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Drew
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Vans, SUVs, and Aftermarket & Accessories message boards
I am trying to intelligently debate things but I guess that some people in here are bothered by my comments about the RX300. Chill out. It's not a perfect world and people do not always agree on everything. If you understand these 2 things then you are ahead in life.
I am not trying to put anybody down here. I just wanted to share the bad experiences which I had with my RX300, that's all. I didn't come in here to be challenged or to give out Vin#'s to prove anything to anyone here. Everyone here has a right to their opinion and everyone's opinion must be honored, not challenged or ridiculed. The babyish comments and reactions by some RX300 owners in here really shows that THEY are the ones who have a hard time interacting with real people in the real world. And you people know who you are.
We are looking for a small smooth riding SUV-any suggestions anyone??
Anyone else change to an alternate size? I'm going to have the stock wheels chromed.
I saw an RX with 235/70-16 Michelins which looked
much better than stock.
http://www.rodmillenstore.com/rx_300/price_wheel.htm
Agreed about the GY Integritys, they are designed mostly for comfort, not agressive performance. Slap a set of Michs or Pirellis and you are good to go.
TC
First, The pulling to the right has been addressed here in the past. Mostly after the tires were rotated during the first 5,000 mile service. After repeat visits, Lexus does a realignment and that appears to corrects the problem. I have not figured out why. Maybe due to tire wear and the rotation sequence. The RX uses the full size spare in the rotation sequence and cross vehicle, front to back. Were the tires exchanged with another vehicle prior to you driving that one. Some buyers have requested certain tires and the dealers will sometime swap from one to another.
Second, Rough running. A few responses about idle vibration also, but not to the extent that you descibed. Nothing to add about that. Suggest you find another dealer or at least a new sales person who will listen to you and not blow you off. I have had none of these problems so far. Enjoy driving the RX everytime my wife will let me. She thinks it is her car, life is good.
I just looked t the Goodyear Integrity repl tires as Sam's club. What garbage. Paper thin sidewalls and priced accordingly. $66 each.
I would think Lexus could do better.
The great thing about Lexus is that they do listen to the customers and I'm 85% sure you won't see Integritys on the 2002s as standard equipment. I'd say the probabilty is high they will be Mich CTs or LTXs.
Also, if you are about to buy an RX, many folks have asked their dealers to swap out the GYs before taking delivery, many dealers have done so at no charge.
I'm buying a used 1999 4x4 w/21k miles, phone, Nak sound system, sunroof etc... for 28,600.
I'm going to have the wheels chromed for $500.
Good luck.
TC
We picked up a 2001 AWD with premium plus package, roof rack, wood steering wheel, wheel locks, chrome wheels, rear spoiler, and the Bridgstone tires came with the vehicle. The price certainly was not as good as many on this board, but still better than what we could get in Portland, OR. We picked it up on Friday at Peterson Autoplex in Boise, ID and drove it back to Portland. The buying experience was really great and I would recommend purchasing from them.
I have not told my wife all the issue that people have found because I don't want to scare her(it's her vehicle). It definitely pulls to the right. There is also a very bad rattle in the passenger side dash area. It seems others had this problem too. I do notice a noise when changing from Park, but have not determined if it's too noisy to complain about. Anyway, we found that luxury SUV we were looking for and my wife is very happy for now. Thanks and I'll let you know how the issues are serviced.
Jeff
Also, for gtmustang I think that the santa claus is a very capable vehicle indeed just one question. Can the cupholders hold a grande from starbucks or more like a tall?
According to GT's last Santa Claus (nice touch, mvs1) post, he wants to know if his new SC will have a Fuel Cell installed.
As we all know, it comes with the Fuel Cell only if he doesn't pop for the Nuclear Reactor Option.
Boy, those crazy Koreans - whatta sense of humor!
The car is still as tight as the day I got it--No rattles or squeaks
The Integrity tires are junk and I can't wait till they wear out (which according to my dealer should be within 5-7K!@) so I can replace them...
I still can't get used to the turning radius when trying to do "K" turns...
I still wish they had supplied a compass but I got an aftermarket one that serves the purpose.
I average about 19.3-19.5 mpg combined and about 23 pure highway using 89 Octane.
I ordered a ski rack from irontoad and am quite happy with their service and timeframes.
NOW for the question---Is any one else bothered by the fact that you can't tell when the fog lights are on without checking the stalk...or did they finally add an indicator light for '01??
Anyways, once they learn I really want a base RX300, several dealers say they have a couple coming in. I guess it is their instinct to sell the loaded car first.
P.S. I've viewed the discussions in both the RX and santa claus forums, and so far are most of the posts are amusing. Nice one jeffmust2 now its Tony's turn!!!
I agree about dealers. After all, it is to their advantage to sell cars w/ as many options as possible--those "gold" emblems are a real nice source of profit and to sell the ones they have easy access to. Although, i have found w/ Lexus dealerships, the sales people do not really pressure you into something you do not want. They try more subtle approaches so that you consider buying the 4wd as opposed to 2wd, but in general they don't waste your time. Good luck and let us know how it all went.
It is ironic that the dealer in Florida I talked to had AWD's, but very few FWD's. The midwest snowbelt dealers seem to have FWD's, and could use more AWD's. So much for Alan Greenspan's comment that inventory control will make for a shorter, milder recession.
I was walking out of the Burger King when I saw a couple of employees staring at my RX300. I was a little apprehensive, thinking there was something wrong. But then they tell me, "wow, nice wheels. Is this the new Hyundai?" I say, "no, can't you tell that it doesn't have bulgy lines, fender flares slapped on it, and wood glued to the insides."
But I sure was proud that they mistook my vehicle for something it wasn't. But then I thought to myself, "wait a minute. If I really wanted to buy a Santa Claus, I could have."
Go figure.
Drew(Edmunds) do you think we can start topics on individual dealers? Or maybe dealers in a region (chicagoland)? Is that do-able?
Also, if you do a search on"McGrath" you'll see it comes up in previous RX300 discussion forums. Unfortunately, this discussion software quite bluntly sucks, and you can't jump directly to the particular message where the search phrase occurs.
It works great as a stand alone, hand held cell phone. My only problems have been with the clarity of my voice when speaking through the microphone that is mounted just above the rear-view mirror. Most people say I sound like I am scuba diving or talking inside a tin can. I have been told other owners have had similar problems and that there is no time frame on the fix.....
Other than that, this is the best vehicle I have ever owned (including an 88 4Runner for 11 years).
I'll probably end up going with either a Pro-fit mount or the new Navigator FM hands-free accesory. The new ones use a dead FM frequency on your stereo instead of a tiny speaker in the unit itself. I've already experimented with a similar unit and the sound quality is pretty good.
http://store.yahoo.com/dnbenteprisesinc/celvccarcelp.html
I like the Navigators because they simply plug into your cigarette lighter and are portable. My wife and I swap vehicles, plus, we each have different makes of cell phones! A permanent mount is out of the question.
TC
Thanks
BTW, you had mentioned in post #734 of the "microphone voice commands" for navigation. Voice commands for the NAV system are available on the LS430 and activated by pulling back on the telephone button on the steering wheel (a little microphone icon is displayed on the left margin of the screen). But who knows? Maybe with the Lexus phone installed and the microphone voice commands option enabled we could have some real fun!!
http://www.lexus.com/showroom/protection/extendedsvc.html
The warranty is totally negotiable.
http://www.edmunds.com/chat/brauerchat022701.html
Drew
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Vans, SUVs, and Aftermarket and Accessories message boards
By the way, thanks TC for the JGC advice. Isn't it a shame that the JGC division cannot get themselves in order? I have always thought that it had such nice lines.
I must say that I admire all of the work you do to keep current on the new information on such a wide variety of vehicles. I often wish that you could host a board yourself. I could just ask you all of my questions and save myself lots of time in not having to investigate on my own.
Research is second nature for me and part of my engineering schooling. Once I focus on a research subject I tend to be thorough, much to my wife's chagrin.
I almost bought a JGCL two months ago (already ordered the vehicle), but it was another member on the Edmunds forum who planted the RX300 seed in my mind, who actually had direct JGC vs. RX300 experience. He got me going in the right direction and I did my own research after that.
So if I helped in some way, I'm happy. I just like to help the same way somebody helped me.
Seriously, though, I thought I saw a demographic one time that said RX ownership (drivership??) was split nearly 50/50. Out of curiosity, can anyone confirm/deny?
I like to think I'm secure enough in my gender identity that I don't need an Excursion to bolster my ego. Or am I simply a minority?
If you haven't read Edmunds.com's confessions of a car salesman, I highly recommend you do so. I found it very entertaining, and yet enlightening as to what goes in the auto sales business.
Drew
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Vans, SUVs, and Aftermarket and Accessories message boards
Drew
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Vans, SUVs, and Aftermarket and Accessories message boards
I thought I should switch to this board to ask you this. I am interested in the dealership that your wife visited that had a run down service department. From everything I had seen or read so far, this seems to be the exception rather than the norm. When a dealership finds itself in such state, what, if anything, does Lexus do to correct the trouble?
I cannot begin to tell you how surprised I have been to find out that Mercedes does not have a consistently outstanding reputation for service. I was not expecting this to be one of their problems, and as you stated it truly seems to vary from dealer to dealer, but more often than not it doesn't sound good.
What is Lexus doing that other companies are not? How are they able to maintain a similar service experience in so many dealerships? Why would other companies not be able to follow suit? Mercedes certainly has money behind its dealerships, so this can't be the problem. I just don't understand this. You also see how it is affecting the buying decisions of some of their customers. One would think that this would be of importance to them.
I don't know why the service at almost all Lexus dealers is consistently good, but as I fairly stated elsewhere, you can get a bad dealer in any brand, at any price level.
I have to add something about that Lexus Dealer with the "run down" service facility, Massapequa Lexus on Long Island. Guess what? They just cut the ribbon on a brand new service building that they built from scratch right next to the old one. Once again, I've been proven wrong . But I still would not buy from them, they tried the old "let me talk to my manager" bit several times when trying to get a price. Waste of my time.
The dealer I bought from (and will try to get all my service from) is Ray Catena Lexus in Larchmont, NY and Eatontown, NJ. If anyone needs a salesman referral let me know and we'll talk privately.
It's really strange, I've stated before that I thought I would never be caught dead in a Lexus, MB, etc. But I've only owned my RX for a little over a month and I'm already thinking about 3 - 4 years down the road when I might get another car, and what kind of Lexus it might be ;-)
With regards to MB, there is always going to be a customer base for them, the kind of folks who would never, ever think of buying anything other than a MB. They'll pay MSRP and not even bat an eye. I almost get the impression that the "bad" MB dealers get annoyed with us common folk who might come in to buy one MB, as opposed to their steady customers who buy one for every member of their family, including the dog. 8-P
TC
TC
Something else that I have found very curious is that I have been taken right in on three different occasions. I have never expected it and don't expect it to occur on a regular basis, but the service manager has asked me if I would like to have my problem taken care of at that moment. -- And what's up with all of the mechanics looking so clean? Are they changing uniforms and washing up all day long? I asked one about it and he said that they really don't have much trouble with these cars and what they have to do is pretty painless in the grime department. He also said that you would be surprised, but Lexus owners usually keep their cars cleaner than most, and he based this on the knowledge he had gained working at other high end dealerships. Of course, this sounds like a bunch of hogwash to me, but I guess it makes for a good story.
Oh yes, and when I was leaving, he said that they were happy to have customers like me or they might not have much to do. He said that they were the "Maytag Repair Man" of the automobile industry. Even the mechanics are jokesters. Well I guess at least they are happy and they certainly don't seem to be under much stress.
thanks