CT200NI

I remember in 2022 the price of fuel also spiked to all time highs, I remember reading something like 0.5% or less of the UKs oil / fuel comes from anywhere near Russia! They raised the prices just because the headlines looked like they justified it... b@stards indeed. Although I must say, even a change of government here in the UK won't make much difference. Unless they drastically cut the high taxes they put on fuel sales. But then again, if Labour got in tomorrow, they'd need to up said taxes to build all those miracle schools, hospitals and George Floyd statues they promise. So either way, the tax payer loses. The green advocates are also pressuring the governments into increased taxes and charges on oil products, which, annoyingly, the government is all too keen to do. Although the rich will still pay the obscene prices to fill up their Lambo's and pay the ULEZ charges without knowing how much it costs... and us poor will still have to take the kids to school and drive to work, sacrificing other life expenses just to be able to do it... and yet, the planet still suffers, right? ... Money is a weird one. In my local area... I'm one pending cycle lane (probably never to be built) away from scrapping car ownership altogether. Fuel prices... insurance rises... forced EV adoption around the corner. Part of me wonders, is that what the elite want us normies to do?

I'm not surprised, people were saying this 1, 2, 3 years ago and all they got back on Facebook or forums was smart comments from owners or excited EV fans making sly remarks. And I get that there are some annoying snarky folks who are overly anti-EV too, arguably deserving said remarks. I can't afford one, nor can anyone in my immediate circles. Those who do have the nicer cars are spending their money on 3 year old BMWs and Mercs, not an electric Corsa for the same money... Some of the people I've spoken to at work (usually managers / older folks more advanced in their careers) got them through work and initially, had a honeymoon period of 'this is the best car I've ever owned, I'll never drive an engine car again'. And have also all since been caught short, had issues and a hard time resolving them via the dealer and the final straw for most, work recently had to start charging a cost for EV charging which for years, was a niche, free thing - demand for spaces and electricity is too high even with a modest uptake of EV ownership. Now, most of the same people say: never again. I only had a short test drive in a Tesla, for an hour, with some friends. It's one hell of a fun car. I don't see them going away or getting worse. I think the government, and car companies, are learning a very hard lesson about reality, in the only way they ever learn anything, with great expense and wasted resources. EVs are only a small fraction of the solution, for a small fraction of the population, in a small fraction of the most congested town and city centres across the country. If you're going to legislate them, legislate them THERE. Offer your big government grants only to those who otherwise can't afford anything than an old banger.... what? You can't do that? But wait, you said it was a climate 'emergency', so why not pull out all the stops? ... This isn't China or any other regime. People aren't stupid enough to believe the governments lies. We are able to look at the facts for ourselves and see the bigger picture. We can ask questions and the tiptoeing around them or outright 'laugh in your face for not understanding EVs' had led to this. And I'm not ripping on people from China, it's not their fault they are denied access to freedom of information, thought or choice. Frankly, any statistic from the CCP should be taken with a grain of salt, and even if it is true, it's only because they're decided for millions of people it to be true, cars are no exception. It's a sad factor that us, in the UK and beyond, are contributing towards its parasitic EV influx by buying lousy 'MG' motors and their other TikTok-esque brands flooding the market, shame on us for that.

Speaking solely for myself, I'm 28 and have just been given a fairly high spec new 'Vauxhall Grandland' crossover thing as a courtesy car. This only reaffirms to me that unless it's a proper, stable, large 4x4 like car - I don't want it. I drove a relatives old Vauxhall Zafira and later, Peugeot 2008 (before they got ultra stylish) and this is every bit the same car underneath, a big, empty space, van with more stylishly rounded edges, and it handles that way too. I have no interested in these 'crossovers', they are just modernised people carriers to me. Perhaps Lexus and some of the more premium / more expensive brands drive better? (Scored out more expensive, because this Vauxhall monstrosity cost the same as a Lexus UX!) Toyota going for the 'crossover styling' makes sense to me even with the Aygo 'X' and the Yaris 'Cross' / Lexus LBX. The closer they can keep it to a hatchback / lower and better handling, the happier I'll be. Cars can be 'normal cars' and still easy to get into, look at city cars with tall profiles like the Fiat Panda etc, those are very easy to get into and favoured by older people. Equally (more so in mainland Europe) young people don't see the stigma of them being old people cars as much, they're used / appreciated as flexible young family cars too on a shoestring budget. All of this SUV styling and 'crossover' stuff other than for the Motability scheme buyers who probably genuinely do appreciate the space and the ride height, I think is more the mainstream car makers forcing it on us all, because there's simply no other way to hide the batteries in the EV powertrain configurations elegantly. Now that the CT is gone and not being replaced, the LBX is probably the next model for me to graduate to down the line. If it's closer to a hatchback than a crossover / MPV, I'm happy with that. I hope it sells. Although I know a couple of people I know who drove and loved various regular Yaris models over the last 20 years test drove the Yaris Cross, only to go for a Corolla in the end up as it drove noticeably better / more refined. I wonder if the Lexus refinement solves that (albeit, at a cost)

I would definitely call them and tell them the fitted part is missing a detail. If they tell you 'some of them look like that', first, ask their name (full name) and ask them to put that in writing. If they refuse, ask for their complaints contact info. Was it recent? And if so, did you pay by credit card? If so, go to the bank if they don't play ball (if they fail to respond to you within two weeks, is reasonable). Sadly, even in the first world, we still have to put up with crap parts, crap service and failures.

I presume the Polo is the same as what I'm about to say, but one of my friends mum's has one of the latest shaped Fiesta's. A 3-door, sunroof, heated seats, CarPlay and the ambient lighting etc, high spec. Shutting the door, even gently, gives a massive metal twanging sound! Apparently, it's no mistake. Ford have consciously removed some of the unseen sound deadening and 'quality of drive' factors to cut the production cost down and try to compete with the wave of high-spec, modern looking alternatives from the South Korean's that dominated the last decade of UK car sales. I can only guess VW have done the same to stay competitive. Coincidentally, the inspector guy for the claims company had a Polo GTI, latest shape. Although much more 'modern' and better spec than my CT, my eyes were drawn to all the rough plastics everywhere surrounding the little fancy inserts of the GTI. It had a similar all screen instrument cluster, very similar to this Vauxhall Grandland actually. But sitting back in the CT is an infinitely nicer place to be. It's funny because, for years, I looked at ads online for used CTs and never was fussed on the interior layout or anything, but the first time I sat in one - right after testing a modern Corolla - I was smitten with the comfort and the relaxing aspect of it. The red glow of the instrument cluster in 'Sport' mode, is as much 'sport' as I want in my car. The fake stick on plastic body mouldings, fake carbon fibre pattern and 'flappy paddles' can go to hell! lol

So, after having a motorbike guy drive into the back of my 2017 CT I've just been told I'm not at fault according to the claims teams of my insurer and a claim management company. Therefore, they've commissioned the repairs and given me a courtesy car. I asked for an auto (like the Lexus). This is what they gave me... A 2023 Vauxhall Grandland 'Ultimate', 1.2 turbo petrol (never a good thing) with a clunky old automatic gearbox. In terms of features, it has everything. Heated steering wheel, radar cruise, LED matrix lights and such. On paper, it's a superb car with a tonne of features. In practice, it's not nice to live with. Maybe I'm too used to the CT and Hybrids in general, prior to my CT I never really had an auto so I presumed even a 'bad auto' was better than changing gears. I think I was wrong. This thing is choppy, leans around corners, engine doesn't know what to do nor does the gearbox. In stop and go traffic, it literally stomps on the brakes to shut the engine off for 'start stop', then takes about half a second for it to come back on and get into gear. The power transfers going on can be felt through the car noticeably up until around 30mph. The worst bit, the cost. You'd think a high spec Vauxhall fake jeep thing would be around 20k, then close to 30k for a top spec auto, right? Wrong. It's 31k for the basic model, a whopping 37k for this one as configured!!!!!! Who is paying for this? Other than hire companies and Motability buyers. I checked, you can configure a brand new Lexus UX crossover with a similarly high spec (heated steering wheel and the likes) for the price of this thing. With the smooth, electric drive. 70 more horsepower. No doubt zero or close to zero rough plastic trim pieces and ergonomically designed seats... The new car market is confusing. Choose wrong, and for the same money, you're getting a much worse experience 😕 The MPG is also not great, turns out, a tiny little 1.2 with a big turbo struggles. Despite what it does in lab testing. My Lexus isn't being picked up until Monday - so it's been sitting since Friday. The engineer said the sharp edge made it not roadworthy in case someone got hurt walking by it. It'll easily be this week for it to be repaired. I miss it already. Drove the Grandland 140 miles yesterday and I was wrecked after. Even in the old and newer Fiat Panda's I've owned, my back wasn't as sore after a long drive - and those cars couldn't drive themselves like this one virtually does.

I'm glad peoples experience with Hyundai / Kia have generally been more positive than mine. But the way the dealer network / warranty has massively let down owners within my close circles multiple times, shocks going on an i30N which only had 3 years of hardly harsh driving, high pressure fuel pump going within warranty period (definitely not a consumable part) and them leaving him out of pocket etc, I'm just totally off the brand. In terms of Hybrid / EVs, I hear they are second to Toyota / Lexus in Hybrids, and one of the leaders in the brave new EV world. For all I know, the Hybrids may be as reliable as the ones we love, and the EVs as reliable as they come. They're coming out with some original designs now too, finally, which is good. Personally they're not for me though. As for MG, even if it wasn't for some of the glaring issues in quality, copying design, lack of craftsmanship, the fact they're CCP owned means even if they cure deadly diseases, I wouldn't touch them with a ten foot barge pole.

I'll never buy one. I'd sooner quit driving, and pick up an electric bicycle and then 'hire a car' from Enterprise for road trips once a month.. It's a poor, poor personal financial investment. Sure enough, if an engine was 'one sealed unit', which when damaged or goes wrong, was a £12,000+ single cost replacement option, so would any other 'normal car', even cheap ones. Then there's the whole... if the power station isn't using clean energy, then is your EV any greener? Only advantage is cleaner air around it. But that's all good and well if the whole queue of traffic inner-city are all EV's, cleaner air, but that one old beat up VW Passat, with the black suit all around its exhaust pumping out diesel fumes will still ruin everybody's experience and pollute the air. Thankfully, the car companies and even governments are rolling back on their extremist plans to switch entire company strategies and legislation over to 'EV' forced ownership so soon, hopefully forever. Turns out, a lot of them had to lose a lot of money from their own pockets in missed sales projections and owner backlash before they cared - who'd have thought?! Hyundai / Kia are an AWFUL brand. Don't be fooled. Sure, they are getting drastically better with each generation, but the quality in their engineering is lacking and despite making cars that look modern, have all the amenities (for a lower cost!) and surface level look and feel fine to use, they fall apart within the warranty period. And that '7 year warranty' doesn't cover even half of what your average Ford / VW / Toyota new car warranty covers. All a marketing ploy. Avoid like the plague. The only thing worse is the modern 'MG' and the likes, who in comparison, make Hyundai look like Lexus! Deep breath..

Just took a look, £366 it came to. Postate to NI was £17. Service Kit (Complete) was £213 - 5L genuine oil, oil filter, sump plug washer, air filter, pollen filter, spark plugs, 7L of coolant Transmission Fluid £44 Various Drain Plugs around £14 Brake Fluid £6 New wipers front and rear / genuine £42 Paint touch up kit £9 Air con cleaner £12 Fuel system cleaner £12 So that pretty much covered all the service items (and some that the Lexus services don't, like gearbox fluid. In my eyes, the car is set right now to pick up from the schedule with the minor / majors Unfortunately no link, but I'll tell you how I know. Where I live there's a 1.5 hour drive to Belfast for the only genuine Lexus dealer in Northern Ireland, part of the UK network of course where I live. There's another dealership just across the border in the Republic of Ireland, a Toyota / Lexus split dealer complete with the Lexus showroom and all. I was passing it on a trip one day, stopped in and enquired about their prices. They work out around £25 cheaper for both services after converting it from Euro. I explained to the service advisor there that I'd serviced it (as above) and was checking that there would be no issues in terms of having it serviced in another country. It was then he said that I didn't have to put it in for a full service since I do the work on my own, he said an oil change with them would be enough to trigger the Relax Warranty. Of course, it's not in writing and I'd have to hope he or someone else agrees. My plan was, nearer the time (around summer when it's been 6 months since my servicing) to contact Lexus Belfast and *hopefully* have them confirm / agree that it's possible. There's a very real chance they won't agree, however then I'll call Lexus themselves and see what they say. Only downside of going to Lexus in ROI, is that if I needed to make a claim under the Relax Warranty, I'd of course, have to do it via them. They're only a 40 minute drive right enough. The only other Lexus dealer to 'dispute' things with down there is in Galway... a near 4 hour drive! Although even with Belfast (in the UK network) I suppose there's still no other drivable Lexus dealer here for me to get a second opinion on any issue. The consumer protections in ROI will be different too. I'm familiar with our Consumer Rights Act etc here, and unfortunately have had to send letters in accordance with that over the last 9 years when dealing with the motor trade (mostly to help family members) before getting results. I always act now in such a way that I think I'd have a back up plan should I get a difficult or lying technician / service advisor. I have high hopes that Lexus will be above such cheap and nasty tricks, but only time will tell..

Make sure you count the 21 days as a 'full policy term, with no claims made' no claims bonus. Get them back at their own game, those annoying insurers..

Check it regularly so you can get a feel for it going down, how fast it's going down etc. Unless you're checking it on a hill (as said above), if the car is older could be perishing seals in a number of places with a fairly costly job to get it fixed due to all the things that usually need to come apart. If it's a newer car, it could be something that needs fixing under warranty. Bought a two year old Fiat Panda in 2019 and noticed a lot of wet spots under the engine, turned out it needed some sot of big seal replaced. Done under warranty, no arguing (rare for a Fiat dealer!). Perhaps something like that is why it's dropping?

When I discussed one with my local dealer prior to getting my used 2017 CT, which had patchy service history, they insisted in sticking with the major/minor schedule as if the car had been serviced according to schedule from new. When I started asking about having particular things done to bring it 'up to speed' with the schedule, they didn't want to quote it, said 'just mention on the day'. Not falling for that one, to be told the parts are out of stock and/or they don't have the time... or some obscene add on cost on the day. Ended up doing it all myself, £400 ish from Lexus Direct Parts. Turns out... you only need to do an oil change at the dealer for the 'Relax Warranty', so at most, that's what I'll book it in for each year saving most of the £285 and a LOT of the £505

Just getting around to seeing this now. That's very interesting to read the procedure. I had it done at Lexus Belfast, £70 despite the app saying £50... Next time, I'll book via the app and kick off if they try to charge £70 online. Same issue with the local Toyota dealer here, doing various fluid changes for £75 where the app states £50. Paid it once, then the second time contacted Toyota who, after that, the dealer honoured the price. They ended up not bothering to change the (gearbox oil) in that case, and ultimately the franchise had to refund me for the work... did it myself. one of those, over pay, or they find some other way to shaft you... Hopefully Lexus (with it's usual clientele) are above such tricks

In the past, Axa did honour a 'genuine' part for my Avensis after Autoglass messed up the aftermarket replacement. Whether this was the technicians fault or a bad quality part I can't say for sure. But should that happen on the CT, I suppose I could ask for the same solution

An AutoGlass guy came out to repair it. He was quite friendly and we were chatting as he fixed it. He gave me a bit more faith in the brand / its work. He also confirmed as my car doesn't have the ADAS stuff that my old Avensis had, even a replacement wouldn't mean I need to take it to their centre - which is a plus. He told me what to look out for in terms of a lousy job - not removing the wipers, the scuttle trim etc which he reckons is a corner they'd never cut. He also basically said that because of their guarantee, if they were fitting 'crap' glass, it would only end up accumulating as a cost to them in terms of constantly replacing and re-doing the jobs so he thinks that their part quality is going to be high quality. He said he understood my want to keep the car 100% manufacturer parts, even at my own expense, as the stuff procured by the car makers is always the highest quality / most stringently quality controlled panels produced. Then, the rest will go to the various aftermarket brands. To me, it sounded like how computer processors are made, where the slightly more perfectly formed chips can perform better than the outer ones, though the outer ones still are fine, just becoming the more mid-spec ones. But he gave me the thought that, even if I paid out of pocket today for a Lexus windscreen and had it fitted perfectly, there is quite a high chance (certainly no guarantee or way to 'avoid') another chip or crack happening the next day, the next week... even say, the next year. And with windscreens that is incredibly common, hence why it's such a well thought out / cheap excess (if not free to repair) on every insurance policy these days. So even if I could pay more, I could end up being out of pocket more often than I'd like. It's not really like a premium tyre, which I'm sure can be reinforced and less likely to puncture by design, and then repaired multiple times before ever truly 'losing' that investment completely. Whereas even a good quality glass panel is as susceptible to a chip or crack caused by driving in the real world as such. So basically.... if I ever need a replacement. I'll probably not be so annoyed at Autoglass. And unlike in the past this guy proved to me that they're not all condescending know-it-all's that do a crap job and assert that their panels are 'better' than OEM. He was pretty rational and fair about it, and I believe what he said. Essentially, if I'm not happy with the fit, noise qualities, any condensation or even damage to the side trim (only on my Lexus not on previous cars I had) he said they'll cover it, do it again etc. If one aftermarket panel truly is crap, and causes issues, complaining (he said) is likely to just result in them doing it again. Apparently with the size and volume of work and the costs they've got it down to, they don't have to get too stingy with repairs or further replacements. I hope that is something I could, in theory, depend on should I have issues. The next time it chips, I think it will be a replacement in any case. It was a big U-turn in my thinking, and a positive one. On top of that, glad to hear that you guys all had good experiences for the most part too.

Must be because you’re through Toyota. so, I called Lexus Motors Insurance today. They told me yes, it excludes ‘genuine glass parts’. HOWEVER, for an excess of £200, they WILL fit genuine glass. question is … should I go from £600 a year to £1500 a year. Theoretically, in any accident, it’d pay for itself since a genuine Lexus repair job of any scale would likely be in the thousands. Thinking .. panels, wiring, modules, sensors, painting … etc. even one windscreen must be near £1,000 to buy from Lexus since they etch the vin number into them etc, so one of them every two years might make it worth it. At least to people with my mindset, who cares about such details (maybe a little too much) I have until July to decide. Autoglass are coming out to ‘repair’ tomorrow. If they can’t.. I might strengthen it myself and hold off until potentially having Lexus insurance come late 2024… pay the excess for a proper part.

I suppose. Better things in life to worry about. I am guilty of taking these things hard when it comes to the car. I suppose my biggest concern is it'll be noisy and poor quality making the car worse to live with. I will post whatever happens next 🙂

Thanks for the replies. I know Lexus don’t operate a glass factory anywhere. However, they do have somebody product glass with their etchings on it ordered through its part network - that’s what I’m referring to. I do understand what you mean. from previous experience on an Avensis, the no name glass that Autoglass fitted was very poor, you could see distortions through it and it was poorly fitted (top was a centimetre too high) and condensation was occurring due to the bad fit. I genuinely believe it was the lack of quality of the part itself as from speaking to the Autoglass guy, he knew I had high expectations of the job being done. as an apology, in that case, Axa did source me a Pilkington glass panel that had the acoustic logo mark on it and was very much ‘Toyota approved’ as the originals had Pilkington despite not having Toyota on it. Same story of Toyota not making glass, but this part coming through its network, fitted perfectly and was back to being quiet. I can only imagine the quietness will he even worse coming from the factory windscreen on a Lexus to an aftermarket part. I totally understand that the insurance and Autoglass both are incentivised to find the cheapest parts possible that ‘do the job’. And that to most people they’d not notice or care about things as noise, or a flush fit. but this poor experience in the past is why I’m so disappointed at the prospect of a no name panel being used. If not now, then next time a stone chip strikes and inevitably the panel needs replacing 😞

Stone chip on my Lexus CT - hopefully fixable ... unfortunately Axa insist on using Au*****ss. Refusing to source and fit a genuine Lexus part. Local dealer (Belfast) confirmed that there is no such thing as an 'OEM equivalent quality matching Lexus spec' windscreens. And that in Lexus view, the glass must be genuine with the likes of the VIN etchings etc. Plus things like the acoustic and part structural qualities that are on the originals. So the plan was... hopefully Au*****ss this time can fix the minor chip, avoiding the need for a replacement. Pass MOT in May (🤞). Then when the time comes, go for that Lexus Motor Insurance. Pricy, but they use genuine parts 100% of the time right? Wrong. Their policies look good in terms of genuine parts but they specifically exclude genuine glass. What a rip. So Lexus, on one hand, only advise genuine glass which only they can supply allegedly. But their own insurance (I know it's an underwriter / broker setup) specifically won't fit it. How does that work? Have any of you been in a similar predicament? Did you get a genuine Lexus glass piece - through insurance or out of your own pocket? Or was an aftermarket 'ok'? Curious if I'm missing a trick here. Or getting annoyed over nothing. What's the point in having nice car like a Lexus if it's going to be sabotaged mechanically with sub-par, no name or Chinese made parts that can't perform or stand up to the real world.. right?

The DS3 I had came with PS3's from the factory, that was a diesel with 120hp. I actually bought CC2's as well in 2021 - the thing couldn't go around a corner over 20mph at all with the Cross Climates, although far from a hot hatch with tonnes of power, it made a big difference. We have all four on the Mazda 2 with Cross Climate 2's bought last year, as that's fairly slow and never driven fast by my mum (her car), seemed a good one to have the all-season capability on. It's impressive what the CC2's can do in terms of ice / cold weather but definitely at the expense of even everyday handling I thought. All Michelin's are pricey, but at the same time, they pretty much outlast and wear much better /slower than any other brand it seems. The CT has relatively spotty suspension, even though it's not fast, still fun to throw into a corner so I thought Pilot Sport's would be fun on it? On my former car, a 2018 Avensis, I put four Primacy 4 S's on to it. Much better comfort, okay handling, but definitely no Pilot Sports in the corners. That wasn't a fast car or one that handled even as well as a CT, but even on that I regretted not getting the Pilot Sports. Those Primacy's cost £600 from Autodoc at the time. Primacy seems to be a touring tyre? What is the standard factory fit for the CT classed as tyre segment wise? There's one Eagle F1 on my car (along side some other el-cheapo brand) and two originals I suspect at the back which are Yokohama's but I'm not sure if that's the case. Which model Yokohama's do you fit? Do you reckon the Pilot Sports could contribute to further harshness on a CT?

Are Lexus giving this out free also?

I think this might be an automated text from your dealer you know? They have your name and the model in their database. Regular thing I'd say to plant the very seed to get you thinking..

Which Avensis did you have? I had an August 2018, one of the last. Definitely a sturdy built, safe car!

I had no idea about CMCs. What's the catch? Do they take a big cut? Or is it because you had a valuable / high spec car involved? I only ever had one claim in my first year of driving. Left the handbrake off, rolled slowly into someones new Kia Rio. They claimed £1200 out of tiny paintless repair level dents! I got no call or asked for what happened at all from my insurer at a time, just the letter telling me it was settled against me at £1200. Would a CMC have helped there?

That won't be happening. The UK is one of the most lucrative 'foreign markets' for most of the car makers of the world. If Lexus were a standalone brand without Toyota, Toyota parts and dealers network, they it might be different - and on top of that, if trends were going down in the UK, they might consider it. But as it is today, that's a far fetched idea. Lexus and the recent security issues across many brands of car, especially high end and rare cars, aren't exclusive to Lexus. Whilst they (all) need to pull the finger out and find a solution, I don't see how Lexus is any worse than Land Rover, or any other high end brand we're reading a lot of scare stories about