jumbojake

agreed .. if you have to purchase a new car, the choice is obvious... as with any purchase, if you have a choice to make, make it with an environmental conscious

But the argument here is about the decision to scrap something that works perfectly well now, and manufacture a new car purely for the sake of reduced CO2 emissions.. the difference isn't 3T of CO2, but much much higher.  

A hybrid is not really an environmental choice... manufacturing CO2 cost is enormous and it still fundamentally an ICE vehicle.

The only option I would argue is that replacing a good ICE for a second hand EV makes sense ... but ultimately, scrapping something means

the 'buy green' is a government tactic to stimulate the economy and manufacturing... always better to keep something running in good order   good for your pocket, good for the environment (just doesn't help the economy).... the should re-introduce the wombles to educate our young!

it is interesting the EU are introducing rules to make white good more serviceable... seems like someone gets it.

yes, just checked, the base model in the US (also with 8" display) comes with apple carplay as standard  for the base model  (and a bit cheaper than the UK.. I guess it is missing the EU regulatory bits).. it would seem it is technicaly possible, possibly just a business decision... maybe a value add option for next year if I am syncical

just for my ignorance, what does the MM17 and MM19 systems relate to in terms of the 2019 ES models ?

I understand this is all available in the US, so the technology should support it?

very nice, I don't envy you parking in one of those garages, looks a tight turn!

is that the premium pack?  

what colour leather did you go for?   (is it a brown dashboard, or trick of the light?)

ok, interesting, so it's a different technology to use the electric handbrake on the ES, as opposed to whatever they do on the Rx  (which has a manual cable handbrake).

in the ES, I could hear the handbrake winding in/out when I pressed the handbrake button, but didn't hear it when the hold is engaged... perhaps the background noise drowned it.

I like the 'hold' button feature.... good for stop/start congestion.... seems like a user friendly version of the hill start on my wife's Rx ..... but curious how it works.  

Does anyone know if it actually applies the hand-brake, play with the foot-brake hydraulics or is it some magic in the transmission?

11 hours ago, rich1068 said:

I park in parent and child spaces.

There. I said it 

I thought that responsibility was reserved for BMW drivers?!

not many negative things stopping me taking plunge to buy an ES ... but one of them is the huge front doors, especially given how wide the car is.

on my 24hr test drive, I was to too nervous to put it into a busy car park, but I am worried.. at the office it is just ok in my IS200d

How are you new owners coping parking this car in real-life ...  ?

Any medical injuries when closing the door from the inside?  (felt like a bit of a strain for me, maybe need longer arms!)

I love the idea of a real spare wheel.

But, just a thought.... we had a flat in our RX, without a spare ... AA (Lexus assist) came out and fitted a plug from the outside... it was a temporary repair until we got to a tyre place who did a proper puncture repair... to me that worked better than a spare, as the wheel size remained the same, didn't affect the steering (although also limited to 50mph until proper repair made)... just a thought to anyone who can't get a spare, or not brave enough to try swapping a wheel on a hard shoulder!.

with a Toyota dealer yesterday looking at the Camry.  They advised (hot new news)... the apple Play is coming to the Camry and Rav4.

They also showed me an existing feature called mirror mode... they claim it also allows phone integration, for using Waze.... does that exist on the Lexus.. if so, is it any good?  (Dealer never mentioned it to us)

Finally got a test drive of the Camry yesterday.. hard to find a dealer with one to try... sadly only the Design version.. but was impressed by the build quality.  For me, it is between the Camry Excel and Lexus ES Premium .... to be honest, not a lot in it.  

Interesting the dealer advised their target market is VW & Skoda, but they're taking customers from Lexus, which wasn't the plan !

There are some obvious differences...

- Price ... about 20% when discounts taken into account... also only 4.9% on the Camry, but 5.9% on ES

- Camry is quiet, but Lexus more so.. harder to notice the engine and road noise in the Lexus, but not sure if enough to make a difference to me decision.

- The touch screen in the Toyota is much better than the awful mouse pad in the Lexus.. much easier to use... otherwise both seemed to have very similar controls.  

- Some of the features worked better in the Lexus (lane departure was just a warning alarm in the Camry, no active control of steering).

- Camry looked like a bigger boot, but possibly an optical illusion.

- Leather seats in Camry are clearly lower grade, but were perfectly fine... I'd say similar to what you see in a BMW/Merc (Lexus is way ahead of the German brands in that respect). 

- Doors are equally massive on both ... this is my biggest worry...the car is very wide and not sure how it will work in a supermarket car park... never mind the reach to close the door...clearly a car for the US market

overall very impressed ... need a long think about the price difference and small variation in quality  (if I can see past the width of the car)

Very happy to be given the chance of a 24hr test drive, in their F-sort... overall I thought the car was very nice ... didn't blow my socks off, but equally was a pleasant surprise in a few areas

Coming from my IS200d, I found the ES drove well, but was a bit gutless when trying to overtake... lacking the mid range torque I'm used to, which was a bit disappointing, given the additional bhp, but I guess the nature of a hybrid (my wifes Rx450h is ok, but that does have a 3.5 v6 to help it along!).   Otherwise it drove very well ... actually surprisingly well for a front wheel drive, if you don't push it, it felt very good.  The " Infotainment " drove me nuts... not just the lack of apple carplay, but also that mousepad ... it's even worse than the mouse in the Rx450h .... I still much prefer the touchscreen in my IS200d ... why can't they use the dial system other cars do, so much easier

Some odd things ... would appreciate thoughts from the new owners,

- How do the new owners make of the touchpad... are you coping with it ?  The dealer told me it can support handwriting ... does that actually work, in the real world?

- I found the doors open really wide, which I found a pain to close again when in the car... perhaps I'm getting old!   Adaptive cruise control was nice, but could only select in 5mph increments... can that be tuned to 1mph, like older cars?

- USB for media looks to be directly underneath a cover... how do you connect a memory stick to that, and still close the cover? (or doesn't anyone do that any more?

- side mirrors looks really small ... what are they like in real life?... are you finding blind spots on motorways?

-  found the voice to navigate to be very frustrating. limited to only full address... is that configurable, can you use it to find POI locations? (as I can on my IS200d ?)

- sat nav.... looks like a tomtom mash-up ... but traffic info seemed to be intermittent.  stuck on a motorway for over an hour, it didn't know about it... but then told me of traffic on another stretch of road when there wasn't ... is it reliable when commuting, or are you all still reliant on phone apps like Waze? and waiting for apple CarPlay to come along?)

just raised this question with Lexus UK, who responded with the following ... not much help. 

" We have no further news at this time regarding whether apple CarPlay will be either integrated into the current ES or offered as a retro install for vehicles already produced "

I also spoke to the dealer, who  suggested it would not be offered in the UK and held back as a new feature for the facelift in 2 years.

this is great news, but I am cautious about the clause " if equipped with the compatible MM17 multimedia system "

Which ES models have this system installed?  (is all of them, or just the Takumi?)

excellent post, good pics .... yes, feels like a Saturday job to me, plus taking the wife out for a meal, to apologies for an afternoon of blue language !....

The video looks methodical and feasible for the home, just works on the assumption the various plastic clips will behave.  (I just did a radiator on my 2012 IS200d and several plastic bits didn't like being disconnected..had to improvise a little)

I've always been uncomfortable with any dealer service, which is the reason why I started servicing my own cars back in the 90s.  I thought Lexus would be better, but they have lost my trust... a bigger shame given the premium you have to pay.

My only concern is if the local Toyota garage (good reputation) will take on the annual hybrid check.. keen to keep that warranty going!

Doesn't look too worrying from that video... much less daunting than the official service manual says (they want the coolant drained, which seems excessive)

Although, the video run time is 21mins, I suspect this is a days work for me!

having just been skimmed for nearly £500 for the 40000 service, and they didn't bother changing the brake fluid... I'm not sure i want to part with £750, if I don't trust they would do it all.

Anyone done the spark plug change on an Rx450h ?

I normally do my own servicing ... and for this car about to take that off Lexus hands..... however, the next service will need spark plugs.

Looking in the engine bay feels like an involved job... and from what I can see in the service manual, looks like lots to remove before I can get close.

Has anyone tried it?

done some more road tests and I'm now confident, the thermostat is ok ... the temperature regulates perfectly, and water temp is the same as it has always been (dead middle) .... if the thermostat was playing up, it wouldn't regulate so well .. and show higher temperatures.

all back together, job done ... just a bit pricey for the genuine parts.

conclusion.....

went back today to re-work it with a clear head ..... the fuse that was ok yesterday was blown today! .... replaced that and I then got 12v on the wires.

Then took a file to the mountings scraped off the paint and put it back together... all good now (phew).  if it keeps working for the week, I'll put some waxoil onto the exposed parts.

So, yes, seems like they get so much grief, exposed at the front, those contacts need serious cleaning if you ever disturb them

I didn't move the horns, just disconnected the wires.... however, I did check the grounding today

I buzzed out both wires, don't get 12v on either.  I can't believe I broke both wires...especially as the thirst (which goes to the bonnet catch) work fine.

noticed the horn isn't working today.... most likely due to me removing the front bumper yesterday (for radiator change) ... but I have checked the connectors are all back in place.

I have checked the fuse, that is ok... but the relay seems to be part of a black box item called "front controller".  That box controls the washer fluid... that is working ok.

The bonnet switch is on the same loom, and that is working ok.  All other electrical items I can think of is working ok

so a bit puzzled.... any thoughts???

ahh ... your talking about the disc itself  (not the pads)... yes,  that is more sensitive to wear .  Best to always check the Lexus requirements, not rely on shops.

for the front, Lexus state 28mm new, and 25mm minimum  (3mm wear) ... to gauge that use a micrometer or vernier.   I've just change my front, about 60000miles, seems reasonable.

I've always taken the minimum thickness to mean just that, the minimum thickness of friction material left on the pad... to be honest I changed them before then, as the wear indicator scraper makes one hell of a noise at about 5mm.  I check them twice a year when I swap winter/summer tyres and check the calipers.  5min job when the caliper is already off.

Where did you read new - 2mm ? ... seems like a wasteful approach.

an update on this... I finally got around to the job today..... proved to be time consuming and fiddly due to rusty bolts and jubilee clips....about 5hours and managed to keep my language family friendly (usually a good sign).

As I thought, the top of the radiator had gone, with pink growth around the crimped seam around the top hose.

After filling it all up again and running it up to temperature, I am worried there is no heat in the lower hose ..... I even took it for a 30min blast down the motorway, with some heavy town driving on the way back .... top hose, is too hot to touch, the bottom hose is lukewarm...  no water leak and the temp gauge is rock steady in the middle as always.... am I being paranoid, or could this be the root of the original problem?

I noticed when it was warming up, the water seems to flow around the top hose and filler hose back to the engine .. so just circulating that top corner of the radiator, which might explain why it failed.

Has anyone else, with a IS220d or IS200d  noticed if the bottom hose ever gets hot?   I'm worried it might be the thermostat, which looks like a horrific job (underneath the EGR).