kns

Just to pick up on a point Simon mentioned in the IS section that he had on his GS. For anyone who has this problem I too had the squeak and the dealer I use Lexus Twickenham (who whilst not the most local for me are very good at problem solving), replaced the windscreen scuttle plate which is actually under the bonnet. The sound went away but a year later has now just started to come back. The technician explained that the clips that hold the part in place work loose producing the noise. As for the re-occurrence I agreed with the Technician that we would wait until it gets worse, and then they will replace and/or pad the clips at my convenience. Regards Keith

To awnser your questions, the pre-facelift GS450h SE-L (06 to beginning of 08) had all the items you mention apart from the wooden wheel. That item was part of the 'wood pack' which meant the wheel and gear selector - an option I specified when I bought my car. The post facelift deleted the wood pack option altogether, its now only available on the GS460, and the ACC and Sunroof became part of an option pack. Adaptive Cruise has always been an important feature for me, great if your a lazy driver!!!!!!! Regards Keith

I have had a GS450h for two years since October 06, but I doubt they have changed the feature, or that it would differ with an RX. The climate control voice functions are fairly limited. You can set the temp, e.g "climate control temprature 21 degrees" or switch the A/C on or off "automatic air conditioning on/off". I think there may also be a command to set temp to low or high. In any case when the vehicle is stationary press the voice activation button and say "help" that will bring up on the screen a full list of functions grouped into categories such as NAV DESTINATION PHONE etc etc and then you can scroll down the screen to list all the functions. I have had voice activation since 1999 on a Jaguar S-Type and subsequent Jaguar models, and compared with the functionality on those the Lexus system is fairly limited. For example the Jaguar would allow you to dail a phone number, attach name tags to preset radio stations, and select a particular disc or track from the CD changer. One tip regarding the Lexus system, its quite sensative to picking up certain commands correctly seemingly a common issue amongst all makes of car with this feature, with the Lexus it has trouble with the command "map", I find its best to say the words in a soft voice. Regards Keith

Colin, Its incredible how little dealers know, I was demonstrating to a salesman the voice activation feature when I first tried the car - he didnt even know the feature existed! I know it can't be easy keeping up to date on all the features of the cars in a range, but saying its been discontinued rather than - I am not sure and will check - is ridiculous. I would look in the handbook, details of the feature are in the navigation book, if its mentioned there then it should be on the car, I also think its a useful feature and can't beleive (even for cost cutting reasons) they would drop it. Also I was in a brand new IS recently and that had the feature. Regards Keith

I have a Lexus GS450h and after a poor experience with Vauxhall over the course of a year I switched to Volvo for the first time for our second car. In April I took delivery of a C30 (2.4 SE Lux Auto Brilliant Blue Calcite Cream Interior) which was one of the last of that engine with autos left in the country - that engine size now being dropped, and my impressions so far:- Positives - Great Looking car inside and out it always seems to attract a lot attention, perhaps becouse there are not many on the roads - Ease of use of controls with impressive dash design - Smooth sounding engine for a car of this size. Although given that its got a relatively large engine I surpose that should be expexted. - I had the i-pod connectivity module fitted, and it offers far better functionality than the Lexus system. Negatives - Poor ride - Poor economy and rather sluggish throttle response - In dry weather a few body and trim creaks - The quality of the paint finish whilst has a generally good appearance, when looked at in detail doesnt have the quality of the Lexus (not withstanding the problems of non-metallic black that I have on my GS). To sum up I would say the C30 sits somewhere in the middle between mass production cars such as the Ford Focus (a car on whose platform the C30 is based) and something like a Audi A3. And so if representitive of the brand, whilst I cant speak of the S80 I would say Volvo is a range like for example Honda which doesnt have quite the premium brand quality of BMW Audi Jaguar Lexus etc. I hope I'm not ruffling any feathers, and perhaps this is a post for a Volvo owners site, as overall I am very pleased with the C30, and this is off course just a personnal view based on six months of Volvo ownership. I have no doubt the S80 could suit someones requirements better than that of a Lexus, and I thought I would just post this to add a view to phil's experience of Lexus and Volvo. Regards Keith

I recently switched to a Samsung Tocco. The phone paired up without problem to my Lexus GS450h (which uses the same Bluetooth 2 system as the IS), showing signal and battery strength. Although I havent tried to transfer the phone directory as when I paired the phone it automaticaly matched it to the phone directory already in the car. I would mention the phones bluetooth functionality was a little tricky to get to work, particularly with the the Parrot kit installed in my other car, but that is off course something you only need to do once. I was told the Samsung Omnia should work, although I had that phone for just a couple of hours and gave up. The touch screen seemed too complex and temperamental, particularly compaired to the admittedly simpler and lower specification Tocco. Regards Keith

Doh - sorry thought you meant the RX - misread this. I bet the GS450 is a right beast but.... It'd give ok mpg pootling around town but don't expect mid 30s mpg if you floored it for the 0-60 in 5 secs mullarky. You'd probably get about 10 mpg ! I bet it's blooming quick tho ! I have had my GS450h for 21 months, and as I have said in other posts before its used very infrequently. I have only covered some 3.500 miles!! The rest of the time it sits in my garage gathering dust!! In terms of economy over a complete tank I will average about 28 mpg, whilst purely used in London traffic it can drop down to about 18 mpg (in very heavy traffic the traction batteries have no way to re-charge apart from using the petrol engine, so once they have run down which will happen in about a mile the car turns into a traditional 3.5 litre V6 petrol car with economy to match). On a long run mid 30s mpg are achievable. The key to achieving some of these claimed good mpg figures is to build up to cruising speed using the petrol engine, release the throttle then gently re-apply throttle which will allow the electric motor to run the car without the petrol engine. Gentle braking allows the batteries to re-charge, and it’s quite possible with care to cruise on light throttle at 30 or 40 mph on electric alone - great for economy figures. The performance as others have mentioned, is, excellent. I have had the opportunity to try cars such as Jaguars supercharged XKR and XJR as well as briefly a Porsche 911 and the Lexus seems equally as quick. Probably the most impressive aspect is n the mid range, where the performance is blisteringly quick but also all but silent. In fact thanks to the hybrid drive when on electric alone the car is absolutely silent, which for me was one of the reasons for buying the car. If you have not driven a hybrid car before that will be the most impressive feature when you start driving. If you go for an SE-L you will have more gadgets than you usually get on the IS, the most significant if you do a lot of motorway journeys, and a personal favourite is the Adaptive Cruise Control which allows the car to maintain a set distance from the car in front automatically slowing down or accelerating. Boot space is clearly an issue, and if that is a priority, you should look carefully and try loading the boot to see if it will meet your requirements. Incidentally when I bought my car I got the dealer to throw in as part of the deal a set of Samsonite luggage which Lexus offer as it fits to the boot of the Hybrid GS. Although to date I have never actually used them as my usual luggage if needed seems to fit if carefully arranged. Build quality is in line with Lexus usual standards, there is the odd creak, but it usually disappears when there is a passenger in the front seat - I'm not sure if its the seat or seat belt or maybe the front passenger door trim. But it certainly doesn't have the trim rattle issues that some comment on with the IS. One thing, although IMO it looks best in Black with Light beige interior - my chosen combination, in common with any car in this combination it’s a nightmare to keep clean. The black being a non-metallic is the worst colour for showing surface scratches and swirling marks, being that I am fussy I am forever having to polish out marks. Short of having the car machine polished every time it’s washed it’s impossible to avoid. On the upside I have picked up a few tiny chips/specks on the bonnet, and the black colour means, to date at least, they touch in invisibly, with only a couple of very tiny chips on the bumper being slightly visible after repair, which given there inevitably, even if like me you keep a large gap from the car in front (which is something the Adapative Cruise helps with), is a big bonus. The light coloured interior is also equally difficult to keep clean, and in the driver's footwell I use a cover over the carpet mat to help keep it clean. Although I should put these points against the background of someone who is almost fastidiously nuts, according to my wife, about car cleaning and general up keep!! The only other problem is sometimes difficulty in filling up the tank, with quite a few air lock problems causing the pump to continually shut off, so you never know when the tank is full or it’s just an air lock. Hope this is of some help. Regards Keith

James, If your car has Adaptive Front LIghts (AFS), you can switch this feature off (there should be a button marked 'AFS', a warning light will appear on the dashboard), this will mean the lights just point straight ahead This I discovered by phoning Lexus customer services. Regards Keith

When you hit the button, try saying 'HELP'. This should bring up details of commands on the central screen Regards Keith

Shortly after getting my GS450h, I had the use of a LS430 for a couple of weeks. My observations:- The LS430 is quieter and gives a softer ride compared to the GS450h - but I would mention that the LS430 is particularly refined, my previous car was a current model Jaguar XJ, so a rival to the LS' and the Lexus was certainly better in the ride and noise dept... Also the GS is aiming at a different market sector, which Lexus would argue is looking for a more sporting car, so refinement is less of a priority. However having said all of the above the GS range and particularly the hybrid is still very refined, equal to that of my previous Jaguar, and when running on electric motor it is all but silent. The other major observation was from the point of view of design, cabin layout, and equipment. Its clear the GS from all of these areas represents the current Lexus thinking, and as such all looks feels and works in an up to date way, whereas the LS' feels more previous generation - without meaning to offend any LS430 owners :shutit: - it seems as though some of the new features were added on wherever possible, but not nesecarily in the most ergonomic position, for example the phone and voice activation buttons were hidden behind other buttons on the steering wheel, and again without meaning to offend in some places felt a little 'Toyota' like compared to the GS which always feels like it was inteneded to be a new generation all 'Lexus' product, which I understaand was always something the designers were very keen to create with this there first of the new generation 'L-finesse - to use Lexus speak' of models. As I say, I hope I haven't upset any LS owners, after all its certianly a car which is probably as quiet and smooth as some of the best cars in the world. Regards Keith

Maureen, I have a Lexus GS450h, and use the car very infrequently in 19 month I have only covered 3,200 odd miles!!! As a result the car will be left locked in my garage for anything upto THREE MONTHS AND IT USUALY STARTS. The only time I have a problem is if last time its been used is just for a short journey. I had an Ipod connectivity module recently fitted, but haven't used it with the car off for any length of time, but I think the current draw would be neglagable. I know if I have been in the car listening to the Stereo without the car running I have not experienced the problems you have mentioned. One thing I would say is, leave the ignition turned off, in other words just press the start button once, that will turn on the Stereo but not all the other car's systems. It could be possible with all the car's systems left running for an extended period of time without the 12v batterey being topped up by the engine (i.e without the 'ready' on) could cause a problem. Appoligies in advance if I have confused the issue even more. Sometimes its impossible to explain with just the written word!! Regards Keith

I think the economy figures quoted on your LS seem excellent. In general from my GS450h I get low 30s mpg on a long run, and late teens possibly low 20s mpg in town, allbeit driving in London traffic.

With the keyless system you have to either lock the car with the remote or one of the buttons on the exteranl door handles. It will only auto lock if you unlock the car and then not open any of the doors. I had a similar problem once, and its worth bearing in mind the car shouldn't lock if the key is anywhere inside the car. Regards Keith

Looks very nice.... I notice you mention the Lexus i-Pod unit, is that the full conectivity kit? If so, I was considering having this fitted to my car, but was wondering what level of control it gives you. Is it access via play list and track only, and can you view the names of the tracks while the car is moving or does it blank the names of the tracks when the car is moving when you use the 'play list' function? Up until a couple fo weeks ago I didnt even own an I-pod, but I recently took delivery of a Volvo, which only had a single disc CD player, so I opted to have the dealer instal the Volvo connectivity kit and bought an I Pod Nano. On the Volvo it gives you access via 'artist, playlist, song' and some others besides so it would appear a lot more comprehensive than Lexus, but if I have it on one car would obviously make sense to have it on the Lexus as well. Thanks, regards Keith.

I have a Lexus GS 450h SE-L in Velvet Black which is the same as Astral Black. This colour is difficult to keep clean at the best of times. At time of delivery I had the car waxed with a polish product called Zymol, which if used regularly will maintain the original shine. I also had mud flaps fitted (as a rule I always have them fitted from delivery), and whilst I know its clearly a different car it does help to keep the lower doors and rear bumper clean.

I have found something similar to the 'pulse and glide technique'. That is accelerate upto about 30mph and then take foot off accelerator, and re-apply gently. This allows the car to run on electric motor alone upto around 40mph. You will also notice the car will be more willing to run on electric alone if you switch off the Air Conditioning, as this allows the second electric motor which runs the compressor to stay off for longer. However if you get caught in heavy traffic you will find it doesnt take long for the Traction Battery to run down, and then it reverts to being a large car running on a 3.5 litre V6 petrol engine - in other words THIRSTY, but as I have said previously on this site Lexus would be the first to claim this is meant to be a performance hybrid not an economy minded hybrid.

I have had GS 450h SE-L for a little over 18 month's. My previous car being a Jaguar XJ6 (aluminum body version). My reasons for switching:- Styling - I have always liked the shape of the new GS Usefully smaller than the Jaguar Less road tax and as I live in a London suburb, no London congestion charge Advanced technology - the hybrid drive takes the Prius concept and moves it on a lot, and comprehensively equipped The obvious disadvantage is as already mentioned the lack of boot space, although personally its not been an issue for me

I have a GS450h SE-L, which was bought new in October 2006. The phone can only be used when on the move to dial from the 'Speed Dial Directory', which gives you the choice of around 18 preset numbers. These numbers are initially selected from the phone book. When stationary or travelling very very slowly you have full access to the phone book, phone keypad, and off course all other functionality. In terms of voice activation, you can not voice dial a phone number, but can program a further, I believe approx 10-15 further numbers which you assign a name tag too. However it’s worth mentioning that several commands are required to dial a number - 1. Press voice activation button driver says 'dial by name' car responds 'dial by name, say name after beep' 2. press voice activation button wait for tone-driver says 'home' (for example) car responds 'phone dial home please say yes or no after the beep 3. Press voice activation button car says 'please say yes or no,, wait for beep-driver then responds 'yes' Also if you don’t wait for the tone and press button too early you will end up cancelling the whole operation!! :shutit: With reference to the Sat Nav whilst on the move:- 1. You have the option to select either by voice (at least only one command required) or screen five preset destinations, or your home address. 2. By voice and more limited extent on the screen you can ask the system to show you a category of POI on the map screen, and then select it as destination or way point. 3. You can re-route, and if the system detects congestion, providing there is an alternate route available it will tell you and give the option to re-route. I don’t use my car that often- as I have mentioned before only about 3,000 miles in 19 months so the limitations don’t bother me all that much. However I did some research same as you before buying, and realising the phone issues, I came up with a possible solution - get hold of one of the flexible arms that via a 'sucker' sticks to your windscreen to hold the mobile phone, and then any phone numbers can be dialled using the phone keypad, and the call will operate through the car as if dialled through the cars own system. Not exactly ideal but it is a legal solution. I have heard rumours there is a way to disable all the inhibit functions, but not certain. I maybe being cynical but IMO clearly Lexus/Toyota are worried about litigation most likely in the U.S (there biggest market) from drivers having an accident whilst dialling a number or entering a destination whilst driving. Also whilst on the subject a couple of other inhibited functions:- 1. The CD has the ability to display Disc Name and Track details for discs that have this feature, allowing you to select a track accordingly- this function won’t work on the move! 2. If you have Adaptive Cruise Control (I think a great feature), if the wipers go into high speed it disables the Adaptive function on the cruise control. Lexus will off course argue this is all for safety reasons, as I said above I think its for other reasons... but having owned several Jaguars they have the same limitations on the Sat Nav, although I was in their new XF model and they seem to have dropped the inhibit function for that car. To conclude all these limitations may seem ridiculous, but IMO these limitations are out weighed by the other benefits of the rest of the car. Let me know if you need any other info. Regards Keith

I believe Lexus provide a 5 year warrenty for the Hybrid components, however strangely the Toyota Prius has a longer warrenty possibly 7 or even 10 years!! I raised the same question with Lexus technical helpline before I bought my car, and they seemed to suggest that whilst the Traction Batteries are expensive (I think at least several thousand pounds), Lexus would look favourably on any claim for a replacement in the unlikely event one was needed. Although clearly as more hybrid cars appear and as time goes on this will certainly be an issue. My personal view is that the vehicle manufacturers be it Toyota or Honda etc will have to offer some sensible solution in years to come in order to maintain crediability. In terms of general reliability I have had no issues at all with the Hybrid drive in the 18 months I have owned my car. The only mechanical problem I have had is a flat 12v Battery but I think that could be due to the fact my car is used very infrequently, as crazy as it sounds being left for possibly 2 months or more!! I always make a point of using the car every couple of months as the handbook says not to leave the car un-used for more than three months. Incidentally one technical fact I discovered, is that the 12v car battrery only powers the cars electronics at start up. The petrol engine has no starter motor, but is started by one of the traction motors directly spinning the engines crankshaft, the power for the motor being supplied from the Traction Battery. I was told in tests the Traction Battery still had enough charge after a vehicle was left for 12 months to start the car, so that bodes well for the life of these cells. If you have any more questions about the car, if I can will be happy to try and help. Regards Keith

I have had a GS450h for about 18 month switching from some ten years of Jaguar ownership - my last being the current shape XJ6. My reasons for switching to the Lexus were much the same as yours. Firstly yes the car does have auto headlights and with S E L model I have, virtualy every other gadget, including a personal favourite ADAPTIVE Cruise Control. In fact if you want to understand all the things the car has, and if you can spare the time read through the vehicle handbooks. In terms of fuel economy in heavy traffic that was producing 11 mpg on your BMW, will produce probably 18 mpg in the Lexus. Mixed driving should give mid twenties, and long journeys low thirties. I think given the performance on offer- equivelent of a four litre V8, those economy figures are pretty good. Like you I am a slow driver, and if you drive gently as has already been said you can spend more time on the electric motors. However if you get caught in heavy traffic the traction batteries will run down and as there will be little chance to re-charge through regenerative braking the only alternative will be for the petrol engine to run, which will obviously be when the economy will suffer. Regards Keith

In terms of the hybrid technology I have had no reliability issues at all, but dont expect to get the fuel economy of for example a Toyota Prius. The Lexus is a performance hybrid so gives you the performance of a V8 powered equivalent but with better economy than you would expect for a car of that engine size. To give you an idea I used to have a Jaguar S-type V8. Urban driving would give around 16-18 mpg. Long journeys 20-23 mpg. The Lexus Gs450h will give around 19-22 around town and a long journey around 30 mpg. So clearly better and if your interested in performance, the Lexus is appreciably quicker, although if your like me with the volume of traffic, speed cameras, and just general safety performance is not so important. Off course the big advantage is in road fund license and where I live congestion charging. Finally its worth bearing in mind colour and trim choice. The light colour interior (Sutherland Ivory) takes alot of work to keep clean. In order to preserve the drivers foot well in my car, I still use the cardboard protective mat left in the car when I took delivery. Black exterior in common with any other car in that colour, again if your fussy as I am, as I have mentioned elsewhere on this site also takes a lot of maintainance. Regards Keith

The Zymol supplier I use charged £275.00 to treat the car completly, and less for periodic top ups. Additionaly the complete kit which provides all the products needed to maintain the car from memory was a similar amount. The main process involves removing old polish on car with product called HD Cleanse, then wax application which strange as it sounds you apply directly with the palm of your hand. Following that treatment you then use the Zymol shampoo (called Clear) to wash the car, and a product called Field Glaze to clean water marks etc from bodywork. The whole range uses natural products and is based around a 'bean' sourced from S.America called cannuba-depending on the product the content of this bean varies. This is the expensive bit as its this bean that forms the basis of the wax, and the cost can range for a pot from £60.00 approx called Titanium (which is what I use), to the almost ridiculus at T-H-O-U-S-A-N-D'S. The thing to remember is this product is not a paint sealant like Supagard etc (which IMO are of dubious value anyway) but a very high quality wash polish, which unlike the usual products provides a completly haze free shine the results of which you could probably see from the link. Finally, whilst this will help reduce swirl marks because of the way its applied and removed, it can not elimiate the invetable light surface marks. In the case of my car these light surface marks would be invisible when the car is out, but parked in my garage with the light on (a strong fluorecent type) which shines over the bonnet, when viewed from certain angles, some fine scratches or swirl marks can be noticed. As I said in my previous post I am very discerning and most people wonder what I am talking about, but I suppose it depends on your level of paranoia . To put it in some sort of prospective these sort of marks I'm talking about would be apparent on any dark coloured car-unless off course you can keep your car un-used in a glass case that is ;)- because all dark polished polished surfaces will display some sort of surface marks- be it your car or any other shiny dark surface, perhaps the casing of a mobile phone for example. These surface marks can only be completly erradicated by machine polishing which removes a micron of laquer, to leave a mark free surface, but even being careful, as I mentioned above because of the very nature of car paintwork it would only be a matter of time before they return. Hope all this rambling makes some sense, and if you need any more information about Zymol etc please let me know. Regards Keith

I had the same problem with the chrome spoke on my GS450h. It took three visits (last one two weeks ago) to the dealer as each time a couple of new spokes were found to be wrong. However the spokes are seperatly fitted, and easily replaced as they are only held on by a couple of nuts, and can be changed without removing the wheel. Whilst on the subject, the bodywork paintwork is also soft, the car picking up surface scratches fairly easily. On the upside because of the soft finish at least they polish out easily. However my car is in Velvet black, and in common with any black car under strong light- such as artificial garage lights, it shows up any light surface scratch, which although present on every car shows up particularly on a dark colour. So as I am particularly discerning (my dealer I think would say fussy ), I seem to spend more time looking for imperfections than enjoying the car!!!!!! Anyway I use a high quality range of car care products from 'Zymol' which are particularly gentle for car paintwork, and provide an excelant finish. The wax polish is re-applied twice a year by an appointed Zymol agent, although if you have the time you can apply it yourself. I have attached a link to the gallery of the agent I use, and if you scroll down you will see my car in amongst some pictures of some red Ferrari's. This particular photo was taken in Feb of last year after the first re-application. He visited again a few weeks ago, and I would certainly recomend him as it certainly helps to keep what is a difficult to maintain colour in tip top condition. http://www.johnswax.co.uk/acatalog/Gallery.html Regards Keith

When I was test driving this model I noticed an occasional shudder when the engine cut out on the car I was driving, when I asked Lexus they said its just where the engine is in its cycle when it cuts out. However this is not something realy apparent on my own car. So it would seem it varies from car to car. Regards Keith