Da Hapa

Was anyone else really disappointed with this year's Taste of Lexus event?

My wife and I have been to five of these now and both of us thought this event was by far the worst.

It was crowded, poorly laid out, and the new "reservation" system blew.

I know these events cost money, I know that you end up with a lot of looky loo's who are there for free food and nothing else but if these events are going to be like this going forward, this will have been our last event.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

man, must be you, i think this is one of the best. my review is in the car chat forum. the new reservation system is brilliant so no one has to be out there in the sun waiting for an hour to drive a car. you just go line up when it's your turn.

a lot of people for sure, but some people lined up last year for 1 1/2 hr to drive the ls460. this year they had to "wait" long, maybe, but only line up for 10 mins i guess

sportsfan8

It was my first time going to the Taste of Lexus and I thought it was pretty fun. I figured it would get crowded and hot around noon so I reserved it at 10am and did everything in about an hour. Got to test drive both the LS and GS hybrids. All in all, I give it a thumbs up and will return again.

AM1

iTrader: (6)

man even when its free people whine and complain. the idea behind the reservation system was cool but i didnt like how there were times when all cars slots were full. luckily during that time they just said go to the front of the line. we didnt sample the food since we were busy driving the cars but from what i heard in line the food was better then last years. the tracks were better and flat unlike at dodger stadium last year where they werent all flat. and the best part was we got to abuse the cars and they didnt get mad at us for doing it. overall for a free event not bad.

mole

iTrader: (3)

Hey De Hapa,

I know what you mean, it's kind of a toss up, the food wasnt as good, but the reservation system made it more doable to not have to stand inline, but created alot dead time. I think they should allow people to make at least a couple of appointments as long as they are 30 minutes apart so there isnt so much dead time.

I would have had a better time if I would have brought someone else to go with. Next year, I'll find someone who is a little more worthy of bringing and who will appreciate the day more.

All in all, I'll enjoy myself at any Lexus event that offers food, education, mingling and a chance to race new cars around a track.

RA40

iTrader: (6)

We were in-out of cars in nothing flat. I liked the reservation system as it promoted specific timing for people in groups of supposedly 15 per hour. If you finished the drive faster, it just enabled more to drive. By the time we left at 10:30, there were lines of about 6-8 deep for certain cars. What bugged me were those who went "Duh" at the kiosk's when arranging appointments. About 1-2 more of those kiosks per section would have been nice, that is where I got the first line of 2-4.

Food...ok and an obvious change from last year. Look at all the moochers last year...I didn't like that. Just shows the greed of people and I saw lots of wasted food at TOL 2006.

I lost count of drives:
LS600HL -6
GS 450H -3
GS350 -2
IS350 -4
RX400H -1
ES350 -1

Obviously Lexus/Toyota will continue to refine these events so that people will be happy. This was IMO the best drive course layout I can recall in the 4 events we've attended at El Toro.

I thought the crowds dramatically less this year but at 9:00 it didn't have any hangovers from previous time slots...so it was easy. A completely pleasant experience.

Ramon

I initially had the same reaction that the reservation system sucked, but after further analysis, it was pretty good. I drove three cars at this years event, the same number of cars as I did at last years and I was there for roughly the same amount of time, so basically the reservation system allowed me to do just as much driving as last year, while also giving me the chance to go check out some of the other things the event had to offer instead of wasting that time waiting in the lines.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

mike, we left around noon and there were a lot more people. but good thing was most people were walking around and enjoying, rather than staying in line under the hot sun. that alone is a bit thumbup already

ramon, too bad i couldn't meet with you on sat!!!!! would love to see you in person!

they definitely have a lot of ls600hl, that's great. i wonder if they would be split in half away for trips this year?

gsrthomas

iTrader: (1)

Its a FREE event why complain?? No one forced you to go. I hate when people complain about stuff when its FREE.

Overall I think the event was good. Next year I will probably try to get there a bit earlier because I showed up at around 12 and it was packed by then.

CrazyTrain

This was also my first TOL. I had a great time and really appreciated the FREE opportunity to drive vehicles I normally wouldn't get to test drive. The food was great and the smart card reservation system was perfect since I rarely had more than 15min of down time. I must say, the LS600hL was near perfection! Hats off to Lexus!

Da Hapa

I'm sorry, I thought this was an open forum where we were free to discuss all matters Lexus that pertain to the S. CA crowd.

I posted my negative comments because my feelings about this year's event was negative. Nothing more, nothing less. You don't agree, post that. But criticizing me because you think I shouldn't make negative comments is counter-intuitive to the whole reason this forum exists.

Da Hapa

Part of our experience this year might have been skewed by the fact that our reservation wasn't until 3pm on Sat. afternoon. The last four of these we've been to, we've been lucky enough to schedule our reservations at or near the opening time on Sat or Sun. morning. This year seemed very crowded to us.

We've never thought waiting in line was a big deal (which again might be skewed by the different times this year). In fact, I always thought it was a good idea to have people actually have to wait for the cars they really want to drive.

Ramon

Yeah, it would have been nice to meet some of the the southern CA CLers in person at the event. I found myself looking around and thinking "I wonder how many of these guys are from CL?"

Perhaps next year or at an upcoming meet. I must admit, I've been pretty bad at attending the meets. I've had my 2IS for nearly 2 years now and have only been to one, and that was setup by the myis guys. I just wish one would be organized on a Saturday instead of Sunday or on weekdays.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

i agree, the reservation time was probably the reason. from 9 to 11 it was pretty ok everywhere, but as soon as it hit noon time, tons of people come in for lunch and driving, and it got pretty crowded

rominl

iTrader: (4)

yeah i thought you would go to the santa anitia one in 2 weeks (closer to you), i was about to see if we can meet there. but there are chances for sure i have yet to take up your offer to check out your exec package