4GS loaner, not impressed
06-04-12, 11:13 AM
#1
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4GS loaner, not impressed
I dropped off my LS460 at the dealer for a service and requested and got a new 4GS as loaner for the day. I like the styling but for the rest I am not too impressed. Call me difficult but these are my findings in the short time I drove it.
1) Nav can still not be used while driving, you can crash the car playing with everything else except do something useful with it.
2) Man, does that gas pedal have to be so heavy, I am getting muscle cramps keeping the car at 80+ MPH.
3) Blinker and wiper stalks, the new mechanism is cool but I cannot tell by touch which mode it is in, kinda unpractical.
4) That mouse control is horrible, if that is going to be the new thing for the LS as well they lost me as a customer.
5) The LS seat is already rather bad but does the new GS seat have to made from concrete?
1) Nav can still not be used while driving, you can crash the car playing with everything else except do something useful with it.
2) Man, does that gas pedal have to be so heavy, I am getting muscle cramps keeping the car at 80+ MPH.
3) Blinker and wiper stalks, the new mechanism is cool but I cannot tell by touch which mode it is in, kinda unpractical.
4) That mouse control is horrible, if that is going to be the new thing for the LS as well they lost me as a customer.
5) The LS seat is already rather bad but does the new GS seat have to made from concrete?
06-04-12, 11:25 AM
#2
Interesting feedback. I agree with you on #1. I sometimes I do get distracted with all the gadgets available. All the other points I have to disagree. #3 & #4 just takes some getting use to. I've had the car for a couple months now and I am super fast with the mouse. Beats touching the screen IMO.
06-04-12, 12:07 PM
#3
1.Yeah, Im not sure what other cars allow you to play with the nav while driving?
2. Gas pedal heavy huh? That thought has never come into my mind since owning
3. I dont get your gripe.
4. I love the mouse and it just takes getting use to. You have to go into setting and change the feedback to suit your style. Kind of like a computer and setting your cursor and mouse speed. When I had a 745 people reviewed the "I drive" and called it a disaster and sure it had its issues but after you got use to it, it was pretty cool.
5. I love how my seats feel, its crazy how opinions vary so drastically.
Was your loaner a Premium, sport or luxury? My only experience is with an Fsport.
2. Gas pedal heavy huh? That thought has never come into my mind since owning
3. I dont get your gripe.
4. I love the mouse and it just takes getting use to. You have to go into setting and change the feedback to suit your style. Kind of like a computer and setting your cursor and mouse speed. When I had a 745 people reviewed the "I drive" and called it a disaster and sure it had its issues but after you got use to it, it was pretty cool.
5. I love how my seats feel, its crazy how opinions vary so drastically.
Was your loaner a Premium, sport or luxury? My only experience is with an Fsport.
06-04-12, 12:15 PM
#4
One mistake I made when buying my GS was not taking the time to play with the navigation. If I knew what I know now about the navi on the Lexus, I think I would consider the competition more.
I feel the navi lock out in drive render the whole usefulness of paying more for the navigation. Sure, you can use voice activated but it's slow and painful and sometime just doesn't work.
I feel the navi lock out in drive render the whole usefulness of paying more for the navigation. Sure, you can use voice activated but it's slow and painful and sometime just doesn't work.
06-04-12, 12:15 PM
#5
You can use voice commands for the NAV.
The pedal feels normal to me.
The stalks are practical not unpractical, a light touch is three blinks while a push is full.
The mouse control is so easy to use and is better than anything else on the market.
Seats are comfort combined with performance and in the luxury have 18 options
The pedal feels normal to me.
The stalks are practical not unpractical, a light touch is three blinks while a push is full.
The mouse control is so easy to use and is better than anything else on the market.
Seats are comfort combined with performance and in the luxury have 18 options
06-04-12, 12:46 PM
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Well, like I said I like to complain, let me elaborate a bit more. I am not quite sure which version I got, it is definitely not the F-sport.
1) I haven't tried the voice commands yet but being an import American I am not very hopeful, I cannot get it to work on my LS so unless it has vastly improved with the new software it is most likely not going to be much better. As a funny aside, the Lexus link voice recognition of the LS consistently understand my 2's as 0's, a bit annoying when your home phone starts with 972.
2) The gas pedal is way heavier than that of the LS and any other car I own(ed), I guess I could get used to it but the difference is just striking.
3) I understand that a light touch is three blinks and stuff, what I mean is that a full push doesn't actually change the rest position of the stalk, thereby (especially for the wipers) removing any tactile feedback telling my fingers in which mode/position it is. Again I may get used to it but so far the ergonomics from the LS430 to the LS460 and the the 4GS is only going the wrong way.
4) The 4GS mouse is better than my wife's Murano's mouse, but typing in any address is still a lot slower than just hitting a touchscreen.
5) Seats are very personal the LS430's were great, the LS460's are already a whole lot worse and these are made from concrete, at least it feels that way to my behind.
1) I haven't tried the voice commands yet but being an import American I am not very hopeful, I cannot get it to work on my LS so unless it has vastly improved with the new software it is most likely not going to be much better. As a funny aside, the Lexus link voice recognition of the LS consistently understand my 2's as 0's, a bit annoying when your home phone starts with 972.
2) The gas pedal is way heavier than that of the LS and any other car I own(ed), I guess I could get used to it but the difference is just striking.
3) I understand that a light touch is three blinks and stuff, what I mean is that a full push doesn't actually change the rest position of the stalk, thereby (especially for the wipers) removing any tactile feedback telling my fingers in which mode/position it is. Again I may get used to it but so far the ergonomics from the LS430 to the LS460 and the the 4GS is only going the wrong way.
4) The 4GS mouse is better than my wife's Murano's mouse, but typing in any address is still a lot slower than just hitting a touchscreen.
5) Seats are very personal the LS430's were great, the LS460's are already a whole lot worse and these are made from concrete, at least it feels that way to my behind.
06-04-12, 12:57 PM
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Now I am griping I forgot about another one, there is something weird going on with the polarization of the LCD screen and sunglasses, when I tilt my head to the right the right side of the map screen turns dark. Tilting to the left actually makes the screen brighter. The LS430 had this really bad and it was fixed on the LS460, it looks like the old problem is back.
My best guess is that the polarization has been designed for left hand drive system in Japan (steering wheel on the right) where the natural head tilt is to the left, while our natural tilt is to the right.
My best guess is that the polarization has been designed for left hand drive system in Japan (steering wheel on the right) where the natural head tilt is to the left, while our natural tilt is to the right.
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06-04-12, 01:00 PM
#8
06-04-12, 01:27 PM
#10
Now I am griping I forgot about another one, there is something weird going on with the polarization of the LCD screen and sunglasses, when I tilt my head to the right the right side of the map screen turns dark. Tilting to the left actually makes the screen brighter. The LS430 had this really bad and it was fixed on the LS460, it looks like the old problem is back.
My best guess is that the polarization has been designed for left hand drive system in Japan (steering wheel on the right) where the natural head tilt is to the left, while our natural tilt is to the right.
My best guess is that the polarization has been designed for left hand drive system in Japan (steering wheel on the right) where the natural head tilt is to the left, while our natural tilt is to the right.
06-04-12, 02:07 PM
#11
are you sure they gave you a 4GS?????? it was probably base. of course it may feel diff. you have an LS460. however i disagree with everything you said. i've had my GS F-Sport since FEB. and,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, she is a great car inside and out. more low end torque of course but that's the only minor problem (if you can call it a problem) i have with her.
06-04-12, 02:50 PM
#12
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There are only a couple manufacturers who still allow use of nav functions on vehicles, and I believe next year its a federal requirement that nav functions be locked out when driving. Our Jeep is the same way.
Get used to the mouse controller too. I'm not sure what other competitor's product you would buy without a mouse type controller. Only thing I can think of is a Cadillac or Lincoln. Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Infiniti, all have mouse type controllers. There are just too many functions to have buttons for them all nowadays. Just takes some getting used to. Lexus system works as well, or better than all the competition.
As for your driving feedback, if you're used to an LS460 my guess is the fact that you did not like the new GS is actually a positive thing to the people who want a vehicle like the GS. The heavy gas pedal, heavy steering, all part of what makes it a well weighted sports sedan. Drive a BMW, they're the same way. Hell...BMWs didn't even have power steering until not that long ago. Seats are firm...its a sport sedan of course they're firm. Again...drive a BMW or Audi, or even a Mercedes. Seats are VERY firm.
I'm not a huge sporty car guy, and the GS has never appealed to me in the past, but I LOVED the 4GS I drove. Really great sports sedan.
Get used to the mouse controller too. I'm not sure what other competitor's product you would buy without a mouse type controller. Only thing I can think of is a Cadillac or Lincoln. Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Infiniti, all have mouse type controllers. There are just too many functions to have buttons for them all nowadays. Just takes some getting used to. Lexus system works as well, or better than all the competition.
As for your driving feedback, if you're used to an LS460 my guess is the fact that you did not like the new GS is actually a positive thing to the people who want a vehicle like the GS. The heavy gas pedal, heavy steering, all part of what makes it a well weighted sports sedan. Drive a BMW, they're the same way. Hell...BMWs didn't even have power steering until not that long ago. Seats are firm...its a sport sedan of course they're firm. Again...drive a BMW or Audi, or even a Mercedes. Seats are VERY firm.
I'm not a huge sporty car guy, and the GS has never appealed to me in the past, but I LOVED the 4GS I drove. Really great sports sedan.
06-04-12, 03:30 PM
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It is not that I dislike sporty sedans, the 430 I had was the model with the sports suspension and the LS is always in the sports transmission and suspension setting. It is just that I don't see a reason for a heavy gas pedal, even the pedal on my NSX is a whole lot softer and its power steering cuts out completely above 20MPH.
Only my sister in law's TL rivals the 4GS in heaviness. And speaking of TL's the new one still allowed me to operate the NAV while driving although that joystick/control is another lesson in confusing complexity.
Only my sister in law's TL rivals the 4GS in heaviness. And speaking of TL's the new one still allowed me to operate the NAV while driving although that joystick/control is another lesson in confusing complexity.
06-04-12, 03:36 PM
#14
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I mean...the GS has won every compero its been in pretty much...with Car & Driver I think it was saying it was how BMWs used to be, with the new 5 being a dissapointment to them. I haven't read anyone complain about a heavy pedal. I drove a 5 and an E class right after the GS...both vehicles had pedals that felt about the same.
Anyways...nothing sporty about an LS...even a 430 with the sport suspension and the 460 in the sport suspension or sport mode is a complete and total land barge. I love the LS, but it doesn't have a drop of sportiness in it anywhere. Neither does my ES.
I think the GS is just not your cup of tea...which is why they make several different models.
Honda is one of the last carmakers who doesn't lock functions out, but that will of course change when it becomes mandatory.
Anyways...nothing sporty about an LS...even a 430 with the sport suspension and the 460 in the sport suspension or sport mode is a complete and total land barge. I love the LS, but it doesn't have a drop of sportiness in it anywhere. Neither does my ES.
I think the GS is just not your cup of tea...which is why they make several different models.
And speaking of TL's the new one still allowed me to operate the NAV while driving although that joystick/control is another lesson in confusing complexity.