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Heading to a dealer about 1,000 miles away to purchase a L/Cert 2024 ES 300h. Last night, in the hotel, I started questioning their photos. Are these the same car?
Also, the Carfax says there has been 3 owners. Owner 1 sold it to owner 2, who sold it to the dealer, who is the 3rd owner. It that anything to be concerned about?
Maybe it is the angle of the photo, but the car in the top photo does not appear to have a rear spoiler like the one in the bottom photo.
Good catch - and the hybrids all come with the spoiler.
As to the cons=fused ownership ... I don’t know that I exactly trust the accurate of CarFax for everything. At the very least, you should ask the dealer to printout the vehicles service history. If it’s L-certified, they certainly can see any work done on it.
It is not. If the dealer got the title on their name then it is the third owner
please send me the VIN number so I can check.
Thank you, here's the VIN: [size=13px]58AEA1C18RU048076
Here's the history after I entered the VIN into My Lexus: [/size]
12/1/2025 (12652 miles)REPAIR NUMBER: 0575062 REPORTED BY: Lexus of Omaha
SERVICE: 25LA06 - UPDATE PARKING ASSIST ECU SOFTWARE ON ES, NX, RX DESCRIPTION: ~|~SAFETY RECALL 25LA06 (REMEDY NOTICE) - MULTIPLE MODELS AND MODEL YEARS - REAR VIEW CAMERA IMAGE MAY FREEZE OR NOT DISPLAY. ~|~CAMPAIGN ~|~12652 25LA06 PERFORMED 25LA06 RE CALIBRATION.
SERVICE: COMPLETE 4 WHEEL ALIGNMENT SERVICE STEERING WHEEL OFF CENTER REC REPLACING. DESCRIPTION: ~|~FOUR WHEEL ALIGNMENT ~|~ ~|~12652 PERFORMED FOUR WHEEL ALIGNMENT, ADJUST CASTER, CAMBER AND TOE AS NEEDED PERFORMED FOUR WHEEL ALIGNMENT, ADJUST CASTER, CAMBER AND TOE AS NEEDED
SERVICE: DETU DESCRIPTION: ~|~COMPLETE DETAIL FOR PRE-OWNED DEPARTMENT ~|~
Seems alright? This prior owner had good motives changing oil at 5k.
but not motives like me. i changed my ES oil at 600 miles (if an ES didn't do this around 600-1k miles like car care nut instructs us to, then i feel sorry for that engine later in life) whoever got my ES out there doesn't know that it was maintained by a super-enthusiast. cleanest ESH engine around.
always change oil on a new car at 600-1000 miles. it's safest for the cylinder walls due to the debris that CCN says circulates -- you won't notice the effects til way later in the cars life and the downhill trajectory will begin slowly and creep up.
Thanks for your thoughts guys. The salesman was shocked when I showed him the photos. He says they use photoshop and wasn’t sure if they use AI on the photos. The car does have the rear spoiler
That dealer needs to talk to his IT team. They should only use Photoshop to crop the photos (which is using a chain saw to cut butter) and not much more. It looks like they used the "remove background" or "select Image" function to allow Photoshop to "select" what it thinks is the subject of the photo. I have used this a lot, but it often makes mistakes around the edges, which need to be inspected before saving. I think that the function, in selecting the car, cut off the small profile of the spoiler, which is not at all surprising to me, but in a sales tool, that can be misleading, lead to a misunderstanding with the customer, and result in a lost sale or at least a feeling on the customer's part that the dealer is not fully informed of his products, runs a sloppy operating, and does not review his representations.
In some circumstances, the use of Photoshop's automated AI functions ("generative fill," the "remove tool," "generative expand," etc., which are amazing tools) without human supervision, can easily lead to ugly litigation.
That dealer needs to talk to his IT team. They should only use Photoshop to crop the photos (which is using a chain saw to cut butter) and not much more....
Agree, or perhaps the salesperson used some AI photo tools on the phone to achieve the same effect. The second photo appears to have clouds reflected on the front door glass in what it looks indoors background.
Honestly, I’d be pretty upset if I traveled 1k miles only to find the car looks nothing like the pictures. Aside from that, the key thing is making sure the maintenance records are solid and that the warranty isn’t restricted to just that dealer 1k miles away. Just make sure to test drive thoroughly.
Best of luck to the OP, and Happy New Year to everyone!
He admitted the photos are taken outside, despite the photos on the website looking like they are inside.
Other than that, it's L/Certified. They contacted the nearest Lexus dealer to me and confirmed they have loaner vehicles, as it's 100 miles from home.
Overall a good experience, despite the photo blunder. 2024 ES 300h Luxury w many UL upgrades: ML, Pano camera, Auto trunk, HUD, NR wheels, Window tint, Door sills, floor & trunk mats, etc. No triple beam lights though. Paid $42,900 OTD with $31,000 trade in for a 2021 Chevy Colorado ZR2. I'll pay 6.75% sales tax when I get home on the $11,900.
Drove over 500 miles today... it's the best driving car I've ever owned. I was worried about the hybrid... but it had plenty of power. A group of cars and trucks stayed together cruising 85 - 90 over 120 miles on an empty freeway and I still averaged 38mpg.
Clearly, that's not the photo they started with to get the one in your original post. They really need to brush up on their Photoshop skills.
I put your new photo into Photoshop and did two automatic tasks. (I am not skilled in graphics; I'm a retired attorney.) First I clicked on "remove background," and in 3 seconds I had just the car and everything else was transparent. Then I clicked on "Generate background" and typed "on the beach" - in 5 seconds I got the photo you see here (including the sat antenna and the spoiler).
What I think they should do is get a nice photo of the front of their dealership. Photoshop can put any car photo with the background removed (which takes one click) onto their photo of the dealership driveway. Then, instead of "on the beach" you just paste the background photo you want to add and the result will look real and not be misleading, and that process will take less time than they probably took screwing up that first photo.
So glad you like the ES350. I've had mine for two years now, and it's a joy to drive.
Happy motoring and Happy New Year.
...Overall a good experience, despite the photo blunder. 2024 ES 300h Luxury w many UL upgrades: ML, Pano camera, Auto trunk, HUD, NR wheels, Window tint, Door sills, floor & trunk mats, etc. No triple beam lights though...
At first, I wasn’t interested in the 360 camera or hands-free trunk, but now I can’t imagine living without them. With the 360 view, you can press the "view" button while front parking to get a clearer view of what’s ahead; great for avoiding parking bumpers. I also find myself with both hands full often, so being able to open the trunk with a foot swipe has been incredibly useful.
As for the triple-beam headlights, you’re not missing much. They look great, and I enjoy the startup “dance”, but performance-wise, they’re almost identical to the non-triple beams according to multiple sources, including IIHS. https://www.iihs.org/ratings/vehicle...024#headlights
Originally Posted by Trvlngnrs
Drove over 500 miles today... it's the best driving car I've ever owned. I was worried about the hybrid... but it had plenty of power. A group of cars and trucks stayed together cruising 85 - 90 over 120 miles on an empty freeway and I still averaged 38mpg...
After nearly 30 months of ownership, and 11k miles, I’m still very happy with my 300h purchase. What continues to impress me is the smooth, almost unnoticeable transition between EV mode and the gas engine; and the silent startup. On the highway, if you drive in ECO mode and keep your speed between 60–75 mph (especially in warmer weather), you can easily achieve over 48 mpg. It also has plenty of power, particularly in Normal or Sport mode. I typically use Normal or Sport for city driving and ECO for highway trips, and I average between 40-46 mpg per tank. I also have the same iridium color.
Only dislike is the constant hissing sound from the brake booster, which is quite noticeable in the otherwise very quiet cabin.
Need Purchase Help - Is this the same car?
