cocopops

iTrader: (1)

I am not sure how's the current price are, but I think a UL car can be had for 41-low 42k OTD right now.

2007es350

My friend picked his up his UL in May for $38.8K. I picked up mine in September for $38K.

cocopops

iTrader: (1)

thats not OTD right?? with tax, title and license?? wow, in May. He really got good pricing. The ES was still new at that time. I didn't really see how low I can go with an UL model, but I think I might be able to get it at slightly above 39k.

tnedator

I did. $2k off MSRP is all the dealer would do, and where I live there are only two dealers that are less than a 5 hour drive, one is 2 hours away and the other 2 1/2, then two more around 5 1/2 hours away and another 4 that are 6 1/2 hours away. Dealer knows there is no real competition and doesn't move much.

MSRP on my wife's UL with XM installed (UL+Parking assist, spoiler, etc.) was 44,800 NOT including TTL. I have seen other posts of people paying 40k plus for UL's.

Kaius88

Lotsa people are still willing to pay near-MSRP for the UL, but the wait can be unbearable for some. It's basically becoming a limited edition of the ES350, and those who own a UL will agree that it's well worth the $40k+ price tag.

07LexusGuy

No doubt, I agree 100% - You can't get this level of refinement and technology at this price from any other manufacturer.

BTW - my car has none of the flare/engine noise issue that has been so common on this forum. I do have some wind noise but its so little even at 80mph that its not really even a problem worth mentioning. Maybe I'm just lucky?

I love my UL!!

toneman

I'd be willing to bet that those numbers are not OTD since that would mean he paid at least roughly $2K BELOW invoice...which is not possible at this time unless he happens to work for Toyota or is a relative of one who does.

In any case--even if it's not OTD, those are still great prices.

kingofire

Ummm, yes you can. The Acura RL which can be had for 44k and has more refinement. The Infiniti G35 gives you the technology but lacks in luxury but is less money. My 2004 Acura TL came with a sharkfin antenna for Satelitte radio and I didnt have any problems losing signal when in the city surrounded by tall buildings or trees, which happens frequently with mine. I didnt have a character limit either on the Nav screen. It displayed the full name of the artist. Hello its 2007 Lexus and you cant keep up with the competition? There should be no reason for Lexus to be so far behind in technology over acura. I have an ugly black square think on my trunk of a 2006 MY Lexus. That is just unacceptable when the competitors already have this technology 2 years ago!! The 2004 TL also had bluetooth that all you 2007 ES350 owners are gushing about! As much as i like my car, lexus needs to be a trendsetter and not a follower. They need to show what the mean when they say "Pursuit of Perfection" Lexus if you hear me, BE A LEADER, NOT A FOLLOWER!!!

07LexusGuy

Show me any RL or TL that came with ventilated seats, smart keyless access, auto swivel HIDs, and a panoramic roof for that price. Last I checked, these aren't even available as options. Doesn't the RL MSRP start at $45,780? That still doesn't have the above mentioned items. The only reason the RL could be had for 44K is that its sales has been doing so poor since its release that dealers are happy anyone's even buying it. So while Lexus sales are record high, Acura's are on the decline

http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/st...4408068&EDATE=

the above chart is a bit dated, but shows a nice little trend

http://www.autospies.com/news/Is-the...-say-YES-7155/

twister

We had a ton of posts about RL in here in ES and GS forums. No doubt, its a good car. But due to a slow sales and poor resale value and lack of character (it looks bland) and Acura's reliability records, its discounted to sell. BUT, are you saying you had no problem on your '04 TL with SIRIUS radio? I know there is no problem with XM due to both satellite and terrestrial repeater antennas, but I was not aware that anybody getting a "great" reception around tree area w/Sirius? This is what I absolutely hate now with my Sirius setup, great on the open road (highway, parkway, expressway, etc.) but in a small streets with lots of trees the signal gets choppy

kingofire

LOL, I dont know about the ventilated seats in the ES350, but if its anything like the ES330, it might as well come without it. As for the push button start, its only there for the "wow" factor, and its going to put the wow in your wallet if it ever fails after warranty(~3500 bucks). Auto swivel headlights, i dont see functionality of these and the panoramic roof, again its a gimmick to me. Yes the RL doesnt move much not because of its interior but its engine. Its a HEAVY car and the acceleration is just poor. I sat in both interiors of the RL and ES350 and honestly i found the RL's interior to be more refined. Lets put it this way, the RL has more wood than the ES. It also has real time traffic, which i consider true refinement because its actually has a capacity to enhance refinement. The gizmos that come in the ES350, in my eyes, are not refinement. The only reason i didnt buy acura RL was because I had a bad experience with the TL since it was a rattle box, kinda same with people who have problems with the ES350, they will be hesitant to buy another lexus. If i wanted a stud i would go with Infiniti. I went with ES330 because i wanted a smooth, soothing ride and i knew that infiniti is on the other spectrum. The M is oooohhhh so gorgeous inside out.

kingofire

The car came with XM but i wanted Sirius so I had an aftermarket one and not once did it drop reception in any situation except for a long tunnel. In this car, going under an overpass, i lose reception for a split second. Its funny that i lose reception in the city around lots of trees because there really are no leaves on the trees right now so its all branches so i shouldnt be losing so many dead spots. I wonder how bad will it be in the summer with all those leaves! Cant wait to find out! Maybe it wont be any worse, if thats true, I would be more than happy. I am just repulsed by that square thing on my trunk. All the competition had sharkfin antennas by 2004, what has lexus been doing? It took them 3 years to catch up with the sharkfin antenna??? That is utter selfishness because it all comes down to cost and toyota didnt want to increase cost and lose some profit.

LexFather

lol
Acura didn't have auto leveling headlights or adaptive headlights until the RL, no other Acura has it. Almost every Lexus has it.
Automatic parking assist, Acura does not offer
Hybrid technology in the GS and RX and LS 600L h. There is more tech in those cars than any car on the road. Acura does not offer.
Did you know the RL has a simple 4 way passenger power seat. A 50k car. My 1992 ES 300 has a 4 way passenger power seat
AAAS suspension in the GS (optional) adaptive sway bars. Acura does not offer.
Auto closing trunks. Acura does not offer.
Acura took the electroluminescent gauges from, cough cough, Lexus.
LED headlights (LS), Acura does not offer
Direct injection
Dual VVTi
Panoramic roofs on the ES and RX


That is just a small sample. Lexus is a true luxury car maker. They HAVE to offer superior technology to compete with Mercedes and BMW.

07LexusGuy

So of all the things that Acura lacks compared to Lexus (see 1SICKLEX's list), you justify that Acura is better than Lexus because it has a simple plastic sharkfin antenna that Lexus didn't have before? This is some very odd logic.

Oh yeah, how long did it take for Acura to put the rear view camera on the RL? It's been on the RX and LS for years now. I guess you can call it another "wow" factor but I think its a very useful feature especially if you have to back into a parking spot or back out of a garage onto an inclined driveway.

I'd also like to add that Lexus doesn't cheap out on the wood trim, every Lexus that comes with wood uses the real thing; not so the case with every Acura. Oh and the semi-analine leather, maybe I missed it but I didn't see that as an option on the TL or RL?

ES350Bob

Steering this back to sales of ES350.

Several times now I have seen articles where the CEO of Toyota/Lexus has gone out of his way to mention his personal concerns over quality slipping and I now see why he is keenly aware of this and preemptively mentions it repeatedly. Of course he would know better than any of us and far sooner, months prior than any of us, which of his models on the Lexus side were doing well in sales compared to others and which had significant quality issues.

From my own prior manufacturing business experience I would be extremely concerned, as he seems to be, in seeing the best selling model I have is also the one that is comparatively the most chronically problematic, the ES350. More so if there is such negative growth on so many other models on offer which seem to have the least problems in production.

And if I were him I would take all the names involved in release of the sales spreadsheet posted in the public domain and ask each and every one of them how could they permit it's release with so many obvious mathematical errors in it.