Ro1

The first tyres on the car from new were Sportmaxx also, and they lasted about 30k miles! Now they're lasting 8k! What could be wrong? If anything, I have an even more feather-footed approach to driving now than then!

The last two sets of rear tyres on my IS250 have been Dunlop SP Sport Maxx. Unfortunately the tyre wear has been very poor - the tyres have worn from new to 2mm in 8k to 10k miles. I have had a four wheel alignment done with each of these last two tyre changes, although tyre-wear has been quite even across the width of the tyre. Is this level of wear normal?

I've been driving an IS250 auto for four years and I absolutely love it. I would highly recommend it. You can always put the car into semi-manual mode if you feel like you want that little bit of extra control on windy country roads. If you buy the auto, you will not regret it.

So I guess you're effectively left with two trays embedded into your boot with nothing to cover them? It's amazing how much some simple parts for the Lexus can cost. Have you tried searching through breakers yards online?

Are you missing the tray that sits between the spare wheel and the carpet of the boot? Did you buy the car new or used?

I have a DC21 (which is not an upright model) and my girlfriend also says she finds it heavy. I should add that I don't find it heavy at all, and I think it's a brilliant machine.

Steve, very sorry to hear that you're saying bye to Lexus for now, but I'm sure you'll be back. Thanks for all your advice here over the years, and look forward to your continuing contributions.

I leave the AC on all the time too. I notice that the AC sometimes switches off if the outside temperature drops very low. Has anyone else noticed this?

This morning my IS250 wouldn't start. The engine turned over but it wouldn't catch. This is the first time the car didn't start on the first attempt. I was fairly sure it wasn't a failing battery because the engine turned over quite strongly and the lights were working well and didn't dim. After trying this a few times over the space of about 15 mins, I gave up, emailed my apologies for the 9am meeting I knew I wouldn't make and called the AA. The big yellow van arrived within about 40 mins. No sooner was Mr AA out of the van and he asked me if I had moved the car. I said "No", thinking he was asking if I had tried to roll it. He clarified, looking at my narrow-ish driveway and asked "Did you start it up to move it out of the way of someone else". I remembered then that I had moved it briefly the previous afternoon and not used it since. The engine was probably running for all of 15 seconds. He proudly proclaimed "That's it! It's flooded!" Now, I didn't think cars flooded since the good old days of my mother, an old Fiat and a choke. (The three of them just didn't seem to work well together!) Apparently, I'm now well-informed, that an engine can flood if it is left running for less than a few minutes. It was a morning of revelations for me. Anyway, as Mr AA is explaining to me how to remedy the problem, I'm breathing a sigh of relief and hoping he's right, because I had visions of the car sitting on the back of a flatbed truck, on its way to Mr Lexus, with my credit card taped to the bonnet! The trick to starting the flooded engine, I readily observed, is to depress the accelerator. This tells the car to stop pumping fuel to the cylinders. Smart, but too-smart for me. I'd never have guessed at that bit of counter-intuitive logic. But, it worked. After three cycles of cranking the engine with the accelerator depressed, presumably burning off the excess petrol in the engine, the car started with the accelerator released. Has anybody else encountered this problem? I've read elsewhere that this starting procedure this can damage the cat in some cars - is that possible? Should Mr AA (to whom I was very grateful at the time) have done this? If it's okay, why don't Lexus describe the procedure in the manual?

Matt - mine were R17s. Guess the Sport Maxx are still available everywhere apart from Northern Ireland! I have to agree - they are very good and I'll have more time to shop around next time. I needed to replace those awful SP01s very quickly when I realised they were down to about 1mm after 9,000 miles, so with a choice of Dunlop SP01 or Pirelli Zero Rosso's, I put the Pirelli's on the rear. I'll monitor their wear more carefully than I did the SP01s! Once bitten.... Ro.

Thanks Turbod - do you know the name or have the number of the place in Bangor?

I always used the gloves when I had a diesel car. Maybe it was just the service stations I used, but my hands stinked of diesel after every fill-up if I didn't use them. It was so bad, I even had some spare gloves in the car to use in case there were none by the pumps. I've had petrol cars ever since and never found a need to use the gloves with a petrol pump!

Hello - can anybody advise of any Lexus specialists in Northern Ireland, ideally in the Belfast area, but I'm willing to travel! My IS250 is out of warranty, and with high mileage and an appalling used car market, I have very little to gain from maintaining a Lexus history. Thanks, ro.

The wiper heater, combined with the a/c windscreen fan with high temperature usually clears it for me in two or three minutes! Failing that, a small amount of water poured from the top of the screen might be all that's needed to finish it off nicely. I've not had bad snow yet though - this all worked for icy conditions.

Adjust - it was Charles Hurst Tyres in Belfast told me the Sport Maxx were not made any more. They're also the only Lexus dealer in Northern Ireland. I would have assumed they would know and I didn't have time to cross-check or source them elsewhere. Has anyone experienced these SP01 tyres going from new to legal minimum in 9000 miles? It just doesn't seem right. Do I have any recourse here at all?

When new, my IS250 came with Dunlop SP Sport Maxx tyres. I found these to be excellent, with reasonably good wear. I got about 25,000 miles from each of two sets - front and rear. However, when I last needed to change these, I was told they were not made any longer and had been replaced by Dunlop Sport 01. I had these installed on the rear. In driving home yesterday, I hit some standing water and the rear end of the car zig zagged across the road a few times. The traction control kept the car in the lane, but the jolt was so sudden, I banged my head on the window or pillar. I've had never experienced this before in such a small amount of water, and couldn't quite figure out why it had happened. The rear tyres were relatively new - fitted only 7 months and 9,000 miles ago, but I checked them anyway. I was absolutely shocked to find that both rear tyres were worn evenly across the width of the tyre, as far as the tread depth indicators. I don't drive hard, so I am quite annoyed at this level of wear in such a short period of time and that I could have written-off the car yesterday. How is it possible that these tyres lasted a third as long as my previous few sets, that this model replaced, from the same manufacturer? Is this normal? Is it possible there has been a bad batch of these tyres? I've not found anything on the net about it! Only hope I can get some proper tyres fitted in the next few days - I have some long journeys ahead.

I've noticed cracking on the leather of the driver's seat. Is this replaceable under warranty?

I just had my 40,000 miles service at Lexus Belfast for £400. Nothing special was needed. How can it possibly cost 25% - 33% more than the rest of the UK? I'm not happy!

I drive with mine on all the time. Is there any way to setup the car to do that automatically?

That's interesting - I was washing my car yesterday and I notice what I thought was the beginning of corrosion on one of the alloys. The car is only 12 months old! I'll keep an eye on this. Are they definitely covered by warranty? Is it a three year warranty?

I vote for split.

Call around for prices - there is variation in prices. Try outside Dublin too.

No, it's the one where, if you're reversing and turn around to look out the rear windscreen, you can roll it down and stick your head out. No need for parking sensors.

The footwell lighting will not stay on if you have the dash dimmer at the lowest setting.

Tango - why an ouch? How much was the service?