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I will ask on here. One appeal of Lexus over german rivals is that the former is less likely to have had a hard life so I would be happy to buy from an enthusiast My budget is about £7k, which I think is too low for anything sold at a Lexus Dealer

I am going to have to disagree slightly with John here. The other option is to buy from a trader/private, then buy a Extended Lexus warranty. It would cost you an additional £1095 for two years cover, but you would probably save that by not buying from a main dealer. Obviously if you have the visual safety inspection done which is required for the warranty and they find something wrong, you are going to find it difficult to get anything out of a private seller. What I did with mine was buy it from a car dealer which offered a warranty, and then drove it straight to the Lexus dealer to buy a Extended Warranty. If the Lexus dealer had found a problem, I would have used the warranty the dealer offered to fix it. As it turned out, the car was fine and has been covered by the Lexus Warranty since. I also don't necessarily agree with the what you don't have cannot go wrong philosophy. Being a luxury car, I love all the toys on my SE-L, which have been perfectly reliable so far.

Hi, and welcome. I have an 08 RX400h which had the same problem in the cold last week - started fine later on in the morning. Lexus diagnosed it as a cell starting to fade on the 12v battery - original since new - and I've replaced it (Lexus charged £95 all in), apparently 7 years is a reasonable life, do you know whether yours has been replaced ever? Disconnecting and reconnecting shouldn't have any effect unless you think it's an issue with the connection to the battery - which would probably have wider effects.

A quick list of what to look out for .... don't let this put you off ... all the faults I can remember are listed below (some are common sense), maybe there are a few more that owners can add Seized rear calipers - cost around £300 each - Easiest way to check is to take the car on a test run and then when parked back up again feel the heat on each alloy - should be warm and not excessively hot. No squealing. Also, if discs are still rusted looking after driving then there's a problem. Obviously pulling to the side is noticeable Brake pad shims - some members reported missing brake shims from the rear calliper - probably from when pads were replaced and the garage or dealer forgot to put them back on. Its not something you can easily check on a test drive but if missing they are very hard to source except from a scrap dealer if they will sell them at all separate. Seized front calipers - as with the rears, around £300 each. Both front and backs can be freed if not too far gone, re-greased and put back together again but once seized they may need looking after more than ones not having been seized in the past as pitting and ill fitting rubber seals may be an issue. Why does this happen ... last owner not looking after the car or using the wrong type of grease in that it attacks the rubber boots letting dirt and water into the caliper moving parts. If it was looked after by the dealer then new calipers would have been fitted if seized. Greasing is not a part of the service schedule from Lexus so be aware. You may not experience any warnings that they are seized. Its the most common fault on these cars so get an assurance from the seller to replace if found to be seized or have him check them first. To be honest If it was me i would also check them myself when I got home with a new car just to be sure. Easy DIY job to both replace and maintain (grease) I do mine every 6 months but a lot of owners do it every year. Black oil - A sign the cars not been looked after - the oil should not be black. It will go dark in colour but not black. Again, an easy DIY job - I use Magnatec and an oil change, including the filter will cost you around £60. Takes a bit over 6 litres. Oil filter cap seized - If you can, ask the dealer or garage to ensure the cap housing thr filter will move. A lot of garages, including dealers put these on far too tight and some owners have experienced cracked housings while trying to remove the caps to change the filter. An easy DIY job White crust around front water pump area - an indication the water pump is on its way out - costs around £200 for a new one (inclusive of fitting) Exhaust shot - Black soot around the welded joints - check the centre section around the middle resonator as this is a problem area. Get this checked out at an exhaust centre. Pay for the inspection as you wont get a lot of change back from 3k for the replacement parts (back box and centre) if it has gone or is on its last legs - the pattern parts have not been released to 3rd party manufacturers so the replacement parts are only available from Lexus unless you are going bespoke and going for a stainless one - a Cat back system will cost around £500 - if you have the time and want to get your hands dirty then you can put together a bespoke exhaust yourself for around £100. Tyres rotated wrong way - Ask why have they done this? un-even tyre wear so look around the shocks / springs to see if theres any issues - maybe nothing Tyre choice - A good choice of branded rear tyres will serve well. Remember its a rear wheel drive car - Do not go for cheap brands as while they may last/wear well, the performance in the wet will be hazardous. Read through the forums for owner experiences on brands. Leaking shocks - Expensive replacements but not a real issue - some owners have reported replacing them and hard to find Wheel locking nuts seized - Put on with a tyre dealer air hammer. Will come off with specialised tools and a lot of patience - I think this is common cause on all cars - happened on 3 in our household over the years. Check this out before buying if possible. Wheel security locking nut missing - check this is available when buying the car. Without it you wont be able to take the tyres off easily or replace if you get a puncture Alloy wheel corrosion - this is apparent across the Lexus range - corrosion on the alloy happens and noticeable by bubbles under the alloy coating - will eventually lead to pressure loss if not tended to as it will break the seal between the tyre and the wheel itself Tow hook missing - only handy when you need it so check its there - located in the boot of the car Spare tyre - it houses a space saver wheel - make sure its inflated. If it looks like its been used then take out and inspect to make sure its inflated. DVD sat nav extraction tool missing - only handy when you come to update the sat nav DVD - the tools for this should be in the black tool kit in the boot of the car CD/DVD head unit fully working - take an original CD / a DVD and an MP3 disc with you and test each one out - they should all work without messing with the settings. (you will need to select each disc to play and it should) Noise from front speaker cover - a cracking noise from the speaker cover on the front centre dash board - not experienced this myself but its apparently quite noisy. Also a rattle has been reported, again not widespread. Noise from driver door area - don't know If this is a common area. I originally thought it was the door seal but narrowed it down to the handle above the door rattling slightly - I oiled the hinge and the noise disappeared Coolant level low - check the heating is hot when on. Check for a "gurgling" noise which will indicate the cooling is low - if its low then there could be an issue with a leak or possible indication the pump is on its way out Front headlights - will become "cloudy" over time - no more than any other car and can easily be restored with a bit of elbow grease Corroded wheels - a common issue with the Toyota wheels - bad ones will eventually lose air and deflate due to the corrosion not creating a good seal. Uneven wear on tyres - indication there's something a miss with the alignment / shocks - to be honest this is not reported as a problem on the cars. Maybe more so from owners using non OEM wheels Cams are chain driven - no worries there but they can stretch (very extreme though) Rear blind working - read a few posts on here that its stopped working or stuck in the up position - check its operation Front discs - They are heavy on discs and front pads. Check the wear on the discs on the front - not expensive to replace and an easy DIY job Lights not bright and flickering - an indication that the bulbs are on their way out - check both are the same colour. If not, one has been replaced and other will need to be done at some point. Check all front lights as they are quite fiddly in replacing the bulbs Aircon works - should be cold - if not then check coolant level, if ok the system either has a leak or may need re-gassing Squeeky steering adjustment - has been reported by a few members. Mine squeeks in hot weather when automatically adjusting. Not all the time and has not caused any issues. Mirrors dip when in reverse - the mirrors should dip towards the road when in reverse, a feature on the cars to ensure easy viewing of where you are going. If they don't then its most likely they will just need to be cleaned internally. Again an easy DIY job. Parking sensors - with the engine running have someone walk within a foot of the sensors at the front and the rear of the car - it should start beeping when the person walks past them. Not seen any issues with this reported by the owners. O2 sensors - PreCat (within engine bay) will go around 70 to 80k easy DIY job - cost around £180 for OEM Denso ones - don't use 3rd party ones as they will not last Rear brake shoes - Cant easily be checked on a test drive - changed mine at around 90k last year and they still had a bit of meat on them, probably on the car from new so more than likely will need changing or inspection at least. Easy DIY job Main engine plastic cover - centre engine cover can become loose from removing and re-applying it. there is a push button tab that breaks off and it can in some instances be heard rattling over lumpy roads. Mine has broke - not a real issue as the radio at low volume masks any rattle. I expect some strong glue would fix this. Engine idle - make sure its constant at tick over when cold (quite high) and when hot (around 700revs) - if erratic it could indicate a carbon build up - not an issue with an application with cleaning liquids Valve Rattle - VVTI may rattle from time to time - the oil will drain in some cases from the resoviour for the valves after standing for a bit and as a consequence there is a rattle noise (similar to a dull machine gun noise) but will disappear in a second or so. Happenned on mine a few times when I first had it. but not come back for a couple of years now. Regular oil changes and I do an engine flush each oil change and in my opinion it has helped a lot. Exhaust smoke - no smoke from these - only condensate when in cold weather which is normal for most cars Cabin carpets - check the drivers side has clips anchoring the carpet down (if it has one) if it doesn't then the carpet can creep under the pedals Boot - Its a fair size boot but the opening does not give good access to large items - ideally it could have done with split seats but its not that kind of car I guess. Audio - Make sure the spec includes a Mark Levinson branded head unit which is the better of the head unit specs on these models.(indicated on the front of the stereo on the bottom right of the unit) Rear seat room - its a bit cramped in the back with passengers on the seats - leg room is dismal, maybe that's why I have never sat in the back when its been driven. Wife wont drive it due to the size of the car which I don't mind at all. Reliability - looked after its bullet proof, best make of car I have owned. Running costs are petrol only. Put in the time to do the services (oil, filters etc) and it will serve you well. Parts availability - Had my 250 for 3 years and an IS200 for 2 prior to that - the only time I was unable to get a part was the exhaust for the 250 - I could get one from the dealer but at nearly 3k I thought no way and went down another route. Parts are available from Eurocarparts / ebay / online easily enough and are not expensive. Speed - People forget these are not sports cars - they are quick in manual mode and can keep up with the best of them but are not made for that purpose. Its nice owning one for the individuality of having something different from whats sitting on the neighbours drive or in the works car park. I only know of an IS200 Alteeza and a IS220 local to myself so its my bit of exclusivity. Don't care how old it is, its still better than a new model medium city car. Mileage - mines on 93k - no issue and having has a high miler is200 and this one then I would consider another high miler but with the knowledge of what to look for. I don't think there would be any problems if you are careful in what you are looking at - gut instinct in a lot of cases. I guess there will be very few low milers available now on these cars now but you may be lucky in finding one. Keys - Ensure it has a minimum of 2 keys and they both work - if not then its definitely a bargaining chip to use as a replacement one will cost you around £350 and a trip to Lexus. Corroding windscreen wiper arms - these seem to bubble quite a bit under the paint on the main body of the wiper arm. No issue but it will break through the paint at somepoint. Check front windshield, if non-genuine check if wipers defrosters and auto sensing wipers works OK. As well windshields mouldings sometimes gets gets loose (broken clips) - about £80 to get new mouldings. (Courtesy of Linas.P) Main ground cable - In wet climate it was reported that main ground cable sometimes gets corroded and it is very hard to troubleshoot it.(Courtesy of Linas.P) Squeaky seats reported for the manual option (Courtesy of Vintagesixtysix) DMF issues (Dual Mass Flywheel) for the manual drive option (Courtesy of Vintagesixtysix) Paint - the paint is soft on these cars so are prone to scratching easier than other makes if not careful Cat failure - there has been a couple of reports of the cats failing on these cars but only a few have been reported at relative low mileage for the car (around 80 / 90k miles) not common though. There are 2 cats on these. Service milestones - consider cars around 60k miles require a spark plug change - or so Lexus recommends although they are good for 100k. This is an expensive job at around £600. Not done mine yet, planning on doing them at 100k. I would state at 100k then you will need to get your hands dirty and give the car a good going over, fluids etc just for peace of mind. Lexus service interval report does not state any excessive requirements, mostly checks to be made. Recalls - that I am aware of: cabin carpet mat required securing / airbags / fuel sensor washer. there may be more but these are the ones I know of. Spec - I would personally recommend the top spec SE-L Auto box at 2007 / 2008 as I believe when the face lift came along then the models lost a few features that were on the older models. A sunroof would be brilliant but like gold dust at this spec. Quite a bit of points above - don't let this put you off at all - the exhaust nearly saw me pack the car in when mine went but I went down the stainless route so alls not lost. Best to go into a sale knowing all the points to look at before making your mind up. Best car I have ever owned. One last consideration - in the 7 years I have owned the Lexus brand we have by far spent more money during this time in maintaining a fairly new Vauxhall !! One last point, if you have an ODB error code reader then take along and scan the ecu for any stored fault codes unless the dealer has cleared it down

I do not believe that there is any other warranty at any cost that will include cover for the Lexus Hybrid battery. if Jamie reads the detail of what is covered by the warranty,I think that he will be surprised. Regards John Regards John

Never experienced under or oversteer in any car - I presumed it was understeer as that's what it felt like it was doing ... Just checked .... Google's a wonderful thing ... Oversteer it is

Yeah, not cheap, certainly the last resort. It only needs a small amount of charging, just enough for the fob to open the door. You can then charge from under the bonnet once it's open. Sent from my iPhone using Lexus OC

What Clifton says will definitely work 🙂 Sent from my iPhone using Lexus OC

£1095 is pretty steep for 2 years is it not? Not much less than the cost of replacing 4 dampers in the first place How much did you have to pay for the Lexus inspection ?

You will have a light in the boot just put your head in the boot and look up any cheap charger will do

I also live in North Herefordshire, and have the same problems with servicing. You can however have the car serviced at the Westlands Toyota dealers at Callow south of Hereford. They will have the expertise to service Hybrids, and stock all the required service items such as filters plugs, and belts as most Lexus engines ect are Toyota parts. The work will also be deemed as carried out by Lexus. The prices charged by Toyota dealers is usually lower than Lexus dealers. You also get the mini valet after the service, and coffee with biscuits if you wish to wait for the car. They also do a free collection and delivery service from your home or work. Do not use Halfords! Lexus informed me that Toyota dealers can even carry out Lexus recall work. John.

open the boot and remove the curtesy light assy there will be one or two wires going to it connect a battery charger to the wires or wire and charge the battery for awhile just make sure you connect the wires correctly then open with fob

Had a good look around some GS300, GS450H's and an RX hybrid for good measure today. The GS hybrid boot is tiny but by golly the car drives like nothing else we've ever piloted. So after careful consideration I think we can forgive it the odd foyble. I think i'm well and truely hooked, even the Mrs was impressed #surprised

After owning my IS200T since March 2016 I wanted to give some of my feedback- it would be interesting to see other comments: Good: Brilliant handling, lovely poised steering which is light in town but weighty at speed, styling inside and out, engine is generally powerful at speed- never need to trash, serious stability at high speeds (achieving 140mph with ease in Germany), more space inside than previous generation, 5-spoke alloy design, smooth gearbox when working the car hard, good ride quality, great infotainment / audio (Mark Levinson), the mouse for the controls is brilliant, one touch sunroof, reliability so far, only filled up screen wash once in 7000 miles, rarity, great Xenon headlights, same mpg as my old but slower IS250, it's not an Audi or BMW, I love the colour scheme- velvet black with ivory leather whereas the 2017 facelift now has a less appealing sand beige :>( Not so impressive: LED lighting has been dropped inside- old model had this, rear armrest now has no storage unlike before, leather quality good but less so than gen2 being thinner but harder, more road noise at low speeds than old model (changed tyres to different brands but the same), sometimes kickdown can take 2-3 seconds to decide what gear- frustrating, jerky paddle shift, it revs uncouthly as did my old IS250 when turning the engine on in the morning- quite loud, passenger middle armrest non existent, bluetooth not the best- often cuts out yet my phone has strong bars showing, some of the trim i.e. door pockets look cheap and low rent- no carpet padding, heat shield rattle that the dealer couldn't fix, fragile velvet black paint. A good friend of mine has just bought a BMW 320d Sport 2015 Auto and I was surprised how similar the ride and handling feels to my IS. What did surprise me is that I average 26mpg normally and he averages 34mpg. This is town driving for both (we both travel around 12 miles per day to work). The IS's claimed average is 39mpg and the BMW is nearly 70mpg- it doesn't surprise me how another German brand seems to be massaging the figures so to speak! Overall I love it and wouldn't swap it for anything similar although some of the cost cutting is a little too obvious. It's not perfect but then what car is?

Largely rubbish tyres IMHO. Evergreen EU72 tyres get good reviews when new, but a lot of reviewers say that they last a long time (eg one reviewer claims 75K miles for a set). That points to hard rubber - and as I've said before, hard rubber tyres get to be lethal in the wet especially when they wear down to 3mm or so. Avon ZV7 are an excellent choice - I have them all round. Doesn't stop the occasional kicking in of TC though when it's wet or icy. All the electronic gizmos in the world can't beat the laws of physics!

As above, first suspect is the auxiliary 12 Volt battery, Lexus dealer prices are quite competitive and they will provide a fitting service on request while you enjoy the complementary hospitality in reception

As Keith has said, you have pretty much pointed out the answer in your post. According to the manual I have, the fronts should be 35psi and the rears 38psi for anything up to 100mph. Also, different tyres make a huge difference. From what I have read, Evergreen's a good mid range tyre. People seem to rate these: http://www.blackcircles.com/catalogue/goodyear/efficientgrip-performance/225/45/R17/W/91/f?returnurl=%2forder%2ftyres%3f&tyre=32155235 Not too expensive either. The Avon's are good as well.

Think you have answered the question. Over inflation is not good, buy a good branded tyre the car deserves them. Rear wheel drive is different to front wheel drive. I am on winter tyres at the moment, give lots of confidence at this time of year. Do not only work in snow, You have been lucky it was such a slow speed. Try driving in snow mode when its wet, may help till you can replace your tyres.

That's interesting Carl as I had no bother with the sales manager, quite the opposite in fact. I have 3 years left on the hybrid warranty, a 12 month full lexus sales warranty on the car and a 3 year service plan, carried over from the GS and topped up back to 3 from 2 years, so the only other thing we'll be taking out is GAP insurance as the car is only a few years old. I won't be taking out the full warranty until the car reaches 5 years old. When the weather picks up and dries off in the spring and the salt is off the roads, I'll have the subframe waxoiled too. Must admit, having done about 60 miles since picking it up, I am finding the seats a little too soft. I have back problems and the older GS was perfect as it was a little firmer and 10 way adjustable so dead easy to get it spot on. The RX is proving to be a little more difficult to get right for the most comfortable seating position. The other niggle is that I don't much like the Radio controls accessed via the mouse nor the long winded way of tuning through stations rather than using the back and forward keys which just seem to jump between present stations. The DAB is pretty good, better than expected though. Overtaking is a breeze and here, I have to kneel down before Rayaans (!), bow, scrape and doff my cap, as the RX actually (in sport mode anyway) makes overtaking a breeze and feels almost a little more punchy than the GS. From a standstill, the GS is still quicker but once on the move, the RX is surprisingly agile. Rayaans, I eat humble pie....err...humbly Fuel economy with mixed driving it has been disappointing with 36mpg best and 31mpg average. We'll see longer term how this changes (or not). Handling is simply amazing compared with the Lux models. The F-Sport was well worth the extra. It just sits flat through corners unless pushed to the point at which 2.5 tonnes forces the car wide as the tyres start to lose grip and that's a gentle reminder that this isn't a sports car but it is still surprisingly capable.

Hope your enjoying it. i bought mine from cheltenham as like you I am Gloucester based. i found the sales manager to be hard work to be honest but overall a fairly smooth transaction. i have both my Lexus with warranty and service agreements so they certainly get there money's worth out of me. carl

Just below the top is normal for me too. I thought something was wrong at first but reassured by the forum. I've had it totally full once a couple of weeks ago, which really surprised me! Don't know why it happened it was on a journey across rolling countryside that I've done quite a few times and never got to full before on it.

Auto Locksmith?

Changing the cambelt etc. is an expensive job, particularly in relation to the price of the car, but look at it this way: I bought mine in August 2010 and, after having the starter motor contacts and cam belt, pulleys etc. replaced over the years, could probably still get what I paid for it. Zero depreciation over six years, and at 156,000 the car still runs as well as it did when I bought it, and it has never failed an MOT. How many other cars can you say that about?

HOLD function in GS , when on, inserts permanently brakes with still car after 2 seconds of braking, so the hold light gets on and you can leave foot from brake pedal and D inserted ; remember that in D with hybrid engine is off and electric motors also, till you press again right pedal to accelerate (no waste of energy) restarting electric traction. In HOLD mode you obviously can stop your car at any inclination, positive, negative or 0. Electric parking brake is another feature, and it works , also in automatic mode if you set it, when you have car in P and press start button to go off; restarting the car automatically parking brake disengages.

I have now found the front side light fuse after much searching. It is located in in such a position in the under bonnet fuse box that it is almost invisible. Towards the front of the fuse box the is a separate box with four fuses laid on there sides with the tops just visible until you pull this box upwards out of the main fuse box allowing access to the fuses. It is one of these fuses that controls the front side lights. I will add a picture shortly. John.

There are several widely used specifications - API, ACEA and ILSAC, but many manufacturers due to particular engineering demands specify certain additional performance requirements. For example, VW and BMW specify extra-long oil change intervals. To ensure that the oil will last that interval, they have their own specifications which require high levels of oil preservatives, and wear-preventing additives. The same additives are specified by API, etc. but they specify a lower minimum than VW and BMW specify. Other manufacturers may have specific demands for oil sludge formation, or catalyst/DPF compatibility, and therefore have their own specification of oil to ensure that the oil is adequate. ACEA have tried to standardise some of the most used specifications for catalyst friendliness, wear, oil change interval, etc. You have the A grades which are from A1 and A5 which is for the lowest viscosity oils to A3 which is for higher viscosity oils; there are also C grades which specify catalyst friendly formulations. C1 being most catalyst/DPF friendly and with extra-and C3 less friendly. It is possible to meet many manufacturers specifications simultaneously, but not all of them. As a result most of the end-user oil manufacturers make a variety of products with slighlty different formulations to cover the whole market. Lexus go buy the ILSAC specification and the very similar API specification with no additional special requirements. If the oil meets API SL or a later API specification such as SM or SN, and is of the correct viscosity then it will be fine for an IS250. There's quite a cool little interactive widget at http://origin-qps.onstreammedia.com/origin/lubrizol/Markets/EngineOilAdditives/100132RPtool2012Deploy/rp/pc/index.html where you can compare different oil specifications to see how they differ.