Leaderboard

By under a meter worse, yes. Your GS 10.8m vs ES 11.4m turning circles. Haven't had much trouble with it myself, but I'm used to bigger and much worse: 14.4m on a 5.95m long F150. Now that was troublesome! This one's a doddle by comparison and not much worse than my MY18 Civic which had an 11m circle. Excellent visibility makes it a pretty easy parallel park, which I do daily, without the 360 degree camera option..

Results can differ depending on who does the testing and some models may work better on some cars than others. My used car came with the type of Dunlops option fitted as standard. Although there was quite a bit of tread on these, they made a horrible noise rather like a worn wheel bearing but was assured by the Lexus dealership that was well known with this sort of type. I asked what they recommended and was told that the CC Michelins were very popular. They also did well in some tests I researched so got some fitted. These were a revelation after the Dunlops improving ride, feel, handling and comfort and losing that worn wheel bearing like sound. I can't say they are the best because I haven't tried the others but I am very happy with them and they have been used in different weather conditions now with the recent snow. You have to remember that when you buy all season tyres slight compromises have to be made over a specifically designed summer tyre set plus a winter set which is what really hard drivers might prefer but I find the CC Michelins meet my expectations and driving style which is probably about average nowadays. (Long past my sports car days). In any case you can't drive an RX like a sports car regardless of tyres fitted.

Fair, I went with the goodyears anyway. The advantage of the Michelins in snow is something that would be very rarely used in the uk but any improvement at all in wet grip seems far more useful, plus the 20% extra lifespan

Yes! - There is a place called Other/NonUK when registering in the forum. Could be imported to UK from Japan. They also have steering wheel in the "wrong" right side

Merry Christmas from me to all also. I wonder if the much delayed meet at Gaydon will go ahead next year and some of us can meet up.

To wish us all a healthy, happy, safe and restful... Happy Christmas. As Tiny Tim, said, "A Merry Christmas to us all; God bless us, every one!"

Merry Christmas to one and all. 🎅🍾🌲

Hi guys I must have been very good this year as my SC430 obsession has been encouraged with all sorts of goodies. I do regard myself as really fortunate after recent events just to be here enjoying all the fun and festivities. Firstly, with not being used for weeks on end I need to keep my battery trickle charged. Secondly, the last thing I want to do is bang my head on the boot lid because of the lazy struts. Thirdly, tailormade luggage bags which fits the strange design of the boot area. I hope you guys have been good too and your passion for all things Lexus SC430 has been satisfied this Christmas, if not you will just have to treat yourself! Seasons Greetings, Anthony

Did not see that. Saw it had just been answered and thought it was new. Have to wake up. Thank you Len.

Lexus updated their cruise control around MY18 to allow it to be used at all speeds. The adaptive cruise will also bring the car to a stop, unlike the pre MY18 cars which just cut off below ~30mph.

I have used Lexus Sidcup in Kent and have had a positive experience with them.

Was surprised to read that the pruis won't be sold in the UK, now that there's a version that isn't dog ugly and has some decent HP. Only 536 registered the whole of last year. So the UK has become more SUV obsessed than the US now?!

Adrian.. Just a Thought Do you put a steering wheel lock on the car at night Some of these are pretty heavy and tend to put pressure on the steering wheel at at a predisposed angle Worth mentioning just in case this is pulling the steering wheel off alignment...Ron Merry Christmas To You and all The Family..

Ideally would be to have Cross Climates for winter as we don t have much snow in UK but the rubber is excellent for temperatures below 7 C degrees and have the Pilot Sports for the summer.

In my Camaro and Corvette the steering circle was easily reduced. Traction control off, turn steering slightly, light throttle and round you go. Even when you didn’t want to.

This is where I - and others already mentioned - bought our Osram bulbs. I suggest you use their bulb checker to see what upgrades are available. https://www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/ Of course, other retailers are available!

Merry Xmas everyone on the Forum

There is not much you can do with Halogens on your car (Xenon would have washers). You can get whiter white (4300k or 6000k, instead of ~2700k originals), but you can't make them much brighter - I think other guys already mentioned best options Osram Cool Blue Intense or Osram Nightbreakers. They do look nicer, but do not expect much brighter lights... just the limit on how much halogen can shine.

Osram Cool Blue Intense. Nice blue-white hue instead of yellow.

Shot through it, it was enough to spray out sideways from the car and a little bit came up but didn't swamp the windscreen. I should have braked but it was dark and I just didn't react quickly enough.

Should be fine on a non-hybrid car.

Yes, a very happy Christmas to you all!

ABD is a reliable source with good options

12v battery just replaced also (at the dealers) the IS300 is not isolated with this within the Lexus range. Mine was essentially losing its charge over a 3 to 5 day period therefore had just turned bad (4.5 year old). Interestingly the IS300 is recognised as top spot in reliable cars Executive cars Another Lexus takes top spot in the executive cars category ‒ The Lexus IS scored an impressive 98.3%. Only 5% of cars developed an issue, each time related to the battery. The repair work always took a day or less, though it’s worth noting that each time that work incurred a bill of up to £200. The least reliable motor is the diesel version BMW 3 Series, which scored 81.2%. Full read here https://www.lovemoney.com/news/70350/reliable-cars-repair-costs-motoring-maserati-bentley-mitsubishi

I think I would have chosen this option 😀

Sorry, that bugs me too! I had meant to reply to at least thank you for the information (thanks!), but got distracted. I've not had chance to look at the car yet, but I hope to after Christmas and will update when I do.

At least you reserved in I always see people struggling to get out after going in nose first in car parks, I was taught always reverse in.

Press park and press accelerate pedal a couple of times, then engine is running.

Cheers Piers, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to everyone 🎄 🙂 🎅

I suppose it depends on what you mean by "much worse" in the wet. In looking at a recent test CC2s scored 97.1% wet braking and 96.6% wet handling, vs Goodyear's 97.4% wet braking and 98% wet handling. Depending on how you drive in the wet, I'm not sure the difference would sway me much either way, as both seem to be pretty decent tyres.

Happy Christmas, holydays and new year to all.

Merry Christmas, everyone. Paul

Cheers Piers, and the same to everyone else too

............ and to one and all tooooooo Malc

I had replaced my steering pump and reservoir with a refurbished one from the USA nearly two years ago and at my last MOT a slight leak was noticed. I had a new o ring to seal the reservoir to pump joint so I took my car to my local garage to do the job and lo and behold when I got home the leak was far worse than before, so back to the garage and they had too much work and no o ring, so I ordered another and did the job myself this morning. A few tips for doing this job, remove spark plug/distributor cover as that will give you easier access to the top bolt as that's the difficult one, use vaseline on the o ring when replacing it as this helps ease it in without hopefully damaging it (a tip from an ex mechanic) be very careful when lining up reservoir for the bolts you don't damage that delicate brand new o ring and do the bolts up gradually so as again to not damage the o ring. The rear bolt is quite fiddly to get on but patience is the key. The old o ring was torn almost in half by the mechanic at the garage not taking care when replacing the bolts and doing the bottom and side bolts up too tight before having to back them off to replace the top one. I shall not be using that garage again needless to say! One more thing I would recommend is to get your Pump refurbished in this country as then warranty claims will be a lot easier!

Perhaps naming the garage will prevent others from having problems in the future? This is a good place for pump refurb https://www.carparts-direct.co.uk/power-steering-pumps

Finished the paint last weekend, bolted everything on to it to get a feeeeel. Waiting for the clear to harden up and then get into some polishing me thinks. Put a shadow colour round the bumper and lower doors. Mixed 50/50 4K9 and UC4D3 to get the shade I was looking for.

Sadly migrating from a Lexus IS300h to Toyota Corolla estate. Enjoyed every minute of the IS300h but needed more boot space and larger opening, clincher was not being able to put 2 large suitcases in the boot. I was in no rush and selected a handful of cars to test; Rav4 Corolla Kia Optima Kia Proceed and Hyundai i30 all estates. Narrowed down to 2 the Rav4 & Corolla. Not a fan of SUV's but have to say the Rav4 is a surprisingly good drive but ultimately Corolla Estate or "Sports Touring" came out top. I will really miss the looks of the IS300h, the comfortable seats with cooling air, the sheer fact it was a Lexus with all round touches of luxury and ultra relaxed driving experience, could move when needed too. Nothing would put me off buying another but currently Lexus are pushing towards a full SUV offering and as mentioned I'm not a fan. My IS300h gave me first ever profit, bought for £13500 part-exing for £14750 but all cars are silly prices now and I'm fully aware the Corolla estate has a premium price which will hurt when things slip back to normal. This site has been invaluable to me as a first time Lexus owner and I will keep having a nosey now and then, keep up the good work everyone.