New Owner...2008 Is250

[toffee_pie]

Hi All,

So, I made a big plunge and sold a really really (really!) good CL9 Accord for a 08 Lexus 250, I wanted a newer car, and found the need for a change. I hope i dont regret it.

The lexus ticked alot of boxes, I am not particularly looking for a speed machine but a refined motor, with good reliability and lots of toys was what i wanted. I did some research and the reliability of the lexus was a big thing. Coming from Honda it is in my blood now. :p

I did this purchase in a real haste, just yesterday to be exact and it was ****** rain. The car has just 50k odd miles, 2 owners, a MOT until next April. Its SE-L spec.

What i was surprised with was little of no oil, should i be worried? the seller said it needs a service, i saw the book it had stamps from lexus for 3 services, or 4 not sure. But basically its about 10k since the last service so its due one now. That's all i was told. (55k miles now, last service was 40k miles ish)

Seems nothing, hondas can go thousands of miles without a service. So the oil, there was some in it but not much. Also it was parked on a slope which could mess up readings.

Am i worrying too much? (I do tend to worry lol), I am sure an oil warning would come on.? The manual box was chunky and a different world than my Accord, it is also a bit akward the parking brake seems to get in the way? I guess it takes time to get into a totally new car.

also, I should point out clearly it needs a full service now so i need all the oils, liquids, filters, probably plugs, maybe discs, pads etc too but I am expecting this uneasy bill but hopefully should be all good once thats done.

Any thought and feedback is welcome, wish me luck!

cheers,

[North west beast]

Hi mate should be fine , if you take it to an independent garage you won't get a steep bill or even go on Opie Oils website and get all the parts you need then ask a garage you may know to fit them ,

Or get a price from Lexus May not be too bad .

Get it parked on a level surface and check the oil again ,

Happy motoring

[toffee_pie]

thanks dude, that's what i usually do (get parts myself and get a garage to fit)

have you any tips for plugs, oils etc.

[North west beast]

If it was my 250 I would put Castrol edge full synthetic in , plugs standard etc , opie are good at recommending oem stuff and upgrades . But I've used the Castrol edge for years , brill oil.

[toffee_pie]

I had Castrol 5/30 in my CL9 brilliant oil, did not burn a drop.

The navigation doesnt work in this lexus, can i check the a/c without the navigation? have not tried to see if it works.

dont want unexpected bills.

[ChumpusRex]

Oil wise, any 5W30 A3 or C2 oil is fine. You can get an own-brand full synthetic for about £16 for 5 litres for A3, or about £25 for 5 litres for C2. Fair enough, if you've only got 50k miles, it might be worth using a more expensive branded oil. The IS250 engine does use a bit of oil, so I wouldn't be surprised if it's down a liter by 10k miles.

Plugs are due at 60k miles, but having done mine after 70k, they looked like they had at least another 70k on them. You are strongly advised to use the OEM plugs only (Denso HK20HBR11), as the engine doesn't very much like brands such as NGK and Bosch. Lexus Birmingham sell them mail order/via eBay at a very good price. I'd strongly recommend that you don't get Lexus to do this, as the lexus price will give you a heart attack.

Filters and stuff aren't expensive. Although, you can often get decent brand filters (like Mahle - who make the filters for BMW and Porsche) off eBay for a fraction of the price of the lexus ones.

brake discs and pads don't last very long on the IS250, because they are undersized for the weight of the car. Avoid cheap aftermarket discs and pads, as they don't stand up to the abuse. I don't know whether expensive aftermarket pads/discs last any better, but I'm trying some now.

Make sure that every service, you have the brakes disassembled, cleaned and the caliper sliders lubricated. These things will seize and destroy your pads/discs if you so much as look at them wrong.

[toffee_pie]

cheers, i do need to get busy ordering stuff.

speaking of brakes, is it worth getting grooved discs? and uprated brakes? I seen 310mm rear discs on eBay, looked nice. i think 290mm is standard, seems a bit small for a v6, the accord is 300mm.

decent brakes, tyres and wheels are mandatory on any respectable motor

from the top of my head i probably need all this done :$

plugs, oil, oil filter, air filter, pollen filter, tranny fluid,

then the brakes checked out, could be discs, pads bla bla..!

but i expect this initial outlay.

can the a/c be checked sans sat nav?

[ChumpusRex]

I've got grooved discs and EBC redstuff pads on at the moment. They're a bit "sharper" than OEM, but other than that, I can't say they're much different. They still fade, but maybe they take a bit longer to do so. I know some people have put GS series brakes on, but I think they won't fit on 17" wheels.

Differential fluid is due at 40k (takes a standard 80W90 GL5 gear oil). No idea about the manual gearbox - didn't even realise the IS250 came in manual.

The A/C is controlled only via the sat nav screen. The temperature can be controlled with normal buttons, but the actual A/C function and face/feet selection can only be controlled via the sat nav.

[toffee_pie]

can i find out if a/c works with no navi?

[jamesm182]

What's wrong with the navigation does the screen just not turn on?

[bobbyc]

It is worth pointing out that the IS250 is due a major service at 60k and as mentioned this includes plugs etc. However given the list of items you are going to deal with. I think you have pretty much covered everything.

I also have a manual (one of the few people) and the gearbox can be a little chunky. I came from a mazda 6 sport and found the gearbox on that better. However the lexus one is fine and just takes a little time to get used to it. The biting point on the clutch in 1st gear also takes a bit of time to get use to and you will likely stall a couple of times before you get a good feel for it.

What is wrong with the sat nav and was it broken when you purchased the car?

[bobbyc]

O I almost forgot. Please tell me you are aware of the road tax on a IS250 manual.

I have to renew mine at the end of June and am having sleepless nights already about paying for it......

[Hondaman]

Funnily enough, i also went from a CL9 Accord to a Lexus almost 3 years ago now. I still miss the raw speed of the the Honda, but the IS250 is such a nice place to sit. I actually find it exciting on a fast motorway run, as it handles so well at speed.

Please let us know what are the symptoms regarding the satnav. We may be able to help. Welcome to the club.

[jamesm182]

O I almost forgot. Please tell me you are aware of the road tax on a IS250 manual.

I have to renew mine at the end of June and am having sleepless nights already about paying for it......

Yes I'm glad I got the auto for the tax reasons alone. It's odd that auto is more efficient than the manual as in most other cars it is quite often the other way round

[Ishaq]

Welcome to Lexus matey.

I had my 60K Service 9000 miles ago and cost me £800 at Lexus Woodford.

You can try JEMcar in Collindale NW9. Their service starts at £100 plus you can get courtesy car for £10, worth giving them a call or google them they have a website.

Good Luck and enjoy....but really you should have gone for an auto its wicked!!!!

[toffee_pie]

800quid for a service, yikes...

I figure i can get the parts for 300 tops, 2 hours labour should do all that, thats about 40/50hr max.

should get all that stuff put on for about 500? give or take.

the tax was an eye opener! its more than my accord, what is it with the manual costing more?

the gear box was also iffy, at first i thought it was buggered, then i read about it being clunky.

i stalled a few times driving it.

my accord i could swap gears in lightning speed. :(, guess i will have to get used to it.

the sat nav doesnt work, no touch response, dead.

turns on ok but nothing else, so i am wondering how it can be fixed and if i can check the air con?

i can ill afford to lose on fixing air con, need to service it and tax the b****!

cheers! :)

[Ishaq]

Hi, I think I saw a repair service on eBay. Type in Lexus IS250 sat nav and you will find one a around £250 and read the description it will say this is a repair service. Will try and look for the link for you as Sat Nav is a must which controls a lot of the toys not to mention air con.

The biggest spend will be in the iridium spark plugs which are not cheap. Well worth getting a reputable mechanic do the job and you will have to take the top off the engine.

This is a premium car so be ready to pay premium price for some items as it's not worth saving a few bob on ****y parts.

Good luck mate

[toffee_pie]

the CL9 had iridium plugs too, I put quality parts into my Accord and it went like a dream.

I did not even check tax rates when i got this, I just dived right in. I assumed it would be same as the honda.

hurrrr

[is200 Newbie]

Fluids / filters you can do yourself (oil / oil filter / sump plug / cabin filter / air filter) this should cost you no more than £60 - £70

Brake disks and pads you can do yourself, both front and rear and as mentioned in previous posts its worthwhile at least getting them checked (slide pins) before anything else as they do seize on a regular basis, grease them up. Both front and back brakes should cost you no more than £200

Spark plugs - they can be changed but its a good 3 - 4 hour bitch of a job to do - plugs will cost anything around £100+

Whats a big slap in the face is a replacement oem exhaust at £2700 !! Just hope you never need to replace

[toffee_pie]

well fluck me

this guy pulled out of my deal to sell the accord ffs

said he will get something smaller ffs.

had 3 others interested, cancelled my ad on autotrader too.

brilliant.!

meant to collect lex saturday, 300 deposit down

[toffee_pie]

hate these time wasters. cant believe this

[aly-g]

ishaq just so there is no confusion Jemca is the Lexus dealer in collindale, JEM is a independant service garage in collindale,..... jemca the Lexus dealer will be more expensive but I think they do deals for servicing cars more than 5years old .

allan

[toffee_pie]

in any event, this waster has put my car in ruins, will lose my deposit

taking a 08 to a dealer is a bit pointless, i would use a garage, indy

[finest1]

welcome,

its a great car, you'd love it once you learn all the little refinements. if its got good service history you shouldn't worry. for piece of mind you can either get a local garage to do an oil change for you, best buy your own oil and filter, so you pay for labour only. or carry a 1ltr oil with you just in case.

[toffee_pie]

i hope i dont need to carry oil in the boot like i did with my mondeo :o

I am collecting this tomorrow, does the 2008 SE-L have power folding mirrors that come on with the alarm?

I am a bit nervous, always like that with a new motor.