2GS to 3GS -> VERY Disappointing!
12-23-07, 03:46 PM
#61
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Wood will not spin right
I've also noticed that, with a wooded wheel rather than a leather one, making U-turns or sharp turns isn't as easy. The reason is that with a leather wheel once you've finished the turn and have the car pointing in the new direction you can let the wheel easily spin around on its own by just slightly releasing your grip on it.
The same action with a wooden wheel won't work since your skin will stick on the wood just enough to stop it spinning prematurely. The leather, on the other hand, will not stick at all. Of course you can completely let go of the wooden wheel to let it spin, which isn't very safe, or you can manually spin it back to the straight position.
Granted this is no big deal, but it does change how I've been driving for a long time.
The same action with a wooden wheel won't work since your skin will stick on the wood just enough to stop it spinning prematurely. The leather, on the other hand, will not stick at all. Of course you can completely let go of the wooden wheel to let it spin, which isn't very safe, or you can manually spin it back to the straight position.
Granted this is no big deal, but it does change how I've been driving for a long time.
12-23-07, 05:57 PM
#62
I've also noticed that, with a wooded wheel rather than a leather one, making U-turns or sharp turns isn't as easy. The reason is that with a leather wheel once you've finished the turn and have the car pointing in the new direction you can let the wheel easily spin around on its own by just slightly releasing your grip on it.
The same action with a wooden wheel won't work since your skin will stick on the wood just enough to stop it spinning prematurely. The leather, on the other hand, will not stick at all. Of course you can completely let go of the wooden wheel to let it spin, which isn't very safe, or you can manually spin it back to the straight position.
Granted this is no big deal, but it does change how I've been driving for a long time.
The same action with a wooden wheel won't work since your skin will stick on the wood just enough to stop it spinning prematurely. The leather, on the other hand, will not stick at all. Of course you can completely let go of the wooden wheel to let it spin, which isn't very safe, or you can manually spin it back to the straight position.
Granted this is no big deal, but it does change how I've been driving for a long time.
all about getting used to man. i felt a bit weird when we first had wood wheel on the sc430 as well, but after a while you will be fine. both our ls460l and gs350 are fine. the gs350 also has tighter steering wheel, so the hydraulic pulling it back is very different than our ls460l, i wouldn't say one is better than the other. it's a matter of getting used to
12-23-07, 07:45 PM
#63
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I just bought my '08 350 last Saturday 
after giving up on my '98. One too many expensive problems (last one was the $2k ABS board,... It's still driveable though, just with "regular" brakes and no traction control. 
Oh, and the speedometer is on that board too so I have to go by RPM's.) Anyway. On to the comparisons.
On the drive home from Austin (got a better deal there than Houston), I kept adjusting the seat and the steering wheel tilt because I was feeling uncomfortable. In fact, all last week I was adjusting it a bit every day, but I think I finally have it right. I LOVE the heated/ventilated seats and have already used both functions (that's winter in Houston,...).
The visibility out the sides is less than the 98, but I can adjust with mirror positioning and looking a bit more carefully over my shoulder. The rear-back up camera is useful too.
I did notice the hands-sticking issue with the wood steering wheel on U-turns. But, I can just lightly hold it while it turns itself back and it works out OK. Just requires some adjustments in driving habits.
The power is awesome and the 6 spd transmission is NICE.
I'm finding the 18" tires make the ride a bit different than the tires I currently have on my 98 - can feel the road a bit more, but the agility on corners is noticeably better (even when the traction control was working on the old car). They work great in wet weather even.
I'm still working on setting up all the electronics. A lot has changed there in 10 years!!! Getting used to the keyless entry and love the push button start. Also like the stereo/phone controls on the steering wheel. The self-folding side mirrors are really handy because I need that to get the car in the garage.
I did do the "drive your 98 again" experiment yesterday and even though I love my old car, I am totally in love with the new one now.
And, I love the blue color - it looks black in the shade, but when the sun hits it - wow! It's blue!! My 98 blue is cool too, but I think I like the new color better.
Overall, I am a total Lexus fanatic and am loving my '08 GS!
after giving up on my '98. One too many expensive problems (last one was the $2k ABS board,... It's still driveable though, just with "regular" brakes and no traction control. Oh, and the speedometer is on that board too so I have to go by RPM's.) Anyway. On to the comparisons.On the drive home from Austin (got a better deal there than Houston), I kept adjusting the seat and the steering wheel tilt because I was feeling uncomfortable. In fact, all last week I was adjusting it a bit every day, but I think I finally have it right. I LOVE the heated/ventilated seats and have already used both functions (that's winter in Houston,...).
The visibility out the sides is less than the 98, but I can adjust with mirror positioning and looking a bit more carefully over my shoulder. The rear-back up camera is useful too.
I did notice the hands-sticking issue with the wood steering wheel on U-turns. But, I can just lightly hold it while it turns itself back and it works out OK. Just requires some adjustments in driving habits.
The power is awesome and the 6 spd transmission is NICE.
I'm finding the 18" tires make the ride a bit different than the tires I currently have on my 98 - can feel the road a bit more, but the agility on corners is noticeably better (even when the traction control was working on the old car). They work great in wet weather even.
I'm still working on setting up all the electronics. A lot has changed there in 10 years!!! Getting used to the keyless entry and love the push button start. Also like the stereo/phone controls on the steering wheel. The self-folding side mirrors are really handy because I need that to get the car in the garage.
I did do the "drive your 98 again" experiment yesterday and even though I love my old car, I am totally in love with the new one now.
And, I love the blue color - it looks black in the shade, but when the sun hits it - wow! It's blue!! My 98 blue is cool too, but I think I like the new color better.
Overall, I am a total Lexus fanatic and am loving my '08 GS!
12-24-07, 10:47 AM
#64
Lexus Connoisseur
I just bought my '08 350 last Saturday after giving up on my '98. One too many expensive problems (last one was the $2k ABS board,... It's still driveable though, just with "regular" brakes and no traction control. Oh, and the speedometer is on that board too so I have to go by RPM's.) Anyway. On to the comparisons.
On the drive home from Austin (got a better deal there than Houston), I kept adjusting the seat and the steering wheel tilt because I was feeling uncomfortable. In fact, all last week I was adjusting it a bit every day, but I think I finally have it right. I LOVE the heated/ventilated seats and have already used both functions (that's winter in Houston,...).
The visibility out the sides is less than the 98, but I can adjust with mirror positioning and looking a bit more carefully over my shoulder. The rear-back up camera is useful too.
I did notice the hands-sticking issue with the wood steering wheel on U-turns. But, I can just lightly hold it while it turns itself back and it works out OK. Just requires some adjustments in driving habits.
The power is awesome and the 6 spd transmission is NICE.
I'm finding the 18" tires make the ride a bit different than the tires I currently have on my 98 - can feel the road a bit more, but the agility on corners is noticeably better (even when the traction control was working on the old car). They work great in wet weather even.
I'm still working on setting up all the electronics. A lot has changed there in 10 years!!! Getting used to the keyless entry and love the push button start. Also like the stereo/phone controls on the steering wheel. The self-folding side mirrors are really handy because I need that to get the car in the garage.
I did do the "drive your 98 again" experiment yesterday and even though I love my old car, I am totally in love with the new one now.
And, I love the blue color - it looks black in the shade, but when the sun hits it - wow! It's blue!! My 98 blue is cool too, but I think I like the new color better.
Overall, I am a total Lexus fanatic and am loving my '08 GS!
after giving up on my '98. One too many expensive problems (last one was the $2k ABS board,... It's still driveable though, just with "regular" brakes and no traction control. Oh, and the speedometer is on that board too so I have to go by RPM's.) Anyway. On to the comparisons.On the drive home from Austin (got a better deal there than Houston), I kept adjusting the seat and the steering wheel tilt because I was feeling uncomfortable. In fact, all last week I was adjusting it a bit every day, but I think I finally have it right. I LOVE the heated/ventilated seats and have already used both functions (that's winter in Houston,...).
The visibility out the sides is less than the 98, but I can adjust with mirror positioning and looking a bit more carefully over my shoulder. The rear-back up camera is useful too.
I did notice the hands-sticking issue with the wood steering wheel on U-turns. But, I can just lightly hold it while it turns itself back and it works out OK. Just requires some adjustments in driving habits.
The power is awesome and the 6 spd transmission is NICE.
I'm finding the 18" tires make the ride a bit different than the tires I currently have on my 98 - can feel the road a bit more, but the agility on corners is noticeably better (even when the traction control was working on the old car). They work great in wet weather even.
I'm still working on setting up all the electronics. A lot has changed there in 10 years!!! Getting used to the keyless entry and love the push button start. Also like the stereo/phone controls on the steering wheel. The self-folding side mirrors are really handy because I need that to get the car in the garage.
I did do the "drive your 98 again" experiment yesterday and even though I love my old car, I am totally in love with the new one now.
And, I love the blue color - it looks black in the shade, but when the sun hits it - wow! It's blue!! My 98 blue is cool too, but I think I like the new color better.
Overall, I am a total Lexus fanatic and am loving my '08 GS!
There is a huge step in creature comforts from the 2GS to the 3GS. It's definitely a whole new type of new car owner excitement!
12-30-07, 02:11 PM
#66
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Disagree. The same thing happened to me when I picked up my 2GS. I did several test drives and missed a lot of things that really ended up annoying me in the end.
The fact is, unless you can take the car home for a week (and sorry, but they normally don't allow you to do that), you won't find all the nuances of a car that you love/hate during test drives. In my case, I didn't realize/discover some of my issues until a couple of weeks/months later (didn't realize the heated seats sucked until I had to use them).
So I don't buy into this "why didn't you test drive the car". The OP did - and as pointed out there is a sales guy in the car with you the whole time and you just don't get enough time in the car to fully realize all little nuances of a given car.
The fact is, unless you can take the car home for a week (and sorry, but they normally don't allow you to do that), you won't find all the nuances of a car that you love/hate during test drives. In my case, I didn't realize/discover some of my issues until a couple of weeks/months later (didn't realize the heated seats sucked until I had to use them).
So I don't buy into this "why didn't you test drive the car". The OP did - and as pointed out there is a sales guy in the car with you the whole time and you just don't get enough time in the car to fully realize all little nuances of a given car.
12-30-07, 06:02 PM
#67
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Don't agree. If you're going to drop $50k+, you gotta do your DD. I'm a repeat 'guest', so my dealer let me have a 3GS loaner when my IS was in for service. They even found the exact color combo I was interested in, so I got the 'extended' test drive w/out any sales folks in the car . . .
12-31-07, 04:12 AM
#68
You guys are lucky to live in an area that has more than one dealer. The local dealer changed it so they only have ES and MAYBE a IS for a loaner. They used to have a GS/RX but they dropped it.
I'm with Doug. No way are you gonna find out how you like the car unless you had it a ew days. But I would guess 95% of dealers wont let you just take home a car. I think there was an American car dealership that did that as long as you kept the milage under 100miles or something.
I'm with Doug. No way are you gonna find out how you like the car unless you had it a ew days. But I would guess 95% of dealers wont let you just take home a car. I think there was an American car dealership that did that as long as you kept the milage under 100miles or something.
12-31-07, 04:34 AM
#69
You guys are lucky to live in an area that has more than one dealer. The local dealer changed it so they only have ES and MAYBE a IS for a loaner. They used to have a GS/RX but they dropped it.
I'm with Doug. No way are you gonna find out how you like the car unless you had it a ew days. But I would guess 95% of dealers wont let you just take home a car. I think there was an American car dealership that did that as long as you kept the milage under 100miles or something.
I'm with Doug. No way are you gonna find out how you like the car unless you had it a ew days. But I would guess 95% of dealers wont let you just take home a car. I think there was an American car dealership that did that as long as you kept the milage under 100miles or something.
Anyway, some dealers still let you take home new cars if they think you are serious. When I stopped by the Infiniti dealer to take a real serious look at the new G35S, I told them right up front that I was looking to sell/trade my 99 LS400 and was looking at either new/preowned BMW, Toyota Tacoma truck, and Lexus GS as well as the Infiniti G35S. I also told them my wife needed to be in on the final decision, so I really just wanted all the information possible and do a test drive. Believe it or not I had to continuously refuse to take the car home for a day or two. They really wanted me to take the car home and try it out. Granted, it wasn't the sales guy who was actually really good, but the finance manager that was pushing me to take the car home. Anyway, ended up with a used BMW.
12-31-07, 03:03 PM
#70
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^^^ I agree I believe it all depends on the dealership. Before I purchased my 3GS, I was contemplating a SC430. When I went for the test drive, I was undecided and couldn't get a real feel for the car (plus it was raining and whats a convertible test drive with the top up). I damn near had 2 pry my 2GS keys out his hand, the salesman practically begged me to take the SC home for a 24 hours, to help me make my decision.
Also my ex had her Altima for an entire weekend b4 she decided to buy it.
Also my ex had her Altima for an entire weekend b4 she decided to buy it.
01-03-08, 02:59 PM
#71
Lexus Connoisseur
We have 15 Lexus dealers in the greater Los Angeles Area. They are all within a 30 minute drive from each other.
01-15-08, 04:49 PM
#74
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I'm a happy guy and if I had to trade my GS350 AWD for another car, I would be hard pressed to find a better ride!
01-15-08, 10:22 PM
#75
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One month update
On the everything else I complained about, I've learned to live with them just fine. But, to me, my main complaint was and is the seat and how uncomfortable it makes me feel.
On the 3GS's looks and the gadgets, I continued to be extremely pleased and impressed. But, when I drive the car, I am just not comfortable. Maybe -- I hope -- the seat, which is really stiff, will eventually soften up some. It's on my thigh, not my butt, where the pain is felt. I tried a pad, but it looks so crappy and doesn't help much that I stopped using it.
I hope and plan to write more in another week or two when I have more time to collect my thoughts.