Mike246

Steve, Good for you finding that adaptor. I hope it's just the job. Talex. It's a little unit on top of the dash and looks like a radar detector. It has a GPS built-in and shows digitally actual speed. It has mapping of road speed limits and camera locations so it bleeps if you exceeding the limit or about to get caught. It seems they have gone out of business so the maps are not up-to-date but does help keep me in check. You will have noticed, I've put up a post inviting any members who have taken delivery of their ES to share their impressions. No takers yet.

Habu & SH20, Hi. I picked up about your need for a 90 degree USB so that the compartment cover closes. It's not like Lexus to fall over on something as simple as this. No doubt they will come up with a specially moulded lead for the ES which will be competitively priced against their £300 boot liner. The usual thing with these conflict issues is to use the standard lead with an angled adaptor. I don't know the orientation required but as an example, CPC do two USB A male/B female 90 degree adaptors - CS26194 (up) and CS26195 (down). They also do a range of USB/USB leads with angular connectors at one end but not for an iPhone. My issue when my ES comes through will be connecting my dashcam and Talex to a 12-volt ignition-switched supply. I don't think they put cigar lighter sockets in cars any more!

Having read some irritating posts from other(s) who have not driven the '19 ES, let alone owned one, it may be time for a new thread. Has any member taken delivery of this model and would like to share their first impressions and experiences?

anonymous . . . the grille is about the size of a small block of flats! Gone are the days when a Lexus pales into obscurity. You can see it coming from half a mile! Yes, it was a good review.

I have a weird question for those fortunate to have taken delivery of their ES. Is there a control to disable the automated selection between electric and petrol power? For example, to maintain a journey on petrol only.

Doctor, Yes, Lexus work in mysterious ways. I've sat in a US showroom model and it is configured differently to our UK spec as well as being built in Kentucky. As you say, the US versions include Apple Carplay as well as a non-hybrid V6 302 hp engine and a very tasty opening panorama roof.

Hi Nerdboy, No manuals with a £40,000+ car? I'm horrified. There must be 500 or so switches and settings in this car as it has more technology than the early Apollo missions. I think I would want a manual to explain to me how it all is to be set-up. I see that you have got the F-Sport - did you specify the Takumi pack with this?

The responses on this post are interesting, notably the detailed one from Steve, SH20. Steve - I assume that you are buying from Lexus Leeds. I bought a car from them, an IS-250C which I still own. They are such nice people to deal with. We all want to get the best deal that we can and you have to get up very early in the morning to beat Lexus UK and the finance companies at their game. The only way of getting a great deal is to be a cash buyer and negotiate the best discount or part-exchange deal you can. There are many Lexus dealers out there and they are hungry for your business. Alas, most of us are not in that position. There are lease, PCP and HP deals which are tempting. The problem with lease is that it does not buy equity in the car however if it is a company acquisition, the tax benefit will look attractive. The PCP deal for the ES on offer has some merit - £ 2,000 contribution from Lexus, an APR of 5.9% and flexible annual mileage/contract term options. The opportunity to negotiate still remains, in terms of a px price, dealer discount and service plan - remember the dealer earns on both sale of the car and a kickback from the finance company. I've never done a PCP before but this time I have. The PCP deposit is limited to 35% of the price of the car (including extras and statutory charges) so there may be an excess payment returned to the buyer which is nice and serves to give a ' holiday' on the first few instalments. What is key to this is to obtain quotes from more than one Lexus dealer, based on the same spec, part-exchange, mileage and term. I went to three and the difference between the least and most attractive quotes is a massive £104 per month over three and a half years with minor differences in the eventual and optional cost to purchase.

Steve, Er yes, I found out about this stealth tax a bit late on and can't say I'm happy about it. Put simply, it adds £ 25 per month to the repayments.

Looking at the detail of what you have written, it is all accurate. In my opinion the smaller satnav screen really spoils the ship, especially on the F-Sport so I am going for the F-Spot Takumi pack which gives some other goodies. The price of £ 4,000 is eye-watering but spread over a PCP it appears less painful. So far as discount is concerned, the only way to 'get one over' on the dealer is to negotiate an outright purchase price (ie no px and no PCP) and get them to commute this to a PCP illustration. They should do this happily as they get a kickback from the finance company but this does not maximise their position. I have not done this. What I have done is to get three dealers to provide PCP illustrations using their trade-in values for my present car and taken the best of these to move forward.

Thank you all for your responses and Steve, for your candour. I would also be looking for 8000 miles/year and 42-month term on a variant which has leather, sunroof and the larger screen. Inevitably there will be variations between dealers' offerings and as you say, you have to be on top of your game to get the best out of them. I am wise but after the event - more on that to follow. They will have to offer a good discount against a cash purchase but be unwilling to do so on a PCP where the monthly payment becomes the headline figure. So far as I know, this is illegal so the first thing they ask is 'How are you going to fund this?' The idea of a service plan thrown-in is good and can become the deal-breaker.

I've now decided that I am serious about doing a part-ex for a new ES. I've never done a PCP before but it's tempting and the focus is on an F-Sport with the Takumi pack. Lexus have not been too clever with their bundling of the options - as an example I don't particularly want 19-inch wheels, hard suspension or a ponced-up sound system but I don't want a satnav screen which is a fair bit smaller than I have in my GS250. I've spoken with 2 dealers (1 by visiting) and it seems that whatever enticements they offer are funded by a low part-ex valuation. No surprise here. Does anyone have a few words of wisdom to put me on the right track?

Can't go public on that at the moment but will do if I sign-up and do a deal. It seems that each dealer has an ES allocation. In addition to a showroom model and one on the road they will have a small number (maybe 3) which will be delivered to customer specification.

I've had a quote from one dealer to give my 19,000 mile GS250 F-Sport as deposit on a PCP deal for an ES300h F-Sport. Given all factors including a hungry market, there is room for improvement. I plan to take the car to another dealer this week for appraisal on the same deal.

Vinny, Envy is a sin (Proverbs 14:30) but right now I'm guilty. Your car looks super and as with the Lexus I've owned to date, is unlikely to let you down. I wish you much enjoyment with it. All I need to do now is convince the missus - and the bank manager.

An interesting point to note (and I must honestly confess that I have just noticed) that the UK version is hybrid only. The US versions are both petrol and hybrid. The former is a 3.5 V6 with 302 bhp and the latter is a 2.5 in-line with 215 bhp.

Business Car magazine out today front page: 'LEXUS ES - WE DRIVE THE NEW HYBRID RIVAL TO THE BMW 5 SERIES' That settles it. They are in the same market. I'll let you know what they say when I've read it. That will be on Friday when I have a 200 mile train journey to Exeter. I'm blowed if I'm going to take my beloved GS300 out on a salty M5.

Having kicked-off this thread I have viewed the subsequent posts but felt unenthusiastic about contributing to this bunfight. A Lexus is just a Toyota in a smart suit but nothing wrong with that - I've had 5 of them including my 20-year old GS and they've never gone wrong. 'Almost 9 seconds to 60' Where does that come from? In the US they market the 350 (V6 which is 6.6 to 60) and the 300h (same 2.5 hybrid setup as ours) which is quoted in their brochure as 8.1 to 60. The 2.5 non-hybrid without the weight of the battery and electric motor should come in nearer 7.5 to 60.

Dippo, I find myself agreeing with some of what you have written. Certainly if you wanted a 24-hour test-drive you could have taken yourself off to another dealership - certainly Guildford, Edgware Road and Hatfield are very obliging as I have always found. I first saw the 2019 ES in a Florida showroom. Our build and options are not quite the same in the US - their base model has leather as standard. The earlier ES is far more commonplace in Florida and competes with upper-middle domestic models such as the Mazda 6 but is in a different league to our Mondeo. Rear legroom and boot space are less than the outgoing GS (I have a Series 4 GS250). The spindle grill is a bit 'in your face' across the models but maybe we'll all get used to it. Certainly the standard 8" screen is underwhelming for an upmarket Lexus and in the US one must take the Navigation Package which is an option across their range of 3 models to get the 12.3". You say that Lexus plan to sell 700 in the first year. This is 14 per week across the dealerships. I cannot believe that they would go to the expense of launch, marketing and approvals for such a meagre number. At the end of the day their sales will be reflected by the post-discount selling price and the PCP repayments. I have never done a PCP but the repayments are certainly lower for cars that are predicted to have a good 3-year residual value.

Auto Express, out today, did a one-page write up on the new ES and gave it a guarded OK with three and a half stars out of five. I'm surprised and no doubt those at Lexus GB were hoping for better. I haven't driven one but have drooled over the showroom model at my local dealership. I have no doubt that the ES will be a hit in the UK, albeit in limited numbers. Lexus are a victim of their own success - many GS owners will think twice about chopping their car in when they know it will be good for another 10+ years. On the upside I reckon that a number of BMW/Merc/Jaguar owners will be drawn to the ES, if only on looks alone.

I want it, full stop. I saw one in the US at Lexus Palm Beach in Florida just before Christmas. My local dealerships at Hatfield and Edgware Road have each got showroom models in together with a demonstrator. The PCP pricing will be very beckoning at just 5% or so with maybe £ 400 per month based on three and a half years and 8,000 miles per annum. So tempting. The good thing with PCP on a Lexus is that the residual value will be high and that keeps the payments down. I've never done a PCP but am thinking seriously. What a fabulous looking car.

Mine is a 1998 Mk 2 GS300. The dipped headlight lamps and fog lamps seem somewhat dim and I am out to replace the bulbs. If I have it right, they are HB4 fittings. Does anyone have a recommendation what make of bulbs to get and/or a suitable supplier?

Donmar, I can tell you exactly what the problem is. In fact I would put a tenner on it and give odds. The issue is your Oil Control Valve (OCV) which is located at the top of the engine and at the front. The mesh filter gets clogged and the solenoid valve sticks, giving incorrect camshaft timing. The valve is straightforward to remove (although I got my mechanic to do mine) and clean. Ideally this should be replaced but a clean-up will prove me right. Those of us with '98 GS300's must pull together to keep them running! Even by Lexus standards this model is a gem.

My '98 GS300 with 185k miles has developed an intermittent rough idle. I called out Lexus Assist (aka The AA) who said that there are no fault codes in the log and the issue is fuel intake rather than ignition. No warning lights, clouds of smoke or other symptoms. My Lexus dealer has implied that they would fit a new injection unit at a cost of £ 1,650 ex VAT and fitting. I said that I would get back to them on that! Has anyone experienced similar and can suggest a fix? Alternatively can anyone recommend an independent garage who are clued-up on this system - I am located in Herts/ London border.

So, let's see if I have this right . . . . I need to buy the Nicna interface (juicestop's Amazon link above) and download the updated software (from the other link) and hopefully it will work with my Windows 8 laptop. Is this right? Is the interface on an IS in the cabin or under the bonnet? Any chance of it working with a '98 GS300 or a '14 GS250?