marcus wright

Thanks all. The car had repeat anti-bacterial treatment again on 27/02. (Scott's aircon purge - which was the same as it had on the 18/01). This time the dealer said they kept the car running and the treatment recirculating for 2 hours. Ten days later and the smell has returned. I have checked the filter in the glovebox, it is bone dry and clean. The dealer said that the next step is to re-gas the system and replace the "filters". I can't see how this will improve things. What do you guys think of the suggestion? Worse case, how can I get rid of it? Replace the condensor? Cheers, Marcus.

Hi, I have a problem with a musty smell coming from the aircon on my late model GS430. It originally occured just on start-up and disappeared within 5 minutes or so. It still does this, but sometimes seems to hang around for longer. Bizarrely, it seems to worsen where I am on a journey with a lot of hard acceleration - effectively if I rev a lot through the range. I did raise it when I bought the car (at 7.5K miles) and I know that the dealer has treated the car at least once with an anti-bacteria pack. I'm taking it back again tomorrow, but if it can't be fixed with the treatment, what other options are there? Replacement evaporator? I've never had such a problem before in over 200K miles of mk1 and mk2 GS models. I always leave the climate on auto recirculate or external air and typically between 18 - 21 degrees c in the winter. Any tips / observations would be much appreciated or comments from anyone else who has had a similiar problem with the new model. Best regards, Marcus.

Lex Vehicle Leasing (freechoice) were very good for me (I did not buy through a business), but the risk at sale stays with you meaning that you need to either pay a larger deposit / keep the repayments high or keep it for a at least two years of a three year deal to avoid the first year depreciation and be able to change often. To keep costs at the lowest (comparitively) I would suggest you consider buying a 8-12 month old demonstrator or similiar and fininancing through a competitive bank. I saved nearly £9K on a 6 month old gs430. That way you also have a significant chunk of warranty to fall back on. Try this link for some comparisons. http://www.lexfreechoice.co.uk/ Best regards, Marcus.

Hi, Thanks Lex-Mike, I have followed the same trail of thought as you. I did take the car into the dealer a couple of weeks back and asked them to check. The answer was that the lights were within tolerance. Mistakenly, I didn't ask them how they checked or whether a) it was possible to vary the "minimum" level within a tolerance or b ) if they had the know-how (new model and all that) to actually do it. Does anyone have experience or knowledge of increasing the minimum level of the AFS lights within tolerance to be able to answer the questions above? Thanks. Marcus.

Hi Lex-Mike, I am referring to the lower cut-off - you are right with the HID sharp cut-off, there is an all or nothing at the outer edges. Frankly, far worse than a mark 1 or 2 and very poor in drizzle. I am wondering if a more powerful HID will improve this or just make the visible area brighter? Thanks, Marcus.

Hi, As reported elsewhere the auto setting of the new AFS lights seems too low on my car (like the lowest setting on the Mk 2 model adjust), although reported as OK when checked at the dealer. Would it be possible to upgrade the HID on the AFS lights? Any ideas what bulb is in the new model and which to go for? Thanks, Marcus.

They do on the SC430 but not on my GS430.

The light levels do not seem to be adjustable by the driver, so I took it to Lexus Milton Keynes today, they checked it over and found that the light levels were set up correctly. This is interesting to me as the HID lights should be better than the mk2 and do not seem to be. There is a much more defined line between light and dark, which means that medium / longer distance illumination is poorer. I wonder if using a more pwerful HID bulb would help. Has anyone done this? CAn they be fitted to a car with AFS?

Thanks, I'd summarise it like this: I've tried a BMW 5 series, Audi A6, Merecedes E class and Jaguar XJ. I prefer Lexus engineering and quality. The GS430 is a very good car. My 9500 mile GS430 now has "as new" front spoiler and wheels. But I have been seriously inconvinienced by Lexus Ipswich. They did put it right in the end (after having the car for 22 days) and they did lend me an SC. Mind you, I didn't buy the car for the dealership quality - I know how inconsistent it can be (I have owned four Lexus now over nearly 10 years). It is highly unlikely that I would buy from Lexus Ipswich again. I might have forgotten this experience next time I buy a car. If I remember, I might buy another make but I doubt it. Moral of the story: The main benefit of owning a Lexus is that you don't have to go to a dealer too often to risk spoiling the provenance of your beautifully built, well engineered car!! Based on recent experience I am quietly confident that Lexus Milton Keynes and Cambridge are really as good as we would expect. Here's looking forward to the next service! Lastly, after all this I hope the wheels don't rot and the spoiler paint doesn't flake. I don't ever want to take a trip back to Ipswich!! Cheers, Marcus.

One option could be to put your SIM into a Sony Ericsson phone (maybe a friend has one?) and then send all of the data. The salesman very helpfully did this when I picked my car up. Cheers, Marcus.

Best I ever had with an older model GS300 was 28mpg cruising circa 90 long distance on French autoroute. Typical driving town (75%), A roads (20%) and motorway (5%) with my last mark 2 GS300 gave circa 20mpg, about the same as the new model GS430 I now have. When we used to drive longer distances with town (25%), A roads (50%) and motorway (25%) we got 25mpg in my first mark 2 GS300, same with the mark 1. All measured via my own calculation rather than the on-board computer. I would hypothesise that round town driving delivers 20mpg V6 or V8, with a greater distance between the two (in the V6 favour) when travelling longer distance. Best regards, Marcus.

The new model has the AFS (Adaptive Front Lighting System). On my car, it works when turning corners fine but the lights self-level upon start-up and are set too low, hence they do not light up the road ahead sufficiently. You can turn AFS off but that just seems to stop the lights turning. It also seems as if the right light is set to point too far to the left, leaving left lane illumination quite poor. It is very similiar to putting the mk2 GS manual level setting on it's lowest level (as if you were towing). I have read the owners manual but can find no way to adjust. Can the dealer adjust this? Any tips? Best regards, Marcus.

Update - Finally got it back yeterday (23/12/05). The wheels look fine and the spoiler seems to be painted to the correct colour. It came back with a half-page letter from the dealer principle inside (he also called in advance of the car being delivered back). Whilst apologising for the inconvinience, the letter didn't answer my questions though - just mentioned that the alloys were soft first time round because they had painted them twice for good measure. No response as to why the car was unprepared upon original collection, spoiler was repainted the wrong colour or headrests were not fixed. Why is it that companies are so unprepared to take clear responsibility in writing? Avoiding the precise question is almost an art form for Lexus Ipswich. It would have been nice to hear "we made a mistake, we'll put it right, we have changed our processes, you can have confidence in us again". Funny that is it their failure to explicitely admit an error that would be the reason I didn't buy from them again. Best regards, Marcus.

Lexusjohn, One more thing - thinking about your point regarding silver colour matching. All of the Lexus I have owned (1 x mk1 GS300, 2 x new mk2 GS300 and this mk3 GS430) have been silver-ish (Lucerne, Platinum Ice and now Palladio). I recall I did have a new plastic rear bumper on the first mk2 (lucerne) and they matched that perfectly. Any other views, any body shop people out there? Best regards, Marcus.

Thanks Lexusjohn, I think that they need to get it right this time if they want to retain their own dealership reputation. The dealer principle did agree that it was a different shade although he qualified this with "in certain light". If they don't get it right with a second try / after my inconvenience and having so significantly failing to live up to the expectations that Lexus set, then I think they will need to propose a compromise to resolve as I will have no further confidence in them. I sincerely hope it does not come to that. Best regards, Marcus.

Hi All, Well they collected last Monday the 12th and left us with an SC430. I faxed a complaint letter and sent it with the car when they collected. I asked the dealer principle to consider how a) It could have been sold to me unprepared with the faults and b ) How Lexus Ipswich took the car back for ten days and then returned the car with clearly inferior work to the wheels and spoiler and having failed to fix the broken headrests. The dealer principle called on Wednesday to say he had received the car / letter and would write back and also call to update me with timescales for return of the car by Friday 16th. He called as promised but his letter has not arrived as yet. He says wheels will be back to the dealer from refurbisher by next Tuesday, then car will go to the bodyshop again for a further front bumper respray (as well as the colour problem, when I cleaned / polished the car before it went I found that the paint on the repainted spoiler was actually damaged on the off-side and nearside near the headlights and that there is a blemish lacquered over on the nearside). He said it is his intention that I get the car back by next Friday 23rd December. Having collected the car on the 12th November, if I get it back on the 23rd December, I will have had my car in my possession for 20 days and Lexus Ipswich will have had it for 22... Now if I had known that, do you think I would have bought it? Here's hoping it's coming home for Christmas and it isn't a turkey! Best regards, Marcus.

I wanted to make one backup copy of my disk and used a Verbatim double layer DVD+R 8.4GB disc to take about 6GB worth of data but the system in my GS430 would not read the copy, any ideas as to how I resolve? It was copied using Nero Burning ROM 6. Thanks, Marcus.

Latest update... Well, the dealer principle rang friday, it is being collected on Monday at 4pm and they will drop off an SC. The are going to send the wheels away to a manufacturer recomended by Lexus HQ, who will refurbish the wheels to the exact same specification. They are also going to inspect the front bumper and try to sort again if necessary, but I am realibly informed that after respray metallic silver never looks exactly the same, which is why dealers try to only touch-in if possible. As I have now (finally) had a chance to drive the car for a few days in the main it is great and I will post a report soon. One other emergent issue is a smoky / musty type smell coming from the aircon at start and then clearing within 30 seconds or so, particularly noticeable when restarting say 30 minutes after the last trip. I inspected the aircon filter behind the glovebox and it is clean and as new. Any ideas as to the cause? (I am sure the car was not smoked in). Best regards, Marcus.

An update for those who are interested... I finally got a call from the dealer principle this Tuesday morning, after an apology from a very friendly lady on Monday (As he was meant to call then). He asked me what was wrong - told me he wanted to make me happy - didn't apologise, said he'd see what he could do and call me back by close of play Tuesday. He didn't call. I rang then lunch-time Wednesday and the original salesman called back close of play. He also asked me what was wrong as he had been out of the office (with the principle at the Lexus Academy). I reconfirmed that the wheels have been painted, are the wrong colour and are soft. Front bumper not quite right either. Headrests didn't get fixed. £38K not happy etc etc. He said that he would talk to Lexus tomorrow and see what can be done with the wheels. As far as I am concerned they must be identical to the originals. I have to say that I am really, really disappointed. How can a Lexus dealership sell a car, have it back a week later for 10 days, paint the spoiler a darker shade, paint the wheels poorly in a lighter shade and not undertake fixes to other items? I hope that they can put it right. I have been promised a call tomorrow. Marcus.

Hi all, I'm on my fourth Lexus. This time an ex-demo new model GS430 after one used mark one and two new mark two's. Bought the car over the phone from Lexus Ipswich, having been assured in was in excellent condition and I also felt reassured by the approved pre-owned scheme. Bought it on the 7th November, rang on the 9th to say "please make sure it's fully prepared as I live 90 miles away and don't want to come back". Went to collect on the 12th. Upon inspection found that the front spoiler was heavily pitted with stone chips (they rightly acquiesced immediately and agreed to re-spray), two wheels needed touching up (a couple of penny sized chips), both headrests had come away from the plastic back (said they would sort) and there was a chip in the drivers door (said they would deal). Dropped it off on the 20th, told to expect it back by Wednesday 23rd. After some complaint by me as I was not happy about having to bring the car back, they did stretch to a new SC430 - mind you, this is not as nice to drive regardless of the price, and you can't really have the top down in this weather. Called on the 23rd by the original salesman (who was a very friendly chap to deal with) - he was not happy with the wheels, but it should be OK by the 26th. Called on the 25th by the dealer principle - he was also not happy with the wheels. They finally dropped it back on the 30th - with no explaination of what they had done or a follow up call. This Saturday was the first time I had seen it in the light. Hmmm. The wheels don't really seem to be that smoke alloy colour anymore and the front spoiler looks a bit darker than the rest of the car. Sunday comes and I wash it, then I take the car over the Lexus Milton Keynes to compare the wheels and front bumper colours. Now the wheels have been refurbished and painted but in a lighter shade alloy colour. They are also soft - so soft you can mark them with a very light finger nail. Lastly, there are clear blemishes - they are far worse than they were before the treatment and certainly not the lovely alloys that come with the car! Furthermore, from certain angles the spoiler looks OK-ish in terms of colour, but it is darker than the rear plastic bumper colour! It is very slightly different from a new car, but equally no worse than many other cars I compared yesterday (non-Lexus). I can't see how they are going to remedy the alloys, so I think that all I can do is ask for a new set or an original set in good condition from an equivalent car. Not sure what to do about the bumper colour. By the way, the car was returned with the same headrest fault. Luckily Lexus Milton Keynes will resolve this one on warranty. The touch-in on the drivers door fell off when I cleaned it but hey!! Any views as to how I should approach? I don't want to reject the car as other than these issues it is truly great. I hope and expect a call from the dealer principle tomorrow. Best regards, Marcus.

Hi, I wondered if anyone could confirm the sat nav version number my new model April 2005 GS430 should have been supplied with and also the latest version that is out now. Thanks. Marcus.

Hi, I just picked up a new model GS430 Saturday. I have previously had three GS300's, one mark1 and two mark 2s (the last two both new, the last one a satnav / Levinson model). The new GS430 is a significant improvement on an already good model. Apart from the wealth of new technology, it looks great and drives / handles amazingly, especially with the sport suspension and power switches set. I took it to one of my favourite twisties today - it corners amazingly (I am also a K1200s motorcycle rider so am used to pressing on), it is almost flat through the bends and the feel is great. It is much, much better than I was expecting. If you want to cruise at low or high speed it is almost silent and the radar cruise control is an excellent piece of kit for de-stressing. I would wholly recommend buying one although suggest a used demonstrator to save money - I saved nearly £9K over new. Best regards, Marcus.

Thanks all. In terms of shipping and import costs (import tax, GST - like VAT and luxury car tax) I understand these and am happy with them (well as happy as you can be!). Total cost of my UK car, plus import costs should still leave me with a car I know and that is cheaper than buying the equivalent there. Lexus Perth wants $AUD54000 plus stamp duty for a 2003, which equates to about £24000 UK for a 50K miler with no satnav. I reckon I can take my own for £19000 inclusive of buying the car off lease and all other import costs. I'm really looking for experience or tips in relation to the Perth dealer, Lexus Australia, servicing imports, type approval modifications and costs associated with this, plus any issues with subsequently selling an import in Australia. One thing I do know is that European car parts (Audi / Merc etc) cost far more than Japanese or Australian cars there, but the GS300 is both Japanese and pretty common, so I cannot see how that would be a problem. I also trust that I can change the satnav DVD to an Australian disc. Cheers, Marcus.

Hi, I will shortly be emigrating to Perth and I am planning to take my 2003 GS300 SE satnav / levinson with me. I wondered if anyone on the forum had done anything similiar or knows anyone that has done and had any experiences they could share? Taxation for imports is quite complicated and I have made a calculation that I'm happy with...but I'd be intrested if anyone has experience or tips in relation to the Perth dealer, Lexus Australia, servicing imports, type approval modifications, costs, selling the car in Australia etc etc. Many thanks in advance for your help. Best regards, Marcus.

Thanks, I know what you mean about the brake pad squeak, but they have only just been changed. It has done it consistently since new (38K miles). Cheers, Marcus.