Rabbers

Wasn’t mine?!

At the risk of responding to pedantry with more pedantry, I would say that “significant” and “great” are not synonyms and nor are the corresponding adverbs. And when juxtaposed, as the latter were in my OP, they describe a slightness of difference.

Yes, if there is the slightest doubt about the dashboard’s resistance to extreme direct heat, covering is the safest choice regardless of any protective treatment it may have received.

Just buy a good-quality common-or-garden folding aluminium foil sunshade, plain on the one side and whatever colour suits your cabin trim on the other, e.g. red. Position it against the windscreen or the rear window according to where the sun is going to beat when you park, and it will not only protect most of the cabin surfaces from the rays but also significantly (though not greatly) reduce the cabin temperature. Folded flat it will store easily out of sight behind (or under) your seat.

I am grateful for the elucidation. Not that I hadn’t already got your drift.

I almost hesitate to reply, but I chose the adjective “powdery” to indicate a substance morphologically more akin to caster sugar than the crystalline granulated type.

Sounds absolutely disgusting, and perhaps not unlikely to have been dangerously evocative of machine-fire fire had the car been moving when struck. The nearest I have experienced to this was a nauseous combination of undigested grape pips and skins, almost certainly of the Lambrusco variety, which is known for its potent staining properties. The catalogue of solid pollutants liable to be found on one’s car seems to be getting longer, possibly as a result of hot weather, climate change, excessive urbanization etc., which may be causing our feathered friends (or enemies) to change their dietary habits. One has always been aware, of course, that birds can pee as well as poo, and a recent proliferation of splatterings of a yellowish hue and filmy consistency may well indicate that liquid nourishment is being desperately sought wherever it can be found in these times of drought. Occasionally, the stains are not only exceptionally copious but are also accompanied by a powdery sugar-like residue that could well suggest avian diabetes. Not that I am planning to investigate the possibility.

That sounds perfectly logical. But then again, were I to want a car coated when new, I would unless advised differently instinctively take it to a body shop on the assumption that it would do the job at least as well as any detailer. Re-coating subsequent to future repairs would therefore be done as a matter of course

I find the system’s switching between outside and recirculated air modes works well automatically, and I rarely find myself needing to manually override it. An exception regards the “sudden” presence of exhaust gases from preceding vehicles, e.g. upon entering a poorly ventilated tunnel, when the switching is not sufficiently immediate to prevent the fumes getting into the cabin despite the sensitivity being set to maximum in the customization menu.

I remember falling out with my dealer years ago when I had a BMW because they routinely added STP-brand injector cleaner to my tank unasked when servicing the car. I had no technical objection but didn’t like being charged twice what I would have paid to do it myself had I chosen to do so. I have a vague recollection of Lexus once doing the same with their own brand, i.e. Toyota, but with the difference that they asked beforehand. They seem to have desisted in recent years, or maybe they only recommend its use at long intervals.

Not only in the U.K., I would think, though I doubt, if it ever came to it, that proving or demonstrating that a car was deliberately left unlocked would be easy. I think the writer I mentioned was merely making the point - a dubious one in my view though not entirely devoid of logic - that no anti theft device is perfect and that you might as well leave a car unlocked if you want to avoid or reduce prospective damage.

Well, I don’t entirely agree with these observations. I have had Touch ID on my last few iPhones and my wife Face ID on hers, and the technology is excellent. Sure, you occasionally need to try a second time, but this is rare and the reason apparent and easily remedied. I also have Touch ID on my laptop, Apple again, and I can’t recall it ever not working first time. My suspicion is that whereas single commercial entities such as Apple can establish their own systems, car manufacturers and regulatory bodies have longer lead-times for choosing and adopting a standard.

There has for some years been talk about manufacturers incorporating fingerprint recognition into start buttons as a supposedly highly effective anti theft device, but although such systems can be bought and apparently easily fitted by specialists, the idea does not seem to have caught on. Any thoughts as to why?

Just looked in my 2019 RC F-Sport and found the shield very slightly loose with the bolts perfectly tight. So, having heard no rattles, I would believe this to be normal. But you should mention it to your dealer anyway.

It’s pleasant to read so many enthusiastic comments about the SC430. Around 2005, I think it was, I test-drove one and, despite being much impressed all-round, especially by the comfort and standard of finish, decided not to buy for economic reasons mainly to do with Italian road tax. I recall that shortly afterwards I saw and completely disagreed with a thoroughly negative review of the car by Richard Hammond on Top Gear. The adjectives “clumsy” and “heavy” stick in the memory. Owners who are unacquainted with this review might want to trace and view it, though not if they suffer from high blood pressure.

Neither am I. I’m temperamentally unsuited to leaving my car unlocked and unattended even for a couple of minutes. And yet when I think of the number of times I’ve parked a Lexus without the slightest mishap in neighbourhoods where respectable folk usually fear to tread I am left wondering about life’s mysteries.

I once read an article about parking in the streets of Rome - though it might as well have been any other big city - which discussed much the same problem as posed in the OP, namely the avoidance or limitation of damage potentially caused by thieves. The recommendation, believe it or not, was never to lock your car.

I too use the LDA only on the motorway, where I turn it on almost as a reflex action together with the ACC. When I first had the LDA on the 2016 RC I used it also on normal roads mainly for its novelty value. It frankly irritated the hell out of me until a sudden attack of humility caused me to acknowledge that not keeping to my lane was a symptom of slovenly road discipline. So I then decided to use the LDA as a self-shaming device whereby my non-avoidance of the vibration served as a slap on the wrist. I don’t know if this “training” has proved effective in the longer term since I now use the function only rarely, but I think it might have helped me a little.

There are lots of variables governing fuel consumption, including the effect of air conditioning on it, and, obviously, the frequency and duration of fan activity is a major one. And, be it automatic or manually requested, fan activity is directly related to outside temperatures. Given that these have been substantially and consistently higher than normal so far this summer, it is not illogical to suppose that they are responsible for a noticeable - though by no means dramatic - worsening of fuel consumption in respect of the barely detectable ones usually experienced. It could be added that any observed increase in summer fuel consumption for whatever reason would itself be net of the improvement expected in respect of winter.

I keep the air conditioning in my car permanently on, and, depending on the time of year, I set the cabin temperatures somewhere between a minimum of 18°C (64°F) for short bursts and a maximum rarely much higher than a year-round 21°C (70°F). With daytime temperatures these past few weeks in my area having averaged around 35°C (95°F) with midday highs of 39°C (102°F), I have kept the cabin, once cooled, at the customary 21°C, noticing a worsening of the displayed average fuel consumption from my customary 14.8-15.2 km/l (42-43mpg) to 14.3-14.5km/l (40.5-41mpg). I have seen hot-weather increases in fuel consumption in the past but none quite so measurable. Having read that temperatures in parts of the U.K. are heading in much the same direction, though perhaps not quite to the same levels, I thought these figures worth reporting.

As long as you take extra care when overtaking on narrower roads because of the rhd.

If the DVD is in place and the display is continuously showing the “Loading Map” message, simply depressing the Power on/off knob for a few seconds will immediately bring the map back. This might also work with a “Map Missing” message.

An advantage of the red leather trim, be it Dark Rose or Flare Red, is its ability to resist discolouration from wear better than grey or beige. Admittedly this, in my experience, is to some extent due to F-Sport seats, which I have only ever had in red, being less prone to vertical and lateral pressure, and therefore creasing, especially in the bolster area, because of the flatter padding and stitching configuration. I also suspect attempts to re-touch areas of the leather should the need arise would be easier with red than grey or beige, which are virtually impossible to colour-match.

I don't know if the colours in question correspond, perhaps by other names, to "Dark Rose" and the lighter "Flare Red". The former was the standard red in the 2016 RC300h F-Sport and was replaced by the latter in the 2019 facelift. Given that the black cloth roof lining and the black principal plastic surfaces remained unchanged, the lightening of the shade of red had the effect of livening up the cabin somewhat, and I immediately liked the change. Whether the change was necessary is of course open to debate, but I imagine Lexus based it on customer surveys. Tastes differ, but I find red leather is generally well suited to "silver"-bodied cars as exemplified by Lexus' "Sonic Titanium".

Then it looks like you’re good to go. Have a nice trip!