New guy here....
07-05-11, 02:37 AM
#1
Lead Lap
Thread Starter
New guy here....
Hi all. Just thought I'd give you guys a fast rundown on my story.
I come from the BMW family, the last two being M3's. These were some fine cars, and for me, almost trouble free, and I loved them. The only time I ever had any trouble with them, it was caused by me and my insistent need to mod things. But I am getting older now, and at this point in my life it's time to slow down just a little.
Every time I drove the M3, there was always some boy racer, or ricer for that matter, that wanted to show me just how fast they were. People would be cutting me off and giving me the one finger salute if I wasn't doing 85 in a 55 zone. When you drive an M3, everyone expected you to speed, including the cops. My license, insurance and patience were all taking a hit. So instead of the sports car thing I'd thought I'd try the green thing, slow down a bit and save some money at the same time.
Back starting in about November '10,I looked at everything. From the Audi A3 (as hard to find as the HS) to the Mexican made Lincoln MKZ Hybrid. The HS was the finest I looked at with the Camry Hybrid being a distant second. And good news, my dealer had 3 brand new ones on the lot and 10 preowned ones that were used as loner vehicles for dealership. Plus they had 4 CT's that sat unsold. All I had to do was sell my M3 and just go down there and pick one out.
That was then, this is now. Now is after I sold my beloved M3, there are no HS's to be had, so here I sit driving my winter rat as my only car.
So in May, after the tsunami, I placed and order with my poor, broke, tired, Lexus salesman for a HS premium with the Tech package.... AND.... LED headlights. I could see his hair turning more gray by the moment. He hadn't even heard of LED headlights, let alone actually order one from the factory.
That was in May, now it's July, and I haven't got even so much as one phone call. I guess I'm learning about the famed Lexus buying experience. So I called him. "The order has been placed a long time ago" he says. "I'll talk to my manager and get back to you". That was 5 days ago.
So here I sit, with money down on a car that may or may not ever materialize, and a dealer that won't talk to me. Maybe he just doesn't like me?!?! The Mexican Lincoln almost looks good at this point!!
But anyways, I was able to leave the Club Lexus forum logged on at work (don't tell the boss) and read all 4500 posts and 280 HS threads. I took me about 2 weeks. I remember reading about Mr. Argelius, and his long wait for his HS. From the time he placed his order until the exciting day it arrived. Or how about the resident troll, Mr. mikemareen? His dad owned the HS he hated so much it got him banned from the forum.
But mostly, I wanted to personally thank Mr. KGenaidy, and Mr. hyperme for your insightful, inspiring posts that helped me make the change from Z speed rated tires, the Roundel, and 18 miles per gallon, to a little bit of Lexus luxury, some high tech, and a touch of hypermiling thrown in.
Oh, BTW, it'll be Matador Red, Deep Sea Mica, or Silver Opal Mica. I had to pick three. I'll keep everyone posted and I hope I can add some insight to the "collective".
Dave
I come from the BMW family, the last two being M3's. These were some fine cars, and for me, almost trouble free, and I loved them. The only time I ever had any trouble with them, it was caused by me and my insistent need to mod things. But I am getting older now, and at this point in my life it's time to slow down just a little.
Every time I drove the M3, there was always some boy racer, or ricer for that matter, that wanted to show me just how fast they were. People would be cutting me off and giving me the one finger salute if I wasn't doing 85 in a 55 zone. When you drive an M3, everyone expected you to speed, including the cops. My license, insurance and patience were all taking a hit. So instead of the sports car thing I'd thought I'd try the green thing, slow down a bit and save some money at the same time.
Back starting in about November '10,I looked at everything. From the Audi A3 (as hard to find as the HS) to the Mexican made Lincoln MKZ Hybrid. The HS was the finest I looked at with the Camry Hybrid being a distant second. And good news, my dealer had 3 brand new ones on the lot and 10 preowned ones that were used as loner vehicles for dealership. Plus they had 4 CT's that sat unsold. All I had to do was sell my M3 and just go down there and pick one out.
That was then, this is now. Now is after I sold my beloved M3, there are no HS's to be had, so here I sit driving my winter rat as my only car.
So in May, after the tsunami, I placed and order with my poor, broke, tired, Lexus salesman for a HS premium with the Tech package.... AND.... LED headlights. I could see his hair turning more gray by the moment. He hadn't even heard of LED headlights, let alone actually order one from the factory.
That was in May, now it's July, and I haven't got even so much as one phone call. I guess I'm learning about the famed Lexus buying experience. So I called him. "The order has been placed a long time ago" he says. "I'll talk to my manager and get back to you". That was 5 days ago.
So here I sit, with money down on a car that may or may not ever materialize, and a dealer that won't talk to me. Maybe he just doesn't like me?!?! The Mexican Lincoln almost looks good at this point!!
But anyways, I was able to leave the Club Lexus forum logged on at work (don't tell the boss) and read all 4500 posts and 280 HS threads. I took me about 2 weeks. I remember reading about Mr. Argelius, and his long wait for his HS. From the time he placed his order until the exciting day it arrived. Or how about the resident troll, Mr. mikemareen? His dad owned the HS he hated so much it got him banned from the forum.
But mostly, I wanted to personally thank Mr. KGenaidy, and Mr. hyperme for your insightful, inspiring posts that helped me make the change from Z speed rated tires, the Roundel, and 18 miles per gallon, to a little bit of Lexus luxury, some high tech, and a touch of hypermiling thrown in.
Oh, BTW, it'll be Matador Red, Deep Sea Mica, or Silver Opal Mica. I had to pick three. I'll keep everyone posted and I hope I can add some insight to the "collective".
Dave
07-05-11, 06:48 PM
#2
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Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: WI
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Welcome Airman. We certainly share a similar past. My last car was an Imola red M3 (convertible, 6MT). Man I miss that, especially now that summer is here. I spent my share of Saturday nights cruising that thing (we have a popular highway where cruising is a ritual here). Always was a blast (can't really cruise the HS). Car before that was a red Z3, what a go cart. I really miss the drop tops. With that said, I'm having more fun driving now than I ever did.
Good luck with your order, hopefully it comes sooner than you expect. And you may not know it now, but you'll really appreciate the LED's, they should only drain your battery at approx 40% of the rate of the normal headlights. Of course, you'll only see that benefit if you hypermile, with normal driving you probably won't notice the difference in battery drag. I sure wish I had them. Keep us posted.
Good luck with your order, hopefully it comes sooner than you expect. And you may not know it now, but you'll really appreciate the LED's, they should only drain your battery at approx 40% of the rate of the normal headlights. Of course, you'll only see that benefit if you hypermile, with normal driving you probably won't notice the difference in battery drag. I sure wish I had them. Keep us posted.
07-06-11, 03:02 AM
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Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: TX
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Welcome!
I'm interested to see how long it takes to get your HS. Don't compromise on what you want it to come with. I did this on my current HS ... a mistake I won't make again. I like the car ... just reminded of the options i most wanted every day (ML sound, LED's/adaptive headlights).
I'm interested to see how long it takes to get your HS. Don't compromise on what you want it to come with. I did this on my current HS ... a mistake I won't make again. I like the car ... just reminded of the options i most wanted every day (ML sound, LED's/adaptive headlights).
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