So Proud would be an Understatement

[SH20]

For those who have the patience this short 5 min video was taken by Phil Walker Car Sales Ltd of Sheffield just after I sold my LS460 to him a few years back.  He retired not long after and spent 40 years selling cars but loved the LS460.  I was so proud to own this car in this colour combination.  This was my very first Lexus and I stuck with Lexus ever since. Towards the end of the video he shows the car with the bonnet up and that is what this post is really about.   He sold the car 5 days after he posted the video.  

In my opinion Lexus set out to impress by having the cleanest look of any car I have ever seen when the bonnet was opened.   A damp cloth was all it took to keep it looking like new.  My current car the LS500h has a similar look but not like a LS460 and certainly most cars today make it very difficult to keep an engine bay looking like new or at least clean and for someone as anal as me that's a hard thing to overcome.    OCD has always been an issue for me but the first time I opened the bonnet of a LS460 I thought "now this is what I'm talking about" and how much time  I would save cleaning.    The ES300h I owned before my LS500 took a lot of time to keep clean and it still looked like a plumber's nightmare. 

If there is a smarter, clutter free, more streamlined under bonnet look than a LS460 be sure to let me know.  

 

 

 

[Malc1]

Steve, that's a wonderful video and the car's a credit to you for sure  ...........  did you manicure his lawn too ?

Well Done

Malc

[Neilo]

Absolutely stunning!    

[Cotswold Pete]

Nice, kind of reminds me of a mate years ago who owned an E-type and he told me the previous owner would clean the wire wheels with a soft brush after any run and the engine bay looked clean as you like.  Not so sure my mate kept it up to that level.

This kind of video makes me hanker for another big Lexus, I must stop watching them and get on with liking my W212

[Boomer54]

"If there is a smarter, clutter free, more streamlined under bonnet look than a LS460 be sure to let me know."

All in the eye of the beholder, but I am taken by this one.

[Malc1]

35 minutes ago, Boomer54 said:

"If there is a smarter, clutter free, more streamlined under bonnet look than a LS460 be sure to let me know."

All in the eye of the beholder, but I am taken by this one.

What is it ……. A corgi toy model ? 

Malc 

[Boomer54]

12 minutes ago, Malc1 said:

What is it ……. A corgi toy model ? 

Malc 

No mate, it may well be my second ride. So clean it looks like it came off the production line yesterday, but same age as Lexigirl.

[Malc1]

Transit van ?

Malc 

[Boomer54]

3 minutes ago, Malc1 said:

Transit van ?

Malc 

😉 XK

[SH20]

Before I went for the LS500 I had the ES300 which was only 16 months old and bought retail from that awful Lexus dealer in Cambridge.   Here is what they believed was a well presented retail car in terms of under the hood and it's leather.  The seat shows a 50/50 split after I cleaned half of it to emphasise the filth.  Total anathema to me and only because of the spec did I continue to do a deal knowing I would sort it out later. 

[SH20]

This is the only photo I have left of my XK back in 2013.   Don't know where or how I lost my other photos.   I was the second owner of this lovely car, a basic 4.2 litre V8.  The   first owner had the supplying dealer fit the 60th anniversary body kit to it before he collected it.   Black leather interior.  A real joy but not as reliable as any of the Lexus cars I've had. 

[Malc1]

34 minutes ago, Boomer54 said:

😉 XK

Stephen .  you been reading Steve's post above 😂

Malc

[Boomer54]

51 minutes ago, SH20 said:

Before I went for the LS500 I had the ES300 which was only 16 months old and bought retail from that awful Lexus dealer in Cambridge.   Here is what they believed was a well presented retail car in terms of under the hood and it's leather.  The seat shows a 50/50 split after I cleaned half of it to emphasise the filth.  Total anathema to me and only because of the spec did I continue to do a deal knowing I would sort it out later. 

Leather, so how about this for 2005. Frankly, I couldn't believe it ,but the eyes do not deceive. As for reliability of the XK v Lexus I expect that you are generally right. By that I mean many of the former just do not match up, but as Malc keeps saying so much of it is about the correct maintenance and ownership. So, I have seen the odd XK that is exemplary and I have seen SC 430's that I would not touch with a bargepole. With the latter I consider that I got very very lucky, but the current crop on offer don't match up on either condition, or price , or sometimes both.

 

[Boomer54]

28 minutes ago, Malc1 said:

Stephen .  you been reading Steve's post above 😂

Malc

Actually, he might be my brother from another mother. It's exactly what I am like.

 

[SH20]

Yes lovely and unusual colour scheme, you don't see many XK's with that lovely caramel coloured leather and what I think is a Burr Oak veneer or maybe Birds Eye Maple veneers.   Might the XK be a Portfolio Spec?   Looks like Portfolio seats to me by the leather panel set up.   

[Boomer54]

1 hour ago, SH20 said:

Yes lovely and unusual colour scheme, you don't see many XK's with that lovely caramel coloured leather and what I think is a Burr Oak veneer or maybe Birds Eye Maple veneers.   Might the XK be a Portfolio Spec?   Looks like Portfolio seats to me by the leather panel set up.   

Not really an expert on the series, but I thought the portfolio came later. This is a 2005 and apparently a pre production model whatever that means.

[ambermarine]

For the best under bonnet experience of a Lexus you cannot beat the original grand daddy of them all the series 1 as seen here when mine was 18 years old

[Malc1]

1 hour ago, ambermarine said:

For the best under bonnet experience of a Lexus you cannot beat the original grand daddy of them all the series 1 as seen here when mine was 18 years old

Eat your lunch off it then 😇

Malc 

[SH20]

Too many pipes and crevices to deal with, sorry Phil. 

[SH20]

You're right Stephen, Portfolio first appeared 2 or 3 years after your XK in the picture.  My error.

[BigBoomer]

What difference does it make if your engine is covered in plastic or not? It has a bonnet/hood whose purpose is (along with aerodynamics) to hide/protect all the gubbins in the engine bay.
When opening the bonnet I WANT access to what I need access to, so I find all of those additional plastic covers to be a royal PITA.
The underbelly covers make sense from an aerodynamic and cleanliness point of view, but the top covers are purely cosmetic for something you only see when you open the bonnet. 🤣

[GMB]

 

Now that's what I call a nice under bonnet tidy engine.😁

On 1/5/2024 at 10:03 AM, Boomer54 said:

"If there is a smarter, clutter free, more streamlined under bonnet look than a LS460 be sure to let me know."

 

lexus cover the engine in plastic because it is a plumber's nightmare, but looks neat at least.🤨

This is why...........☹️

 

[Malc1]

" a thing of beauty  "..........  the third and uninhibited piccy that is   😇

Malc

[Phil xxkr]

On 1/5/2024 at 8:56 AM, SH20 said:

For those who have the patience this short 5 min video was taken by Phil Walker Car Sales Ltd of Sheffield just after I sold my LS460 to him a few years back.  He retired not long after and spent 40 years selling cars but loved the LS460.  I was so proud to own this car in this colour combination.  This was my very first Lexus and I stuck with Lexus ever since. Towards the end of the video he shows the car with the bonnet up and that is what this post is really about.   He sold the car 5 days after he posted the video.  

In my opinion Lexus set out to impress by having the cleanest look of any car I have ever seen when the bonnet was opened.   A damp cloth was all it took to keep it looking like new.  My current car the LS500h has a similar look but not like a LS460 and certainly most cars today make it very difficult to keep an engine bay looking like new or at least clean and for someone as anal as me that's a hard thing to overcome.    OCD has always been an issue for me but the first time I opened the bonnet of a LS460 I thought "now this is what I'm talking about" and how much time  I would save cleaning.    The ES300h I owned before my LS500 took a lot of time to keep clean and it still looked like a plumber's nightmare. 

If there is a smarter, clutter free, more streamlined under bonnet look than a LS460 be sure to let me know.  

 

 

 

Spectacular video, what a prized possession! But there's also shape. And after almost 24 years mine still shouts crikey! Well it does to me but then I'm biased but only massively 😎

[SH20]

I agree Phil,  Ian Callum was a so good at designing cars for Jaguar and Aston Martin and it was the early XK like yours that got us all excited.  My own XK was joy even if the rear seats were for match stick people.