gti1

As a fellow Saffa I can fully understand why you wanna make the move. My wife and I came over three years back three years ago and have never looked back ever since. Yes the UK is expensive but life is in general much better for us. We left for similar reasons as to what you have mentioned. Back in 2000 the best car I could afford was a Golf GTI 4 which took up a large chunk of my salary. I have now bought a a 220d se-l with all the toys as well as a house in the past year and have a much better quality of life bar the weather aspect. We have a better value life as well as we have much more disposable income. We can do so much more with life now. I was hijacked twice in Joburg when I lived there and then moved to Cape Town which was much better. I dont have to look over my shoulder here and when I do go home on hols I feel really unsafe. I to fear for SA's future and wish it all the best but the UK has looked after me.

Hi there guys! Can anybody advise me on a good value car cover for outside use. I would need to collect from a high street store. I am going away for four days on Thursday and I am scared off coming back to find bird sh*t on my black paint job. Some of these birds have huge terds and they seems to be attracted to my black car for some reason. I have had to resort to carrying a emergency bird terd removal kit in my boot just in case. LOL

Patience , Patience mate. People don't live on this site. I have had a 220d for two months now. I can happily use mine in sixth at 70mph or even under that if the road is flat. As for the weight issue I had thought the same when I saw it too. As said before this is the maximum weight allowed. Yes there may be more eco friendly diesels out there but is not that bad for engine that has been in service from 2005. It is also a 2.2 L unit. Despite these small issues I am really enjoying mine. My not be he best in class but would still get my vote over all off it's rivals time and time again....

Nope I am 32 and have a IS220D SE-l and still loving it 2 months in

Glad you are liking it gti1! I work in Sunbury quite often (that Company in Chertsey Road) so I'll keep an eye open for you...what colour?? Will be there next Tuesday. Tango I must apoligise!! I was going through this thread this morning and I saw your reply and suggestion to meet in Sunbury. For sure let me know when you are in the area again and we can hook up.

You're going to start you know who off in a minute... Shhh - you're right. Keep your head down, say nothing and let's hope this drops off the front page asap. LOL .... Ah you guys crack me up

I guess from the photo you do not have a problem in 6th gear at 70 mph and above. I have found that 6th can be used providing the road is reasonably free from inclines. Your mpg has set a new challenge for me, are you using bog standard diesel. Merv I will admit that 70 is not the ideal spped for 6th gear but on the way back I travelled at 74mph which felt better and got me the 49.5 mpg figure compared to the 48.4 on the way down. So it would seem that 1700-1800 rpm seems to be the sweet spot for me. The fuel I use is of the standard Shell variety. I may look at an additive at some stage just to see what it does on the same trop again.

Well I now have owned my IS220d SE-L MM S/r for just under two weeks. I must say I am over the moon with it in every respect. I have as off this evening clocked up just over a thousand miles thus far. It was todays trip that made me write this post. For months now I have like many others taken on board what others have said about the IS220d. I must say that the MPG figures that most people where quoting concerned me bought never changed my decision to buy the car. Today I had a business trip which took me to Cardiff for a couple of calls. I thought I would use this chance to see what all the fuss was about regarding MPG figures quoted on this site. Most people have stated that a simple change in driving habits should yield good results. What I did what simply stick to the speed limits which was a big adjustment for me. I drove at a steady 74 mph from Sunbury all the way to Cardiff mostly using the cruise control and relaxed and enjoyed some music on my MM. Once in Cardiff I had four companies to see in and around the CBD. I did the same on the way back but was caught in 20min off standing traffic on the M4 just before the M25. I soon got home. What I say next is just my two pence worth on the MPG issue. I did not buy this car with the intention to suck every MPG out off the fuel that i put in it nor did I buy it to race around England either. Today however all I did was obay the law and take a more relaxed drive and actully felt better for it at the end off the day. I have attached a photo I took with my Phone just before I got off the M25 5 miles from my house. I took this picture to show all the people who knock the IS220D what can be done if one is willing to drive within the speed limits and resist the tempataion to floor it all the time. Please take note off the fuel level, rev counter, speed and the TANK MPG AVERAGE figure for my trip. I was AMAZED and very pleased. :D :D :D

Well from one layman to another. I to collect my 220d se-l last week and I can echo all off what you have said. I have a few extra bells on mine all off whih i love. As for economy well after spending the last few months on here I knew what to expect. I have done 255 miles off town only driving as we have some overseas guests over. With six of us in the car I have averaged 30mpg.I must also note that I must have spent 3/4 of that time in traffic. I have done no m/way driving yet so time will tell.

I can't imagine how anyone can call big scratch on our lovely seats .... "nice" joke. Not good to hear that, sorry I have no counsel Hey. I have always seen Leather repair kits on TV and in various publications being advertised. Maybe you should do a google on it. Or look on www.detailingworld.co.uk for a solution.

The 'L' pack gives you, in addition to the 'SE':- HID headlights with I-AFS (intelligent-Adaptive Front Lighting System...it sets itself each time you start the car and reacts with the steering to 'see' around bends) Parking assist sensors, front and rear Rain sensing wipers electrically adjustable steering column with pre-set memory positions Electrochromatic rear view mirror (auto dim) Wood trim Electric rear window blind (may have been dropped on new models?) Memory for front seats, steering column and door mirrors Guess I could live without the rear blind, auto dim rear view mirror and wood trim, but would miss the rest. I have just got my 220d se-l today and I can say that the cabin feels a lot more special with the se-l trim. I did test drive a se model for a day and difference is worth the extra imho. They way the steering wheel almost greets you when you get in. The wood trim gives the cabin a warmer feel. The Parking sensors are great. Just used the rain sensing wipers all day and that just makes one thing less to worry about whilst driving. The rear sun blind is still in my 08 reg car. Also the outside mirrors angle down when you engage reverse...a nice touch. The word Lexus on the door sill also ligts up when the doors are opened. I am still getting to grips with the car but so far i love it

Morning. Well i dont want to speak to soon but I think I may have cracked my problem. I will only know for sure later this morning as I am being picking up by Lexus to take delivery of my new IS220D SE-L MM S/R in 15 min. Basically I have discoverd some software that will convert your mp3 files into a video DVD format. So what you end up with is a normal video dvd but instead of the menus leading you to scene selections etc, they become folder and track selections instead. Your mp3 folders are recoded into a dvd video codec which the MM will see as a video file. I can't see any reason why this will not work but hey worth a try i suppose. I fill post full details when I have my car. Hold thumbs guys!!

According to the Lexus IS brouchure the MM system can read MP3 data on both a cd as well as a DVD. I have sucessfully burned a cd which was read okay by the MM. I tried today for the second time to burn a project the same way onto a DVD+R Disc. It does not read the disc nor does the MM offer an error message. On my first try I simply burned a data disk by dragging the various folders onto the disc. This time I used the jukebox option in NERO. I used this option for the cd that worked but the DVD i bured the same way will not play or been seen by the system. Does the MM read DVD+R media or does it only like DVD-R media. Has anybody sucessfully burned MP3 folders onto a DVD that the MM will play???

The one salesman did offer an opinion that it may have to do with exhaust system being different and that it may require more ground clearence that the IS250.......who knows

Hello again Gents. Well I am now back from my hols and have just got back from Lexus Twickenham having signed some forms and I took the chance to make sure that my eyes were not screwing with me on this ride height issue that I have raised in this thread. I compared with four cars, two were new being a 250 and a 220d. Both were se trim. Then I compared two second hand units as well with similar mileage to rule out tyre wear. Again one 220d and one 250. I can conclude the following. The distance between the top of the tyre and the wheel arch is 7mm higher on the front and 10-11mm higher on the rear of the IS220d. Small I know but enough to make out. I will sleep better at nigh now...... LOL :winky:

While I await delivery of my IS220d se-l mm I was wondering if the MM system was able to read a Dual layer DVD with MP3 audio on it. A single layer disc is 4.7gb and that I know can be read. So if I can write 8.5gb to a dual layer disc then happy days. Has anybody done this??

Hello there. The answer is the following. Most original CD's do not support TEXT. However with some imported discs if you look at where the compact disc logo is on the disc cover or disc it will say "compact disc and have the word TEXT under it. These discs are loaded with the info that you seek. I find it amazing that this not a standard in todays market place. Hope that helps

First of all...and I don't want to piddle on your bonfire, but why did you pick the 220D? Secondly, I don't know why you think the 220D rides higher because it's exactly the same height as the IS250 ....1425 mm...(not counting mine at 1390 mm) . Hey guys thanks for all the responses. I chose the 220d only because i will be using it mainly for work purposes. The extra mpg that the diesel delivers over the is250 is what has weighted my decision. I have a Volvo 2.0 d at the moment and that gets around 40 mpg so the typical 20 mpg or so of the Is250 would make a bigger dent in my car allowance although i would have had the is250 without question if the fuel cost was not a factor. Although as I have read on these forums I should not expect 40+ mpg with the Is220d I still had to have one as nothing else comes close in this sector as a complete offering. I must say the gap between the top of the tyre and the wheel arch is one finger more on the is220d than that of the is250. The explanation that has been given in this post make sense I suppose but does little to equal the stance of the is250. The 220d feels alot faster in normal day to day driving aswell. I've had a few 250's as courtesy cars and they always feel slightly gutless after getting used to the torque of the diesel. This is an undetstated quality of the 220d, plus I've avergaed 42mpg over 23000 miles in the 220d Sport. Thanks for you inut Roonaldo. This forum really can mix up your emotions. As I have said before the IS250 would always be my first choice but that fact that it could add £2000 a year to my fuel bill is something that i cant get my head or my wallet around. More importantly thouugh i am amazed by your mpg figures. In this thread two members both with IS220d sports's have managed to maintain an avg mpg off 40+. We all know that the sport is at a disadvantage to the standard IS220d in the mpg department. Can you give me and other interested forum members a basic idea of how you drive from day to day to achieve and maintain this elusive mpg figure. Thanks P.s Do you have any input on the question of ride height bewteen the IS220d and the IS250, having drivin both?????

One can only hope that I have made the right decision for me. As the saying goes I have made my bed and now I must lie in it. Knowing myself I would most likely be more heavy footed with the is250 to enjoy that lovely six cycl sound. Tne other issue is that I go into London a lot and with the new laws coming into effect in October the work in not going to like £25 per day that I go in.

No mate it was the 17's on the SE & SE-L

First of all...and I don't want to piddle on your bonfire, but why did you pick the 220D? Secondly, I don't know why you think the 220D rides higher because it's exactly the same height as the IS250 ....1425 mm...(not counting mine at 1390 mm) . Hey guys thanks for all the responses. I chose the 220d only because i will be using it mainly for work purposes. The extra mpg that the diesel delivers over the is250 is what has weighted my decision. I have a Volvo 2.0 d at the moment and that gets around 40 mpg so the typical 20 mpg or so of the Is250 would make a bigger dent in my car allowance although i would have had the is250 without question if the fuel cost was not a factor. Although as I have read on these forums I should not expect 40+ mpg with the Is220d I still had to have one as nothing else comes close in this sector as a complete offering. I must say the gap between the top of the tyre and the wheel arch is one finger more on the is220d than that of the is250. The explanation that has been given in this post make sense I suppose but does little to equal the stance of the is250.

Hey Guys This is my first post and T minus 18 days untill I get my Is220d se-l MM Black with Black with Sun roof. As I sit in a bar in Camps bay, Cape town surrounded my sun and hot women I find myself thinking about my pending delivery on the 10th of March. Very sad I know but I must admit I have never been this excited over a new car before. My Wife is tired of hearing about it but I don't care. I have been dealing with Lexus Twickenham and the salesman there has been nothing short of fantasic. I am one off those people that must know everything before he will buy something and he has been great in putting up with me. He deserves a medal and I might just get him one. LOL. The one question that I have never asked is way the IS220d has a heigher ride height than the Is250. Even the sport model sits taller. Does anybody know? Right so now I will get back to my beer and all these beautiful women. Hope my wife does not catch me. LOL Cheers