branshew

After a while of driving German, I'm back in the LOC again. I am set to take delivery tomorrow of an '02 ES300. It was a little older than I wanted in an ES, but the mileage is low so I guess that makes up for the years. I had been hunting for 3 months for a decent low mileage LS400 and couldn't find one so I opted for the ES instead. I took my last ES over 225K miles before I sold it and I am hoping for the same with this one. Can anyone tell me what options packages were available for the '02? The car has Nav, ML stereo w/ CD changer, rain sensing wipers, heated seats, HIDs, rear sunshade... I was wondering if I am missing anything (other than the suspension option).

Why not look on flea bay?

I'm quite positive of that. It had what I believe are italian stickers on the back and the driver was wearing a non-US military uniform - probably part of a NATO detachment that operates locally.

Saw this on the road to work this morning. Someone had imported it from Europe (still had the Euro plates on it). Reminded me a little of the MB RL class. It was much better looking in person. With all of the crossovers hitting the market today, I wouldn't be suprised if we see it here sooner rather than later. I still wish Lexus made a wagon. I hate SUVs and I'm not a huge fan of Minivans either (although my wife has a Sienna).

Ditto that. Dom, although good, is somewhat overrated and Cristal (good too) has too many negative connotations in my book now that the Rap set has glorified it.\ I think for general drinking (when you don't want to shell out $100+ per bottle) that Veuve Cliquot yellow label brut is decent and readily available. There are tons of small Champagne houses all over the region in France producing top tier quality bottlings that we'll never get to see or taste here in the US as their production numbers are so limited. I was fortunate enough to tase a few last time I was in France (but not smart enough to bring some back). I've also had some decent sparklers from the new world.

Sounds like BS to me unless the tube was affected by the accident and didn't get put back inthe right place when the repair was done - in that case - have the body shop fix it for free. Most of them have lifetime warranties on their repair work anyway. If it was something that wasn't associated w/ the accident then nail them to the wall until they fix it.

While I do think that the styling is 1000% better than previous Lancers, unless it's the EVO I'm not interested.

I have an '02 Passat 4 cyl and I have never had any issues. They had a lot of problems with a faulty batch of coil packs in early production, but that problem would have reared its head and been fixed by now in any used car. The 1.8T engine had a sludge problem if not maintained properly (i.e. change the oil when prescribed), but Toyota/Lexus also had a sludge problem on their V6 engines. Honda has serious transmission issues in the TL, Accord, Odyssey, & Pilots so it goes to show that you can have potential problem areas with any manufacturer. I used to be a firm believer in Consumer Reports, but I have come to disagree with a lot of their conclusions - especially on cars. Their reliability ratings are only based on their subscriber base and not the general population of cars on the road. They nitpick on minor details or things that should be obvious to begin with like when they criticized the Toyota Highlander for having a very small 3rd row seat. No *BLEEP* - WTF did they think it was going to be like in the back of a compact SUV- it's not a Suburban? They complain about most cars HID lamps having a sharp cutoff (OK - so we should all go back to halogen lamps instead??) Here's what they had to say about the new GS: "The shifter's zigzag gate is a bit awkward to navigate." Come on...

What? I don't mind fragmented sentences, but I can't make heads or tails of what you are asking.

I can't believe that I'm actually following this thread... Take some sage advice from someone who's been there So Tim's a !Removed!, but you're an even bigger !Removed! for trying to move in on his girl. You wouldn't want someone doing that to you. He's probably only a !Removed! to you anyway since he sees you trying to move in. Maybe he doesn't have all of the material things that you do, but that doesn't make him less of a person or less of a boyfriend to Alex. Think about it like this - he's obviously got something that you don't (other than Alex) or he wouldn't be where he is.... You could go around strutting your feathers and rolling out your Dad's GX, but that's all show and good for Alex if she recognizes it. If she hops ship because you're driving a GX then she's probably not the kind of girl you want anyway. Even if you did hook up or date or whatever - chances are that you wouldn't make it through your first year apart at school - they probably won't either so wait until next summer. Rya's right. You should be out chasing everything you can and have a blast. Don't waste your time on something that you can't have. You don't realize it now, but life is short! Don't wallow in your sorrows about a girl or you'l;l completely regret it when you're older. I remember my summer between HS and college. My girl for 3 years just broke up w/ me and I was initially devistated, but once I got past it - it was one of the best summers of my life. The girls, the parties.... I wouldn't have had 1/2 the fun I did had I still been with her or even trying to get her back. Find a friend w/ a good fake ID and have a blast. I could tell some crazy stories.....

It always kills me to see people posting on car websites that can't even drive yet (legally)? No offense meant at all - it's just sort of humerous to me. An Accord would be a good car for you. I wish my first car was an Accord. My $0.02 would tell you to also check out a VW Passat. You can easily find a 2003-2004 in your price range, and they're common w/ leather, heated seats, etc. in the 4 cyl version. The 4cyl is turbocharged and they are a lot more fun to drive than an Accord or Camry. They are also a lot less "middle age man" type cars. While the Passat probably isn't quite as reliable as the Accord overall, my Passat has been very good to me and I have only done the scheduled maintenance and fixed the wear & tear items on it as required (brakes, Tires, T-Belt, etc...). Besides - your dad can afford the repairs... The Passats also come w/ 6 airbags standard and a 5 star safety rating, traction control, etc. The fit and finish also seems more upscale than a Camry or Accord. I'm no schill for VW, but I think that you would be doing yourself a disservice by at least not looking into one. Drive the Accord First, then drive the Passat and tell me which car you like more...

I don't really care that much, but it sounds to me like you're trying to move in on his girl and that's why he's a !Removed! to you. I would be too. Look at it from his POV for a minute and you'll look like an !Removed!. Not to be rude here, but - couldn't you guys just discuss this saved by the bell crap on e-mail or IM or something other than dedicating a forum post to this.

From my quick search it looks like you'd need to spend over $100K to get something suitable inside the Watertown limits. Most nicer residences w/ similar sq. ft. are in the $175K-$300K range depending on location. Maybe he'll flip it and make some $.

Down here that would run you about $400K in a decent neighborhood. Be glad you don't live in CA where it would probably be closer to $750K. 10% down in a few months would help you out way more than $1000. We put down $20K on our first house which was a little over 10%. Ask your mortgage person about an 80 10 10 setup and you should be able to avoid paying PMI. If your wife is on the loan, make sure she has good credit too. You do NOT want an ARM. It may look good now, but in a few years when the rate hike hits it will hurt. I'm no mortgage expert and I don't have a crystal ball, but I would expect to see a rate hike here soon if inflation keeps creeping up so look to make your move sooner rather than later.

They are. I had a chance to drive an SL55 and an E55 on a closed track at the Va. International Raceway a few years ago at a Mercedes "On Track" event. They had other models there as well, but why bother when you can get behind the wheel of an SL 55. I never understood the ML55 concept though. Go fast in a straight line, but don't expect to corner too well with such a high center of gravity.

That's not the "moral" that I took away with Mercedes ownership and I hope it's not the one you took away from just driving your friend's E350. Don't confuse Prestige with Power (or Pedigree). I agree that Mercedes has continually made bulletproof engines that have an excellent torque curve on the low end and keep pushing through to the top. I also think that they have some of the best looking cars out there right now. I had a '99 C280 and it was a really nice car (in some ways I still miss it). It was fun to drive, had great pickup, and was an overall solid and well designed and built car. I loved that car, but the problem was that some of the components were garbage. MAF sensors, stereo head unit, climate control head unit, ball joints...) I expect wear and tear maintenance items on a car, but to pay that much money for a car with those problems became annoying after a while. My old 95 ES300 with 2x the mileage was more reliable with better component design. I don't mind paying more if I can see the value in what I am buying, but there's not too much value in a hood ornament. What Mercedes has is a Pedigree. In the past, they have designed and built some of the world's best automobiles and charged accordingly for them. But the past doesn't always hold true for the future (or the present). Throughout the 1990's and early 2000's they relied heavily on their Pedigree, but weren't delivering up to their namesake (many long time owners will attest to this - even though they still bought the cars). This was why my Dad bought his first LS 400. It's like buying a racehorse. You pay more for the lineage, but there's no guarantee that foal will be the next Kentucky Derby winner. It could get hurt or not be a runner at all. Some people like being able to say that their filly is the duaghter of Giacomo (i.e. that they paid a lot for their horse) even if it is a nag - just like some people want you to know that they paid a lot for their car (I'm certainly not saying that all Mercedes owners are like that). Perhaps that Pedigree brings them some Prestige, but it's a pretty sad statement as to how shallow someone is if they buy a car for it's Prestige. Why is that "kinda sad?" Honda doesn't make a comparable car or truck for every Toyota but I don't see anything wrong with that. Lexus doesn't make a car to compete with every Mercedes that is out there and I doubt that they ever will. The other German brands have started to play that game (BMW's new 6, Audi's new A5 & Q7, etc...), but I doubt even BWM and Audi will ever make that many models. Some of those cars are such small sales segment cars like the CLK, CLS, or CL. I just don't see it as being part of the Lexus business plan.

It looks like they're trying. Here's the latest JD Power rankings. The S-Class and A8 top the LS 460, and several other Benz models are ranked near the top in their segments. http://www.jdpower.com/press-releases/pres...aspx?id=2007088

I had a Plymouth "Reliant K" when I was 17 or so - a terrible American lemon. Went to a Chevy P/U that was great and then someone hit me and totalled it. I was handed down a mercury Topaz while in college. Damn car had so many problems, but the transmission went out at 62K miles. I will never, ever buy another American car.

As a Tech graduate myself, I can say that it is an immense tragedy. After the useless deaths, what saddens me the most is that VT will now be remembered for that one reason alone and not for all of the positive things that the school has accomplished over the years. It will be the Kent State of the 21st century and that is a stigma that Tech can do without. It would have been nearly impossible to shut down the tech campus after the first shooting in the morning. Everyone that has ever been there knows how large the campus is. Even if they did shut it down and cancelled classes, that would have left the shooter in his dorm with the same number of potential victims in close proximity. Instead of a class room massacre it would have been a dormroom massacre. I am all in favor of handgun control. Handguns were made for one reason and one reason alone - to kill someone. As a hunter, I know firsthand that you can't really hunt with one. I own several shotguns and a nice rifle and I don't want to ban all guns. While Subarbazine does raise an interesting point, if we were to follow that logic, we may as well return to the wild west. What if I had been there with a gun and shot the killer and then someone else with a gun saw me kill him and assumed that I was the killer and shot me? Where does it end? Fighting violence with more violence isn't the answer. Gun control isn't the only factot though. The state of VA should have never allowed this guy to buy a gun given his mental history so that was a huge mistake there. His history should have been documented and someone should have followed up to make sure he was getting counseling. The University should have taken his writings more seriously and they should have kicked him out if he wasn't getting the tretment he was required to seek regardless of his privacy. Everyone complains about their "rights" in this country. I'm sorry, but your right to privacy and your right to own a gun do not supercede someone else's right to live! You can lay blame everywhere, but nothing will ultimately happen. Our media is so nearsighted they are already looking for the next violence glorifying cover story and they lack the competence or will to follow up on this and continue to ask the tough questions that will see to it that something does get done. The Va. Tech motto is "Ut Prosim" (That I May Serve). I hope that all tech graduates will band together and serve the memory of these students and their great university and make these issues the forefront.

That is Incorrect! If someone at the dealersip told you that they should be fired. Anything with VVTi (which debuted on the '98 LS400) is an interference type motor. Take a look at some of the other forums. Just about all manufacturers are using some type of interference engine these days. It is an easy way to get more power, and or better fuel economy with the same (or less) overall displacement.

Those pictures are definitely of the new Landcruiser (which will obviously resemble the new LX). You can tell by the overall size and width when comparing it to the LC sitting next to it. I have seen some better pictures somewhere, including a side and rear profile. I'll search around and see if I can find a link to them.

Go to http://www.autoweek.com for a better picture than the spy shots that have been posted recently. It is their 3rd story behind the new Jeep & Ford. I'll have to see this one in person before making any assessments. The fender flares over the wheels remind me a lot of the newer Mitsubishi Monteros which I don't like at all. As much as I hate to say it, it also has a RAV 4ish styling look to it, but on a larger scale.

I don't know where you are, but both cars seem a little pricey for what I have seen around here. NC has a very valid point about the suspension on the LS. Both cars are low mileage, how do the interiors look? Have they been maintained? If you had the $ to repair the suspension if it were to go out then I'd go w/ the LS. Anything lowered sends up a flag for me.

I call BS on #2

Me too. Bought a Samsung monitor and threw it out 6 months later with light use.........p.o.s. Not to digress and hop on the bandwagon, but... I bought a Samsung plasma TV back in November 06. 3 1/2 Weeks later it developed a line of dead pixels about 3 inches off the bottom. Fortunately I was lucky enough to be within Best Buy's 30 day return policy. Traded it in for a Panasonic and it's a much better TV. I think that the !Removed! are still better in terms of cars and electronics. Now back to the topic at hand: I agree w/ SW03ES in that as long as they call it a Hyundai it won't be respected. Look at the VW Phaeton. A very nice car that comes near the A8, but as long as it has the VW badge, very few people are willing to pay $80K for it.