rob_es350

one of the service guys told me that the factory threshold setting for the low pressure indicator is 27 or 28..not sure I trust that info since recommended pressure is 30..doesn't give it a lot of room if the threshold is really 27-28 does anyone know the correct factory setting?

makes sense Paul..I suspect that most buyers don't even know how many sensors there are in the front..I didn't...I knew a ton about the car and its competitors, and drove them all, but the IPA feature was not important to me..got the car loaded just because when it comes time to trade it, it will hold its value much better..not too many people want a Lexus without GPS, etc.

I'm impressed! A very well thought out argument with a lot of information I didn't know. Then, I am not surprised. Paul I'm gonna take the other side of the cost argument a co the size of toyota has revenues in the hundreds of billions and earnings in the tens of billions, so while 1-2 million is a pile of cash to us, for toyota, it is meaningless agree that the info regarding the competitors sensor systems was good to know again, good forum guys, enjoy the exchange..take care

agree that the sensors are not needed..I already know exactly where the front and back of the car are..pretty much, you know how to park, or you don't, and the type of car and whether or not the car has sensors, doesn't really make a difference my point was that if you are gonna have the feature, do it right, and having sensors in the front corners, and not the center, which extends out further, seems silly

lol, looking, yeah, I hear ya I do see the 4 sensors in the rear, thanks seems silly though to not put a sensor in the front center for cost savings..I wouldn't think it would be any real increase in their cost....Lexus owners expect the features to be well thought out, and the lack of a sensor in the center front, where the car extends out the furthest, seems seriously ill concieved

I have a 2011 also. There is a small green light next to the SOS button and on the SOS button, the SOS letters are lit in red. Other than that, no lights. Do you have the green and red lights I described?

Lets us know what you find out! Paul checked out the settings..only has on/off (it was on), and one setting to change the distance of the rear sensor only o well, I will let the service dept take care of it..almost ready for the first oil change anyway apparently it is working as designed rear has 3 sensors both corners and center..works as expected..center sensor is configurable through the settings on the nav screen..plenty of warning esspecially if the center sensor is set for the further distance front ONLY has sensors in the corners, which is ridicuous since the center front center of the bumpber goes out the furthest..anyway, that is where I got faked out..front corner sensors are also not configuable through the nav screen..another limitation if you pull your car straight ahead torwards another car, the front center will get closest before the corners becuase of the shape of the bumber, and you practically have to hit the car in front of you before the coreners are close enough to actviate the system..that is what I was having to do to set off the system, and that is why I thought it was broken if you are turning, instead of pulling straight ahead, and the corner of the front bumber gets close to an object first, the system will activate with a reasonalble distance to spare so that's the deal..not sure why they would not put a sensor in the front center as they do in the rear..there is certainly no way to see the front of the car, as is the case will almost all cars now sonce hoods are sloped downwards for aerodynamics and style..also, why just have the rear center sensor configurable through the screen, no clue

Doubt it 2011 is 4 year/50k miles bumper to bumper, and 6 year/70k miles engine and drive train That's exactly the same warranty as the 2007 ES350. so you are good til may 2012 on the tranny warranty, nice

Doubt it 2011 is 4 year/50k miles bumper to bumper, and 6 year/70k miles engine and drive train

no clue, but I would get it in into the dealer asap unless you have an extended warranty...even if they do not find the problem, at least you will have it documented so that it can be fixed under the warranty later....transmission issues always get worse in my experience wow, an 07 with only 15k miles

Going back to the original topic of upgrading tires and/or wheels for the es350 to improve performance. I spoke with a wheel/tire co. that seems to have a lot of experience and a vast database of wheel/tire options for cars. Bottom line for the es350 is that increasing one size from the 215 to a 225 width is fine, but 235 is not recommended, so the options for performance are: 225/50-17 (was told would help, but would not be a significant difference..if just changing tires, might want to get these for a small performance increase, while maintaining the smooth ride to a large extent) 225/45-18 (was told this was my best choice for a noticeable difference in handling while not sacrificing too much on the smooth ride - would look pretty good also) 225/40-19 (would handle and look great of course, but bumps would be analogous to pure sports car) 225/35-20 (more of the same) For those who have to buy new tires anyway, might as well go for the 225/50-17 if at all interested in better handling. Let me know if anyone goes for any of these options. - Rob

anyone try bigger tires or wheels on their es350?

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2009/04/comparo-take-two-infiniti-g37-vs-bmw-335/ this guy gives a very comprehensive comparison essentially says it is close coin toss, but gives the BMW the win emphasizes that the comparison has to be done with the 335, cause the 328 would get murdered only issue he has with the 335 is the extra pile of money it costs

checked out the settings..only has on/off (it was on), and one setting to change the distance of the rear sensor only o well, I will let the service dept take care of it..almost ready for the first oil change anyway

wow, thanks for the info on the Infiniti M37/56..I see also that the M37 is reasonably priced as you say..M56 is up there, but must be amazing..however, at that price, it has to compete with the 5 series BMW at that would be a tough one..especially for a beemer bug like you not sure why I checked out the GS, but not the M, guess I was only focused on the G37 when I was at Infiniti we will have to agree to disagree on the G37 vs the beemer 3 series..agree that is is not only the performance numbers, but I didn't have an issue with the G vs the BMW in any other category..and you get a ton for your money with the G...sounds like we do agree that they are both a bit small

You are not alone liking the beemer, but have you driven the G37? Better performance, IMO, and less money..I dont think the BMW crowd is likely to switch, but my guess is that Infiniti will continue to take market share with those who haven't owned either Hear ya regarding the M, but you have to get t he M45 to match the GS performance, and then you are at least 5k up in price

True. So many toys in the car it is almost inevitable. Exact reason I went for the 100k mile warranty. NOt only are things going to break, but the fixes will be way expensive. Pretty slick thinking on their part to have a money back warranty policy if not used. I had never heard of that. So they actually calculated that the warranty will be used, but for a lesser amount than the price of the warranty. Only way they make money on it.

Mine is a 2011. Confident now from all of the feedback hear that my IPA is not working. Did not know that the settings, particularly the thresholds, were configurable through the nav menu..I will take a look at that. If that does not work, sounds like I have a bad sensor. Either way, after spending 40k on the car, it is a tad frustrating that everything is not working properly.

Hi rob; It does sound like everything is working as it should. The Park Assist feature only displays the outline of the car when it actually detects an object within the initial 4.9ft warning zone. This distance applies to both front and rear sensors. If you are not closer than that to an object while trying to park or back up or jockey around an object, etc. the display will not come on. It will simply be in the stand-by mode. That is what the "Green" light means when you press the on/off button to the left of the steering column. When the system comes on, the alarm will beep faster and faster the closer you come to the object, until you reach a distance of 1.2ft when the tone will be constant and the display will flash. Hope this has answered your question. Paul Thanks Paul. What you described, it what I expected. Instead, each time it comes on, it is already at the point where the tone is constant and the display is flashing. I am not getting the preceding warning where the beep gets progressively faster. I will try it try it again, but I don't think it is going to change because I have already approached objects as slow as possible, so not sure what else to do. Is everyone out there with this feature getting the progressively faster beeps prior to the steady tone and flashing display?

Not sure my Intuitive Parking Assist is working properly. Press the button, it beeps and green light comes on, so that's all good. But nothing is displayed immediately. If the car gets too close to an object, the display does come on with a picture of the car, highlighting the corner of the car where it is too close to an object. The manual leads me to believe that the display should come on immediately, and change graphics/sounds as the car get closer to an object. Please let me know if the IPA is working correctly. Thanks.

BMW just about ruined me a few months back. They put me in a 535 as a loaner had some warranty work done on the x5...well that 535 huh what can I say. I ran the *BLEEP* out of it. And the harder I pushed it the better it handled. It was on rails...absolutely amazing. When they called me to pick up the x5 I wanted to tell them to keep it. But my wife loves the x5 and with two little ones the space helps. I love the look of the ES, and GS but I have to say after having SUV's I enjoy the space and the ride but I see a Sunday driver (sports car) one day in the future no time soon hell I don't even ride my Harley much. I would order the cars we have discussed this way: For performance sacrificing the at bit of room and comfort at 40k price point: 1) Infiniti G37x - absolutely the best in it's class...better performance and WAY better reliability than its competitors 2) 335 BMW - the only person who would buy this car after driving the G37, is someone who just has to have the BMW logo on their car..complete waste..if you do buy it, make sure you get rid of it before it has problems 3)Audi A4 - even worse than the BMW - same reliability issues, and not as good as a performer - pushing the limits of the 4 cylinder engine For a good mix of performance and luxury at the same price point, I only see one option, the ES350 At the 50k price point, again, only one option, the GS for a great mix of luxury and performance and if you have 60k to spend on a car..dont even shop around, just get the BMW535xi..keep it for 3 years and unload it though..reliability is not good good forum by the way!

bmw, infiniti, and audi all have better performing cars at about the same price point, but all are smaller cars (3 series, g37, and a4 respectively) I do agree with you though that if you are looking for performance, you will sacrifice a bit on size and comfort for the speed and handling I decided to go the other direction, and dont have regrets about not buying one of those others, but I do think I should have given more thought to paying more for the GS, where you dont have to sacrifice size and comfort to get the performance... the perfect combination, for me anyway, would be a 5 series bmw..particularly the one with the more powerful engine (535), but that is another 10k above the GS, so took it for a drive (amazing!!), but could never consider it

how bout the guy raving about his 235's right here, and also the one other complaining about roll in turns true that es owners do not have performance as their first priority, but I think the car offers a pretty good mix of luxury and performance and there is no doubt many who would like the performance at least slightly better and have compromised like me for the comfort, well thought out interior, etc. 55, lol, that is exactly the crowd that all drove cameros, mustangs, even gto's and cutlass's when they were younger baby boomers who still want some performance but are not satisifed with seating in a real low side bolstered seat, etc are the ones turning to lexus and those that dont want to spend up for the gs, are landing in an es looking for tires, lol....

I'm on my 2nd ES and I can tell you that I've never met an owner that talked about lean in corners. They will always talk about a quiet ride, a smooth ride, tire wear. Never diameter, BUT, they will beat you !Removed! over tire brand a model type! LOL The ES crowd are there for the ride and comfort. Zero to 60 in 5 seconds doesn't mean much. Nice, but not important. Paul no shortage of es owners on this forum who are very interested in improving performance....I mean handling, not 0-60 which is fine at 7 secs flat

235's on a 17 or 18 inch wheel? would be 235/50-17 or 235/45-18 to keep the same diameter