ramblnman

GPS gives your computer its' current location, but without updated map data it doesn't know whether or not there is a road there.

I fly with GPS, but I use Jeppview to land and takeoff.

What's odd is that I can go to Mapquest.com

and it will direct me to my front door with

no problem. Do they utilize the same data as

GPS?

I live in one of those gated communities

for the filthy rich. I keep a Garmin portable GPS in my Camry.

When I am coming home it instructs me to turn off the main

highway into the entrance. After that it gives me the wrong

directions to my house. With the NAV system in my RX350 as

I near the entrance to my community it announces that it cannot

give me turn by turn instructions in that particular area.

Why the difference between the 2 systems and I thought

the guidance originated from one place USAF satellites?

I just had clear bra installed on my RX350 this

past Friday so I can't comment yet on its

effectiveness. Down here in Florida your car

becomes a bug cemetary whereever you drive so I felt it was a necessary item.

Have you looked in the manual? Your garage door opener may be of a rolling code, which requires a few more steps.

Thanks for your feedback. The Lexus guy just

left my house. It took him 2 minutes to do the

programming.

The manual for my new RX350 says 30 PSI.

I've read where 35 PSI would provide longer

tire life and better gas mileage at the expense of a slightly harder ride.

Opinions appreciated.

I was interested in that color, but once the

dealer told me it was greenish I lost interest.

I think the reason you don't see Desert Sage

on the lots is that it's not popular. I wound

up with Savannah Metallic, a light gold.

I saw the 08s on my Toyota dealer's lot today.

It's not a bad looking vehicle. but sorely lacking in the muscular department. Not as

macho as the RX or 4-Runner for that matter.

An SUV that looks well suited if you want to

project a family image IMO. Hyundai has outdone Toyota as far as styling goes with its

Santa Fe and Vera Cruz.

I just had my Camry serviced at my dealership

and they convinced me to spend $29.95 to

have the tires inflated with nitrogen rather

than plain old air. They said the tire retains

its pressure 4X better, wears longer and you

get better mileage, handling and ride. Money

down the drain or worthwhile spent.

My Controls ---> Edit Personal Profile Information.

Thanks Rya, it done worked.

Oh yeah, one more question on my personal profile, how do I add a second vehicle that I may own? Thanks

You would do that the same way, but on the vehicle line, add a comma after the first vehcle. AFter the comma, enter the second vehicle. Any time! :D

Once again I thank you for your help. Can you

picture me trying to figure out the NAV

system? Heck the cupholders baffle me.

My Controls ---> Edit Personal Profile Information.

Thanks Rya, it done worked.

Oh yeah, one more question on my personal profile, how do I add a second vehicle that I may own? Thanks

My Controls ---> Edit Personal Profile Information.

Thanks Rya, it done worked.

I'm trying to figure out how to change my

profile i.e. change vehicles? Can anyone walk

me through the process?

I took delivery of an 08 RX350 today. No matter how I struggle and strive trying to

program the Homelink my garage door won't

operate so I have to use the separate remote

that came with the door. I have the same

problem with my wife's 07 Camry. Can anybody tell me what the problem might be?

Lexus has offered to come to my house and

do the programming, but I'd hate for them

to make a 2 hour RT for something that

might be ridiculously simple.

well, most likely it will be in august/september. Probably will get some of the small touches from the RX350, like the chrome door handles. If i were you, i would wait for an '09 if possible. if you cant wait a year and a half, get the '08. Getting a later model means a better resale value and also all the bugs should be gone. good luck.

I believe the 09 400H will only come in a 7

passenger conformation.

My 2006 manual that minimum octane rating of 89 is recommended. This means that Lexus allows mid-grade to be used. I will look up the exact words, this weekend.

Perhaps the 07s have higher compression engines and need higher octane fuel? If so, I am glad we have an 06!

With the HP increase for 07 and moreso for 08 premium is required for the RX.

If you drive a 400H 6K miles a year and I a 350

the same mileage yes you are greener than me. However if someone else is driving the H

12K a year then I am sticking it to Osama more than he is. You can spin it anyway you like. Besides I can always buy carbon credits

like Al Gore and burn more energy than any

10,000 normal people.

I'm going to place a special order on an 08

RX400H this week for which I will probably have to wait 4-6 months for delivery.

I am going to trade in an 04 4-Runner which should fetch about 19.5K as of today. The problem is by the time the new car comes in the 08 4-Runners will arrive and my vehicle will then be worth around 17.5K. I wonder if there is a way I could turn the Toyota into the Lexus dealer now and make a deal on a

loaner or something. Any ideas out there?

Hmmm, we sold our '02 Range Rover, all bells & whistles, 70K miles 2 years ago for $11K. It's way more of a gas hog, but much pricier ... so ... curious about how realistic the 19.5 K was for the '04 4-Runner I looked up expired ebay prices.

Here's an '03 that DID sell ... meaning the price was deemed good:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/L-K-4-RUNNE...1QQcmdZViewItem

Here's an '04, that didn't sell ... meaning the price was deemed unrealistic:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/04-Toyota-4...1QQcmdZViewItem

There's another '04 on the expired lists that didn't sell either .... for $1,600 less than the one above, but it wasn't fully loaded. We tried ebay for our Range Rover, and couldn't even get a bite at $11K ... so it ultimately sold in the local autotrader. Bottom line ... sell local for more $$$ and buy national to save a boat load ... even if you have to pay $1,000 for shipping, it'll likely be a better deal.

We bought our '06 RX-400h (lease return) on ebay in '06 paying out the door, $42K with all the bells & whistles minus rear DVD's. It had appx 10K miles on it. So even after the added 1K shipping, it was a great price. Just something to consider.

$19,500 was the KBB tradein value for an 04 in good

condition. Perhaps I could have gotten another

thousand or two if I had tried to sell it myself, but I

didn't want the headaches of dealing with weirdos

and such. Inasmuch as I paid 2K less for the new

vehicle than Edmunds says people in my area were

paying I am satisfied.

Following is a letter to the editor of Car and Driver magazine a few months back. I think it states the case for choosing a hybrid quite well.

"In your long-term 2006 Lexus RX400h AWD story (April 2007), you use a common financial argument which suggest that buying hybrids often doesn't pay. In doing so, you miss a huge point that does our nation and our troops abroad a disservice.

You write, "Assuming premium gasoline stays at $2.39 a gallon, it would take more than 91,000 miles of driving the RX400h to recoup that $3800 difference in base price compared with the RX350. That's a lot of driving. Purely on a financial basis, it doesn't make sense to pay the extra money for the RX400h, unless you're thinking it will help save the planet."

No! The issue is not just how much money one saves or spends but also where that money goes. In other words, even if I don't drive 91,000 miles, I'd rather give a little extra money to a hybrid automaker, realizing that in doing so I'm sending less money to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

Environmental issues aside, any effort that saves gasoline reduces the money we send to the largely unfriendly countries from whom we purchase oil and the anti-American cause they often fund or support."

C'mon guys, drive the 400H because you enjoy doing so or want to save money at the gas pump, but don't give me the patriotism bit. If we really wanted to support America we'd be buying a Ford or GM product in the first place. There are millions of Americans who would never buy a Japanese or German car no matter what. The 400H is manufactured. in Japan

so how many jobs is it creating in the States and

how many is it taking away? Someone mentioned

doing it for the troops. How many American troops died in the Pacific?

Ask yourself that.

I'm going to place a special order on an 08

RX400H this week for which I will probably have to wait 4-6 months for delivery.

I am going to trade in an 04 4-Runner which should fetch about 19.5K as of today. The problem is by the time the new car comes in the 08 4-Runners will arrive and my vehicle will then be worth around 17.5K. I wonder if there is a way I could turn the Toyota into the Lexus dealer now and make a deal on a

loaner or something. Any ideas out there?

I wound up ordering an 08 RX350 because

I only drive 6000 miles a year and it made no

sense to pay a premium for a hybrid. I figured

I woud have to drive 25000 miles a year to

break even if I went green and besides by

driving the limited mileage I am already green. Does anyone know how I can change

my personal profile in this group?

Saturday I placed my order for a 2008 RX350

with everything on it except the rear seat

entertainment package (no kids) and the

Levinson Sound System. I paid 2K less than

what Edmunds says other people are paying

in my area (Tampa Bay). Since I am

technologically challenged is the NAV system

going to ovewhelm me? Also, how do I change my profile in this group?

Oh, I can almost promise that I am going to pay too much. It has now become a mission to find this damn car!

I just received a voice mail from a dealer in Dallas claiming he may have the car in stock. I'm waiting for him to call me back.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Have you seen the desert sage in person or just on the Lexus website? I was talking with

my dealer and he said because it is an unpopular color such a vehicle is hard to find and I would have to special order and therefore pay MSRP. I asked him why the color is not popular and he said people don't like green. I said on the Lexus site it looks like a rich bronze. He said no it's a green. Not being a green lover unless it's plant life

or cash I switched my preference to Savannah

metallic which he said will make my vehicle easier to locate. They are quoting me 43K with everything on it except the rear seat

entertainment and Levinson package.

Thanks for the reply!

I think I have a line on one right now from Georgia.

I'm waiting on the details as we speak.

If you make a deal I'd be interested to learn

what you paid?

Good luck and happy birthday to your wife.

Don't forget to wrap a ribbon around the RX.

I am looking for the same color. I talked with a dealer today and he thought he had a desert sage in his lot, but with options I didn't want. Don't know if you want to travel

as far as Clearwater, FL, but you can call them

at 1-888-207-6314 and ask for Jeff Zimmer.

I checked and found the Lexus and Edmunds to be almost exactly the same (they had a mistake on the laser cruise and showed invoice instead of MSRP). I don't know what you are talking about with the $6,000 option but Lexus doesn't have one for the RX400H model (this is the RX400H section of the forum so I assume you are talking about the RX400H). Maybe you are looking at options on a different car.

RX 400h AWDRX 400h AWD RX 400h FWD

RXh 400h AWDBase MSRP: $42,580 [1]Delivery, Processing & Handling Fee: $715 [2] Premium Package - Luxury Value Edition $1,245 [3]

Leather-trimmed interior

Power tilt-and-telescopic steering column

Lexus Memory System to control power driver's seat (except lumbar), outside mirrors and steering wheel

Illuminated entry system

Power tilt-and-slide moonroof with one-touch open/close and sliding sunshade

Roof rack with rails [4]

(Total MSRP value of options $2,145 [3])

Premium Plus Package - Luxury Value Edition $2,060 [3]

Leather-trimmed interior

Power tilt-and-telescopic steering column

Lexus Memory System to control power driver's seat (except lumbar), outside mirrors and steering wheel

Illuminated entry system

Power tilt-and-slide moonroof with one-touch open/close and sliding sunshade

Roof rack with rails [4]

Adaptive Front Lighting System (AFS) with High-Intensity Discharge (HID) headlamps with dynamic auto-leveling

(Total MSRP value of options $2,960 [3])

Navigation System/Mark Levinson® Package $4,130 [3]

Lexus voice-activated DVD Navigation System [5] with backup camera [6] and Bluetooth® technology [7]

Mark Levinson® 11-speaker 210-watt @ 0.1% THD [8] Premium Audio System [9] with in-dash, single-feed, six-disc DVD/CD auto-changer featuring DVD-audio and DVD-video playback

Options and Accessories

Lexus voice-activated DVD Navigation System [5] with backup camera [6] and Bluetooth® technology [7] $2,650 [3]

Lexus DVD Rear-Seat Entertainment System (RSES) - (includes two pairs of wireless headphones [10]) $1,840 [3]

Mark Levinson® 11-speaker, 210-watt @ 0.1% THD [8] Premium Audio System [9] with in-dash, single-feed, six-disc CD auto-changer $980 [3]

High-Intensity Discharge (HID) headlamps with Adaptive Front Lighting System (AFS) $815 [3]

Heated front seats with rain-sensing wipers $665 [3]

18 x 7.0-in alloy wheels with 235/55VR18 all-season tires $495 [3]

Dynamic Laser Cruise Control [11] $480 [3]

Tow-hitch receiver with ball mount [12] $415 [3]

Towing Prep Package [12] $160 [3]

All-weather floor mats $99 [3]

Cargo tray $99 [3]

Cargo mat $92 [3]

Wheel locks $69 [3]

Cargo net $59 [3]

Ashtray/lighter kit *

Car cover *

Front-end mask *

Leather care kit *

Mudguards *

Roof rack attachment [4] - bike rack *

Roof rack attachment [4] - ski/snowboard rack *

Touch-up paint *

Towing equipment - ball mount [12] *

Towing equipment - tow-hitch receiver [12] *

Towing equipment - trailer ball [12] *

Window sticker - Lexus Hybrid Drive *

Wireless headphones [10] *

XM Satellite Radio [13] *

I just double checked the Lexus site for the RX400H and it showed under options only

"Lexus Premiere Plus Package Luxury Value

Edition With Added Options".

To solve the mystery I called Lexux HQ and they explained that option packages vary

according to where you live. You live in NY

and I in FL, hence the difference,

What percentage above invoice would be a fair price for this vehicle?

????????????????????????????

Could you be more specific as to what the differences are so I determine what differences you are talking about

The Lexus site shows one large option package for around $6000, not Inc. NAV.

DVD or Levinson.

The other sites show the packages segmented. Probably best if you look at Lexus.Com and one of the others to see where I am coming from.