diegan

Hi. I'm new to this forum. I'm all the way residing in Saudi Arabia and has recently purchased 2007 ES 350. Didn't know where to come so joined you guys! so welcome me...everyone clap clap. thank you. Now, lets get started...

Sound quality of the car is decent. I gave my car fro service here and they gave a me a 2006 GS300 which also has M&L sound system and it rocks big time!! Is it becuase it's a GS? OR it doesn't give that bass punch in my '07 ES for some reason. I'm thinking of changing my sub woofer. any comments?

I have the ML package and I can tell you it's the best automobile stereo experience I've ever had, including bass. I have a particular CD that has a pounding bass that I never heard on my home entertainment system but it absolutely vibrates through me in my ES 350. Perhaps a manual adjustment. BTW, does the NAV in your car display Saudi maps and location content? Just wondering.

Much as I hate to admit it, I'm now convinced that the NAV system I purchased with my 2005 Acura TSX(Acura's latest navigation version minus the XM Traffic option available with the RL) is superior in quality, for several reasons: it has superior voice recognition, more timely direction prompts and fewer navigation errors compared to my ES 350. In every other respect, however, I have more fun driving my ES 350 UL ML-NAV than any car I have ever owned, including my RX 330 and IS 300.

Sorry fellas, I don't agree with your feelings comparing the GS with the ES. For the past month I've been driving my cousins '06 GS300AWD with less then 2K miles on the odometer, and after putting on about 1K miles, on both city & highway, I came to these conclusions. The ride was hard.......I always felt cramped in the drivers seat......my rear passengers didn't like the hump in the middle(drive train), and also the lack of leg room........the trunk was too small.....and rattles developed in the dash. These tradeoffs for a more sporty driving car left me with very negative feelings! On the other hand, when I went back to my ES350 I once again felt like I was being coddled in a car that gave me, and my passengers a much more spacious feeling........a much smoother, quieter ride. Every one of my passengers definitely preferred driving in the ES over the GS. The secondary things like the shape of the oval dashboard or the carpeting did not bother anybody in the least, including myself. Aaah.....it was like a breath of fresh air jumping back to my old ES350. So there! :)

I absolutely agree with you. I have been driving an Acura TSX since 2005 (I bought it because I liked the technology for the price) and although I know I'm comparing apples and oranges, every time I slide behind the wheel of my ES 350, I'm in love all over again. I really like the dash, instrument cluster and overall styling of the interior. I was disappointed that the ashtray came standard. I would have preferred a power outlet and another storage area. I also concur that Acura's voice recognition software appears better than Lexus voice recognition and hope that's fixable with a software upgrade at some point soon. In terms of exterior styling, ride, room, etc, I could't be more pleased. I have had the opportunity to compare to other Lexus vehicles including my former RX 330 and IS 300, and I prefer the interior of my ES 350 to those hands down. I also prefer the styling to that of the GS. As a techie, I wish the ES 350 had offered the LS new "auto-park" feature but I bet that option is one of the many reasons the LS tops out at $82G.

I will be leasing a ES-350 soon. Just wanted to see how much you paid for your ES-350 and what deals are available.

I ordered an ES 350 in San Diego with UL package-NAV-ML in the Ruby Red Metallic color with cashmere interior, waited about 8 weeks and was able to negotiate $2000 off of MSRP from the dealership. (just over 42K plus tax). Another area dealership had committed to the same discount which I thought was pretty reasonable given that the car was ordered and only 11 UL ES 350's were produced for this model year in the color I selected. I couldn't be happier with the car. The only option I didn't select was the dynamic "smart" cruise control...the idea that the computer decides when and how much to slow down on approaching another vehicle was a little too unsettling for me. For SW03ES: Your color reminds me a lot of mine, I never owned a a car this color before and can't figure out why I've waited so long. Sorry to hear about the relative non-availability of UL ES 350s on the East Coast. I know my wait was worth it. I've never enjoyed driving a car more and I've been the past owner of both an IS 300 and an RX330. Hope you're still considering taking the plunge. I'll post some pix of my car soon!