes and I will lock it and take the keys with me while it warms up. The mystery about this situation, is that it is my understanding that with current emission standards, people who are attempting to commit suicide by sitting in their cars in the garage are unable to be successful. There is little if any CO2 in todays emissions and the person can not be asphyxiated. This information comes from a psychiatrist. How then was this man killed? I really like the key less start/stop feature, and I would hate to go back to the mechanical key. Just my two cents worth. Paul

Don't feel bad...I bought optional 2010 Lexus OEM wheels that were simply called "E-Sport."

Living here in Washington I know a good many scientists, and have a good many friends and business contacts that have spouses who are scientists, etc. Scientists aren't like that, they aren't "money driven" people. In fact...I've found they care very little about money at all...they are perfectly happy to be in a lab discovering things...drive their Prius or Subaru...go home and read journals and articles...and do the same thing the next day...and thats it. They don't really care about wealth or what have you. Thats the political statement that is thrown out there, but its really not the case. Anyways, without scientists and grant money we wouldn't have any of the medical advancements we have today, the technological advancements we have today, we would still think the world was flat and the sun revolved around it. Is it of significant cost to the taxpayer? Yes, but also of significant benefit. Its much cheaper than nationbuilding and occupying foreign countries we have no business being in, thats a fact. Whats the solution? Cut off all funding for scientific research unless the findings suit our purposes? This isn't Iran. Its actually quite the opposite situation, you've got LOAD of special interest groups and corporations that pollute trying to spread the idea that the whole notion that pollution is bad for the earth (and thats really all Global Warming says) is some crazy fringe idea propogated by people who want to steal our money. Thats nonsense, its not a crazy fringe idea, its overwhelmingly accepted in the scientific community as a fact. You somehow think a lobbyist for chemical manufacturers has your best interest more at heart than a scientist in a lab at UC Berkeley? Come on. Its not a political thing, its a question of common sense and the preponderance of the evidence. Evidence that greenhouse gas emissions effect the climate of the planet is overwhelming. Evidence that the global climate is changing is overwhelming. Common sense agrees, these things are not released into the atmosphere by nature in near the quantities we release them, and it simply makes sense that those gasses in those concentrations would upset the proper balance of the atmosphere. If you look at the earth's history you see LOTS of examples of times when global calamities threw chemicals and ask into the atmosphere and it effected the climate of the planet. Ice ages, meteor impacts, volcanic eruptions. Google the "little ice age". You wont find any research anywhere, that doesn't come from a politically or business backed source, that refutes the statement "Pollution is bad for the atmosphere of the earth and is causing long term changes to our climate". Thats all the idea of "Global Warming" is. We can either listen to people who have degrees and have studied the climate of the planet and the effect pollutants have on it their entire lives, or we can listen to people who believe the earth is 2000 years old and we're all descended from one man and one woman. Thats really the two sides of this argument. I agree totaly. I will gladly pay my fair share in taxes to help find ways to reverse the mess we've put ourselves in. Paul PS.....I love you too dcfish!

Lexus key less start results in the death of driver according to a lawsuit filed recently against Toyota. Apparently, if you don't shut off your Lexus when you get out, it's the cars fault when you die of carbon dioxide poisoning a short time latter.....!! http://www.autoblog.com/2011/02/07/suit-alleges-toyota-keyless-start-to-blame-for-carbon-monoxide-d/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+weblogsinc%2Fautoblog+%28Autoblog%29 Paul

gabep; I wasn't around four years ago, but I can see that your posting is certainly helpful. Thanks for the contribution. In general: Recently, some friends and I were talking about the impressions we were feeling regarding other generations, (of course it's never your own) having a sense of "entitlement"; that their owed, they have it coming to them without really needing to contribute anything in return. It's as if "I've been told I'm special all my life, and as such all I need to do is show up and you'll give me a big job and a big title with a lot of money; and of course it has to be fun all the time." The INTERNET can be like that when no one knows who their talking to and when they have no idea what the other person has invested in time and effort to provide that information you just read. I choose to post things I find interesting believing that the audience MAY find it interesting as well. I did emphasize "MAY" because even the best of friends may not find my posting of any value what so ever, and I would rather they tell me so than blow smoke up my dress with false platitudes. It does puzzle me once and a while when a posting gets say, over a 100 views but no replies. I wonder if my information was of value or if I put out total garbage. Yet, as you say, if your reason for putting something on the forum is for a pat on the back your priorities are not in order. By being present on the forum consistently, I have made connections with some very nice people who have not only great knowledge, but fun personalities as well and shared values. Paul

PACKERS WON!!!!!! We were behind our neighbors in Wisconsin all the way! We hope the folks in Green Bay have a great week celebrating. It's a neat town.

Welcome to the Lexus owners club! I'm sorry that I can't help you with your question, but hopefully someone else will jump in here and help out. Paul

I too Jim remember back in the early 00's Hertz offered Lexus as an option then it went away and I always wondered why. Now they offer Mercedes, Infinity, Volvo, Cadillac, etc, all REAL expensive to rent. Your so right about the trim level on the Camry. It is really bare bones. Given your experience with rentals, do you have a make/model you would suggest trying next time? By the way, I decided to put Michelin X-ICE Snow tires on this winter since as you know we've had a fair amount of snow and ice this season. They are just great, and very smooth riding and very quiet. Excellent traction. Smile next time your driving through! Paul

Over the last few months, my wife and I have chosen to rent a Camry on three separate occasions. Anyone, in my opinion, who calls the ES350 a glorified Camry has never driven one for more than a day or a simple test drive. We found that it's not a bad car at all, but to compare it to the ES is pitting two cars that are simply in different class's. The Camry rides stiff and jolts over the bumps. It does drive true and easy on the interstate at highway speeds and has good acceleration. About that word acceleration, you can easily break your neck from the whip lash you get when you try to EASE into the gas pedal from a dead stop. It can barely be done. I'm not the expert like most of you, but by the end of our trip to San Diego and Florida, we were ready to push the damn thing over a cliff over this one problem of just trying to start out smoothly from a stop light without lurching into traffic. What is the problem? The controls were easy to use and the air cooled quickly, but controlling the temperature and keeping it even was problematic. Gas mileage was so-so, about 21mpg highway/city combined. We drove a lot in town. The steering wheel and seat position were too short for me for long trips compared to my ES. The driver side front window made an unholy noise when going down, quiet when going up. The drive-trains have one annoying habit. As you slow down to a stop, you feel every single down shift until you hit second gear. Then it is smooth. This action gives you the sensation that the car is lurching forward as your trying to break. It really freaks you out until you get used to it. It isn't a bad car as I said, but it's no Lexus either. The next time someone says the ES is just a glorified Camry I think I'll ask them to actually drive them both. Paul

Just following your lead...are you complimenting or complaining? Paul

Just as an FYI, I put on a set of Michelin X-Ice Snow/Winter tires this season and what a great tire. In addition to excellent traction on snow, packed snow and ice, they are very quiet and ride very comfortably. I highly recommend them. Paid $136 ea. plus $20 mount and balance. Paul

If your speaking of a true remote engine starter, you would have a fob with a button that you could push while in your house or office, or any where within about 1000 ft. that starts the car. On cold winter mornings, I start my car while in the kitchen and let it run for about ten minutes. When I go out it's nice and warm. Paul

Additionally, climate change and weather are not the same thing. When it snows three feet and it's -10 below outside, everyone says the same thing about global warming, or more correctly long term climate change. Climate is the patterns of weather over long periods of time such as decades, quarter centuries, centuries and so on. Weather is what happens by the hour or day or forty eight hours or even a week, etc. Just as you would not say "it's been below freezing for three days now, it must be global cooling, nor would the same be true that a few hot days in the summer are global warming. It is all long, long term trends. Like or dislike Gore, the science is good and fact. Paul