NVRENUFHP

Do folks on this board have a Pavlovian foaming at the mouth reaction at the mere mention of the competition? The 5er is a very nice car. I owned one in the past and I currently own a Z3. I also had a 3er a while back.

This time around, I bought a GS430. There were a number of things I liked better about the Lexus (mainly the nav/stereo, a much smoother transmission, and price), although the BMW had some very nice features.

Over on the various BMW boards, all you need to do to get a number of them to have a psychotic episode is to say the L-word. Man, a few of those guys really need professional help.

The GS and the 5er are both very nice cars. In some ways, the GS is nicer and in other ways the 5 is better. But they are both great cars and no one will have made the wrong decision with either. Yet, some of those BMW boys can't discuss the cars with any measure of reason.

Check out the December 1999 comparo test in R & T. While the testers prefered the 540 to the GS 400, it was very close. And the testers were quick to acknowledge that the Lexus bested the 540 is several objective performance measures and that the subjective edge went to the BMW by the narrowest of margins.

When confronted with this sort of info, the aforementioned psychos do nothing buy shriek "Jap crap" and other equally intelligent things, but never address the objective data or that the R & T boys thought even the subjective feel of the two cars was very close.

I am pretty new to this board and really hope that the intelligence level is higher here. Though I try to keep in mind that it is but a few dimbulbs over on the bimmer board that seem to have the IQ of an eggplant. Most of the folks over there seem OK.

GS4Will

Hello N,

as a longtime member, may i offer my sincere welcome and hope you enjoy this board as much as i do.
from your posts, it seems to me that you are a very objective person. and the fact that you have owned several Bmws and still considered and gave lexus a try says lot.

i have friends and families who own both brands from germany. there are characterestics of bmws that i think are quite good. but when it comes to final decision making, the money you saved on an awesome gs is phenomenal.

BBD

I owned a 1997 BMW 540i ,, Great car ,, and now I currently own a GS400 2000 model ,,, the noticable difference is I liked the BMW throttle response, handeling, leather, and comfort.. a great car no doubt about it..

The GS400 does have a better power to weight ratio,, more HP, and it looks, in my eyes that is, its much smoother in body,, and yes Transmition is great and its reliable either way I love both cars

gs4power

NVRENUFHP,

Nice to have you here, welcome!

I'm proud to say that comparing that forum with clublexus is like comparing apples and oranges. The members here are very respectful and knowledgeable. I'm sure you'll have a good time sharing with us!

y2kgs

Glad to have you with us and hope you will find all the info. you need here. This is what I am talking about about our Lexus site. I went to the Bimmer site to see what was going on and post the feelings and experience with both cars. All the members there are all BS Assssssssssssssss.
Got 3 e-mails from the members and lets just say that they all have to be young given what was said. As for the Lexus member, we invite and take kindly to what others might say. Rigth KKELLY> you should know what i am talking about.
All I can say is words don't mean anything and thats all the Bimmer site is all about. We can take it on the street but none replied back. WHATEVER!!!!!!!!!
Theres always going to be a car thats faster but they cannot seem to understand this.

GS4Will

y2kgs,

you have an IMC kit? IMPRESSIVE.....

Manaray

IMC: Yes, VERY impressive...how low is your car? You must KILL the sideskirts and the rear bumper up driveways and speedbumps! Do you have any pictures?

biggie27

IMC is very nice post some pics lets see that kit I havent seen any other GS's with IMC on them what color is your car and what grill do you have on it?

y2kgs

I will post some pictures after the LA meeting May 19th.
Well, I have not gotten it back form the body shop. I will get my car this coming Wed. I also got my Blitz 03 chromed out and man it looks nice. I know that I will have to play around with my Teins in terms of how low I want it but it sits pretty low as is.
Hey biggie27> I have a black on black and its tinted all around. As for the grill, its still stock and might change it depending on what I find. The IMC grill will not fit unless I change the hood. Doesn't matter cause I don't care for it to look like a MB. True I don't know any that has this kit which makes it better for me. I know that the IMC kit is vary expansive plus add the fitting and paint.

Thanks for all your comments and hope to see you all at the LA meet....

QBranchCars

I bet the TRD grill might look good with the kit.

babyGS3

If you dont mind me askin.... is that kit costing over 4G's?

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

There's been very little negative said about the competition on here which is nice.

Personally I think BMW and Mercedes make terrific cars. BMW, Mercedes and Lexus all have their pros and cons.

Here's a few comments...

I think the GS400/430 stock suspension setup is too soft with too much body roll, and more dealers should offer/recommend L-Tuned just like a BMW sport package.

I think Mercedes interiors aren't that great and both BMW and Mercedes are expensive for what you get. BUT - no question the BMW models, especially the 330, M3, and 540i are terrific cars. The E class does nothing for me, but the C, CLK, SLK, S and CL are all terrific.

The 5 series is ready for the new model - hopefully it will fix some of the weaknesses (lame stereo, bad nav system, bad ergonomics, electrical glitches).

The new C class really is a great small sedan.

The Lexus IS is a great looker, but has a cramped interior and for 2001 has lacked some luxo bits and even some basic things like a decent center armrest, but for 2002 looks like they're going to give BMW fits by offering nav, 5-speed, armrests, and more.

Anyway, enough rambling... we're just lucky to have so much to choose from....

LexusLady

I'll second all that stuff.....

C.

mooretorque

NVRENUFHP, not too much foaming here. ClubLexus seems to be fairly consistent in withholding the sort of "did so".........."did NOT"........."well, then, i'll just kick ur ***" kind of criticism (also known as the "Your car sux and mine doesn't" school of thought) that you mention from the BMW board. The Mercedes folks (Spinedoc posted a link to peruse in "Defend Your Lexus") may be worse. I realize that most individuals who post on their boards are rational and friendly as well as able to think and speak coherently. But a little bit of rant goes a long way.

There is no perfect vehicle for everyone nor are tastes identical. The roundel and the tristar are excellent automakers. But we're here because we took a different road.

Welcome to the best board for celebrating Lexus!!!!

BBD

Quote bitkahuna
I think the GS400/430 stock suspension setup is too soft with too much body roll, and more dealers should offer/recommend L-Tuned just like a BMW sport package.

Well I agree with you the GS400 suspension is too soft ,, thats because lexus wants us rider to have a smoother ride... then again Sturt bars and sway bars would fix our cornering abilities ,, but your right they should offer a Sport suspension as an optional package for the car