toyota in florida uses a distributor which dictates what's available. so surprise, the distributor only makes available what they think will sell - anything else? Fuggedaboutit. And sometimes even if a configuration is in theory 'available' it's never available at any dealer.

 

I like the new square headlamps instead of the older U or V shaped ones:




The new ones:




My favorite ones though are the L shaped ones, like on various other models:

 

Agreed, Toyota slices up the USA into regions and the Southeast Region is the worst as far as getting the options you want. I've dealt with this for years. Toyota has made it even worse with the Rav4 Prime. They are only delivering them to the 11 "CARB" states. If you want one in Florida you have buy one in NY to get one and ship it home. Awful. Something I won't do.

 

LOL

 

yup, it's why i ended up buying my LC from a dealer in missouri and having it shipped to FL.

 

I've always used the online config to be ready to haggle, but it never really works. My local dealer has his own option combinations that I can't build. Loved the old days when you could just run down the pick list and get exactly what you wanted and wait for them to build it for you. My BF is a deaf person and has no use for a lot of the bells and whistles (literally). He ends up with cars that do several things that he can't possibly use and there's always something he would love to have that comes with a pile of things he doesn't want. Very frustrating.

 

They've been doing this since the beginning. It makes zero sense to me. I remember that for the LS and SC back in the 90s that heated seats had to be packaged with the Nakamichi sound system here in California, but elsewhere you could get heated seats without Nakamichi. At the time, that was a minuscule problem, but now with all the different options, it's crazy they'd limit certain combos to certain regions. If someone wants to spend money, let them spend the money!

 

Okay so let's clear up the misconception.

Lexus USA has 4 regions, Western, Central, Eastern & Southern. All of these field offices are run by Toyota Motor Sales, USA.

Toyota on the other hand has 10 regions and 2 private distributors which deal with Toyota only, not Lexus. Private Distributors are Gulf States Toyota (GST) and South East Toyota (SET).

The private distributors run like a Toyota region, but they do have their own accessories and packages that fit their region. Like XSP package, or Texas Edition...etc.

Now for Lexus builds and preferences, that's all decided by a dealer council (a group of dealers in each area) to produce specific builds for their respective markets. This ensures that the order is streamlined and optimized for the factory. Think TPS. Generally, when a new car launches, each region will order the fully spec'd vehicles, and then custom tailor it to their area based on demand. Sadly the fully loaded cars that we like are built in small quantities compared to the more popular mid grade packages.

 

The Build Your Lexus website allows you to build any configuration selectable, but not all the options are going to be available. The disclaimer is displayed prominently at the top of the page:

SELECT A STYLE TO BUILD

We take great pride in providing a variety of options, but not every configuration can be guaranteed. If your desired configuration is not available, our dealers will be happy to assist you in finding a close match.

If you want a specific build, you must special order.

 

Depends on the zip code you entered. Only Western & Southern areas have this build for ES 350 F SPORT. Option code GF and NL.

 

Thanks for clearing that up. So now I can find out what dealers are in my "dealer council" so I can give them hell. Do all companies go out their way to **** off their customers?

 

It looks the same to me.

 

Shop for your preferred car in a different region, it's not hard. A lot of people have been doing this lately, especially with Covid and touchless internet transactions. GR Supra and TRD Pro come to mind when people are shopping across the country.

 

With these changes is it enough for Gen 8?

 

This is still the 7th generation ES. Generation 8 will be a complete major makeover not until MY 2024 at the earliest.