Hi, all--

New to the forum.

Will likely be placing a "special order" for an 08 IS350 within the next month. No luck finding one already made or in the pipe within my region. Not a problem, since I'm pretty particular.

The specifics: Tungsten Pearl ext/Sterling int, Luxury package w/18s, Levinson audio, Sirius satellite. Thought about in-dash Nav but decided against it; instead have a Nuvi 760 on order (got a great online deal).

The local dealer has been prompt and cordial. We settled for $1500 off MSRP (they offerred one, I wanted two). The service department seems attentive and since I'm a local buyer they will "guarantee" a loaner for all service visits (brief and extended).

This would be my first Lexus after having owned VW, Audi and Infiniti, so I'm pretty excited. Have given strong consideration to Cadillac CTS and BMW 328i as well.

Just curious... have any owners experienced a "wish I had thought of that" moment during or after their purchase that they could pass along to a potential first time buyer?

Thanks.

 

Hello and Welcome to the Club.

I like the options you chose, and I highly recommend adding the parking sensors to the list. It significantly helps with parking in tight spaces (a must in most urban areas). And for $500, it's much cheaper than getting a paint job for scrapes and scratches...

 

Well I just hope that you don't regret not getting the Navi. Some people in this form regret not getting nav in there car and ML. Well me I regret not getting the Memory Seats and Tilting parking Mirrors. So you better think carefully before you pull the trigger. Once the order is place there is no turning back and you can't add anything else once the car is being build. The only thing that you can add is the stuff that do at docks like spoiler and Sirius radio.

 

In brief, why might I "miss" not getting the NAV option? Especially since I'm getting an on-dash portable GPS unit which is likely superior than the factory installed version from Lexus. Sure, it may not look quite as integrated or sleek, but I prefer the user-interface, features, price-point and utility of moving it between my and the wife's car seamlessly. Not to mention update DVDs are about 1/4th the cost. To each their own, I guess...

 

Good thought...

 

Well what ever rocks your boat. If you like the portable then what ever means get it. Portable is great and easy to carry around. But what I am saying that some people in this forum regret not getting the Navi or ML.

 

welcome...

 

Oh yeah forgot to mention that the Navi has a build in back up camera. But you are not planning to get the Navi, then you should get the parking sensors like PhilipMSPT said. Don't try to get it add on later because some thing like this will happen. Just check this thread and you will see.
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=276215

 

Geez, what a rotten deal for that buyer. Any word on how it was resolved? I will make sure the factory installs my sensors.

 

Get the NAV. It's a bit more money but makes for a far more enjoyable experience ---- Nav, backup, audio/climate controls, listing of song for satellite radio, it is all on the touchscreen. And it looks way better than the non-nav setup. It's also easy to use, and when you go sell your car you will recoup some of the cost. A Lexus with Nav is far easier to sell than one without.

 

Had the 06 without the Nav.

Got the 07 with Nav. Way better user experience. I couldn't be more pleased. Do check out how the climate control interface and the audio control interface work with the Navigation system. Really nice.

You also will get bluetooth integration. If you have a bluetooth cell phone you will really appreciate that.

I agree with park assist. A nice feature.

Best to have the salesperson explain in detail what features come with the Navigation package.

 

You'll recoup some of the cost, but likely take a hit on it... And I'm not sure how you determined selling a NAV-equipped car is much easier


http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/...ale-usat_N.htm

 

You will get some of the $$ back, just a lower percentage of the cost relative to the rest of the car. The whole issue may be true for average cars where people are looking for a bargain in a used car. But a well designed system, like Lexus, on a luxury car is an asset, not a liability. Lexus owners don't want suction cup mounted Nav units in their vehicles.

The whole issue is an unknown. Some past factory units were crap and were out of date when they were new. You have decided you don't want a factory Nav, mainly for price issues it seems. That's fine ..... but there is a tradeoff in seamless integration of a factory unit compared to an add on. If you know that going in you have made a decision that is right for you.

 

Don't let them get to ya... paying $3000 extra for nav compared to $500 for an aftermarket unit that does a lot more is a no brainer.

Don't let it stop you from getting the Mark Levinson system though... at $940 it's a lot more improvement to the factory system than you'll get for that money in the aftermarket.

Most of the folks who regret not getting nav are likely folks who haven't used a better aftermarket system that adds things like realtime traffic, realtime weather/gas/movie data, not crippling itself when the car is put into drive, etc...

Plus if you're flying someplace you can put your nav in your pocket and use it in your rental too.


About the only reason I can see spending a ton more for the factory nav is if you have little kids who you can't manage to teach not to play/put things directly behind your parked car (ie the backup camera).... that, or you just -hate- how the dash looks without it and are willing to spend thousands for that alone.

Me, I'm happier have thousands extra in cash... plus I save a couple hundred every year because the new maps from Garmin are that much cheaper than the ones from Lexus.

 

The only advantages that I see about having the Navi would be the backup camera and the fact that they can't break your window and steal the Navi. (There have been reports of people in the Bay Area breaking into cars because they saw the mounting bracket and stole the Garmin hidden in the glove compartment box.) Backup camera or parking sensors are definitely useful. You got a great looking car, but rear visibility is horrible! I've had countless near misses and small hits trying to back up this car when I first got it. You get used to it after a while.

I disagree with the tilt mirrors. I thought it was a cool feature until I had it in a loaner ES350. It really threw me off. Maybe it's something to get used to.

As for the Navi helping the car sell later on, I disagree. People who buy used cars (especially for those cars that are 3+ years old) are looking for a bargain. They don't want a car full of features and electronics because they are afraid that something will break or is out-of-date. If you want high resell in the future, keep your options to a minimum. The market for cars that are only one year old is totally different.

I have a Garmin Nuvi 660 and I love it. It has the best UI and great features. My friend has a Honda Civic Si with Navi and I can't stand his interface.