Mokos23

Lexus sucks and is an overrated Luxury Toyota. Here's why.....

A few days ago after work I went to a Lexus dealer and wanted to test drive the GS350. The salespeople weren't helpful at all at McGrath Lexus and were arrogant sobs. I mean come on, it's not like I'm looking at a Mercedes, BMW, or Rolls Royce here.

Finally they let me test drive one. When, I first sat in the interior it's about on par to an Acura TSX, TL, and RL interior. Second, you've got to be blind that from the side profile the GS look like the current Nissan Maxima and Infiniti M. The Maxima was released first and Toyota copied the basic lines from the Maxima.

The drive wasn't all that fun or really breathtaking, because the GS350 didn't seem as fast for 303 hps maybe because it weighs almost 3800lbs.

Then, I look at the price, fully loaded it was $57,000, yikes!!! Who would want to pay that much for a luxury Toyota?? You can get a BMW 5 series, Mercedes E, or Infiniti M for around the same price area. Heck, I know some people would say save $8-11K and get an RL.

While I was checking out the IS350 outside, which is also overpriced and I would get the 2007 G35 sedan instead, a Lexus owner driver 40 mph and almost hits a person looking at a car, while another says is that your Acura there? I said yes, and he said, well that's a nice luxury Honda you have. I agree it's a luxury Honda, but I told him, yeah nice luxury Toyota you have.

Anyways, there's nothing really special about a Lexus errr luxury Toyota to me. The performance in the GS350 didn't really impress me nor did the interior, which is about the same as an Acura RL and TL. To me yes Acura doesn't have a V8 or any cars to really compete with the LS460, SC430, and GS430, but I still think you really get your money's worth buying an Acura and not getting ripped off by buying a luxury Toyota. The ES350 still looks like a Camry to me pretty sad.

Lexus sucks and is overrated to me. I still think that BMW is better than Lexus, plus Infiniti is starting to creep up slowly behind and is challenging both Lexus and BMW now. Now Acura needs to step it up. Doesn't Honda/Acura feel a bit jealous or embarrassed that they started the first Japanese luxury brand, but Toyota and even Infiniti are getting all the attention now?

Crazy Bimmer

cant wait to hear the replies to this one.

Pure Adrenaline

iTrader: (2)

I found this review very informative.

knight rider

iTrader: (1)

You are just a little upset at the dealship experience.

Lexus is not overrated.

It happens to be the best luxury car company to date by many standards (not just mine)

They are more reliable than a BMW and certainly a Mercedes.

Yes, they are overpriced, but so is the BMW. That is why we drive Acuras, right...?

csmeance

Toyota is now heading down the path the american companies took. Their quality is going down, the prices are not worth the car and also the relability (toyota camy tranny's)sucks. Infiniti and Acura are slowly creeping up to BMW in the sense that you get the best bang for your buck. What holds BMW ahead is mostly the name and their performance style. I sometimes ask random people if there is a car company named Acura and moslty they respond no. I ask the same for infiniti and get the same answer. Infiniti and Acura are not as well known as BMW, which acounts for the slower rate of "creeping".

BTW, the camry looks like a getto version of the TL mixed with the TSX interior, and alos the grille on the camrys look a bit to me.

thats why we drive acuras

knight rider

iTrader: (1)

And the cow jumped over the moon...

Mokos23

Yeah Knight Rider, not the best dealership experience, but all the Lexus commercials are touting their car as the best, which isn't true.

You've guys seen the 8 speed Lexus LS460 commercial? It was during the Bears vs. Cardinals game.

But, can anyone give me insight why Acura got so far behind Lexus even though Honda/Acura did 2 things:

1. They introduced Acura as a luxury brand 3 yrs before Lexus arrived.

2. Hondas to me are so much more fun cars to drive than Toyotas and they're priced well and give you a lot for the money?

One thing's for sure I won't get as mad and as nuts as Dennis Green did.

Frank Zappa

So a car model has a bad tranny and WHOOPS the quality of the entire brand is going downhill???
Well, Acuras must all suck then, too.
Give me a fucking break here. Lexus has some of the industries BEST service you could ever hope to receive. There cars are superbly assembled and drive like dream. The quality of the materials inside is right up there with the other luxury manufacturers.

Granted that Lexus is majority aimed at an older generation and soccer moms, and is lacking the sport feel a lot of us enthsiasts crave (though the IS, RX400h, and GS450h all drive pretty damn sporty.) It doesn't mean they are over-rated.

You sound like another kid who walked in there with a chip already on your shoulder, and you wonder why got a bad dealer experience. And you didnt want to like the cars, so its no wonder you didnt. Take some of that money you saved buying your Acura and go buy yourself a clue.

pimpin-tl

Hmm actually the GS was out before the 2004 Maxima copied it.

pimpin-tl

YEp, thats why Toyota is buying back our 2nd replacement Camry which we are taking to drop it off Friday.

Two blown Trannys.

pimpin-tl

1) The quality of Toyota is not like it use to be. It has gone down and it shows in the new interiors and build quality of the cars. Especially the Camry.

2) They have had a ton of recalls and problems with Toyotas in the past 3 years.

Some of Lexus cars are still build really well. The Lexus IS350 isn't build really well at all.

Oh and btw, nice first post TROLL.

Frank Zappa

We are not talking about Toyotas. We are talking about Lexus.
The IS350 has pretty damn good build quality.

Frank Zappa

So, because I call two fools out on their assinine comments I'm a troll?

Sorry, I've owned an Acura. My parents are on their 4th Lexus. I currently drive a different make.

Dem1K

iTrader: (1)

pimpin-tl

Frank Zappa is making a logical point. He's not dissing anyone or anything. You can't go ahead and call something shit if one car's tranny goes, or something else for that matter. Also, sorry 04euroaccordtsx, but judging from your thread about hooking up your buddy, not only do you seem to be bitter and let things get to you quickly, but your judgements about things aren't all that clear. Perhaps sit down and thing about shit before you act on impulse? Food for thought..

mattg

vishnus11

I think this might be a classic case of "myheadisupmyassinitis". Let me explain...

You call say "Lexus errr luxury Toyota". So I guess by the same yardstick I drive a "Acura errr luxury Honda" and all the G35, M, etc. owners on this board drive "Infiniti err luxury Nissans"? Get a clue kid.

You had a bad dealership experience. Get over yourself. Did you go inside dressed as Ludacris and drop some mad slang yo? If so, that might be your problem. I guarantee you I can find someone that has had a bad dealerhship experience at a Acura/Infiniti/BMW/Mercedes dealership. I personally had a less than acceptable experience taking my uncle's Audi in for service. THe key here is that AS A WHOLE, Lexus's service is on par with the best, if not the BEST.

As far as "how come Acura..." or "why doesn't Acura...." - this has been discussed in various threads. Do a search if you don't have a clue.

pimpin-tl: its BUILT not BUILD

Frank Zappa: you sure are acting like a troll, what with your whopping 3 posts and all. Any relation to 1SickLex. One of his minions by chance. That RX400h sure is one sporty vehicle. Right up there with the Hummer H1 and the Escalade.

At then end of the day though, I do believe that the Lexus brand and some of their cars are somewhat overrated, just not for the reasons mentioned by the OP. You cannot deny the fact that their cars are dead reliable, are very quiet, have very good attention to detail and are usually priced competitively. Lexus dealer service just tops it off.

Frank Zappa

I don't recall ever coming off as saying Lexus is the God of all cars. Yes, SickLex has a rep on many boards. I just happened to finally speak when I felt it was appropriate
And have you ever driven a 400h? For a SUV it has a pretty sporty suspension, and the performance out the hybrid with the cvt tranny is butter smooth. Much better then the FX45 which feels heavy on the highway. But I did have a lot fun driving a Murano through some back mountains highways twisties.

But you can hang to all of your preconceived notions.

mattg

you guys calling Frank Zappa a troll are being awfully sensative.

remember, this is Car Talk.

importtuner

The Lexus will blowww Acura in terms of interior quality and materials used. I have both.

Frank Zappa

I think they forgot where the tampon dispenser is located.

CUNextTuesday

Did he group Rolls Royce with Mercedes and BMW?

crazymjb

Lexus as a company seems to market to the more... Dare I say pompous... That aside, Lexus's are great vehicles for the most part. I'm not a fan of a few of their models, but I really do like the IS, and the SC sure is nice, though a bit feminine for my taste. Their build quality remains among the best, and though I hold an Acura bias, I'm not going to crap all over lexus.

I personally am not a fan of hybrids, and I think trying to make them "fun" is dumb.

Mike

Frank Zappa

How do they market to the more pompous? Most lexus owners/drivers are some of the most low key people I've seen. Bimmer isn't pompous at allllll noooooo (sarcasm.) Now, I'd buy a 335i in a heart beat, but bimmer has one of the most stuck up, pompous ad campaigns, ever.
Do you even know the performance benefits of hybrids? Trying to make the them fun is the whole point.

crazymjb

Ok... The high class sounding british narrator, the finest product, get it for your significant other for a christmas gift, its only starting at 50K... I shouldn't have said make the consumer look pompous, but their ads make themselves look somewhat pompous. I never said Bimmer and Benz werent.

Currently hybrid weight differential vs. other limiting restrictions which must be put on make it hard to make it benneficial over modifying the existing engine with something such a forced induction. Sure an electric motor reaches full torque instantly... But when you go on about the CVT, that is performance limiting right there, as they can only take so much torque as its a resistance drive.

Mike

Frank Zappa

Gee, an upscale brand trying to sell their customers on how upscale they are...HOW POMPOUS, what assholes!!!
Well, I don't see the Murano having an issue with torque, the Audi A4, The 400h which is 0-60 in the 7sec realm. When you have driven more then 2-3 cars we can talk, junior.

fdl

The only exceptional thing Lexus has going for it is reliability. Other than that, they generally bore me; and yes for the money I would rather be driving a Bimmer.

mattg

don't push your luck, man. you won't last long around here w/ an attitude.

if you can maintain the same kind of composure as the 16 y/o you're giving a hard time, you'll be ok.

vishnus11

And Frank Zappa is not a troll because...

A FX-45 would blow the RX400h out of the water in any performance benchmark. As would an Acura MDX (cept maybe acceleration). Same goes for the Porsche Cayenne S. And many others. The RX400h has no semblance or intention of being sporty so get over yourself.

RX400h goes 0 - 60 in 7 seconds. Woohoo. An Escalade gets there in just over 6. Thus the Escalade is sporty? What the heck is your point. That a CVT can handle th power? Because listing 0 -60 times has nothing to do with it. CVTs are limited by the amount of torque they can handle.

Frank Zappa

If you havent driven a rx400 then please stop talking. I am not talking about a 330/350. I am talking about the hybrid. Which lexus has purposely given a much sportier suspension to match its engine.
I was not impressed with the fx45 when I drove one. Will it handle great in the twisties, sure. But to me it felt like a pig. No acceleration. That how it felt to ME.
I prefer the RX400h. But of course, the FX is also a crossover platform based on the Z. The rx is based on the camry, but we all knew that already.
7 sec is pretty quick for a suv. how fast is a tsx to 60? oh right...somewhere in the ballpark of 7 right? An escalade is a terrbile comperison, its a giant behemoth. Though GM isnt too bad on the handling of their SUVs.

But I guess I'm saying is the rx400 certainly is sporty. I never said it was a sports car. I said it was sporty. And I stand by that statement. But something tells me I'm also the only one in this thread so far who has driven one.

You're arguing a stupid point with me. And that makes me a troll how? Because I call a SUV sporty?

crazymjb

Considering the FX-45s 0-60 is faster...

They try to sell themselves by making them seem like the best people own Lexus' etc. Take it how you want, I see the ads as somewhat arrogant.

Do you know how a CVT works? You can't go dumping torque into them. Its a fact. The reasons the cars aren't having problems with them is either because their torque output is not high enough, or the engines are detuned/regulated at certain points depending on the status of the CVT...

I could drive no cars and tell you you are wrong through understanding the engineering and looking at numbers. The SH-AWD allows the RDX to out perform the RX400h in the twisties, as well as the X3, and I have no doubt the new MDX will outperform it too.

The only point at which hybrids will truly be any use for performance is when there is no longer direct mechanical linkage to the drivetrain, balancing out the weight of the battery packs and other stuff thrown in, as well as eliminating a complicated power mixup.

Mike

Frank Zappa

The respective cars with CVTs handles their power quite well, regardless of how they do it.
And when did I start talking about the RDX or the X3 or even the new MDX? Or even saying the RX400 was better then X. I said I personally liked it better then a FX, but thats about it. All of which are nice cars. I love the RDX, drives great except for its lack of torque in the corners.
It would be nice if you didnt add words to my posts.

Frank Zappa

And enough talk about the RX400. I mentioned it was sporty along with some other Lexus models.
The fact of whether you two think a car you have never driven is sporty or not, is not what the thread is about. So, how about swinging this thing back on track?

crazymjb

As of a couple days ago the X is now the 07 MDX... Just so we are clear.

While hybrids can add performance to an extent(low end numbers), they can't do so with the efficiencey of using other methods on the ICE(forced induction for example), in terms of weight, price, full spectrum performance, etc.

Until they make a CVT that can handle much higher amounts of torque I'm not sold.

Edit: to get back on track... The original poster was incorrect and somewhat hypocritical in his analysis.

And let me reiderate, I can comfortable trust C&D as well as other reviewers and numbers to tell me whether or not something is more or less sporty than something else.

Mike

Frank Zappa

When I said X I meant something such as "Brand X"
In my original statment I simply said the rx was sporty along a couple other models. I never said compared to X, Y, or Z.
It was the other kid, whom I let myself get caught up in a dumb arguement, who started all the bullshit x vs y crap trying to out me as some kind of troll.
My god, I like Lexus. Shit, I must be a troll
Didn't realize I had be soley on Acura's tip to be here.

FastAcura

From my personal experience having owned all three of these:

Most fun to drive:

1. 540i/6
2. GS400 (with L tuned suspension)
3. CL Type S (auto with comptech suspension)

Best build quality:

1. GS400
2. 540i
3. CL

Most reliable:

1. GS (by far)
2/3. Tie between BMW and Acura (was on my 4th transmission 25K miles after buying it)

Best Value:

1. Acura (up until 100k miles)
2. Lexus
3. BMW

Ownership experience/Customer Service from dealer:

1. Lexus
2. Acura
3. BMW

vishnus11

No. I like Lexus as well as to many others.

Your personal attacks, misinformation about CVTs, and incorrect claims all conveniently aligned in a manner that makes Lexus look good makes you a troll

1SickLex hath trained you well.

Frank Zappa

Aside from calling you a kid, and the other one junior I dont see where you were personally attacked.
I never gave misinformation about CVTs. I never gave any information about them at all. I said the cars that had them handled their engines quite well.
That's twice now you've tried putting words in my mouth.

Dan

Have owned two Acuras and two Lexus. Your wrong.

mattg

who is wrong? the thread starter?

aaronnn

i still dont see how the interior of the lexus GS is on par with the TSX...

acura's got fake vinyl leather, which makes a nice imitation leather i guess and all that plastic fake wood.. hard plastic, covered in more vinyl...

where are you getting that the tsx is even close to the GS's premium leather and real wood??

when you sit in both cars, it feels like two different worlds to me. im not saying the fake stuff is bad in the acura, i actually think its great how honda/acura can make one of the best imitation wood, trim, leather, etc.. without bringing up the price, but when you sit in a lexus, its totally different man.

my aunt has an ES330, and my mom used to have a GS430. these are both the previous gens, and i think the interior was amazing. just didnt like the soft, boaty ride