Because it's my car and I have to drive places even when it's snowing lol. It's a nice car, but the point of a car #1 is to be able to drive it.

As as for the tan, there are actually 2 tans. Parchment which is what you are thinking of, and ecru which is almost white and much better.

 

Sure, I would too...but the nice thing about the AWD is that I don't have to put snow tires on it for the 1-2 days a year we have snow, or a trip where I may encounter snow. And on all the rest of the 362 days where there is no snow you can't tell and difference in the AWD vs the RWD really.

And by by that logic, AWD with winter tires would be even more stellar.

 

I'm looking for 2010-2012 . They had Alabaster and Parchment for those model years. I do not like either. Love the light gray tho and of course black. There were some with saddle according to the brochures but I have never seen one that I can remember. Nebula Gray or Smokey Granite Mica on gray leather would be worth me traveling for. I guess the people with all the desirable color combos hang onto their cars.

 

The Alabaster is the same as the Ecru, that's what I meant. Ecru is what they called it on the LS430.

I would also also make a suggestion, there are members here who own and love cars with the interiors you're so strongly denigrating. We all have tastes and preferences, as a part of a community you might want to consider tempering the way you express yours.

You dont like tan, we get it.

 

Exactly. For the last several days we've had unseasonably cold wintery weather. Very unusual here, but every 10-15 years we get a bad winter. This is one of them. We have about a foot of snow and blowing snow drifts everywhere. My car has not even remotely come close to losing it's grip. With the snow button enabled and my dedicated snow/ice tires on all four corners, it's a literal "snow machine". Almost an hour commute each way to work. Never felt uneasy about driving it. Handled and drove like a champ. Very happy with my heated steering wheel, wiper blade heater and butt warmer cranking away....bliss. That said, AWD would I'm sure be ridiculously competent, but very happy with my RWD and definitely good enough. Keep in mind that we have very few snowplows in our region, as we seldom have these kind of winters. Funny thing is, I saw countless vehicles off the road...rolled over or just plain stuck and 90% of them were AWD's, 4x4's, P/U's, SUV's etc. One Audi and one Subaru. This is my third Winter with my LS, but this is the first with any significant snowfall and wondered how it would do. So far so good.

 

You're happy with the RWD because you've got snow tires

 

I have an '08 LS that is RWD in the Boston area. It's definitely tough to find the newer versions without AWD up here. For the record...with snow tires she is unstoppable in the snow. I'll drive her over my wife's AWD all season tire clad SUV without hesitation.

 

I have been in the snow in RWD GS before with some good tires and it did ok. But like I said, it's the other people on the road I worry about. I have a strong dislike for the tan interiors that Lexus used. I currently own one with Ecru and I cannot stand looking at it anymore, if that offends you then it was not my intention. I went to Carmax yesterday and was told it was an hour wait to get a sales person hah! So i looked around on the lot and sat in some cars. I have to say, a lot of their cars had foul smells inside and scratches and scuffs on the body. Several of the cars I sat in had been smoked heavily inside of. You would think this would go to the auction. The only ones that were really nice were the BMW and Benz they had. I was disappointed.

 

I used to have a 4x4 toyota tacoma and if I didn't have a lot of added weight in the bed it would spin tires in the snow. Since then I have become strictly an SUV guy when it comes to my 4x4. Next for me is a QX56 or Armada but I wanna focus on getting this dang LS first.

 

Just because something like AWD doesn't solve all your concerns about driving in the snow (other people on the road) doesn't mean that it doesn't improve that situation or isn't of value. With that said, in Richmond (I'm very familiar with Richmond) I wouldn't seek a car out with AWD unless you routinely travel in the winter to the mountains, etc.

With that said, I wouldn't turn down a good car that came a long that ticked my boxes because it was AWD either. In short, in your location I wouldn't care whether it was AWD or not.

 

I just purchased a RWD 2012 Chevy Silverado 1500 pick up (in excellent condition) and ALL my friends thinkt I am nuts for making a bad "investment" on a RWD because I will not be able to sell it plus they think I won't be able to go anywhere if it snows...... I tell them I know how to add weight to the truck and drive in snow plus I saved a lot of $$$ on the truck (verses a FWD) because everyone wants a FWD and this truck sat there since December so I got a great deal on it.
Personally I would have preferred a RWD 460 but could not find one in decent condition PLUS my wife who drives the car wanted a AWD because of the NJ winters. My suggestion is to look for a AWD that has low miles and is in great condition because the ride is amazing...... PLUS there is a good inventory of used AWD LS's out there.

 

That is true. That's basically what I'm saying... to assure those who fear that a RWD LS is useless in snow, is simply not the case if you are properly equipped.

Over night here, we got a heavy dumping of more snow. People are calling it the "snowcopalypse"..lol. It's BAD. And it's not supposed to stop for several more days. As I look out at my driveway, I can barely make out my car. We have almost 3 ft of snow now (77cms). Might be the worst winter on record. So my commute into work tonight will be a real test for my car. That is unless they shut down the Freeway. We're hovering right around the freezing mark, so it's that heavy snow which makes it worse.

On a more humorous note, one of my neighbors last year bought a snow blower. We all laughed at him because of the little snow we get - if any. He's pretty happy now and thumbing his nose at us. I'll have to excerpt a level of humbleness in order to convince him to let me borrow it!

 

Only 100 miles. Here's one:

http://greensboro.craigslist.org/ctd/5982164412.html

 

Its all about where you are. Nobody around here has snow tires, so the AWD is particularly helpful here.

 

Tan interior. We have been discussing in this thread how much I do not want tan. There are ones with tan all over where I live. I will never buy one with tan again. I actually own 2 vehicles right now with tan leather. Time to get back to black or gray