Need Help Deciding?!

[lec200]

hi every1!! although i don't have a lexus i am thinking of buying 1 very soon since lexus are running a special promotion!!! & this is a great lexus forum!! i would appriciate your help in me diciding a few points! is parking sensors worth having as an option?! which is better the SE or SPORT? auot or manual? is there any body outhere who can recommend me a good dealer who will give a good deal on an lexus IS200! & finally the IS200 beats any mid-sized execs hands down!!!

[Mr-Lex]

Hi lec200,

Welcome to the club :D

Hope you do get the car you want after advise from us :winky: . To answer some of your questions: I would say go for sport as you get few extras i.e. sports grill, sports pedal, leather steering wheel etc.. but apart from that there isn't much difference in the models.

Re, parking sensors...I wouldn't know how good the lexus ones are but if you need help/direction in parking then would suggest to for it. You can also try Quanan Parking Sensors which are aftermarket one's are much cheaper than Lexus sensors and are very good and accurate.

Have a look at these recent posts that may help you decide better:

post 1

post 2

Let us know in what you do decide...best of luck :winky:

[astrid]

Before I bought my IS200, I test-drove the Audi A4 1.8T and 2.0; BMW 318i Valvetronic and 320i and the Merc C200 Kompressor.

Rejected the Audi: Loud road/tyre noise, hard and uncomfortable suspensions that go crash and bang. Wind noise at speed (above 120 km/h) was also apparent. Quality of fit though is first class. True-blue German.

Rejected the BMW: Again road/tyre/wind noise at speed was pretty bad, but better than the Audi though. Handling and road holding, especially around bends was superb ..... very good feedback control and maneuverbility. From South Africa, the door panels and body construction just lacks the ultimate German feel of the Audi though.

Rejected the Merc: Actually owned the E200 Kompressor (W210K) just before I switched over to the Lexus .... wanted to downgrade to a smaller car then. The 2001 2-litre Kompressor engine was loud. Doors of the C-Class do not close with a resounding thud. Body panels (including roof) were hollow-sounding. Again, a sign of less than top-notch South African assembly and QC standards? Handling is the poorest among the 3 makes mentioned. Good only for freeway cruising.

The IS200 was the first Japanese car that I thought has European quality built in ..... just slam the front doors. Handling was close, even on par with the 318i. Noticed that the car Battery and heavier components like ABS and all are set way back in the engine bay. This concentrates the weight of the car between the two wheel axles - which minimizes yaw and sway when going around bends at high speeds.

Other than the 320i in my compario, the IS200 is the only model that has an in-line 6-cylinder DOHC 24v power plant. Its engine is longitudinally-mounted ..... sports cars have it, but we see less of such mountings lately. Exhaust extractors are optimised on a 6-2-1 configuration.

On top of that, it has double wishbone suspensions with gas-filled shock absorbers for both front and rear ..... none of the other cars I compared have this ... unless you go up to higher models like the S-Class.

Brake rotors at about 300 mm diameter front and rear are the largest in the list above. Comes with 17" alloy rims as standard, shod with 215/45R17 Dunlops.

The Audi, being an FWD car, cannot match the driveability of RWD cars in the compario list. I feel that both the VW 2.0L and 1.8T engines are rorty and unrefined, especially at high rpms.

The BMW Valvetronic 2.0L 318i engine is sweet (in fact, sweeter than its 2.2L 6-cylinder stable mate), but I have heard enough of problems with the Valvetronic engine (teething they could be) from morning starts, to fluctuating rpms / engine dying out, squeaking windows and dash board etc..

All said, I still think the Audi 1.8T and BMW 320i can take on the IS200 anytime on straights ..... but that is not all there is to it ..... or is it? For long haul high-speed cruises, I still think the Lexus gives me the best / quiet ride (perhaps maybe second to the Merc C200). The Merc's supercharged engine however, does become harsh beyond 4000 rpm, but the IS200's exhaust note sounds much nicer to my ears at higher rpms. Definitely less ear fatigue for me.

Most of all, I chose the Lexus because of its reknowned reliability and I am now living witness to that view shared by hundreds of thousands around the world .... of Toyota quality and reliability. I have owned cars made by Fiat, Honda, Alfa Romeo, Volkswagen, Mercedes Benz and I can vouch that my Lexus has so far, proven to be the most reliable of the lot.

If I can rank the cars I have owned, based on the first 2 years of ownership (although I have owned each of them over varying periods of time), just based on reliability only, the best first:

- Lexus

- Mercedes Benz

- Honda

- Volkswagen

- Alfa Romeo

- Fiat

[UKPulse]

Definitely Lexus is the thinking man's choice! It's so much more of a complete package that the BMW, Merc or Audi - plus the fact that they've won the J D Powers survey for the last two years running!

Ok, SE or Sport? Depends on your driving style really. The Sport has everything the SE has, plus a boot spoiler, alloy pedals, rear tints and more importantly a slip diff & lower ride height, so if you want to drive (ahem) enthusiastically then ultimately the Sport will be more rewarding.

Manual or Auto. Again it's very much down to driving style. The auto is a sweet box in the IS200, but it's only a four speed box, and while it's great for wafting around, you'll find it frustrating if you want to hussle along a bit. I bought a 200 SE Auto in January last year & while I loved it to bits, the 2ltr auto's lack of punch (it's 2 seconds slower than the manual in getting to 60mph) eventually go to me & I traded up to the IS300. So, I'd recommend the IS200 Sport (which only comes in manual anyway) :)

Parking sensors? Well I've had them fitted to both cars, so that's a YES I guess :winky: Lexus will fit a 4-sensor system for you, and it's a good system too, but it'll cost between £300-£400. If you're happy to do it yourself (and there's some great articles here on how to do it), then as Mr-Lex pointed out, the Quanan system is significantly cheaper.

As to a Lexus dealer who'll give you a good deal - that depends on where you're based and how far you're prepared to travel. I've only ever had dealings with Lexus Brighton, so can't really speak for other dealers, but there's guys here who have got good deals from other dealers.

Oh and most importantly of all - go for Gold membership. You get access to the Gold forums, plus discount on a whole range of things including parts & servicing from most Lexus dealers! :D :D

[smw]

thinking of buying 1 very soon since lexus are running a special promotion!!!

What promotion is this ?

[SteveAudioX]

Till Sept, you can order with the TTE front skirt and rear skirt and i thin the spoiler at £750 cost option. Thats one.

[BESTY]

sport B)

[Fidgits]

There is very little difference between the SE and Sport...

The main 'driving' difference is that the Sport has a LSD (limited slip diff), which stops the inside wheel 'spinning' the power away... but your only going to get that if you switch off the TRAC and floor it around corners.

From 2001, the Sport model had 15mm lower springs...

Apart from that, it is purley cosmetic..

The SE is group 12 insurance, whereas the Sport is 13..