SH20

I thought the SOS function was based on the GPS software and is available throughout the warranty period

Very useful extra on any car. I will find out tomorrow when I pick up my Premium Edition if it has auto high beam, not sure it does as I thought it only exists on the triple LED lamps.

Talk to some of the national auto windscreen companies like Autoglass etc. They have equipment that will machine polish out scratches using special glass polishing compounds but is only successful with machine polishing equipment. You will have seen those Youtube videos where they show the full restoration of plastic headlamp lenses from very dull to crystal clear. It's the same process for actual glass surfaces but needs a level of experience to remove fine scratches in glass. Headlamp lenses are restored by various grades of sanding paper discs from 80 to 1500 and glass requires various grades of pastes for the same results.

Looks great Neil and the place you had the ceramic coating done looks positively surgical, very clean. Although I did a coating on my first ES on black paint which looked like a mirror initially, over 2 years on when I traded it in for my second ES I could see some fine swirls etc despite meticulous cleaning. Likely to consider some G Tech CSL for my bumpers rather than the whole car this time. I find it easier to look after paint by machine polishing and waxing. The lighter the colour the better and the likes of silver and white will give a swirl free impression for a long time but dark colours which are more reflective can still suffer no matter how careful the cleaning is. Pick my ES up tomorrow and from e mail exchanges with the dealer they have agreed so far to follow my requests for no machine polishing, no wet vac procedures on carpets, leave the protection film on the treadplates. In other words do as little as possible to wreck the finish or mark the interior. We'll see tomorrow.

Finally only 7 days away. Ordered 26.10.21, collection 7.1.22 I'm beginning to think my order might have been someone else's cancelled order given the number of comments about members delivery dates being pushed back more than once. I worked out that this new Premium Edition has 8 features less than my first ES that had a Premium Pack fitted to it. But as my choice was driven by keeping the order below £40K it can't be helped. (Real leather, wood/leather steering wheel, wood veneer trim, driver seat extension, ventilated seats, seat memory, rear blinds and triple LED headlights). The dealer has agreed not to machine polish my car on pain of death. The PCP is £208.30p a month for 29 months and a final purchase balloon payment if I want to buy it of £19,400. I have set up a service plan for £31 a month. Given that we all want our cars serviced regularly, this Lexus Relax scheme that Lexus have introduced is a no brainer giving up to 7 extra years of warranty by virtue of having regular servicing without the need to buy extended warranties. Will they ever have need to promote even 2 for 1 extended warranties again.

Got a service plan set up over the phone in 10 mins from the nearest dealership to me, 20 miles away. Would have ordered from them but they were £3,200 less on trade in than the dealer I did order from, 55 miles away. £31 a month for 36 months even though my lease is only 30 months long. This ES might be a keeper or not. Chose not to have an MOT aspect to the service plan in case I do trade it in after 30 months.

I want a quote for a service plan to cover 3 years on a 30 month lease. My car has arrived at the dealer but if it wasn't for Lexus UK Ltd telling me in their own e mail I wouldn't know as the dealer hasn't even bothered to contact me !! Unbelievable. What chance they will organise a service plan quote.

You detailer is right Neil, if he doesn't correct the swirls and holograms in the lacquer the dealer leaves behind he would lock in those defects by virtue of the ceramic coating. The top coat has to be flawless before the CC is applied so he already knows he will not have a virgin paint surface, it will be loaded with polish the dealer has used with their rotary mop head which all has to be removed with a degreaser. I put some Crystal Serum Light by Gtech on my first ES after sorting out the top coat. Really nice product but there are lots of high quality coatings some, unfortunately can be in the hands of rank amateurs'. Now if professional detailers prepared cars we would have nothing to worry about but dealers would have to pass on the cost on. What is really worrying to people who want their paint perfect is that we have all been asked if we want paint protection on our new car by the dealer as an up sell service !!!! Imagine paying to have defects they caused sealed in with a ceramic coating.

I was thinking asking the dealer to leave the tape on the roof, bonnet, boot lid etc to avoid the dealer putting it through their dealer prep area. Reason: My first new ES's paint surface was demolished by idiot car washers who couldn't care less how they present a car. Just because the car is new doesn't mean that they didn't wreck the lacquer top coat with reckless washing and rubbing the surface with filthy dirt ladened cloths which created numerous swirls and fine scratches and as it was solid black paint you can imagine what it was like. I spent 7 days machining polishing and doing a mild cut on the top coat to get it right. Although my new ES is Messa Red the same concerns cross my mind. However the dealer won't take any responsibility if the tape is left on for the owner to remove in case there is a fault under the tape in the paint. I know, I asked, so the risk would be mine. I have been detailing cars for a while now and have rectified paint defects on new cars for family and friends more times than I wanted to. The main problem that goes on with dealers is the cleaners use a Rotary mop to machine polish the paintwork because it's very quick/fast and gives a quick shine but due to their total lack of knowledge of the heat generated in a Rotary mop they cause all sorts of defects and holograms in the lacquer coat. I wouldn't pay new car prep staff in flat washers. Minimum wage staff give minimum care results. Taking cars back to dealers for paint correction issues would be like asking a burglar to come back and rob your house again by your invitation. I fully expect to have to machine polish my new car when I get it home.

Hmmm, same exterior colour as mine, what colour interior did you pick?

I owned a GS450h 2 years ago and was disappointed to discovery Lexus didn't do mud flaps for the GS yet did offer them for the IS, LS460, CT, NX, RX. There must be a reason why popular models like the GS and ES don't get the chance to fit them as Lexus accessories. The ES mudflaps I bought from China for the ES were designed to follow the contours of the front wings and rear bumper exactly. No gaps and the factory blanking plastic plugs in the front wing liners and rear bumper wing liners lined up exactly with the mudflaps. Hard to believe they cost £25 incl delivery from China. I was a bit unsure when I ordered them but the ebay advert showed a picture of an ES with them fitted so I took a chance and they turned out as if Lexus themselves made them. Currently there is an advert with the main picture of a GS300h for model years 2014 to 2017 which implies the flaps are model specific and the price of £50 might suggest they are for the GS but the other close up photos in the advert show different cars rather than just the GS so there is a risk they are a generic flap. The ES flaps I bought however will fit only the ES.

My ES Premium Edition is on it's way to the dealer from Portbury and will be registered in January. Extras for the premium edition only run to metallic paint, plus 2 options, a protection pack and illuminated sill scuff plates and then 3 accessories, a rear bumper trim, cargo net and wind deflectors. Not a lot of choice really. I've asked my dealer to order me a rear bumper protection trim at £170 and I will transfer the boot liner and front winter rubber mats which were in my last ES. I have front and rear mud flaps from my last ES although they were an EBay purchase from China but were clearly designed to fit the latest ES, no modifications needed at all unlike some generic mud flaps that are often listed as universal fit. Oddly Lexus themselves don't list mud flaps as an option/accessory yet.

It looks a fine version of the XE but can you believe I went from the 5.0 litre LS460 SE-L to a Jaguar XE R Type AWD 2.0 litre diesel. Like you say the interior was poor and so not like the XK and XJ I once owned. Got rid the XE after 6 weeks because of the interior which sqeeked and rattled non stop. I then bought my first Lexus hybrid, a GS450h which was so nice which led to my first ES300h in 2019. Had Jaguar launched the XE with the current interior of the latest XE model range I probably might have kept it. Jaguar realised very quickly the original XE interior was just bad and then created the much improved interior we see today. Although it never let me down apart from 2 warranty issues the XE only ever really looked a great car but ownership was something else. I just wished looking back that I had bought a 2008 Lexus LS600hl with the relaxation pack but because of unfounded concerns about hybrid batteries I bottled out and went for the LS460 the best car I ever owned.

The point I was wanting to make was the Jag XE is their lowest entry car at £30K, I agree an XF is more of a comparison size wise but they start at £34K as a base line model. So the Takumi ES equipment level is very high but a Jag XF would need to have all of the following XF options to get any where near to matching a Takumi ES. Met Paint, privacy glass, auto high beam headlights, headlamp wash, sun roof, 16 way adjustable heated and ventilated seats, wood veneer, heated and electrically adjustable steering wheel, windscreen heads up display, upgrade to sound system, blind spot assist, adaptive cruise control, rear traffic/collision monitor, rear window blind, keyless entry, boot lid spoiler, wi fi phone charger, additional rear power and charging sockets, 360 degree camera, carpet mats, rear side window blinds. Jaguar would say you can have a XF for £34K but if you want a decent set of extras then give us £45K please. Therefore the point about options on other makes being like telephone directories is just what it is, a money making machine if a XF was to be compared to the £49,455 Takumi. Only options on a Takumi ES are protection pack, metallic paint, illuminated door tread plates and digital mirrors (Mirrors are £1600) making the absolute final cost £52,423. If you exclude the ES options then a Takumi is £49,455, some £4,455 more than a XF Jaguar with all the options listed. Given the ES is a hybrid with Lexus's bullet proof reliability, build quality and significantly better fuel economy I know I would only ever buy a Lexus having had 4 pre owned Jaguars, one of which was a XE, AWD model which I got rid of after 6 weeks. The interior build quality was appalling on close examination and all 4 Jaguars had at least 2 warranty claims each. (X Type, XK, XJ and XE) Warranty claims on a Lexus? unheard of I would say. I would just pay the extra for a Takumi ES and have trouble free no hassle motoring with all of the electric driving benefits. My new ES Premium Edition which I am expecting in January will not disappoint, I just know it won't if my last ES is anything to go by.

You only have to look on the Lexus website online car configurator to see just how much equipment the Takumi ES is fitted with. Very impressive specification. Unlike BMW, Audi, Mercedes, Jaguar etc whose option lists look like telephone directories. E.G An entry level Jaguar XE starts at £30K with basic equipment. If you wanted roughly the same spec in the Jaguar as a Takumi ES it would cost you nearly £45K. Enough said I think.

Rear bumper trim is £170.60p on it's own so looks like a protection pack should include the trim, boot liner and mats if it's £399.00

The protection pack is something I had supplied by the dealer in 2019 with my first ES and I have retained items from that for my new car, the boot floor liner and the front winter rubber mats both of which came with a rear bumper stainless steel strip. The cost to the dealer was unknown to me but in 2019 it was a £400 accessory. I had to leave the bumper trim in place as it's held on by double sided tape and the risk of distorting it if I removed it was too high so I left it on. Interesting to see in the online Lexus configurator the protection pack is quoted at £399 but only shows one picture of the rear bumper trim. Not sure why they don't show the boot liner and front rubber mats unless they are now saying the protection pack is only the bumper trim making it very expensive if all you get is the stainless steel trim piece. You can buy a boot liner and front winter mats from any Lexus parts dept but the mats alone are £400 and the boot liner is around £150, that's why when my dealer supplied the original protection pack I was very lucky to get all of the items. I might still buy a bumper trim piece but will check out the price first. If the dealer says still £399 on it's own then I will do without.

F.A has made things easy for you by posting the link to a thread about space savers. The UK didn't qualify for a space saver unlike other markets like the US who get everything. Inflation kits normally mean a new tyre when you go to have the puncture repaired as few tyre outlets like getting involved in cleaning out the goo the inflation kit pumps in when you use it. You would have to buy a space saver from another Lexus model that does have them as standard or buy a used one on E Bay as I did. Temporary puncture kits are something people use as a temporary fix before having a proper vulcanised repair done.

The app or as I call it "My Lexus" requires you to sign in on the Lexus UK website assuming you created the a/c first and should then show two things after signing in, 1. Owned cars and Orders. If you click orders the next screen shows your ES in the colour you chose and a status which in my case shows Left the Factory and also it's location which is Toyota City. Aichi Prefecture Japan. A Track my Order link shows the history of the build and it's current status.

Jarinder, the front winter mats are exceptional in design and quality. You only have to look at the them to appreciate the fact that the injection moulding machine that must have been made just to produce these mats is very elaborate and therefore it's why Lexus want £400 for a front set alone.

Jan 2022 due. Told by my dealer car built and left the Toyota City factory. Was told March/April next year but it would appear I should get it January sometime. Ordered 26.10.21

Definitely for Insurance cover, no charge for the car itself. Be aware though that the insurance premium may still hold you liable for the excess should you damage the car or even if a third party car collides with you. Warranty claims are different however as the loan car is covered by the dealer incl insurance.

Fair point Paul, Lexus Leeds are part of a big motor group called Vantage, I lived in Leeds for 40 years and they have been trading all that time but who knows what might happen in business. I'll take a chance and leave the money with them and if the car does turn up in January as they suggest, it's already left the factory, then I will just be able to collect it with all the PCP paperwork completed already. We have a bit of faith in the Vantage group as we bought a Yaris hybrid back in March 2021 and they were very professional in all the necessary ordering etc. Fingers crossed they can survive till after I get the car.

It must be about getting their hands on good quality used stock. Sticking with Lexus dealers only take a look at what the national picture is across all models of used Lexus cars. The stock levels are very low across 46 UK dealers, UX, 230 cars incl all electric models, ES, 78 cars, LS, 8 cars, GS, 24 cars, IS, 95 cars and so on. These are not high numbers when you compare what BMW, Mercedes and Audi dealers are carrying nationally. You should have a chat with your dealer Brent out of curiosity if nothing else just to see how generous they might be.

Hi Vince, I have the same items waiting to go in to my new ES but I'm sure you will get someone interested as the mats cost a small fortune at around £399 retail and the boot liner is at least £140 retail. The front winter mats are really good as you know because of their design and they fit like a glove.