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Yes that's right, it's been a year (exactly tomorrow). And so how has it been? Well for those of you interested, read on... :blush:

The Good, the Dad and Ugly part II - I've scored the car - where 100%=perfection

Refinement - 90% - other than the the dreaded Road Noise, which IMHO is still too much for this type of car. Anyone who drives a BMW320d, C Class or an A4 on 16" or 17" can immediately tell. Overall though, it cossets :)

Equipment levels - 100% - nothing else comes close in this price bracket. It still amazes me!!

Ride - firm and compliant - 99% - Better balanced than an A4, and not as "knobbly" as a 3 or 5 series, even on standard rims

Handling - 95% - I still maintain that this car is not quite as good as a 3 series, but it really is not that far off. I think more feel in the steering and it would be 99% there compared to the 3 series, but that's at the limits of adhesion generally

Comfort - 90% - very good overall, better seats than mainstream cars, but for me just not quite enough "germanic" or "swedish" support. It's pretty good though.

NVH - 95% - supreme and creamy for a diesel until you get beyond 3000rpm, then it clatters a tad too much. Not quiet enough to knock the 320d, but better than anything else overall in this bracket of 4 pot oilers. Most of the time though it's very good and brilliant if you drive leisurely

Driveability - 80% - for a diesel, it's a bit lame. It's very quick once you're moving and you use the torque, but would never try and race another car from the lights. It's just not designed like that. Especially the SE. There is little point in rushing the car - relax and it's great - hurry it and it feels a little "disengaged" though the ECU remap does improve things slightly

Living with the car - 70% - a few small annoyances and one or 2 big annoyances:

>The A post is very wide and you end up peering around the pillars when pulling out at junctions.

>Heavy clutch, detracts from an otherwide easy to drive car.

>Space - it really is not designed for families. Especially kids. The boot is small, legroom is actually so tight in the back that even my 12 year old son can almost get his feet trapped under the front seats when he is in the back and I lower the front seat height.

>Poor build on the early cars, mine has rattled like the Calcutta express for a long time, and all the remedial work has been a tad bodged, but it's 95% rattle free, though in my view totally unacceptable for a car with a list price of over £28k in my spoc.

>Satnav is OK, but the nanny's are annoying, and the Traffic congestion/route avoidance stuff is only accurate 1-10 times. Be brave and try ignoring it a few times - you'll see what I mean (unless there is something wrong with mine)! On the plus side the stereo is amazing and the Bluetooth is faultless, though I wish you could easily play DVD's with MP3's...

>Paintwork is bad. So soft it's shocking, and the rationale of "environmentally friendly" doesn't wash at all. Our Nissan Note, costing nearly a third of what the Lex cost has paintwork which is much, much better. In fact it's in a different league! The Lex scratches so easily, and again this is unacceptable.

On the plus side, the car still turns heads...

Running costs - :excl: 50% - IMHO this is expensive to run privately. Especially of you do highish miles - the first service including LOC discount cost £157, that's in 12 months/10,000 miles. Most of competition allow variable servicing, averaging at 15-22000 miles or up to 2 years for most drivers, and they tend to cost around the £195 - £300 mark. A direct comparison is with my old A4 - 46500 miles, 2 services, costing £460 - the Lexus will probably cost me something approching £800ish!

The bigger problem with the diesel of course is the fuel economy - 'nuff said, Euro 5 or not!

Best Journey - 95% - :winky: touring Cumbria and Scotland last year - the car impressed, it was a wonderful companion and very memorable

Worst journey - 10% - :crybaby: the day it started to rattle for the first time last April. Boy that was hard work! The stress it caused, and the remedial activity took several months!

So overall, my opinion is a mixed one and I give it 75%, largely down to it being slightly un-easy to live with and the questionable build. I've said many times before that I have no loyalty to any particular brand, and I'm one of those buyers that can be easily swayed. In a market dominated by the germans, I believe Lexus need to offer more choice in the UK. Just chucking loads of kit into a car doesn't make it appealing, especially if the experience once you have one is a bit shallow The other thing is the limited essentials - specially if you want an Auto diesel for saving your left leg whilst stuck in the UK's jams or an estate, or being able to choose cloth seats but not having Lumbar adjustment etc etc.

These are my views only, based on 12 months of some troubled times!!!!

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Scott - hiya matey

Clutch is OK for me (I'm used to it), but it is quite heavy. The wife really struggles. I daren't think about depreciation. I reckon I wouldn't get much change from £21000, on a car that's done 9000 miles, has Metallic and MM! It ain't that good...lost £7k on list price, or 25% depreciation, though I reckon most junior exec cars are the same!!

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Interesting read. Anybody with a Petrol 250 going to add anything to it?

Only that I've had my IS250 SE-L 15 months now so it was built earlier or around the same time as Jamboo's oiler. and the build quality is superb...no rattles at all. The auto box is absolutely brilliant and by far the best I've ever driven, including BMW, Mercedes,,,and a Ferrari 360 :D ..no clutch obviously so no complaint there either.

I agree with the paint comment though, it's very easily marked so it's a good job I've got a Porter polisher for the slight scratches but it's no help at all for the stone chips on the bonnet and front valence :angry: .

Overall I'm extremely happy with it, and certainly prefer it to my mate's Porsche Cayman (I think secretly he does too :whistling: ).

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If I had bought the 250 Auto (if only...) my review would have been different - I would have scored it 100% in the driveability stakes, and the running costs bit would have been in the 80's too - for a V6 it's very good!! Somehow it's a complete package when you have the Auto, again in my opinion, but as a diesel it's not as convincing a complete package!!

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Interesting read. Anybody with a Petrol 250 going to add anything to it?

I agree with the paint comment though, it's very easily marked so it's a good job I've got a Porter polisher for the slight scratches but it's no help at all for the stone chips on the bonnet and front valence :angry: .

Talking off paintwork, my rear bumper is now a slightly different color to the rest of the car :duh: . Its gradually getting worse over time.

I have had my 250 SE MM for 15 mnths now, and its just had its 40k service....which was a nightmare :angry: ... which has made me write a letter of complaint to the dealer principle about the level or service and I also mentioned the build quality, because I have had, and am still having all the rattles that everyone else has described - Centre Speaker, drivers seat, passenger seat, A pillar and seat bel height adjuster. I will wait on the response (been 3 days now!) before I say anymore on here. :shutit:

As far as running costs, there have been the usual 10/20k interval services as well as 2 new front tyres and at the 40k service new front brake discs and pads. The rear tyres will also need changing in a few weeks.

I have also had 4 new windscreens due to cracks from stones, and 2 sets of wiper blades.

Not bad considering the milage :D

I'm getting about 32mpg on average, and drive the card hard most of the time, making full use of the paddle gear changes on the Auto box which is excellent. :D

Overall I am pleased with the car, although feel a little deflated about it at the moment due the the bad Lexus experience @ last service. Fingers crossed the dealer principle sorts out my issues quicky and re-inflates me...so to speak :P :P

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great write up,

i must agree with you, the paint work is a great disappointment,:( i would have thought lexus would have done a better job with that for the cost of the car. It marks very easily very poor, :( im not happy with it, lines all over the car, but as you said turns heads plus car is dark blue so cant see anything unless your eye ball is touching the body work. :)

i also have had a recent reset of the ECU, as it was programmed wrong out of the factory but now i can tell the difference its smooth sailing.

i have only had it for four months and im happy apart from the paintwork, i thought is was only my car but it seems to me that it is with all the is220d models.

ume

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Living with the car - 70% - a few small annoyances and one or 2 big annoyances:

>The A post is very wide and you end up peering around the pillars when pulling out at junctions.

>Heavy clutch, detracts from an otherwide easy to drive car.

Great review Jamboo. I've had mine for almost 3 months now and I can't say I'd ever noticed having to look around the A pillar - but I guess I will now :)

My clutch is as light as a feather... :shutit:

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Interesting read. Anybody with a Petrol 250 going to add anything to it?

Only that I've had my IS250 SE-L 15 months now so it was built earlier or around the same time as Jamboo's oiler. and the build quality is superb...no rattles at all. The auto box is absolutely brilliant and by far the best I've ever driven, including BMW, Mercedes,,,and a Ferrari 360 :D ..no clutch obviously so no complaint there either.

I agree with the paint comment though, it's very easily marked so it's a good job I've got a Porter polisher for the slight scratches but it's no help at all for the stone chips on the bonnet and front valence :angry: .

Overall I'm extremely happy with it, and certainly prefer it to my mate's Porsche Cayman (I think secretly he does too :whistling: ).

To be fair, think most of Lex owners would agree but the paintwork is far to easily marked.

Still, I know what to go for should I change my car, an IS250 :)

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My 250 Auto continues to be described as stunning by both Dealers & Mates & ,best of all ,still makes me smile each & every time I drive it.The car is SO smooth , SO quiet & c.10% more fuel efficient than my previous IS300.Certainly the best car I have ever had!

During my 15mnths. I have had 3 rattles associated with the radio console that have been fully resolved by

packing then changing said unit.Dealer response is superb & has always been in my 7 year experience.

Tel :driving:

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Interesting read. Anybody with a Petrol 250 going to add anything to it?

Only that I've had my IS250 SE-L 15 months now so it was built earlier or around the same time as Jamboo's oiler. and the build quality is superb...no rattles at all. The auto box is absolutely brilliant and by far the best I've ever driven, including BMW, Mercedes,,,and a Ferrari 360 :D ..no clutch obviously so no complaint there either.

I agree with the paint comment though, it's very easily marked so it's a good job I've got a Porter polisher for the slight scratches but it's no help at all for the stone chips on the bonnet and front valence :angry: .

Overall I'm extremely happy with it, and certainly prefer it to my mate's Porsche Cayman (I think secretly he does too :whistling: ).

To be fair, think most of Lex owners would agree but the paintwork is far to easily marked.

Still, I know what to go for should I change my car, an IS250 :)

Make sure you drive both Manual and Auto....I know whuch you'll prefer! Whether you likle Auto's or not, the car makes soooooo much sense as an auto!

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I tried all the variations of diesel and petrol in auto and manual that were available and INHO found the IS250 Sport to be to my liking and more important to she who must be obeyed!!

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Yes that's right, it's been a year (exactly tomorrow). And so how has it been? Well for those of you interested, read on... :blush:

The Good, the Dad and Ugly part II - I've scored the car - where 100%=perfection

Refinement - 90% - other than the the dreaded Road Noise, which IMHO is still too much for this type of car. Anyone who drives a BMW320d, C Class or an A4 on 16" or 17" can immediately tell. Overall though, it cossets :)

Equipment levels - 100% - nothing else comes close in this price bracket. It still amazes me!!

Ride - firm and compliant - 99% - Better balanced than an A4, and not as "knobbly" as a 3 or 5 series, even on standard rims

Handling - 95% - I still maintain that this car is not quite as good as a 3 series, but it really is not that far off. I think more feel in the steering and it would be 99% there compared to the 3 series, but that's at the limits of adhesion generally

Comfort - 90% - very good overall, better seats than mainstream cars, but for me just not quite enough "germanic" or "swedish" support. It's pretty good though.

NVH - 95% - supreme and creamy for a diesel until you get beyond 3000rpm, then it clatters a tad too much. Not quiet enough to knock the 320d, but better than anything else overall in this bracket of 4 pot oilers. Most of the time though it's very good and brilliant if you drive leisurely

Driveability - 80% - for a diesel, it's a bit lame. It's very quick once you're moving and you use the torque, but would never try and race another car from the lights. It's just not designed like that. Especially the SE. There is little point in rushing the car - relax and it's great - hurry it and it feels a little "disengaged" though the ECU remap does improve things slightly

Living with the car - 70% - a few small annoyances and one or 2 big annoyances:

>The A post is very wide and you end up peering around the pillars when pulling out at junctions.

>Heavy clutch, detracts from an otherwide easy to drive car.

>Space - it really is not designed for families. Especially kids. The boot is small, legroom is actually so tight in the back that even my 12 year old son can almost get his feet trapped under the front seats when he is in the back and I lower the front seat height.

>Poor build on the early cars, mine has rattled like the Calcutta express for a long time, and all the remedial work has been a tad bodged, but it's 95% rattle free, though in my view totally unacceptable for a car with a list price of over £28k in my spoc.

>Satnav is OK, but the nanny's are annoying, and the Traffic congestion/route avoidance stuff is only accurate 1-10 times. Be brave and try ignoring it a few times - you'll see what I mean (unless there is something wrong with mine)! On the plus side the stereo is amazing and the Bluetooth is faultless, though I wish you could easily play DVD's with MP3's...

>Paintwork is bad. So soft it's shocking, and the rationale of "environmentally friendly" doesn't wash at all. Our Nissan Note, costing nearly a third of what the Lex cost has paintwork which is much, much better. In fact it's in a different league! The Lex scratches so easily, and again this is unacceptable.

On the plus side, the car still turns heads...

Running costs - :excl: 50% - IMHO this is expensive to run privately. Especially of you do highish miles - the first service including LOC discount cost £157, that's in 12 months/10,000 miles. Most of competition allow variable servicing, averaging at 15-22000 miles or up to 2 years for most drivers, and they tend to cost around the £195 - £300 mark. A direct comparison is with my old A4 - 46500 miles, 2 services, costing £460 - the Lexus will probably cost me something approching £800ish!

The bigger problem with the diesel of course is the fuel economy - 'nuff said, Euro 5 or not!

Best Journey - 95% - :winky: touring Cumbria and Scotland last year - the car impressed, it was a wonderful companion and very memorable

Worst journey - 10% - :crybaby: the day it started to rattle for the first time last April. Boy that was hard work! The stress it caused, and the remedial activity took several months!

So overall, my opinion is a mixed one and I give it 75%, largely down to it being slightly un-easy to live with and the questionable build. I've said many times before that I have no loyalty to any particular brand, and I'm one of those buyers that can be easily swayed. In a market dominated by the germans, I believe Lexus need to offer more choice in the UK. Just chucking loads of kit into a car doesn't make it appealing, especially if the experience once you have one is a bit shallow The other thing is the limited essentials - specially if you want an Auto diesel for saving your left leg whilst stuck in the UK's jams or an estate, or being able to choose cloth seats but not having Lumbar adjustment etc etc.

These are my views only, based on 12 months of some troubled times!!!

I too have just completed a year of ownership of an IS250 - in my case, an IS250SE petrol automatic. Overall, I am very pleased with the car; it is by far the best car I have ever owned and probably the best I have ever driven. The engine is silky smooth and the auto box unbelievably slick with often the only indication that gears have changed being from the rev counter or central display. Build quality is superb and the driving experience is luxurious, quiet and comfortable. The windscreen side pillars obscure vision at junctions but I guess that they add to the body strength and that will be tested only in extremis. I regularly get 36mpg on a run although this naturally can't be maintained in town. Pity the rear seats don't fold down to give more room for lengthy luggage, especially as the boot is not cavernous. As others have pointed out, the paint is about as hard as butter.

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I’ve had my 250 Se-L auto for 15 months now and I’m extremely happy with it. I’ve been one of the lucky ones with never a hint of any rattles (I hope I don’t regret saying that). I’ve never noticed a problem with vision because of the A pillars either Jambo.

I seem to average about 33/34 mpg around the A roads here and very close to 40mpg on longer motorway runs which I think is excellent for the type of car.

However, I did have a diesel on loan whilst mine was being serviced and not wishing to upset too many people I have requested that I’m never given one again, it’s just not the same vehicle. Enough said.

Lexus Exeter have given amazing service phoning me every couple of months to check everything is Ok even if I haven’t seen them since the last service.

Overall I’m extremely happy not to be one of the many driving a German “reps” car that we all know is now more common on the roads than a Ford Mondeo.

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Make sure you drive both Manual and Auto....I know whuch you'll prefer! Whether you likle Auto's or not, the car makes soooooo much sense as an auto!

Don't forget the auto IS250 uses less fuel and emits less Co2 so is in Band F for VED @ £195 per year. The manual is in Band G at £215 per year. Band G is the so called "gas guzzler" band and is apparently about to be clobbered in the Budget. :(

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Make sure you drive both Manual and Auto....I know whuch you'll prefer! Whether you likle Auto's or not, the car makes soooooo much sense as an auto!

Don't forget the auto IS250 uses less fuel and emits less Co2 so is in Band F for VED @ £195 per year. The manual is in Band G at £215 per year. Band G is the so called "gas guzzler" band and is apparently about to be clobbered in the Budget. :(

So maybe us oilers will raise a rye smile

I'd still probably have the Auto

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Don't forget the auto IS250 uses less fuel and emits less Co2 so is in Band F for VED @ £195 per year. The manual is in Band G at £215 per year. Band G is the so called "gas guzzler" band and is apparently about to be clobbered in the Budget. :(

So maybe us oilers will raise a rye smile

It would appear reading the press that if the duty is raised that it will only affect cars registered after April 1st 2006. How true this is I’m not sure but I have seen it a few times today.

I hope it’s correct as both my cars were registered before this and it means that I will also hang onto them longer than I usually would as well.

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Yes that's right, it's been a year (exactly tomorrow). And so how has it been? Well for those of you interested, read on... :blush:

The Good, the Dad and Ugly part II - I've scored the car - where 100%=perfection

Refinement - 90% - other than the the dreaded Road Noise, which IMHO is still too much for this type of car. Anyone who drives a BMW320d, C Class or an A4 on 16" or 17" can immediately tell. Overall though, it cossets :)

Equipment levels - 100% - nothing else comes close in this price bracket. It still amazes me!!

Ride - firm and compliant - 99% - Better balanced than an A4, and not as "knobbly" as a 3 or 5 series, even on standard rims

Handling - 95% - I still maintain that this car is not quite as good as a 3 series, but it really is not that far off. I think more feel in the steering and it would be 99% there compared to the 3 series, but that's at the limits of adhesion generally

Comfort - 90% - very good overall, better seats than mainstream cars, but for me just not quite enough "germanic" or "swedish" support. It's pretty good though.

NVH - 95% - supreme and creamy for a diesel until you get beyond 3000rpm, then it clatters a tad too much. Not quiet enough to knock the 320d, but better than anything else overall in this bracket of 4 pot oilers. Most of the time though it's very good and brilliant if you drive leisurely

Driveability - 80% - for a diesel, it's a bit lame. It's very quick once you're moving and you use the torque, but would never try and race another car from the lights. It's just not designed like that. Especially the SE. There is little point in rushing the car - relax and it's great - hurry it and it feels a little "disengaged" though the ECU remap does improve things slightly

Living with the car - 70% - a few small annoyances and one or 2 big annoyances:

>The A post is very wide and you end up peering around the pillars when pulling out at junctions.

>Heavy clutch, detracts from an otherwide easy to drive car.

>Space - it really is not designed for families. Especially kids. The boot is small, legroom is actually so tight in the back that even my 12 year old son can almost get his feet trapped under the front seats when he is in the back and I lower the front seat height.

>Poor build on the early cars, mine has rattled like the Calcutta express for a long time, and all the remedial work has been a tad bodged, but it's 95% rattle free, though in my view totally unacceptable for a car with a list price of over £28k in my spoc.

>Satnav is OK, but the nanny's are annoying, and the Traffic congestion/route avoidance stuff is only accurate 1-10 times. Be brave and try ignoring it a few times - you'll see what I mean (unless there is something wrong with mine)! On the plus side the stereo is amazing and the Bluetooth is faultless, though I wish you could easily play DVD's with MP3's...

>Paintwork is bad. So soft it's shocking, and the rationale of "environmentally friendly" doesn't wash at all. Our Nissan Note, costing nearly a third of what the Lex cost has paintwork which is much, much better. In fact it's in a different league! The Lex scratches so easily, and again this is unacceptable.

On the plus side, the car still turns heads...

Running costs - :excl: 50% - IMHO this is expensive to run privately. Especially of you do highish miles - the first service including LOC discount cost £157, that's in 12 months/10,000 miles. Most of competition allow variable servicing, averaging at 15-22000 miles or up to 2 years for most drivers, and they tend to cost around the £195 - £300 mark. A direct comparison is with my old A4 - 46500 miles, 2 services, costing £460 - the Lexus will probably cost me something approching £800ish!

The bigger problem with the diesel of course is the fuel economy - 'nuff said, Euro 5 or not!

Best Journey - 95% - :winky: touring Cumbria and Scotland last year - the car impressed, it was a wonderful companion and very memorable

Worst journey - 10% - :crybaby: the day it started to rattle for the first time last April. Boy that was hard work! The stress it caused, and the remedial activity took several months!

So overall, my opinion is a mixed one and I give it 75%, largely down to it being slightly un-easy to live with and the questionable build. I've said many times before that I have no loyalty to any particular brand, and I'm one of those buyers that can be easily swayed. In a market dominated by the germans, I believe Lexus need to offer more choice in the UK. Just chucking loads of kit into a car doesn't make it appealing, especially if the experience once you have one is a bit shallow The other thing is the limited essentials - specially if you want an Auto diesel for saving your left leg whilst stuck in the UK's jams or an estate, or being able to choose cloth seats but not having Lumbar adjustment etc etc.

These are my views only, based on 12 months of some troubled times!!!!

I thought this was a great post. My 220d is 12 months old and have done 12,000. The car looks great and the build and equipment is fantastic, but fuel economy, rear leg room, rattles and still the weird manual gearing are a real let down. I really really really wanted to be soooo impressed that my next car would be a Lexus without question, but Im not convinced. The biggest bug for me is the rattles - just not good enough I'm afraid, and you're forever worrying about whats going to rattle next.

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One thing that has been brilliant on mine is the gear change. I have driven various manuals - 250's and Diesels - incl the Sport, and one or two had appalling gear changes. Baulky, rubbery, on one (250) it had too much "play" or lateral movement and sometimes hard to engage 2nd.

It is such a shame that Lexus didn't see it fit to stick a CVT in this car. It might have made it more economical too...and I would still maintain that so many drivers in the UK want an Auto Diesel - if you look at BMW, Audi and Merc's approx 50% are Auto's (and over 95% Merc Diesels are). Lexus could probably double the sales of the 220d on that basis alone!

(BTW - those percentages are from dealers - I was out shopping at the weekend again - just Window shopping mind)

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