New to Lexus
10-04-12, 02:50 PM
#1
Instructor
Thread Starter
New to Lexus
Well I pulled the trigger on a starfire pearl with cabernet interior 2 days ago. Now I have to wait 2-3 months AHHHHHH!!!
I'm going to be honest, I was never a fan of Lexus until I went into the dealership last week. I always thought of them as "leathered up" Toyotas. More comfortable, but still just as "exciting" as an everyday Camry. My experience recently has thrown that mentality of Lexus straight out the window. To sum up my experience at my dealership, WOW! From the moment I entered to the test drive and right down to the negotiations. I really like the direction Lexus is taking and I never once thought I'd find myself in a Lexus dealership, let alone placing an order on one!!
Initial impressions from the test drive:
1. GS is just damn sexy isn't it? LOL
2. Wow, the comfort of those seats rival those of the highest priced couches. It was a short 10min test drive, but man was I comfy
3. Everything about the car is so very smooth; braking, acceleration, turning, etc. And when I kicked it into S+, it's almost as if it came alive, wow what a different car it felt like in that mode, loved it.
4. Such a quiet and comfortable car. For a sports sedan it felt like a Mercedes S-class type of atmosphere, very little road noise and it just felt extremely solid. Never would I thought I would've found such quality in a $60k car
5. The look of the interior was breathtaking really. Everything just looked so elegant and of the highest quality. I shopped around at BMW, Audi, Infiniti, and Mercedes and none of those offered the same feel of quality in that price range of car, I was thoroughly impressed.
6. That Navi screen, wow. Big beautiful display and it was very easy to use. I didn't get much time to get used to it, but in about the 3min I was messing with it, it was pretty easy to use and fairly straightforward. And it comes with1yr of Lexus Enform, thank you!
My salesman was awesome too. He didn't talk down to me (like many of the other dealers did) and wasn't pushy at all. He asked a variety of different questions I never thought a salesman would ask such as "what are YOU trying to accomplish on this visit?" I have worked at dealerships (in service) and have negotiated with a few for my family members and not in any of those experiences did any of those salesman ask me such a question. He made me feel like I wasn't just someone looking at a car, but someone who was already a valued customer just for visiting. Negotiations were a little rought, but we found common ground over the phone when they called me back and I think I got a darn good deal on it.
IF there is one complaint I have about Lexus it's their options that aren't really optional, such as the ML audio system which I didn't want or need, but apparently Lexus only makes it that way now. I actually walked out the dealership quite upset over that fact and my salesman called me about an hour later to see how I was doing. He understood my frustration and is willing to make it up to me, what that is I don't know, but I'm guessing some free service (which is much appreciated).
As of 10/2/12 I "Officially" own a Lexus. Of course I have to wait those 2-3mo, hoping less, but I think it'll be more than worth the wait. The car blew me away during the test drive and I can't wait til it gets here to discover more about it. For the money I spent, no other car make could compare, this is literally the total package. And it feels so much nicer than any of the other brands I went to look at. My impression of Lexus has greatly changed and if this is the direction they're going to pursue, then I'm all for perfection
This is going to be the longest 2-3 months of my life....And sorry for the long post, I'm just so happy with Lexus (for the most part) and had to share
I'm going to be honest, I was never a fan of Lexus until I went into the dealership last week. I always thought of them as "leathered up" Toyotas. More comfortable, but still just as "exciting" as an everyday Camry. My experience recently has thrown that mentality of Lexus straight out the window. To sum up my experience at my dealership, WOW! From the moment I entered to the test drive and right down to the negotiations. I really like the direction Lexus is taking and I never once thought I'd find myself in a Lexus dealership, let alone placing an order on one!!
Initial impressions from the test drive:
1. GS is just damn sexy isn't it? LOL
2. Wow, the comfort of those seats rival those of the highest priced couches. It was a short 10min test drive, but man was I comfy
3. Everything about the car is so very smooth; braking, acceleration, turning, etc. And when I kicked it into S+, it's almost as if it came alive, wow what a different car it felt like in that mode, loved it.
4. Such a quiet and comfortable car. For a sports sedan it felt like a Mercedes S-class type of atmosphere, very little road noise and it just felt extremely solid. Never would I thought I would've found such quality in a $60k car
5. The look of the interior was breathtaking really. Everything just looked so elegant and of the highest quality. I shopped around at BMW, Audi, Infiniti, and Mercedes and none of those offered the same feel of quality in that price range of car, I was thoroughly impressed.
6. That Navi screen, wow. Big beautiful display and it was very easy to use. I didn't get much time to get used to it, but in about the 3min I was messing with it, it was pretty easy to use and fairly straightforward. And it comes with1yr of Lexus Enform, thank you!
My salesman was awesome too. He didn't talk down to me (like many of the other dealers did) and wasn't pushy at all. He asked a variety of different questions I never thought a salesman would ask such as "what are YOU trying to accomplish on this visit?" I have worked at dealerships (in service) and have negotiated with a few for my family members and not in any of those experiences did any of those salesman ask me such a question. He made me feel like I wasn't just someone looking at a car, but someone who was already a valued customer just for visiting. Negotiations were a little rought, but we found common ground over the phone when they called me back and I think I got a darn good deal on it.
IF there is one complaint I have about Lexus it's their options that aren't really optional, such as the ML audio system which I didn't want or need, but apparently Lexus only makes it that way now. I actually walked out the dealership quite upset over that fact and my salesman called me about an hour later to see how I was doing. He understood my frustration and is willing to make it up to me, what that is I don't know, but I'm guessing some free service (which is much appreciated).
As of 10/2/12 I "Officially" own a Lexus. Of course I have to wait those 2-3mo, hoping less, but I think it'll be more than worth the wait. The car blew me away during the test drive and I can't wait til it gets here to discover more about it. For the money I spent, no other car make could compare, this is literally the total package. And it feels so much nicer than any of the other brands I went to look at. My impression of Lexus has greatly changed and if this is the direction they're going to pursue, then I'm all for perfection
This is going to be the longest 2-3 months of my life....And sorry for the long post, I'm just so happy with Lexus (for the most part) and had to share
10-04-12, 03:07 PM
#2
Lexus Test Driver
Great post. Thanks for sharing and congratulations on your purchase, even though you don't have it yet!
Please share with us: What price, and what options exactly? Don't even know if you got an F-Sport?!?
Please share with us: What price, and what options exactly? Don't even know if you got an F-Sport?!?
10-04-12, 03:10 PM
#3
Instructor
Thread Starter
Got an F Sport package:
-Navi
-ML audio
-park assist
-blind spot
- rear power sunshade
And the other standards, think those were the only premium "options"
Paid $60,600 OTD, so includes license and all that good stuff. Very good deal I got. And just to throw it in, I'd be only the 4th SFP/Cabernet in CA
Last edited by dezymond; 10-04-12 at 03:14 PM.
10-04-12, 03:24 PM
#4
Instructor
Thread Starter
And no plans to mod, I personally don't believe in that kinda stuff and choose to use my money on other things. I think the only thing I would mod is the Nav, and that would be getting a module to play DVDs while I drive it. That's about a $350-$400 module right there and that's not counting the labor if I don't do it myself. And maybe switch to 5000k or 6000k headlights, not a fan of yellowish tint on 4300k bulbs.
Normally I'm used to switching everything to LEDs or "clearing" things out, but the Lexus is already there. All the CF parts, CAI, various engine mods, etc. Not my type of thing
Normally I'm used to switching everything to LEDs or "clearing" things out, but the Lexus is already there. All the CF parts, CAI, various engine mods, etc. Not my type of thing
Last edited by dezymond; 10-04-12 at 03:28 PM.
10-04-12, 04:41 PM
#6
Lexus Test Driver
Welcome! Glad you're loving it.
Yeah, the Navi screen at 12.3 inches, is the largest in the industry. I call it the "John Holmes of navigation screens."
Yeah, the Navi screen at 12.3 inches, is the largest in the industry. I call it the "John Holmes of navigation screens."
10-04-12, 04:57 PM
#7
Instructor
Thread Starter
Gotta stop by the dealer tomorrow to pick up some paperwork, maybe I can use that time to get my salesman to show me ALL the features.
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10-04-12, 08:25 PM
#9
Instructor
Thread Starter
I'm sure as my time becomes more consumed with more important matters the wait will be more tolerable, but for now I wish I had it!
And thanks! Heard good things about this board and am glad to be a member of this board and the Lexus family
10-04-12, 08:45 PM
#11
Lexus Champion
It will be worth it. I waited about a month and a half for mine and I have been glad I did every day I drive it. I have the Cabernet as well and love it more everytime I drive the car. I was like you... I had moved away from Lexus many years ago in favor of Infinitis and Audis because I viewed them as boring. The new GS changed all that.
You mentioned you weren't thrilled that all the GS's were optioned up and you had to take ML. I think you will change your mind once you spend some time with it and listen to the quality of the sound. It is worth every penny.
Congratulations, and I hope your car arrives sooner than expected. It will be worth the wait. You will love it.
You mentioned you weren't thrilled that all the GS's were optioned up and you had to take ML. I think you will change your mind once you spend some time with it and listen to the quality of the sound. It is worth every penny.
Congratulations, and I hope your car arrives sooner than expected. It will be worth the wait. You will love it.
10-04-12, 10:03 PM
#12
Instructor
Thread Starter
It will be worth it. I waited about a month and a half for mine and I have been glad I did every day I drive it. I have the Cabernet as well and love it more everytime I drive the car. I was like you... I had moved away from Lexus many years ago in favor of Infinitis and Audis because I viewed them as boring. The new GS changed all that.
You mentioned you weren't thrilled that all the GS's were optioned up and you had to take ML. I think you will change your mind once you spend some time with it and listen to the quality of the sound. It is worth every penny.
Congratulations, and I hope your car arrives sooner than expected. It will be worth the wait. You will love it.
You mentioned you weren't thrilled that all the GS's were optioned up and you had to take ML. I think you will change your mind once you spend some time with it and listen to the quality of the sound. It is worth every penny.
Congratulations, and I hope your car arrives sooner than expected. It will be worth the wait. You will love it.
As for the options thing, yeah I'm still a bit irked by it, but considering I spent UNDER my expected cost ($62k) I'm pretty happy I got an almost fully loaded GS for such a great deal. I may have to listen to a base audio package then compare it to mine, but for now it's a $850 option I didn't want. Can't complain though, got a real good price and they're going to give me all weather floor mats for like $50 just to make it up to me.
Tired of tan, black, or grey interiors. The red is a very nice change in color. I remember my mom had an Accord with a reddish interior and those were popular back then. Glad to see Lexus making a "retro" color cool again with up to date materials. It's not too much red either, very good balance of interior colors imo.
10-07-12, 12:47 PM
#13
I ordered mine in early August, and the latest update is that I should have it late-Nov/early-Dec. It's been a long time, but it seems that I'm past the half-way point.
I would like to have bought something in stock, but I wanted the APCS, and that guaranteed special order, because the dealers just don't get that option. It's not a very popular option, but for me it was a must-have.
Also, I didn't want the ML audio, so the order was a good thing for more than one reason - the base audio is fantastic, and you have to ask yourself just how much you want to spend for an incremental improvement that you may not be able to hear, especially since most of your audio probably doesn't come from a DVD collection. I got Nebula Gray w/ light gray interior, and my options brought the total MSRP to just under $62k.
I've got an 06 GS, so I know Lexus well. Actually, this is my third Lexus.
I would like to have bought something in stock, but I wanted the APCS, and that guaranteed special order, because the dealers just don't get that option. It's not a very popular option, but for me it was a must-have.
Also, I didn't want the ML audio, so the order was a good thing for more than one reason - the base audio is fantastic, and you have to ask yourself just how much you want to spend for an incremental improvement that you may not be able to hear, especially since most of your audio probably doesn't come from a DVD collection. I got Nebula Gray w/ light gray interior, and my options brought the total MSRP to just under $62k.
I've got an 06 GS, so I know Lexus well. Actually, this is my third Lexus.
