SH20

Colour scheme Kevin?   

Good advice Phil, unlikely the car will let me down but the boy racers out there driving Audi's scare the bejeezus out of me.

So today Lexus Operations (AA) sent me an email with sufficient information to suggest the problem is fixed.   An AA screen shot of my correct reg number, correct chassis number, correct registration date, correct vehicle and model, correct colour and correct AA policy end date. The screen shot was accompanied by a statement saying all  I have to quote is my reg number and no need to quote the chassis number.    At last I thought  Lexus Operations got a grip of this and although there still was no sign of the complimentary 12 months cover the dealer said would apply the screen shot I received stated very clearly the correct policy end date of 18.3.25 to tie up with the vehicle registration date of 18.3.22.   

Let's check I thought so rang General Enquiries and they asked for my reg number.  Yes we have a ES300h in red,  my name and address.   Steady now I thought as I asked for the policy end date.  Yes we have a policy end date of 7.1.25  !!!!!!!!!

They saw what I expected them to see, the details of the car I owned between 7.122 and June 2022.    Data still corrupted.  I have decided to draw a line under this and just live with the fact I will receive assistance up to 7.1.25 for certain,  the wrong car of course but what the hell.   

Technically if I ring for Assistance and start with my reg number  and they take me through security, name, address, post code etc  the ES300  I took delivery of on the 7.1.22  will come up as it's identical, even  the colour is the same as the car I have now.  If they wanted my chassis number however, highly unlikely then it would fall down because  my current car's chassis number wouldn't match the ES registered 7.1.2022.   So I'm guessing I would be OK till 7.1.25 whereas my current car's original policy would have an end date 18.3.25 having been registered new 18.3.2022.   I also think the person who now drives the ES I no longer own on a conventional age related number plate or his/her own private plate will have no idea his/her car's assistance policy is still tied  to me.   There can't be two policies for the same car as the chassis number forms part of the dealer's  information they use to pass to Lexus Operations who now have responsibility to set policies up.    Dealers no longer set policies up,  they just pass the  info to Lexus Operations (AA) so you can see why policies get so messed up,  as Mincey says.      

Thanks Phil,  the cr@lexus.co.uk  is an address I have used in the past and resulted in direct dialogue with customer services based staff, always helpful.   That route no longer exists so the cr@Toyota.co.uk is the only route into the higher levels of the Toyota Group.   You can still not access any details of who the CEO is of Toyota UK the parent company of Lexus UK so I can only hope someone decides to get involved with my issue.    I know exactly why I am in this position. It's because initial contact with Lexus Roadside Assist starts with a Reg number.  If you have had other Lexus cars over the years with the same private plate the system can and does pick up on different cars.   Only this week a conversation which started with my Reg number immediately picked up my Toyota CHR owned between Aug 2022 and July 2023 and that's because the Roadside Assist looks after all Toyota Roadside Assist policyholders.   This is corrupted data in my case.    Another conversation 24 hours earlier immediately picked up the last ES300h I owned between Jan 2022 and June 2022   and was in my name and my address but was clearly a car I don't own any longer.     I have had direct dialogue too with Lexus Operations (AA)  who no longer answer me when I ask for updates. They originally said a data stream conflict was identified but a solution? No there has been no remedy to date.    None of this nonsense ever occurred when hard copy documentation was issued, Covering letter, hard copy booklet, small credit card sized membership card with an account number, registration number, phone numbers  and expiry date etc.   The dealer the car was purchased from have washed  their hands of it, they too ignore any requests for updates.  So I wrote to Steven Eagell of the Steven Eagell Group via his PA who I hope will put this issue under his nose but not holding my breath.   £32,000  for a car not showing on the Assistance system.    Top Tip :  ring up Lexus Roadside Assist General Enquiries and make sure your car matches what you know about your car including the VIN   Private plate owners be wary.    

I had to write to CustomerRelations@Toyota.co.uk  which is the only route to get to address a complaint. Lexus closed down their  CustomerRelations@Lexus.co.uk for reasons known only to them. I tried that first but the email wouldn't send.  

I have no option but to battle on and get this car of mine recognised on the AA's system.   No amount of pleading with a call centre operator telling him/her my car is within the 3 years standard assist cover will help me. If it's not in the database you don't exist.

Moreover you have the situation whereby a vehicle goes off road, crashes, driver triggers the assist button in the headlining for those cars that are equipped and assistance is activated.  Equally if the driver is  incapacitated and the vehicle doesn't move or there is no request for help the assistance is auto triggered.   Someone on a lonely country road at 1am in the morning  who drives off the road and rings for assistance would be assisted for sure. No Recovery Company would be able to stand the backlash if it turned out assistance was refused because there was no other vehicle involved and the owner was left to make the best of it.  

No, anything that renders a Lexus or Toyota from moving under it's own power can have roadside assist. I admit if the Police attend first they will often initiate a recovery truck.

Four weeks after my purchase of a 16 month old Lexus Approved Car my car's specific details, make, model, colour, number plate, chassis number cannot be seen by Lexus Roadside Assist Call Handlers despite the car still being within the 3 year standard Assistance period.   Moreover the so called Complimentary 12 month Roadside Assist Cover each pre owned Lexus Approved Car receives never materialised i.e  no written confirmation, no booklet in the post after collection, nothing whatsoever and Lexus Roadside Assist Call Handlers have no record of one after it was supposed to have been set up between the dealer and Lexus Operations who issue the policy and get the car on the system.   

A previous ES300h in Red with my private plate does come up in my name but I only owned that car between 1st registration date of 7th January 2022 and June 2022.   My latest ES300h in Red with my private plate on it is nowhere to be found.     I have been told that I don't have an active policy for the car sitting on my drive whether we are talking about the original 3 year cover period which ends 18.3.2025 or any 12 month complimentary policy.      The conflict of information has rendered me without any official cover.     Everybody and his dog, the dealer, the salesperson, the sales manager,  Lexus Operations (The AA effectively)  the Call Centre all tell me  it should get sorted but once a Computer System Says No  it refuses to say Yes no matter who thinks they know best.   

You can't make this stuff up and nobody wants to own this issue.   I have now written to the CEO of the Dealer Group I purchased the car from and I am searching on the Internet for the CEO of Lexus UK  to bend his or her ear.   That alone is hidden behind layers of brick walls and obstacles because which CEO would want to get involved with a legitimate customer's complaint.   

As Lexus only use the AA as their preferred choice of Roadside Assistance I may end up taking a policy out with the AA and pay the basic £10 a month for a temporary solution.  It's more about having someone to assist me in a road accident  as Lexus cars tend not to breakdown.        

Are there any images of this device Dave, can't say I have heard of it.

To be honest Len I never was in the market for a new ES with Premium Pack because at £48K it is a ridiculous price despite it's great specification.   Having had a Premium Pack, number 1 car brand new, it's hard to accept the spec of a Premium Edition, number 2 car brand new,   so a used 16 month old car, number 3 car  was always my target vehicle.   Can you believe 2019 a ES300h in velvet black with P/Pack was £38,500.  Now it's £48K only 4 years later. 

Premium Edition in Mesa Red with the Tan Taraha synthetic leather  was bought in order to stay below £40K avoiding the £500 tax band on Excise duty.  Now look at me in a used car and paying £500 road tax anyway.  Should of bought car number 2 with the P/Pack  as it's what I've just bought, only used.   Ideally in 2 years I will be looking a Takumi in Mesa Red or Sunlight Green with Tan leather another combination that will be hard to find I'm sure.  

Anyway bumper finished and back on car. All the scuffing now rectified.  Four  hours incl remove and refit the bumper.

1. High Build Yellow Filler Primer  2. Red Primer  3. Colour Coat  4. Lacquered and Complete

The thing with smart repairs is that they were developed by Insurance Companies who backed them in order to reduce repair costs.   There isn't a great deal of time in this bumper rework, so far I have spent 1.5 hours on it including taking it off.   Yes you can get brown paper on a 3 foot roll  and with masking tape already fitted down  one side of the paper but that's what you see in body shops. It even sits on a frame so you just roll a length off and a sharp edge cuts whatever length off you need.   This is a home repair so newspaper works.   A local smart repair company called Bumps and Scrapes in Scarborough, a Franchised Operation  gave me a quote for doing it on my drive at £160 but couldn't do it for 2 weeks such is the demand for his work.  I had no problem with the £150 reduction off the car price because I knew it reflected the going rate.  There was no possibility of the dealer getting it sorted themselves on the day as it was a one stop round trip.  Had I lived close to them I would have expected them to do it but I am 170 miles from them. 

The dealerships in Yorkshire are all first class and are near me are in Hull, Leeds, Sheffield, I've used them all in the past.  Carlisle in the North West are simply outstanding in my experience.   I bought this car in Cambridge because that's where the spec I wanted was.  Like I said I don't believe the dealer even knew about the scuffing till I pointed it out to them but the car was coming back to Yorkshire with me with what I considered to be a minor rework.   My actual job was an Insurance Assessor inspecting damaged cars for a big Insurance Company and in and out of body shops every day.  My apprenticeship was in body and paint repairs so not surprising then a bumper scuff remedied at home suited me.   

As a side issue insurance premiums are rocketing and it's due to profitering by repairers.  My wife hit a low barrier at 5 mph in a car park inflicting damage to a rear bumper corner, rear wing and inner wheel arch and 2 doors.  No parts needed, just repairing and  painting.   The figure on the estimate just for paint materials alone was £755 !!   and £1200 labour,  £75 for a Government subsidy for energy costs (for every repair they do)  a £10 Covid allowance,  EPA charge at £5.     When I challenged the paint material costs the estimator just smiled and said the Insurers will pay it.     Supplier chains are blamed, Covid, the war in Ukraine. It's profitering that's what it is.    What's that saying "We're all going to Hell in a hand cart"        

I drove 170 miles to collect this car.  This Premium Pack ES was the only one in the entire Lexus Network  in Mesa Red and tan leather interior when I saw it.   Like hen's teeth in this spec.     It arrived at the dealer who said this colour combo/spec won't hang around long. Sales talk maybe but there was some truth to it as I just couldn't pin one down.   What I am getting to is this car was coming home with me unless there was some significant reason why I wouldn't want it. I've had a Premium Edition ES but the spec is well below a Premium Pack and my very first ES in 2019 was a premium pack so I knew my third ES had to be a premium pack  

The scuffed bumper is something I don't even think they knew anything about even when they did the second year service before I went down.   My life was spent in body shops so the actual damage was an easy fix for me but I take the point that a Lexus approved car shouldn't be sold with  this sort of paint defect. 

I agreed £150 reduction on the price as it was agreed the damage came under the heading of a Smart Repair or localised paint repair.  I intend to take the bumper off again in a years time and have the bumper fully painted to bring it back to new condition but this localised repair will do till then.  I'm at the stage now where I need to use some stopper paste or body putty as some people call it.   It's very fine grade of filler and is good for very fine micro scratches prior to priming. 

Not sure the parking sensors will need to be re calibrated.   I removed both bumpers on a Lexus LS460 for repainting once and the sensors worked fine when reconnected.     

So after 3 weeks I'm just getting round to repairing the damage I discovered on the day I collected the car. This was damage I was told would need to be accepted as it was  a used car after all.  You couldn't make this up.  If the same type of damage was visible on a roof, door, wing or bonnet would it have to be acceptable.  Just because it's good old fashioned kerb scuffing and out of sight I was expected to just accept it and pay £32K for the privilege.

After a suitable figure was deducted from the  sale price I'm ready to repair it. The bumper on an ES is held in place by 22 fixings and 3 wiring  connectors and one screen wash pipe.  About 20 mins to get it off.  

Nothing too serious and the plastic filler primers, normal primer and top coat and lacquer I'm using at home will improve things considerably as it's low down, mainly on the bottom lip and out of eye line. 

Lexus Cambridge, don't get me started.   Bought a car there 2 weeks ago only to discover they didn't organise the 12 month Lexus Roadside Assist policy which I only discovered after  ringing the customer services of Assist to ask them to update my policy with my private plate.   Your car is not known to us was the reply.   Dealer pointing fingers now at anybody but themselves.  The car is only 16 months old so has 20 months left of the original 3 year Roadside Assist but still I and my car are invisible to Road side assist.   I don't exist whether your talking about the 3 year roadside assist or the 12 month roadside assist dealers give with used car sales.    If I broke down tomorrow or was hit by another driver The AA would not be sending anyone out to me because the Computer says NO !!!!!!!!    Total disgrace.   A stiff letter to Steven Eagell is being drafted and ready to send.   

Dave pretty sure a retro fit CD unit would not be possible. The wring harness alone would be different to cars with CD players already fitted.   Of course transferring a lifetime's collection of CD's to a large capacity flash drive is possible but what a task that would be.   The current model range of car's can see USB devices if they are plugged in and are fully compatible with the steering wheel controls.  I use a flash drive for music even though the car has a CD player but it is nice just to pop one in for the odd occasion when it's a favorite band etc.  

I kept back the 4 Toyota CHR winter mats  when I traded it for my 3rd ES and so use the rear CHR mats in the ES. While not a duplicate  foot print of the carpet mat  it is close and will do the job given Lexus don't do a rear set for the ES

On a different note   is just cost that Manufacturers stopped refinishing their alloy wheels on the inside to match the finish of the outside.  I definitely remember cleaning wheels in previous years on all sorts of cars where the painted finish was as good on the outside.  Now they don't bother and leave you with a base alloy finish with the obvious black overspray when the outside is painted before machine facing.   I guess that's why wheel refurbishment companies get a lot of praise when they powder coat the inside and outside before lacquering. 

Still they do make an attractive alloy wheel if you ignore the inside finish. 

Once I got past the ridiculous cost of rubber mats I realised that the hot rubber extrusion machine that spat them out must have been expensive to produce. Not every ES customer would want them and are happier with the very nice carpet set you get but when you look close at these winter mats the weight and quality is there to see. Not sure why you can't buy rear mats as well.

Pity then I gave the first set of these I had away after trading in the ES.    I gave them to a good friend who drives a Toyota Camry which shares the same floor pan. At least I didn't pay for them, part of a protection pack the dealer fitted as part of the deal back in 2019.   

Premium Pack spec  has natural leather and thankfully doesn't have that highly grained look which a lot of manufacturers go for.  

The Lexus ES Takumi goes one better and has semi aniline leather, super soft and only used on the top line models but I think all LS models have it as standard.   Never knew what semi aniline leather was until I asked and it turns out the pigment colour goes all the way through the hide from front to back whereas traditional  leather is effectively sprayed on the surface with limited penetration.  The advantage with synthetic leather is it resists creasing and doesn't really need feeding.  Much more robust in day to day use.  My second ES was a Premium Edition and it looked just the same to me.

So 3 days of cleaning have finished.  I can stop obsessing on how dirty it was.  

OUCH !!   

The interior is where I need it to be now.

Forgot to say Tony the engine bay looks very clean, really nice to see old cars given a fresh look.

Spoke with Lexus Hull today about the software update and she went in to the car's history and confirmed the 2 nd year service was recorded and what was booked to the car in terms of parts etc.   They will be doing a fresh health check because it's Lexus policy to do one for any car that goes in to the workshop.  I asked for a Hybrid health check certificate after the hybrid system is checked, they agreed immediately.   Feel happier that the dealer seems interested .

Pretty sure that looks like a Triumph maybe a TR model with it's  twin carbs.    Yes? No?  Good old Solvol Autosol, a great product for shiny bits.  Looks like you are detailing it in your kitchen Tony !!     You can see the laminate/wooden flooring. 

Looks more like what I am used to.