Leaderboard

So as you can all see we now have a combined 'F' forum I would say a big thankyou to Steve and all those concerned for doing this as I'm sure as time goes on it will be a great benefit for us all. Big Rat

I have just finished with 8 weeks in a Mercedes C200 Sport hire car whilst my Lexus IS 300h Executive was being repaired (bodywork after hitting a tyre shed off a lorry on the motorway) and so had an interesting comparison. Having read all the doom and gloom about Lexus nav, I was pleasantly surprised with the nav in the IS 300h Executive when I got it (the standard with the dial, not premium with the mouse) and now after having had the Merc for 8 weeks while mine was off the road I can say that the Lexus nav (at least the standard one) is a huge improvement on the one in the Merc. I also used Google maps for some time before I had my Lexus which always worked very well and so again had a benchmark for comparison there. In summary the Lexus nav is much, much faster at coming up with a route, rerouting etc. than the Merc and the routes the Lexus nav suggests correspond pretty much with Google maps (including taking into account traffic). The Merc directions were very different to Google and Lexus for the same route and for the worse. In the end while I had the Merc I used Google maps to check directions before setting off as they were so much better. I had done the same checks against Google maps in my Lexus when I first got it but found that the Lexus and Google directions were pretty much always the same so stopped using Google maps and was happy with the Lexus directions. In general operation I also found the Merc unit very laggy and incredibly slow and frustrating to use in comparison to the Lexus. I felt that after 8 weeks I was still struggling with the Merc system but was basically happy using the Lexus nav and had worked out most of what it did after my one day test drive before I bought the car! I appreciate that these things can be quite subjective, but just wanted to add my thoughts as I was very surprised, given all the negative Lexus nav comments, just how good it is in a straight comparison with the Merc at least. Oh yes, and the Merc sounded like a tractor to drive with hard uncomfortable seats! So, so glad to sink into the comfort of the Lexus seats again and then enjoy the sereneness of my IS 300h.

I’ll start it off with -

Oh no, mine loves a stroll on a brisk winters day...

Your garage sounds extremely honest so fair play to them. My guess is the front discs have done 65K and the car being a bit of a lump its probably that time. The rear discs probably have a few years left in them. Most indies wont allow you to buy brake components and ask them to fit (they prefer to buy themselves ) due to obvious safety reasons, however you can always steer them in the right direction with prices. Having owned an IS200 for many years these are simply consumables but done properly should last another 5 years, rarely as much as the originals but enough to give you peace of mind.

@doog442 You stick around matey most welcome, just be aware there are one or two here who are very adept at spending others money on changing cars upgrading parts and so on no names no pack drill........cough..........cough 😁 🐀

It's a decent all rounder , I just wish I had room for an ISF or even an RCF as well hence I'm finding myself on the F club forum more often than not - seems like an decent place to be a bit like the IS200 forum a decade ago. As @Comedian states I'd probably struggle to hand over £20k plus to an individual without the protection a dealership offers which is a valid point.

On mine I have always used car setting (2nd from left) but at moment using snowflake setting due to low temp (3rd from left/AGM on new model) Never used recon

See my earlier post linked below. John

I did this with my 135i on a BMW forum. Some guy started communicating with me over it, said I had it priced to high then later bought it from a dealer (after I'd part ex'd it for the Lex ) for £3K more than I was offering it to him privately. It still had 12 months of the manufacturers warranty, a year on the service plan, had just had a major service (inc plugs). The daft thing was that the forum starting moaning it was too high yet when it appeared at the main dealer there was a race on the same forum to buy it. I guess main dealer protection is worth its weight in gold, the possibility of part ex and also more importantly finance options come into play.

I changed the battery on my ls400 last week, purchased from Lexus Stockport for 82+vat so that' 98.40 all in, I rang and they had it in stock so picked it up the same day, date stamped as of September 2017 so it hasn't been sat around for too long. Didn' bother trying anywhere else having researched before hand that other brands had the terminals the wrong way round or were the wrong size.

Well done and a big thanks to all involved 👍🏻

Wondered if you'd notice!

Good work guys

Whoop! Whoop! Finally!!

Probably the one that was semi-responsible for me buying my old ISF in the first place...!

iam going to have to buy a LC-F now so i can join.

Many thanks to all involved

Agreed, a level headed review. Does anyone know what a 'tree series' is?

Nice looking motor. You will love it I'm sure. It will be like gliding around on Aladdin's carpet. If I was going to suggest anything I'd recommend getting yearly checks done on the greasing of the caliper slide pins. If you are at all mechanically minded and enjoy a bit of spannering then do it yourself. There are some very good guides here on the forum and it's not that difficult. The correct grease MUST be used. I can point you at the guides if you want to view them. Lexus don't even look at servicing of calipers they just want them to seize and then charge you a premium for changing them. Failing that use a reliable indy who knows what needs doing and how to do it correctly.

I got a space saver about a year ago for about £60,used it once already.You are correct about the storage box no longer fits under the deck cover,however i find you can arrange items around the spare wheel.

Oooohh, nice in here isn't it, bit of an echo though.......................

Fate. Tempted. Not going far today are you?

well done James!! :D

@BUG4LIFE This car is EO59EAF I highlighted this car a short time ago when it came up for sale through the owner Trevor Owlett, he joined the forum to sell had no real interest so sold to a dealer, full history low miles what's not to like, shame it's £3k more now. Big Rat

Good that we have electric AC pump in 450h :)

Only 17" and 18" were options on the 2RX. The 6 spoke wheel was 17" and the 18" was 5 spoke. There was no 19" option However, I would imagine the 19" wheel from a 3RX to fit the 2RX. Some owners tried 245 wheels with no issues across the pond but I would keep the diameter the same if possible.

@emjay82 I’ve got you a present and here it is........ 🐀

I know I'm tempting fate when I say this but in over 40 years of driving, I've only ever had two punctures, three at the very most, and all more than 20 years ago. The last 11 or so years have been without a spare of any kind because my LPG tank lives in the spare wheel well. 'Space Saver' tyres are an oxymoron because they don't save any space when you have to put them in the luggage compartment. A can of Holts Tyreweld and a compressor can and will handle most eventualities, the breakdown people will deal with the ones they can't.

Just been out to the car in tea break and taken some piccies. Both sensor levelling brackets are on the passenger side. FRONT SENSOR REAR SENSOR Best shot I could get from lying on the road! Hope that helps

That’s mine! A great example (IMO!) with a H&S exhaust, Takeda intake and 2013 OEM suspension. It’s had money poured at it simply because I loved it. I left the dealer with an A4 lever-arch folder of every single piece of paper documenting every single pound that was ever spent on it! It’s had a new water pump and the airbag recall. I think £21,450 is a tad ambitious, but that’s up to them... I part ex’d it through the dealers as I had in mind a cost to upgrade, and because of the excellent condition of the ISF, there was some room for manoeuvring on the GSF price - anyway, we made the deal work. I know selling privately *may* have netted me a few quid more, but not much, and probably not in the timeframe I wanted - these are rare cars and genuine buyers are as rare! As for the actual financial details - Should I reveal them? As I say, I wasn’t bothered by the part-ex value, or the sale price of the GSF; just the difference between the two. The ISF was worth about what I expected from a main dealer, and I managed to save about 10% on the advertised price on the GSF. As always, happy to discuss!

I’d say more like 5. That’s too much for a 2008 (not very low miles either). I while ago on here a chap was selling a 2011 with warranty for the same price...yeah I know a dealer car will of course be more but I wouldn’t be surprised if that car remains at the dealer for a good while if the price remains that high (as nice as it may be). I’ve missed out on two 2008 ISFs, both will less miles and great history (one having a 2 year warranty), for a lot less than that. I am of course bias as I want to buy an ISF! Another example of an ISF going to a dealer though when there are buyers here...which makes me sad (though I do understand why) ;(

Gentle - as I drove my IS-F - that was gentle. At the other end of the scale, you'll need to talk to @Mark G and @Rusty Crobar OR take a look in the mirror

...it does reach a point though when self insuring makes sense. My car is worth (08, 80k) £15grand. Spending a grand on warranty a year seems a huge cost on top of the road tax. and indi fixed my misfire and fitted two new HID headlights for 800or so. Yes the warranty would have covered the misfire - dunno about the lights as I imagine bulbs are excluded - so I'm still quid's in. what would really pee me off is having the warranty and them turning down a claim, as insurers do... I basically accept the risk of a large bill on what is a 9 year old car that cost 60k plus when new. pays ya money takes ya choice...