autiger71

The dealer said that my ES350 with all the options (UL etc.) would be here in a couple of weeks. Do any of you have any words of wisdom as to what to inspect prior to paying for the car? I intend to make a checklist for most of the obvious things. I have never owned a Lexus and would appreciate any suggestions. Thanks in advance.

ES350Bob

If I had it to do over again to avoid the issues I have here is what I would do before accepting delivery.

Ask to cold start the car with the engine stone cold and then drive right away to be sure it does not have a valve problem you will hear as a diesel engine knocking tapping noise in the car as you drive until the car reaches hot, this noise will last for the first 5 to 7 miles if you have it, not to be confused with any cold engine noise that may be normal which lasts under a minute. If it has this, do NOT accept the car as it will mean you will need a valve job requiring shims be added to the valves to get rid of it.

Drive the car up to at least 65 mph to be sure you do not have a wind noise issue as many of us do that you will start to notice at 45 mph or so coming from around the windows at head/ear level.

Ask that you be able to check the wipers on high to see if they rock the car back and forth due to them and the suspension. You can start to experience this, though not as pronounced as with rain, with repeated misting feature with wipers on high but absent rain, use a garden hose aimed at the windshield and see if it rocks, if it does you WILL feel this same feeling when driving the car down the road in a rain, when at stop lights, signs and drive throughs in a rain.

As for the transmission you will likely have to wait for it to surface, though when cold started and driven any slipping with spiking RPM is a first sign though not the only sign as it wil slip when hot too.

Kaius88

i dont know why.... Both times when I took delivery of my ES350, the dealer never offered a final test run. Believe me, it's very difficult to do a thorough inspection when you're really excited about the car. My dealer told me to please examine every inch of the exterior for blemishes before i drive off, and I kept getting distracted. I can't really make any suggestions on what to inspect in terms of performance or internal functions, but i have a few suggestions for exterior stuff:

1) The hood.... make sure the hood is aligned flat relative to the left and right fender panel. Some times the alignment can be slightly off, and it's easily adjustable by dealer.

2) Bumper. Make sure the bumper is installed tightly and seamlessly against the car body. I dont think my bumper is flush enough against the body, and i'll have them correct it at 5000 miles service.

3) Check the roof glass for scratches if you have a UL.

4) Check the tires to see if it looks over/under inflated.

Thats what i would look out for on the outsider. Congrats on ordering your new ride.

MD350

All of the above are very good points. I was just going to add to ALWAYS test drive the exact auto you are going to buy. Some people test drive the demo, but never drive the actual unit they are buying. Some dealers may let you take it home for the night and give it a good run before you sign the papers. This rule is good not only on the ES, but for any car purchase.

wanderer99

Kaius and Bob pretty much have it covered. I'd start it from cold while inside the vehicle and listen to the engine sound and see if you're happy with it first. I'd then take it for a drive and see if the wind noise is apparent at the speeds mentioned above. The trans should shift gears very smoothly. If something even remotely seems amiss at the delivery, it will only bug you more once you drive the car daily.

My trans was super smooth to begin with - smoother than the demonstrator actually as I drove that back-to-back when reproducing my wind noise. The trans problem is something that can come on over time. My issues started to come on at 4,000kms.

If you're confused about the Wind noise being there or not, I recommend you test drive an RX a day or so ahead of delivery and notice how there is no wind leakage or sound coming from the side windows at speed. I've driven multiple RX loaners now, and their windows are vault like. If your delivered ES then sounds the same (ie silent) at the same speeds, then you know you're problem free in that regard. If you're ES does have some wind noise, I can only tell you two things: it will probably get worse over time, and Lexus has no fix for this right now.

dreyfus

Also do a generic inside and outside search for defects or blemishes. Make sure the fit and finish of all the wood & plastic & leather is as it should be. I found a pea-sized divot in my front bumper that the dealer took care of later by pulling, repairing and repainting the entire bumber, including the underside damage that my wife did two weeks after delivery.

You should turn on the radio and every other accessory just to ensure they function. This means seat positions, lights, wipers, etc.

I also had the dealer show me around the engine compartment just to see where things were.

Finally, check the trunk to make sure the spare, jack, first aid kit, and tools are all present and accounted for.

dshahs420

Make sure you pick it up at high noon, bring a flashlight with you and inspect paint, rims and headlights for scratches or cracks. Make sure you tell the salesperson that you and him are going on a extended test drive, turn the radio off and tell him to shut up and follow your intuition! What you want to make sure is that the behavior of the engine is to your liking because everything else is readily replaceable by warranty. Pay very close attention to the wind noise! Make sure you drive it on the highway! You can also tell the salesperson that you want to testdrive it alone and give you an hour for the testdrive! If he balks then you walk!

pagemaster

If you have a really good, honest dealer than you shouldn't have any problems. Their pre delivery inspection should catch and cover any early issues. I watched how a Toyota dealer inspected my Tundra for about 2 hrs in the garage bay before they gave me the keys. I saw them go over everything.

I did noticed that the centre console on the ES350 at the dealer is a little weak and had some slightly misaligned wood trim pieces. The wood trim in the other ES350 at the dealer had the same misalignment.

The mirror issues is a sign flaw according to some publications. Lexus right now is coming up with a solution for the problem.

The real issues that you should be watching for are the first year model bugs like the mirrors.