jragosta

ROTFLMAO. I guess they figure that some people would rather pay $567 (plus installation and tax) rather than live with a small scratch.

Slow, painful torture?

Heck, I'd just call your local shop anyway. Any Lexus dealer would honor the warranty on a new Lexus you purchased somewhere else, so it wouldn't be unreasonable to ask them to fix a car repaired elsewhere. You might call the other dealer first and ask them to agree to pay for the repair at your local dealer.

I would say it depends. If the dealer who installed it got the timing belt off by one tooth, he should fix it at no charge. If the problem is something else, it could cost you. I'd first verify that the drop in mileage is real - you'll need to know the mileage under identical conditions. Your original statement makes me feel like it may be a vague feeling rather than hard documentation. Still, even with the feeling that the mileage had dropped, a good dealer would probably have a look at it.

But let's put it in persepctive. That $500 isn't going to get him all that much extra performance. You're just not going to turn an ES into a hot rod - unless you bolt on a turbocharger, modify the exhaust, and so on. Even then, the amount of performance vs dollars spent isn't going to be all that impressive.

Yeah, it's a bummer, but at some point you have to let it go. It's only a car - and not worth having a stroke over.

Yeah, I forgot to mention the Infiniti G35. It's about halfway between the Acura TL and Lexus ES330 in both sportiness and luxuriousness. However, some people don't like the seats, so be sure to take an extended test drive.

Wow. You need a new dealer. That's twice what I pay for a full 5,000 mile service - including tire rotation, fluid fills, other maintenance, and checking all the hoses and belts.

$400 every 5,000 miles? Seems pretty high - even if you were using Australian or Canadian dollars. My 25,000 mile service was $227.43 - and that included 4 wheel alignment for $99.99 20,000 miles was $128.86 Yes, you can save a few dollars, but not all that much. Oh, and btw, you run the risk of doing a boatload of damage if you put in inferior parts (can you say 'K&N Aif filter'?) or install something wrong.

Because every time I've looked at a CPO, the price was too close to the price of a new one. I'm not willing to accept a used car with 20 K miles to save $2-3,000. ← Sometimes you have to turn to CPO to get "what you want." Say someone HATED the new lights and features of the 05 Es330's and liked the 04's better. They would most likely look for a CPO 04 that was in good condition, and save a few $$$ there. Just to get what they want. I just recently bought a 2003 CPO rx300 for my daughter because she wants the rx300. Unfortunatly (well not really LOL) they don't make the rx300's anymore, so the 03 was the newest. Therefore CPO is looking kinda great!! ← I guess that makes sense. I can't recall ever being that much in love with one feature, though. Also, if I were in that situation, I'd still probably buy new - even if I had to buy a different car. I just don't like the idea of paying nearly new prices for used cars.

Because every time I've looked at a CPO, the price was too close to the price of a new one. I'm not willing to accept a used car with 20 K miles to save $2-3,000.

It depends. Lexus wins on ride quality and low noise levels. They have (on average) better quality and I like the way you're treated at the dealer. Other than the Lexus dealer's propensity to say that 'it's designed that way' to any problem in your car - from bad shifting to seat memory forgetting its position. On the other hand, at least Acura knows how to make a car that shifts properly. Also, Acura has more power, better handling, and more options for the money. Basically, if you can live with the crappy shifting on the Lexus and want a quiet ride, get the Lexus. If you want performance and handling or can't stand the shifting on the Lexus, get the Acura. As for Lexus certified - I'd never buy one. You don't save enough money to make up for the fact that you're buying an older car.

This has been stated repeatedly before. Stay away from K&N. They do not offer the degree of filtration you need and could potentially damage your engine. Someone gave data showing that K&N let particles through - causing your oil to become contaminated more quickly than a paper filter. Furthermore, someone provided data in this forum showing that K&N didn't even provide any better air flow than a good paper filter. Search the archives and you'll see what I mean. K&N is a wonderful testimony to a marketing person being able to convince people to spend money on something that's actually bad for them.

I guess I needed to give it a little longer. I've driven about 300-400 miles now and it's much better. Still not what it should be, but the clunking and hard shifts that appeared when they reprogrammed are nearly gone. I guess it didn't like my driving style until it adapted. Overall, it's much better and I'd recommend it to anyone who's having the problem. If you're happy with the way yours drives, don't bother.

Pretty much everything that belongs in a filing cabinet. Shes an attorney, and has a lot of papers etc. to lug around everywhere. Yet her office is so clean??? LOL Also anything she needs to carry around obviously...Suits, jackets from the cleaners etc. The hook on the door is no longer attached don't know where it went. I found a few bottles of empty (thank god) soda cans and McDonald's cups (thank my daughter for that) and i also found $10 in change LOL... It's just a mess; i don't know how she can drive around in that car!!! Not like she cares; as long as it has 4 wheels, can accelerate faster than she can walk..it's "just" a car...$40,000 and it's just a car..makes me mad... :o ← I think we can work out a deal that will make everyone happy. I'll trade you my 2000 Chevy Cavalier for it. Since your wife only wants 4 wheels and an engine, she won't care. She WILL, however, be happy because you'll quit nagging her about the condition of her car. Since you can't stand to see your beautiful Lexus abused, you'll be happy. And you probably don't need me to tell you why I'd be happy. See? Everyone wins.

Hmm.......I guess that I'm the only one that is happy with my Bridgestone's on my '03ES. :( So far I have about 14K miles on these tires, and the tread looks excellent, and they're really very quiet and smooth rolling. The wet & dry traction is also very good. Believe it or not, my '94ES came equipped with Michelin tires, and I wasn't that impressed with the tread life, noise, and traction. In fact at 30K miles I changed them to Pirelli P6000 tires which in my opinion were better all around. ← I have Bridgestones on my 04 ES. I don't think they're terrible tires, but I'm not very impressed. My biggest complaint is that they're noisy. Tire noise appears to be the biggest source of noise in the car. On the plus side, several people here said that the life would be terrible. I've got 25,000 miles and still have 6 / 32 left (11/32 new). Still, I'll probably replace them with something quieter this fall.

Aside from what everyone else recommended, be sure to bring a good map, first aid kit, and pen/paper for notes. Also make sure your cell phone coverage is OK and you're not going to get charged a fortune for roaming (or just don't use it other than an emergency if you have to pay roaming). The only other recommendation I have is that if you can afford the time, take your time and don't rush through. There are lots of nice things to see between Omaha and Hartford. If you can add a day or two, you can make the trip a lot more enjoyable. I remember my first cross country road trip. Ithaca, NY to San Francisco - in a 1986 Honda Civic. Aside from the tiny size of this car, I had to keep a case of oil in the back seat since we were stopping every hour to add oil (I managed between 60 and 80 miles per quart). :-) Have fun.

I just got it done on my ES 330. It is somewhat improved, but still not the way a $35 K car should shift. It's probably gone from a Yugo quality transmission to a Chevy Cobalt quality transmission. The most dangerous part (the long lag when accelerating from 35-40 mph to highway speed) is dramatically better, but it still clunks a lot and shifts very hard. I've only driven it a couple days, so maybe it's still learning and will get better.

That doesn't mean your fuel economy is best there. If you do a carefully controlled test, you'll find that your economy is better at 100 km/hr than at 120 - and still better if you drop to around 80-90 km/hr. This is all about simple physics.

Congratulations. You've just rewritten the laws of physics. Virtually everything you've written is wrong. The fuel economy at 100 mph is far, far worse than at 70 - or 55.

I didn't say that you should drive that speed. I said that the fuel economy was highest there. The most economical speed is the slowest one you can tolerate. :-)

For most modern cars, the highest mileage will be around 45-50 mph. The energy required just to push air out of the way increases as the square of velocity. You can easily test it yourself.

Sounds great. I'm having mine done next week. I hope it works!!

If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. I wouldn't EVER run a car that long on an oil change. Your engine will cost you thousands of dollars to replace. It's not worth saving a few dollars. And, yes, I'm sure I'll hear from a few people who say 'I use it and haven't had problems'. Sorry, that doesn't prove that it's safe.

It doesn't look like there's a fix. After my last service visit, I sent in the questionnaire about their service. I pointed out that I was particularly offended when Lexus tells me that clearly defective behavior is normal - this is what they told me both over the transmission problem and the fact that the seat memory doesn't go back to the same position. I got a call today from their customer support and explained my concerns. She re-iterated that they don't have a fix for the problem - and implied that there will never be one. Now, it's possible that they simply never told their customer support people about the latest flash, but I doubt it. Considering all the complaints, you'd think that they'd tell them about the new patch - if it really fixed the problem.