I've been driving all kind of cars lately. including m45 sport. gs 430. gs 300. Dealer is trying to find me what I want gs300 rwd, mercury silver, ash, roof, afs. rain sen wipers. I feel in love with handling of the m45, but I can't get over the exterior & interior styling, ATM center stack turns me off. Also sport in CT is no no in CT winters. m45 is very fast but just has no panache. It is a better drivers car. But not for me, Now choice between gs430 and gs 300, gs430 has more power, also very hard to get w/o nav and levinson, $6k more than I need or want to spend, real downers on gs430, engine exhaust noise, I know most of you want it . I do not. I have a very nice 2000 528 bmw
about same 0-60 as gs 300, but I always hear engine, It has always bothered me since bought car new in Dec 99. It would be the same for the gs430. Also brake on gs430 are very grabby on low speed stops. And same problem with tires both m45 and gs430 use summer rubber. I'm having dealer locate gs300 WITH OUT runflats, I do not like ride, nor driiving w/o any kind of spare. Gs300 with hood open does allow the ticking of injector/pump noise. I did not notice it in my drive. I was allowed to take both gs300 & gs430 for ride w/o salesman, They really want to sell me a car. My wife bought es300 after lots of test drives from same dealer, . I drove both cars from dealer ship to my house, I cut ride short on gs430 as the exhaust engine sounds were just as trouble some as on my present car, Drove gs300 all the away home and back and loved it. Only down sides, you must use display panel for audio settings, Sun washes them out. But dash board for speedo and tach are clear under all conditions. I like arangement on m45 better as you see both tach & speed in same cluster. But tack is really no longer and issue as I give up my mt on BMW. I find on long trips with lots of traffic like Thanksgiving extensive use of clutch and engine noise is verty tiring, Yes i'm older
61, but noisy cars have always been a sore spot for me, I have had 2 acura legend coupes 88 &90
both very quiet and some what sporty. Lousy brakes, exensive to keep up. So dealer is doing locate . will keep you posted

 

Have you considered the RL? If the styling doesn't bother you, you may actually enjoy the RL more, as it is very well balanced between athleticism and cruiser-luxury.

Maybe it is just me, but it seems like maybe the GS is not the right vehicle for you. If I'm understanding your post correctly, there are a lot of annoyances in the GS that you don't particularly care for. Do those annoyances outweigh the good things for you? What do you like about the GS?

 

I do not like lots of things on gs430mostly relating to noise.. gs300 is quiet. Only things I do not like on gs300 is the need for video screen for radio & climate,. It seems all new cars require them now. love stlying on gs, like interior except for video screen but it much better looking than m cars. Dealer is trying to locate car way I want it.

 

Noisy cars?

Is the exhaust note on the 3rd Gen louder than on the 2nd Gen?

I have 2nd Gen and one of the things I don't like is how quiet the V8 is. I'd rather it sounded more like a V8 Cadillac. Mine is so hushed that you really have to get on it before it makes any significant (but sweet) noise. The things come with resonators the size of beer kegs!

 

I agree, I miss the sound of my BMW. The 03 GS just doesn't have the growl I was used to and the 06 didn't seem to have any more. But as jyg es3 points out, even the muted noise in the GS430 is bothersome to some people. At least we all have a choice - that's the important thing here!

 

Congrats on the new GS 300.

 

I couldn't disagree more. I have a 98 GS400 that barely makes a sound above a whisper. When I got my 06 GS430 I honestly did not turn on my ML Stereo for 3 DAYS as I found the new growl of the GS430 intoxicating.

The best part is that the 06 GS430 only growls when you want it to. On the highway or under easy driving conditions it sounds as tame as my 98 GS400. This car has a personality all its own and the growl is just a hint as to what's in store ahead (IMO). BTW I am in my mid-40s and never did any mods to my 98 GS400 so hot rodding is not my cup of tea. I belong to the classical music crowd.

 

Hey how many miles you got on that thing already

 

Actually my business travel has been a bit slow since I bought my new GS . Really bad timing on my part. I only have about 2500 miles on it since I took delivery on 2/28 but things are looking up. I will be doing 1500 miles over the next two days so I should be seeing my dealer for my first 5K service by the end of next week.