rob_es350

Lexus seems to be keeping secret the details of plans for the 2012 es, but I have read that the es and gs will essentially be replaced. With the ongoing crisis in Japan, I suspect any plans might get derailed anyway.

The best site hands down for determining what you should pay is carsdirect.com If you get the carsdirect price, you did well, anything less is great! Be sure you are comparing apples to apples..so watch the packages/options carefully

The ES holds 6 quarts of oil. Mobil 1 synthetic is like $7.25 a quart at the cheapest, if you do the math thats $43.50 just for the oil, not including the filter, disposing of the old oil...at the end of the day we're talking about them changing oil for no profit whatsoever. This sounds like a situation where the salesman, who has nothing to do with service by the way and probably knows less about what the service at a Lexus dealer costs than we do, talking without actually knowing what he's talking about. I would be *shocked* if the Lexus dealer would change the oil with synthetic for $55. You should call the service department and ask them. agree, 0% chance lexus, or a jiffy-lube type place would do it for $55 BUT...a local service station might do it for good will hoping to get future business...if i owned a service shop that is exactly what i would do The difference, is using the term "future business". When a Grocery store advertises Pepsi;a 6 pack for .99 cents, it is a "Loss Leader". They plan on loosing money just to get you in to the store. Once your there you will probably pick up a bag of chips or pop corn, milk, etc. Hey you didn't even spend a dollar on the soda, so you can buy something extra!. But this is present business. Not future business. Future business is what funeral homes are masters of. IMAGE! Peaceful. Rock Steady. Friendly, not gushing. Sincere. They build an Image that guarantees referrals and future business. Auto garages don't do well with Loss Leaders. They may low ball an oil change, but usually only discount the oil, not the filter. Or make you pay extra for a premium grade of oil. Yes, they will also try an "UP" sell you on tires, mufflers, brake pads, just any consumable. In my experience, Lexus builds future business by treating each customer as a Guest and building trust and respect through training. Let us know what you find out. thanks Paul, agree, that is where I was headed but was not as articulate, lol

might not be the lumbar seats bottoms are pitched way down in back.....tooo "bucketed" try pitching the seat up in the back...so more flat....if you haven't done that already...lumbar will hit in your back more in the lumbar area is my guess good luck

The ES holds 6 quarts of oil. Mobil 1 synthetic is like $7.25 a quart at the cheapest, if you do the math thats $43.50 just for the oil, not including the filter, disposing of the old oil...at the end of the day we're talking about them changing oil for no profit whatsoever. This sounds like a situation where the salesman, who has nothing to do with service by the way and probably knows less about what the service at a Lexus dealer costs than we do, talking without actually knowing what he's talking about. I would be *shocked* if the Lexus dealer would change the oil with synthetic for $55. You should call the service department and ask them. agree, 0% chance lexus, or a jiffy-lube type place would do it for $55 BUT...a local service station might do it for good will hoping to get future business...if i owned a service shop that is exactly what i would do

awesome price for synthetic verify that it is synthetic!

The "toys" in cars are always out date. No way around that with technology moving so quickly. The money for the lexus nav system is also for the integration of the other systems..audio, phone, etc..so that helps justify the price a bit. To me, the nav seems adequate, but it is not going to compete with he latest and greatest. Apologies if these points were already made..have to go back and read each post completely. off topic here: Crossed the 5k mile mark recently and had them put the synthetic oil in..gonna keep the car for a lot of miles so extra money well spent, and now if I go for 6-7k miles between new oil, not a problem..loving the car for the first 5k

I think the verdict is in on this one - regular is fine for the ES350. Your comparison proves it once again. My guess is that Lexus recommends the premium so that they can boast the absolute best performance possible. Doubt you can even tell the difference, I couldn't, unless maybe you do an all out 0-60...and who does that?!

ooooooooops, lol, for some reason, I thought we were talking about a 2007..please ignore all of posts, ha..and let me out of that bet anyway, I am on board now, and agree, brand new car pretty much rules out everything I was thinking of I didn't realize that tire balancing could be such an issue...never bumped into that problem interested in seeing how this is resolved..thanks for straightening me out

I am gonna take the other side of that bet...I say it is NOT a wheel balancing problem

if he can't get out of the es, I would just leave it at the dealer til it is fixed...they have to make it right if they don't fix it properly, I would take the loss regardless of how big, even if I had to buy a less expensive car what is the use of owning a car that you hate to drive...get one with more miles or whatever it takes balancing tires is not rocket science, so that is not likely the problem IMO..it could easily be the suspension, the engine itself...etc...needs to be diagnosed correctly one thing we agree on in a big way is that the dealer is an idiot

should go for over 100k miles with nothing but the recommended maintenance, which is not much the most important item when buying used, imo, is the warranty lexus is way reliable, but repairs are way expensive

It would have to be REALLY out of alignment. To the OP...if the dealer can't get it done...I would take it to an independent shop and have them road force balance it at your own expense. Should cost about $100 I bet that solves the problem. If that fixes it I would try and get Lexus to reimburse you by calling 1-800-25-LEXUS . I have had these cars balanced by a shop over and over again and swear they were in balance...and then a different shop balances it once and its perfect. The dealer's just out to lunch on this issue. It certainly is not a "characteristic of the car". Mine rides like its on glass at any speed...on the same Bridgestone tires (which aren't the greatest). wow, that was weird, was typing here and the window disappeared on me, apologize if this post shows up twice somehow anyway, I was saying that I agree with Steve that it is not characteristic of the car...mine, and the others 2 I test drove, were smooth as silk, and that is, of course, the car's reputation Steve might be right that another shop could take care of the problem, but I would absolutely just get another one..too frustrating to even deal with it anymore...you should be enjoying your new ride, not dreading it I say get another one, or if you are totally put off from the car at this point, pick up a different brand...thing is, I did a lot of homework, and took a lot of test drives, and it is gonna be difficult to find something very comparable at that price point...the competitors tend to be a bit better performers, but when you balance that with size, comfort, etc., the es350 wins..at least it did for me

I have had a steering wheel vibration more than once that was resolved by a wheel alignment Either way, since the dealer is sh*t out of ideas, they should try it

sounds like it just needs a wheel alignment..it is remarkable to me that they didn't do that..besides the tires, which they already took care of, what else could it be also, I dont think it is uncommon for new cars to have wheels out of alignment..one of my new maxima's pulled badly in one direction, and the alignment took care of it taking them off ships, diving at the docks, loading them on trailers..who knows, but it is likely not a friendly drive before it gets to the dealer, and you know they are not especially careful with them let us know how it turns out..hopefully you will be enjoying a SMOOTH ride shortly

on the 2011, the factiry warranty is 4 year/50k miles bumper to bumper and 6 year/70k miles drivetrain..so if 2007 is the same, you have both miles and time remaining on the drivetrain at least you can always buy an extended warranty, but it will be a used car warranty and the coverage will likely not be as extensive as the original bumper to bumper as with any warranty decision, it is a function of how much you drive, how long you plan on keeping the car, the price, and coverage of the warranty I have already heard some horror stories with Lexus repair bills...so IMHO, if it is a close call at all, I would lean towards purchasing the warranty bought the 100k mile warranty for my 2011 since I drive about 18k miles/year..that factory warranty for 50k will go by real quick good luck with your new car, enjoy

well, I mispoke a bit regarding highway......"pure" highway, we are the same, 31mpg or so but local driving is between 18 and 19, so I should take it a bit more easy there..22 is waaay better..good to know that 22 is doable..i'll give it a shot..thanks

saw this thread and figured I would give it a test..been putting regular in my 2011, so I waited til the tank was virtually empty, and filled it with premium..couldn't tell the difference, and I drive it pretty hard, so unless my gas station threw regular in their premium tank, I would have to say that you dont lose anything with the regular perhaps if you did an all out 0-60, but I don't plan on abusing the car that badly, at least now with only 4k miles on it off topic a bit, but the gas tank is toooo small at 17.5 gallons..ok on highway where mileage seems to be about 26mpg, but local driving is about 18.5 for me, so range is only about 300miles...always in the freakin gas station...my guess is that they just didnt have room for a bigger tank...must be fine for a camry, but not cutting it for an es

wow, up 3 sizes on the width from 215's to 245's and no clearance issues, good to know with that in crease in width on a 20'' wheel I am surpried the handling isn't a dramatic difference by just increasing tire pressure on the stock 215/55-17's from 30psi to 36psi I had a very noticeable handling improvement

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 you can change a setting to have one of the optional screens (audio, climate, phone, etc.) stay there and not revert to the map..I know that cause I did not want the display to keep going back to the map, so I looked into it..usually leave mine on audio How did you do it? thanks again. setup->general->auto screen change........turn it off, the default setting is on

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 you can change a setting to have one of the optional screens (audio, climate, phone, etc.) stay there and not revert to the map..I know that cause I did not want the display to keep going back to the map, so I looked into it..usually leave mine on audio

so much for all season tires...I saw Michelin, so I figured they were good

congrats on hitting 5 figures your comments remind me that I haven't tried some of the car's features..haven't used Enform or XM NavTraffic..also don't own an ipod i'm at about 4k miles so almost ready for the first service agree that the car is great..it's funny cause I have griped a bit on this forum, but posts are always gonna tend towards the issues, not the positives definitely happy with my choice bought mine down the road from ou at Massepequa, small world glad to hear you are enjoying, I can never driven a 300, but have been a passenger in one several times, and the 350 is a huge upgrade..power alone is night and day - knocked a full second of the 0-60! take care neighbor..enjoy your next 10k

mine came with the michelins saw some think heavy snow in front of me a couple of weeks ago..got up some speed, figured it wouldn't be a problem..kept it fast and straight, but got stuck anyway..was able to rock it out last 4 cars have been maximas, also front wheel drive, and for some reason they were much better, perhaps weight distribution, don't know take my rava4 in the snow now

agree..es350 is not the car for the snow..in fact, my experience so far this winter is that it is worse than other front wheel drive cars in slippery conditions, not sure why that is chains + es350 = doesn't sound right..no shortage of all-wheel drive vehicles at the es price point..audi a4, infiniti g37, etc