SW03ES

Looks great!

Got the windshield installed! Looks great... Can't say enough about this Lindsay Lexus Collision Center in Alexandria. I had a bumper repainted on my Dad's old 98 LS there 12-13 years ago, and it was just a little hole in the wall. Now its got to be the most impressive body shop facility I've ever seen, all brand new. Clean, drive in inside reception area like the Lexus service department, beautiful interior area, waiting room, little showroom of new Lexus cars to kill time, and the whole body area is all glass, looks like an assembly plant. VERY cool...and every car there was a Lexus too...really impressive.

Sorry to hear about that CD, happens to everybody though! Nothing worse than damaging your own car...one time I backed one of my cars into my other car. You can imagine how I felt about that LOL. Glad its all fixed!

Great service from VAIS, its a small company and the guy who owns it (I forget his name, Ethan maybe) is very hands on. I had several discussions with him before I bought my VAIS unit years ago.

Yeah this is like 3-4 inches across and theres a big chunk of glass thats been torn out, wouldn't repair well. I'd much rather repair it like 70% though than replace the OEM glass with aftermarket... I don't have it in yet, they cut me a check but it looks like I'm finally going to have it installed on Monday...

It was the GS350 F-Sport vs the 535 (with the sport package!), the A6 & the M37. It was GS, 5, A6, M. They said the GS felt like the 5 used to feel. I'd rather spend the $50 and get a new OEM Lexus windshield ;)

My comprehensive deductible is only $50... Hey Dens, did you see the latest issue of I think Motor Trend? The GS beat the 5 in the compero.

Your insurance won't cover a replacement? I liked the 535, not as much as I thought I would though. I love the way they look, styling and detailing outside are great. I like the interior, some of the switchgear and the mechanism for the doors for the cupholders, etc are a little chintzy for a $60k+ vehicle IMHO. Drivewise it rides great, great handling, but I found the transmission a little slow to shift and a little clunky. Steering felt a little too light to me, and the steering wheel is big, black and cheap looking/feeling if you don't get the sport package with the sport wheel. Wheel has a really thin diameter at top which I thought was strange for such a sporty car, and when BMWs typically have big thick wheels. The 535 is a clear winner in the exterior department, but I gotta say ride and drive and interior I prefer the new GS.

Yeah that is my guess too, makes sense. I was surprised by that too, what I kind of wanted was for them to just take care of it for me, which is what they've done the couple times I've had claims over the years I've been there. Oh well. I will do that, I'll shoot you a PM. I have to dig it up LOL

When did you get the LS? Nice! I see the new 535 too, also very nice. I just drove one of them yesterday. Its probably 4 inches across, might be repairable but it would bug me...

Its actually kind of a weird story, maybe you have some insight. I have had OEM windshields put in cars before, a previous Lexus and my old Explorer, but that was when I had Nationwide. No issues whatsoever, never even batted an eye. I've had Allstate for probably 10 years now, long story about why I switched, but it has to do with my wife and being uninsured when she moved here from NJ before we were married, and needing to go through MAIF for coverage, then after MAIF she was "high risk" and Nationwide wouldn't write her a policy or list her on mine so I wound up switching to the Allstate agency that wrote her MAIF policy so I could be the principal on the policy, blah blah blah. Have a very good relationship with my Allstate agency. Well, I called their office and they suggested I file a claim online...which I did. Got no feedback. Called the agency back and they saw no record of the claim, so they filed it for me over the phone. Got a callback from Allstate claims and processed it. Requested OEM glass, they gave me a number to have the shop call and get the approval but said it should be fine. I'm having Lindsay Lexus in Alexandria do the job, the guy at their shop called the number with the part numbers and all and the claim number. He gets a denial, says all they will approve is Aftermarket glass. So...I called my Agency and explained why I wanted OEM glass, that I have had problems with distortions and clarity with aftermarket glass, that the Lexus has an acoustic windshield and rain repellant glass, as well as a rain sensor for the wipers and I know a lot of people have problems with them when using aftermarket glass, etc. So, he called the claims center...and they said it should be no problem, they had denoted it in the file and to have the shop call back. Shop calls back...claim is denied. No mention of anything in the file. So I call the agency again, and this time talk to my actual agent. He pulls the system up...no claim. So he gives me another number to call and I file it again...this time I'm directed to take the vehicle to one of their claim processing centers. Which I did...and the OEM glass was approved no problem, they cut me a check for the amount specified by Lindsay Lexus. I was there for 10 minutes. The Agency is completely baffled. We both think the issue was that Allstate has partnered with Safelite and now Safelite processes all their "glass only" claims. The claim number I had was a Safelite claim number, and the logos and all on the documents they sent the shop were all branded Safelite. Safelite, being a manufacturer of auto glass was of course denying the claim. When I called in the third time they processed it as an Allstate comprehensive claim and did it through Allstate instead of Safelite...and there was no issue...

Just thought I'd fill you guys in. Had a rock hit the windshield in the ES the other day, just completed the process of making my insurance company cover original equipment Lexus glass. Just the windshield costs $1,300, total job is like $1,600. They of course wanted me to use aftermarket glass for $445 installed. Wasn't too big a hassle getting it covered. Lexus dealer is doing the install, so it will be covered by their warranty and guarantee. They're ordering the parts now and it'll be done next week when I get back from out of town. I'll let you guys know how it goes. If anybody needs guidance on how to get OEM glass covered, post here and I'll be happy to help.

I had the VAIS kit in my previous ES and it was always great. A family member still has it, and it still works great. Been in there for probably 7 years...

My car doesn't have the Ultra Luxury package, it has navigation, HID headlights, heated and cooled front seats, parking assist, wood leather wheel, etc. MSRP was $41,215. Sales price was $36k. They did have an incentive at the time for $1k for returning ES owners, so otherwise it would have been $37k. Invoice is much lower than $40k, invoice was high $36's. Nothing amazing about my deal, I'm a tough negotiator and always pay the bottom price when I buy a car, but I know Paul bought his after mine and got a similar deal. I have a few coworkers who bought them the same time and also got similar deals. Does yours have the full glass roof with front and rear sunroofs? If it does not its not an Ultra Luxury model. It makes a huge difference in the body rigidity, the lifespan of a whole host of components such as the struts, mounts, bushings, all of which are VERY expensive on a Lexus. I would never buy a loaner car, there are plenty of these cars out there coming of leases and such that are well maintained. Even if you had to pay $37k for a brand new one...I think $3k more for a new one vs a loaner would be a no brainer.

You can't copy music off the iPod to the car's HDD. What you need is a USB cable or AUX-in cable, you can listen to the music off the iPod, but you can't download it to the car. This is part of Apple's copyright requirements. Welcome to the club!

Have you had the wheels/tires road force balanced? My dealer doesn't have a road force balancer. I would take it to a shop that does and have it done, costs about $100. Just because the dealer hasn't been able to balance them doesn't mean they aren't out of balance. You may have a bent wheel or something they wouldn't be able to detect without a road force balancer. Is your LS the AWD as well bc?

Yeah they are somehow reversed...

I've had cars with this system since 2004 and have had absolutely no problems.

Carpet dash cover looks cheap...but stick on fake carbon fiber doesn't? Ugh...

The Lexus system you can buy from the dealer integrates with the OEM smartkey. It doesn't have anything to do with proximity, but it utilizes the same fob. They can actually use your original fob with aftermarket systems too.

Check out this thread from the UK forum: http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/index.php?showtopic=62937 I might be wrong...

I would venture to say (and this is just a guess) that even though its not in the LPS list, the dealer can convert the displays from english to metric. It just makes sense that the same clusters and displays would be used in both markets, just with a setting change. For instance, our Jeep didn't come with DRLs. The dealer was able to turn them on because in Canada DRLs are required. I'd talk to a couple dealers and see what they say about it. The dealers may not want to do it or may not be authorized to...but I bet it can be done.

Actually no...Lexus specifically says that oil change intervals are NOT to be extended when using synthetic oil. On some of the new models they have a 10k change interval and come from the factory with synthetic, but the ES is not one of them. To ensure the warranty remains intact you should change the oil and filter every 5k miles.

If it was a loaner car it wouldn't show an ownership record in Carfax probably. Not a lot you can do about it but you did ask...not a terrific deal IMHO. I only paid $2k more for my ES350 with nav brand new in 2010. Pricing between 2010 and 2011 is about the same.

It can be done, but the dealer may need to do it with their handheld device. Welcome to the LOC!