dazed

16 minutes ago, J Henderson said:

One thing I noticed whilst I was searching for a IS250, is that there are very very few SE-Ls in the 2010-2013 range. They're all F-Sports or Advance models.

 

That's what was being sold during those years.

6 hours ago, WhiteFSport said:

So the dealership offered me enough to cover my remaining finance (anybody want to guess what I was offered?) and I've sought a potential replacement. Any thoughts?

http://www.csfmotors.co.uk/used-bmw-3 series-bury-lancashire-1209814 

You're barking mad

It's older, has higher mileage, costs more and won't be as reliable. I'm struggling to see the upside.

15 minutes ago, Malc said:

I know I'm living in a timewarp with my Ls400  but for heavens sake, do you guys feel happy paying out £718 a month, presumably from your after taxed income, for a car ? that's going to have zilch value to you when you do change to another ?

You'd be heaps of ££££ better off by popping that £718 ( plus the tax relief presumably making it possibly £1000 a month  ) into your pension pot and buying something you actually NEED for maybe a couple of  months effective payments, rather than maybe a status symbol AND into your pension pot, assuming a return tax free on FTSE equities , if that's your thing, of about 4% pa which grossed up year on year to your retirement will provide a better time for you later in life AND of course you can maybe take 25% of that in tax free cash anyway at the time.

Just my thoughts...............  from an OAP with more money than sense maybe and happy with the best built car ever on the road ..... and still  0 - 60 in 6.9 secs and 155 mph 

Malc

Totally agree with you Malcolm. PCP is the crack cocaine of the car industry and sadly most people can't see it for what it is. I've got people in my office earning less than £30K p/a driving around in new BMW 1 series every three years and they're always complaining that they've got no money.

I also come across people who try to convince me that PCP really is a smart way to buy a new car. But when I look at their figures I discover that they don't really understand how deep a discount can be negotiated off a new car and how cheap conventional sources of lending can be if you've got a clean credit file.

Large balloon figures also mean more outstanding debt for longer which equates to more interest payable, no matter how low the interest rate is.

1 hour ago, WhiteFSport said:

Hi dazed,

In all honesty, I doubt I'll be buying a new-ish car again. At the time of purchasing this, I could have paid outright for the vehicle but other commitments (mortgage) dictated that I had to take the PCP route. You're right - it is a unsustainable business model. Anything remotely similar to my current car will mean that my monthly payments will increase. As I don't fancy downgrading, it leaves me in a dilemma as to what would be a sensible option. Fortunately, I don't travel many miles to and from work - circa 16 miles round trip. So I can purchase something older, upto 4-6 years older, (saving on the new VED rates) and preferably, something with a bigger engine and more power.

That sounds like a plan - all the best. I tend to look for something a couple (or three years old) with low mileage, good spec and FSH.

Mortgage, food, bills and pension contributions all have to come first.

25 minutes ago, WhiteFSport said:

I paid £7k deposit and I've been paying £350 for the past 19 months. So the total stands at £13,650 at present. I'm not sure how my dealer has done the maths, but to me, that seems like I haven't paid back enough to be in +ve equity just yet. I guess I could recheck with my finance company and see what they have to say about this.

I suspect the maths has been worked out so that at the end of the contract you have a vehicle that is worth the guaranteed future value (+/- a tiny bit). Because depreciation is not linear, but your payments are, you'll inevitably spend some (perhaps most) of the contract in negative equity depending on the size of the deposit.

This must be a dilemma for the car manufacturers. On the one hand they want to make their monthly payments as low as possible (to entice punters to rent cars that, to be honest, they probably can't really afford to drive). But on the other hand they really need to ensure that there is some equity in the vehicle at the end of the deal, so that they can get another shiny new car on the road (which means higher monthly payments).

This whole business model feels unsustainable to me and ultimately has to result in punters downgrading at each contract renewal point as economic reality bites, even if financing costs remain as low as they currently are.

On ‎09‎/‎06‎/‎2017 at 8:40 AM, stevet said:

Still can't see how you are in positive equity. PCP normally leaves you with nothing until right at the end. You have loaned £23200 (£29k - £7k + £1.2k) and car is worth about £14k in px so £9.2k left. You would have to of paid over £484 per month so far just to break even. That's £16200 just to rent a Hybrid for 19 months. You could have bought an ISF outright for that and it would be all yours and still be worth £15k now.

It's horrific when you peel back the PCP marketing and spin and lay it bare like that. There's a little bit of me that thinks PCP will be the next PPI - the compensation from which, ironically, formed many of the deposits for PCP deals in recent years.

The lending behind PCP feels like a financial bubble that will have to burst when/if second hand valuations fall.

This ^^^^^^^^^^^

I too would recommend leaving the climate control system on at all times. As Linas says, the extra fuel consumption is negligible and it has the significant advantage of reducing the on going maintenance costs of keeping the AC system running smoothly.

On ‎09‎/‎05‎/‎2017 at 8:54 PM, normski2 said:

Z that's very frustrating if they've broken it. Go back to lexus in the first instance and get them to sort it. Hope it goes well for you.

My local Lexus dealer has had a look at the car and agreed to fix it free of charge. Well done Lexus.

39 minutes ago, toffee_pie said:

well, i broke mine in a haste so all my own fault.

There really should be a <!> sticker on that saying read user manual for replacement instructions. You are not meant to force that flap out of the way which is what most people do that leads to the servo arm breaking.

Fair enough - my commiserations. What I'm trying to establish is the likelihood of the mechanism just spontaneously failing in normal use.

Personally I'm very suspicious. It worked fine before the filter was changed by the dealer and then within a few days of it being changed I suspect something is wrong - I live out in the countryside so I don't encounter bad air every time I take the car out.

10 hours ago, toffee_pie said:

i had an almighty job fixing that broken servo arm, ***** almighty.

How did yours get broken?

And thanks Normski for the links.

3 hours ago, Verbout said:

Could it have been damaged before Lexus did the service?

No. It was definitely working before the service. The first suspicion I had that something might not be quite right was about five days after the service.

2 hours ago, Malc said:

did they really actually change the filter ?

Well, that's a good question. They certainly charged me for it!

48 minutes ago, Verbout said:

Just beat me to it.   ;)

Its easy to check, the flap/cover should go up and down when you toggle the circulation button.

There is a DIY fix for it I believe on the USA forum.

Yep, that's the problem. The flap/cover doesn't move when I toggle the button.

The car was serviced (at great expense) by Lexus a couple of weeks ago during which they replaced the filter.

It looks like I'm about to find out how good Lexus customer service really is after 10 years of no problems.

I'm starting to get a really bad feeling about this:

http://my.is/forums/f127/is250-cabin-air-filter-388060/

Quote

IMPORTANT: Please ensure that the vehicle is in recirculate mode. If not, you will force open the computer controled damper and damage the HVAC system.

We just replaced one for a customer at the tune of $2000.00 damage from not having the recirculate mode on.

It is extremely important to follow this process on all newer 2nd gen models inclusing the IS350. As I do not own one of these vehicles, nor do I know the differences between IS250 or IS350 HVAC systems.

My car was serviced a few weeks ago and they changed the filter....

The pollen filter was changed at the last service. The smells I'm getting in the cabin are diesel fumes, not mouldy air-con smells. The smells are most noticeable when I'm following a stinky diesel vehicle or stuck in heavy traffic.

I've been driving IS250s for the past 10 years and have never had this problem before.

I always used to be able to tell when the system was in re-circulation mode as the air had a different quality to it - it's hard to describe but it just smelt 'cleaner' - perhaps more sterile, but not necessarily fresher. A bit like the air in an aircraft cabin.

Anyway, something definitely isn't right. Perhaps the garage messed up at the last service (which could actually coincide with when I first started to notice a difference).

I've noticed recently that the quality of air in my cabin is really bad (especially in heavy traffic) despite the air-recirculation mode being on.

I can hear a short whirring sound when I switch between recirculated air and air from outside so the motor is obviously doing something. However, the quality of air entering the cabin is the same irrespective of which mode is selected. This is definitely a problem that has developed recently.

Does anyone have any suggestions how I could attempt to diagnose the cause of the problem and whether or not it's going to be straightforward.

If it involves dismantling half the car I'll leave it to the garage.

Thanks.

On ‎12‎/‎04‎/‎2017 at 8:52 PM, is200 Newbie said:

The daily commute will be 140 mile round trip compared with 10 at the moment !! ... a big difference.

Make sure you do the maths first. Obviously, the extra fuel isn't going to be the only financial cost.

If you do go ahead my advice would be to buy low mileage 3 year old vehicles. Diesels would make the most sense, but failing that don't spend too much time looking at hybrids - you won't necessarily save the extra purchase price in reduced petrol costs if you're mostly cruising at 70mph.

Whatever you do, don't buy new. The deprecation will crucify you.

The car looks like it might have been in 6th gear for the duration of the Youtube clip so the behaviour may have been due to the torque converter lockup being released and reapplied.

When you accelerate in 6th gear (possibly 5th as well?) the lockup in the converter is usually released to allow the revs to rise more easily and the torque to increase. When you release the throttle the revs will momentarily fall back until the converter lock is reapplied. At the moment this occurs the revs will rise again as direct drive is re-established from the wheels back to the gearbox. (Some people mistake this for a gear change as it feels very similar)

It may be that these transitions are exaggerated in your car some reason - perhaps bad timing.

<Rant>

The word 'upgrade' has definitely become one of the most misused words in recent years. Thanks to spivvy salesmen (particularly those selling mobile phones) it has become a word to describe any new sale to an existing customer and is used only to flatter the customer to secure a commission payment. Ooooh, suits you sir!

The reality is many sales are anything but an 'upgrade' - most are just a sideways replacement at best.

<Rant/>

Anyway back on topic, I'll be interested to hear what other owners have to say. As a two time IS250 mk2 owner with over 200K miles on the clock(s) I accept that my next car will almost certainly have to be something different. Reliability is essential which rules out many cars and non of those left have so far inspired me like the IS250 has. The GS is one exception, but it's size is excessive for my needs. The RC 200t is beautiful but I have reservations about the engine (although I haven't ruled it out).

Hybrids don't interest me as I spend most of my time cruising at 70mph and don't see the point in paying a premium for little or no gain in economy (and the loss of a spare wheel).

On ‎24‎/‎01‎/‎2017 at 9:57 AM, idlerider said:

Considering the fact that 'SE' stands for 'Special Equipment' I'm surprised that any manufacturer would even consider applying this acronym to its lowest spec. model. Had I known this, I would not have bought the car - as it is, I'm now seriously looking at selling it.

Strictly speaking the 'SE' trim level was not the lowest spec at launch. There was another model simply designated 'IS 250' that had basic cloth seats with no electrics, heating or cooling. Wheels were 16" with 205/55R16 tyres. Not sure how many of them were ever sold though.

I think in its day, the SE was a pretty well spec'd car (obviously a little long in the tooth by today's standards) - certainly comparable with the German offerings at the time, but less expensive.

In my experience I tend to remember cars for their handling/performance/transmission/comfort rather than the extra little toys that manufacturers throw in and convince you to part with thousands for (and which can often be the things that tend to go wrong and cost yet more time and money to fix).

1 hour ago, sorcerer said:

Don't forget it's not just the cost of the warranty. You also have to factor in the increased cost of servicing at Lexus main stealers over cheaper independent garages.

The Lexus Paradox - people are drawn to the cars because of the reputation for reliability and then spend a grand on a warranty because they're frightened of it being unreliable  

Fair points. One of the reasons I've run a Lexus for the past 10 years is their reliability - I do about 25K miles a year. So far (over 200K miles and 2 cars) the only repair bill I've had to pay is for a new water pump (about £300 I think).

I accept that at some point I'll get a reasonably big bill to settle, but on balance I reckon self insurance is the way to go with a Lexus.

As for my wife's VW - that's a different matter entirely.

Regarding warranties, I guess it comes down to whether you could handle the potential bills that might arise if you don't take out the warranty.

Statistically, an individual will lose out over a lifetime of taking out extended warranties - insurers aren't charities after all.

So I'd say, if you worry about, or would have difficulty paying a large repair bill then take the warranty for peace of mind (assuming it's a reasonable price). Otherwise just save (or better still invest) the money and insure yourself.

One thing that does leave me rather confused is how some people will quite happily spend £20K plus on a car and then fret about repair bills. I don't know if I'm missing something, but if they spent a little less (say £18K) then they'd have £2K for repairs. I appreciate this is a slightly simplistic view of things, but logically it does solve the whole dilemma that so many people appear to have.

14 minutes ago, Wisty said:

As I understand it, the switch turns the TC "off" until it decides that you're driving like a pudding and steps back in for you.  To turn the TC truly and fully off so you can drive like a pudding unimpeded requires the dance as described above.

Ah, I see! I thought it only reverted automatically when you turned the ignition off (I always manually turn it back on again once I've escaped from my skidpan of a driveway)

You've lost me. There's a little switch for turning it off/on. I always turn it off when I'm trying to get out of my driveway when it's covered in snow or ice.

No pedal dance required.

Although your tyres may be inflated correctly, some have softer sidewalls than others. That might be noticeable when altering direction several times quite rapidly - e.g. small roundabouts.

30 minutes ago, Linas.P said:

Is that for NX200t?

300h I assumed. Are there many 200t examples out there?