C-rod

Our plant won another Gold plant award from JD power.......Here are some totals...

1. Lexus RX 350 (Cambridge plant) - 67 defects per 100.
2. Infiniti FX- series - 73
3. Cadillac SRX - 82
4. Lexus GX 460 - 87
5. Mercedes M-Class - 90
6. Porsche Cayenne - 93
10. Land Rover LR4 - 111

These were our totals for the segment....As for the manufacturers on a whole, here they are....

1. Lexus - 73
2. Jaguar - 75
3. Porsche - 75
4. Cadillac - 80
5. Honda - 83
6. Acura - 84
7. Infiniti - 84
8. Toyota - 88
9. Mercedes- Benz - 96
10. BMW - 97

Cyber GS

Congratulations....

Just wondering, since you work QC for Lexus do you / have you owned one??

And not that it matters, but do any of your co-workers give you any "crap" for driving a Benz?

While the RX is nice my wife just didn't like it compared to the ML..

C-rod

Yes...I owned a 1999 Lexus RX 300 for about a year...nice vehicle, but honestly, a bore to drive..............and as for my co-workers....they are all pretty cool........they actually like the styling far more than our current RX 350...plus the V8, 382 HP doesn't hurt either !!!!!

primatives

Cool! Congrats! I am a fan of Lexus, seeing as you work at the plant.

What is the quality control like at Lexus???

And the craftsmanship?

Are the notable differences when you compare it to say the MB.

xxGenericSNxx

Yes! Interior of Lexus is truly a glorified Toyota. Things don't feel as solid and opening compartments feel really flimsy in the Lexus. Last gens RX has plastic wood trim, don't know about the current gen. Steering is very loose- just a shock to me as this last gen RX400h was the first Lexus I drove and it's no competition to the ML. It may be reliable due to its Toyota guts, but IMHO way too much money for a Toyota. The Highlander Hybrid that I drove on the other hand didn't irk me so much because my expectations weren't as high. With a "luxury" brand like Lexus I was expecting so much more.

Sorry don't mean to jab at C-rod or his workplace but I was simply unimpressed with the Lexus.

Cyber GS

That's true, even if they didnt like the ML, there's nothing not to like about having 382 HP under your right foot.

C-rod

I have the option of purchasing a new RX 350 at a reduced employee cost of about 7-8000 dollars, but I still choose to drive a Mercedes M-Class...But, not to offend my W166 buddies...I can't stand the exterior of the new M-Class... the interior, on the other hand is breath taking.....I promise you this, when the mid-models changes come, the front and rear will be changed...and if not, I will look elsewhere, probably a Porsche Cayenne S.....

medic

same here - I am waiting for the latest ML style to grow on me, but it hasn't yet. I had the same problem with my 2003FX45. The new style came out and I could not get it to grow on me. So I moved to a 2009 ML550 :-)

Cyber GS

I agree the W166 interior is awesome..

The exterior is starting to grow on me, but for some reason everytime I see a new ML on the street, IMO the wheels look really tiny inside the wheel weels.. Especially the fronts, something just doesn't look right to me.

I don't know, maybe it's just me....

xxGenericSNxx

I get the same "small front wheel" effect too. I think it's because the front is much taller than previous generations. The amount of fender there is above the front wheel is substantially more so it really swallows the wheel.