SH20

It was a 2007 LS460 SE_L my first Lexus and I was hooked, bought in 2015. Quality and technical aspects were as good as the LS500h but the LS460 didn't have the RSR Ottoman option which is standard for the LS500h Pleat Model. Twin screens in the LS500 for in car entertainment whereas the LS460 had the single screen mounted in the headlining. Both cars have the highest level of trim with the LS500 simply being more up to date in terms of design and with a superior body design. No big deal giving the LS500 up. We are going down to one car between the 2 of us as the wife stands no chance of dealing with a car over 5 meters long when she is coming out of a Toyota Yaris Hybrid. We are both over 70 and a car like the CHR is a car she can drive if she needs to. I've had a CHR before but the latest version has enough equipment but the interior is bland and synthetic. We can save a fair bit of money too with one car as insurance premiums alone are getting out of hand and with what this draconian Government are going to do with road tax next year I'm not giving the Insurance companies or the Government more opportunities of putting their hands in my pocket for more cash than necessary.

After 12 outstanding months of ownership I have traded my beautiful LS500h and moved back/over to Toyota for the second time. After 6 Lexus cars, five hybrids and one V8 4.6 litre LS460 SE L back in 2015 it is no great hardship to do this but without doubt the 2017 LS500h was and is the best car I have ever owned. From a sublime Plumb and black leather interior and every option that exists in the Lexus Arsenal I will transfer to a sea of black and synthetic materials in my new CHR, my second so far. The Toyota dealer has a sister Lexus site and when my Toyota salesman called them to get an understanding of how much my car was worth to do a deal the Lexus salesman was very keen to secure my car. He said at the time there was only one LS500h for sale in the entire Lexus UK network and when I checked he was right and that is still the case, a 2024 LS500h Takumi at Lexus Coventry. He assured me he would sell my car in a matter a of days because of the price point it would be offered at as one of the first MK5 models and because it was the Pleat model. I pointed out to him that my car was the Lexus Press Car for the first 6months of its life before the second owner took over and kept it for 5.5 years and then I acquired it. He was relieved to learn I did a deal and he will get his hands on it in due course. I have a short holiday coming up in the UK and it will be my last week with the LS and it will be hard to look back at it when I drive away in my Toyota.

2 LS cars Colin wow, True, I've never actually seen another one on the road in the last 10 months of owning one but that's a very low sales figure. There is a great car themed business situated in Sherburn in Elmet near Leeds (Loads of videos about it on YouTube) which has everything in terms of a Bodyshop, Paintshop, Mechanical shop, Classic Car restoration, large cafe, large restaurant, car accessory shop, and meeting rooms for car clubs to hire. They have themed car and bike days at weekends, Saturday and Sundays and during the week coffee and car days for like minded folk. On the 14th November there is an all Japanese day which I imagine will include mainly fast Japanese sports cars. I'm going myself but only in the hope another LS500h might attend but I'm not hopeful.

Once the horrendous first 2 or 3 years depreciation has played it's part a high spec car seems like a better option. My LS500h is the Pleat model and the spec is very very high in all areas and bought as a six year old car. This is where the appeal lies for me because the mileage tends to be modest and the service history also tends to be main dealer. Can't say I put too much store in the over egged 10 year extended warranty, mainly because I tried to make a claim for a noisy door window blind which was rejected immediately but that aside the car is an excellent and well made car with great mpg returns. Would still only buy a really good used vehicle though.

The list price of the highest spec 2024 LS500h AWD referred to by Lexus Dealers as the Pleat Trim level is £128,260 incl first year road tax and £23,000 more expensive than it was in December 2017. The Pleat is basically a Takumi model with a black and rose coloured interior (only colour available with the fancy pleated door cards and Kiriko Glass) but other Takumi models have door cards with wood veneers and conventional door card coverings. However only the semi aniline leather features for the Pleat Trim. The non pleat Takumi has L- Aniline leather as standard which apparently has an even more soft feel to it than semi aniline leather and cheaper at £122,060. Another model at £128,260 called the Nishijin is just another variation of trim with black only leather and Haku wood inlays. The road tax is an eye watering £1650 unto year 5. As usual in the biggest market for Lexus the list prices for these same cars start at $81,000 base level 2 wheel drive to $117,000 for an AWD version with top trim. So another example of the UK having to pay more than any other country because we always have. Are these LS cars really worth such a huge price figure.

Thanks Colin, the winter fuel thread was choking my in box in my email account. Cheers for the steer

Been a big fan and contributor of this forum for years. However I want to ask if any long standing Post/Topic can be marked in some way so as not to receive new posts.

No wonder Lexus Warranty turned down a claim for a LS500h rear door window blind because of vibration. The part cost is £2,338 incl vat plus fitting.

I could feel the resentment the "Technician" had for me when I basically led him by the hand to the car, pointed to the window blind sub assembly (the Tube that the blind rolls up in) lightly struck the tube with the palm of my hand which immediately caused a rattle which was perfectly audible. With great reluctance he had to confirm he heard it but he would have to look into further when the car was in the workshop. Pretty sure he was thinking "What the F**k am I having to listen to this old muppet for" but as his manager had agreed I could have a few minutes with the "Technician" who was going to work on my car he had to stand there and listen to what I was experiencing on the road. They just hate having an older person to talk to. 100 years ago I served my own apprenticeship as a mechanic. Now they call themselves "Technicians" who can't diagnose a problem unless the car is plugged in to a fault code reader which tells them where to look. This was just an old fashioned physical problem of a rattle causing a vibration during driving and he was never really interested. Anyway the dealer's lovely receptionist rang me today to check if all was ok and she didn't deserve to listen to what I really thought. I will wait till the dealer sends their customer survey questionnaire to me, due any day now. I'll let them have both barrels then. Lexus UK used to be almost neurotic about customer satisfaction results and my favourite Lexus dealer in Carlisle once told me that if a dealer didn't achieve an average of 9.8 out of 10 each month they would get a visit from Lexus UK to discuss why. Doubt if that commitment exists today

Thanks Colin, useful to know. I have now realised that I let the dealer in to the opportunity to upsell me new discs and pads. Two months ago I booked the car in for this service and MOT and about 2 weeks ago they sent the book in online link which I filled in which included a box to tell them about anything else I wanted them to consider. I reviewed this link today and realised I had mentioned I had a bit of brake judder at speed when going down hill. I now believe they have used that to fail the MOT on brake efficiencies between the left and right front brakes. There were no lips on the discs edges, which should not make a difference to brake performance anyway even if a disc is worn. Because I mentioned brakes I now feel I shot myself in the foot by planting that seed of doubt in their minds. So £804 plus VAT was the result. I'm considering sending an e mail to the Lexus Stoke dealership Principle to let them know that after buying their £42K car 9 months ago and having done only 4,419 miles the car couldn't pass an MOT. They won't be bothered of course, all water under the bridge for them.

Agree Phil, all Franchised dealer warranties are underwritten by external third party insurers and the underwriters change as the wind blows. Lexus do not pay for any extended warranty claims i.e outside the 3 year manufacturer warranty but from year 4 on they go to whoever is flavour of the month and agree terms as to how that underwriter will handle claims with Lexus having a great deal to say on the wording of which parts will be covered. It is fair to say the principle components have specific parts listed, engine pistons, cylinder heads, auto transmission parts etc etc and the list is extensive but so is the parts not covered. They are also clever at exclusions such as vibration, noise etc which are exempt from any part not listed and not limited to so they have most corners covered. My annoying vibration in the window blind would be a great example. Brake discs are covered under the heading "Brakes" along with calipers and brake drums etc etc but they avoid the cost of new brake discs by having the exclusion " due to wear and tear". My brake imbalance would come under wear and tear. So a brake disc would have to be cracked or have failed in some other way to claim for it. Sounds great the Toutota and Lexus 10 year warranty and you want to hear new car salesmen go on and on about it like it was a magic bullet. What a load of Malarchy

Service and MOT today at the local dealership. Previously mentioned an annoying vibration coming from the osr window blind on my LS500h, 37,000 miles and 6.5 years old. Unless I am driving on ultra smooth tarmac the vibration is evident. Put the blind up and it helps a little because the mechanism is engaged. Door card removed and an arranged discussion with the Technician standing by the open door confirmed in his presence that something internal in the mechanism was either loose or broken. He readily accepted that he could hear the rattle/noise but further investigation was needed while in the shop. The waffle started when the After Sales Service Manager rang to say although the shop's master technician also heard the vibration while he sat in the back and another technician drove the car he decided to put forward a theory that it was likely to be worn bearings in the mechanism or an internal component that was not running correctly !!!! I refrained from stating the obvious that he doesn't have X Ray vision does He so doesn't know what has failed. This vibration is something I experience on every road service and it never stops. The master technician said it occurred on really poor road services only, more waffle. This of course was to forewarn the Lexus Warranty Underwriters who were contacted today about a warranty claim which was declined out of hand. I've had 4 Lexus cars with electric window blinds and never once had an issue with vibrations emanating from the rather complex and very expensive looking motorised mechanism. I will be contacting the Warranty Dept later to challenge this decision as there is definitely something broken or detached inside this part. The part is an electric powered mechanically driven component and if mileage and age were the governing factors then both blinds should be suffering from worn this or broken that. Dealers just hate it when customers tell them what the issue is and it's like they believe they need to put this customer in his place. You all know what Up Selling is when a car is in for service etc and the dealer rings to try and sell other services but what chance does any customer have when the MOT proves to be a golden opportunity to tell a customer that there was an imbalance in the front brakes while on the rolling road, sufficient enough to say it needs new front discs and of course new pads. The front pads on my car were at at least 75% thick but of course I have no way to question the readings the rolling road gave out. What I know is the brakes worked normally and the car stops on a sixpence. But of course it's the MOT so you have no chance to challenge a Government backed MOT operator so you either accept their word and obtain a new MOT and hand over £950 for the privilege. LC500 and LS500 have identical 6 pot front brakes, they are huge.

The Topic is Winter Fuel Payment. Just remember all MP's receive £3,400 a year towards their fuel bills for their house or houses on top of their over inflated salary. So when the 10 million Pensioners who lose their paltry £300 allowance at least your MP will be nice and cosy. Definition of an MP's = Hogs with their snouts in the bottomless cash coffer.

In the decade I owned a total of 3 Bentley Cars the over riding opinion that I kept coming across of Bentley owners and enthusiasts on which car they would like to own if money was no object but specifically from the older models was without doubt the Bentley Continental R Le Mans edition of 2001. These cars still command sale values of £130.000 if and when they pop up. I owned the Bentley Arnage Le Mans model built in the same year of 2001 and yet these only command £25-30K on average but are still rare. This is a photo of my Arnage Le Mans taken at the Rolls and Bentley northern rally at Harewood House near Harrogate in 2010. Great days for sure but Lexus has proved to be the most reliable cars I've owned since.

Yes, front discs and pads straight forward, the bolts holding the caliper cradle can be very tight so a breaker bar and socket might be needed or a thick walled tube to give you leverage. Normally it's the rear calipers that might need the piston winding back in if the handbrake activation uses the rear pads to grip the disc. On some Lexus models Lexus also like to use a set of old fashioned brake shoes which are hidden behind and therefore inside the rear disc. Think of the disc's central hub as a mini brake drum. Maybe the IS just uses the existing pad set up to activate the handbrake and may need the piston winding back in but not the fronts which can normally be forced back using a lever. Make sure the brake fluid reservoir cap is loosened/ lifted off to allow for the level to rise as the brake pad pistons retract. The vent hole in the reservoir cap can act like a water pistol and the fluid forced out under pressure if not loosened which can damage paint work if it touches unprotected surfaces.