This car is perfect for Uber
05-29-20, 09:23 AM
#1
Pit Crew
Thread Starter
This car is perfect for Uber
I started driving Uber when I was out of work about four years ago. I kept it up on the weekend nights with my Acura TL since the pay was worth the cost of gas along with maintenance, repairs and depreciation. However, after 4 years and 280K miles, it was time to put the TL out to pasture. It was an excellent car. Very little ever went wrong with it. Nothing I couldn't fix myself.
I initially opted for an MDX or Highlander Hybrid. I also considered the GS. The ES never crossed my mind since I've always thought of it as a glorified Camry. But after test driving the hybrid and considering all the angles (comfort, mileage, reliability and the services I could drive such as Lux and Premier) I decided to pull the trigger. $28K for a '17 with 30K miles. More than I wanted to spend for a car I'll be destroying by putting 40K miles a year on and having crazy drunk people in an out of on the weekends. However, the gas savings, even at only $2 a gallon, is literally covering the entire monthly payment. It's crazy. I'm getting a consistent 41-43 mpg on mid-grade vs. 24-26 mpg on premium with the TL.
After three weeks I have absolutely no regrets. While it doesn't have the power and handling of the TL it (obviously) gets way better mileage. Oh, and it isn't full of rattles, which seems to be a standard feature of all Honda vehicles. Ventilated seats, better AC due to the variable electric compressor, silent at low speeds when in EV mode, seats that look like they're going to hold up much better than leather and paint that isn't razor think and fragile like Honda's. I think I prefer the seats more in the Acura. But like new shoes, I think I just need to "break in" the seat in the ES and find the right settings for driving for 12 hours straight. Oh, and the sound system in the Acura was leagues better. But with some modifications, I think I can get this one up to par
On another subject - has anyone driven this car in the snow? The TL handled great with snow tires, but it also had a 60/40 weight distribution. That big heavy V6 in the front gave the FWD a lot of traction. The 300h is about 50/50 so the front end might not get as much. But on the flip side, the back end might not break loose as much, which often happened in the TL.
I initially opted for an MDX or Highlander Hybrid. I also considered the GS. The ES never crossed my mind since I've always thought of it as a glorified Camry. But after test driving the hybrid and considering all the angles (comfort, mileage, reliability and the services I could drive such as Lux and Premier) I decided to pull the trigger. $28K for a '17 with 30K miles. More than I wanted to spend for a car I'll be destroying by putting 40K miles a year on and having crazy drunk people in an out of on the weekends. However, the gas savings, even at only $2 a gallon, is literally covering the entire monthly payment. It's crazy. I'm getting a consistent 41-43 mpg on mid-grade vs. 24-26 mpg on premium with the TL.
After three weeks I have absolutely no regrets. While it doesn't have the power and handling of the TL it (obviously) gets way better mileage. Oh, and it isn't full of rattles, which seems to be a standard feature of all Honda vehicles. Ventilated seats, better AC due to the variable electric compressor, silent at low speeds when in EV mode, seats that look like they're going to hold up much better than leather and paint that isn't razor think and fragile like Honda's. I think I prefer the seats more in the Acura. But like new shoes, I think I just need to "break in" the seat in the ES and find the right settings for driving for 12 hours straight. Oh, and the sound system in the Acura was leagues better. But with some modifications, I think I can get this one up to par
On another subject - has anyone driven this car in the snow? The TL handled great with snow tires, but it also had a 60/40 weight distribution. That big heavy V6 in the front gave the FWD a lot of traction. The 300h is about 50/50 so the front end might not get as much. But on the flip side, the back end might not break loose as much, which often happened in the TL.
Last edited by losiglow; 05-29-20 at 09:29 AM.
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chromedome (08-07-20)
05-29-20, 04:05 PM
#3
Instructor
I went through this past winter with snow tires (X-Ice3) on my ES350 and no problems. Of course, with COVID there was limited driving (especially out of town), and we did have a relatively mild winter. Having said that...I believe the OP is talking about the 300H which will have a different weight distribution. Regardless, if losiglow is driving customers into areas where there can be significant snowfall and especially if ambient temperatures can drop to below 35-40F then winter tires are highly recommended. They have a softer tread compound that does not harden up as much as does 'all-weather" or "all-season" tires in cold weather and so provide better traction even on bare pavement/concrete at low temps. Consider you will be carrying passengers...and a set of winter tires (hopefully on separate rims) will cost less than the deductible on one fender bender should you be so unlucky. Another consideration is...when you are "using up" your winter tires, you are "saving" your summer tires so really the cost adder is negligible over the course of a couple of years.
05-29-20, 05:27 PM
#4
Pit Crew
Thread Starter
Thanks for the replies. Oh yes, I'm a hardcore believer in snow tires. I drive up in Park City here in Utah during the winter. There's good money to be made up there, especially when it's snowing, but if you don't have snow tires you'll be in a ditch real quick. I used blizzak WS-80s last year and they were great. I might try the Continental Vikingcontact this year. The blizzaks are awesome but wear out really quick.
The TL handled like a tank, even up steep grades. But I had the luxury of being able to manually shift up or down in sport mode. I'm not sure if the sport mode on this eCVT is going to afford the same feature. I know it's there, just not sure if it will behave the same way. I guess I'll find out this winter.
The TL handled like a tank, even up steep grades. But I had the luxury of being able to manually shift up or down in sport mode. I'm not sure if the sport mode on this eCVT is going to afford the same feature. I know it's there, just not sure if it will behave the same way. I guess I'll find out this winter.
05-29-20, 05:47 PM
#5
Forum Administrator
iTrader: (2)
Several threads out there on both snow tires and winter performance if you try using search!
Some examples, there are many others
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/es-...highlight=snow
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/es-...highlight=snow
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/es-...highlight=snow
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/es-...highlight=snow
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/es-...highlight=snow
Some examples, there are many others
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/es-...highlight=snow
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/es-...highlight=snow
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/es-...highlight=snow
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/es-...highlight=snow
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/es-...highlight=snow
05-30-20, 12:39 AM
#6
I have my 2016 ES300h I drive Uber also full time my 2007 ES was time to put it out to pasture in August last year so i bought my 2016 for 23k with 37,000 miles on it here we are 9 months latter 51,000 miles latter and would not have changed my decision for this unless i had found the NX300h i was looking for when i came across the ES300h
I drive with Bridgestone Blizzak in the wintertime MPG suffers with those around 34-35mpg in the nicer weather i am now using Micheline primacy touring and getting about 38-39 MPG I drive Premier and Select and Comfort never drive X unless there is a high dollar surge which is not uncommon in my areas
I am still looking for the perfect for me Lexus NX300h color combo and all that i want miles has to be lower and ill drive cross country to get that i want if i fine it but then after finding out that around September 2022 the cars that have 3G services for Enform services and Lexus destination assist and SOS button stuff will stop working due to Verizon discontinuing the 3G services which the 2017 and older Lexus models use then we are SOL so i am no longer willing to consider a 2016-2017 for my next vehicle so have to hunt down the perfect for me 2018 NX300H before i hit 100k when i still have a good value I have a loan on the car with a balance of 9400 and if i where to take it for trade in right now id not close on a deal unless i got a Min of 19k on trade in consider it had one accident on its history i think that's a fair trade in but just has to be perfect
I drive with Bridgestone Blizzak in the wintertime MPG suffers with those around 34-35mpg in the nicer weather i am now using Micheline primacy touring and getting about 38-39 MPG I drive Premier and Select and Comfort never drive X unless there is a high dollar surge which is not uncommon in my areas
I am still looking for the perfect for me Lexus NX300h color combo and all that i want miles has to be lower and ill drive cross country to get that i want if i fine it but then after finding out that around September 2022 the cars that have 3G services for Enform services and Lexus destination assist and SOS button stuff will stop working due to Verizon discontinuing the 3G services which the 2017 and older Lexus models use then we are SOL so i am no longer willing to consider a 2016-2017 for my next vehicle so have to hunt down the perfect for me 2018 NX300H before i hit 100k when i still have a good value I have a loan on the car with a balance of 9400 and if i where to take it for trade in right now id not close on a deal unless i got a Min of 19k on trade in consider it had one accident on its history i think that's a fair trade in but just has to be perfect
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losiglow (05-30-20)
05-30-20, 03:10 AM
#7
Pole Position
Owned three TL's and two ES hybrids currently owning a 2017 ES300h. Something you forgot to mention is the back seat room which obviously is very important carrying people around. I am 6:4 and with the TL someone sitting behind me had to be very short. In the ES, I do not even have to move my seat up and someone over six feet tall can sit behind me comfortably. Also putting that many miles on your car you went from a car that was below the industry average (J D Power) in dependability to over the last ten years #1 eight times and #2 twice. You also went from a car that is ranked the 20th in the lowest maintenance cost to the third lowest.
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losiglow (05-30-20)
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05-30-20, 07:28 AM
#8
Pit Crew
Thread Starter
I have my 2016 ES300h I drive Uber also full time my 2007 ES was time to put it out to pasture in August last year so i bought my 2016 for 23k with 37,000 miles on it here we are 9 months latter 51,000 miles latter and would not have changed my decision for this unless i had found the NX300h i was looking for when i came across the ES300h
I drive with Bridgestone Blizzak in the wintertime MPG suffers with those around 34-35mpg in the nicer weather i am now using Micheline primacy touring and getting about 38-39 MPG I drive Premier and Select and Comfort never drive X unless there is a high dollar surge which is not uncommon in my areas
I am still looking for the perfect for me Lexus NX300h color combo and all that i want miles has to be lower and ill drive cross country to get that i want if i fine it but then after finding out that around September 2022 the cars that have 3G services for Enform services and Lexus destination assist and SOS button stuff will stop working due to Verizon discontinuing the 3G services which the 2017 and older Lexus models use then we are SOL so i am no longer willing to consider a 2016-2017 for my next vehicle so have to hunt down the perfect for me 2018 NX300H before i hit 100k when i still have a good value I have a loan on the car with a balance of 9400 and if i where to take it for trade in right now id not close on a deal unless i got a Min of 19k on trade in consider it had one accident on its history i think that's a fair trade in but just has to be perfect
I drive with Bridgestone Blizzak in the wintertime MPG suffers with those around 34-35mpg in the nicer weather i am now using Micheline primacy touring and getting about 38-39 MPG I drive Premier and Select and Comfort never drive X unless there is a high dollar surge which is not uncommon in my areas
I am still looking for the perfect for me Lexus NX300h color combo and all that i want miles has to be lower and ill drive cross country to get that i want if i fine it but then after finding out that around September 2022 the cars that have 3G services for Enform services and Lexus destination assist and SOS button stuff will stop working due to Verizon discontinuing the 3G services which the 2017 and older Lexus models use then we are SOL so i am no longer willing to consider a 2016-2017 for my next vehicle so have to hunt down the perfect for me 2018 NX300H before i hit 100k when i still have a good value I have a loan on the car with a balance of 9400 and if i where to take it for trade in right now id not close on a deal unless i got a Min of 19k on trade in consider it had one accident on its history i think that's a fair trade in but just has to be perfect
Owned three TL's and two ES hybrids currently owning a 2017 ES300h. Something you forgot to mention is the back seat room which obviously is very important carrying people around. I am 6:4 and with the TL someone sitting behind me had to be very short. In the ES, I do not even have to move my seat up and someone over six feet tall can sit behind me comfortably. Also putting that many miles on your car you went from a car that was below the industry average (J D Power) in dependability to over the last ten years #1 eight times and #2 twice. You also went from a car that is ranked the 20th in the lowest maintenance cost to the third lowest.
Acura's have been hit hard on their reliability scores due to their transmission problems. And in the case of the newer RDX, infotainment problems. The thing with their transmissions are, if you have trouble it's usually going to be in the first several thousand miles. If you're good at that point, you should be fine for a long time as long as you take care of it like any car. My 2012 for example, they had chronic torque converter malfunctions, but if you didn't have any issues up to about 30k miles then you were good to go. I put 280k miles on mine without so much as a hiccup.
I'm still a little concerned about pushing the ES that many miles without expecting some trouble. As such, I ended up purchasing a warranty for 5 years and unlimited mileage on top of the remaining manufacturer's warranty. I talked them down from $3,500 to $2,000. If even one of the goofy hybrid components or something dies, it will have paid for itself twice over. I spent 40 minutes looking over all the fine print to see what it doesn't cover. It doesn't cover the battery along with a host of other things that could be considered wear items like shocks, light bulbs, paint, surface rust, brake rotors, etc. I'm surprised that what it does cover though. Suspension bushings, motor mounts, wheel bearings, seals and gaskets - stuff that frequently goes out on cars with over 100k miles. I never purchased an extended warranty before because I'm pretty handy with cars. But this thing isn't quite as simple as the other cars I worked on and there's no way I would touch any of those hybrid components.
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Hayk (06-10-20)
06-02-20, 11:13 AM
#11
Scurrilous lies! It's a glorified Avalon. 
(and, fellow former TL owner, our old cars were glorified Accords).
Strange. My '07 TL never rattled the whole time I owned it except for the sub. I was actually impressed with that. My other Honda is a 1991 CRX, which is a fantastic car for tossing around but, yeah, it's definitely got rattles.
I'm guessing the seats will do as well as they did in the TL. Mine still looked almost new at 150k miles and 12 years, but I religiously apply Leatherique to all of my leather seats at least once a year. That stuff is fantastic.
You and me both. They felt better and were more supportive. And the seat heaters were better, which is sad because they were very slow to warm up. But at least when they warmed up they got very warm unlike the lukewarm sadness that is the ES's seat heater.
What year was yours? The 3rd gens had an incessant problem with the subwoofer. It'd vibrate if you turned up the bass too high. There was a TSB out for it, but it just involved adding padding, that would break down and then the vibration came back. Beyond that it was a bloody good system, but didn't quite match the Mark Levinson in the Lexus.
As long as you keep good tires on it, you'll do fine. If I were driving mine professionally, I'd definitely have a second set of wheels with good winter tires on them. Mine did great in the MN winter (that only just ended a few weeks ago )
(and, fellow former TL owner, our old cars were glorified Accords).
Oh, and it isn't full of rattles, which seems to be a standard feature of all Honda vehicles.
seats that look like they're going to hold up much better than leather and paint that isn't razor think and fragile like Honda's.
I think I prefer the seats more in the Acura.
Oh, and the sound system in the Acura was leagues better.
On another subject - has anyone driven this car in the snow? The TL handled great with snow tires, but it also had a 60/40 weight distribution.
)
06-03-20, 01:23 AM
#12
I started driving Uber when I was out of work about four years ago. I kept it up on the weekend nights with my Acura TL since the pay was worth the cost of gas along with maintenance, repairs and depreciation. However, after 4 years and 280K miles, it was time to put the TL out to pasture. It was an excellent car. Very little ever went wrong with it. Nothing I couldn't fix myself.
I initially opted for an MDX or Highlander Hybrid. I also considered the GS. The ES never crossed my mind since I've always thought of it as a glorified Camry. But after test driving the hybrid and considering all the angles (comfort, mileage, reliability and the services I could drive such as Lux and Premier) I decided to pull the trigger. $28K for a '17 with 30K miles. More than I wanted to spend for a car I'll be destroying by putting 40K miles a year on and having crazy drunk people in an out of on the weekends. However, the gas savings, even at only $2 a gallon, is literally covering the entire monthly payment. It's crazy. I'm getting a consistent 41-43 mpg on mid-grade vs. 24-26 mpg on premium with the TL.
After three weeks I have absolutely no regrets. While it doesn't have the power and handling of the TL it (obviously) gets way better mileage. Oh, and it isn't full of rattles, which seems to be a standard feature of all Honda vehicles. Ventilated seats, better AC due to the variable electric compressor, silent at low speeds when in EV mode, seats that look like they're going to hold up much better than leather and paint that isn't razor think and fragile like Honda's. I think I prefer the seats more in the Acura. But like new shoes, I think I just need to "break in" the seat in the ES and find the right settings for driving for 12 hours straight. Oh, and the sound system in the Acura was leagues better. But with some modifications, I think I can get this one up to par
On another subject - has anyone driven this car in the snow? The TL handled great with snow tires, but it also had a 60/40 weight distribution. That big heavy V6 in the front gave the FWD a lot of traction. The 300h is about 50/50 so the front end might not get as much. But on the flip side, the back end might not break loose as much, which often happened in the TL.
I initially opted for an MDX or Highlander Hybrid. I also considered the GS. The ES never crossed my mind since I've always thought of it as a glorified Camry. But after test driving the hybrid and considering all the angles (comfort, mileage, reliability and the services I could drive such as Lux and Premier) I decided to pull the trigger. $28K for a '17 with 30K miles. More than I wanted to spend for a car I'll be destroying by putting 40K miles a year on and having crazy drunk people in an out of on the weekends. However, the gas savings, even at only $2 a gallon, is literally covering the entire monthly payment. It's crazy. I'm getting a consistent 41-43 mpg on mid-grade vs. 24-26 mpg on premium with the TL.
After three weeks I have absolutely no regrets. While it doesn't have the power and handling of the TL it (obviously) gets way better mileage. Oh, and it isn't full of rattles, which seems to be a standard feature of all Honda vehicles. Ventilated seats, better AC due to the variable electric compressor, silent at low speeds when in EV mode, seats that look like they're going to hold up much better than leather and paint that isn't razor think and fragile like Honda's. I think I prefer the seats more in the Acura. But like new shoes, I think I just need to "break in" the seat in the ES and find the right settings for driving for 12 hours straight. Oh, and the sound system in the Acura was leagues better. But with some modifications, I think I can get this one up to par
On another subject - has anyone driven this car in the snow? The TL handled great with snow tires, but it also had a 60/40 weight distribution. That big heavy V6 in the front gave the FWD a lot of traction. The 300h is about 50/50 so the front end might not get as much. But on the flip side, the back end might not break loose as much, which often happened in the TL.
I end up pick ES350 just because it's a bit faster and without Energy draw back sound from Hybird.
I was doing Uber/Lyft on a 2017 Prius part time for fun lol
Before Corona Virus, I went couple trip with 2017 ES350.
It's fun and it is count as Luxury Uber and Lyft Black. lol
Uber have silly Rule that only BLACK interior car count as Uber Black but they forgot Flaxen interior it's way better looking
06-03-20, 08:40 PM
#13
the NX can be used to drive premier i have looked into it from my understand they will just have to do some overide stuff they had to do the same thing for the ES300h when premier first came out here in utah
I live in Bountiful where are you at ?
please tell me your not on one of the stupid Facebook groups in the local area for uber drivers those groups one of them is semi ok its good people but still bunch of idiot members the other is full of a *******s i learned the hard way on that
send me a PM here
I live in Bountiful where are you at ?
please tell me your not on one of the stupid Facebook groups in the local area for uber drivers those groups one of them is semi ok its good people but still bunch of idiot members the other is full of a *******s i learned the hard way on that
send me a PM here
Good to hear I'm not the only one 😊 I looked at the NX but I don't think you can drive Premier with it. At least not in my area (Utah). Otherwise it looked like a great vehicle. Plus it's all wheel drive.
The back seat is a lot more spacious. That's definitely a big deal. That's probably why it qualifies for some of the upper tier services whereas the TL doesn't.
Acura's have been hit hard on their reliability scores due to their transmission problems. And in the case of the newer RDX, infotainment problems. The thing with their transmissions are, if you have trouble it's usually going to be in the first several thousand miles. If you're good at that point, you should be fine for a long time as long as you take care of it like any car. My 2012 for example, they had chronic torque converter malfunctions, but if you didn't have any issues up to about 30k miles then you were good to go. I put 280k miles on mine without so much as a hiccup.
I'm still a little concerned about pushing the ES that many miles without expecting some trouble. As such, I ended up purchasing a warranty for 5 years and unlimited mileage on top of the remaining manufacturer's warranty. I talked them down from $3,500 to $2,000. If even one of the goofy hybrid components or something dies, it will have paid for itself twice over. I spent 40 minutes looking over all the fine print to see what it doesn't cover. It doesn't cover the battery along with a host of other things that could be considered wear items like shocks, light bulbs, paint, surface rust, brake rotors, etc. I'm surprised that what it does cover though. Suspension bushings, motor mounts, wheel bearings, seals and gaskets - stuff that frequently goes out on cars with over 100k miles. I never purchased an extended warranty before because I'm pretty handy with cars. But this thing isn't quite as simple as the other cars I worked on and there's no way I would touch any of those hybrid components.
The back seat is a lot more spacious. That's definitely a big deal. That's probably why it qualifies for some of the upper tier services whereas the TL doesn't.
Acura's have been hit hard on their reliability scores due to their transmission problems. And in the case of the newer RDX, infotainment problems. The thing with their transmissions are, if you have trouble it's usually going to be in the first several thousand miles. If you're good at that point, you should be fine for a long time as long as you take care of it like any car. My 2012 for example, they had chronic torque converter malfunctions, but if you didn't have any issues up to about 30k miles then you were good to go. I put 280k miles on mine without so much as a hiccup.
I'm still a little concerned about pushing the ES that many miles without expecting some trouble. As such, I ended up purchasing a warranty for 5 years and unlimited mileage on top of the remaining manufacturer's warranty. I talked them down from $3,500 to $2,000. If even one of the goofy hybrid components or something dies, it will have paid for itself twice over. I spent 40 minutes looking over all the fine print to see what it doesn't cover. It doesn't cover the battery along with a host of other things that could be considered wear items like shocks, light bulbs, paint, surface rust, brake rotors, etc. I'm surprised that what it does cover though. Suspension bushings, motor mounts, wheel bearings, seals and gaskets - stuff that frequently goes out on cars with over 100k miles. I never purchased an extended warranty before because I'm pretty handy with cars. But this thing isn't quite as simple as the other cars I worked on and there's no way I would touch any of those hybrid components.
06-04-20, 07:32 PM
#14
Pit Crew
Thread Starter
What year was yours? The 3rd gens had an incessant problem with the subwoofer. It'd vibrate if you turned up the bass too high. There was a TSB out for it, but it just involved adding padding, that would break down and then the vibration came back. Beyond that it was a bloody good system, but didn't quite match the Mark Levinson in the Lexus.
Yeah, with my 3rd gen, I kept the speakers as is but added a bazooka sub in the trunk.
I just replaced the 4", 6"x9" and 6 3/4" speakers in the ES with infinity reference units today. Sounds way better but definitely need more bass.
On that note, does anybody know the wattage that the stock amp puts out for the base (non-ML) system?
Last edited by losiglow; 06-04-20 at 07:39 PM.
06-04-20, 07:37 PM
#15
Pit Crew
Thread Starter
the NX can be used to drive premier i have looked into it from my understand they will just have to do some overide stuff they had to do the same thing for the ES300h when premier first came out here in utah
I live in Bountiful where are you at ?
please tell me your not on one of the stupid Facebook groups in the local area for uber drivers those groups one of them is semi ok its good people but still bunch of idiot members the other is full of a *******s i learned the hard way on that
send me a PM here
I live in Bountiful where are you at ?
please tell me your not on one of the stupid Facebook groups in the local area for uber drivers those groups one of them is semi ok its good people but still bunch of idiot members the other is full of a *******s i learned the hard way on that
send me a PM here
I have a Facebook account for simply logging into certain websites. With no information whatsoever on it. So no, not part of any stupid Facebook group. I do get on uberpeople.net occasionally to get a good laugh but I'm not one of these *****ing moany Uber drivers that whines about everything.