SW03ES

If you hate the color of the light wood that much...why'd you buy the vehicle?

I haven't seen one at the dealer for a long time...I'd believe that. I wouldn't buy the car without the UL package personally...

Well we'll see what the improvements to the console are...maybe they'll help. The TL has an incredible interior though...so does the Lincoln MKS...I really think the ES is at a huge disadvantage in that department.

Thats not what I'm saying at all. I absolutely would flush the fluid and often, I've replaced the fluid in my car every 15k miles which is way more than what is reccomended...its cheap insurance. My comment was simply that I personally have never heard of a failure on an RX330 due to wear, which I absolutely cannot say about the RX300. Transmissions can fail, but there is no question the RX330 has a more reliable transmission than the 300. I simply expressed surprise at your comment because it was contrary to my experience. By the way...check the attitude at the door. This is a discussion forum, and if you can't handle someone commenting on your comments or challenging your statements...don't post.

Hey all... My mechanic just told me that at some point soon I will need to replace the lower control arms on the front suspension of my '03 ES300 due to worn bushings. He quoted me about $600 in labor to do the job...this sound reasonable? Car has 130,000 miles. He says the ball joints look okay...I'm wondering if it might be smart to replace them while he's at it though to save on labor costs...any thoughts?

Eh...I'd pass.

This comment makes absolutely zero sense. People who drive older cars aren't automatically people who can't afford newer cars, in many instances they have a vehicle that is financially worthless but still has a lot of functional worth, in that it runs and drives but has no real tradein or resale value. A lot of people utilizing the program have plenty of money. I know MANY people who bought their cars for cash but decided to do it now because of the value in the CARS program. Its an incentive to get them to make a decision to purchase a newer, more fuel efficient car. The benefit is twofold, one there are newer more efficient cars replacing older less efficient ones, and two it stimulates the economy and helps struggling carmakers and dealerships with a much smaller outlay than a bailout. The CARS program is genius and things like it are what we should have done from the get-go instead of all these bailouts. 5 people on my street alone have utilized the program and every family who lives here makes more than $150,000 per year. So the comment that they're all going to be repo'ed is not accurate.

Same suggestion, its just black paint in those areas.

Actually the life of an HID bulb is WAY longer than 3,000 hours...they are "supposed" to last the life of the vehicle. No filament to burn out. The ballasts do fail though, and so do the bulbs.

Awesome!

Welcome to owning a Toyota. No idea why, but they all do that. My dad's old '98 LS and his '04. my '03 ES and our Prius. My cousin's Rav 4...same way. Nothing you can do but crack another window or the sunroof.

Well thats a bad shift that Lexus bought back...hardly a transmission failure due to wear...

Oh yeah, they'll be out by September.

Do the LEDs shine down on the license plate properly?

LOC is hardly abandoned and forgotten. We're all here....thousands of new members and hundreds of new posts per day...but abandoned and forgotten I don't care for the new Google search either...I'm sure Steve will address it when he gets back. Nothing any of us can do about it...

Hahahaha, thats pretty good. Not as good as the previous JibJabs IMHO though...

Thats great until an HID bulb or ballast goes from all the additional use and the bill is several hundred bucks...

The dealers here have them. I havent stopped in to see them yet but I drove by King Buick yesterday and there they were...

Changing the bulbs isn't going to make that big a difference. The DRLs are simply the high beams on low power, the reason they are yellowish is because they are depowered. I replaced mine with Silverstars and when the high beams are on I can definately tell the difference...but the DRLs look the same. You'll get used to them...

Thats a wonderful idea, I'm sure it would be very appreciated. Customers very rarely do anything like that anymore, and its a shame...

I agree at 50 MPG...but my Prius doesn't get 50MPG...look at 40MPG.

You should drive them. The 3 series BMW and IS etc are TOTALLY different cars than a Camry. They are sports sedans, and they aren't small because they are cheap they are small because they are sporty, handle well, etc. Why do you think the IS is approximately the same cost as the ES? The 3 series can be $70k. Size isn't the only factor when people decide which car to purchase, as a matter of fact to many people its not a factor at all. Why do you think the 3 series BMW is constantly on the Car & Driver 10 Best list? Doesn't have anything to do with its price. People who buy those cars would rather drive them than an RX400h or an LS460, or an S550, etc. Just because you don't understand something or its not what you personally would buy or do or have doesn't mean you can "look down" on it. In the same vein I can say you could have saved a lot of money and bought a Highlander Hybrid because its the same car. Or say that purchasing something like a Lexus is a worthless waste of money completely.

Thats great, I'm glad it turned out well! Remember not to wax the new paint for 30 days, it needs to offgas. You can use a non-protective polish or glaze if you want, but no wax or sealant for 30 days. Wasn't the windshield that was on there a non-OEM windshield or they had sanded off the brand or something? Alls well that ends well.

The mileage isn't THAT great. In the real world ours gets about 40MPG, although the 2010 is supposedly better and there are a lot of members on Priuschat who are arounf 50MPG. Good...but there are a lot of cars that get that kind of mileage.

What about the BMW 3 series? The Mercedes S Class? The Audi A4? The Cadillac CTS? The list goes on. That entry model is the cornerstone of every brand, its the model that gets the young affluent consumer into the brand so that they can trade up to a GS, buy their wives an RX, and trade up again to an LS and a GX, etc. $30k has always gotten you a new Lexus...ever since the beginning. And a new BMW...and a new Mercedes...$30,000 is not a small amount of money to 99% of working people. As I've said before...not everybody has someone else to buy them for them. People work for a long time to be able to afford a $30,000 car. You should drive an IS. Its a great little sport sedan, and now convertible. Have you used it? Its actually very easy to use. As vehicles get more and more functions there won't physically be room for buttons anymore. Anwyays...I think the new RX won some sort of interior design award recently... You're awful young to be so closed minded.