serbarry

Last year I bought a set of new tyres for my GS online for 2 reasons: they were a bit cheaper than buying them from the garage (even considering that I paid 23.50 euros per tyre to have them fitted), but the main reason was that online there was plenty of choice and I could pick the brand/type I wanted, while buying from the garages they were offering either premium tyres at exaggerated prices or unknown brands, not for a cheap price, and they said they were good tyres. After all every tyres garage needs to sell what they have and they will never tell you that its tyres are bad. Anyway I found the purchase online quite easy and convenient as the tyres were delivered to the garage which after fitted them on my car, so I did not have to carry them there.

I thought the warranty terms were the same across Europe.

Maybe it is different between Italy and UK and between Toyota and Lexus, because In Italy the warranty of Toyota covers the battery for the first 5 years, from the 6th to the 10th year the battery is still covered through the hybrid health check every year, but from the 11th to the 15th year the warranty covers the other hybrid components but not anymore the battery.

I am not sure but I think that the hybrid battery is covered up to 10 years with the yearly hybrid check and from the 11th to the 15th year other components are covered such as inverter, MG1 and MG2 but not the hybrid battery.

I think the reason for the siren is maybe due to the fact that in some models (1st series Auris, CT and Prius, except the last one) the gear lever is smaller than other models and does not keep the position selected (when you put in reverse or in D, the lever goes back to the middle position even though it is in reverse or D). In all other hybrid models the lever is bigger and holds the position (in my GS the lever stays in R or D and does not go back to the middle position), and maybe this is the reason why these models do not have the reverse siren.

I have had Nexen N Fera SU4 both on my GS and my wife's Hyundai (at the rear) for nearly one year now and I have not had any issues at all even driving in the rain on the motorway to Dublin. They are labelled A on the wet and B on consumption and I don't think they are as bad as you say, and moreover the difference with the Premium brands was not only £10 as Linas suggested but a lot more. Next week I am going to fit on the Hyundai of my wife (at the front), the Kumho Ecsta HS52 bought online which came 3rd on the tests made by the Swiss TCS. https://www.tcs.ch/fr/tests-conseils/tests/pneus/pneus-ete.php

I don't use runflat tyres but next week I am going to fit on the Hyundai of my wife, the Kumho Ecsta HS52 bought online which came 3rd on the tests made by the Swiss TCS https://www.tcs.ch/fr/tests-conseils/tests/pneus/pneus-ete.php

I was just curious as one type of Falken has also been tested by the Swiss TCS. Yes all tyres are quite expensive now but maybe your LS like my GS needs a big size?

What type of Falken?

Hi Malc, did you eventually put Kumho? I am considering Kumho Ecsta HS52 for my wife's car as they came 3rd behind Continental and Michelin in the test of the Swiss TCS.

Hi Malc, did you eventually put Kumho? I am considering Kumho Ecsta HS52 for my wife's car as they came 3rd behind Continental and Michelin in the test of the Swiss TCS.

Mine also passed the Irish NCT (MOT) with no advisories last October and in December I had to replace rear discs and pads which had been still fine at the last service in March 2023. And from March till December 2023 I only did 4,000 kms.

Hi Jason, I have a 2008 GS450H that I bought from a private seller 2 years ago. My suggestion is to check the shock absorbers, the exhaust system and the discs and pads. I had to fix all these in mine last year and only the exhaust was repaired and partially replaced by a specialized garage. The rest was done by the local Lexus dealer for a lot of money. I know I could have probably saved a lot of money by searching for spare parts on my own, but due to lack of knowledge and for peace of mind I preferred to go to Lexus.

May I suggest to those owners having only one key (but also to the other owners having 2 keys) to attach to the key ring a label with your mobile number written on it? One of those labels that you can buy in an ironmonger shop or a shoes repair shop for a few cents. At least there is one chance that someone who finds your key may call you.

Yes it is usually fair if a friend lends you his car for some time. I think that the only Lexus dealer in Co. Cork which operates in a status of monopoly and charges its customers a lot of money even for the silliest work, should not ask its customers to fuel the loan cars. And if they do, they should not give a loan car with the low fuel light on. I would accept if they had told me to return the car with the same fuel level (even though if I were the dealer I would not ask the customer to do so), but honestly for me it is unacceptable to receive a loan car with the low fuel light on.

I personally would not swap a 3 year-old car with a same but newer one. It would make sense to me to replace it with a different model though (NX?) especially if it is less vulnerable to theft. In general I would prefer to settle the payment as soon as possible and this is why I tend to keep a car for a long time rather than replacing it with a newer model after 3-4 years and keep paying it.

Last week I was given a loan car from the local Lexus dealer while they have my car and I had to put petrol in the loan car at my expenses as the warning light for low petrol was steady on. I don't think they will refund me when I return the car but I will keep you updated.

Are you looking for someone better than the local Lexus dealer in Dublin?

When I bought my GS, it had the Kumho Ecsta put by the previous owner. They were good, not noisy and never had any problems in nearly 2 years (from December 2021 until last 3rd October when I replaced them). I must say that my mileage is very low: about 4,000 - 5,000 Kms per year and very relaxed driving only commuting to work 5 days a week, 20 Kms per day. The reason why I chose Nexen is because they were cheaper than Kumho though being labelled A for grip on wet and B for fuel consumption and a friend of mine had tried them already and was positively impressed and I read many good reviews online.

I have just replaced Kumho with Nexen in my GS. They were good but I decided to try Nexen.

I have Nexen N Fera SU4 and I find them a good balance between quality and price if you are looking for moderate price.

I don't know Vector but for sure I would not pay for overpriced Michelin.

The website I used, tirendo.ie, also has a list of fitting garages with affordable prices for fitting. Unfortunately the list is not updated and I have personally informed the website that most of their partner fitting garages simply refuse to fit the tyres ordered from tirendo.ie and the few ones which fit the tyres charge a fee which is at least double or even triple of what advertised on tirendo.ie.

For me the liability of the garage in case of crash is just an excuse: it's actually the opposite: they can't be responsible for the tyres exactly because they didn't provide them but they only fitted them. If there's a crash is the only responsibility of the customer who ordered them online. How can a garage be liable for something he didn't sell? The truth for me is that by refusing to fit the tyres ordered online they try to discourage people from buying online hoping to sell them their tyres. Obviously most of the profit for a tyres garage comes from selling the tyres and only fitting them is a minimum profit.

I suppose that if you bring the tyres ordered online any garage would charge you for fitting them. What I find ridiculous is that the price for fitting varies according to the size of the tyre for some garages. As for Nexen 111.36 euros per tyre does not seem to me a premium price given the size. For same label on wet and fuel consumption all other brands I checked were between 130 and 180 euros and were mostly famous brands.