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Glad to see your multilingual Lexi330! The universal sign language...the fickled finger of fate.! Here in the mid-west people are pretty good at keeping their cool and I really don't see /hear much of a problem. However, on the east coast of Florida, it seems like the horn is the only thing on the car they know how to operate. When we are there if you wait a tenth of a second too long when the light turns green your going to hear about it. Call me crazy, but seems like we could use a little more patitence is most areas of our lives. (Isn't that sappy) Paul

In the NA models at least, there is a key hidden in the FOB for just such an occasion. On the drivers door handle, there is a small flap that opens up to reveal the key lock to open the car if the battery is dead. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Daaa!!...don't I feel stupid! This reply from "grondie" is so obvious it's embarrasing that I overlooked it. My 2010 ES has the mechanical key stowed in the factory FOB for just such a purpose. I hope this solves your problem yamajee. Please let us know how things work out.

In the NA models at least, there is a key hidden in the FOB for just such an occasion. On the drivers door handle, there is a small flap that opens up to reveal the key lock to open the car if the battery is dead. ----------------------------------------------------------------------

Found this new article on AOL re: the ubiquitous blasting of car horns for the slightest inconvenience. Whats your experience? Cheers, Paul http://autos.aol.com/article/nation-of-honkers/

You rank it as low as a top 5?... I would think it deserves at least a top 3 stupid status. This was an engineer that had to much time on his/her hands. Paul

Good idea except trunk latch won't work without power to it. Call dealer. This surely is not the first time this has happened. Paul

Wouldn't it be great if we had access to all the configurations and all the accessories offered all around the world. Would make for a heck of a car. Paul

Welcome from Kiev! Steve's Truffle Mica looks sharp. Be sure to post pictures of yours and if you would, tell us a little about the prices you paid. Paul

There is not a great deal of audio chatter here and the suggestion re; Club Lexus might be helpful, I don't know-I haven't hung around there much. Designing and tuning a system for a car is one of the most difficult jobs there is for portable audio. The challenges of the car cabin environment are legion and vary from one model to another within a car line. I have not been a fan of the ML and felt for a long time that it was spec-ed. for pretty much middle of the road listening and did not respond well to overly demanding programing such as your hip-hop, metal, etc. I have had long conversations with the audio expert at my Lexus dealer about this subject and he points out that one of the major weakness of the system is the lack of a multi-channel equalizer. To have only a treble, mid, and bass EQ is crazy. The problem with trying to tweak or upgrade the system is the complex crossover network and balance that connects everything and the matched speakers. I would like to hear what you come up with. Paul

I have a friend with a V8 Dodge truck. Loves the truck. Hates the gas mileage. I get to borrow it and let him sweat the gas mileage. Congratulations! Paul

Happy Thanksgiving to one and all!! I hope everyone has someone to enjoy it with. Remember, leave your Lexus in the garage if you've been imbibing! Paul

Holy battery Batman!!! Now that's a Problem! I am sorry, but short of getting a tech or mechanic to force the latch release open through the grill opening, I don't have a solution to your dilemma. Your dealer may be happy to cover the situation under your warranty. I would strongly urge you to at least call them. Paul

If your car battery was dead you would not be able to start your car, turn on the headlights, run the a/c fan etc. The keyless remote fob really has little connection with the car battery except that the car battery powers the door actuators to mechanically unlock and lock the door. What has probably happened to your car is a feature similar to a "Lock Out Mode". The entry function is disabled in order to prevent the vehicle and electronic key batteries from discharging when the entry function has not been used for 2 weeks or more. The system will resume operation when: -The vehicle is locked/unlocked using the mechanical key. -The vehicle is locked/unlocked using the wireless remote control function. -The vehicle is locked using the door handle lock switch. Hope this is of help. Paul

Had a similar problem with a 05' ES. The battery would discharge over 14 days. Turned out to be a bad cell. Paul

Just an add on; my father-in-law has a large garage, holds a double cab pick-up; van; 35 ft. camper & wood working shop. Heats all in winter with LP heater hung from cieling and vented outdoors. At 10 degrees out side it is a toasty 68 inside. Paul

Thank you Tom for the education and heads up. I can appreciate your point of view and reluctance to use your dealer. If I follow your logic, we are all doomed and new warranties are basically worthless if the dealer and Lexus only do things in their best interest and not in ours. It would then follow that you are stuck with an RX that pulls to the left/right unless you can fix it yourself. This has Not been my experience with my dealer on either of my Lexus ES"s. In fact my dealer has consistently went over and above what was necessary to solve my problems and have given me numerous services at no or little charge just to be accommodating. I am more than happy to pay a little more for dealer prices because they have proved themselves honest, trustworthy, and competent over and over again. From reading this forum I know that not everyone has shared this experience. Maybe you have a bad dealer. If so I would encourage you to contact Lexus directly and let them know whats going on. If I'm all wet here, I hope someone else will chime in and give there educated experience. In any case, I hope you can get your problem resolved and enjoy driving a great car. Cheers! Paul

Your probably on the right track with your thinking, but if this is a NEW car with only 2000 miles on it, why in the world are you trying to adjust the caster instead of simply taking it back to the dealer for warranty coverage. Your messing with the front end is going to void your warranty and then if it is something serious, your in for big bucks. Paul

LOL. Man, you are so right about being perfectly happy in my "geezer" days with the stock system. Like you, I used to re-configure every car I had to try and get the most juice I could out of the sound system. Actually, I think some of it is the improved quality of the factory equipment installed these days and the fact that manuafacturers are finally paying attention to the market. I agree with you re: the Bazooka tube. Really a great product and so compact with quite a punch. It won't vibrate your tonsils, but that ride home after a long day will be really nice. Paul

It cost nothing to take it in and have the problem diagnosed. If it is not covered under warranty then and only then would you have to decide if you want that dealer to fix it. Most certified pre owned warrantys have a "bumper to bumper" coverage for at least the first 40K miles. My 2005 ES did. Paul

The key is to stay with a 6 to 8 inch woofer and not go to what the kids use like a 10 or 12/15 inch molar rattler. The small size with a well matched crossover and amp is more than enough and the enclosure size is unobtrusive. Paul

Exactly! Just got back from San Diego and there were a lot of chrome wheels. Just an aside, We stayed on Coronado Island and saw very few Lexus, but many Volvo's, Mercedes and Cadillac's. Weird. Paul

Thanks my friend. I appreciate the lesson. Paul

Have you programmed your memory settings with the buttons on the driver door panel. It's easy, just set the mirrors, seat position, climate control settings, steering wheel position to where you like them and press and hold SET and 1,2,or 3 depending on what driver and you will hear a beep confirming that the settings are saved. Hope that helps. If I do as you suggest will the temperature control always revert back to the original setting even if it is changed while driving in the interim, or should it stay at the last set temperature? No. Programing your seating, mirror, preferances, etc, has no connection with the climate control. You are correct in that the temperature you set for either the driver or passenger should remain the same until such time as YOU change it to something else. If you have navigation with voice command features, you know that you can lower or raise the temperature by activating the voice command button and saying "Raise/Lower temperature". As to what is causing your current problem, it is hard to say. However, you say you have owned the car for one year. Does that mean it is still under warranty? This is not the type of problem that can be diagnosed with a wrench and screwdriver. The computer that runs the whole climate control system is best left to your dealer. If not under warranty and your concerned about cost, simply call your dealers service adviser, explain your problem and ask them for a guesstimate. Paul

Hope I'm not being redundant, but I think I've talked about this before and what your wanting is exactly what I wanted in my system. I like the system overall, but it needed some low end filling out and some depth to the bass notes. I chose to leave the factory sub in place for greater fill in at pre set crossover levels as determined at the factory. These are probably frequencies around 5,000-8,000 and below(Not an expert). I then installed a separate 8" sub in a small enclosure,less than a foot square, driven by a 200 watt Alpine amp with crossover to let this separate sub handle all frequencies below what the sub in the rear deck is driving. The result has been outstanding. I have the system equalizer set with the treble at full, the mid range a 1+, and the bass at 2+. I have a hearing loss at the very high end, hence the upper limit treble setting. With these settings bass is strong but not thumpy. It is smooth and you can feel the very lowest bass note on a acoustic bass or a rock bass or hip-hop electronic,synthesized bass. You can push the bass up to 5+ and still not get any rattle, distortion, or thump at any volume. I typically listen at 30 to 45 volume level. For comparison, I listen to rock, jazz, NPR, some classical but mostly rock of all genres. I would recommend installing a small separate sub. If not, drive the replacement sub you install with a separate amp if you can match the impedance and crossover network. Hope this helps. Paul

Hi Steve, Teaching moment. What are Brembro brakes? Is that a name brand of a pad or a system of some kind? Thank you sir. Paul