Thx for sharing your impressions! Yes a visit to European luxury dealerships will give a good view of the brands' strengths and weaknesses. Your observations match up with a lot I've observed or heard myself. For one, it's widely accepted that the touchscreen is more intuitive, and ***** aren't as easy to use. However, the next LS will likely get Remote Touch--a next gen approach to the controller. Free movement across the screen, feedback etc. Back to the E-Class, I'm surprised the iPhone doesn't charge, that's inconvenient for sure; the E550 definitely benefits from the more powerful engine, while the the carryover V6 in the E350 has less power than rivals.

The 2010 LS will likely get iPod/USB ports, along with Voice Command casual-language voice recognition and Bluetooth phonebook download capability, also the Lexus Enform system. I'd guess the USB port would be compatible with the iPhone, although I've only charged an iPod, not iPhone in the new RX.

As for the new 7, it continues as the most dynamic handler in the class, but along with the 14/22 S550, the new 7 (reportedly 3% better than the outgoing 14/21 750Li) is subject to the gas guzzler tax as you observed. With 16/24, the LS 460/460L bests them both here. This has been the case for 20 years now, the LS avoiding the tax from the start. Anyhow, there are a number of good cars in the $60,000+ luxury range, and the E and 7 have great qualities among them. In my experience, lots of people I know have started out with the Euro luxury brands, switched to Lexus and have not gone back. Whatever best fits your needs!

 

I would not recommend the Infiniti M right now. Infiniti just announced their 2011 M which will hit the market sometime during the first half of 2010. It is a total redesign. The V6 gets direct injection and a HP bump to ~350. The V8 will be a 5.6 with over 400 HP. The current M will depreciate like a rock when this 2011 car hits the lot !!!