tubster

I have the same rattle on both driver and passenger front seat belt pillar mounting points. Rattles only appeared after seatbelt recall was effected. However, I did have the windows tinted at same time, so couldn't be sure of the cause. Lexus was sympathetic and ordered replacement mounting points. These were installed last week...but the rattles are still there I just turn the stereo up loader!

As my IS250 is my first Lexus, I was not aware of how an IS200 drove...until I was given one for 2 days whilst the seatbelt recall was carried out. There IS NO COMPARISON! The IS200 reminded me soo much of my old Toyota Corolla - hard plastic dash, thin steering wheel, rough auto-gearbox with a delayed kick-down. Noise levels were much higher - even the a/c compressor could be felt cutting in and out. I am sure at its release, the IS200 was comparable with other qualtiy cars but comparing it to the IS250 is like comparing an apple to mango. One is refreshing but often eaten on the run when you've run out of other food wheras the mango gets better with each savoured bite - just like my IS250! :D

I average 25mpg on a tank. I commute for most of that and can't see how you can the figure on here unless you never actually use 1st or 2nd gear Not sure what you mean? How do you drive an auto without engaging first or second gear?

I've been doing some mileage tests myself on my IS250 (17,000km's/10,500miles) on the clock. Average so far is 9lt/100kms or 31mpg in a mix of city freeway driving. Decided to use 98 octane fuel (not common place in Oz) in an effort to better this. And guess what? On 4 tankfuls of this petrol (as opposed to the usual 95 octane) on the same daily routes etc, the fuel consumption went UP to 10.2lt/100km or 27mpg. Upon reverting to lower octane fuel, figures returned to 9.1lt/100??Any ideas as to why this would be?

I've had my IS250 auto since Dec 05 and have averaged 9.1 l/100km or 31mpg since new. Nearly all my driving is city based but when a longer trip is taken the tank consumption falls to 7.9 - 8 l/100km or 35mpg. I am very happy with this figure. :D

With only one dealer, going elsewhere is not an option. The rattles were not fixed during the recent service but I was told to return at a time convenient to me and they would investigate further. Time is precious, so I just turn the radio up! :P

Free servicing - was it part of the deal when you bought your car ? Certainly don't get free servicing in the UK, I just paid £174.00 for a 10,000 mile service on the IS220d. No mention of it when I bought the car. just a nice suprise! :P

Thought I'd share this in light of the many negative Lexus dealer stories on this site. Collected my IS250 from the dealer today after its first service (15000km's). The loan car was an RX350 with less than 1000km's on the odo! The car was detailed inside and out to showroom standards (even where the wheel nuts go were cleaned of brake pad dust!) and then the service managered advised me the total bill was.....$0. :D :) :) Is this normal? I was expecting about $400. Friend just had his BMW325i for same service with the bill coming to $900! In 19 years of driving, this is the first time I've left a car yard not feeling like a bunny. :P

The owner is a client of mine who sold his big home to realise his boyhood dream! Kind of cool I think. Out here in Western Australia, the wait list for an F430 is now more than 3.5 years!!! He waited just under 2 years but got lucky when someone else changed their order to the spider. I can't imagine seeing an 18 year old in one :o There are only 2 in WA so far. And yes, any other colour is wrong and I would sell my nana for one (if I had a nana) :D

Whilst I love my IS250, :) I am not buying this pursuit of perfection thing. The photos below and the resulting 3 hr drive (with me behind the wheel for 30mins!!) made me realise how far Lexus or any other car company has to go. I am still grinning from ear to ear :D and will remember that drive till I die! For the techno heads, it is an F430 with steering mounted gearbox, fitted with Pirelli rubber and has just on 1000 miles on the odometer. The noise is incredible, the acceleration unbelievable and the road prescence borders on absurd with people trying to take photos of it whilst driving. Like to say it is mine but...if you look carefully in the background, you will see my is250 which is included in the pictures below after Klasse treatment. Getting into the Lexus afterwood was somewhat sobering... but its still the best car I've ever owned :D http://img220.imageshack.us/img220/2342/ferrari2xe7.jpg http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/9560/myisbk8.jpg

Thanks for the info folks. Seems like another small noggling issue I will need to put up with... I love the car but am getting a litle frustrated at these issues occuring on a $65,000 car! It's first serice is due tomorrow, so I'll bring it to the dealers attention and report the results. Cheers

Anyone else had the front sealtbelt recall completed only to discover new rattles in both B pillar's? I didn't notice at first due to enthusiastic stereo appreciation, but when the volume is low, it sounds like many loose parts are bouncing around where the seat belt height adjustment function is. Anyone else have this problem?

Yes the squeaky seat issue can be very distracting. After 2 attempts the dealer got them sorted out. Apparently, they simply tightened the seat anchor bolts. Seems hard to believe, but my car is now silent again! :D

yes ahh-aristo is on the money... the ect switch just alters shift patterns for the auto gearbox ... mainly results is each gear being held for longer in normal driving... during very aggressive driving the gearbox runs to redline regardless of the position of the ect switch.

Seems strange that the US cars would be wired differently to the UK models. And I would have thought the cars here in Australia would be the same as those of the UK. I have tried to research where this info originally came from, but could not locate it. Cheers :duh:

No you are not missing anything, but my job entails getting into and out of the car alot... ie stop, unbuckle the belt, open the boot, put out a sign, jump back in drive 100yds or so stop, jump out put another sign out and so on... On these occassions I do not replace the belt each time. During normal driving I always wear the belt. Also, try having a box on the passenger seat (also common for me). The box weighs enough to trigger the seat belt alarm which results in the chime sounding for the entire journey! I guess the airbags would deploy to save the box in the event of an accident though!

Hey All :D I read about the VSC/VDIM hack some time ago and pasted it into a file so I would not forget it. So, here it is: You can turn off all electronic nanny-s (except ABS) and hit the track hard by doing the following: 1. Make sure the car is in Park and the parking brake is disengaged before you start the car. 2. Start the engine. 3. Engage the parking brake. 4. Fully depress the brake pedal and then release. 5. Fully depress the brake pedal and then release. 6. Disengage the parking brake. 7. Fully depress and hold down the brake pedal. 8. Engage the parking brake, then disengage it (while holding down the brake pedal). 9. Engage the parking brake, then disengage it (while holding down the brake pedal). 10. Release the brake pedal. 11. Engage the parking brake. 12. Fully depress the brake pedal and then release. 13. Fully depress the brake pedal and then release. skid light on dash comes on and all nanny-s are disabled It will go back to original every time you turn the car off. You have 30 seconds to do this once you turned the car on. I have an IS250 Auto and can verify that the car appears to have no safety controls in terms of skids, traction control or power slides during a test earlier today in my local disused sports field car park when the above sequence was followed (It was raining and obviously this made things easier to test) Also, another hack I copied was to shut off the bloody annoying sealt-belt alarm chimes. This should get rid of the seatbelt blings: 1. turn the key to the ON position (press Start 2 times), foot off the brake 2. cycle the odometer with the trip reset button until the ODO is displayed (not trip A or B ) 3. turn the ignition to the LOCK (OFF) position 4. unbuckle the driver's seatbelt if it was buckled. 5. turn the key to the ON position (Press Start 2 times). when the dash lights have come on, press and hold the trip reset button and count a slow 12 seconds. (editor's note, hold it more like 30 sec) 6. while still holding the trip reset button, buckle the driver's side seatbelt. 7. the odometer display should read "b ON" or "b OFF". toggle the beep OFF with the trip reset. 8. the process should be completed when you unbuckle or turn the key off This process does not need to be repeated each time the car is switched off, unlike the VSC/VDIM bypass. Hope this is useful

Yes the manual mode does seem to work within a few seconds of start-up. Ta Never heard of such an option Noel!? :duh: Thanks for the suggestion, but since the manual mode works I will persevere with that and save the money for new alloys to replace the 16's that came supplied with the car. Cheers

[Thanks for the opinions! I'll try manual mode tomorrow to see if the time frame is shortened. just went for another quick spin (still get excited eavery time I am in the car even after 7 months of owning her!) and the lack of squeaks and rattles was deafening

Hi, not sure if this has been covered before but... When starting the car from cold (overnight temp of about 2 degrees C) I have noticed the heaters do not blow any air through any vents until approx 5 minutes of driving has occured. At this point the seat heaters are working, (thank goodness) but the cabin ventilation begins only after this frustrating and cold delay. My wife's crappy Ford Escape blows volcanic hot air within 30 seconds of engine start! Is this a climate control issue or does my is250 have a fault? I realise most of you are probably enjoying the cool a/c at this time of year but if anyone can remember their experiences from a few months back, I would be grateful. Also, had the SQUEAKY SEAT fixed today :D :D Turns out that tightening the rear seat bolts (those anchoring the seat) eliminated the frustrating squeaks altogether! Cheers

Hi. Take the key out of the fob and remove the plastic surround on the door handle (the fixed section, it just pops off). Underneath, pointing down you will find a key hole that is the same as the glove box lock. Use the key from the fob to unlock the door. Then place the fob directly over the start button and press it. This should get you going. I had similar problems last week, twice, but only in a particular location. Seems the radio transmitter was being interfered with? Good luck

Thanks for the thought, but I used one previously on my Black Alfa 156 which resulted in some interesting scratches from the cover blowing about and dust penetrating the cover. :o I have the Lexus cover tailored to fit the IS250/350/220. It's light but very waterproof yet doesn't 'balloon' in the wind. It also has the option to use a strap under the body but with the elasticated front and rear I've found I don't need it. Also has an attached bag which sits locked in the boot when the cover is on, so the cover cannot be taken away (unless the perp has a knife of course). Sounds like a good investment Tango. I did not even know Lexus had a tailored cover for the IS250. There is no catologue of accessories available here in Perth yet. I will approach the dealer tomorrow for a price and availablity. The cover you described seems much better than the heavy lead weighted cover supplied with my previous Alfa. thanks for the tip! :D

Thanks for the thought, but I used one previously on my Black Alfa 156 which resulted in some interesting scratches from the cover blowing about and dust penetrating the cover. :o

Hi. My Smokey Granite IS250 lives outside my home without any protection. To make matters worse, I live in front of a park which has many 100 year old (very big!) ficus (fig) trees that drop berries most of the year. The dust generated from this park and the decomposing berries coveres the car night and day! I have been polishing her with Meguires Gold Class wax but this is rather tiresome and the wax does seem to attract dust like a magnet. In my quest for an alternative, I have come across a product called GLARE Infinity which has an active ingredient called Glassplexin - Liquid Glass. Have any LOC members used this or similar sealant type products. It does seem to promise an easier, more durable shine. I have gone back through the old threads, but have not seen it mentioned. Here is the site for further info. http://www.infinityauto.com.au/paint_protection.htm Any advice for this new member would be appreciated. Cheers. :D

An Aussie living in Perth. I know there is an Australian LOC chapter but it has very little traffic. Did live in East Putney for a few years in mid 90's though! I recently got rid of my 2002 Alfa 156 Selespeed. It looked good but that was it! 3 gearboxes, non existant air con and front wheel drive... don't know what I was thinkin Am now looking forward to many trouble free years in the IS250. Cheers :D I have a few images on my office computer. I will post next week. :D Cheers