pharmwriter

I ended up with Energies. I went to both Costco and a local tire shop with a good reputation. They both said, based on Lexus manufacturing recommendations and the tires I have now, I needed to go with a V speed rating. Having tires with H ratings will cause problems in the long run in regards to wear and tear and handling, and both shops would require me to sign a waiver stating that I understood I was going against the manufacturer's tire recommended specs. Since safety is a factor, I didn't want to take a chance. I got the tires at Costco and paid $855.

I priced them via the America's Tire Web site at $159/ea, or $636 for 4 tires for my size (255/55/R17). Sounds like you got a good deal. Where in CA are you? I'm in Orange County, in Southern CA. Did you use the AT price or did you come in with competitor pricing? Thanks to all of you for your feedback. As soon as I scrimp a few (hundred) pennies together I'll get my tires replaced. Sounds like Primacy is my best bet!

Thanks everyone. I think the Energies are pretty popular around here; I had made calls to some shops and they're in stock. But I will definitely look into the ones you all suggested. In regards to Tim John's comment, I think my car had Michelin's at the time of purchase. The car came with chrome wheels and was not included in the purchase price, so the dealership took them off and probably the Michelin's too, and replaced the tires with the Bridgestone Turanzas. I didn't give it a second thought until I was looking through my paperwork yesterday and saw that they had given me a Michelin warranty guide, not a Bridgestone.

Took my '08 to my dealer a few days ago for my 20K service (I'm at 19,665) and was told that I need to get 2 tires replaced. I went to Costco for a 2nd opinion and was told that I have 3/32 tread left on all 4 tires, and probably about another 3K-5K miles to go before I need to get new ones. Having done my forum research (awesome tool, BTW), it looks as if the wear and tear is pretty normal. I have Bridgestone Turanzas EL400, P215/55R17 93V. I've narrowed the new tires down to 2 brands based on the tires that are the most recommended on different tire sites: either replacing the tires with new Turanzas, or with Michelin Energy MXV4 S8. Any opinions on the Michelin's? Also, has anyone tried to use their Bridgestone warranty? I figured I would try that route; it never hurts to ask. Thanks in advance.

I think they went with a "band aid" method. I'm not 100% sold on the floor mat/pedal theory.

Just an update... Dropped off my car at 7am, and it was ready at 3:30pm. I had asked my service mgr to take the car on a freeway drive to make sure everything worked correctly. Glad I did! The service mgr called to tell me that everything went smoothly and is in working order, BUT, my front brake pads and rotors were worn down, so they replaced them FREE. When I picked up my car, she was shiny clean with a full tank of gas (I did a lot of driving over the weekend to take advantage of the free gas). I haven't noticed any difference with the accelerator. Feels OK to me. I'm attaching a couple of pedal pics.

Reuters picked up the story...Toyota to replace oil hose in over 933,000 cars. '07-'08 ES 350 affected. Article

Just received a call from my dealership here in Orange County, CA. They said my car (2008 ES350) is part of the recall. They will need half day to: 1. Reshape the accelerator 2. Shave the flooring under the driver's side mat 3. Install an override system For my time and trouble, they're throwing in a wash and a full tank of gas. If they throw in a guarantee by the Toyota CEO that this will fix the problem, I'd be a very happy camper. Ha ha. :P :P

Looks like the NHTSA isn't buying it: Govt criticizes Toyota press release on floor mats By KEN THOMAS (AP) – 2 hours ago WASHINGTON — Toyota Motor Corp. released misleading information about an investigation into problems with stuck gas pedals that led to a massive Toyota recall, the government said Wednesday, stressing the issue is still under review by federal safety regulators. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it was still investigating the case and meeting with Toyota to hear about the company's plan to redesign the vehicles and fix "this very dangerous problem." Toyota recalled 3.8 million vehicles last month over problems with gas pedals that got stuck on floor mats and told owners to remove driver's side floor mats and not replace them until the automaker had determined a fix to the problem. Toyota said in a statement on Monday that NHTSA had confirmed "that no defect exists in vehicles in which the driver's floor mat is compatible with the vehicle and properly secured." But NHTSA said that was inaccurate and the government was investigating possible causes of the acceleration problem. Removing the floor mats was "simply an interim measure" and "does not correct the underlying defect in the vehicles involving the potential for entrapment of the accelerator by floor mats, which is related to accelerator and floor pan design." "The matter is not closed until Toyota has effectively addressed the defect by providing a suitable vehicle based solution," NHTSA said in the statement, which the department said was issued to correct "inaccurate and misleading information" from the automaker. Toyota spokesman John Hanson said "it was never our intention to mislead or provide inaccurate information. Toyota agrees with NHTSA's position that the removal of the floor mats is an interim measure and that further action is required. We continue to discuss an appropriate vehicle remedy or remedies." The recall includes 2007-2010 model year Toyota Camry, 2005-2010 Toyota Avalon, 2004-2009 Toyota Prius, 2005-2010 Tacoma, 2007-2010 Toyota Tundra, 2007-2010 Lexus ES350 and 2006-2010 Lexus IS250/IS350. The recall, Toyota's largest in the U.S., was prompted by a high-speed crash in August involving a 2009 Lexus ES350 near San Diego, Calif. Mark Saylor, a 45-year-old California Highway Patrol officer, and three members of his family were killed when their vehicle hit speeds exceeding 120 mph, struck a sport utility vehicle, launched off an embankment, rolled several times and burst into flames. Family members made a frantic 911 call from the Lexus and told a dispatcher the accelerator was stuck and they couldn't stop the vehicle. The high-profile incident led Toyota President Akio Toyoda to call the fatal crash "extremely regrettable" and offer his "deepest condolences."

Looks like the NHTSA isn't buying the mat excuse: Govt criticizes Toyota press release on floor mats By KEN THOMAS (AP) – 2 hours ago WASHINGTON — Toyota Motor Corp. released misleading information about an investigation into problems with stuck gas pedals that led to a massive Toyota recall, the government said Wednesday, stressing the issue is still under review by federal safety regulators. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it was still investigating the case and meeting with Toyota to hear about the company's plan to redesign the vehicles and fix "this very dangerous problem." Toyota recalled 3.8 million vehicles last month over problems with gas pedals that got stuck on floor mats and told owners to remove driver's side floor mats and not replace them until the automaker had determined a fix to the problem. Toyota said in a statement on Monday that NHTSA had confirmed "that no defect exists in vehicles in which the driver's floor mat is compatible with the vehicle and properly secured." But NHTSA said that was inaccurate and the government was investigating possible causes of the acceleration problem. Removing the floor mats was "simply an interim measure" and "does not correct the underlying defect in the vehicles involving the potential for entrapment of the accelerator by floor mats, which is related to accelerator and floor pan design." "The matter is not closed until Toyota has effectively addressed the defect by providing a suitable vehicle based solution," NHTSA said in the statement, which the department said was issued to correct "inaccurate and misleading information" from the automaker. Toyota spokesman John Hanson said "it was never our intention to mislead or provide inaccurate information. Toyota agrees with NHTSA's position that the removal of the floor mats is an interim measure and that further action is required. We continue to discuss an appropriate vehicle remedy or remedies." The recall includes 2007-2010 model year Toyota Camry, 2005-2010 Toyota Avalon, 2004-2009 Toyota Prius, 2005-2010 Tacoma, 2007-2010 Toyota Tundra, 2007-2010 Lexus ES350 and 2006-2010 Lexus IS250/IS350. The recall, Toyota's largest in the U.S., was prompted by a high-speed crash in August involving a 2009 Lexus ES350 near San Diego, Calif. Mark Saylor, a 45-year-old California Highway Patrol officer, and three members of his family were killed when their vehicle hit speeds exceeding 120 mph, struck a sport utility vehicle, launched off an embankment, rolled several times and burst into flames. Family members made a frantic 911 call from the Lexus and told a dispatcher the accelerator was stuck and they couldn't stop the vehicle. The high-profile incident led Toyota President Akio Toyoda to call the fatal crash "extremely regrettable" and offer his "deepest condolences."

Yes. As a musicholic it was a no brainer. I love it. Everything is at my fingertips; no fumbling around with the iPod while driving. Just be sure to turn off the iPod every time you leave your car. If you don't the iPod battery will drain.

Wouldn't that depend on what kind of driving an owner does? Stop and go in the city versus open cruising? For example, 2/3 of my 30 mile commute each way is spent trying to avoid speeding tickets and I have long lead time for the exit rather than wearing out break pads with starts and stops. For a service rep to make a blanket statement either no one has open highway where you live or he is setting the ground out to change wear parts as often as possible. Based on the mileage quoted by the previous posters, I'd say 20K sounds about right. My thing is that I would like to have been told that before I purchased the car (fat chance), along with the fact that my car rolls backwards 2-3 inches every time I turn off the engine. Oh well, just some of the joys in life.

My retort would have been, "Don't pee on my leg and tell me it's raining."

I took my car in for service yesterday and was talking to a guy who was having his rear brakes replaced at 30K, and he as a 2007. I discussed the packages with my service rep and he said that the rear brakes on the '08 usually need replacement around 20K.

The air filter compartment is in the back of your glove box. All you need to do is remove the main filter door, then the secondary door, then pull out the filter. The instructions are toward the back of the manual, complete with illustrations. It's really simple. I figure the dealer charges $15 for the part and $64 for labor. You were told 15K? I thought it was every 5K, or I guess whenever it needs to be done. I'm taking my car for my 10K service tomorrow, and I was quoted $151 by 3 dealerships, but only one dealer told me that it could be $230 if I need the air filter replaced. Thanks for the tip Cmasten. Is there a brand of filter I should look out for at Pep Boys? Do you know if an aftermarket air filter void the warranty? I wouldn't think so, but you never know w/Lexus.

Instead of paying an extra $79 to have my air filter replaced for the first time I decided to do it myself (which is really easy, BTW). Any recommendations for a comparable air filter that I can get from an auto parts store (versus over the internet)? I could also get it from a Toyota dealer, right? I have an '08. Thanks in advance.

Thanks for your reply. Is the law you mentioned documented on the internet?

This is my first foreign car, so please chalk this up to a dumb newbie question... My car has a bit of roll back fever when I shut it off. It rolls back about a half inch or so. Also, the shifter will sometimes get stuck in "neutral" as I'm shifting to "park", and if I'm not paying close attention the car just starts rolling backwards, so perhaps I'm more sensitive to a shut off roll back than normal people. :P Does this happen to anyone else?

Does getting an oil change somewhere other than at a Lexus dealer void the warranty? I bought my ES 350 in August and I thought my salesperson had mentioned something to that effect when I asked. I think he said that getting an oil change at a Toyota dealership was OK, but Lexus and Toyota do not share maintenance info, so I need to keep everything on file.

Does anyone in OC have any good or bad experiences with either Newport Lexus or Park Place Lexus Mission Viejo? I'm open to buying from either dealer, but want to get the best price and best customer service. I figure that not only am I buying a car, but I'm also investing my time in the long run when I have the car serviced at the dealership. I'd also like to know who is better in terms of repairs, etc. I haven't seen any internet reviews for either dealership. Thanks!