Oh oh! My fav writer, Jeremy Clarkson, reviews and writes about the 3GS 430!
05-09-05, 05:25 PM
#1
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Oh oh! My fav writer, Jeremy Clarkson, reviews and writes about the 3GS 430!
http://driving.timesonline.co.uk/art...0870_1,00.html
Being a avid follower and subscriber to the Euro mags (CAR/EVO/Top Gear) they are very cut and dry when it comes to reviews, none of the buttering here. Well they do butter, anything with BMW, Ferrari or Porsche badges are pretty much "god" with Benz pretty close.
The humor you will read is unlike anything you have read in any auto review to date.
Lexus GS430
By Jeremy Clarkson of The Sunday Times
Wake me up when we get there
Do you remember when you were growing up and all your friends were allowed to go on school exchange trips to exotic places like France and Germany? Well how’s this for progress. We now have an 11-year-old girl from Tokyo in the spare room.
Now, I’ve been to Japan and it was strange. The bath in my hotel room was vertical and made from wood, the food was mostly still alive, there weren’t any chairs, the walls were made from rice, I was fed by a woman with a completely white face and a shoe size of minus three, all the bars were full of men in slippers, singing, the traffic hadn’t moved since 1952 and all you could buy from vending machines on the streets were cans of drink called Sweat. And soiled pants.
Once I tried driving from Tokyo to Yokohama but it was impossible because none of the road signs made any sense. Elsewhere in the world “centre” is zentrum, or centro or some such derivation, but in Japan it’s just a meaningless squiggle. Honestly, I would have found more cultural reference points if I’d gone to Venus.
*
So after a week I went back to my hotel and spent the rest of the trip under my bed hiding. And I was 40. So how on earth would an 11-year-old girl cope over here? To get round the fact that the poor little thing didn’t speak a single word of English, she was sent with one of those gadgets that only exists in Star Trek, the mind of Stephen Hawking, and most Japanese high street electrical stores.
You type a message in Japanese and it speaks the words in a sort of Daleky Engrish. And the first words it spoke, just five miles from the airport, were “car sick”. Plainly, after 11 years in a Tokyo traffic jam, our visitor was unused to travelling at speeds in excess of 3mph.
She was also confused by her supper on that first night, picking up a spoon and staring at it in much the same way that a traveller from the future might pick up and stare at a gramophone record. Plainly it made no sense. But then neither did any of the foodstuff that had been placed on her plate.
At 70mph it's so silent you can hear you hair growing. In the cabin you are so isolated from the real world that you get some idea of what it might like to be dead
Jeremy Clarkson
After just one mouthful of mashed potato she rushed to the loo, where she vomited, explosively and for a very prolonged period of time. Not bad, I thought, she’s only been in England two hours and already she’s been sick twice. I desperately wanted to make sure she was okay, and not too worried by the beds with legs and the chairs and how all the trees were more than 6in tall and outside. But it’s pretty hard when all you can say in Japanese is “hello”, “goodbye” and “Subaru”.
I couldn’t even use her gadget, partly because all the keys were in Japanese and partly because it had stopped saying “car sick” and was now saying “broken”, over and over again.
We’d been told that the whole point of her trip was to provide an experience of England, but after the spoon episode we did give her some chopsticks. And then, after watching her use them to wrestle with a 6in Yorkshire pudding, I’m afraid I relented and drove all the way to London for some sushi. To be honest, I felt so sorry for her I’d have gone out and harpooned a whale if that’s what she’d wanted.
To make matters worse she had arrived with a suitcase full of presents, all of which were exquisite but completely unfathomable. I mean, what kind of face are you supposed to pull when you’ve just been given what looks like a squidgy test tube full of pink and green sticky tape? It turned out to be a pen that writes a musical score as you drag the nib across the paper. Honestly, I’d never seen anything so amazing in my whole life. But then everything’s relative. She’d never been to a house that had dogs on the inside and trees on the outside.
It’s said that genetically the human race is defined at one end by the tribesmen of New Guinea and at the other by the Basques. These, apparently, are the bookends. But I’m sorry. I reckon the genetic North Pole is a 6ft 5in Brit and the genetic South Pole an 11-year-old Japanese schoolgirl.
And that brings me to the new Lexus GS430 I’ve been driving these past few days.
Like all cars, it has doors, seats, pedals, a steering wheel and lights at the front and the back. But how can this be, when it comes from a people who are baffled by a spoon? How do they make something so instantly recognisable as “a car” when they can’t eat mashed potato without vomiting? We have knives and forks. They have chopsticks. We lie down in the bath. They stand up. We cook food. They don’t. Their culture is completely different from ours, and yet the Lexus, on the face of it, is just the same as a Jaguar, a Mercedes or a BMW.
Except it isn’t. It is much, much quieter. At 70mph it’s so silent you can hear your hair growing. Sitting in your garden after a lovely lunch is more frantic. In the cabin you are so isolated from the real world that you get some idea of what it might be like to be dead.
The six-speed automatic box swaps cogs like an albatross changes direction, and even if you do put your foot down, the big V8 responds by humming, quietly, like it’s in a church arranging flowers. Driving this car is like being wrapped up in a duvet and carried from place to place by a small white cloud.
Only faster. It is far from being a sports car — driving this car with gusto would be like going into a sword fight armed with a cushion — but in a straight line, at least, the 4.3 litre engine delivers the goods. It’d easily hang onto the coat-tails of a similarly priced BMW 5-series.
But the best thing about this car is the layout of the interior. If we ignore the spectacularly horrible wooden trim we find a sense of order and logic that would make Mr Spock look like a swivel-eyed madman. All the major controls are where you want them to be, and do what you want them to do, and all the minor controls are hidden away in a flap by your right knee.
*
Problems? Well, apart from the wood trim you have to dig deep to find anything tangible. The boot’s an awkward shape, I suppose, and there isn’t quite as much space in the back as you might expect. But neither of these things is a good enough reason for buying something else. As a long-distance cruiser this car is quite simply outstanding. Better than a Gulfstream V, and maybe even a rival for teleporting.
Unfortunately, I didn’t like it at all, partly because it’s about as attractive as a sponsored town centre roundabout and partly because Lexuses these days are driven by people who play golf, or people who like to slap their hos and drive around at night shooting at business rivals with submachineguns. Gangstas? Golfers? I don’t want to look like either.
Mostly, though, I don’t like this car because it feels like a facsimile of the real thing. And that’s hardly surprising because that’s exactly what it is. A copy. A Mercedes clone.
Cars sit in the Japanese psyche along with spoons and mashed potato. They don’t come naturally. Oh sure, they can copy a Mercedes and use it to earn vast lumps of foreign currency, but how do you copy flair and panache and feel? The simple answer is: you can’t, so you end up with a completely soulless driving experience.
It’s a bit like those vegetarians who insist on eating hamburgers that are designed to look, feel and taste like the real thing. But they’re just not.
Technically, this new Lexus is probably better than a Mercedes, in the same way that a golden egg made by laser is going to be technically better than one of Karl Fabergé’s originals. But which one would you rather have?
VITAL STATISTICS
Model Lexus GS430
Engine V8, 4293cc
Power 279bhp @ 5600rpm
Torque 308 lb ft @ 3500rpm
Transmission Six-speed automatic
Fuel 24.8mpg (combined cycle)
CO2 269g/km
Acceleration 0-62mph: 6.1sec
Top speed 155mph
Price £46,755
Verdict A counterfeit car with everything except panache
Rating 3/5
Being a avid follower and subscriber to the Euro mags (CAR/EVO/Top Gear) they are very cut and dry when it comes to reviews, none of the buttering here. Well they do butter, anything with BMW, Ferrari or Porsche badges are pretty much "god" with Benz pretty close.
The humor you will read is unlike anything you have read in any auto review to date.
Lexus GS430
By Jeremy Clarkson of The Sunday Times
Wake me up when we get there
Do you remember when you were growing up and all your friends were allowed to go on school exchange trips to exotic places like France and Germany? Well how’s this for progress. We now have an 11-year-old girl from Tokyo in the spare room.
Now, I’ve been to Japan and it was strange. The bath in my hotel room was vertical and made from wood, the food was mostly still alive, there weren’t any chairs, the walls were made from rice, I was fed by a woman with a completely white face and a shoe size of minus three, all the bars were full of men in slippers, singing, the traffic hadn’t moved since 1952 and all you could buy from vending machines on the streets were cans of drink called Sweat. And soiled pants.
Once I tried driving from Tokyo to Yokohama but it was impossible because none of the road signs made any sense. Elsewhere in the world “centre” is zentrum, or centro or some such derivation, but in Japan it’s just a meaningless squiggle. Honestly, I would have found more cultural reference points if I’d gone to Venus.
*
So after a week I went back to my hotel and spent the rest of the trip under my bed hiding. And I was 40. So how on earth would an 11-year-old girl cope over here? To get round the fact that the poor little thing didn’t speak a single word of English, she was sent with one of those gadgets that only exists in Star Trek, the mind of Stephen Hawking, and most Japanese high street electrical stores.
You type a message in Japanese and it speaks the words in a sort of Daleky Engrish. And the first words it spoke, just five miles from the airport, were “car sick”. Plainly, after 11 years in a Tokyo traffic jam, our visitor was unused to travelling at speeds in excess of 3mph.
She was also confused by her supper on that first night, picking up a spoon and staring at it in much the same way that a traveller from the future might pick up and stare at a gramophone record. Plainly it made no sense. But then neither did any of the foodstuff that had been placed on her plate.
At 70mph it's so silent you can hear you hair growing. In the cabin you are so isolated from the real world that you get some idea of what it might like to be dead
Jeremy Clarkson
After just one mouthful of mashed potato she rushed to the loo, where she vomited, explosively and for a very prolonged period of time. Not bad, I thought, she’s only been in England two hours and already she’s been sick twice. I desperately wanted to make sure she was okay, and not too worried by the beds with legs and the chairs and how all the trees were more than 6in tall and outside. But it’s pretty hard when all you can say in Japanese is “hello”, “goodbye” and “Subaru”.
I couldn’t even use her gadget, partly because all the keys were in Japanese and partly because it had stopped saying “car sick” and was now saying “broken”, over and over again.
We’d been told that the whole point of her trip was to provide an experience of England, but after the spoon episode we did give her some chopsticks. And then, after watching her use them to wrestle with a 6in Yorkshire pudding, I’m afraid I relented and drove all the way to London for some sushi. To be honest, I felt so sorry for her I’d have gone out and harpooned a whale if that’s what she’d wanted.
To make matters worse she had arrived with a suitcase full of presents, all of which were exquisite but completely unfathomable. I mean, what kind of face are you supposed to pull when you’ve just been given what looks like a squidgy test tube full of pink and green sticky tape? It turned out to be a pen that writes a musical score as you drag the nib across the paper. Honestly, I’d never seen anything so amazing in my whole life. But then everything’s relative. She’d never been to a house that had dogs on the inside and trees on the outside.
It’s said that genetically the human race is defined at one end by the tribesmen of New Guinea and at the other by the Basques. These, apparently, are the bookends. But I’m sorry. I reckon the genetic North Pole is a 6ft 5in Brit and the genetic South Pole an 11-year-old Japanese schoolgirl.
And that brings me to the new Lexus GS430 I’ve been driving these past few days.
Like all cars, it has doors, seats, pedals, a steering wheel and lights at the front and the back. But how can this be, when it comes from a people who are baffled by a spoon? How do they make something so instantly recognisable as “a car” when they can’t eat mashed potato without vomiting? We have knives and forks. They have chopsticks. We lie down in the bath. They stand up. We cook food. They don’t. Their culture is completely different from ours, and yet the Lexus, on the face of it, is just the same as a Jaguar, a Mercedes or a BMW.
Except it isn’t. It is much, much quieter. At 70mph it’s so silent you can hear your hair growing. Sitting in your garden after a lovely lunch is more frantic. In the cabin you are so isolated from the real world that you get some idea of what it might be like to be dead.
The six-speed automatic box swaps cogs like an albatross changes direction, and even if you do put your foot down, the big V8 responds by humming, quietly, like it’s in a church arranging flowers. Driving this car is like being wrapped up in a duvet and carried from place to place by a small white cloud.
Only faster. It is far from being a sports car — driving this car with gusto would be like going into a sword fight armed with a cushion — but in a straight line, at least, the 4.3 litre engine delivers the goods. It’d easily hang onto the coat-tails of a similarly priced BMW 5-series.
But the best thing about this car is the layout of the interior. If we ignore the spectacularly horrible wooden trim we find a sense of order and logic that would make Mr Spock look like a swivel-eyed madman. All the major controls are where you want them to be, and do what you want them to do, and all the minor controls are hidden away in a flap by your right knee.
*
Problems? Well, apart from the wood trim you have to dig deep to find anything tangible. The boot’s an awkward shape, I suppose, and there isn’t quite as much space in the back as you might expect. But neither of these things is a good enough reason for buying something else. As a long-distance cruiser this car is quite simply outstanding. Better than a Gulfstream V, and maybe even a rival for teleporting.
Unfortunately, I didn’t like it at all, partly because it’s about as attractive as a sponsored town centre roundabout and partly because Lexuses these days are driven by people who play golf, or people who like to slap their hos and drive around at night shooting at business rivals with submachineguns. Gangstas? Golfers? I don’t want to look like either.
Mostly, though, I don’t like this car because it feels like a facsimile of the real thing. And that’s hardly surprising because that’s exactly what it is. A copy. A Mercedes clone.
Cars sit in the Japanese psyche along with spoons and mashed potato. They don’t come naturally. Oh sure, they can copy a Mercedes and use it to earn vast lumps of foreign currency, but how do you copy flair and panache and feel? The simple answer is: you can’t, so you end up with a completely soulless driving experience.
It’s a bit like those vegetarians who insist on eating hamburgers that are designed to look, feel and taste like the real thing. But they’re just not.
Technically, this new Lexus is probably better than a Mercedes, in the same way that a golden egg made by laser is going to be technically better than one of Karl Fabergé’s originals. But which one would you rather have?
VITAL STATISTICS
Model Lexus GS430
Engine V8, 4293cc
Power 279bhp @ 5600rpm
Torque 308 lb ft @ 3500rpm
Transmission Six-speed automatic
Fuel 24.8mpg (combined cycle)
CO2 269g/km
Acceleration 0-62mph: 6.1sec
Top speed 155mph
Price £46,755
Verdict A counterfeit car with everything except panache
Rating 3/5
05-09-05, 05:31 PM
#2
Guest
Posts: n/a
My main issue is Lexus has done such a fine job with refinement and quiet and luxury, to this day, people have preconcieved notions that Lexus is boring or cannot be sporty. This article, is a prime example. I don't think Jeremy gave this car a chance b/c he saw "Lexus" and images of luxury and the LS 430/SC 430 and RX 330 came to mind.
It is VERY hard for the GS and IS to overcome the perception of "Lexus" in that, yes, we can make sporty cars too.
Mr. Clarkson btw, thinks Ferrari is Jesus, so he'd much rather a louder, brasher, sporter car than a luxury ride (some background).
http://forums.thecarlounge.net/zerothread?id=1980700
Here you can find some debating about the article.
It is VERY hard for the GS and IS to overcome the perception of "Lexus" in that, yes, we can make sporty cars too.
Mr. Clarkson btw, thinks Ferrari is Jesus, so he'd much rather a louder, brasher, sporter car than a luxury ride (some background).
http://forums.thecarlounge.net/zerothread?id=1980700
Here you can find some debating about the article.
05-09-05, 06:58 PM
#5
Noooo~ He is offensive. Clearly opinionated, I wonder if he really even drove this car. He complained about the wood trim. I guess that is pretty good if that was all he could really complain about, but racial tones rang through his article from start to finish. If there is anything I have learned in driving exotics, more money does not mean a better car. I simply drive the best car, because I know it is the best car! LOL It is all about taste and preference and this guy had no taste so what can you say about his preference.
05-09-05, 07:18 PM
#6
Pole Position
Originally Posted by Raptor.1
If there is anything I have learned in driving exotics, more money does not mean a better car. I simply drive the best car, because I know it is the best car! LOL It is all about taste and preference and this guy had no taste so what can you say about his preference.
In some exclusive restaurants food is not even close as in some "ordinary" ones but sure is more expensive. Since the food does not justify the price or experience I feel like I have been played and I don't like that. Same is with the cars.
The moment I seat in F360 I was like WTF and started laughing. All my dreams as a kid of Ferraris and Porsches were shattered as soon as I seat in them and drove them (Driven Porsches only so far).
Ferrari does not offer nothing to me that some other cars already can't. It is like Rolex. If you want to show off that you have money you go and buy Rolex. So boring!
Bentley GT or AM DB9 over F360
Rado over Rolex.
That is my stand.
Remember It's not about the money it's about the principals.
05-09-05, 07:39 PM
#7
Lexus Champion
Funny that he spent almost nothing talking about the car he's supposedly to be testing. It just goes to show one thing: the car is almost perfect in every way and he can't seem to find anything of fault with it, so he started yammering about something else that he finds somewhat offensive (Japanese culture, spoons, sushi, etc).
It's kinda like that dude Simon in American Idol. Did you notice how everytime he's proven wrong he always shrugged and looked away. This article in a physical embodiment would be exactly that, a Jeremy Clarkson that shrugged and looked away when given a somewhat-perfect Lexus to be tested. He really didn't know what to say!
It's kinda like that dude Simon in American Idol. Did you notice how everytime he's proven wrong he always shrugged and looked away. This article in a physical embodiment would be exactly that, a Jeremy Clarkson that shrugged and looked away when given a somewhat-perfect Lexus to be tested. He really didn't know what to say!
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05-09-05, 08:33 PM
#9
Lexus Connoisseur
As an American, I will never understand the dry humor/sarcasm the British convey. No offense. 
05-09-05, 08:37 PM
#10
Lexus Fanatic
iTrader: (20)
Originally Posted by Vladi
The moment I seat in F360 I was like WTF and started laughing. All my dreams as a kid of Ferraris and Porsches were shattered as soon as I seat in them and drove them (Driven Porsches only so far).
Ferrari does not offer nothing to me that some other cars already can't. It is like Rolex. If you want to show off that you have money you go and buy Rolex. So boring!
Bentley GT or AM DB9 over F360
Rado over Rolex.
That is my stand.
Remember It's not about the money it's about the principals.
Ferrari does not offer nothing to me that some other cars already can't. It is like Rolex. If you want to show off that you have money you go and buy Rolex. So boring!
Bentley GT or AM DB9 over F360
Rado over Rolex.
That is my stand.
Remember It's not about the money it's about the principals.
Now a Rolex I agree is nothing special, although it is well made. Watches though really don't have the variability in function that cars do - and beyond basic functions watches are just jewelry (in my mind mostly a waste of money).
So a Porsche did nothing for you either? I guess you're not into handling.
05-09-05, 08:51 PM
#11
Lexus Fanatic
iTrader: (20)
The article is a bit on the shallow side looking at Japanese culture just because he has an 11 year old Japanese child staying with him.
But about the car I think he's pretty much dead on. The 3GS has more (nice) gadgets, more refinement (quieter/smoother), and a very tidy and functional interior with a couple of odd cosmetic points - if he's talking about the reddish wood I've seen, I agree it looks terrible. I dislike the aluminum trim around the center dash too.
The 3GS is a stylish, quiet, luxurious car. It is not however exciting. It breaks little new ground except and was clearly targeted to be safe for Lexus. After seeing it in a myriad of pictures and in person, I believe its styling is BORING and a hodge podge. The front fenders and hind quarters of the car are just too bulky too and the rims/tires too tiny for the giant wheel wells. It's trying to look sleek but it's too big and bulky to pull it off. It's trying to do too many things - more rear seat room, better trunk space, swoopy lines, it's just a bad compromise but fine for someone who really can't choose between an LS430 and a G35 coupe!
Is it a bad car? No. Is it a great car? No. Is it "almost perfect in every way" as jtanoyo1 says? Er, hardly. It's a stylized rear wheel drive Avalon with more luxury. Zzzzzzzzz......
But about the car I think he's pretty much dead on. The 3GS has more (nice) gadgets, more refinement (quieter/smoother), and a very tidy and functional interior with a couple of odd cosmetic points - if he's talking about the reddish wood I've seen, I agree it looks terrible. I dislike the aluminum trim around the center dash too.
The 3GS is a stylish, quiet, luxurious car. It is not however exciting. It breaks little new ground except and was clearly targeted to be safe for Lexus. After seeing it in a myriad of pictures and in person, I believe its styling is BORING and a hodge podge. The front fenders and hind quarters of the car are just too bulky too and the rims/tires too tiny for the giant wheel wells. It's trying to look sleek but it's too big and bulky to pull it off. It's trying to do too many things - more rear seat room, better trunk space, swoopy lines, it's just a bad compromise but fine for someone who really can't choose between an LS430 and a G35 coupe!
Is it a bad car? No. Is it a great car? No. Is it "almost perfect in every way" as jtanoyo1 says? Er, hardly. It's a stylized rear wheel drive Avalon with more luxury. Zzzzzzzzz......
05-09-05, 09:04 PM
#12
"Cars sit in the Japanese psyche along with spoons and mashed potato. They don’t come naturally."
hmmm...i wonder what cars like the Skyline GT-R, Supra, Lancer EVO, WRX, Miata, RX-8, Z (just to name a few) mean to Clarkson...those japanese, they just don't understand the joy of driving!
hmmm...i wonder what cars like the Skyline GT-R, Supra, Lancer EVO, WRX, Miata, RX-8, Z (just to name a few) mean to Clarkson...those japanese, they just don't understand the joy of driving!
05-09-05, 10:29 PM
#13
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Originally Posted by bitkahuna
The article is a bit on the shallow side looking at Japanese culture just because he has an 11 year old Japanese child staying with him.
But about the car I think he's pretty much dead on. The 3GS has more (nice) gadgets, more refinement (quieter/smoother), and a very tidy and functional interior with a couple of odd cosmetic points - if he's talking about the reddish wood I've seen, I agree it looks terrible. I dislike the aluminum trim around the center dash too.
The 3GS is a stylish, quiet, luxurious car. It is not however exciting. It breaks little new ground except and was clearly targeted to be safe for Lexus. After seeing it in a myriad of pictures and in person, I believe its styling is BORING and a hodge podge. The front fenders and hind quarters of the car are just too bulky too and the rims/tires too tiny for the giant wheel wells. It's trying to look sleek but it's too big and bulky to pull it off. It's trying to do too many things - more rear seat room, better trunk space, swoopy lines, it's just a bad compromise but fine for someone who really can't choose between an LS430 and a G35 coupe!
Is it a bad car? No. Is it a great car? No. Is it "almost perfect in every way" as jtanoyo1 says? Er, hardly. It's a stylized rear wheel drive Avalon with more luxury. Zzzzzzzzz......
But about the car I think he's pretty much dead on. The 3GS has more (nice) gadgets, more refinement (quieter/smoother), and a very tidy and functional interior with a couple of odd cosmetic points - if he's talking about the reddish wood I've seen, I agree it looks terrible. I dislike the aluminum trim around the center dash too.
The 3GS is a stylish, quiet, luxurious car. It is not however exciting. It breaks little new ground except and was clearly targeted to be safe for Lexus. After seeing it in a myriad of pictures and in person, I believe its styling is BORING and a hodge podge. The front fenders and hind quarters of the car are just too bulky too and the rims/tires too tiny for the giant wheel wells. It's trying to look sleek but it's too big and bulky to pull it off. It's trying to do too many things - more rear seat room, better trunk space, swoopy lines, it's just a bad compromise but fine for someone who really can't choose between an LS430 and a G35 coupe!
Is it a bad car? No. Is it a great car? No. Is it "almost perfect in every way" as jtanoyo1 says? Er, hardly. It's a stylized rear wheel drive Avalon with more luxury. Zzzzzzzzz......
The problem I think is that most people who make these "soul" criticisms don't even understand the "soul" of a Lexus in the first place. Lexus cars do have a "soul" ... and that is to provide a surreal experience, to isolate you from the real world. The GS does this, yet manages as well to be sporty and powerful. The GS's LED interior lights definitely add soul. The way all the lights come on in a nice pattern adds to the soul. The Japanese culture has a lot to do with tranquility, silence, a calm and quiet environment ...I live right near Toronto ... and driving around, with so much noise coming from other cars, ricers, construction etc., I appreciate Lexus cars that isolate you. Last summer, I got to ride a few times in my friend's 04 ES, and I absolutely loved it. The car was very comfortable and luxurious, yet stiff and firm when needed. In other words, it felt like a very nice balance to me.
When I myself sat in the new GS I felt a lot of soul. In contrast, when I sat in a C Class, as well as an S Class, inside, they felt almost exactly the same.
05-09-05, 11:11 PM
#14
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Being a LEXUS and now a former Clarckson fan...I gotta put my 2cents in....
I hope we are talking about the same Clarckson
I have bunch of TOP GEAR shows that I ripped from the internet on dvd's because i like how Clarckson reviews the cars and "tells it like it is" .....Being European obviously i understand that they think that BMW and MERCEDES are THE CARS TO HAVE AND OWN..period(mostly anyway) His review of the Lexus was kinda expected because i have seen that they DONOT like the brand over there. But this review HAS to be the most IDIOTIC, STUPID and borderline racist (and yes i do have a sense of humor) piece of s this guy has ever written. Dude, wake up! BMW and MERCEDES "USED" to be the luxury leaders....the current market trends and facts show that is NOT the case anymore(maybe not in UK)...these are GREAT cars no doubt but I am getting really sick of the "NO SOUL, NO PASSION, TOO QUITE, NOT ENOUGH POWER crap when it comes to LEXUS. Speaking of BMW,,, i am NOT exaggerating but My boss has a 2004 525, My buddy has a 2005 545 and another has a 2006 530....I swear that within last month ALL OF THE CARS had MAJOR transmission issues. The last guy had just bought the car and the transmission just died 
He is driving a loaner right now....get my drift...
I understand the reviewers have thier own opinions....But Idiots like him just erk me....The car is NOT perfect but what kind of dumass comments are these...
What a Jacka$$. 
Thanks for letting me vent
I hope we are talking about the same Clarckson
I have bunch of TOP GEAR shows that I ripped from the internet on dvd's because i like how Clarckson reviews the cars and "tells it like it is" .....Being European obviously i understand that they think that BMW and MERCEDES are THE CARS TO HAVE AND OWN..period(mostly anyway) His review of the Lexus was kinda expected because i have seen that they DONOT like the brand over there. But this review HAS to be the most IDIOTIC, STUPID and borderline racist (and yes i do have a sense of humor) piece of s this guy has ever written. Dude, wake up! BMW and MERCEDES "USED" to be the luxury leaders....the current market trends and facts show that is NOT the case anymore(maybe not in UK)...these are GREAT cars no doubt but I am getting really sick of the "NO SOUL, NO PASSION, TOO QUITE, NOT ENOUGH POWER crap when it comes to LEXUS. Speaking of BMW,,, i am NOT exaggerating but My boss has a 2004 525, My buddy has a 2005 545 and another has a 2006 530....I swear that within last month ALL OF THE CARS had MAJOR transmission issues. The last guy had just bought the car and the transmission just died He is driving a loaner right now....get my drift...
I understand the reviewers have thier own opinions....But Idiots like him just erk me....The car is NOT perfect but what kind of dumass comments are these...
Unfortunately, I didn’t like it at all, partly because it’s about as attractive as a sponsored town centre roundabout and partly because Lexuses these days are driven by people who play golf, or people who like to slap their hos and drive around at night shooting at business rivals with submachineguns. Gangstas? Golfers? I don’t want to look like either.
Mostly, though, I don’t like this car because it feels like a facsimile of the real thing. And that’s hardly surprising because that’s exactly what it is. A copy. A Mercedes clone
Thanks for letting me vent
Last edited by NYlexus; 05-09-05 at 11:16 PM.