SW03ES

The banks go by NADA for what residuals? That also makes sense. I've never known Kelly to be more than NADA though...

Looks great everybody W6RU- identical car to my dads, except he has a black interior. Beautiful!

Basically the use of these two products is going to draw widely different opinions. I use synthetic oil because from all accounts I've read its better. Doesn't cost me that much more and it makes me happy. I don't use a K&N filter for fear of adding more intake noise and I like the car as quiet as possible. If you mean a K&N oil filter, skip it as Toyota makes one of the best ones around.

Try registering with www.lexus.com they send free owners manuals, maybe they have a free nav manual too.

Based on the reccomendations of several members here I just replaced my Bridgestones with Toyo Proxes TPT all seasons. MUCH better tire, smoother and quieter and better in rain. Haven't had a chance to use them in snow yet (obviously). Check em out www.toyotires.com

The NADA Book is going to be way high. KBB in "good" condition is going to be a much better guage of the car's actual value. NADA is basically just used to price insurance payouts and costs etc. It lists your Lexus' value at $8,450 which I think is much more in the ballpark.

Actually the GS300 and ES300 have totally different engines. The GS has a derivative of the Supra engine, an inline 6 shared with the IS300 and old SC300s. The ES has a derivative of Toyota's corporate 3.0l V6 used in the RX300, in detuned form in the Camry and Highlander, Avalon. My advice would be if you can afford it try and look into a 2002 ES300. They made so many improvements to the 2002 IMO the 01s and older look positively archaic next to them. The new ES is bigger (bigger than the GS actually) heavier, smoother, and quieter, lots more equipment and luxury amenities. The "just a Camry" thing is a hangup and is not true. The ES is so different from the Camry that in Japan they sell the ES AND the Camry right next to each other as different models (The ES is the Toyota Windom in Japan). I too was torn between the GS and the ES, and ultimately picked the ES because its smoother, quieter, and newer in the lineup than the GS (which is going on 7 model years old).

You'd actually be surprised how easy it can be to remove sealants. A 50/50 mixture of water and rubbing alcohol in a spray bottle will do it. True, using a solventy wax may not *remove* the Klasse but it can definately weaken it so you don't get the best durability out of it. Why risk it? Especially for a Product like GC that doesn't have a great look anyways.

Actually the 2004 system does that, if you have it set up to default say in climate or audio then you don't have to push the "I Agree" screen until you switch to NAV. I've found that it actually doesn't disctract me any more. It did at first, but I rapidly got used to it.

That shouldn't be hard depending on where they mounted the reciever.

Like I said, that cutout is the same place on the current ES and most new cars ;) As for showrooms, probably late August or early September.

Sure, you can special order it but its going to take a while. It may not even be possible now because its so late in the model year, they'd be looking at an 05. That wouldn't be a bad thing depending on whether or not they like the refresh, but they're not going to get much of a deal on it for 3-4 months (probably looking at sticker on a special order) whereas they can get an 04 now for invoice. Thats about $4000 they're playing with. If they want an ES, they should buy one now. Lexus' become very scarce in August as production basically stops for a month and a half or so while they re-tool for the model year change, Lexus prices can even go up because of low supply at the end of the model year. January (the best time to buy any car, the worst month of the year in the car business) and July are the best times to buy a Lexus. I've never driven one with AVS (nor even ever seen one) but from the reviews it doesn't sound like its worth it. One reviewer wrote "Too soft on lowest setting, too hard on highest, middle feels just like the standard suspension so why bother"

Nope the shifters the same. It depends on the package, the black interior pic doesnt have the wood/leather wheel (notice it also has cloth seats) but the ivory one does have the wood/leather wheel and shifter. All the new Lexus have that square panel on the bumper, it pops off to reveal a place to screw in a tow hook. I think its a new car regulation, the 02-04 ES has it too.

Unfortunately I've also heard that the reddish stained wood that is so unique on the ES will be replaced with an ordinary walnut on grey and black interiors. Thats a real shame as that wood is one of my favorite parts of the car. I also hear that we WILL get a 17 inch 5 spoke wheel as standard, maybe the Japan spec cars are keeping the original 16s? Not to thrilled with the idea of 17s as that will effect the ride of the car...

Check out my Sirius install by clicking on the garage link in my signature. When the armrest is closed you would never know the car had anything aftermarket installed.

Actually Klasse AIO is an excellent oxidation remover and works well by hand. Ditto the advice against a wool pad, wool pads are way too aggressive. A foam cutting pad on a PC is all you need. You can even use straight vinegar as long as you wash the car down afterwards. Nope you're safe with the 50/50 IPA/water. That will remove any wax or sealant on the paint though, but won't hurt the paint. No, I'm not a fan of Klasse. Shine is too sterile for me and application too hard. Actually if you've used Klasse over the P21S polish that may be your problem. The P21S polish is full of oils and the Klasse needs the paint to be oil free to bond properly. You may be experiencing the Klasse failing to bond. A sealant like Poorboys EX or EX-P will bond much better over your P21S polish.

Any type of detergent for delicate fabrics should work, although I can't imagine not being able to find Woolite, have you tried just a normal grocery store?

You should tear them apart and find out Steve LOL I run premium too simply because in the long run it actually doesn't cost that much more, my gas is a business deduction, and the peace of mind helps me sleep at night. ;)

Nope, antennas are designed for two seperate functions.

LOL Thanks for not coming over here and starting an Internet flame war ;) Do me a favor though and just let the members on your forum know that we will not tolerate members from that site or any other site coming over here and disrespecting our club. Anyone that wants to come over and discuss maturely and fairly the attributes of these two cars or any other matter are 100% welcome, we don't care what sort of car they own they are welcome to join and contribute. If they come over here with the intent to "diss" us and harass our members they will be immediately banned and we will take legal action with their ISPs and/or against the owners of HAN if neccisary. We don't mess around with stuff like this and the laws regarding use of an internet connection for the purpose of harassing others are very clear. That also goes for our members, any LOC member that goes over to another forum to harass its members will find their membership here terminated. We log IP addresses and I'm sure they do too so the admins of both sites will likely know exactly who you are. We can all make the Internet a better place to be by not contributing to stupid crap like forum wars. Its not availiable on the east coast ;)

No the engine should stay the same. When they totally redesign the car in 06 or 07 it should have an ES400h hybrid version with closer to 270 or so HP. I'm also not totally sold on the headlights, the new ones look sort of bug-ish. Gotta wait until I see one in person to make final judgement. I'm just so dissapointed in the wheels, I was hoping for some better looking wheels I could install on my car in the correct size.

The new taillight design is sort of reminiscent of the I35's tails:

No for some reason they don't seem to feel that way about the RX lol. The RX is actually the most Lexus specific of the Lexus SUVs, the GX and LX are almost directly rebadged (LX much moreso). You'll find thats how most Internet forums are, we work really hard here to make sure that doesn't happen. It does at times, we just take care of it before most people notice. Not sure why the members here are so much more respectful, out average age is actually pretty low. We just attract the classy people I guess!

Here's the current interior, see how the center controls surround is darker than in the 05?

I heard a few other people say the same thing about the taillights, that the design is more generic looking and less unique than the current round turn signal in the middle of the lamp. I also agree about the grille. The trim on the inside around the center stack and nav system and around the door handles is now a bright silver finish instead of the darker charcoal it is now. I'll try and find a picture for comparison. I personally like the design of the nav system but thats a cost-saving feature. The same head unit can now be used in multiple vehicles and it is, its used in the Camry, Sienna, Solara, 4 Runner, and the ES.