LexFather

Hell I showed Lexus # 1 in EUROPE previously. Here they are #1 in Taiwan

LexFather

Again, all I am doing is posting THE FACTS. I'll wait for ANY award Acura has won.
http://www.lexus.com.au/about/awards...rds&page=brand

Global Awards

2004, 2003, 2002, 2001 Gold Award, by global automotive research company JD Power and ***. Placing Lexus first in a UK Customer Satisfaction Study.

2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 Gold Award as the best-performing manufacturer in a British customer satisfaction survey by JD Power and ***. in conjunction with BBC's Top Gear magazine.

2004 Tahara plant in Japan recognised as the best assembly plant in the world. by JD Power and

2002 Top award in a car ownership survey by 'Top Gear' magazine rated Lexus ahead of 32 other brands.

1997, 1998, 2000 Number one for Long Term dependability awarded by JD Power and Associates.

1999 Number one for Vehicle Dependability awarded by JD Power and

1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995 1997, 1998 Number One for Customer Satisfaction, awarded by JD Power
1995, 1996 Best overall car line for Vehicle Dependability over 5 Years of Service, JD Power

1990 Best Overall Car Line in Initial Quality, JD Power

LexFather

http://www.lexus.co.uk/about_lexus/n...ide_awards.asp
LEXUS HONOURED WITH WORLDWIDE AWARDS FOR ITS CARS OF TODAY - AND TOMORROW

Lexus is one of the world's youngest automotive brands, but it already ranks among the highest achievers in the industry when it comes to garnering awards for excellence. This week two further accolades have been added to a collection that's the envy of every other premium manufacturer, reflecting both the strength of its current product line-up and the immense promise shown by a new model that has not even reached the showroom yet.

In the USA Lexus has been named the number one manufacturer in the J.D. Power and Associates' APEAL (Automotive, Performance Execution and Layout) study for the fourth year running. As well as taking the overall top honour, Lexus claimed a category win with the RX330 as the Most Appealing Entry Luxury SUV for the second consecutive year, with the RX470 as runner-up. The LS430, SC430 and IS300 also performed strongly in their respective classes.

Rather than being an industry assessment, the APEAL awards are determined by the opinions of more than 103,000 owners of new vehicles with regard to attributes such as ride and handling, styling, comfort, drivetrain and convenience.

Meanwhile on the other side of the world the all-new Lexus GS has been awarded the 2004 Auto Trophy in Germany as the top imported luxury car, as voted for by readers of Auto Zeitung and TV Movie magazines. The result is particularly notable as the car is not due to go on sale in Europe until spring next year: public support for the GS was based purely on early motor show appearances, video footage and press reports.

Stuart McCullough, Director of Lexus Europe, said: "The new GS represents the next step in the evolution of the Lexus approach to design. The brief to our designers was to capture a combination of elegance and simplicity. It is particularly pleasing that this approach has been acknowledged by the readers of Auto Zeitung and TV Movie, even before the car has gone on sale."

Bushwack

The last 10-12 posts sure had me chuckling.

It all comes down to what you feels works and feels best for you. Forget about prestige, the nameplate, dealer service, etc.. I've bought (new) one Chevy, two Toyotas, a Cadillac and a Buick. None of these cars gave me any significant problems (drove the cars between 80M - 190,000 miles) and when taken to the dealer for service, I was treated well. No, I didn't get my tushy kissed but so what. I know I'm omnipotent - I don't need my ego inflated any more then it is!

For months I crossed shopped the RL, GS and M. All of these cars are gems. I was eating my insides out not knowing which car was for me. What sold me on the RL was the interior and all-around ergonomics. Siting in the RL, everything just 'works'. Everything is within easy reach. The car fits like a glove with the GS coming in a very respectable second place. Also, comparably equipped, the RL is thousands of $$$ less then a GS 3XX(AWD) or M35(X). Resale value is a moot point when the cost savings is $5,000+. In addition, if you're going to lease, the RL is an even better value.

Living and working in the west side of L.A., you don't have to tell me about the prestige of driving a markee car. Every other car on the west side is a Lexus, Bentley, BMW or MB. I see more Bentleys then I do RLs! If it's all about being 'seen' in a markee car, keep in mind you'll only be seen for a few seconds before the light turns green. If driving a unique car is significant when choosing, there aren't too many RLs on the road.

But seriously, you'll be spending your time driving from INSIDE the car. Choose from the inside out and don't allow the nameplate of the car play too significant a role in your choosing (unless you just have to have a Lexus). It took me a four months before I came to that realization and I am a very happy camper.

GSteg

iTrader: (15)

1sicklex, while I do agree with you that Lexus is at the top of the game when it comes to long-term dependability and customer service, they are not miles ahead from Acura. That's like saying Lexus vehicles are miles ahead of the regular Toyota products, which we know isn't true.

For the 2006 Vehicle Dependability Study, Lexus received 136 probelms per 100 vehicles while Acura received 184 problems per 100 vehicles. That works out to be 0.50 (1 more on every other car) more problems per vehicle than Lexus. This could be due to something small, and may not necessarily reflect the car's actual quality/reliability.

JD powers states:
It's a survey from regular consumers, not necessarily an objective gathering of information. Furthermore, the survey includes only the 2003 model-years and we know that Acura was plagued with the transmission failure on the MDX and the TL. For Acura to still receive high ranking with tranmission problems, that shows how well Acura cars are built, relative to Lexus vehicles that didn't have major mechanical problems. After 3 years, Acura shows only 0.50 more problems than lexus per 100 cars. This small number does not solely reflect the manufactor's ability to put together a quality car. The owner's ability to maintain the car is a factor and will skew the survey, because no such objective inspections are made to those 47,620 vehicles.

Since 2003, Acura has revamp most of their vehicles. Their prodecessors are now of higher quality than the cars they replaced. This includes the new RL and the TSX. Based upon reviews, many felt the new MDX is a step up in quality in comparison to the first generation MDX. Although the RDX is fairly new, Acura has no problem employing the same build technique as the rest of the car line-up.

JD Powers states:
Just like the Consumer Report, the data that are released are all partically subjective. A simple complaint about a cup holder not being big enough to fit a monsterous AM/PM slurpy can be taken as a "problem" because it can defer the owner's reccomendation to another potential buyer.

Basically what I'm saying is, even though on paper the Lexus looks like it wins by a big shot over Acura in terms of quality/reliability (136 vs 184; respectively), spread out the numbers over 100 vehicles and the gap is not as big as it seems (infact very small). Factor in 3 years later, the brand name becomes less of a factor in reliability. How the owner maintains the car over the course of time will tell how reliable the car comes out to be. No name plate can save a car from being mistreated by the owner.

twister

Just scanned through all the post. I'm surprised that nobody mentioned anything about mp3s. I have been driving a loaner GS350AWD for the last couple of days, and it plays mp3s without any problem. My loaner (actually a demo car from showroom) has ML stereo, but I think even a regular premium Lexus 6-CD changer stereo on GS350 will play mp3s. I have it in my ES350 with a standard stereo as well.

DaveGS4

iTrader: (2)

Thank you twister for getting this thread back on track and on topic.

Other members, please discontinue the general Acura vs Lexus banter, there are thousands of threads already out there for that with exactly the same tired arguments. Both are fine companies and make fine products. Each have their pros and cons.

Get this thread back to the original topic of RL vs GS350AWD please. And keep it polite, there will be no further warnings on this topic.

mcgrady

so it does play mp3s?...still deciding (mighty hastily, I may add)

twister

You have GS350AWD listed in your profile, should we assume decision was made?