I need help (or maybe some of you will say I'm fine and just coming to my senses). On Wednesday my 550 OT+ in the most beautiful shade known as Nori Green Pearl arrived and I took delivery by trading in my 200 Series. I just returned from the dealership having turned the GX back in and unwinding the deal. I just didn't find it worth the sum of it's parts. It's missing that dash of "extra" you would expect when stepping UP from a Toyota to a Lexus.
The build quality on these seems to be hit and miss. On mine the hood flutter was real and very evident, even cruising down city streets at 30mph. While I found the overall handling and driving dyamics to be a big improvement from the 200, the ride quality actually felt slightly worse. Hitting the same pot holes and bumps I regulary deal with in my neighborhood the 200 just soaked them up where as the 550 was a bit more jarring. The thickness of the double pane glass did not appear to be any thicker than the standard single pane glass in the rear doors. The Mark Levinson stereo is a huge dissapointment in audio quality as well. (Acutally preferred the JBL system in the 200 as it sounded less "tinny" on the mids and highs. The rear hitch was a problem for my 1UP bike rack as well, there is not enough room to lock the security pin in place. Along with other little QOL things I noticed like "oh where do I store my business cards and sunglasses?" In the 550 it's either going in the cool box or laying in the front seat. Door cards aren't big enough to hold even a typical 20oz water bottle. Wireless phone warmer, not much of a charger, etc. Also at the risk of sounding like a boomer I was not a fan of being forced to sign up for Toyota/Lexus connected services in order to use things like the remote start, lock/unlock, smart fob, and some of the other driver assist/roadside service/safety features they advertise. It was so nice to have Carplay again for a couple of days but everything else in the vehicle being locked to "guest mode" all because I don't want them harvesting and selling my driving habits, locations, etc was pretty off putting. They press you hard at the dealership to sign up for these things btw. Apparently the dealership and consequently, sales staff get scored negavtively if a customer doesn't register for these free trials. I know my data is already out there from being a Google customer and having previously been on FB, Twitter, etc but I just want to drive my effing car in peace and not be pestered to subscribe to something when one of those free trials runs out.
Anyhow hope everyone had a nice thanksgiving.
The build quality on these seems to be hit and miss. On mine the hood flutter was real and very evident, even cruising down city streets at 30mph. While I found the overall handling and driving dyamics to be a big improvement from the 200, the ride quality actually felt slightly worse. Hitting the same pot holes and bumps I regulary deal with in my neighborhood the 200 just soaked them up where as the 550 was a bit more jarring. The thickness of the double pane glass did not appear to be any thicker than the standard single pane glass in the rear doors. The Mark Levinson stereo is a huge dissapointment in audio quality as well. (Acutally preferred the JBL system in the 200 as it sounded less "tinny" on the mids and highs. The rear hitch was a problem for my 1UP bike rack as well, there is not enough room to lock the security pin in place. Along with other little QOL things I noticed like "oh where do I store my business cards and sunglasses?" In the 550 it's either going in the cool box or laying in the front seat. Door cards aren't big enough to hold even a typical 20oz water bottle. Wireless phone warmer, not much of a charger, etc. Also at the risk of sounding like a boomer I was not a fan of being forced to sign up for Toyota/Lexus connected services in order to use things like the remote start, lock/unlock, smart fob, and some of the other driver assist/roadside service/safety features they advertise. It was so nice to have Carplay again for a couple of days but everything else in the vehicle being locked to "guest mode" all because I don't want them harvesting and selling my driving habits, locations, etc was pretty off putting. They press you hard at the dealership to sign up for these things btw. Apparently the dealership and consequently, sales staff get scored negavtively if a customer doesn't register for these free trials. I know my data is already out there from being a Google customer and having previously been on FB, Twitter, etc but I just want to drive my effing car in peace and not be pestered to subscribe to something when one of those free trials runs out.
Anyhow hope everyone had a nice thanksgiving.
.
. 
