lexusk8

Happened to me one time at a Wendy's drive-thru when I had my '96 ES

Just to touch on the topic at hand, I get all kinds of compliments at my old workplace and the school I go to now. However there comes a time sometimes where I wish I was driving an old school beater just to shield myself from the "spotlight"

tmf2004

iTrader: (15)

Well i have to agree with the earlier post that the Lexus is more of a driving style along with reliability and comfort... There's alot of ES's and SUV lexus around my town but not alot of GS's. Everyone i see that drives a GS is the older women or man... like 60's and 70's.. I've only seen one other younger guy driving a GS 430 working out at the Gym... His trainer told me that his parents bought it for him and they were loaded....

In anyevent people just stereotype you thinking we have money driving a GS.. I'm sure alot of us work hard to drive these cars.. Its pretty funny because when i see a Benz AMG, M3 etc.... I say to myself man thats i nice car or thats fast as hell, not realizing that most of us are sitting in at one point almost a 50 thousand dollar car when braqnd new...

sockfocks

iTrader: (1)

yeah i get that too...lol, Whats with the BMW drivers?

chuckb

I just do the same thing to them
I had some chic in a 3 series try me just the other day

spwolf

It depends where you are at. When you pull up next to the banged up Taurus, then obviously its driver is going to look at new lexus as status symbol. When you drive up next to the brand new RR, then obviously you wont be seen in same style, although they might still think "nice car".

Lil4X

RX's are relatively common now, still I get good treatment by practically everyone.

In the spring of '00, I took a new RX 300 on an extended cross-country expedition. With only a few hundred miles on the clock, I embarked on a 6800 mile, three-week trip. The biggest stares I got, as you might expect were in Wyoming, Idaho, Oregon, Washington and Utah. It wasn't because it was a Lexus - I don't think that was the issue. Back then the RX style was like nothing else on the road. Today, every small to mid-sized SUV in the US is trying to imitate it.

INHOCJP

Ha, ok, you got me there

SC400-V8

iTrader: (1)

$20/hr is a substantial hourly rate and i dont think anyone in my area makes a wage that high on an hourly basis.

O. L. T.

iTrader: (17)

Funny thread. Every site I go to all owners have a sense of pride in their cars and think they have the best car. I go to the BMW board and they are saying the same thing about their cars and it's prestige. I go to the vette forums and they are self indulged in their history and their vette badge. I go to the Porsche forum and it's all about the Porsche name, the twisties, the turbo AWD's.

My point is that it's perspective, not the car. Everyone thinks they have "the car". Driving a Lexus is not different IMO than a BMW or Porsche or Vette. All are upper level cars and all have good points.

ANYONE in a '76 mercury is going to give you the finger no matter what you drive. You may have the advantage in your 1995 Lexus GS at the stop light on market street, but go two roads over to MLK blvd and you are sitting beside an Enzo and now your the dude in the hooptie drooling at the Enzo with your saliva on the armrest.

Perspective is the key. There's always something nicer out there. Lexus is a nice, conservative car for smart people with good sense. You may be looked at as a person with taste by driving one, but noone is going to ogle your car in holy worship. While someone is staring at your car, you are too busy to notice because you are staring at something else on the other side.

So to answer the question, no. There's nothing more special about a Lexus than a BMW or Benz or Vette or Porsche when it comes to red light stares, they are all on a higher level than a gremlin so naturally the guy in the gremlin is going to look.

So you bought a car on level 2, good for you. There's plenty on higher levels ( Rolls, Bentley, Ferrari, etc.....) So in terms of the food chain, it's a nice car.......... that's about it. I love my Lex, but I don't worship it because I am not blind to the fact.

INHOCJP

Great post

e-man

Here's the other thing. Many of us are the 2nd owners of our GS's (including me). My 99 had an MSRP of about $55k when new. I paid $16,600 for it 6 months ago. Chances are that many of us paid much, much less for our cars than the pissed-off guy in the lane next to you driving a 3-year-old Ford Taurus, Pontiac Grand Prix, Dodge Intrepid, etc.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

yeah of course. 3 yrs from now i think won't think of us driving a luxury car at all time to change, haha

sockfocks

iTrader: (1)

Can you run that through the translator Spock?

mmarshall

Owning a Lexus doesn't necessarily mean you are rich, especially if you lease, which helps a lot of people get into more expensive cars than they could otherwise afford. Leasing is what basically keeps the luxury car market in buisness.

And you don't necesarily have to be rich even to buy a Lexus outright. While I am a long ways from poor, I am not a particularly rich person either, especially in my high-income DC area. .....I make just about what is per capita for my county....Fairfax County, VA. But yet I owned and drove an Lexus IS300 for years that I bought brand new for cash and my trade-in...didn't even have to finance it. A lot depends not only on your income but what your expenses and bills are.

sockfocks

iTrader: (1)

I eventually bought my GS because I had good experience with the ES I bought in 2000. At the time I was leaning toward an LS but wanted something sporty. The GS is sweet looking, really sweet when you modify it with class. I didn't buy it because it was a status symbol. I bought the GS because I wanted one. Plain and simple.