static

Keys- Scratches on the door, Steering column scratched up, noise from dangling junk, fumbling in the dark for the right one...

FOB- OK, It's kinda big, but it's in my pocket.

I'll take a big fat FOB any day.

tnedator

You are completely wrong here. It is very practical, especially for woman. I am a guy, so I typically keep my keys in my pocket (unless it is winter and then my coat pocket), so I can see what you mean about how it would be nice to have a place to 'put' the keys.

However, for my wife the keyless start is awesome. We actually have her key fob attached to her purse in a semi-permanent manner (too hard to explain, but to quickly get the fob out, she slides it off the metal key). She walks up to the car with purse in hand, unlocks it by pulling on the handle, gets in and starts it, without ever having to take a key out of her purse.

So, it might not be of any practical value to YOU, but that doesn't mean it has no practical value.

LexBob2

Using this rational, couldn't one say the keyless entry feature, which you like, also is a pure gee whiz play and affectation??

I'm getting off of my soapbox now.

Kaius88

Ok... im too lazy to read the NY review, but i sure hope it has comments about the keyless start because my next comment is related to this keyless debate and i hope that it also relates to the topic of the thread....

The keyless start is not a geez whiz useless feature. It is really useful especially in the dark or if you are in a hurry. Trust me, when you are really panicked (for whatever reason), sticking a key inside the ignition keyhole is quite a challenge. This whole keyless feature was one things that impressed me most. I hate fumbling with my keys. I hope the home securty industry is taking notes because having my house front door open the same way would be GREAT. I guess in the end, to each his own.

e-Mel

We don't need no stinking keys!

RobF350

if it DID NOT have the keyless ignition we would be screaming bloody murder as to why they cant get with the times and have the smart key system

BobBass

TOUCHE!

LexFather

Some things I thought were gimmiks
1. Nav...since I know ATL like the back of my hand but my goodness, when you are out of town, NAV for the win!!!!
2. RX power door. I thought this was useless until I had a loaner and my hands were full from the mall and it was raining...instead of having to put the bags down and get them wet, I hit the button and VIOLA!!! Comes in handy!
3. Keyless Fob. I thought this was ridiculous until my hands were full with getting food and I needed to open the door and I walked right up to the IS and VIOLA, open sesame...hop in, press a button and wham, I'm gone.

Call me convinced!

dreyfus

Just this week here in Raleigh, a mother stopped at a gas station with her 3 year old. She filled up and then went into the gas station, leaving her kid and the keys in the car. A thief then jumped into the car and tore out of the station.

An amber alert was immediately issued and every police unit in the city dropped everything they were doing to find the car. It was found abandoned several miles away in a McDonalds parking lot with the baby unharmed. Apparently the thief didn't realize there was a baby in the back until after he took off. Not wanting face kidnapping charges and knowing that the car's information was being broadcast all over the area, he probably ditched the car as soon as possible.

The point of this story? The mother had keys in the ignition which she forgot to take out. If she had an ES350 her fob would have been in her pocketbook with her in the gas station. No stolen car. Keyless start is a good thing.

Now forget about posting what an incompetent mother she was for leaving her baby in the car in the first place. We ALL KNOW that you NEVER leave children unattended in a car even for a moment. There's nothing to discuss there.

But if she had keyless start there would never have been all this drama.

PsychDoc

So let me see if I can think of an analagous situation (LOL).

A mother was deciding what type of knives to buy. She was going to use them to do some knife throwing with her kid as the target. Luckily for her she chose the knives that were dull because one of them missed and hit her kid. Now, had it been a sharp, pointy knife we could 86 one unlucky kid. As it was, he was perfectly all right.

Moral of the story?

When you have a choice of dull knives or sharp ones, choose the dull ones.

And, oh yes, that mother is an idiot who should have her kids taken away from her.

Sickwitit

That's providing she turned the car off and before exiting with her key fob, another problem with this is that if your car is started the car can be driven without the key fob being present if this is not the case with the key fob I stand corrected.

15951

Uh...huh? Anyway, if you think keyless start is a "dull knife" here are some other ideas:

- Put the key fob on a rope around your neck. Fobs will quickly become status symbols, and you'll begin to see bigger and bigger fobs and various gold plating.

- Buy baggy pants so you don't get those annoying "is that a fob in your pocket" comments all day.

- Make a key twisting motion as you press the "start" button each day, to keep in touch with yesteryear.

yon

Wow, cramped? Sorry, don't quite get you there. I had an ES350 loaner for two weeks in December, and I really didn't see interior room as a differentiator. The GS and ES feel like exactly the same size car to me.

I will grant you that the trunk in the GS is slightly smaller, but the big issue is the size and shape of the opening. You will definitely run into trouble with oversized items, but for me that's been few and far between, and otherwise I have not found the trunk to be any more of a space liability than any of my previous ES's. And these days I've got a toddler and infant on the packing list (which adds lots and lots of bulky "child support" items like strollers, pack-and-plays, special food and/or eating implements, etc. etc.)!