uthorns1976

I'm desperately searching for a new vehicle. ES350 might fill the bill. My brother has an RX400h that's a year old. I drove it once for three hours on the highway and I found the seats to be too firm for my taste. (I'm used to American car seating.) Would appreciate any comments regarding the seats in the ES350. Firm, very firm, hard, comfortable??? Thanks.

Yes, very helpful information. Thanks.

The transfer problem is due to verizon, and not Motorolla. That same phone from t-mobile or cingular will work. Verizon puts some type of incryption on the function of their bluetooth technology. ← A little help, please. I have searched extensively and have not found a definite answer. My brother has a 2006 RX400h. He just switched from Verizon to T-Mobile and got the Moto Razr phone (black). He called me this morning and asked me to find out if the Razr on T-Mobile will work with the bluetooth system in his Lexus?? Based on what I have read here, I'm thinking that it will but he will have to transfer his phonebook one entry at a time. Is that correct?? He has 14 days to cancel contract and he definitely wants a phone that will work with the bluetooth system in the 400h. Also, I read a post from somone that said they weren't happy with the quality of the Razr phone. Any comments about that would be appreciated as well. Thanks.

I agree with katz. $45K isn't too bad for a $51,000 vehicle that's basically new. However, when you add the 6.25% sales tax that the buyer has to pay when registering the vehicle, that really throws a monkey wrench into the deal.

Walked into the dealership on a Tuesday evening. Test drove a car. Picked it up from the dealer the next day. Something smells rotten. ← Saw some posts on another forum. Buyers in New York, New Jersey getting $3,000 off sticker. Dealer in Florida advertised in newspaper $3,000 off sticker on all in stock 400h's.

Be sure your accountant takes the (up to) $2,000 tax deduction on your 2005 Form 1040. You earned it by purchasing the vehicle. The deduction can be taken right on the 1040. So, those who don't itemize can take it also. I agree with you on the black dashboard. But, that's just my opinion. No more bashing of the vehicle by me.

In Texas, a black vehicle is hot, hot, hot. Black on black is going to be even more so. Have the front side windows been tinted?? I think $42K is a fair price. If, as I said in an earlier post, if he could get the dealer to show the vehicle as a trade-in and then sell it to you at the trade-in price, you would both win. Some dealers will do it, some won't. For what it's worth, my brother has had his 400h since 7/1. His previous vehicle was, interestingly enough, a Tahoe with 78K miles. He drives a lot so he needs decent gas mileage. He's tickled to death with the mileage he gets from the 400h...consistent mid-20s in 100 degree temps. with A/C going all the time. His vehicle is black with ivory interior. I haven't seen a black interior but it's gotta' be better than the ivory or silver. They are too light in my opinion and show all the dirt. The 400h isn't perfect but it's a very nice car and the engine is very powerful. I drove the vehicle home from the dealership, a 3.5 hour drive. I was very surprised just how powerful it is and the ride was very smooth on Michelin tires. Since the vehicle you are considering is black, I assume it has Michelins. Others have Goodyear Eagles. I'm not a fan of Michelins but, as I said, the ride is smooth. What type of satellite radio did the guy install...VAIStech??? Was it installed by the Lexus dealer???

patt...My apologies. What I found is indeed customerselectionform.pdf. It has 16 items listed. 13 of the 16 items have to do with doors, 1 moonroof, 1 A/C and 1 lighting. Sorry...

My dealer handed me the one for the RX330 and asked for my choices. I asked about the Door Locking settings and wanted to 'try' first before deciding and he was agreeable to that. I then started reading the Owner's Manual and found that this one was described in the manual and I could do it myself. After some difficulty with it, I went back to the dealership and showed them the Owner's Manual instructions. They couldn't do it and was suggesting I let their service people do it with their equipment. 'No Thanks' After some more experimenting, I got it! :P I later showed it to the salesman! I like the option which locks all doors after getting up to about 12 mph! I didn't like starting the car, backing out which locked the doors, and then I'd have to unlock to let my wife get in on the passenger side. Enough of my 'door' experiences. Have you checked the Owner's Manual for the particular settings you're interested in?? ← You can find a pdf file on the web by searching for "lexus door lock settings rx400h." It shows you all the settings available for doors, etc.

The Lexus dealer is approx. 30 minutes from his home. Something he should definitely check into. Thanks.

Given that he's buying a GM vehicle, I doubt the GM dealer's going to want the Lexus on his used car lot. He'll probably wholesale it. Wholesalers aren't very generous so $40,000 might be top dollar. Who knows?? Like I said before, in Texas the sales tax on vehicles is 6.25%. So, a $42,000 offer would equate to $44,625 with the tax savings. Perhaps you could work a deal whereby the current owner trades the 400h in and you buy it from the dealer for the trade-in price plus sales tax??? I have done that in the past. It's a win-win. The guy trading in the vehicle saves the sales tax and you get a good price. The dealer may charge a nominal fee for handling the paperwork, perhaps $50. By the way, snowdale, are you interested in the 400h?? Have you driven it?? What color exterior/interior??

Keep in mind that the "tax break" is a tax DEDUCTION of up to $2,000, not a tax CREDIT. So, the amount of tax savings the person gets depends on what bracket he/she is in. Assuming full $2,000 deduction, 25% bracket = $500 savings on taxes. Also, if you buy it, you'll have to pay the sales tax on the purchase price when you register it. That's another 6.25% which, in this case, is a lot of money. Assuming the vehicle has heated seats and the Levinson, the sticker is $50,705. If no heated seats, deduct $665. The biggest discount I have heard of is $2,000 off sticker on a new one. I agree with katz...$45,000 would be generous. Personally, I would offer $45000/1.0625 = $42,350. Then, you'd be in the vehicle for $45,000 after paying the sales tax. I think that would be a good deal for you and the seller in my opinion. If he traded the vehicle in and got $40,000 for it, he would also save 6.25% sales tax on the deal. $40,000 x 1.0625 = $42,500. Based on that, adjust your offer up to $42,500. I'm not in the car business so this is just my personal opinion FWIW. Perhaps LexKid will post a response. He traded his 400h for a GS so he may have a good feel for the vehicle's value. Wonder why he bought the 400h in the first place???? 2006 Lexus RX400h Base price - $49,060 - Lexus DVD Rear-Seat Entertainment System (RSES) (includes two pairs of wireless headphones [2]) - $1,840 [3] - Heated Front Seats with Rain-Sensing Wipers - $665 [3] - Mark Levinson® [4] 11-speaker, 210-watt [5] Premium Audio System with in-dash, single-feed, six-disc CD changer - $980

Yes, he knows about the hybrid system and how it is different from a "normal" car. He "read up" on it before purchasing the vehicle. That's why he wanted the vehicle, for the hybrid system and the improved fuel mileage. I wouldn't say that he's "adverse to warranty work." He has always owned GM vehicles and he took them to the local GM dealer for warranty work. For non-warranty work, he went to a local independent mechanic that we know. However, the Lexus dealership is not convenient to go to. So, I'm not sure what's going to happen when the vehicle needs dealer service. Of course, he really won't have a choice since only a Lexus or Toyota dealer can work on the hybrid system. At this point, I think the best thing I can do is butt out and let him do as he pleases. It's his car and he's a grownup.

My guess is they wouldn't have wanted to do that, they would want to check the car over well and make sure the battery didnt go because of some issue with the electrical system. ← Steve...excellent point. I am in agreement with you. Unfortunately, the vehicle's owner is averse to any contact with the Lexus dealer. :( At this point, any service is DIY or independent mechanic. My concern about that approach is that, down the road, his vehicle will have poor resale value :( due to lack of dealer service records but I'm unfamiliar with Lexus pre-owned vehicle values. So, I really don't know for sure.

If it has Levinson, it has to have heated seats, right??? I didn't think you could get the Levinson without heated seats?? How does the "standard" stereo compare to the Levinson sound wise?? When you think about it, the vehicle without any added options is very nice and you save $3,000. Of course, half of the $3K is the RSES. :(

In most of the hybrid Forums, people who try to sell their place on WaitLists are not viewed positively. I suppose there might be a few Buyers who might bid on this but to me, the offer is in very poor taste generated by greed IF the offer is for monetary reimbursement. It is worse than a dealership's premium add-on procedure to take advantage of the market. I still am high on a Highlander Hybrid waitlist with a $500 deposit but would not try to "sell" my place even though I probably will not use it. My situation has changed since I now have the Lexus RX 400h. If I decide to not buy another hybrid such as the HH, I will get off the HH WaitList to give the next person in line a chance to buy. ← I don't recall seeing any of the 400h auctions on ebay that ended with anything other than "Reserve not met." That includes the "position" auctions. I wonder if a Lexus dealer would actually give someone's position to someone else based on that position being "sold" to the other person????

"pay retail for it from another dealer" means they supposedly purchased the car from another dealer at the sticker price or something like that. Sounds like they're b.s.ing people to try to inflate the selling price. :chairshot: I know that in the GM world, dealers often "buy" cars from other dealers but they certainly don't "pay retail." When a dealer buys a vehicle from another dealer to satisfy a customer request, they don't make as much on that vehicle because I don't think they get the "holdback" on the vehicle. I think the other dealer gets it.

Where does one find these TSIBs???

Have you checked with other dealers in your area??? There was no waiting here but I'm in Texas. We had several vehicles to choose from back on July 1. Are you asking for a particular color?? Do you want RSES?? I understand RSES is hard to come by in some areas.

Unless the headlights were on. Was the key on acc position? Don't know what postion key was in and I doubt that the headlights were on.

If you have a RX400h, you only need the 3500lb hitch and the wiring harness that comes with it. You don't need any additional converters or parts. The 400h comes with a socket that the wiring harness plugs right in to. I have it all hooked up. If you have a RX330 without the towing prep package you would need the converter. The instructions say you'd have to locate the rear junction box component which is supposedly under the driver-side rear seat (you have to slide the seat forward, fold it down, lift up the carpet flap to get at it) and replace it with the converter. ← speedy...I read the following on another forum: "only thing about putting a PT228-48045 hitch on the 400h is that you discard the two air deflectors in the corners of the rear bumpers. Otherwise its identical." What did you do about the "air deflectors?"

I'm in total agreement with you but it was his decision to pay $52 for a new battery and avoid a trip to the Lexus dealer. Guess he could have called Roadside Assistance and asked that they bring him a replacement battery, huh?? I'm sure they routinely do stuff like that

My brother played the stereo with the doors open for a couple of hours while working on his 400h. After doing so, 12V battery was dead. So, it apparently doesn't take too long if you leave enough stuff on.

You really get old...:whistles: What's this "old" supposed to mean? ← "You really get old :whistles: " means that he's tired of me saying that the 400h has some minor shortcomings because I have done so several times. From now on, I'll keep my opinion to myself.

I vote for nitrous. Then, get custom plates..."Bottle Fed". :D