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Lexus ES 350
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Discontinued would not surprise me; I asked my dealer about the color and he started wretching...so I got the impression it may not be so popular!
zekeman1
Anyone have a picture of the black? (Not a Lexus pic, a personal pic.)
Thanks.
Send me a PM with your e-mail and I'll send the pic to you.
Bob
Ask about MSD (Multiple Security deposit) after they give you the cost. It is a fully refndable fee at the end of the lease. Not a cap cost. Seems to me that the Lexus lease can be pricey at least as compared to Infiniti...Rob
How do I send a PM to you?
I THINK you can do it thru CarSpace. Click on my blue name and "visit" my space. There might be a way thru that site. There is an mail manager section or something.
Too bad we can't do it right from here.
The only reason I was thinking of putting 5,000. down is to make the payment lower but I will take all of your advice into consideration.
Sigh! I hate going in to lease or buy a car. I feel like I am going to battle. I hold my own though. I am a tough negotiator. Contrary to when the salesperson first sees me and thinks this is going to be a slam-dunk. LOL
That way if the car was ever stolen or totaled you wouldn't lose that money.
I have the 2002 ES 300 and I can't tell you how annoying it is to come to stop signs and feel the awful tranny refuse to down shift as you slow to 1mph. Then on acceleration the damn thing doesn't know what to do. As soon as you put your foot on the accelerator, it hunts frantically for a gear and jerks like a bucking bronco.
Lexus claimed to have a "fix" for this disaster about a year after I bought it. The "reprogramed" the tranny. Or so they said. Didn't do a darn thing though.
I'm picking up my 2007 ES350 in a few days and I'm really hoping that this sorry chapter in Lexus' history is going to be a very bad memory and nothing else.
Anyone know?
Good luck with your ES 350 - let us know how it goes.
Meanwhile, let's go to psychdoc, "Transmission problems with Lexus ES?" #1207, 27 May 2006 4:17 am to respond to psychdoc about the ES 300 transmission issues.
Now, why didn't I think of that?
I just added three ES350 pics taken at my local dealer a few weeks ago.
The first is, I think, the Smoky Granite Mica. I am not persoanlly interested in that color - already have a black '85 Vette that is a handful to take care of - but when I was "Sunday Shopping" and came across this "Sparkling Black" color on the lot, I was absolutely STUNNED and HAD to take a pic.
It was spotless and in the bright sunshine just stopped you dead in your tracks. Now, keeping it that way would be another story.
The other two pics are the Crystal White which has a slight pearlescent effect.
Hopefully, these pics will help anybody who hasn't seen these cars in person, yet.
I think you click on my name and then "Visit Me" to go to CarSpace and view the pics.
Surprised that Moonshell looks like that in the pic. It was one of my first choices in the brochure. (Of course, it was just a little swatch of color and looked good.) That Smoky Granite looks good (if I can promise myself to get it washed on a regular basis). Does anyone like the Blue Onyx? I have to see it in person but that has always been my favorite color. I don't know about having it on a car though.
I do think that the first one is the smoky granite mica. I like that color, but I wanted to compare it to the black.
Thanks for posting the pics.
What really sets it off are the metallic particles which just grab your attention. They provide the "sparkle" and account for the "mica" in the color name, I guess.
The Lexus black is a deep GLOSS black - almost like patent leather. And, the horizontal surfaces DO reflect up...much like patent leather shoes.
I love the Mica color, but I really don't want grey or black inside. I have pretty much decided to go with the White/cashmere UL as I have stated here before. I thinks it just looks crisp, clean and luxurious.
It's really quite hideous. In fact it's whatever comes right after "hideous."
Ughhh!
The dark metallic grey (whatever they call it) is very nice indeed. So is the darker brown but I hardly ever hear this mentioned. Odd 'cause it's rich and nice looking. Black you can never go wrong with and the light silver is as close to a universal car "color" as there is. It always looks nice.
The real winner here though I think is the ruby red. It's just the right shade of red. Not too bright but not maroon either. It's simply the runaway "must have" color for this car.
Just my opinion.
I have a list of colors (7 out of the 10 offered) that I want to go look at. I will let you know what I thought later. :shades:
I think I am going to call around to other dealerships to see who has what, just so I can, at least, decide what color I want. :confuse:
I am having the hardest time deciding on color - as you can tell. Ruby...... or White........... The Ruby was abosolutely spectacular in the showroom. How is it when it's dirty, etc. Are you still loving it??? Are you getting lots of comments about the color?
HELP!!!!!
I also thought that the wood looked cheap compared to the 330. It looked like under layment more than it did nice wood.
We are going to give it another try Monday. I hope that we have a better experience. Me and my wife thought the samething after we drove it.
I have never had a Lexus before, is this drive normal for this vehicle? I prefer the BMW ride. I feel like i'm in much more control.
I will say that the 350 is a much better bang for your buck and is hard to beat for the money. But I just hope that it was the car we drove and that the steering is a little more stiffer on my next test drive.
Rob
The recent posts regarding transmission problems have me a bit concerned (I'm awaiting delivery of my 350, so I'm committed), but no one makes every car perfectly and I'd rather take my chances with Lexus/Toyota than any other mark.
This is my first Lexus, but I'm a long time multi-Toyota owner. My ES will be replacing a SAAB 95. I did not plan on buying a car now, but I was rear-ended at a stop light a couple of months ago by a fast moving car that squished me into the car in front and that was the end of my SAAB (I by the way came out without a scratch). I liked my SAAB. I've had SAABs for a long time too. I liked the combination of the ride and handling of the SAAB. But, they have their quirks and it was time for a change.
I took a look at the BMW 330 and found it nothing special. Stiff ride, very stiff steering (I thought the power steering had gone out) and if the placement of the cupholders is any indication of the thought they put into the car, that alone was a reason to pass.
Also looked at the Infiniti G35. If I was looking for a car to race through traffic with, that might be the one and it can be had for an attractive price. But, it seemed a bit cramped from the drivers seat and also too stiff of a ride. I have a sports car (that I race from time to time at road race courses) so I have an outlet for my boy-racer moods (although I am coming up on 50 this year and my wife keeps wondering when I'm going to grow up). I wanted smooth, but not a boat.
I looked at the Acura TL. The TL has the SAAB like balance between ride and handling and it too can be had for an attractive price, but there are a lot of troublesome posts here on edmunds for that car and I wanted something a bit more understated.
Then, I tried the ES 350 (right after it came out) and there was no question that it was what I wanted to be sitting in for my daily commute and occasional road trips. However, I'm not an impulse buyer and I continued my car research. Then, I came back a few weeks later for another ride to make sure and I was sure. I enjoyed the ride (gentle, and handles with precision--like any car, you have to learn how it drives to properly drive it). During my two fairly lengthy test drives on the expressway, and on smooth and very rough surface streets, I really enjoyed listening to the silence. The interior is very attractive for its price segment. Would I like more wood on the dash instead of plastic? Sure. Would I want to pay for it? No.
I signed up for a premium plus with nav, smoky granite with black interior (hope to have it in a few weeks). Based upon the posts I've seen above, I got a respectable price from a Milwaukee area dealer. For those in the Chicago area, I'd try Woodfield Lexus. And, as other posts have pointed out, a good way to start is through the internet sales channels and use a wide geographic area.
BMW does not have a model to compare to the ES350, you're right, it is more comparable to a park avenue with regards to ride quality and handling.
If you're used to 3 series feel, check out the IS series, and if you prefer the 5 series, check out the GS series.
Hope you find the best deal
Anyway, I do plan on calculating the total monthly payments for the three year lease and put that money in a separate account for automatic withdrawal. That way I will not have to worry about it.
First things first.....I have to choose a color!!!!!
I already had the invoice pricing on the car and options as well, so I was not going to get into a nego. battle. I said I will offer you $500 over the total invoice and not a penny more. I also knew that they were going to get the 2% holdback on the base MSRP, so I figured that that was enough profit between the two.
After the inital shocked look I received from the salesman, He said, Wow you did your homework. I replied, yes I did. He said I do not know if they will accept this. I replied, if they want to sell a car today, they will. After about 5 minutes he returned and said if you take the car today, you have a deal. So I signed and left with a new car.
If I plan to lease a new ES350, I will offer the same deal regardless of it being a new model.
Interesting. That's the color I ordered and my dealer said it's the most pre ordered color. He said they still can get them but there is a wait because it is so popular. I still have not seen it in person.
The red looks great and is also popular.
The ES just felt to loose to me, it is a shame because this is the car that my wife really wanted. The ride was ok, just the steering felt funny.
I think that the car is a wise buy as far as money. I just hope that we can like the feel the next time.
as for the wood. I still think that my sister's High lander limited has much nicer wood than the ES. I also looked at the 330 and the IS and both had better looking wood. It looks cheap compaired to others. But that alone would not sway me from buying this car.
I did look at the IS and the back seat in the thing is just to small. That ride felt better to me. For that matter my wife's mothers 06 Camery had a better steering feel than did the ES.
I did find a review from cars.com http://www.cars.com/go/crp/research.jsp?section=reviews&makeid=27&modelid=8315&y- ear=2007&revid=49945&revlogtype=22
"The Lexus ES gets a taut new body and a leaner and meaner engine for '07, but it retains the gentle and refined personality that has typified Lexuses since they first arrived 17 years ago.
If you're looking for a sport sedan, keep looking. There's too much float in the ES suspension, too much dead feeling in the steering system. From a performance standpoint, its front-wheel-drive layout is an inherent drawback, too, compared with rear-drive competitors such as the Chrysler 300 and the Cadillac CTS.
But if it's a midsize near-luxury model you seek from a carmaker with one of the best reputations in the business for quality and customer satisfaction, the new ES should satisfy even more than its predecessor did."
this review hit's the nail on the head.
BLUE ONYX PEARL / CASHMERE
PREMIUM PLUS
BLUE TOOTH
Really want those heated/vented seats but don't seem to be shipping such to the Atlanta area. I can view the Nalley inventory but not Hennessy. Oh well guess I will just have to wait awhile.
Thanks for the comments.
Here is my personally experience:
I purchased my IS350 from Nalley Roswell's internet manager and since they don't have what I want on the lot (Blue onyx Pearl/Black + preferred package) He said he'll try to trade with other dealers. I put down 500 USD deposit on 3/28 and he called me on 4/21 told me that he got a car for me and it's already arrived at Jacksonville and it'll be at the dealership on 4/27. I then scheduled a delivery on 4/28.
:shades:
The new Lexus models are awesome beautiful... Like them really much, even though I'm dedicated to Bentley.
Have a nice day!
Regards,
Giovanni
Good luck. This is my first Lexus so I am anxious to break it in!
Like what was said earlier, i think that there was to much air in the tires. This time i did not feel like i was in a run away boat.
Well, i did not want to just come on here, bash the new ES and leave. I have got some valuable information on this forum and felt it fair to post my second experience. We did however end up buying the BMW. I can't say that it has all the bell's and whistles as the Lexus but the BMW's drive is more of what i like.
take care i guess now i'll have to go to Bimmerforums
I forgot to add that even the wood was nicer and had more life to it in the second car i drove.
I don't know? was their a holiday in Japan recently that they were in a hurry to get to because the first car i drove needs to be melted down.
take care E-
By the way, did you test drive the IS? If not I hope you won't have buyer's remorse one day...
Believe it or not, I test drove and shopped the BMW 5 Series (530xi), M-B E350, Infinity M35 (awd) and Audi A6 before I bought the Lexus. Here's a quick summary:
BMW- Awesome driving car. A real pleasure. Great suspension, steering and handling. Spartan interior. Almost complete lack of bells and whistles. Primitive, unusable nav system. Appearance that has grown on me since it was introduced. Overpriced (about $57k by the time you're done)!
M-B- A real disappointment in many respects. Tinny sounding doors, interior fit and finish not up to GM standards (ugh!), primitive nav system, horribly counter intuitive control layout. Nicely aesthetically designed interior. Exterior probably the most appealing of the bunch. Powerful engine, slow, ponderous steering. Nice suspension. Hugely overpriced (about the same as the BMW) though M-B subsidizes the leases to maintain market share, itself a very telling point.
Audi- Very stately, attractive exterior. Elegant looking if not terribly exciting. Interior in a league of its own. Simply gorgeous! Nicely laid out controls and good ergonomics. Very stiff suspension. Decent steering and braking. NO POWER!!!!!!!!!! Especially off the line the car feels like a brick rolling up hill. They call the engine a 3.2 but if you look at the specs it's really a 3.1 liter engine. Whatever it is, it's horribly underpowered for this car. Don't believe the published specs on this car's acceleration. They're not true. I took two for test drives out of different dealerships and they were both identically slow. A Yugo has more power. Oh, and I almost forgot...another Germanic primitive, unusable nav system. Very nicely priced, however. A real bargain in this segment.
Infinity- Tremendous power (even from the 6 cylinder engine), sharp steering, good brakes. Horrible transmission. Jerky, hunts for gears, etc. Pretty much what I've become used to from my (otherwise terific) 2002 Lexus ES300. Interior like Tokyo at night. Lots of bells and whistles but a bit 'over the top.' Great nav system. Very unattractive exterior..."Hi, I'm the G35's big brother" styling. Not cheap so it's not like you get much of a financial incentive to go this way.
Lexus- Well, I think we've covered it pretty well here in the last ~1200 posts (lol).
Suffice it to say I bought one with no regrets whatsoever.