First_Lexus

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From my perspective, there is a big difference between ‘a lie’ and decisions that are made because of changing information, or policy decisions made in order to change behaviour. A ‘lie’ implies knowing deception, and I think to believe that about the pandemic is fanciful (at best, and being charitable). ‘COVID’ was a new variant of an existing Coronavirus. My understanding (and I’m not a virologist) is that part of the reason a vaccine was available so quickly was the simple fact that there were existing vaccines that could act as a base for it. Governments didn’t know that multiple boosters would be needed, because the vaccine effectiveness and how long protection would last wasn’t known. I think any rational person would be able to see that without characterising it as ‘a lie.’ Moving to the lockdown parties at Westminster, yes, they were clearly unwise. However, to make a link that says (in essence) that they were holding those parties because the whole pandemic was ‘a lie’ or that restrictions weren’t needed seems to me similarly irrational. Excess deaths? Nobody, to my knowledge, has ever said a vaccine would prevent some people from dying from COVID (or any other disease). Rather the communication to population has been very clear - getting the vaccine, “…reduces your chance of severe disease or death.” Again, that seems clear to me. I’ve said many times on this forum that an EV is not for me currently, but what exactly characterises them as ‘a lie?’ Unless you are a total climate change sceptic and deny it exists, it (again) seems clear to me that we need to move away from burning fossil fuels. We aren’t there yet, and yes there is environmental damage cause by the production of EVs, and indeed caused by ALL manufacturing of anything and everything. But - and it’s a big but - we do need to move in a direction that reduces carbon emissions. EVs may be a small part of that and wider use of renewable energy will be a bigger part. EVs may not be the final answer, but they are a step in the right direction, certainly in terms of air quality. Are they ‘a lie’ though? I can’t see how. Governments are enacting policy, as they always have, in order to encourage people to make different choices for the good of all based on the beliefs of those currently in Government. In terms of VED for EVs, yes that’s coming. It’s inevitable. Again, I can’t see how that is ‘a lie.’ As revenue from fossil fuel powered vehicles declines, Government needs to replace that lost revenue. To my knowledge they never said EVs would be VED free forever.

I remember having a similar discussion with Honda when I came to replace my Accord in 2015. At the time they’d decided not to import the new Accord, and have never replaced it in the UK. That said, all manufacturers need to sell cars in order to continue existing, and SUVs are what (many of) the people want to buy. Ford have just announced the end of both the Fiesta and Focus, and the EV replacements will be SUV in style.

Back in the 1980s I believe the common saying in Australia was along the lines of; ”If you want to drive into the outback, take a Land Rover. If you want to drive back out again, buy a Toyota…”

Totally agree. It’s isn’t that many years ago that, after an election, the majority of people would get behind the winning candidate (or decision) or at the very least wish them well as success is good for everybody. Things have changed, and not for the better. Now, the ‘losing’ side (in an election or almost any subject or question) seem to actively want the ‘winner’ to fail in order to prove they were right all along. The ‘winners’ can never accept things aren’t as brilliant as they hoped, and they become similarly entrenched. Disagree and debate by all means, but this deliberate antagonism and hate has to stop. It won’t of course, as the internet age has made it almost the default position. Sigh.

Hard not to love the RX - I certainly love mine. They’re epic cars, and slightly unusual too which is nice. I’m sure you’ll be as happy with your choice as nearly all RX owners are. Congratulations…and welcome to a very exclusive club!

We should also bear in mind just how unpopular Biden is, as is Kamala Harris. America is divided. If they get to a Trump - Harris choice (for example) it will be totally polarised, even more than previously. I actually think the experience of the last election would mean higher Republican turn out but we’ll see. Trump’s base is loyal (and fanatical) but how many Republicans who don’t like him would vote for Kamala Harris? Who knows, but I fear they’d swallow hard and choose Trump if that was their choice. Either way none of the options look good from here…

Thanks for all the replies. I’ve booked with Reading for my first service towards the end of this month and will report back.

The eCVT does require a different style of driving to a conventional automatic. I’m now on my third Lexus with eCVT (two NX and my current RX) and ‘wafting’ describes it well. You need to be much more progressive with the right foot - initially I was trying to ‘kick down’ and all that happens is the revs rise. With awareness of how it works, and driving to get the best out of it, I can safely say I’d be loathed to go back to either; - a traditional torque converter automatic with four or five gears where you need to kick down (with associated jerkiness and noise), or; - one of those hateful DSG gearboxes with the relentless ‘hunting’ for the right gear, delays and power loss when slowing down and then needing to speed up (as when approaching a roundabout)…and I certainly don’t miss the frequent repairs and inconvenience when the stupid thing went wrong!

They’re now live streaming the carnage…😆

As I see it, ‘we’ want to save the planet, but we also want to buy the consumer goods to which we’ve become accustomed. The two are, in my opinion, incompatible. If we really want to save the planet, we need either a return to greater localism - which comes with sacrifice compared to the experience of the past century (or more) - or we find ways to decarbonise international trade, which will be difficult if not impossible. I find that too many people, especially youngsters, expect Governments to solve every problem. That’s not entirely unreasonable, but - and it’s a big but - each individual also needs to make choices that support their beliefs and aspirations. So called ‘fast fashion’ is a great example, as is the perceived need to be able to buy any foodstuff at any time of year. Both have massive impacts in terms of carbon emissions but, based on what I see and hear, aren’t targets for change. Instead protestors blame car drivers without looking at themselves and the impacts of their own choices. I can’t see a solution while nations and their peoples continue to chase economic growth and conspicuous consumption. Perhaps easy for somebody of my generation to say, as no doubt I’ve seen the benefits during my lifetime. Those who come next will have to accept that things need to be different and that isn’t palatable... Imagine if at COP27 the nations of the world agreed that new clothing would be rationed, that avocados and strawberries won’t be allowed to be shipped around the world and that manufacturing of plastics for consumer goods would also be rationed by nation. How about limiting the number of flights each person is allowed to take, or even the number of children people can bring into the world? I know there would be a huge economic impact, unemployment and hardship, but that isn’t my point here. Can you imagine the public outcry and protests if such agreements were made in order to ‘save the world’ for the future? I’d wager that many who would protest strongly also claim to want to save the world. Difficult choices. Difficult decisions. Unfortunately politicians want to be popular and people want easy answers that don’t impact on them.

Worth a watch. The cost side of things isn’t a surprise. However, the RANGE side of things when on the motorway…well, let’s just say it confirms what I’ve been told by dealers and why I haven’t made the switch with a regular 200 mile motorway journey.

Meanwhile… https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/electriccars/article-11375653/Energy-bills-putting-drivers-going-electric.html https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/electriccars/article-11373037/Electric-car-owners-face-taxation-2025.html Despite the slightly sensationalist headline, the article does note that charging at home is (currently) about half the price of petrol for a standard car. Charging at a public charger on the other hand is about the same cost now.

https://news.sky.com/story/the-future-of-energy-may-lie-with-hydrogen-but-the-journey-to-get-there-wont-be-easy-12732319 Posting this as I found it quite interesting. Given the thread has already gone down this particular rabbit hole, it seems relevant.

They wouldn’t come earlier in the year when I asked for them to support a wheel refurb (I kerbed one!). They actually put me in touch with a specialist in…Reading.

Very true. My RX is my first car with a heated steering wheel. It’s great. Not something I’d ever have considered before, but now I’ve got it down as a proper First World essential! 🙃

Too far - it’s a good thirty miles. I’ll still go there if the reviews of Reading are worrying as I can work it so it’s booked when I’m travelling down to the South-West - it’s just a bit more of a faff tbh.

A colleague bought his Range Rover Sport from Cinch and couldn’t speak highly enough of how simple the process was, with the car exactly as described and usefully cheaper than a similar vehicle from Land Rover themselves. I think their finance rates are quite high though.

Asking for some advice based on experience for Lexus Reading. My RX is due it’s first service in November, and I’d like to hear from members with recent experience of Lexus Reading for servicing - good and bad. I’ve bought all three of my Lexus from Swindon, and always had them serviced there too. I’ve got nothing but positive things to say about them. But, I now live near Reading and the chance of spending ten minutes to get to a servicing dealer rather than forty minutes appeals. So, the question is - are Reading good or not?

I was a passenger for a test drive in the new Sportage. Perfectly pleasant, lots of tech but iffy build quality for the price and not at all practical compared with the competition if you need to carry passengers - it just isn’t wide enough across the back seats for three grandchildren aged under twelve! The biggest issue though was the price. It can’t be sensible for a £40k KIA Sportage to cost more than a £50k Volvo XC60 (which felt as though it was from several leagues above) but that was the case once discounts, trade in prices and PCP interest rates were considered. Unsurprisingly my Sister has her new XC60 on order…

Ok, so this is a concept car with (officially) no plans for production. However, this is REALLY clever and imho represents a far more realistic vision for the future of motoring than increasingly heavy and expensive EVs. Brilliant. Vive la difference! And…”because French.”

I thought the cars my Father had when I was a child (early 1970s) were comfortable - Granadas, Rovers and the like. Then one day I went in a light blue metallic Peugeot 504 (automatique!) which belonged to the parents of a school friend. It truly was magnifique to the young me, with a huge beige velour sofa like rear seat. They must have been a Peugeot family, as later they had a 604 saloon. Move forward to the mid-1980s and I convinced my Father to buy a Renault 25GTX (with the speaking electronic dashboard). It had similarly sofa like and velour infested comfort. Wonderful.

When I had a dispute with VW many years ago, my income protection policy legal advice telephone line put me in touch with a specialist lawyer who - to use a rather coarse term - ‘tore them (VW) a new one.’ The fees were capped (I seem to remember for non-property related issues it was £5k or thereabouts) but we didn’t get close to the level as VW folded after one robust letter - and there was no premium penalty for me either. Well worth looking at what existing insurance policies may be able to help with. The car was replaced in short order!

Deep breath… - The Government, the Opposition and all politicians; - Biased news media (in either direction); - The loss of professional standards (regardless of profession or industry). Step forward C4’s Krishnan Guru-Murthy and BBC’s Martine Croxall; - EV users on motorways who coast along at 50-60 mph (I assume to conserve range) meaning that lorries have to pull into lane two, causing congestion. Having completed 250 miles on the M4 in the last two days, this is becoming a very common issue; - Drivers who park in disabled bays without either having (or displaying) a blue badge. This also seems to be becoming far more frequent, especially in private car parks (supermarkets, hotels etc) where there is no enforcement; - People who watch or listen to content in public on speaker rather than using headphones. I was on the train into London earlier in the week and there was not just one incident of this. Amazingly, a chap was doing the same over breakfast in the hotel this morning (the staff asked him to mute it, he signed loudly and left. Idiot). In general terms, society seems to be losing the art of social awareness. Too many people seem to think that the (mostly unwritten) rules of behavioural etiquette don’t apply to them. Back in the day we’d have called them ‘oiks.’

£1.54 at Sainsbury in Calcot (Reading) and £1.56 at the BP station a few hundred yards further down the road.