tigmd99

Well, a few things keep the Avalon on the short list:

1. Fuel economy...the Avalon can get (according to owners) up to 30-34 mpg on the highway at 70 mph...and it runs on REGULAR gas. 0-60 is only maybe 0.5 seconds behind the LS430. (And even though i am 34 years old, i am an old fart in my mind...so, speed or power isn't a great requirement for me...i had my share of acceleration a few years ago with a BMW M3.)

2. I have never bought a used car before...so, i am a little timid in buying one. Thus, i am leaning toward only a CPO car from Lexus...i am liking the CPO warranty more and more as i learn about it.

3. It is much cheaper to own the Avalon. The Toyota dealer is literally 5 min from my house...and they charge $30 for oil change and carwash. No need for a loaner car because the dealer is in walking distance! Lexus dealer is a good 20 min. away (by highway) and, of course, the dealer rapes you with every service. (I know this because my brother has LX470 and gets it serviced at Lexus dealer.)

4. Lastly, i am not sure if i want a high profile car. I am kinda paranoid when i am out driving my Mercedes G-wagen. I hear a lot of stories about carjacking or people following you home when they see that you drive an expensive car. This is why i leave my G-wagen in my garage most days...and drive my minivan to work. The Avalon is an "old person" car and not very attractive to most people. The LS is of course the top dog sedan for Lexus...and thus, is more "bling bling" to the public.

Despite all this, i am still leaning toward the LS, but these reasons are why the Avalon is still on the list. The LS simply has too many "goods" for me to bypass....

tigmd99

If the LS has BT, then i am sure that my phone (sprint sanyo scp-7050, awesome phone BTW for those in need of HD phone) will work well. My toyota Sienna has NAVI and my phone book transfer is flawless. I love Toyota BT system! I hope that the LS BT system is just as good as my Sienna.

tigmd99

BTW, did you testdrive the Avalon Limited during your shopping?? The Avalon Limited has the "acoustic windshield" which decreases windnoise over the lesser Avalons. Also, did you test out the JBL sound system?? How did it sound vs. the ML system?? I did listen to the ML system a while back and was impress with it...as i was with the Avalon JBL...however, i tested both system many months apart and was not able to really do an A vs. B comparo.

sojah

iTrader: (1)

tigmd99, to me with that list of negatives you just posted up, i don't see you driving a used LS430. you will forever be stuck on a brand new toyota camry with that mind set while others will be driving a 3 year old top of the line LS for the same amount of money. i know lots of people like you, almost every one of my co-workers is of this mindset and they will forever be stuck on a brand new Honda, Nissan, or in this case Toyota. I love Toyota too (my wifes was a brand new toyota), but I love my lex even more. For 30-35K there is no comparison for me, but I don't think I will ever buy a 'new' Toyota ever again (depreciation is a motha), so I guess we are from 2 different mindsets and will never see the others way, so do yourself a favor and buy that new toyota and have fun taking it back to the toyota dealership for oil changes and thinking how much money you saved and how you made the right decision.

if this sounds a little negative then my apologies, this is just the truth as i see it.

AlexusAnja

Not to continue off subject, but the "bad ole dayz" of buying a used car "at your own risk" are gone. With so many cars being leased, CPO, better quality overall, and just too many used vehicles on market, there are so many very very good used vehicles in top condition for very afforable prices. Four-year old LS430 or brand new loaded Honda Accord, not even a comparison here.

Bluetooth has worked fantastically in my LS. Had hooked up to four different phones for me thus far, two motorola (RAZR and RIZR), blackberry 8100 I think it is, and a Nokia 8300. The vehicle will connect to MOST, but just like any other bluetooth device, it's not guaranteed to connect to ALL BT devices...

Tee

The LS430 04-06 had some cutting edge tech when it came out and is still relevant to this day. Alot of the Avalon & Lexus lower line cars features now are a result of them trickling down from the LS430. The only thing that makes the LS look dated is the tape deck, and the lower rez screen for the Nav other than that the interior rivals the LS460 IMO.

Dx3

iTrader: (13)

I read this and the first thing I thought was: Did he mean

M-F = Monday-Friday

or

M-F= Mother F'in commute

Jonny

sojah

iTrader: (1)

boff ^ ^ ^ thats a good one though i will have to remembers it long time.

hulla

I didn't compare the sound systems but the ML is very good. Wish it had a 10" subwoofer though. I am always worried I am going to blow the speaker.

I drove the Avalon limited but not the other trim levels without the "acoustic windshield". I didn't think the Avalon was even close to the ls430 in wind/road noise suppression. The ls430 cl and ul have side laminated windows which are supposed to reduce noise.

I also drove the Hyundai Genesis which I liked a lot. Was very quiet (at least as quiet as the ls430) and had a nice large nav screen with much better resolution. But was more than I wanted to spend, especially on a Hyundai.

As far as mpg, my car gets 26mpg for highway commutes going 70-75mph. And I just went thru a couple tankfuls of midgrade gas with similar results. I might try regular gas soon.

AlexusAnja

Again, off topic, but someone mentioned the Avalon getting 30-34 mpg on highway at 70 mph. Okay, 30 I can believe, since highway is rated at 28 mpg, but 34 mpg? That I find hard to believe, 6 mpg above estimate? Also, a drag coeff. of .29, which is not too bad, but not close to the LS of .25-.26. I don't know, I just find those numbers suspect.

tigmd99

Well, the Avalon does have a fuel-efficient V6 along with a similar 6 speed auto as the LS...so, you do get pretty mileage i would assume. I have the same V6 in my Sienna...and it is a great engine! See: http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/sh...d.php?t=233757

(BTW, in the thread linked above, some of the low mileage claims are due to large rims.)

GRAND_LS 4

iTrader: (2)

Guys, please stick to the main thread topic, or start a new thread if one does not already exist. Thank you.