Test drove a 2016 740i and a 2016 S550 today...how'd the LS stack up?
09-08-16, 06:17 AM
#46
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
Originally Posted by jasone36
Good value - YES!
But how many executives will want their high-end clients and business partners, which they're trying to impress, to be picked up in a Hyundai?
But how many executives will want their high-end clients and business partners, which they're trying to impress, to be picked up in a Hyundai?
My clients get picked up in a Toyota all the time by that logic. They're fine. If I were that worried about impressing people I wouldn't have bought an LS either.
You forget the time when Lexus was just a big joke, the butt of late night jokes, etc.
09-08-16, 08:17 AM
#47
Lexus Test Driver
Now don't get me wrong here. I really like the new G90 from what I have seen. It looks on paper to be outstanding. But why, dear god why would they have the first picture you see of the car on the website as BROWN? Really? Who decides BROWN would look better than white or silver or black? Sometimes it makes me wonder if they have any Americans working for them.
I know its a stupid little thing, but when I'm looking for a car, I do not want the first image of it to be the absolute worst possible color available.
I know its a stupid little thing, but when I'm looking for a car, I do not want the first image of it to be the absolute worst possible color available.
09-08-16, 08:23 AM
#48
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
Now don't get me wrong here. I really like the new G90 from what I have seen. It looks on paper to be outstanding. But why, dear god why would they have the first picture you see of the car on the website as BROWN? Really? Who decides BROWN would look better than white or silver or black? Sometimes it makes me wonder if they have any Americans working for them.
I know its a stupid little thing, but when I'm looking for a car, I do not want the first image of it to be the absolute worst possible color available.
I know its a stupid little thing, but when I'm looking for a car, I do not want the first image of it to be the absolute worst possible color available.
09-08-16, 01:58 PM
#49
Now don't get me wrong here. I really like the new G90 from what I have seen. It looks on paper to be outstanding. But why, dear god why would they have the first picture you see of the car on the website as BROWN? Really? Who decides BROWN would look better than white or silver or black? Sometimes it makes me wonder if they have any Americans working for them.
I know its a stupid little thing, but when I'm looking for a car, I do not want the first image of it to be the absolute worst possible color available.
I know its a stupid little thing, but when I'm looking for a car, I do not want the first image of it to be the absolute worst possible color available.
Anywho - Having worked as a design engineer for both Toyota (and having a patent there) and with Hyundai (and having a patent there also), I can tell you I will never own a Hyundai / Kia. The difference in the mindset is night and day. That's just my opinion from my experience, I have no problems with people buying what they want. The vehicle DOES *look* nice.
7milesout
09-08-16, 02:13 PM
#50
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
FWIW, my Kia Sedona is aging better than my LS460. I would enthusiastically purchase another Hyundai and likely my time owning Toyota and Lexus vehicles is coming to an end.
I plan to keep the LS for a long time, but I've decided that next time I likely will move to another type of vehicle, perhaps a luxury SUV and almost certainly will move on from Lexus. The G90 will be at the top of my list no doubt, I bet the leases are great.
I'm more satisfied with the Kia from a build quality/reliability standpoint than any car I've owned since my early Lexus cars. Don't get me wrong, I love my LS...but having had the benefit of owning many of them they're just not built to the same standard they once were. Rattles are the real sign of that, my LS has a couple of very slight little rattles coming from the rear I've noticed I'm going to track down. My GS had a persistent rattle in the cupholders that the dealer tried to fix 4 times and never fixed. My old Lexus cars never had any rattles, I drove the 03 ES the other day at 187k miles and it is tight as a drum with no rattles at all. To have a persistent rattle in a 30k mile GS350 and now a couple little beginning rattles in a 22k mile LS460 is pretty shocking. My 10 ES had several rattles also after about 10k miles.
The seat materials are much better in the Kia than they are in the LS (they were also in the GS) since my LS doesn't have semi-aniline leather. The wear shows that, my drivers seat in the LS shows gloss signs of wear while the Kia shows absolutely none (its one month older than the LS). The Kia has no rattles or creaks of any kind.
The LS also has an issue with the glovebox slamming down, dealer fixed that once and it lasted 2 days and broke again. Going to take it to another dealer. Everything operates 100% perfect in the Kia.
Clearly...its a minivan and no contest which car I would rather have and drive...but it makes me very intrigued about the G90.
I plan to keep the LS for a long time, but I've decided that next time I likely will move to another type of vehicle, perhaps a luxury SUV and almost certainly will move on from Lexus. The G90 will be at the top of my list no doubt, I bet the leases are great.
I'm more satisfied with the Kia from a build quality/reliability standpoint than any car I've owned since my early Lexus cars. Don't get me wrong, I love my LS...but having had the benefit of owning many of them they're just not built to the same standard they once were. Rattles are the real sign of that, my LS has a couple of very slight little rattles coming from the rear I've noticed I'm going to track down. My GS had a persistent rattle in the cupholders that the dealer tried to fix 4 times and never fixed. My old Lexus cars never had any rattles, I drove the 03 ES the other day at 187k miles and it is tight as a drum with no rattles at all. To have a persistent rattle in a 30k mile GS350 and now a couple little beginning rattles in a 22k mile LS460 is pretty shocking. My 10 ES had several rattles also after about 10k miles.
The seat materials are much better in the Kia than they are in the LS (they were also in the GS) since my LS doesn't have semi-aniline leather. The wear shows that, my drivers seat in the LS shows gloss signs of wear while the Kia shows absolutely none (its one month older than the LS). The Kia has no rattles or creaks of any kind.
The LS also has an issue with the glovebox slamming down, dealer fixed that once and it lasted 2 days and broke again. Going to take it to another dealer. Everything operates 100% perfect in the Kia.
Clearly...its a minivan and no contest which car I would rather have and drive...but it makes me very intrigued about the G90.
Last edited by SW17LS; 09-08-16 at 02:46 PM.
09-08-16, 11:10 PM
#51
But it's not a Hyundai...it's a Genesis.
My clients get picked up in a Toyota all the time by that logic. They're fine. If I were that worried about impressing people I wouldn't have bought an LS either.
You forget the time when Lexus was just a big joke, the butt of late night jokes, etc.
My clients get picked up in a Toyota all the time by that logic. They're fine. If I were that worried about impressing people I wouldn't have bought an LS either.
You forget the time when Lexus was just a big joke, the butt of late night jokes, etc.
.
I think it's the right move but they won't be as successful as Lexus was. Here's why:
- Sales Channel. Lexus established a completely separate brand identity for Lexus. No Toyota dealer could sell the cars in the same showroom. Toyota was mentioned very sparingly in the press materials. Buying a luxury car in the US is a distinctly separate experience from buying a standard family sedan; Lexus dealerships were very tightly controlled as to design and customer experience.
- Service. I've never been to a Hyundai dealership, but early Lexus dealerships prided themselves on white-glove customer service. It helped establish the brand and sell the car. Unless Hyundai gives Genesis owners the star treatment (this is harder when you sell the cars out of a mass market dealership) this will also be a minus rather than a plus of buying one. This is one of the things that annoys me whenever I go to a Ford/Lincoln dealer.
- Product. The G90 and G80 seem to be fine cars, but they don't really seem to move the needle in any meaningful way. The original LS400 was better in almost every measurable benchmark than it's competition, AND it was a deal. In the Genesis I see cars that were built to match the competition; not exceed them.
- Competition. Lexus arrived when the competition was quite honestly dozing at the wheel. The luxury market has grown and fragmented exponentially since then and competition is now a blood sport. There's no space for a timid competitor to succeed; which is why I suspect Lexus's sales are not a strong as they could be (although the tide seems to be turning).
Toyota understood all this and launched a multi-prong (and multi-billion dollar) attack on that segment. They built a fantastic car, a distinct sales experience, a great service network, AND priced it to kill. They won; despite it being an enormous risk (witness Infiniti's much lower level of success with the same formula). I don't see Hyundai stepping up in quite the same way here.
FWIW, my Kia Sedona is aging better than my LS460. I would enthusiastically purchase another Hyundai and likely my time owning Toyota and Lexus vehicles is coming to an end.
...
I'm more satisfied with the Kia from a build quality/reliability standpoint than any car I've owned since my early Lexus cars. Don't get me wrong, I love my LS...but having had the benefit of owning many of them they're just not built to the same standard they once were. Rattles are the real sign of that, my LS has a couple of very slight little rattles coming from the rear I've noticed I'm going to track down. My GS had a persistent rattle in the cupholders that the dealer tried to fix 4 times and never fixed. My old Lexus cars never had any rattles, I drove the 03 ES the other day at 187k miles and it is tight as a drum with no rattles at all. To have a persistent rattle in a 30k mile GS350 and now a couple little beginning rattles in a 22k mile LS460 is pretty shocking. My 10 ES had several rattles also after about 10k miles.
...
I'm more satisfied with the Kia from a build quality/reliability standpoint than any car I've owned since my early Lexus cars. Don't get me wrong, I love my LS...but having had the benefit of owning many of them they're just not built to the same standard they once were. Rattles are the real sign of that, my LS has a couple of very slight little rattles coming from the rear I've noticed I'm going to track down. My GS had a persistent rattle in the cupholders that the dealer tried to fix 4 times and never fixed. My old Lexus cars never had any rattles, I drove the 03 ES the other day at 187k miles and it is tight as a drum with no rattles at all. To have a persistent rattle in a 30k mile GS350 and now a couple little beginning rattles in a 22k mile LS460 is pretty shocking. My 10 ES had several rattles also after about 10k miles.
I think it's demonstrable that over the last 10 years Toyota has somewhat de-contented the interiors of their cars. I remember my mom's '07 Camry not impressing me after driving my '01 LS, and my LS430 continues to amaze me with it's high levels of build quality and seeming inability to age. My cousin had an '04 ES that had 250k miles on it; it drove and felt basically like new. There are several touch points (the cup holder braces, wood trim gloss, glove box latch etc) in the hybrid that I don't like as much as my LS430.
I think the tide may be changing however. Mercedes evolved from the plastic fantastic interiors of the early '00s (W220 anybody?) to have some of the best build quality in the segment; similarly every BMW and Audi I've driven or sat in recently seems better than the last. Even Toyotas have improved; the new Prius seems very nicely built and doesn't have any of the tinny sounds I sometimes hear in my co-workers '12 model (the tinny door slam rattle sound is particularly annoying). It seems to be a real focus area now.
Everybody says the LC interior is amazing and better than any extant Lexus; perhaps Lexus will return to the times of old.
09-09-16, 08:16 AM
#52
Pole Position
FWIW, my Kia Sedona is aging better than my LS460. I would enthusiastically purchase another Hyundai and likely my time owning Toyota and Lexus vehicles is coming to an end.
I plan to keep the LS for a long time, but I've decided that next time I likely will move to another type of vehicle, perhaps a luxury SUV and almost certainly will move on from Lexus. The G90 will be at the top of my list no doubt, I bet the leases are great.
I'm more satisfied with the Kia from a build quality/reliability standpoint than any car I've owned since my early Lexus cars. Don't get me wrong, I love my LS...but having had the benefit of owning many of them they're just not built to the same standard they once were. Rattles are the real sign of that, my LS has a couple of very slight little rattles coming from the rear I've noticed I'm going to track down. My GS had a persistent rattle in the cupholders that the dealer tried to fix 4 times and never fixed. My old Lexus cars never had any rattles, I drove the 03 ES the other day at 187k miles and it is tight as a drum with no rattles at all. To have a persistent rattle in a 30k mile GS350 and now a couple little beginning rattles in a 22k mile LS460 is pretty shocking. My 10 ES had several rattles also after about 10k miles.
The seat materials are much better in the Kia than they are in the LS (they were also in the GS) since my LS doesn't have semi-aniline leather. The wear shows that, my drivers seat in the LS shows gloss signs of wear while the Kia shows absolutely none (its one month older than the LS). The Kia has no rattles or creaks of any kind.
The LS also has an issue with the glovebox slamming down, dealer fixed that once and it lasted 2 days and broke again. Going to take it to another dealer. Everything operates 100% perfect in the Kia.
Clearly...its a minivan and no contest which car I would rather have and drive...but it makes me very intrigued about the G90.
I plan to keep the LS for a long time, but I've decided that next time I likely will move to another type of vehicle, perhaps a luxury SUV and almost certainly will move on from Lexus. The G90 will be at the top of my list no doubt, I bet the leases are great.
I'm more satisfied with the Kia from a build quality/reliability standpoint than any car I've owned since my early Lexus cars. Don't get me wrong, I love my LS...but having had the benefit of owning many of them they're just not built to the same standard they once were. Rattles are the real sign of that, my LS has a couple of very slight little rattles coming from the rear I've noticed I'm going to track down. My GS had a persistent rattle in the cupholders that the dealer tried to fix 4 times and never fixed. My old Lexus cars never had any rattles, I drove the 03 ES the other day at 187k miles and it is tight as a drum with no rattles at all. To have a persistent rattle in a 30k mile GS350 and now a couple little beginning rattles in a 22k mile LS460 is pretty shocking. My 10 ES had several rattles also after about 10k miles.
The seat materials are much better in the Kia than they are in the LS (they were also in the GS) since my LS doesn't have semi-aniline leather. The wear shows that, my drivers seat in the LS shows gloss signs of wear while the Kia shows absolutely none (its one month older than the LS). The Kia has no rattles or creaks of any kind.
The LS also has an issue with the glovebox slamming down, dealer fixed that once and it lasted 2 days and broke again. Going to take it to another dealer. Everything operates 100% perfect in the Kia.
Clearly...its a minivan and no contest which car I would rather have and drive...but it makes me very intrigued about the G90.
09-09-16, 09:56 AM
#53
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
I wouldn't hesitate at all. These things are very minor, my suggestion would be to get the semi-aniline leather. My point was not to cast aspersion on the LS, I would buy it again in a second, I love it, my point was just that Hyundai is on the way up and Toyota is already "up", theres something to be said for that as pertains to the G90.
09-09-16, 11:07 AM
#54
Intermediate
Nah, I wouldn't sweat it. Minor stuff really, esp. compared to the competition.
I will say that my garage kept '97 LS400 aged extremely well. The paint, trim, switchgear, rubber moldings, etc all held up exceptionally well, and i didn't even get the car until it had 100K on the ODO back in '09. Well built is an understatement.
I am looking forward to a similar experience with my 460.
I will say that my garage kept '97 LS400 aged extremely well. The paint, trim, switchgear, rubber moldings, etc all held up exceptionally well, and i didn't even get the car until it had 100K on the ODO back in '09. Well built is an understatement.
I am looking forward to a similar experience with my 460.
09-09-16, 12:37 PM
#55
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
I agree that Hyundai should have spun Genesis off as a brand from the get go. I also agree that they won't be as successful as Lexus for a number of factors.
To be clear, I am NOT dissatisfied with my LS, it's just not as over the top engineered as the older cars, and the competition has caught up in a lot of ways. Like was said above, Toyota went through a phase where they were really resting on their laurels, but that seems to be changing so hopefully that trend will reverse.
If I had never had the older Lexus models I wouldn't even comment on these things.
To be clear, I am NOT dissatisfied with my LS, it's just not as over the top engineered as the older cars, and the competition has caught up in a lot of ways. Like was said above, Toyota went through a phase where they were really resting on their laurels, but that seems to be changing so hopefully that trend will reverse.
If I had never had the older Lexus models I wouldn't even comment on these things.
09-11-16, 09:22 AM
#56
Thanks, very interesting read.
I just had the opportunity to ride in the back seat of a fully decked out S550 on friday for 1 hour. But I have never sat in the back seat of a 7 series to my recollection.
Its an interesting perspective from the rear passenger point of view - The S550 has a beautiful and high tech interior for sure. the tech features seem amazing. The passenger area is spacious, plenty of leg room as expected and nice controls. Inside it does feel like a really big car.
However, I didn't find the rear seat itself that great, I think the LS rear seat is better as far as comfort. The S550 has reclining seats but no lumbar or adjustment or massage features for the back seat (maybe that is an option that this car didn't have?). The leather sure is nice quality though, as expected, but so is the LS. As for the ride as felt in the back, for sure the S550 absorbs little bumps and jolts very well. You hear the tires going over them, but don't feel them. However larger bumps do come through and are particularly felt in the back seat. I would not say from the back seat that it felt like an overly cush, soft or floaty ride . It seems in between - as if Merc too is trying to balance a sportier firmer ride with good shock absorption. I would even say from the back seat it felt more of a firmer ride than softer ride. Definitely NOT the old yacht style floaty ride of luxury cars of the past. Quietness certainly was noted in the back seat, although you do hear tires hitting little bumps and ruts though.
I just had the opportunity to ride in the back seat of a fully decked out S550 on friday for 1 hour. But I have never sat in the back seat of a 7 series to my recollection.
Its an interesting perspective from the rear passenger point of view - The S550 has a beautiful and high tech interior for sure. the tech features seem amazing. The passenger area is spacious, plenty of leg room as expected and nice controls. Inside it does feel like a really big car.
However, I didn't find the rear seat itself that great, I think the LS rear seat is better as far as comfort. The S550 has reclining seats but no lumbar or adjustment or massage features for the back seat (maybe that is an option that this car didn't have?). The leather sure is nice quality though, as expected, but so is the LS. As for the ride as felt in the back, for sure the S550 absorbs little bumps and jolts very well. You hear the tires going over them, but don't feel them. However larger bumps do come through and are particularly felt in the back seat. I would not say from the back seat that it felt like an overly cush, soft or floaty ride . It seems in between - as if Merc too is trying to balance a sportier firmer ride with good shock absorption. I would even say from the back seat it felt more of a firmer ride than softer ride. Definitely NOT the old yacht style floaty ride of luxury cars of the past. Quietness certainly was noted in the back seat, although you do hear tires hitting little bumps and ruts though.
I was near a big auto park today and test drove several cars, including the all new 740i and the S550. I had not driven either car in their latest generation. The new 7 wasn't out when I was shopping for the LS, I did drive the previous car, and the S550 was way more than I wanted to spend. I have driven the previous generation S550 several times.
I liked both cars a lot. The 7 I drove was a 740 (the 6 cyl), pretty highly optioned to $94k. The S550 was a fairly low option car at $110k.
The new 7 is a really sharp car. I like the styling in person, it looks long but low and wide which I like. Inside the interior is excellent, very high quality, not one low rent material anywhere to be found. The car rides much better than the previous car, which was a little bit hard IMHO for the class. Very quiet, relaxing ride. Technology is excellent, BMW's latest nav is great, the touchscreen option is nice in contrast to the iDrive and the gesture control works well. Great seats, multi-contour which I really miss from my GS. Was really more impressed with the car than I thought I would be.
With that said, optioned in any way AWD they're in the latter half of $80k, thats a lot of money IMHO for a car with a 6. The 6 has plenty of power, but its notably less smooth than the V8 in the LS or the S550. The 750 is S Class money almost exactly. I don't see choosing the 7 over the S.
The S550 is really a special car. If there was a car out there that was everything that I really like about a car...the S550 would be it. I love the styling, the quality is just excellent. Everything feels special, high quality, well made. They have such a presence going down the road. The car I drove rode incredibly well, and this one didn't have the magic body control (google that). I love the organic flowing lines inside and out, seats are very comfortable. Engine is punchy and torquey while remaining very refined and muted.
I was surprised both cars felt smaller than they were, especially the S Class. The S felt smaller being piloted down the road than my SWB LS, and certainly a LWB LS.
One thing that surprised me about the S which I've noted before was it has manually adjusted seatbelt anchors while ours are power and memory keyed. The 7's weren't adjustable at all. I also really missed having a console mounted shifter in the S to rest my right hand on. The tech in the S550 feels outdated next to the new 7, but its still obviously heads and shoulders above the LS.
Like I said...the car I drove was stickered at $110k, lease payment structured the way I would want is ~$1,400. Thats a lot. If money was truly no object though, that would be the car no doubt.
Getting back into my LS to go home...I gotta say, the S rides better and its quieter, but the difference is more subtle than I would have expected. Powertrain is better in the S, but the LS still feels pretty darn similar in terms of throttle response despite being hugely outclassed in power. Compared to the 7 I would say the LS rides very similarly and noise levels are just about the same. Remember too my LS is a standard suspension, both the 7 and the S I drove rode on air suspensions. I thoroughly enjoyed my ride home...which surprised me. Thats one reason I've avoided driving a new generation S Class.
As far as the interiors go, the LS is easily eclipsed by both these cars in terms of layout and material quality. Like I said, every surface of both the 7 and S is covered in leather, wood, or metal, while the LS still features imitation leather on all but the seating surfaces and touch points, and some of the metal look panel faces are plastic. Leather quality far and away is better in both the 7 and S. Technology, again the LS is left completely in the dust.
But...when it comes to ride and drive I was surprised even with their new platforms and adaptive suspensions. the LS is still pretty darn close in terms of ride quality and refinement/isolation....even mine being a coil spring suspension SWB car. I can see an air suspension LS460L being potentially better riding, but likely not with the same duality of handling performance the newer S has.
The economics will change assuming the new LS is going to be more money (which I'm sure it will) and LWB only, but for the $34,000 less my LS460 cost vs that S550...I still would make that purchase choice again.
I liked both cars a lot. The 7 I drove was a 740 (the 6 cyl), pretty highly optioned to $94k. The S550 was a fairly low option car at $110k.
The new 7 is a really sharp car. I like the styling in person, it looks long but low and wide which I like. Inside the interior is excellent, very high quality, not one low rent material anywhere to be found. The car rides much better than the previous car, which was a little bit hard IMHO for the class. Very quiet, relaxing ride. Technology is excellent, BMW's latest nav is great, the touchscreen option is nice in contrast to the iDrive and the gesture control works well. Great seats, multi-contour which I really miss from my GS. Was really more impressed with the car than I thought I would be.
With that said, optioned in any way AWD they're in the latter half of $80k, thats a lot of money IMHO for a car with a 6. The 6 has plenty of power, but its notably less smooth than the V8 in the LS or the S550. The 750 is S Class money almost exactly. I don't see choosing the 7 over the S.
The S550 is really a special car. If there was a car out there that was everything that I really like about a car...the S550 would be it. I love the styling, the quality is just excellent. Everything feels special, high quality, well made. They have such a presence going down the road. The car I drove rode incredibly well, and this one didn't have the magic body control (google that). I love the organic flowing lines inside and out, seats are very comfortable. Engine is punchy and torquey while remaining very refined and muted.
I was surprised both cars felt smaller than they were, especially the S Class. The S felt smaller being piloted down the road than my SWB LS, and certainly a LWB LS.
One thing that surprised me about the S which I've noted before was it has manually adjusted seatbelt anchors while ours are power and memory keyed. The 7's weren't adjustable at all. I also really missed having a console mounted shifter in the S to rest my right hand on. The tech in the S550 feels outdated next to the new 7, but its still obviously heads and shoulders above the LS.
Like I said...the car I drove was stickered at $110k, lease payment structured the way I would want is ~$1,400. Thats a lot. If money was truly no object though, that would be the car no doubt.
Getting back into my LS to go home...I gotta say, the S rides better and its quieter, but the difference is more subtle than I would have expected. Powertrain is better in the S, but the LS still feels pretty darn similar in terms of throttle response despite being hugely outclassed in power. Compared to the 7 I would say the LS rides very similarly and noise levels are just about the same. Remember too my LS is a standard suspension, both the 7 and the S I drove rode on air suspensions. I thoroughly enjoyed my ride home...which surprised me. Thats one reason I've avoided driving a new generation S Class.
As far as the interiors go, the LS is easily eclipsed by both these cars in terms of layout and material quality. Like I said, every surface of both the 7 and S is covered in leather, wood, or metal, while the LS still features imitation leather on all but the seating surfaces and touch points, and some of the metal look panel faces are plastic. Leather quality far and away is better in both the 7 and S. Technology, again the LS is left completely in the dust.
But...when it comes to ride and drive I was surprised even with their new platforms and adaptive suspensions. the LS is still pretty darn close in terms of ride quality and refinement/isolation....even mine being a coil spring suspension SWB car. I can see an air suspension LS460L being potentially better riding, but likely not with the same duality of handling performance the newer S has.
The economics will change assuming the new LS is going to be more money (which I'm sure it will) and LWB only, but for the $34,000 less my LS460 cost vs that S550...I still would make that purchase choice again.
09-11-16, 11:52 AM
#57
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
I've never ridden in the back of my LS, and mine doesn't have any of the rear seat goodies.
One thing about the S550 and ride. From reading the forums, a lot of highly optioned ones have big wheels, and that apparently hurts the ride a lot. You see the big 20-21 inch rims. The one I drove had 18s and I selected it specifically for that reason, it rode incredibly well.
One thing about the S550 and ride. From reading the forums, a lot of highly optioned ones have big wheels, and that apparently hurts the ride a lot. You see the big 20-21 inch rims. The one I drove had 18s and I selected it specifically for that reason, it rode incredibly well.
09-11-16, 12:27 PM
#58
very good point - and that may well have been the case about this S550. I suspect it may have had larger wheels leading to more ride firmness. It was an Uber ride so I didnt have a chance to look it over closely from outside, but I did take advantage of the hour drive to ask the driver lots of questions about the interior and features.
I've never ridden in the back of my LS, and mine doesn't have any of the rear seat goodies.
One thing about the S550 and ride. From reading the forums, a lot of highly optioned ones have big wheels, and that apparently hurts the ride a lot. You see the big 20-21 inch rims. The one I drove had 18s and I selected it specifically for that reason, it rode incredibly well.
One thing about the S550 and ride. From reading the forums, a lot of highly optioned ones have big wheels, and that apparently hurts the ride a lot. You see the big 20-21 inch rims. The one I drove had 18s and I selected it specifically for that reason, it rode incredibly well.
09-12-16, 06:55 AM
#59
Pole Position
I wouldn't hesitate at all. These things are very minor, my suggestion would be to get the semi-aniline leather. My point was not to cast aspersion on the LS, I would buy it again in a second, I love it, my point was just that Hyundai is on the way up and Toyota is already "up", theres something to be said for that as pertains to the G90.
Nah, I wouldn't sweat it. Minor stuff really, esp. compared to the competition.
I will say that my garage kept '97 LS400 aged extremely well. The paint, trim, switchgear, rubber moldings, etc all held up exceptionally well, and i didn't even get the car until it had 100K on the ODO back in '09. Well built is an understatement.
I am looking forward to a similar experience with my 460.
I will say that my garage kept '97 LS400 aged extremely well. The paint, trim, switchgear, rubber moldings, etc all held up exceptionally well, and i didn't even get the car until it had 100K on the ODO back in '09. Well built is an understatement.
I am looking forward to a similar experience with my 460.
09-12-16, 06:59 AM
#60
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
It it shouldn't be there, but it's not anything that would keep me from buying the car again.