MM Ownership - 2021 Encore GX (initial and ongoing updates)
01-19-21, 03:40 PM
#91
Lexus Fanatic
going forward you likely won’t be able to get anything other than LED. Lots of manufacturers are all LED now. I think Toyota and Lexus Is now all LED.
01-19-21, 03:58 PM
#92
Lexus Fanatic
in all honesty, just enjoy it. I am really thrilled you got your Buick. It’s what you wanted.
My 09 Matrix the rear struts failed....we replace them for $200. All my SUVs the rear struts are still good. In contrast, My 04 4Runner the hood struts don’t work properly when the temp is near freezing. It’s why I am not against a cheap hood prop. (Which I have cars with both)
01-19-21, 04:02 PM
#93
I absolutely love the kick/hands-free liftgate feature....I use it regularly when shopping. That option is well-worth what it cost ($520). The logo-projection part on the pavement, though (where you kick your foot back and forth over it), although useful at night, is just a gimmick in the daytime.....you often can't see the logo at all to aim your foot. I've learned, in the daytime, particularly in sunlight (which washes the image out) to just kick my foot over the spot under the bumper where the logo would project if you could see it. Works fine.
One interesting question, though (and only time will tell) is, with all the use I give them, how long the gas-struts for the lift gate will last before needing to be replaced. Typically, their seals wear with time, and they become less-effective.
One interesting question, though (and only time will tell) is, with all the use I give them, how long the gas-struts for the lift gate will last before needing to be replaced. Typically, their seals wear with time, and they become less-effective.
01-19-21, 04:13 PM
#94
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
Yes, I knew you (or someone else) would bring that up, but hood props aren't automatic LOL.
Thanks. 
Liking it so far. I'm sure you are going to enjoy that new 4Runner. 
Yes, I remember you mentioning some of that before. Your vehicles, though, are subject to more extreme temperatures than with many of the rest of us. The climate of upstate NY and SE Canada is not exactly conducive to parts-longevity, even in Toyotas.
I agree with you that a manual-prop does have some (ultimate) advantages. But it can be a PITA with a large, heavy hood.
One interesting example was my 2006 Outback...which came with a lightweight aluminum hood......so lightweight that you had to be careful opening it with the wind blowing towards the rear. For 2007, Subaru did a mid-generation update, and, to save money, without restyling either the shape of the hood or the front end, changed it to a MUCH heavier steel-gauge hood, while keeping the manual-prop. The difference was dramatic.
in all honesty, just enjoy it. I am really thrilled you got your Buick. It’s what you wanted.
Liking it so far. I'm sure you are going to enjoy that new 4Runner.
My 09 Matrix the rear struts failed....we replace them for $200. All my SUVs the rear struts are still good. In contrast, My 04 4Runner the hood struts don’t work properly when the temp is near freezing. It’s why I am not against a cheap hood prop. (Which I have cars with both)
I agree with you that a manual-prop does have some (ultimate) advantages. But it can be a PITA with a large, heavy hood.
One interesting example was my 2006 Outback...which came with a lightweight aluminum hood......so lightweight that you had to be careful opening it with the wind blowing towards the rear. For 2007, Subaru did a mid-generation update, and, to save money, without restyling either the shape of the hood or the front end, changed it to a MUCH heavier steel-gauge hood, while keeping the manual-prop. The difference was dramatic.
01-19-21, 04:22 PM
#95
Lexus Fanatic
No I can say never on this with total confidence. I will never buy another vehicle with halogen headlights. In any event, no vehicle I would be interested in would have halogen headlights anyways, but I would absolutely not buy a vehicle that otherwise fit my needs just because it had halogen headlights. For instance I never considered the previous gen Highlander simply because it only had Halogen headlights.
01-19-21, 04:37 PM
#96
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
Yes, Thanks, that thought did cross my mind.....and one of my knees is already weak (but still usable) from arthritis.
01-19-21, 05:00 PM
#97
Lexus Champion
I have an 9 year old Mazda CX-9 with 96K miles and the hatch struts are no problem. Same with the 8 year old Pilot I traded in for that.
01-19-21, 06:37 PM
#98
Lexus Fanatic
01-19-21, 07:45 PM
#99
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
You'll probably find this amusing, Jill. Buick, after many decades, on their latest models, has finally dropped their long-standing trademark (fake portholes)....which, even more decades ago, replaced the real portholes for engine-cooling. I had toyed with the idea of picking up some fake ones and sticking them on the front fenders of the Encore GX myself. Then, I thought, No, I'd only make myself look silly.....the way that Maserati does on the Quattroporte, using Buick-style fake-portholes on a vehicle that is not a Buick.
Why not on the Encore GX? Well, yes, technically, it is a Buick, and has the red/white/blue Tri-Shield on the grille, steering-wheel, and lift gate. It also has a nice Buick grade interior (at least in the front seat) and the Quiet-Tuning touches. But it is not a classic Buick (deserving of portholes) in the very least, and is as far away from the Buick upmarket/luxury-sedans I grew up with as a mouse is from an elephant. Besides, Buick doesn't even put their own BUICK name on their latest vehicles any more.....they depend the Tri-Shield symbol. Sadly, there are some signs that they may not last the decade of the 2020s in the American market....but I'd be as sad to see them go as I was with Saturn.
Last edited by mmarshall; 01-19-21 at 07:50 PM.
01-20-21, 07:16 AM
#100
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
01-20-21, 09:24 AM
#101
Lexus Champion
As for the Highlander, you can get the same platform (with bolder exterior styling and less interior room) with the Lexus RX, which, at least as of 2020 (not sure about earlier models) does come with LED headlights. However, the RX's three-row version (you said, because of the kids, you wanted three rows) was not done very well...the Highlander offers a lot more usable room inside, for several reasons.
01-20-21, 11:09 AM
#102
Lexus Fanatic
As for the Highlander, you can get the same platform (with bolder exterior styling and less interior room) with the Lexus RX, which, at least as of 2020 (not sure about earlier models) does come with LED headlights. However, the RX's three-row version (you said, because of the kids, you wanted three rows) was not done very well...the Highlander offers a lot more usable room inside, for several reasons.
01-20-21, 11:50 AM
#103
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
Perhaps not surprising. If they are built on the same assembly line as the RX, it would probably be easier to produce if they all got the same lighting system.
That's one thing that I'm not sure I totally understand with the Encore GX and Trailblazer, built in the same plant....why they would stock two different headlight systems for use on essentially the same vehicle. True, LEDs cost more, but so does the complexities of purchasing and storing different hardware, for different lights, from different sub-contractors.
01-20-21, 11:51 AM
#104
Lexus Champion
01-20-21, 11:52 AM
#105
Lexus Fanatic
Right, not built on the same line, its just that HID/LED headlights are a feature buyers demand today.