Ian D

Hi & Welcome. Plenty of advice on belt & bits if you search the forums. You can save a bit of money by going elsewhere, but don't expect it to be cheap! Cheers, Ian

Hello & welcome, I've a 2003 IS300 and struggled with sat nav - it wasn't intuitive to me - so I'd advise RTM (read the manual). Same for CD - RTM - if it's a 6 disc version like mine it could just be finger trouble in loading. Good luck. Ian

Worth considering: Most councils and house leases forbid the use of the house as a business. I used to work in haulage & still have a Certificate of Professional Competency for road haulage, so I know that parking a commercial vehicle on his drive requires official permission of one form or another. So, most likely, he's parking illegally. You have every right to complain to the Council or Dept of Transport about his actions. So, he's on dodgy ground. How you use that is up to you. You could casually ask him who is his CPC holder (every haulage operator must have a CPC-qualified person) and say that if you get any more hassle you can sort it all out with latter and the DfT (+ council) etc; Either way, it sounds as if he's a right prat. Good luck, Ian

Welcome. For sat nav, you have to be very careful to get the right disc. To find relevant numbers, get at the drive unit in the boot, remove the silver plate, slide the button cover, press the button and eject the disc. You should see a number something like 26271 - *****. You must match the first 5 digits and (i think) all but the last digit in the last 5 (for mine, ****1 refers to the 2001 disc, ****2 refers to the 2002 disc and so on, I think). Search for lexus sat nav and you'll find a pukkah site for Lexus discs, approx 160 Euros depending on model. You might find one on eBay (they come up regularly but depends on model), prices typically £40-£55 for latest disc. I'm in the market to replace my 2001 disc for an IS300, but have been looking for 3 months. You can sell the old one here. If it's a recent one (say 2006 or 2007) it should go for a decent figure (say £40) but a 2001 one is worthless. Good luck. Ian

Welcome, I'm sure you're doing the right thing. I was looking for an IS200, but saw my 1Jan2003 IS300 Sport Navigator in Black near me when looking. Fantastic car. Love it to bits. A divorce present (along with bike). I, too, have private plate. This is very personal to me, as my 3 boys have, in order, initials JLG, so with J14NLG I get me amongst my boys (alternatively, our 4 initials, 4 for 4 of us and N for "No f...ing wife". Hope yours means something to you. I, too, had a Megane (earlier version though). In 6 months after warranty expiry it stranded us 4 times (coil, water pump, gearbox, catalytic convertor), window fell down, sunroof stuck open (failed motor) costing me £,000s including new gearbox & exhaust system. first Renault I had was the same. God luck & enjoy. Ian D

Welcome. Looks great in black! What wheels have you got? Looks like 18". Ian

Welcome. Your questionnaire is also limited. I am against hybrids as [in my opinion] they are more polluting over their lifecyle than catalyst-equipped petrol cars (because battery manufacture & disposal are so polluting). Plus as they have a greater weight, they damage roads more and are more expensive - they are only sold at artificially low prices (check out Toyota's cost and sale price for Prius, for example) for 'green' PR. But where could I answer - nowhere! good luck, Ian

Welcome. Do a search and you'll find more on your question. Cheers, Ian

Don't be taken for a ride. It sounds like it's not your fault. Whatever, you have the right to be put back into the position that you were in before the accident. Whether you use your insurance and claim for loss of NCB, admin costs etc; from the other driver or whether you hit him/his insurer for the claim, you have the right to be put back into the position that you were in before the accident so put your foot down and don't be fobbed off. If they take it with £2,000 of alloys on then they have to provide the same thing or the cost of buying them again (unless you haven't told your insurer and the alloys invalidates your insurance (expensive alloys = higher costs from theft and accidents)) and so on for other goodies. As regards the car, it becomes the property of the insurance company paying you for it. They flog them through specialist auctioneers unless the original owner asks for a price and buys it back off them. And make a claim for whiplash. Consider using a specialist solicitor - normally well worth the cost (which you normally get back anyway). The more direct and assertive you are with insurance companies the better. Good luck. Ian PS: I work in insurance and have bought written-off cars at auction, so I've a history here (and have never been in an accident that was in any way my fault) PPS: Don't trust your friends. I was rear-ended, won £2,000 in damages for "whiplash" for my skiver of a friend and didn't even get a drink bought me for my pains.

I have an IS300 (2003). It's a far better car than the 3 series I've had before, it's quick and, in black Sports disguise it looks fantastic and makes a 3-series look common (in looks and numbers on the road). Yes, it (and the IS200) does use fuel, but: the difference between it and my petrol BMs' fuel consumption is negligible; with a diesel you pay more in maintenance and depreciation than you save in fuel costs (do the figures); and, if you want performance for £4,000 with any modicum of reliability and cheap running costs, there are many people out there who'd also want to know the secret. In life you don't get anything worthwhile for nothing..........and it's hard to run a fast car on a tight budget - good luck!

Does anyone do their own servicing? Once upon a time I used to be an engineer (aircraft design/maintenance) and serviced my own cars. My first was a Beetle, which I serviced religiously every 3,000 miles (oil, tappets, timing, grease bearings, adjust handbrake - those were the days) but then cars got a bit complicated, I changed jobs, didn't have the time (kids). My pride still hurts - real men do their own servicing, don't they? Now I've got a bit more time and no wife to take the car into the garage, it seems to me to be just as much hassle putting my IS300 (coming up to 5 yrs old, 80k miles) into a garage as doing the work myself. Plus I can do something constructive instead of shuffling numbers around on a computer (I feel a bit like Monty Python's lumberjack yearning to break free). I can get bits from various sellers delivered to my door. I've ordered a manual on CD. I've got tools including a trolley jack. My local tip will take my old oil. Can anyone help me with pearls of wisdom, such as: Does anyone do their own servicing? Has anyone actually done a timing belt change themselves? Would it all be false economy (no log book stamp) or pride before a fall (I could get something wrong)? All inputs appreciated. Cheers, Ian

Let me know how you get on, particularly if you use Lexus Croydon. I'm not far away (Redhill/Coulsdon) and need an 80k service on an IS300, and will probably have timing belt done at same time. Cheers, Ian

Just got mine from speeding (see above). Very quick.

My IS300 manual says 33psi front, 35 psi rear without a heavy load. Seems to handle fine at these. If you've still got it, the car's manual is pretty comprehensive on the values for various loads.

Welcome. I've an IS300 Sport, soon to be 5 years old, and I'm a Newbie, so I'll let others talk about the IS250. My point is "why buy new?". Apart from the times when I was buying tax-free and reselling tax-exempt for a profit, I've always bought second-hand even though I could easily afford a new car. Apart from 2 cars out of some 40-odd, both Renaults, I've never regretted buying second-hand for even one second. Oops, I see you've bought a Scenic. Mine, an earlier version. was fine until it was a few days outside our 3-year warranty. Then in the space of 4 months it broke down 4 times (new gearbox, new water pump, new catalytic converter, new ignition coils) and had numerous irritating faults (driver's window fell into door when motor self-destructed, sunroof wouldn't close, interior fell apart). Then I got a Japanese car which was 100% reliable. Come to think of it, of my Japanese cars and bikes, well into double figures, the only work that's ever been required has been servicing and consumable replacement (filters, tyres etc;). With German quality having gone down over the past few years, you have another reason for buying a Lexus. You don't need so much cash upfront, useful to avoid interest payments, and running costs and depreciation are much lower - meaning you can spend the money on the kids, get a motorbike, go to track days and fast-driving school and 'personalize' your car for just a few (all of which I'm doing having spent well under £10,000 on my wonderful car). Maybe I emphasise value-for-money because I'm a tight git (as my soon-to-be ex-wife says), but I also like being able to park in Sainsbury's without worrying about little scratches or leaving one of the kids to act as a security guard. Anyway, it's your money and it's your choice. Good luck. Ian

Lovely bike. Reminds me of my RD500 by the way the pipes come out together under the seat. Reminds me of my then girlfriend, sigh. She rode on the back even though the brakes were somewhat useless (but good in their day) and to think I dumped her for my wife. Pass me a drink to help me forget. Ah, RD350 that snaked around any corner above 70 mph, FZR600 that had a suspension worthy of a moped. Great fun, one and all.

CBR 600 RR Mar 2007 in red (such as you can call modern bike designs by a single colour). Previous owner did a few mods such as seat cover, Micron exhaust and uprated air filters (plus alarm, smart water, small number plate etc;). It's my 3rd phase of bikes (1. Nothing has a fairing. Every bike has a coloured tank and that's it. Too poor to afford car, until 'now I can'..... 2. Lurid colours on bikes. Only mega-expensive bikes have exhausts underneath the seat. Can afford both car and bike, let's have some fun, until, 'oh dear, can't fit babies on back'.... 3. Speed cameras everywhere. Even bikes can get SatNav. Divorce and my 3rd childhood). When I get good weather to take photos, I'll pin them on the site.

Thanks. ^_^ I thought I'd try to replace her so put an ad in the paper "Wife wanted". I got 479 replies in a week, all saying "you can have mine".

Hello all, One of the good things of divorce is that I no longer have to do what my wife wants, which means I've got myself an IS300 Sport in black, Jan 2003 on a 52 plate. :D I loved it the first time I saw it and I've not been disappointed in 2 weeks of ownership. Well, that is apart from erratic steering (note to myself: it helps to have correct tyre pressures), couldn't get washer jets to work (note to myself: RTFM) and non-intuitive SatNav (note to myself: RTFM, but what's wrong with touch-screens and if Lexus are so clever as to have telephone numbers as an input why can't they do post codes?). The engine puts a big smile on my face every time I press that throttle. The weather and roads have been pretty bad so I've not tried the car out properly, but our time will come...... I've done a little personalising. Alloy task disc holder, new registration and, er, that's it. Yes, I've got a personalized number plate, but it has a meaning. It has my 3 kids initials in order and 14N, which spells either Ian (me!) or my initial I, 4 for 4 of us (me + 3) and N for Nowife. This also has another function. To make it harder for me to get involved with a woman again (sorry to any women reading), her name will have to start with N which rules out 95% of the female population. All that I want to do now is get some new car mats and an updated SatNav disc (I have great fun with SatNav on new roads near me). Enough of the interesting bits. Me, I'm middling in age but young in brain, have 3 young boys, am getting divorced, am moving to Surrey where I work in life insurance (sorry). I don't have many interests yet (kids have taken up the time), but now I'm going to have time on my hands I've bought myself a bike (Lexus don't do bikes, so it's a Honda) which to keep me from getting involved with women again I've made single-seat. I look forward to meeting all you people out there and discussing our little darlings. :winky: Ian