jeffofla

After seeing the video, the LS takes way too long to park itself. I can do it in seconds, and usually on the first attempt.

I saw the print version of the LA Times today. I actually don't disagree with too much of the review. I do think MB is more prestigious. But that doesn't mean I would buy one. I'm on my second ES and don't plan on going to MB any time soon. I actually have considered trading my oldest ES in on the LS

Some reviews you have to look past the emotions and buzzwords and see if what they are ultimately saying is true or not. I don't know if this guy in the LA Times is that far off. But even if he is right doesn't mean it will change my own perception or opinion of the car and whether I would buy it.

LeslieRC

I would not refer to him as such.

I think the article is a pretty fair and honest assessment of the coming generation LS. I've owned a total of 5 Lexus cars - `94 SC400, `99 GS300, `02 SC430, `04 SC430, and `04 GX470 (I just traded-in the `04 SC430 and still own the GX) - and I would consider myself a fan of the brand. If you know anything about Lexus, it is that the company's cars aren't flashy; hell, the cars really don't even have that much "dash" when compared to those of Lexus' competitors. Notwithstanding, Lexus has been a perennial leader in build quality and overall dependability and that has translated into massive sales for the company. Think about the status and name recognition of the brand and, at the same time, recall that the first Lexus car rolled off the line in 1990! That's an amazing accomplishment in only 16 years. Lexus WILL, most likely, set new sales records with the LS460 and it probably won't have the "sex appeal" of the S-Class, 7-Series, or any of the other cars that the writer mentioned. Lexus doesn't care and nor should you. Nor does Lexus care whether the LS460 appears in any music videos. For that matter, Lexus does not market its cars through music videos and, yet, they sell nonetheless! To me, what counted in the article was the praise that was heaped on the LS460's build quality and performance, which, by the way, is consistent with every article I've read about this car.

encore888

I have great respect for Dan Neil, and see where he's coming from in this article. However, I am disappointed that he took so one-sided a view. For instance:

There is a Lexus owner's club. Here, at CL, and the other Lexus clubs out there. Lexus is New Values, and much of that is on the internet now.

Lexus was behind only Mercedes in hip-hop mentions, for instance #2 here in 2003: http://www.agendainc.com/brand03.html It dropped to #4 in 2004, and #11 in 2005, so these things fluctuate. http://www.agendainc.com/brand05.html

He should have done more research before saying Lexus registered 'zero' on the scale. I'd say #2 is not zero overall.

And also, is hip-hop mention, bling, the truest barometer of luxury prestige these days? Rappers mention Cadillac largely because of the Escalade.

Ultimately, my feeling is that Dan Neil's article represented the automobile traditionalist argument...it begged the question, "Ok, what then? You don't care about aerodynamics, you don't care about technical prowess..." all you care about is the prestige element.

I'm thinking to write a letter to the LA Times to complain about this article, the Billboard and no Lexus club errors being my chief issues.

dfiorito

[QUOTE=jeffofla;2096069]After seeing the video, the LS takes way too long to park itself. I can do it in seconds, and usually on the first attempt.


It did seem very slow. I thought I read somewhere that you control the speed by pressing on the brake. However, if the car goes over 2.7 mph it disengages the Park Assist feature.

Maybe the guy was holding the brake too much.

If this is a stand alone option, I probably would not get it. The small amount of parking I do does not warrant this feature. If you need an additional 6 feet then you can really forget it.

XeroK00L

The guy in this video was obviously talking to the passenger and braking a lot during the demo. The LS460 parks much faster in the other videos previously posted.

INHOCJP

Good, I hope rappers don't mention Lexus...less of a chance my car will be stolen

marshmallo

There is some truth to what he said, but the way he said it
came across as the opinions of an uninformed "hater" on
AutoSpies.

Prestige and emotional appeal are a subjective thing. Cadillac
and Audi have ZERO emotional appeal to me. BMW styling
is of no use to me and Benz I like, but the quality problems
make it a huge headache.

LexFather

I listen to hip-hop and Lexus is very much in the know and mix. Not sure what what his source was.

encore888

Additionally, does the Luxury Institute's study mean nothing? Last year its studies of 500 households with a gross annual income of at least $200,000 and a net worth of at least $750,000, ranked Lexus #3 behind Porsche and Mercedes. http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2...13/003900.html

ANYONE who reads the Billboard top 50 knows that Dan Neil's quote was blatantly biased:

According to http://www.agendainc.com/brand.html:

2003
#1 Mercedes (112 mentions)
#2 Lexus (48 mentions)
#3 Gucci (47 mentions)

2004
#1 Cadillac (70 mentions)
#2 Hennessey (69 mentions)
#3 Mercedes (63 mentions)
#11 Lexus, Porsche, Nike (24 mentions--TIE)

2005
#1 Mercedes (100 mentions)
#2 Nike (63 mentions)
#3 Cadillac (62 mentions)
Lexus DID NOT rank in top 50. Neither did BMW, or Jaguar, or Ferrari, or Maserati...

So when Dan Neil says:

Did he know that Lexus was #2 and #11 the past two years?
That Lexus beat Cadillac, Bentley, Rolls-Royce, Jaguar, and Chevrolet in 2003?
That Lexus was right next to Maybach and Bentley, plus tied with Porsche in 2004?
That BMW NEVER MADE the top 50 (2003, 2005) or top 20 (2004)? That Audi NEVER MADE the top 50 at all (2003, 2004, and 2005)? I guess they have 'no prestige'?????!!!!!

All my statements here are supported by the data:
2003: http://www.agendainc.com/brand03.html
2004: http://www.agendainc.com/brand04.html
2005: http://www.agendainc.com/brand05.html

Scroll down for the complete list.

I'm thinking to write about this and the Luxury Institute survey to the author at dan.neil@latimes.com. Tell me what you guys think.

Och

iTrader: (3)

How the hell does crap like this makes it into press????

encore888

I'm calling him on the carpet for this one, as it's such blatant bias, and misrepresentation of fact to say that Lexus is nothing next to "Mercedes-Benz, Cadillac, BMW and Audi" when Lexus has beaten Cadillac, BMW, and Audi in the rankings at least once in the past 3 years, reached the top 11 in 2003 and 2004; and when his 'more prestigious brand' Audi has not cracked the top 50 at all in 2003, 2004, and 2005 when Lexus has been in the top 11 twice.

What do you guys think?

I am busy right now but later tonight or tomorrow, I am thinking to write a letter. I was thinking to also mention that using the Billboard rap mentions is rather ridiculous as well, but I think that might undercut my argument. And I don't even like rap music all that much, but I acknowledge it has a powerful cultural influence.

This has already appeared on Autospies, and as I expected is manna for the haters. Too bad it isn't substantiated by the facts, only by subjectivity. And that subjectivity clouds this 'billboard analysis.'

I'm thinking of what tone my letter will take...? Probably calm and objective, armed with the facts...not confrontational and angry, although this article surely got on my nerves.

bruce van

The writer for this article is obviously not a fan of Lexus and doesn't really understand what the company is trying to achieve.

I can agree with him that the LS is not prestigeous as the S-Class and this is of course reflected in the price of an LS. Keep in mind that Lexus is a brand that is only 25 years old and is giving companies which have many more years of branding under their belts a good fight.

It's funny how Lexus engineers spend so much R&D on making the cabin as quite as possible and critics say that it strips the car of it's excitement and soul. I for one am in awe of how quiet a new Lexus is. I guess building an extremely well engineered and reliable automobile doesn't really mean much to these critics. Sure they get to test drive all of the greatest cars in the world, but which car would they spend their hard earned money on? I'd like to know what car Dan Neil drives.

Using hip-hop to gauge what the VIPs are into is quite amusing. It's great they rap about Escalades and Bentleys, but doesn't mean these brands are ultimate in luxury. They're just expensive cars. Period.

marshmallo

Exactly.

He deserves all the flak he's catching because he wrote a
dumbass article. He's got the right to express his opinions and
so do we. It's fine to have negative opinions about Lexus, but
you gotta back them up with facts, not with # of mentions
by rappers...

encore888

I'm gonna come up with a small letter probably tonight on this issue. I think I will end it by saying something like:

"If you want to say that Lexus has no prestige vs. 'Mercedes-Benz, Cadillac, BMW and Audi' because it did not crack the top 50 billboard in mentions in 2005, then you should mention that neither did BMW or Audi. For that matter, in 2006, the Luxury Institute's survey of high-income households rated #1 Porsche, #2 Mercedes, and #3 Lexus. Who would you trust as a barometer of prestige? The number of times Kanye West alliterates Lexus in a sentence (watch those ratings go up!) or the findings of a professional study? And if you do quote a pop culture barometer, I hope you would at least provide accurate context and not selective interpretation. Thank you."

Heck, he might not listen or admit his mistake. I might have to e-mail his editor, if I can find one. I think there should be a retraction or a correction of that comment.

G Star

iTrader: (2)

I like the fact how he believes prestigous cars cannot whatsoever-be efficient...LOL, what a load of BULL.