ticman

Any thougths on use of Rainx or other such products. I always liked Rainx but wonder if something better might be out there. Steve you had mentioned something in an earlier post about Aquapel or something like that. Have you tried it? Mike

I have to agree that a leather scent would be the most preferable. I used to like vanilla but now it makes me gag--lol. Just the smell of a clean car is enough for me. Mike

ACF, no Polish does NOT equal WAX. After using clay bar, you use polish to prepare the surface for waxing. There are a lot of threads and discussions about using a sealant first before waxing as a sealant will last much longer (6 to 9 months) than a wax (1 to 2 weeks). Hope this helps. Mike

Steve, Coat number 2 of Poorboys EX sealant went on this weekend. That stuff is great. Easy to use and looks fantastic. Thanks again, Mike

Ok, We are all entitled to one dumb question a day. Hey if we don't ask we don't learn. How do you "personalize" postings with all that information below the blue line? like type of car and interesting logos etc. I can't seem to figure it out as part of the profile update. Thanks as always, Mike

Hi, Just heard about K & N air and oil filters. Are they worth the price? Do they truly increase gas mileage? Mike

I can live with the cup holders as is. I am a little disappointed in the 03 with the "plastic" piece around the courtesy lights and Home Link buttons. It looks a tad on the cheap side. OTHERWISE I LOVE IT.

Hi All, Sorry, but what is a K&N filter? Thanks, Mike

Hi All, I have 1200 miles on the car. The first tank of gas was from the dealer and was regular gas. I got approx 21 mpg with combo highway/city driving. On Saturday I had to go to Boston. Used regular. All highway driving. Got 24mpg. On Sunday had to go to NYC. Used premium. All highway driving. Got 28mpg. Highway driving for me is 65 to 75 mph. Comments and/or thoughts on both type of gas to use and mpg that you are getting. Thanks, Mike

In Connecticut both front and rear plates are required. On previous ES 300's I just had the front plate on without any holder. Many time when I walked in front of the car after it was parked in the garage I would catch my leg on the corner of the plate. Results--torn pants on occasion and a bent license plate. When I got my new car this July, I purchased an inexpensive plain black metal holder from WalMart and put in on the front. Voila! Looks great (especially after I rubber malleted the license plate flat again) and no more catching my pants. Lexus does sell plate covers for $35. They looked ok but too pricey. I prefer the understated look. LOL Take care all, Mike :)

LOL After the auto shut off I top off the tank to the next 25 cents. Don't know why--guess I like my gas bills to be in multiples of $.25 Go figure

While detailing my car I noticed on both sides of the read door frame, just in front of the rear tire wells, 2 strips of tape approximately 6 to 8 inches in length. Totally same color as the car but definitely tapes. What are they? Should I remove them? Thanks, Mike

H8R Proof, I used Dawn to strip the car of any wax that was on the car, as I was going to clay it, polish it, put a sealant on it and also wax it. For NORMAL washing I would only use a good car wash product. Claying removes impurities in the paint finish. Go to GOOGLE and search for detailing clay It will give u a great explanation. I bought the Clay Magic Bar from Premiumautocare.com. Think of the clay as a big rubber eraser. I used it with the soapy Dawn water after I had washed and rinsed the car the first time. The soap acted as the lubricant. It was a very quick and easy process and I couldn't believe how smooth the finish was. I then polished the car; sealed it and hope to wax it this weekend. The sealant is a longer lasting product than wax. Waxing from what I can determine from the mulitude of posting in here, really only lasts for a few weeks. A good sealant will last 6 to 9 months. Waxing on top of a sealant provides for a more vibrant shine and does add some additional protection. Even before waxing I find that my car is a smooth as glass. Truly unbelievable. Hawaiian towels LOL check out www.pakshak.com. Great microfiber towels and drying towels too. Now if I have misstated anything I am sure that Steve will set the record straight. I got most of the information I am giving you from him. Good luck, Mike

AMF1932, Thanks for the update and your experience so far. Mike

Sounds like lions and tigers and bears oh my! At 10:00 a.m. the UPS truck showed up and dropped off my order from premiumautocare.com. It is now 6:30 p.m. here. So what did I do with my day. LOL First I washed the car with Dawn Then I clayed the car--what an unbelievable result. Smooth as glass and so so easy to do. Then I washed the car again using Meguires car wash. Of course I had to dry it with a variety of super absorbant micro fiber towels. My towels from Hawaii haven't arrived yet. Then I polished the car with Meguires Then I used Poorboys sealant EX with carnuba wax. Fantastic product--easy on and easy off and what a shine. I can shave by the shine on my Silver ES. I cleaned all the windows; the tires; and the dash using a variety of products recommended by Steve from D. C. I did not have time to wax with PS 100. May tackle that tomorrow. Right now I am tired but very impressed with the results I was able to get. Again my thanks to Steve (SW03ES). He was patient and had great ideas. Good luck all. Mike

AMF, How about letting us know how it goes with the new software? Thanks, Mike

I can sympathize with you but am not having the same problems, albeit I only have 500 miles on the car. My first tank of gas (regular from the dealer) gave me 22 mpg doing town driving. No problem with transmission as mentioned in a number of postings. My dealer, with whom I have done business since 1993, would never do the 3 week run a round you got regarding the door issue and the seams on the seat would be taken care of asap. Excellent dealership--Balise in Springfield, MA. Don't take NO for an answer.

good luck and thanks for the update. I will look forward to hearing what you have found out. I have my 1000 mile the end of the month. Mike

I try and wash my car once or twice a week. If the weather doesn't change soon in Connecticut (raining for a week now), I may get car wash withdrawl. :D

SK LOL we must be of different generations--it was China for me when I was growing up. Mike

Welcome! Enjoy your Lexus--It's a great car and you will have a lot of fun with it. Yes this forum is really quite remarkable. People are very helpful in answering quesitons and offering advice. I too am new to the forum. you mentioned a CL forum. Could you tell me what that is. Thanks and good luck to you. Mike

Steve, You and I are on the same wavelength regarding leasing vs purchase. From reading many of the posts I don't think the others truly understand the leasing process. More likely it's the rent vs own obstacle. The time value of money (albeit the stock market has not been very kind to me)and the fact that cars are depreciating assets made the decision to lease an easy one for me. As I mentioned before I am on my 5th ES300 lease since 1993. I am glad there was a bodystyle change as I was getting a tad tired of the same style more or less. I need front wheel drive where I live and the other models didn't have it. I looked at Mercedes and BMW's and still came back to Lexus all things considered. I had a 2001 ES300 with the lease expiring in December of this year. Lexus came out with a "deal" of allowing me to turn in my car up to six months early without penalty if I leased or purchased another Lexus. Because money rates are so low right now, I was able to get a new car 5 months early and actually reduce my monthly lease payment. Out of pocket cost was re-registering my license plates. Mike

Thanks for the info SK for your comments and "off the wall" suggestions. LOL When you mentioned Meguires FINAL INSPECTION--Is that different than their Quick Detailing product?? Thanks again, Mike

Any tips or suggestions on what is best to use for drying a newly washed car? Microfiber towel? Chamois? Always interested in hearing suggestions from this group. I find it very informative. Mike

Thanks Steviej. I did a search and for the first time I actually found what I was looking for. LOL. Still new to this site and all the features it offers. I only have 400 miles on the car and haven't noticed any of the hesitations that you mentioned. The natural shifting position for the car from reverse seems to be DRIVE. I may just leave it there and see what happens. Thanks again Mike