my wife wants a lexus...

no, my '05 uses regular

a valid concern, if you do mainly highway driving a hybrid isn't the way to go

i don't think it's needed

you should manage a bargain on the 06's being that the 07s are here

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On Fri, 19 May 2006 12:11:07 -0500, "stevie" graced this newsgroup with:

...get a Certified Pre-Own Lexus. You'll save a TON of money and you'll actually get a better warranty than a new one.

..that's debatable. Most people have found little or no difference using regular or mid-grade gas. We have an ES300 and an LS430, we use regular in both and have seen no difference in performance or mpg.

..it's not so much that they may cost more down the road. It's more of a question of do you want to purchase this technology when, in as little as 2 or 3 years, there may be better technology out? I believe that hybrid technology, as it is today, is already old technology and in 2 or 3 years, these vehicles, which you'll pay a premium price for today, may be worth significantly less if new technology comes out.

Also, unless you plan on keeping your vehicle a *long* time (at least

7 years), you won't realize any big savings at the pump. The price of hybrid technology is thousands of dollars more. You'll need to save a LOT of gas before you even break even.

..not that Lexi have that many mechanical problems but when they do, it can be very expensive to repair. Our dealer offered us an extended warranty that if not used at 100,000 miles, we get a 100% refund. Best of both worlds. One can argue that if we put that money away in an interest bearing account, we would of made out better. We're still under the manufacturers warranty on the LS430 (with an added refundable extended warranty on top of that), and the extended warranty cost $900. Both of my retractable mirrors failed on me and the cost to replace them had I not had a warranty would of been $1,400.

some dealers will bargain, so will not. It really depends on the model of Lexus you're looking at and how popular it is. The new hybrids are pretty much non-negotiable around here. Again, you'll make out *much* better getting one from the dealer that just came off lease that's Certified. They like new and you don't take the huge tax hit. Remember that the very second you drive a new car off the lot, it's a used car anyway.

..you can go to the Lexus corporate website and bring up all your local dealers.

..take your time. There's plenty of cars to choose from. I'd recommend taking several different models for a test drive. Your wife may find out that she really likes a non-SUV instead.

>

Oh, man, I couldn't agree more with you on the hybrid technology. I think the next frontier is battery technology, which will allow hybrids to be converted into using less gas and more electric. Private engineers are converting their Toyota Prius's into plug-in hybrids, and they're getting upwards of 200mpg. Granted, they've loaded a ton of batteries into the trunk to accomplish this, but that's where a revolution in battery technology could take us in the near future. I foresee new battery technology coming within the next 5 years that will accomplish at least the plug-in hybrid concept, if not fully electric, then branch into solar charging stations at home. There is so much out there, it's just too bad the ruling party in America practices trickle-down economics with the oil companies. They don't want to put any serious money into things that will take money away from big oil.

Test drive the RX and the ES. I would recommend a sedan over any SUV. Having said that, my wife is happy with her RX330. She didn't like ES sufficiently due to the SUV craze.

Lexus dealers are notorious for being difficult in lower their price. Also, they don't give very much for their trade-ins. I've found that negotiations have been easier without a trade-in (if that's at all possible for you).

All of them recommend premium. People who buy Lexus vehicles and put in regular gas are just being cheap. If this is a factor, I suggest buying the Toyota alternative, which is the Toyota Highlander. Due to the current RAV4, Highlander sales have been laggardly. This would make negotiating easier.

You'd have to do your own calculations on this. Calculate how much you drive yearly and what would be the savings yearly versus paying the premium for the hybrid. This would obviously be in years so you'd have to consider if this length of time is practical enough for your needs.

Not in most cases.

This works to you advantage. If you make a low offer to the dealer which they would still profit, they might not take it initially. I have left offers to them before where they called me back weeks later to say they accepted it.

Bullcrap, I and others have noted the we use regular fuel with no lose of power or fuel efficiency. I don't feel like digging up the manual but if I am not mistaken premium is not called for

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She has a good taste and choice. Either RX, IS, ES, and GS, they are all excellent cars. All 4 have now been remodelled and extremely has classy, but pleasant appearances. Enjoy and she will never look back! RX is perhaps the choice of woman drivers who are independent, self confident and know what to look for her transportation. When I glance to RX drivers as they pass our car in our city, most of them appear to be woman driver. I don't know about the stats, but women appears to like the style and model of the RX SUV since its inception the late 1990s.

stevie wrote:

"stevie" wrote

Might be cheaper to get a new wife

;-)

Very eloquently put. A prolific author are you?

Lexus engineers have obviously more knowledge of their vehicles than you do. If they recommend premium, it's because it is more salubrious to their engines.

In Japan, they have higher octanes than we have here. 93 is actually low for them. They have to actually engineer it to accommodate even lower octane just in case parsimonious people like you purchase their cars.

The GS may be a bit on the high side of his budget. Excellent car though. Most SUV buyers are women.

That depends on how much you're worth and how good your lawyer is versus hers.

:-)

you can piss your money away any way that you choose to, like I and others have stated, using regular fuel seems to have no effect on performance or fuel usage so shove your prolific verbiage in your fuel tank

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But he's saying that his memory of his owner's manual is that higher octane (not "premium") fuel is NOT called for.

So tell us all, "viperkiller," why you are on this kick? Could it be because you've bought into the idea that "naturally, a premium car should have premium fuel" even though we all know there's nothing "premium" about higher octane fuel?

FWIW, the owners manual for my '04 IS states:

"Octane Rating

Select premium unleaded gasoline with an Octane Rating of 91 (Research Number 96) or higher for optimum engine performance. However, if such premium type cannot be obtained, you may temporarily use unleaded gasoline with an Octane Rating as low as 87 (Research Octane Number 91).

Use of unleaded fuel with an octane number or rating lower than stated above will cause persistent heavy knocking. If severe, this will lead to engine damage"

that could be true for your IS, but we were talking about the RX series and those engines don't share that issue

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So everyone putting 93 octane in their tanks is, indeed, wasting their money.

For the record, my 94 ES says that it "recommends 93 octane fuel, however, you may use as low as 87 octane fuel with no damage to the engine".

Marketing hype is all that is.

I have a 05 RX330 - recommended gas is regular in it - I think the hybrid needs premium, but you need to check.

The RX330 is excellent - rides and handles (almost) like a car. Very comfortable. It has its quirks and plain irritating design 'features'

- guess all cars do. There was a thread sometime back on dislikes, you might want to search for that thread if you want to see what the dislikes were.

I suggest you make sure it doesn't have that "hesitation and lurch" (or jerk) that I and others have written about. Test drive the exact one you want to buy before you sign and put money down. Slow down, like your coming to a red light, and, without coming to a complete stop, step on the gas like the light changed to green. Try it several times on the car you're going to buy and see what happens. Is there a jerk? Considering what you're paying for a Lexus it should be smooth - no jerks and no BS from the sales person. Al

My 2006 GS300 also has the "jerk" when it changes down from 2nd to 1st going very slowly on an upgrade if you depress that gas pedal even slightly to maintain speed, or speed up. Happens every time on the upslope to my garage, while waiting for the garage door to fully open.

This is supposed to be a different transmission (6-speed) without this problem, but it happens here too.

Has any> I suggest you make sure it doesn't have that "hesitation and lurch" (or

I choose to things the right way. If I buy a vehicle that makes recommendations of certain things including maintenance and fuel, I follow it. It is the cost of making the decisions that you do. You don't buy a full-sized truck and compain about the gas mileage. You don't buy a sports car and complain about towing capacity. That's the cost that you should be prepared for when you choose a path. The effect may not be apparent to you, but it is there. That's science not opinion.

With your diction and diplomacy, have you ever thought of joining the U.N.?