Husker4the

We are going to re-assess in the fall. I was set on an Eminent White F Sport with Black interior but my dealer would not put in our special order stating some options weren't available or that their allocations weren't going to allow them a special order at this time. We asked for our deposit back.

Basically wanted a loaded AWD w summer rim/tire package. The triple LEDs are not sent to our area right now and obviously the summer tires would require a special order for this area too. Add to this the overall lack of options available on the NX ... the overly narrow F Sport seats ... and just general dissatisfaction with the slow rollout and availability and we are gonna play wait and see.

We will likely consider the refresh of the Acura RDX as well, but to be honest I'm feeling most intrigued by the soon-to-arrive, new Ford Edge (yes, I can't believe I'm saying that) of late. Tons of available features that aren't on the RX or RDX. The new Lincoln MKX will likely be on the list as well. By that time there should be more information on the Audi Q5 remodel as well. Small chance we would wait to check out a new Prius too and check out some AWD sedans.

And of course we will continue to consider the NX. I was able to test drive the F Sport finally and liked the ride a lot. I was worried it may seem too firm, but it felt nice to me overall. The narrow F Sport seats remain a concern after the test drive, but I'm unwilling to consider the regular 200t or 300h due to the grille.

I will continue to read the forum. Thanks so much for sharing your experience and knowledge!

dunebuggy

Good luck with your decision.

There are so many things to consider when buying a car. And the priorities of each buyer are different.
And it all depends on your order of priorities.

This is just my opinion. But my priorities run a little like this...

#1 - Price. Obviously, we all (or most of us anyway) start here.

#2 - Quality/Reliability. In my opinion, without this, you have no car. You have headaches, inconvenience and potentially massive expense. People often go "Oh I'm thinking of either Land Rover or Lexus!" as if the two are equal and will be an equal ownership experience over time, only differentiated by the ride and looks of the car itself. So not true. Most people are clueless about just how incredibly expensive many brands are to own, beyond the 100,000km mark.

In effect, poor reliability means buying a car that costs way more than the sticker price. I mean, check out this thread on a BMW forum - it's about people who are thinking of buying X5s but feeling nervous due to the many terrible reviews of this car after a couple of years of running. And I know that even Lexus is not immune to problems. Any car can have problems. But the scale and rate of those issues varies a lot between brands, and in my brain it just does-not-compute as to why some people insist on taking their chances with certain brands that are famously both expensive and unreliable to own.

#3 - Performance. Everyone wants a car with some decent get up and go, but...

#4 - Fuel economy. Nobody wants it to use ridiculous fuel either.

#5 - Looks/Style. Important for feeling happy about the car overall. But for me, less important than 1, 2, 3 and 4. A whole lot more satisfying to own a car that gets you home every time, than the most beautiful machine on the road that is prone to humiliating breakdowns.

#6 - Equipment level. Finally, we come to equipment level, and the myriad gadgets that are incredibly fun, useful, but mostly (let's be honest here) non-essential. Can I live without heated and ventilated seats? Yes, yes, I will continue to live

#7 - Comfort. To me, comfort is important. It's on my list. But really, cars have come a long way. I dare say most cars on the market today are more comfortable than anything on the road a decade ago (within their respective segments). So I think when reviewers analyse seat cushions and lumbar, they are often analysing pretty small variations between the mostly-comfortable new cars on the market today. I say this as a guy who grew up riding on the bench seats of Land Cruisers. 1% poorer lumbar support in one car over another, won't kill me

Anyway, not everyone will agree with me. But there it is.
Good luck with your car hunting and sorry for this fairly pointless ramble. In conclusion, arrange your priorities however you see fit.

For me, my steps meant the NX was a clear winner over every other luxury crossover, even the base Porsche Macan. The Porsche is a wonderful car, gorgeous too - but simply not worth an extra $20,000 (in Australia) over the NX to me, on the following grounds:
- only half-a-second or so of quicker 0-60 acceleration
- less standard features in some respects
- (most likely) poorer reliability over the long term
- Steep service/maintenance costs over time.

Motoring reviewers have salivated over the Macan like crazy since it was released, but as ever, all they talk about is speed, power and handling, and they don't give a crap about long term ownership costs - because they're not the ones forking out nearly $100k to take the car home.

corradoMR2

^^^ that pretty much sums it up!


@Husker4the: Lexus USA should take note on the equipment/ordering constraints and how that can lead to a loss of sales. It's too bad in your case but understandable. You want to spend big dollars on a vehicle so rightfully you want to minimize the compromise to features/characteristics you can live with and not sacrifice the ones you absolutely want (wheels, F Sport front, triple LEDs, etc). '16 RDX will finally have the tech it desperately needed and if the more sedate styling is appealing to you, besides the NX F Sport, it would be my first pick over all else thanks to a sweet V6 tranny/powertrain and near-Lexus-like reliability and quality. Good luck and hope to see you soon!

leej865

I am in the EXACT same boat when it comes to buying the NX...lack of availability, lack of LED headlights in my region, the slow rollout and lack of ability to order the way I want the vehicle equipped...so frustrating. One would think Lexus does not want to see these things...I think they have really dropped the ball on this rollout. I really don't want one badly enough to buy one from half-way across the country either. There are too many other options available these days, especially with my personal time at a premium.

I am playing 'wait and see' too. The Audi Q5 and Mercedes GLK are being redone for 2016, so I am going to give them a look. I will never own another Acura after I had a transmission failure in my new TL-S years ago...terrible treatment by Southeast Honda regional division. I won't be giving Ford/Lincoln a look either. I did think about driving the new Murano, but I am not a fan of CVT. It seems everything has some level of drawback.

athiker

I am in a similar situation as well. After my test drive the closest dealer says full MSRP and when I indicated I would be interested in ordering one the way I want they basically just printed out the closest match they could find, handed it to me and asked if I wanted to buy it. Don't get me wrong, they were very polite...just not particularly eager to close a sale unless it was something on hand or nearby. I guess they are selling any NX they get in so its not big deal to them. They were very eager to deal on an RX though and had a bunch in stock.

I emailed the next closest dealer and same deal...no price break and just focused on what he had in stock. Once I told them I might as well buy from my nearby dealer they just mentioned their great service and loaner car program and called it a day.

Kind of like mentioned above, if I wanted to spend my time at the dealer I'd by a German car. I want a Lexus b/c I don't plan on spending time at the dealer! I don't really care about their loaner car program...I wouldn't be driving to that dealer for service anyway.

AWD is another issue around here...they look at you like you are nuts if you want AWD. However, just up in Va. there seem to be quite a few. I also notice the Subaru dealers do quite well around here.

So...I do see some price flexibility on TrueCar in some areas around the country. I could fly out and spend a few days on the beach and drive back with my savings!...tempting.

I wonder if the West coast port slowdown has affected NX supply? Now that they have settled we might see quite a few more hitting dealer lots in a month or two. They say it will take 5-6 weeks to clear out most of the port backlog. I might just have to wait a month or two.

clintdaddy

I have started seeing them here in Vancouver, Canada and they loom decent in white! I didn't think I would like the styling but in person it isn't terrible!

GlenK

I just got the new NX200t and absolutely love it. Only been two weeks and the more I drive it the more I love it. My old 2006 RX330 was awesome but this car is unreal.

I got lucky and they had just what I wanted in stock. Just found this forum and signed up.

ALE81

iTrader: (1)

"I wonder if the West coast port slowdown has affected NX supply? Now that they have settled we might see quite a few more hitting dealer lots in a month or two. They say it will take 5-6 weeks to clear out most of the port backlog. I might just have to wait a month or two".




I think the port slowdown has delayed delivery of my 200t F-Sport by two weeks. It is not just an issue of getting the ships unloaded but I heard they don't have empty ships to load in Japan.