TechNut

Toyota is a business. Their business model is to make money for their shareholders, like every other car company. While I agree they have room for improvement, I don't think there is a perfect car or car company. My sense is that all companies/vehicles have issues and the company will do everything they can to minimize them.

aygriffith

I always advocate in business to go for the low hanging fruit, especially when its something that is high touch and impactful for an end user or customer (like an infotainment system a driver touches every day in the vehicle). We aren't asking Lexus to put Android Auto in an older model that isn't capable, such as a 2018 or older, we're advocating they bring us up to speed by updating the software to match the 2020+ models.

Shareholder value has a customer goodwill component... If you **** off X percent of 2019 owners who have Android phones, why exactly would they come running back when their 2019 leases are up or they just want to buy a newer model? Lexus is the exception, not the rule, when it comes to refusing to update capable cars to include Android Auto. I'd say the only manufacturer that has been as abject about it is BMW... and even they are making an small effort in the US to make it right with the cars that can get it.

You can like Lexus and not be an apologist.

clqw

I've sent another email through their site to complain about why Australia and Spain are getting AA update, but not us. I told them I'm a very unhappy customer and told them dont bother responding if they're going to repeat the corporate jargon. So far, i havent heard back....lol

aygriffith

Thank you Mr. CLQW. We here at Lexus appreciate our customer's feedback about our products. Your valuable input makes our products better. Unfortunately at this time, we do not support Android Auto on the 2019 Lexus ES sedan before Oct 2019 production. We cannot speak to what is happening in our non-US market divisions. We appreciate your loyalty and look forward to selling you another vehicle in the future that is 5 years behind in technology when compared to our competitor's vehicles. We will forward your valuable feedback to the correct department's circular file.

Sincerely,
Apathetic Lexus Customer Complaint Answerer

mikemu30

Why are the dissatisfied customers purchasing products that are five years behind the competition??🤔🤔🤔

bc6152

HA! Like your editing...

clqw

Despite telling them don't give me a generic response...

Thank you for your recent correspondence.

We would like to take this opportunity to confirm that Android Auto is now available starting with certain 2020 model year vehicles. However, there are no plans to make Android Auto available for vehicles that were not equipped with this option at time of manufacturing, including your 2019 Lexus ES 300h.

Please be assured that market trends are closely studied to give us a better idea of what packages and options are in demand. Then based on our findings, our Product Planning Department is able to choose those vehicles and options that best suit the needs of the buying public and which options are available on which packages.

We would also like to inform you that Lexus Canada, Lexus Spain and Lexus Australia are separate entities; therefore, certain vehicle information including specifications and options may differ. For more information regarding the Lexus Connected Services available for your vehicle, we kindly recommend visiting our website at the following link:

https://www.lexus.ca/lexus/en/know-y...s/lexus-enform

Please be assured that we have forwarded your comments to our Product Planning Department for their information and consideration for future models.

Thank you once again for taking the time to contact us. Your interest in Toyota products is greatly appreciated.

bc6152

vdo

Man, Android Auto is soooo cool!!


Sorry, too soon? 🤣

clqw

I have a spare iPhone to use carplay. It's more for futureproofing and resale features/value I guess.

aygriffith

You can't honestly tell me you're willing to go to bat that Lexus has technology features that are at or light years ahead of the competition... especially when we're having a conversation about a 2019 vehicle that doesn't have Android Auto (please see "lesser" cars as far back as some 2013's from other brands that were retrofitted, or 2015/2016's that came with it from the factory). I get this is a Lexus forum and people are proud of their wheels, but you won't win a free oil change at your local Lexus dealer for defending poor existing customer support from a luxury car manufacturer.

Pathetic response as expected. I am pretty sure the numbers show that Lexus is still solidly in 3rd place behind BMW and MB in US luxury car sales for 2020. At what point does Lexus/Toyota step outside of their faux-safety-focused lazy shell and embrace technology and electrification of their lineups. I think the only reason you started to see Android Auto from the factory on some of their Toyota/Lexus 2020's was they were literally the last manufacturer in the US that did not offer it. Embarrassing.

clqw

Yep. I also received extremely subpar service all the way from the initial sales (after signing contract) from my local dealership to service. So this will be the first and last lexus for me.

aygriffith

The files are available on the www.lexus-tech.eu site for a small cost to get at them. Sounds like there are mixed results on getting them installed themselves without errors. I'd guess most of it has to do with corrupted files and crappy USB drive hardware. Here's the thread about the process happening on EU cars: https://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/fo...at-no-carplay/

Glad to see Lexus is happy to upgrade EU cars where they sell a paltry 55k-ish units a year across the whole EU block of countries.

clqw

They're doing the same rip-off thing to multiple Toyota vehicles in North America, apparently something to do with licensing agreement with Google. I wonder if it actually has something to do with licensing agreement with Apple to provide exclusive Carplay access (no android) to xx vehicles.

Lexuss07

You buy the ES for the mechanical reliability, not for the technology... Android Auto and Apple Car play should have been included on all ES models when the latest gen came out for the 2019 model year, not this late availability crap. It is embarrassing for the brand, and for the consumer. Apple car play and Android auto is just as important as anti lock brakes in my opinion. But hey, the latest GX and the LX don't even have apple car play, and you have to deal with that Lexus Enform Crapp suite. Horrible.