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DeeTees

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  1. According to my October 1999 IS 200 brochure**, the IS200 Sport had "torque-sensing LSD to further improve traction and tight cornering in the wet". So I guess the answer is yes. Actually,I believe it was always the case since the IS Sport was first launched in the UK. **I really need to get around to sorting out some of the stuff I have lying around the house.
  2. Adding my pennyworth as a former Is200 SportCross owner ... I traded my '03 in back in March - had 35K on the clock, and I'd had it from new. Had no problems with the SportCross at all - corroding wheels had been changed twice by the dealer; stereo never gave any problems. Apart from the services the car never saw the inside of the dealership. Check out the tyre wear - my first front pair only lasted about 12k miles before they became badly worn on the inside edges; then the dealer fixed the wheel alignment and the next sets lasted over 20k. My 'real world' mpg was approx 28mpg - but most of my journeys were over A roads in the Peak District, so not the best place for economising. Hope you enjoyed the test drive. :D
  3. Already done it - abandoned the 'L' and gone for an 'M' - Maxda 6 MPS. Got most of the toys of the classic :winky: IS (except the heated seats ...brrr) - plus an extra 100 bhp and 4-wheel drive. And it's even rarer. Not yet missing the Lex, but time will tell - never had a single problem with either of my 2 IS's - the Mazda has a lot to live up to. So...'L'..'M'...next time I guess it's got to be an 'N'.... Nissan...or Noble ?
  4. Having just sold the Lexus and having kept track of all my fuel costs etc, I thought I'd pass on the numbers. I know similar topics have been posted before but here goes ... Car owned for 1040 days Mileage covered : 34993 Total amount of fuel used : 6010 litres Average mpg : 26.47 Total cost of fuel : £4906 So, running costs for fuel only are 14p/mile, or £4.72 per day. Of course, it doesn't stop there. Luckily there were no servicing costs, (free servicing for 3 years), and the only extras I ever bought were 4 Halfords Super Brilliance Xenon bulbs (taken off car after just 3 months prior to trading it in - offers anybody ?). But, when you add in depreciation (£13600), road tax (~£500), insurance (~£1300), then these numbers shoot up to... 58p / mile, or £19.53 per day, or nearly £600 per month Just goes to show what we all know - depreciation is the real killer, and you need deep pockets to run a car these days.
  5. So..I've spent months and months lusting after the new IS...had the test drives...ummmed and aaahed about the spec...worked out the finances...talked to the dealer about the availability and trade-in of my SportCross....and decided that yes I do want it and yes I can afford it. :P Then I go to the dealer and it all turns to dust. The suggested delivery date of early March has turned into a late April date - no big deal you might think...except it reduces the value of the trade-in by at least £500, and means that I have to get the SprotCross MOT'ed, which probably means 2 new tyres at least...meaning that I'd need to find nearly another grand to fund the change. So that was the end of the discussion with the dealer - I had to walk away, and ask for the £250 deposit they'd had since February last year...yes, technically I could have afforded it, but it had got to the point where I was asking myself if I could actually justify the spend. So I was resigned to hanging on to the SportCross for another year and then looking for a nearly-new IS250, thinking maybe there'll be plenty around in 12 months time. But I made the mistake of acompanying my other half to the Mazda dealer as she was negotiating over a new MX-5 - I got bored and started looking around the showroom.... To cut it short, in March I will be taking delivery of a new.....don't laugh...Mazda6 MPS. :D In case you haven't seen one - it's a 4-wheel drive, 2.3 turbo'd version of the normally sedate Mazda6. It goes like stink, grips like it's on rails, and looks mean in a subtle sort of way. It's got the performance of an Impreza, but with the toys and solidity of the 'classic' IS. It seems incredibly well glued together, has enough gadgets (altho' I'll miss heated seats), and the engine is a gem. 0-60 in 6.6...mmmmmm. OK maybe it's a mid-life crisis sort of thing. So...it's the end of my Lexus affair...for the moment anyway. I have no problems with the cars, the dealers, the image..just that there are other ways of spending the £6K I am 'saving' by swapping luxury for a bit of oomph. But I'll be keeping tabs on you Lexus guys...I still fancy that IS coupe... All the best. Dave
  6. Did a booze cruise to Calais this weekend, so swapped cars with my brother - Mondeo Estate Diesel for my SportCross....I know who got the better deal there then. But at least the Ford can carry a huge amount of beer/wine. Anyway...was coming back up the M20 in Kent, about 5pm today, stuck in the outside lane doing 70-and-a-bit, in a queue of cars, couldn't move in or pass the car in front and I get tailgated by a Silver T reg IS. If the boot hadn't already been full I reckon he'd have been in there with my tinnies and wine boxes. When I moved over he cruised past and then was all over the rear bumper of the next hapless victim. If you are this driver, then BACK OFF mate, or get a B*W instead - at least people would expect you to drive like a tw@t then. Smart looking IS too...body kit, mesh grille with no L badge. Won't stay like that much longer if you keep driving like that tho'. Wonder if he'd have done the same if I'd been in my own IS. Probably.... Maybe I'm getting old and grumpy, but I hate bloody tailgaters Phew...feel much better now I've had that rant :) :) :)
  7. current bid on this IS is £5600, do ya recken it's good buy? me thinks not, due to this guy's first ad- too much bul :tsktsk:t BTW- wots with all the rocks this joka trying to sell? ← this is all getting a bit weird - this seller bought some stuff off the current high bidder a couple of months ago - a cocktail dress and some high heel sandals in "Desert Khaki Combat Print". Must be new style desert storm army outfit. Mind you, we've all assumed the seller's a bloke...
  8. Geneva is 1 hour ahead of the UK ... so do the pictures get posted here at 11:15 UK time ??
  9. ...and they also reckon these are "photograaphed exclusively by CAR in jJpan". Don't look like mock-ups to me. Then again, neither did some of the other pictures we've seen
  10. It's the "April" issue so I guess maybe it's not on the shelves yet. Perhaps I wasn't supposed to read it until 1st March ?
  11. Hello all, my subscription copy of CAR magazine turned up this morning. First article : "IS man cometh as Lexus heads for the big league" - pictures and details of the new IS250 !! 5 picures including a small one of the interior. It's a very smart looking car - all that I'd been hoping for after all the discussions that had been going on here in this forum. :D :D :D Head on it looks surprisingly similar to the current one - rear end is completely different and nothing like a Mazda6. Side view is a lot more coupe-like that the current one - bit GS-like, really. Interior has a touch-senstive screen, none of yer B*W iDrive stuff here, luckily. Can't include the pictures - I haven't got a scanner!! No dobt one will be along soon. They confirm the diesel, and the 250 (I do like that !!) will still be available with a manual gearbox - thank gawd. They mention an IS300 but not an IS350. Also rumours of a hybrid and folding top - all the stuff we've read before. Right...it's off down to the local dealer to put my name down for one.
  12. If the dealer claims it's a characteristic of all IS300's then get him to prove it. Ask him to take you out in each and every one that he's got, and they should all make the same creaking noise. :winky:
  13. There are too many irresponsible little sh!ts around these days... But, whatever you do, don't 'downsize' to a cr@ppy cheap runabout. You'd never forgive yourself. I was driving a hire car last week - newish Fiat Punto. It rattled, it creaked, you had to put the key in the lock to open it, heater had a mind of its own, engine screamed like mad and the car went nowhere very slowly. Gawd, I missed my Lexus !! Stick with your pride and joy.
  14. I've had both - had an SE saloon for 2 years and then got the SportsCross 20 months ago. The SportCross seems to just as good as the saloon for performance, handling, mpg blah blah - you only notice the difference when you look in the rear view mirror and see a rear-screen wiper sitting there. :) Plus points : back seats fold down and the back of the front passenger seat folds forward giving you loads of space for the trips to B&Q and the dump. Bad points : can't open the boot remotely, and, as there's fo fixed rear shelf, the rear speakers are in the luggage compartment, so it gets muffled when you've got a full boot. Also, I think the 200 SportCross comes with 16" alloys, not 17" - IMHO the 16" don't look as good. We haven't got a dog so I can't comment on its dog-handling abilities - only thing is that as the back screen is quite angled, there wouldn't be very much space for the hound to sit up in, unless you drop the back seats, and then you could get a flock of sheep in there as well. Go on .... treat your dog to a trip to your Lexus dealer.
  15. Hi All, anybody got any experience of this ...braking fairly gently at 70-ish down to about 50 causes the steering to wobble around quite noticeably. Last time I had something like this was in an 10 year old Escort when I was a penniless student, and that was knackered discs. Supect it could be the same thing...but on a Lexus with just 22K on the clock ? Steering is quite normal at speed - it's only braking that's a problem. It'll be going to the dealers for their opinion, but if anyone can give me theirs, it'd be much appreciated.
  16. My alloys had started rotting away already (car is 14 months old) - got a new set of refurbished alloys today, including the spare which had never been out of the boot. No problem with the dealer at all, they seem to expect to replace them sooner or later on every new IS they sell. They didn't even care about the gouge that a clumsy tyre-fitter had added to one of them at the last tyre change. Funnily enough tho', I spotted the same problem on my girlfriend's MR2 - took it to the Toyota dealer, said we had a problem with the alloys and without more prompting they said "corrosion ?". So she's getting a new set of alloys in a couple of weeks too. That dealer blamed it on the Japanese not appreciating the amount of salt and cr*p that ends up on our roads. So Mazda's, Subaru's all do this too then...I think not. The Toyota dealer used to be a Lex dealer - the guy was amused that Lexus "still haven't got that alloy problem fixed".
  17. Put my IS200 SportX in for its first service today, and asked for the tracking to be checked as the inside edges of the front tyres were looking very worn. The car is 10 months old and done 10800 miles. The dealer advises that 2 new tyres are required; they didn't sort out the tracking as that will need doing again anyway once I've got new tyres. Sorting out the tracking normally costs £100+ but they said they'd do it for free due to the vehicle's age and mileage. So...a some questions for you guys out there ... - is this a good offer from the dealer ? - is this level of wear acceptable (I know that it appears to be a common problem) ? - recomendations for sourcing the new tyres ? (Dealer says they charge £140+VAT, so I should look elsewhere - he says they had someone come in last week and had got a pair for £100 each 'off the web'). I've currently got Bridgestones - are they the best bet, or would something else last longer ??
  18. Have had my IS200 SportCross since April last year - traded my SE in for it. I got the dealer to supply 17" wheels (the 16" really do look cr*p) but I did read some posts which said that Lexus had told dealers not to fit any more. Also got a Sports grille fitted so unless you spot the '2' on the back it could pass for a 300 SportCross. I've had no complaints with it so far - it's more practical than the saloon 'cos of the folding seats, but as others have said, with the seats up there's no more boot space than the saloon. In fact, I think there's slightly less, altho' it has got 3 panels on the boot floor that you can drop a couple of inches to get a bit of extra space. Oh, and the front passenger seat folds forward so you can get extra long bits of wood from B&Q. One thing I miss from the saloon tho' is the remote opening boot - you have to use the handle to open the tailgate - I used to enjoy scaring little children and OAPs with the trick boot. Other than that it's just as reliable as my old SE - goes just as well - economy seems a bit better. And they do have novelty value - lots of people have said 'ooh, didn't know Lexus did one of those - is it a special import ?' :P :P
  19. and don't put labels on your CDRs - they can work loose and snarl up the inside gubbins of the CD player good and proper. Believe me - it does happen - I know this from experience
  20. yeah...the kerbing evidence was from the TG Road Test Editor - guess it's cheaper to kerb the wheels when it's not your own car 'cos it's on loan from Lexus
  21. The article was in the Feb 2001 edition, with the result announced 2 months later. The charge was that "the Is200 was guilty of misrepresenting itself as a premium sports saloon". The verdict was : Not Guilty : 496 votes Guilty : 43 votes So the 'little' Lex was allowed out of the dock, to fight the hordes of BMWs, Alfas, and Audi's once more. :P
  22. Money talks ... I had to pay extra to have them, but nobody said they couldn't be fitted. Are you trying to get them with a new car or one you've already got ? And there doesn't seem to be any difference in handling or road noise between mine with the 17" and the one I took out for a test drive which had the 16" alloys, so I can't see why they "can't be upgraded". I suspect Lexus are trying to keep the price of the 200 SportCross as low as they can, keep the options list as minimal as possible, and make sure that the 200 and 300 SportCross maintain their own identities.
  23. I seem to have fallen for the Lexus deal bit time - after much umming and ahhing, I have recently changed my (nearly) 3 year old SE for a 200 SportsCross. Whenever I've changed cars before I've always gone for soemthing completely different, but the local dealer made me an offer I was too weak to resist, plus the 3 years free servicing from Lexus meant that I could justify the expense to the domestic accountant. I got the dubious 16" alloys upgraded to the standard SE/Sports 17" alloys and a sports grill added, and for an 'estate', I reckon I've got quite a smart looking car now. I didn't realise until I picked it up, but it has those neat smoked-grey rear light clusters too. Should have had it de-badged then I could have pretended to be an IS300. Funny how some things feel different tho' - initial observations : - the engine has a meatier growl - there's more oomph lower down the revs - cornering is noticeably better - possibly the limited slip diff or more likely the new tyres ! The boot might not be any bigger than the saloon, but it is more practical - been down to the local cash and carry already and it loaded up dead easily. I've had it for 2 weeks now, and I'm dead chuffed - here's to another 3 years of a happy relationship. :D :D :D
  24. Hello everybody - a newbie here, so please be gentle. My other half is downsizing from a 4x4 to an MR2 and my local Lexus dealer is offering what (seems to be) a good price on my 2000W SE against a new 200 SportCross. Our lifestyle (yuk !) means that a practical car is often called for (y'know, trips to the dump, B&Q...) so the folding seats and rear door would be good - the MR2 has room for her handbag and spare pair of shoes and nowt else. But...how does the SportCross stack up against the saloon re: handling, fuel etc - I haven't driven one yet - the dealers waiting for his new demonstrater to be registered. Any comparisons out there ? Also...it comes with the 16" alloys as standard - which look like a set of tractor wheels after the 17"ers I have now. I am being quoted £1500 to upgrade to the 17"ers, and the dealer gets to keep the standard 5 wheels and tyres - is this a good deal ?
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