Vicki_in_Florida

Steve, Yes, the car is beautiful and when I posted that, I hadn't washed it yet. When I washed it and seen how many paint chips were there, that bummed me out! How come the Honda has 3,500 miles on it and it isn't chipping? The lexus only has a few hundred miles on it? I didn't drive through any rock storms, I'm sure I would have noticed rocks hitting my hood. When I first posted, I just got the car and hadn't drove it that much. Now, that I've drove it more...I'm really not impressed with it. That's just my opinion, some people like BMW's, Mercedes, etc... I wasn't asking everyone to hold my hand either...I was merely commenting on the fact that I have drove the car more now and I wouldn't buy another one. No one has to respond, I really don't care...my life will go on! Luckily for me, my life doesn't depend on any of you or this site. You can have fun bashing away now, I'm sure it's the adult thing to do. I won't be back to this site anymore, it's a little biased for me.

Just to clarify.... It's not a fairly new van it's a 2005 Honda Odyssey, which honestly, I am enjoying more than this car. Also, just because I can "afford" to have the paint fixed and protected does than mean that I should have to do that on a brand spankin new car that was $40,000? Should I feel better that my dealer is saying that they've never heard of anyone else having this problem with their paint? I leased the car and even at that, the payments are not small. How many people do you think can afford a $660 payment? How many people would also wonder why I was selling a brand new car? If I was a person out there shopping for a car, and could afford $660, I would be getting a new one and not a used one! Again, the only reason I posted my problems with Lexus is for the consumer out there considering a Lexus, especially a Black Garnet or Black one. Nice to know what to expect BEFORE you buy VS learning as I am after purchasing one.

IMHO... These forums are very informative for people out there considering vehicles and reading through the forums to see how actual owners are reviewing the vehicles. Someone who has never owned a Lexus probably would have the assumption that it is a luxury car and expect it would be great since it cost more than the average sedan. I was very impressed with my previous LS400, but I am not all that impressed with this ES330. I should be able to post that without ridicule. That is what this forum should be about. I could easily go through alot of posts on this forum and tell people who are having problems to stop whining or just sell your car. I don't feel that is the purpose of the forum and if it is, I won't participate in it anymore!

The Llumar place is 3 1/2 hours away from me :( By the time I get there, my hood will have more chips missing! The dealer emailed me a quote of $500 for the 3M product. Says the retail is $695. I haven't called Llumar yet to compare prices. I will tomorrow as they are closed right now. This is an added expense that I didn't expect to pay. It's almost Christmas so the timing sucks! My Honda Odyssey is a 2005 (red) it has 3,500 miles on it and it has no paint chips, satelitte radio (3 months free), PAX run flat tires, the Navi is better and has alot of toys for less money than this Lexus was. I wasn't expecting this from a Lexus product. Up to this point, I'm regretting buying this car!

My chips are not in the bumper, they are on the hood! It must be better to get the film than to replace the hood? My Lexus LS400 was Baroque Red, which was similiar to this Black Garnet. I don't remember it chipping as fast and as easily as this paint is? I guess I will have to do alot of research before deciding on what to do about this.

I washed the car today and I can't believe how many paint chips I have on the hood already! Wow, that's depressing! I guess I am going to have to get some kind of a bra now. Talked to the dealer yesterday and he said that the 3M product is the best one to go with. Oh, decisions to make!

If I'm just going to the grocery store, mall, etc....I take the minivan. I save the Lexus for dinners and special things. Once I get it all nice and clean, I hate to drive it! I know, that's stupid and I'm paying alot of money for the car. Maybe after I've had it longer, I will give in to driving it more. I just can't think of parking it in a parking lot yet. Just the thought of someone smacking their door into it makes me cringe!

Steve, I'm surprised that you didn't go with chrome wheels? The pics above don't look like they are chrome. They are a bit pricy though. Getting ready to give it the first wax job. I bought mostly meguiars and a few Eagle one products. It's going to look sweeter than it already does :)

We had a 1999 LS400 that we bought new. It was baroque red/ivory interior. It had the best ride. I loved those seats, they were soooo comfy! The stereo system ruled! The ES330 is nice but the LS400 was much better. Of course, the payment was MUCH bigger as well! Didn't want to spend that much this time because I now I have two teenagers driving and need to be a 4 car family now. Adding them to the car insurance is another car payment in itself! You have to sit down when they tell you the prices. For now, the ES330 is very nice and fits our needs. Maybe when the kids are gone in a few years, we can go looking at a bigger luxury car then. My dream car is a BMW 645i........that would be nice :) Also, thanks for the tips on taking care of the Black Garnet. My husband always takes the car somewhere to have it detailed. He doesn't do that himself now (gettin lazy in his old age). The place he goes to does it all by hand and they do a great job, but they are expensive. I can't complain, he doesn't complain when I buy expensive clothes, etc... so I guess this is his little splurge. Seems fair enough.

Just giving an update: I did finally get my car! I've had it for a week now. We got the 2005 ES330 Black Garnet, with the cashmere interior. Added the spoiler and chrome wheels as well. It's very nice. I must admit that the Mark Levinson doesn't seem to sound as nice as the Nakamichi did on our old LS 400. The sales guy said they switched to the Mark Levinson because the Nakamichi doesn't have a stereo system that intergrates with the Navi. Bummer! Also, we have a 2005 Honda Odyssey Touring van. The navi in the Honda is much easier to use than the Lexus one is. The car does have a nice smooth ride and so far, we are all happy with it.

I let it go...and put a deposit down with the Ft.Myers dealership. The message that I keep trying to send is for the people who are shopping to realize that the dealer wants you to buy what he has sitting on his lot. As soon as you get into ordering or trying to have them get you a specific car from another dealer, that seems to be where the problems start. If I was willing to take any color, this wouldn't have happened to me. Calling all around trying to find which dealer has what colors....that's where you run into honesty or dishonesty. Best bet is to find dealer you like and stick with him. Just give him the deposit and wait until he gets the car you want. That's the only point I'm trying to get into anyone who might be shopping for a specific car, like I was.

I would guess the reason for that would be: 1. they actually had the car you wanted in their inventory 2. you purchased something from them The fact that they lied and said they had this car in their inventory and were holding it for me until I got there, is a sure sign of a dishonesty and shows no sign of being professional! Lexus headquarters agreed! They are supposed to be contacting the GM and letting him know that this is not the way they want customers treated! Every dealer I called was very nice when I was just "inquiring", but when the Ft. Myers guy showed me on the computer that there were only 4 vehicles with the color/package I wanted and they were all in other states, knowing that Florida didn't have one of these cars, really showed me the deceit! This guy lied and said he had the car and was holding it for me....waits until I am 90 minutes into the trip, calls my cell phone to tell me they "sold it"..when really they never had it.....it's totally deceitful! Two words I would never choose to use when describing Lexus of Orlando: 1. Honest 2. Professional

I found out the real deal: The Lexus dealer in Ft. Myers showed me on their computer that there are only 4 cars made in the color and package I want. All 4 were in other states and Florida never had one of them. Basically, I was played with! The Orlando dealership probably figured they'd tell me when I was almost there that the car was sold and then try to talk me into buying something they did have in their inventory. Also, now the Tampa guy calls me and tells me that they had this exact car in Saturday, but they sold it because I never left a deposit with them. Told me to leave a deposit with them and he will hold the next one coming in for me. I know this car was not in our state now. Wow! I guess this is how they make sales? Say anything to get you to give them a deposit on something. Well, this has been a learning experience and it shows me to stick with my gut next time. The Ft.Myers guy was the nicest and most honest right off the bat. He gave me the best price, right off the bat too. I felt bad not buying from him. I gave them the deposit and I'm gonna wait and let him get me the car now. It's definently been an adventure!

I didn't think he sounded rude. I just don't like Sarasota either. Sarasota doesn't budge off of the MSRP. Plus, when we bought our LS400 a few years ago, they were not great to deal with back then either. Problem around here is too many people have $$$ so they don't have to do anything they don't want to. We are moving out of Sarasota because the kids are going to college in Orlando. Not ready to be that far away from them yet. Besides, you can only go out to eat and go to a movie only soooo many times before it gets old. There is nothing fun to do in Sarasota if you are a "younger" person....LOL MHO

Your theory doesn't work in my case. I live in Sarasota. I am moving to Orlando in April. I got the best price from the guy in Ft. Myers..... The only reason I wanted to buy from the guy in Orlando is because I thought down the road, when I live in Orlando, the dealer would treat me better if I needed service if I bought the car from them! Go figure that out???? This was a simple case of greed. The worst part is knowing that this will be the dealership I have to deal with if I still buy the Lexus and it needs service! That right there is enough to make me reconsider.