Northern Boys Luv Gravy

Lowest in terms of CO2 output only...lets not get into all the nasty carcinogins in diesel fumes that are released - EuroV or no EuroV.

hmm....they complain about the IS's ride and then give the BMW 3 series 5 stars for its outstanding ride and handling? Have they been in a 3 series with runflats?? The rear in the IS is cramped and I always wondered how they managed that given that the IS is based on the larger GS platform. Then if you look at the car you can see they have moved the engine well back to give better weight distribution and this has eaten into rear legroom - that and the bloody big electric seats.

Not the Auto version - we're still clean green machines! :)

The Richbrook ones are brilliant. Until you get idiots like me who lose the key, can't check his tyre pressures and then have to have them all taken off with piers at Kwik Fit when new tyres are needed. Paid the extra £4 at Kik Fit for their very nice chrome ones to replace the now knackered Richbrook ones. They looked lovely for 48 hrs until the kids knicked them again. Back to black plastic now.

A couple of people I know have said they'd be interested in a "baby lexus" like the A3 but I can't see how that photoshopped idea would help. If it had the same engines, same interior and 80% same panels, how would it be cheaper for Lexus to build to sell it at a lower price point? All that would do would be to drag down the perceived value of the IS. If they put a cheaper interior and 4 cylinder engines in it then it just becomes a Toyota - a brand they are trying to push up market anyway. It would do nothing but blur the lines between Toyota and Lexus.

It's not mentioned because it isn't. :) I'd agree - get the Auto - I did and have never regretted it. Plus you save on fuel and VED. The manual is classed as a "gas guzzler" in Band G - £300 a year rising to £400 a year.

I've always been given either a 220d or 250 auto.

I've had a number of diesel cars and on none of them did the turbo kick in below 1800-2000 rpms, giving a narrow power band of between 2000 and 4000 rpms. I've only driven the 220d as a courtesy car but it appeared no different to any other marque I've had. The fuel economy seemed a bit worse than our Audi 2.0TDI (but I would expect that as it has 30 or so more bhp and an extra level of emissions kit) and it was a bit smoother - but then again they are both diesels and sound tractor-like at idle. The windows down bit is a puzzler - we had a similar thing happen at a place I worked once - the windows of our VWs and Audis in the carpark kept winding down by themselves. We never did get to the bottom of it.

They're doing two different front ends - the sport models have the big Benz badge on the grill whereas the ordinary ones have the standard emblem on the bonnet.

Not one of those "posing" ones I hope. :)

After I got my wheels replaced under warranty I bought some Comma Nano-technology surface protector and applied it to clean wheels. The dust now just rinses off and it makes cleaning them much easier.

I think it's unspoken because everyone I have spoken to finds the seats extremely comfortable. Mine are superb and I find I can drive for hours and get out of the car refreshed. French cars generally have very soft seat and are often not very supportive. It may be that you have become used to these seats and your back will need to be gently re-educated. Either that or you have a strange shaped arse! :)

I agree with Jamboo - the paint finish on my IS is the finest I've seen on ANY car. There isn't a flaw in it anywhere. Mine's now 16 month old, 30k miles and when washed shines like new. No orange peel, no runs and panel fit is excellent. The other thing is that every car we've had, MINI, Audi, Volvo, BMW etc, when you go to their forums there are owners complaining about stone chips and dodgy paint. I just think that when you're hammering down the motorway at 80mph+ and a stone flies towards your paintwork from the car in front you are talking closing speeds of in excess of 120mph. I'm not sure any paintwork can withstand that. We do some work for Nissan in Sunderland and they have a machine that fires diamonds at paint samples to test their resistance to chipping but I'm not sure Nissans are now reknowned for being chip free. When it comes to thickness, if Barry is getting between 120 - 135 microns that would seem to be pretty good - I think the best paint jobs are only about 150 microns max.

Lord

Yes, but to apply your logic, if you had a problem with stone chips would you point your pressure washer at the paintwork, blast off a foot square section of paint and say "There, I told you so."?

So let me get this straight, you're firing high pressure water at 120+ bar at the seals of your Lexus and you're surprised some goes through? You'll be surprised the water's wet next. P.S If you look at the instructions of your Karcher it suggests you avoid using it on vehicles from close range.

Well that's it then, once they figure out how to operate petrol lawnmowers we're doomed...

That engine choice is superb. My IS250 SE Auto is due for change in December and I'm already leaning towards Cadaxton Slate with silver leather interior. The missus keeps muttering about the new Audi A5 (she works for Audi and gets discount) but even she appreciates the relaxing drive, the looks and the interior.

Are you cutting and pasting this? lol Couple of points; Lexus is not "Super Luxury". that would be Rolls Royce, Maybach, Aston etc. It's a luxury division of Toyota and none the worse for that. The American market was an easier nut to crack than the European one as it is more open to new entrants whereas the Euro market is very fixed on the heritage of the German marques, something that Lexus really struggles against outside the UK. You could also argue that the American market was easier for Lexus to conquer than their own home market of Japan - witness how they have struggled there since launching. Value for money wise Lexus are good value to purchase, although that is a double edged sword in that the public doesn't then see them as an equivalent to BMW, Audi & Mercedes. There is a school of thought that says Lexus will never be considered alongside those three until it charges comparible prices. I can't agree that Lexus offer a value for money proposition to run - mine is coming up for it's 30k service which will cost £250, meaning that since new I have spent £750 on servicing costs compared to £250 for my Audi. The new IS was trumpeted for it's low running costs - I can't see it. My local dealer charges £90 an hour! When I queried this they justified it by saying it was the same as Porsche charged - hardly the same. One area where Lexus excelled at was Customer Satisfaction, however the rest have caught up now and just having nice premises and free coffee is no longer enough. Infiniti are launching in the UK and are promising levels of customer care unheard of by any marque in the UK. It will be interesting to see what they are like.

Actually I am a Latin scholar :). My favourite subject at school. IF Lexus was a Latin word and you wanted to make it plural it would be Lexi. It would be a pointless task though because Lexus was made up by Toyota and if you ask them they will tell you the plural is the same as the singular. As to why CAR magazine journos use it - that's why they write for CAR and not decent publications. Either that or they are all closet Alan Partridges. Getting back to the pursuit of perfection - all I can say is that at the moment perfection is getting away and they need to step up the pace. The IS is a great car but it could have been so much better if they had put in that last 5% of effort to get it right first time.

20K+ is not high mileage. My 55 plate IS250 Auto has done 30K miles and feels like new. Apart from regular servicing all I've had is 4 new tyres and set of front pads at 20K.

Lexi or Lexii is NOT the plural of Lexus. The plural of Lexus is Lexus. You don't get Mercedi or Mercediis. The only person that uses Lexii is Alan Partridge.

What are Lexi and Lexii? There's no such thing. :duh:

Newcastle is my local dealership (it's only 3/4 mile away) and they are pretty good, if a touch expensive. They sorted out centre dash grill rattle no problem and since then all has been well.

The IS Auto is a conventional auto gearbox, not a CVT. The GS450h has the CVT gearbox, characterised by the engine's ability to rev to a fixed rpm and them just keep getting faster and faster with no cog changing as the CVT alters its drive ratios seamlessly.