SW03ES

Using the parking brake will accelerate rear pad wear. But using that as an excuse for premature failure is not acceptable. The parking brake should be used EVERY time you park for safety, it is NOT an "emergency" brake. The transmission on an automatic transmission car is not designed to hold it in place when parked using just the parking prawl. A lot of people think they are, but they aren't.

Actually those pictures are of an 07-08 ES350, not an IS or an 02-06 ES.

I've had the complete rear braking system, the steering shaft, the HVAC control unit and a rear main seal covered by the extended warranty. That would have been approximately $4k out of my pocket for repairs (at the Lexus dealer) for my purchase of the warranty for $1600. I could have gotten it for $900 too. I'll never own another vehicle without an extended warranty again, and I'm more than a little concerned about continuing to own this one now that the coverage has ended. That was the extended Lexus new car warranty though, you won't be eligable for that so I don't know what your warranty will cover...

Well if you own a Maybach 57 I'm going to guess money's not too much of an issue ;) Personally I'd try and get an '04+ only because I think they made some changes in '04 that made the LS430 a much more attractive car. I'd rather have a 98-00 LS400 than an 01-03 LS430 honestly.

I've had a good many repairs covered under my extended warranty...

They're not wrong, it'll come out in 2009 as a 2010 model. Its only Feb. 2008...

I've never been to Pohanka's service department, but their sales department turned me off so much I never would. If you can stand the drive take it to Rockville and ask for Tony, tell him Steve Withrow sent you ;)

Although my experience with the Toyo Proxes TPTs wasn't great the Versados look interesting.

I think they probably just threw them into the deal. They might install them at the port, but they're definately a dealer installed accesory.

The spoiler doesn't come from the factory, its always a dealer installed accessory. Its just double back tape I think, easy to install.

For $5k, I'd buy the new one in a heartbeat.

The old MXV4+ tires are discontinued, but the Primacy MXV4 is a brand new tire that is very available.

Oh..its much longer than that. I think I read somewhere that it takes 5 years of regular everyday driving experience for new drivers to even become as skilled as the AVERAGE American driver...which ain't that skilled.

I normally hate stuff like that, but on this car I would have the spoiler and the door guards installed. They both look great.

I really have to agree with RX. I don't think I would even let a 16 year old that had saved up enough money to buy a fast car buy a fast car. I just think its a recipie for disaster. Its not even really a question of them doing stupid things, its a question of whether they have the skill set or experience to handle such a car in adverse road conditions they're going to face. For instance I just got home, there's tons of freezing rain out there right now and it crept up on us very quickly. The roads are a NIGHTMARE. All the bridges are frozen with cars sideways and closed, sirens and ambulances and firetrucks everywhere. I've been driving for 10 years, have taken several professional driving courses including advanced skid maneuvers and I'm in a 220HP FWD car with traction and yaw control. I've never seen anything like it, one touch of the gas and you're sliding sideways. How could a 16 year old in a 400hp RWD car handle the vehicle in that scenario?!? Its a very real world scenario too. Not my kid, keep the money and when you're out of my house and on your own you can buy an even better car like that.

You can post any opinion you want as long as its posted in a respectful manner. You CANNOT make personal attacks or make postings that are derisive or that are the basis for drawing another member out into a flamewar. Your continued attempts to call RX400h out fall into the latter category. If you can't deal with some anti-Mbz or BMW opinions on a Lexus forum maybe you shouldn't belong to one. I have never seen RX400h post his opinions in a disrespectful way or try and make personal attacks towards you or anyone else. As for him posting things in "every thread you post in", I've seen you respond to opinions he's voiced AFTER he's voiced them as well as calling him out in threads he's not even participating in, so the whole "he posts wherever I do just to get at me!" argument won't work here.

It all depends on the weather, how you drive, and where you drive...

I won't laugh, my Dad had a Cadillac when I turned 16, I loved driving it too. Of course, the LS400 was a big improvement ;) I took my driver's test in that Cadillac. We have graduated licensing here too now. I'm not sure what difference its made in accident rates. I think we all have the stories. When I was in high school 4 girls in a brand new BMW were driving home late trying to get home before curfew when they lost control due to lack of experience handling high powered RWD cars and hit a tree sideways at 60MPH. 3 out of 4 dead. My best friend got a new BMW 3 series coupe when he turned 16. I rode with him one time (and ONLY one time) and I remember telling my mother that I gave him a month until he totalled it. Well he surprised me...it only took him 3 weeks. Oh I agree when it comes to their own car. But really and truly, unless you're driving a monster (I guess I would consider the M5 a monster...but not a 550) I don't see the harm in letting your son drive the car. When I first started driving my parents made me drive EVERYWHERE. Whenever we went anywhere I drove, so I had a lot of time behind the wheel with them in the car. I took several high performance driving schools too, but it was never a precursor to me being able to drive my fathers car. Of course, it was a pretty sedate and predictable car compared to a manual 500hp M5...

And do yourself a favor, take it back to the other dealer that you were please with from now on...even if its a little drive. I hope it works out, keep us posted.

1998. So he should be fine.

You should always replace the tires on your car with tires that are at least the same speed rating as the tires that came from the factory. I know some people don't agree with that, but speed rating doesn't just have to do with sustained levels of speed. Rubber compounds and sidewall stiffness are different, and the suspension geometry of the car is designed around a specific set of criteria from the tires. They didn't decide to use a specific speed rating by chance.

As I told you before, I absolutely have no problem with your opinions. You put them forward in an intelligent, coherant, and respectful way. My only issue is your repeated attempts to call RX400h out into an altercation. You do it all over the place, not just here. If you want to disagree with RX400h or anyone else, then do that. But can saying incendiary BS like "I grow more sure that you're a Lexus employee by the day" or "If RX400h were here he'd say blah blah" in threads he's not even posting in. If you're incapable of dealing with RX400h's opinions, simply stop reading his posts.

Although I agree, a kid has no place owning and driving a car as powerful as an M5, I disagree that I would never let my son drive my car. When I was a kid I drove around in my dad's higher powered and expensive sedans ALL the time (including his LS400). I loved it, and he loved letting me. I never did anything like this, I always treated his car with the respect I treated him with and was more careful with it than I was my own. I had many friends who'se parents had similarly and more expensive cars that they let them drive and it was the same way with them. This kid was a f&cking idiot, and the lack of respect he showed his father by treating his vehicle that way shows that the issue here is the quality of his upbringing, not that he had access to any specific car.

It sounds to me like your issue is more with the dealership than the car... Unfortunately the dealers are all independently owned and Lexus doesn't have much control over the way the dealers are run. I would get my issue dealt with there and then take the car to a different dealer. My dealer is wonderful. They put a very tiny mark in the rear bumper of my car (something most people would not have noticed) the last time it was in and they agreed to take care of it to my satisfaction at my own repair shop.

Good luck. I'd press the issue and have them get you into an '08.