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On a new car (and speaking from a BMW POV) it isn't unusual for the car to need refil of oil (about 1 litre) every couple of thousant miles. Our E46 330i was taking 1L oil every 2k miles until about 35k when it settled - this is apaprently wel within factory tolerances. I would guess that'd be the same with Lexus?

Just a thought - have you tried some of the New Car Brokers? Although if supply is limited, then I doubt they'd be able to get any either - but just a thought. Also, sorry to hear about the accident.

Did I read it rgiht? £25 PER blade (for the PIAA Silicone Sporza wiper blade & carrier carbon) - WoW! That is definitely way outof my budget and I'd rather pay Dealer price for them and replace them more often. Crickey...£50 for the pair, here I was thinking that the 'flat blade' Bosch were a little pricey @ £25 for the pair ;)

I think that looks really nice ... how much more shiny (and clean) do you want it to be? :)

Thats a car only those that built it can love I'm afraid...interesting find though :)

That looks like a very nice car, look after those (easily kerbed) low profile alloy wheels and tyres mate ;) From the figures you quote that your car is running, it seems to have some sort of tuning chip/re-map already done to it as in basic guise these cars chuck out 204 BHP and close to 400 lb/ft of torque. You now need to get over to a BMW forum (like BMW Land ;) ) to learn more about your car :D

I had a Warranty Wise policy on an E46 330i I owned and found it to be, like many others, to be wholly inadequate when I had occasion to claim. Had to fight them every inch for the claims and they were quick to dismiss them as 'wear and tear' or 'parts not specifically covered'. They even refused to pay the cost of genuine BMW parts because I opted to pay the extra premium for Main Dealer labour rates. BMW man dealers are not going to fit anything other than genuine BMW replacement parts - and they charge accordingly. WW wanted me to source a OE equivalent part and have BMW fit that 'as it was cheaper' - an inane condition to levy. In the end I had to threaten them with Small Claims court action and even then they coughed up only 85% of the total cost...insane people stay WELL AWAY. I ahd a sympathtic BMW main dealer who would liase with WW and try to comply with their complcuated claims procedure. On one occasion we didn;t bother claiming from WW - jsut went for a good will gesture from BMW direct to cover the costs. You have been warned.

Doubt you'd have anything to worry about as its an approved Lexus car, with a full manufacturer warranty to boot. Peace of mind if anything should go *BANG* (not that it will being Japanese technology you understand) :) But do take it for a good spin and make sure you press and flick as many switches as you dare (allowed?) to see if everything works as it should and how it feels to you. Especially check the 'kick down' aspect and make sure it is to your liking. If you are new to autos then each box from different manufacturers will have different characteristics - just see if its a case of getting used to it.

I think the BMW 320d is superb car with great handling and superb balance, which makes it a leader when it comes to driving pleasure and experience. If you enjoy your driving and want to step out of the car with a grin, then that should be your car of choice (perhaps even a 330d in E46 guise). Yes BMW have awful Sales staff and you feel like 'just another customer' - but you buy the cars not for the Sales experience but for the driving pleasure and involvement. Ditch the RFT and chuck on a set of 'proper rubber' and go enjoy the car...and still get real world 45MPG. The Lexus excels where the BMW fails, on luxury (everything is a cost option on the BMW), Service (Lexus make you feel valued and individual), attention to customer care (Lexus will try their best to help you and not suffer any inconvenience) and pamper you in general. Yes BMW Dealers could learn more than a few things from Lexus. But it is BMW who have the moniker: Ultimate Driving Machine and not -Best Customer Service. You buy a car to drive and enjoy, not to be pampered by the manufacturer. The Lexus is a more softer and corseted ride, thereby leaving you with a feeling o a little detachment from the whole driving experience. yes the IS is packed with technology and gizmos as standard and does a very good job of getting you there...but it all depends on how you want to get there. I speak as someone who has owned E46 330s for many years and have recently swapped to an RX300. I have been very impressed with the Service and Lexus attention to detail, very happy with the car and supremely confident in its abilities and capabilities - yet every time I drive it, it feels a little soulless, it just seems to be missing that added 'va-va-voom' (if you will) that I felt in the BMW. Lexus is not a bad car by any means. I would buy another RX in a heartbeat (and indeed will upgrade to an RX400h in 3 years time) but if it were a car - then I'd buy a BMW every time. I hope Lexus-ites wont flame me for my comments and understand where I am coming from when I talk about the driving experience. I am not being critical of Lexus but thought you should have an answer to your question from someone who is a fervent BMW-Person but has bought a Lexus SUV. Very good cars, very capable, undeniably a people's manufacturer (Lexus that is) who has its reputation deservedly.

With regards to the 'delay start' issue IIRC then it has to do soemthing with the 'optitron' (sp?) display in these cars - as the dash back lights are always on, when you turn the ignition on, not only has the car got to light the dash, but also illuminate (and then hopfully extinguish!) the other warning lights you normally get during the start up process. The optitron takes up a lot of power at start up so hence the delay. BTW My 3003 RX300 does the same :P

Can't vouch for Lexus Croydon enough - Eddie QUINN dealt with us and he was absoltuely superb. Lovely car (RX300 SE), great hand over and absolutely fuss free experience - I guess this being our first Lexus was an example why y'all rave on about The Lexus Experience :)

BOSCH and Valeo blades are very good, thankfully our RX300 came with a fresh set of wiper blades all round when we bought it - invoice shows a cost of £31 (methinks) for the front pair alone - which isn't bad considering our last car (E46 330i) had blades comparable in cost. Doesn't justify the cost IMHO, but when comparing 'like-with-like' the cost is not exorbitant.

FWIW on the fuel economy issue, having had our RX300SE for about 2 months now, I cna say that regardless of the rgade of fuel we have used, the car returns 20MPG in town and 23MPG long run (cruise set to 80MPH verified by the SatNav). I had hoped that premium fuel might make a difference, but I cannot discern any real difference. From what i ahve read, this MPG seems to be the norm for the RX300 - and to be honest, I can stomach because of the immense utility the vehicle affords us on any journey over and above any car (estate or otherwise) we have had before.

Good job all these budget increases are for 'new' cars and not post-dated to older models ;) So I'll be paying £215 this year for our RX300, beats the £300 (and higher) on new. Got to always look at the positive :) but I agree with JavaBoss above, Tax would need to be £1k to maek me think about owning an SUV over say a 'car'. Still I wuld have preferred to see the mdoels like the RX400h pay less...

I have been following this thread with some intrest. The advice you have received thus far seems to be very sound. You seem to ahev suffered little depreciation on your current car and unless you can find a really good reason to change your 400, stick with it - and msot certainly till its clsoe to 3 eyars old and then sell it on...new model or not...because with the Road Tax change sbeing implemented, cars like the 400 might ebcome more desireable and thereby hold their values better as 'new' SUVs are likely to fall foul of teh higher SUV tax bands. £31k P/X sounds very juicey indeed -was that Lexus offering you that agaisnt anotehr Lexus? I would eprhaps say that you go to BMW or Land rover and see what they'd offer you as a compraable PX price to see how 'generous' Lexus are being...

Sorry, but those Dunlops might be at fault.

Think I'll stay far far away from Tesco fuel 99RON or not ;) Got 70-odd miles before next fill up and if I can dig out my Nectar points card, will fill up the RX with BP Ultimate for a couple of tankfuls and see what difference that makes. There is a aprt of me that hopes that Ultimate wont make much difference because then I can rationalise putting in 'regular' grade fuel and save the cost. But I'd happily chuck in premium grade fuel if it makes a difference, interestingly enough though, Lexus say the RX isn't designed to run on premium fuel, regular is just fine - consdiering it has a V6 petrol I would have thought it would be designed to run on premium...

I think the Lexus lure is one of being valued. As a Customer you feel genuinely valued whenever you come into contact with 'Lexus' - BMW Audi (as example) are very arrogant in their approaches and therefore those brands have poor customer service in comparison with Lexus. I don't find my recently purchased Lexus 'better' than my previous BMWs - but what is 'better' is Lexus Customer Service experience. They call you back when they promise, they show an interest when dealing with you and will go that little bit farther to please without being prompted - and thats does make a difference. Enough of a difference for me personally? No not really. I would pick a BMW over a Lexus or Audi everytime. Why? A car is there to be driven and nothing drives better than a BMW IMHO. (I know I'm going to get flamed for this!)

I never liked the Eagle F1s when fitted to a E46 330 (petrol or diesel) - found that they made the car more skittish and unsure. Pilot Sport IIs were pure magic and thats what my own cars always had. Surprised that with the IS being RWD that the Michelin don't figure much on them - is it down to the Lexus dynamics? Toyos do have a good reputation and (like Kumho) are becoming established brand in their own right. If not for Costco, I'd end up buying else-tyres for my cars - but seeing as they only supply Michelins, thats what I always replace myc ar tyres with.

Don't have a dog so no guard...jsut the liner.

Call lexus Custoemr Services, give them the chassis # and I'm sure they could clarify for you. I persoanlly would NEVER trust any car salesman - I would like to verify any information they give me through other means. However, when purchasing our RX, I have to say Lexus Sales people were much bettter than any previous I have enocuntered ;) As a rule though, and IIRC, then most cars registered in say 'late 2006' will be the 2007MY - with the enxt revisions being about August 2007 for the 2008 MY.

You must be a fellow cynic simon_k ;) I would have said that a 2000 'W' would be too old to put on a forecourt too. As for price, I'd wager they'd give about £5,500 (which IMHO is the trade price). Although thats something Lexus MK mentioned when we were looking to buy our RX - they are trying to build their stock list of good used vehicles as they don't have enough on their books yet. But the cynic in me definitely agrees with simon_k above :)

Have been running our RX300 SE (03/03) on 'regular' and then on Optimax. Can't say I've noticed much difference with Shell Optimax - although on both fuels the RX does 21MPG (in town) 25MPG'ish (long distance). Will try the BP Ultimate stuff just for curiosities sake. Our E46 330i ran much better and gave more MPG on Optimax, was hoping the same for the RX, but so far, nada :P

Well done mate, I am sure you'll love the RX :)

Having recently bought our RX300 SE - we opted to buy a Service Pack from Lexus for the same mileage levels. I think I psoted my 'findings' in some detail on the RX Forum and think you might find that of use. Just FYI a 50k/60k/70k Service Pack for our RX cost £606 - which is much cheaper than if I paid individually. Service Plan for us worked out better value for money - even taking into account the very cheap and competitive service costs of Lexus Hanley.