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link to lexus features/specs
If you go to this link (lexus website) and click on the navigation system link in the list of features, you'll get a popup that has a link to the lexus Nav system tutorial. I have the IS250 and I'm very impressed with the Nav system.
My questions are these: I wanted to splurge and get the Levinson system, but much like i have seen in other posts, ABSOLOUTELY NO dealer has them in stock. Does ANYBODY know of anyone who was able to get their hands on one? If so, how was it? Is custom ordering the ONLY way to get one?
Second, I have never had a RWD car, and some people told me that it would be a death trap in the NYC snow (where I live). Is this true? How bad would it really be? I see plenty of people driving Infiniti G35 coupes around and they only come in RWD, are they dying? I am asking b/c I dont see myself changing tires every winter, and I want to know exactly how safe would I be driving around with the standard tires (whatever comes with it)?
Thank you everyone.
All RWD are not the same, traction control helps, but nothing improves rwd handling in the snow more than a good set of winter tires.
You are not going to be wildly out of control on a couple of inches of show just because it's RWD, but you will have more of a problem getting started from a stop. The 350 will be harder to get going due to the greater horsepower/torque unless you are very gentle on the accelerations
some of the G35's you see may actually be G35X's, which are all wheel drive.
You know, one thing I would recommend you do is take advantage of the edmunds pricing site. It's a very good tool for determing how good of a deal you think you're getting.
I looked up the 350 with ONLY sports package and nav and the invoice + dest. came out to 36,900. Now, I don't know if your price is an "out the door" price, but if it isn't, I wouldn't say it's that great of a deal. It looks like you're at around $1,700 off of MSRP and about $3,600 over invoice. I think there are huge regional differences, so it is kind of hard to say. You should mention what area you're from and maybe someone can give you a better idea as to the deal you're getting.
1. I live in Denver which is much higher than sea level. The salesperson told me that this high above sea level I don't need to put in the manufacturer recommended 91 octane. He says I could go with 87 if I want. We also have 85 octane, although I've never used that. So, can anybody shed some insight as to the validity of this statement and, if valid, provide some rationale as to why?
2. I've got the black interior and 2 kids and they're not getting along I'm wondering what approach everyone uses as to care of the interior/exterior of the car. What products to you use and do you do anything special for maintenance?
Thanks in advance.
In Denver, where the atmospheric pressure is only about 80% of what it is at sea level, that combustion pressure becomes ~120-130 psig, which would be the equivalent of an engine with a compression ratio of 8 or 9 to one at sea level. Engines with an 8:1 compression ratio run fine on 87 octane at sea level, just as your engine will at 5000'. When you go to Winter Park (if you're cheap like me) or Aspen (if you're not), look at the gas pumps. The regular gas could well be 85 octane or lower & it works just fine.
Save the 20 cents/per gallon, but don't forget to go back to 89 or 91 octane when you head down to the lowlands.
Of course, you're only getting about 80% of the power you would at sea level too, so there is no free lunch. That's why turbos are so nice at altitude -- they spin faster as the altitude increases & tend to make the engine feel like it's always running at sea level.
So far my solution has been: NO KIDS IN THE CAR. That's what my wife's Volvo wagon is for.
I mean, if my kids needs to go to the hospital and the wagon isn't available I'll call 911 so they can mess up the ambulance instead!
Well, eventually they'll be back there so I put seat-savers underneath the car seats.
This is just a plastic mat with a tiny rim around the edges to catch fluids.
And there will be a no food or drink, shoes- off policy as well. My 4 yr. old daughter's shoe prints are all over the back seat of the wagon.
I'd be interested in hearing what you've tried.
I am planning to purchase either a used Lexus IS-300 or a new IS-250 AWD soon. Live in Chicago, the windy and at times snowy city, and wondered how the old RWD models handle in snow/ slippery conditions vs the AWD now available. Anyone have experience with this, advice?
Thx much!
Not sure if it's motorola issue or not. Maybe a battery-saving issue? I'm looking at purchasing a bluetooth cell phone and I've got cingular. According to that lexus.letstalk website, there are only 3 potential phones from cingular that are supposed to work with the IS250. They are the razr V3, Sony Ericsson W600 and the Nokia 6230. Surely there must be other phones out there that can be paired with the car. Thanks for the comment on the motorola, though. That one is tops on the list right now.
ineedanewcar,
In my previous car (pathfinder), I put towels underneath each seat to catch any fallout. I've always had a no drink/food policy in every car I've owned. The kids have gotten in the backseat of my car quite a few times now. Dirt from their feet is a problem. I also have put down towels under their carseats. I'll probably get black towels so they can blend in with the interior. Unfortunately, I have no good answer right now for keeping the car in the best shape. Also, I've never owned a car with leather, so I was wondering if the typical armor all or something similar will work, or if this requires something special.
If you can buy a $40k car, how valuable is your time?
year income 120000
a week 2307.692308
a day 461.5384615 (8h day)
an hour 57.69230769
5 min 4.807692308
30 min 28.84615385
And lets face it it takes at least 30 minutes to find the music you want download, proof etc... so yes save 20 bucks (maybe) on a cd and take 30 minutes out of my day. Not a chance. Besides d/l MP3's average quality is poor and even with the stock stereo you can here the difference burnt vs bought.
Just my two cents,
Netwon
Assuming you sleep 7h/day, that leaves 9h per day for all other activities at no cost. I assume one could squeeze in 5 min - 30 min to burn a CD for the car in all of this non-earning time if one wants to hold onto some hard currency...
RE: AWD... in the midwest I would recommend the 250AWD over the 300... unless you get a set of dedicated snow tires for the 300. Also, I had looked at the 300 when it was out and I liked it... but it just didn't have enough 'luxury'... I think the 1st gen and 2nd gen are very different cars... just my .02 cents.
Any complaints at all about the new IS ???
These are characteristic "bad habits" of my '03ES 300 (well documented symptoms of many 2002-'06 ES 300/330s), and I don't want to experience more of the same if I trade.
Maxidrive,
I'm having the same problem with my Verizon Motorola v3 Razr. I looked up the Razr manual, and there's an option to keep bluetooth on constantly (though it drains the battery big time). My bluetooth connection has been more consistent since I fixed this.
I took a ski trip to Big sky last month and it cost my family about $2000. I feel like such an idiot, I forgot to factor in your per minute analysis. The one week trip really cost me $11,691.92 (and I don't even want to think about how much it cost my wife, she makes twice what I do). If I had access to your per minute figures while planning the trip I would have realized that no Ski trip is worth that kind of money.
Of course if we dicker over the cost of $12.00 CD, perhaps we should all simply go out an by a Toyota Corolla, no?
Lets get back to talking about the great car the IS is, not how to save $12.00.
Netwon
The key phrase here is "one doesn't want to do."
If you don't want to burn a CD, it's work. If you do, it's fun. Go figure.
I used to work on my cars a lot and still do, but less. If I can save $700 doing a job on my car (usually with help from a son) and it takes two hours, looks pretty good to me.
OTOH, if I have to spend six hours figuring out how to do something, the table tilts. In my case, $30-50/hour is what I'll put up with to do bad stuff.
If it's fun, I'll do it for free.
:sick:
Every thing is relative. In Hawaii due to the unique business arrangement the dealer is also the distributor.
So no other competing Lexus dealer in Hawaii...this translate to no discount from MSRP.
But we have great weather and no new for AWD due to snow.
Thanks.
Can you toggle AUTO transmission between "D" and "S" mode while car is moving?
Thanks,
This brings up the Service Menu. Touch and hold Override for 3 seconds. It should remain highlighted.
My March '06 (manufacture date) allows the over-ride mode, but will not show movies unless the parking brake is set and the gear shift is in park.
I was looking for comments from those who own the AWD version, which is what I am thinking about purchasing.
I was curious what gas mileage people have been getting with Spring time temperatures compared to driving in winter weather. Are the "real" numbers mid-way between the 22-28 that Lexus claims, or are they closer to the 22 number.
Can anyone with manual IS 250 confirm that you get this sound as well?
Thanks in advance!
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
Then again, with a non-existent back seat, maybe they can't afford to cut trunk space for the batteries.
I live in Colrado and I'm looking for some peace of mind. :confuse: