SW03ES

You would think, but dealerships are just as dumb as everyone else...

Halfway there ;)

I agree, but just having it waxed is better than not if thats all the time he's interested in putting into it ;)

Just get a good fender brush and a cleaner (any all purpose cleaner) spray on, let sit, scrub off, rinse. Then dress them with any protectant or try MopnGlo like HRP reccomends.

I disagree about the build quality, I consistently see new Mercedes with uneven door panels, cheap thin interior plastics, and poor quality paint full of orange peel. I think you better watch out for Infiniti, they're gearing up to have some awesome vehicles. The G35 is a fantasic sedan/coupe that is stylish and is well built, the FX models of SUV are well built, a blast to drive, and look like nothing on the road. I think 3-4 years down the line Infiniti is going to have a great model lineup. Whether that will be good enough to fix their image problem I don't know. Thats the problem with Acura too. They're great cars, but they aren't taken seriously.

The tranny fluid should be red, not yellowish. Oil is yellowish. I think you should have them do a transmission flush immediately, even if thats all the do right now, its possible whoever did the last tranny flush used the wrong fluid (more common than you'd think). Which Peter did you talk to? Peter Voleske does my service and he's great. And they're by far the CHEAPEST, and have the newest cleanest and most diverse loaner fleet. So the other dealerships charge more and give you subpar service... I did have a bad buying experience at Silver Spring though, guy ordered the wrong car for me.

It depends on what you're looking for. The E55 is a rare, limited edition, high image car. If any of those things are important to you then i would say get it. If it were E430 vs GS430 it would be no contest, the GS. But an E55 is a really special car...

He's looking for the absolute quickest, Zaino is hardly going to do that for him. Great product, but quite complicated. As for Meguiars wax yellowing the finish, which wax were you using? It would be extremely difficult for a wax to yellow the finish on a car. If not kept clean and waxed white will turn yellow. Meguiars makes great and safe products, not the best, but good products.

All car soaps have lubricants and many have wax ;)

Generally a "tune up" means they're replacing the spark plugs, sorry for the mixup. According to my last invoice from Lexus of Silver Spring the oil filter part number is 90915-YZZD1, that is the part number for the genuine Toyota filter. As for the oil I don't know as I bring my own synthetic oil. Check the fluid level, what color is it and what is it's consistency? Who are you dealing with at Silver Spring?

Well it doesn't need a tuneup until 90k. Oil doesn't really make a difference, how do you know they used Castrol?

The Nanowax can be bought anywhere car care products are sold. I tired it and wasn't too impressed, but your results look good!

The quickest and easiest wax I've ever used is P21S Paste Wax. Paste waxes nowadays are VERY easy to use usually. Its just wipe on/wipe off no drying or hazing time neccisary. On top of that its one of the best looking waxes on the market. You can order it from us on www.lexuscarcare.com or if you have a Harley Davidson dealer anywhere near you, you can go down there and pick it up as "S100 Motorcycle Wax" its the same product just a little bit less and $10 cheaper.

Thats just how American cars are, once they start wearing out, they wear OUT.

One thing I really like about the ES vs the 3 series, C class, A4 is its size and proportions. Those three cars are in the ES' price class, but the ES is the size of a 5 series, E class, or A6. The C, 3, and A4 have what I call an "economy car look", they have little trunks and hoods, high roofs with lots of tall glass, they look like they were built around the passenger compartment like a Honda civic does. The ES looks much more upscale and expensive simply because it is proportioned like the bigger car that it is. So when talking about space, features, and size the ES really competes with the mid-luxury cars yet its priced like a entry luxury car.

Don't ever set foot in Pohanka Lexus again, one of the worst Lexus dealers in the country. Bunch of unprofessional crooks. Silver Spring is a good dealership, thats where I have mine serviced. $600 isn't bad at all for the 60k. I would still use specified Toyota parts and fluid though just because they seem to be the best. The Toyota oil filters are the thickest and best out there, and Lexus specifies Toyota tranny fluid MUST be used or it will void the transmission warranty.

Yep, that was my advice too but Alan beat me to it!

If you look on ebay there's a woman that is constantly selling them. The price varies anywhere from $150 to $225 depending on demand at that particular time. If you email her and ask to buy one direct she'll sell it for $200, which is absolutely the best deal you will find ANYWHERE. You might be able to save more if you bid on it, but thats taking a chance. If I were you I would wait until October when the 2004 disk comes out then buy the 2003 disk, its two years newer and it'll be REALLY cheap when its no longer the lastest disk. Thats what I'm going to do. You can search for the 2002 disk (what I have, the disks are a year behind, you have series 2001) and see the prices, they go for like $40 because they're not the latest.

Good point, the standard ES wheels are very easy to clean...

The transmission on my $40,000 Explorer Limited went out at 77,000 miles. Do you have any kind of maintenance records that show if the tranny fluid was changed regularly? Lexus specifies it should be changed every 15k miles. Generally the instances I've seen of premature tranny failure are caused by the owners not following this maintenance requirement. But no, you're not going to get anything from Lexus at 118k, especially if you dont have those service records.

I saw this pic of the SD wheels in normal silver unlike the greenish/grey hue they come on the ES, MUCH better...

Thats what it means, its a computer generated combination of Luxury and Elegance.

No, if you look at the crash test ratings Lexus is every bit as safe as Mercedes.

Wow thats quite a change there! Congrats on the new car, welcome to the club!

That plastic on the shift gate is horrible, very difficult to keep it clear. I'm VERY thankful Lexus stopped doing that and uses flat plastic or metal now. You should buy some Plexus plastic cleaner, that will work well on the plastic and the wood. The wood is real but its coated in a plastic shell.