Do Not Sell My Personal Information Jump to content


New Member


Recommended Posts

Hi all.

Joined this board just after getting my new IS 250 SE-L (Cadoxton Slate + Baransu alloys) three weeks ago. Done just over 800 miles and the car has been superb so far - no rattles at all I 'm happy to report.

This is in fact my third IS. I owned a black IS 200SE between October 2000 and November 2002 before switching to a red IS 300 (with styling kit and 18 inch alloys). Both have been trouble free and great to drive.

But I couldn't resist a great deal on a BMW 330Ci in April last year which proved to be the wrong choice...

In mid-February this year I test drove an IS 250 and was very impressed - ordered one a few days later. It was time for the BMW to go and the Lexus dealer offered me a good trade-in deal.

After a four month wait I finally took delivery of it and have enjoyed every minute in the car (well, almost. See later!). The parking camera is very handy especially for narrow London street parking. The navigation is very easy to use and fuel economy has been much better than I expected (26 mpg to date, mostly stuck in London traffic...).

I have also filled the car up with 97/98 RON petrol and do notice a difference in acceleration and a little better economy. I am still trying to decide whether to stick to 95 or use 97/98 from now on.

Sadly, the first few weeks with the IS 250 hasn't been trouble free - although it is not the car's fault. Parked at a services on the M4 for a break, only to find a coach in the "car" park on my return and it had run into the back of my car!! Ouch!! The coach had "got lost" and ended up in the car park instead of the coach park. Hit the back of my car whilst it was trying to turn around...

To cut a long story short, the insurance company is sorting everything out and the car should be booked in for a new rear bumper next week. Luckily the parking sensors were not damaged.

I will try and post some pictures over the weekend.

Cheers,

LHR

Link to comment
Share on other sites



Welcome, I agree great colour choice :blush:

Sorry to hear about the bump. Hopefully it will be as good as new after the repair. I know what it's like driving around in a new damaged car. Mine wasn't hit by a bus though, just a fat fingered mechanic at Lexus who didn't know how to remove an IS250 dash without damaging it.

Hey ho.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi. Just want to share a few photos here as promised.

I don't have any digital shots of my first IS (a black IS 200).

But here is my second IS (November 2002 - April 2005). Sorry about the bad quality - it was a very basic digital camera.

lhu0027ek8.jpg

And my third and latest one...

pda9768kk4.jpg

I must say this is a great site for getting very useful information. I just popped out to Halfords today to get the correct (shorter) power adaptor for the AUX socket which I found in one of the previous posts... I have been driving round for a few weeks with the arm rest open when using the ipod!!

Cheers,

LHR

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Looking good :D

Hope it dont take too long to get the bumper sorted.

At least you'll get the new IS as a loan car whilst its in for work... Oh, you already have one anyway! :lol:

Lovely cars. May get one soon myself :shifty:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi,

A quick update on my car... It is booked in to have a new rear bumper fitted on Thursday.

Have been visiting the Farnborough Air Show for work on a daily basis last week, which means more than 120 miles a day in the IS and it was trouble-free and the car drives superbly.

It was certainly the most popular car with my colleagues looking for a lift to the show and back - the climate control cools almost instantly even with the car baking in the hot sun all day.

The alarm survived the noise and vibration of the fighter jet flying displays - many cars had flat batteries after alarms have been set off regularly during the day.

The sat-nav did its job in navigating round the jams of the M25 and saved almost an hour on one journey compared to a colleague's non-sat-nav car! The boot doesn't seem too big but manage to swallow our gear comfortably.

Even with a full load of people and a full boot, the IS handled it perfectly.

One colleague loved the car so much said he would buy one rightaway... but only if Lexus offered an auto version of the diesel IS220d... Any IS220d drivers would rather have an auto? Any plans for one?

Cheers,

LHR

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi there, and welcome. I have only just picked mine up this weekend (Saturday) and have now done 842 miles. No rattles, but a few niggles....I will start another thread though...just wanted to say hi :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites


Looks great, must be well pleased :)

One colleague loved the car so much said he would buy one rightaway... but only if Lexus offered an auto version of the diesel IS220d... Any IS220d drivers would rather have an auto? Any plans for one?

Tell him to just get a 250, the fuel economy isn't that different, but the petrol version is so much more refined :winky:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Looks great, must be well pleased :)

One colleague loved the car so much said he would buy one rightaway... but only if Lexus offered an auto version of the diesel IS220d... Any IS220d drivers would rather have an auto? Any plans for one?

Tell him to just get a 250, the fuel economy isn't that different, but the petrol version is so much more refined :winky:

amen to that
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Looks great, must be well pleased :)

One colleague loved the car so much said he would buy one rightaway... but only if Lexus offered an auto version of the diesel IS220d... Any IS220d drivers would rather have an auto? Any plans for one?

Tell him to just get a 250, the fuel economy isn't that different, but the petrol version is so much more refined :winky:

amen to that

Absolutely - 'cos the price is almost the same, with 10mpg on a run which is what the diesel is likely to give more, if you do a lot of miles it will save you (and the planet).

However, dare I say it - a part of me wishes that I'd gone for the Petrol Auto!!! The diesel is more engaging, but the petrols' just very refined (makes you wonder why anyone would want a GS300 costing much more, thirst etc...).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Diesel is much more torquey, will be easily remappable as a turbo, is cheaper to buy on the road, comes with VDIM in Sport trim, mine does (lowest yet) 36.5MPG on a tank (Highest 43.4 MPG) and it has not loosened up yet at 1200 miles. Also, I reckon Diesel cars will always fetch a premium come trade in time now thanks to ever increasing fuel prices. Cheaper road tax too and has lower emissions, so saves the planet, even just that extra small bit.

All sound like pretty convincing arguments to me. :)

I suppose if all you are looking for in a car is refinement etc then the Auto it is, but the diesel is really pretty quiet most of the time and a manual gearbox lets you interact with the car - it is a physical thing. As I sit in my car with the cruise control on, the auto light, the auto wipers etc - the only thing left for me is steering the thing. Driving to me is about much more than transport...it is an emotive thing.

Brian ;)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Got the new rear bumper fitted today by Lexus/Currie Motors in Twickenham.

Service from the body shop there is excellent. I was kept updated on the progress over the phone - the bumper arrived, painted etc... and they made arrangements with the engineer from the insurance company for an inspection of the damaged bumper.

Booked the car in on Weds. afternoon for 8:30 am Thursday and was told it would take around 90 minutes to fit. I decided to wait while they do the job.

In the end it took just 30 minutes!! Car looking like brand new again... and I didn't have to pay a single penny for the repair.

Fantastic service - especially after the nightmares in dealing with BMW's aftersales/servicing.

Cheers,

LHR

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share



×
×
  • Create New...