Is300H Questions

[Lexus LFA]

Hey there, this might be a bit of a long post! but I'm sure you won't mine :>

I think I've been lurking these forums for about a year or so when I decided my next car would be a Lexus, was thinking original of getting the first gen Is200, as it is pretty good value for what it is.

However this year I thought I'd get myself a new car, since I've always been buying cars over 6 years old.

So my mind is pretty set on the IS, I've looked at other alternatives but most are pretty bland in comparison. I'll most likely be looking to buy the car sometime next year, probably in the first quarter of the year or at least by summer.

Just a few queries,

• Say for example, I've bought and kept the lexus for like 10 years and its out of its warranty, and the hybrid Battery stops working and needs replacing, would the car still be able to drive with its petrol engine alone?
• The F-sport, is the ride really that hard? I've read online/magazines that the ride is awful? How true is this, and does the optional AVS suspension soften the ride a bit? I like the look of the F-Sport but don't really want to compromise on too much ride quality.
• When will there be a facelift model, I know it only came out last year? But if a new facelift near the time I get one I'd rather wait a few months instead :P

Oh and another thing, I've always paid for my cars in cash and never bought from a dealer, so say I wanted to visit a dealership would I need to ring up first or can you go anytime? :arrrggg-matey:

I was looking at financing options at the car, I don't have any major outgoing or spending, only just the food bills and petrol, but is it worth going down that route? Never done it before so no idea! You put a deposit down and then pay monthly, and at the end of the 2 or 3 years payment you get to keep the car right? If you've paid it all of course, and the insurance, would you get that the same way as you would any other car or can you get it through the dealer, thanks in advance guys and sorry for the long ***** post

EDIT: Anyone got a pic of the red leather interior?

[Steve44]

Red Interior pics - see here - http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/topic/92268-finally-mercury-greydark-rose-is300h-f-sport-arrived/

F-Sport ride bad? I wouldn't say so, but bad compared to what? Is it firmer than the Lux or SE version, absolutely. Is it as bad as an Audi A4 S-Line with sports suspension, or a BMW E90 M-Sport on Run flats - no way.

It is pretty sensitive to tyre pressures in my opinion, I've dropped them down to 34psi to see if it makes a difference and it does. I'll probably up them again and see if I can live with it. A demo car I had (no AVS) had a bad ride when I drove it, vibrating down the motorway really bad vibrations in the cabin etc, it was brand new, 70miles on the clock. I checked the tyres just to see and they were at 40-42psi. Backed them off to 36 and it was much better.

I have AVS and it does make a difference - subtle - but a difference is there. On the motorway in Eco or normal the ride is firm but well damped, cats-eyes etc are ok, no problems. In Sport and especially in Sport+ mode, you do feel every rut, ridge and depression in the road, it does stiffen up the damping somewhat. On smooth quiet tarmac though, it is the best car I've driven, very relaxing.

[DJP]

That's all I've time for at the mo!

Sent from my Iphone using Lexus OC

[C Mclean]

Rich, for the actual payment options, I was going down the trade in plus pay the balance straight away but was persuaded by the dealer to take the balance on a personal lease type of purchase. I wasn't too keen as I don't like paying things up for years on end, but with this type of purchase the dealer made a down payment contribution of £1750 and I can pay off the balance completely whenever I like with no early payment penalties.

[rayaans]

Hey there, this might be a bit of a long post! but I'm sure you won't mine :>

I think I've been lurking these forums for about a year or so when I decided my next car would be a Lexus, was thinking original of getting the first gen Is200, as it is pretty good value for what it is.

However this year I thought I'd get myself a new car, since I've always been buying cars over 6 years old.

So my mind is pretty set on the IS, I've looked at other alternatives but most are pretty bland in comparison. I'll most likely be looking to buy the car sometime next year, probably in the first quarter of the year or at least by summer.

Just a few queries,

• Say for example, I've bought and kept the lexus for like 10 years and its out of its warranty, and the hybrid battery stops working and needs replacing, would the car still be able to drive with its petrol engine alone?
• The F-sport, is the ride really that hard? I've read online/magazines that the ride is awful? How true is this, and does the optional AVS suspension soften the ride a bit? I like the look of the F-Sport but don't really want to compromise on too much ride quality.
• When will there be a facelift model, I know it only came out last year? But if a new facelift near the time I get one I'd rather wait a few months instead :P

Oh and another thing, I've always paid for my cars in cash and never bought from a dealer, so say I wanted to visit a dealership would I need to ring up first or can you go anytime? :arrrggg-matey:

I was looking at financing options at the car, I don't have any major outgoing or spending, only just the food bills and petrol, but is it worth going down that route? Never done it before so no idea! You put a deposit down and then pay monthly, and at the end of the 2 or 3 years payment you get to keep the car right? If you've paid it all of course, and the insurance, would you get that the same way as you would any other car or can you get it through the dealer, thanks in advance guys and sorry for the long ***** post

EDIT: Anyone got a pic of the red leather interior?

Firstly, welcome to the forum. I'll try to answer your questions as best as I can and I'm sure others will too.

1) As far as I am aware if the hybrid drivetrain dies, you can still drive the car. Im sure I read that someone with a GS450h on this forum has a failed hybrid pump and therefore, was only running on the 3.5litre V6 engine albeit with worse fuel economy.

2) For me, the ride isn't bad at all. Its rather compliant and softer than the suspension set ups in Merc's AMG line, BMW's M-Sport line and Audi's S-Line. The best way to find out if its right for you is to test drive the vehicle yourself. As for the AVS, it changes stiffness depending on the mode you are in. I drove an IS350 F Sport in the states with AVS and from what I could tell, ECO and normal are nice and comfortable, Sport is the best balance and S+ is stiffer but leads to better handling.

3) Its unlikely that the facelift is going to come anytime soon as the car is so new. It'll be atleast another 2 years before a facelift. Expect a new engine next year though, the IS200t of course.

4) Cash is the best bet if you want the cheapest option. Problem with finance is that they add interest at about 5.9% so eventually you end up paying more in total. Obviously, if you dont have the funds ready and dont want to take a big hit to your bank account, then finance is the only way to go.

There are different options for finance. The easiest is to get a car loan which you pay off like a mortgage. There's one where you pay monthly and then just hand the car back after a certain time, usually 3 or 4 years. There's another where you pay monthly and then pay a lump sum to buy the car off the company. Bare in mind that when you finance a vehicle, its never actually yours so may affect insurance prices and things like that.

Dont forget to try online broker websites. I just got a £4k discount offer courtesy of carwow.co.uk from Lexus Hull

[ColinBarber]

I don't believe the F Sport is that hard, no more so than a IS200 sport. The hardness mainly comes from the low profile tyres. If you have AVS then normal is maybe a tiny bit softer and S+ mode makes it harder - I believe it is only a two stage system on the IS.

I would expect a major facelift after 3 years of production, so another 2 years to go.

Depending on what actually goes wrong with the hybrid system would determine if it would still be usable. The Battery packs are probably one area where you don't have to worry, and if you get you car serviced at a Lexus dealership you will get up to 8 years warranty on the Battery pack.

[Lexus LFA]

Hey and wow thanks for the great replies guys, answered all my questions :D, the is200t sounds pretty interesting as well so worth a wait for that imo, and see how that compares to the is300h, obviously it won't have the fuel economy etc of it, but I'm not too fussed :>

Gonna bookmark this page for future reference.

[LeeG]

Hey Rich, welcome.

Regarding payment options, I was ready to pay cash and my dealer offered me a finance contribution figure. The day after my first payment was made, I called the finance company and settled the outstanding balance. In effect, I had an extra £850 saving on the car.

Colin, if you have not settled your finance already and can afford to do so, I recommend doing it for a saving.

Lee.

[rayaans]

Hey Rich, welcome.

Regarding payment options, I was ready to pay cash and my dealer offered me a finance contribution figure. The day after my first payment was made, I called the finance company and settled the outstanding balance. In effect, I had an extra £850 saving on the car.

Colin, if you have not settled your finance already and can afford to do so, I recommend doing it for a saving.

Lee.

Except more than £850 is lost in interest alone so it doesnt work out cheaper unless its 0% apr

[LeeG]

Hi Rayaan,

That's not true. You only pay interest on the length of time you are paying finance, in my case 1 month.

If I paid over the full term, then the interest would have been more than the £1000 contribution from Lexus.

Trust me, the maths is correct otherwise I would not have done it.

Thanks,

Lee.

[rayaans]

Hi Rayaan,

That's not true. You only pay interest on the length of time you are paying finance, in my case 1 month.

If I paid over the full term, then the interest would have been more than the £1000 contribution from Lexus.

Trust me, the maths is correct otherwise I would not have done it.

Thanks,

Lee.

Yes thats true. I was under the impression that you could only get finance for the full term? Out of interest, what did you do exactly? Just wondering because I'm looking for another car

[Silver Arrow]

The FSport is harder than the SE, which I would say is "firm" and OK to live with. I struggled with the F Sport - too jiggly for me and that with the narrow feeling seats gave me back ache. You need an extended drive to really know whether it's any good. If you have any doubts at all, and are in the market for a brand new one, then just order the AVS option. I know I would...

[C Mclean]

Hey Rich, welcome.

Regarding payment options, I was ready to pay cash and my dealer offered me a finance contribution figure. The day after my first payment was made, I called the finance company and settled the outstanding balance. In effect, I had an extra £850 saving on the car.

Colin, if you have not settled your finance already and can afford to do so, I recommend doing it for a saving.

Lee.

just waiting on my dear employer coughing up 3 years unpaid allowance and then I'll be settling up with Lexus Finance.

[rayaans]

Hey Rich, welcome.

Regarding payment options, I was ready to pay cash and my dealer offered me a finance contribution figure. The day after my first payment was made, I called the finance company and settled the outstanding balance. In effect, I had an extra £850 saving on the car.

Colin, if you have not settled your finance already and can afford to do so, I recommend doing it for a saving.

Lee.

just waiting on my dear employer coughing up 3 years unpaid allowance and then I'll be settling up with Lexus Finance.

Wait, so if I got the £1000 Lexus contribution towards the IS300h, then paid it off in full in a month, itd work out cheaper as interest will be like £50 or so? Never thought I could do that, sounds like bending the rules abit

[DJP]

You can settle up finance anytime you like. If it's a fixed term agreement the interest for the term is added to the capital borrowed and then the total isdivided by the number of months. That's how your monthly repayment is arrived at. If you early settle, the figure to clear it takes into account a rebate on the interest that has been added to the amount borrowed. The rebate is not necessarily as generous as it could be and almost certainly the interest charges are more than ton an overdraft facility, where the interest charged is based on the actual amount outstanding.

However, on the face of it a good way of getting a discount via the back door. Certainly nothing underhand or illegal about it.

Sent from my Iphone using Lexus OC

[ColinBarber]

Obviously not illegal but under the finance T&Cs it never used to work that way. The interest amount was calculated for the full term and had to be paid in full even if you settled early.

[DJP]

Obviously not illegal but under the finance T&Cs it never used to work that way. The interest amount was calculated for the full term and had to be paid in full even if you settled early.

I think various amendments to the Consumer Credit Act over the years have made it fairer for the borrower. It is not fair that someone early settling a loan should have to pay interest on money that is no longer owed. It's bad enough that the interest is all calculated on day one and added to the loan, where in reality the full amount borrowed is only actually outstanding for one month, as each repayment made decreasing the amount owed.

Mind you even worse with PPI where the banks added the insurance premium to the amount borrowed and then charged interest on the whole lot :arrrggg-matey:

Sorry everyone, completely

[tinka]

For some reason, I can't find the short pre programmed text message replies.

[DJP]

Sorry Tinka you're going to have to expand on that.

Sent from my Iphone using Lexus OC

[tinka]

I thought the system had 15 short text message replies, that can be sent, On page 343 in the manual. When I receive a text message, it's not giving me the option to reply with one.

[DJP]

Seeing as I've never read the manual it's not surprising I hadn't come across that.

Like you I get messages but no quick reply button, which would b really useful. Even more frustrating when the option is supposedly there!

Can't believe it's anything to do with the phone but just in case, I'm using an Iphone 5.

Anyone have any success with this or is it another Lexus software delivery failure?

Sent from my Iphone using Lexus OC

[lexicon]

Yes, I get the option when I receive a text.

There's 3 screens of pre-programmed replies to choose from (you can edit them)

[DJP]

Interesting! What phone are you using, do you know what version of the software you are using?

Sent from my Iphone using Lexus OC

[ColinBarber]

none on the iPhones are compatible with SMS or email at the moment. You can receive texts but the system cannot send.

http://www.lexus.co.uk/owners/reference-library/#/BluetoothCompatibility

[DJP]

Thanks Colin, any idea when "at the moment' might change? Or does the problem lie with the Bluetooth version apple use?

Sent from my Iphone using Lexus OC