Steve_L

Thanks for sharing those views from your weekend. I have no previous ES experience to compare mine, but, after c. 300 miles, it certainly feels smooth and responsive - and looks great. I haven't figured out Android Auto yet - not had it before - and my charging plate failed with the add on receiver plugged into my Samsung. I've blamed the cheap receiver I bought as plate worked fine with daughter's iPhone. No long distance trip planned until February so have to wait to get good view on fuel.

You won't be disappointed with that choice. I would probably still be driving IS if available new in UK. There should be a good low mileage stock available around the country. What was my 69 plate with 29000 miles in Manganese Lustre, available at Marshalls for £25k, would be a good buy for someone.

Short trips aren't good for hybrid consumption, nor hills! I am not even convinced that Eco mode is any better for town driving. I drove 2013, 2017 and 2020 IS, all gave good overall consumption. Later two were slightly better with 2020 recording all time average of over 45mpg in 30k miles. I never drove 'calm and steady' either. 😀

I have the black interior and really pleased with combination. Whilst it may have been my choice - family influence - I signed just before rates and bonuses changed in November for a pre order model. Colour options are personal choice and I would have had others on my list if I'd wanted to wait 6 months.

Congrats and hope the weekend has left a smile on your face after all the driving. Picked up my Sonic Grey Premium Edition on 30 December. Only 200 local miles so far and can't wait for a long trip. Was worried about size after IS had served me so well but no worries now. 

Goody12 - you may have made a decision by now but will offer a few thoughts anyway. My views are based on 8 years of driving IS300h (3 models) and 10 days of ES. I loved the IS and would have had same if still available in UK (newest available will be a 2020 model), principally as I thought ES would be too long. Have changed my view now as ES giving same fuel consumption (so far), good handling and smoother ride, has upgraded info (although a new IS may have had that by now) and boot swallows all my golf gear (but you may not need that). You mention needing a sunroof - I don't recall Mk3 IS ever being available with this option - and I can't comment on ML stereo as never had it. Premium Edition ES is well specced and I wouldn't go back. Lexus will be a great choice of car whichever you choose.

Tried a reset again this evening after my short drive home. Conclusion is I must be getting paranoid about my tyres! I had convinced myself the bumpy ride over bad surfaces was due to low pressure, but found all tyres to be between 37 and 38 psi and hence OK - allowing for warm up on run home. I am now asking myself why the bumpy ride? I have found the FSport to be less smooth than my old Series 2 Advance but it seems to pick up even slightest road blemish. Anyway, back to the tyres as I still can't get the reset to work. Held the button as advised in handbook but there was no flashing light. Is there only one button on the panel above brake pedal?

Thanks Colin - and David. I had tried to reset after inflating to 2.5. The book advises that the monitor light comes on to tell you it has reset but mine doesn't. The warning had come on twice in first few months of ownership but doesn't any more. I suspect I will need to report it when in for service.

My recent experience with the TPMS has questioned whether it functions correctly. Has anyone else had cause to check tyre pressures without a warning light showing and found the pressure to be low? I am trying to run my FS Sport at recommended pressure - 2.5 bar - but often find it as low as 2.2. My suspicion is that the monitor is not working. I have tried to reset as advised in the handbook but no success with the button above the pedal. Anyone else had similar problems?

Valuable observations for anyone whose mpg 'suffers' from the short journey to work. Those figures will apply everywhere - not just London - and will be worse if the car has to climb any hills. Mine spends the 3 miles to work charging the battery (EV Mode not available) and usually reads 35. Journey back is almost all uphill and I have readings as low as 22. As Ross noted, it doesn't take long for mpg to rapidly climb if you drive patiently. Worth a try to compare experience.

Pleased, and not surprised, to see you liked the car Geoff. Similar thing happened to me, except I changed from a diesel. My 'test drive' was as a courtesy car for 8 hours (not all spent driving of course) whilst mine in for service and I just had to have one. Numbers didn't stack up initially - and still don't really - but glad I made the change as it is a much more refined car in terms of space, layout and feel. As recorded elsewhere, some things could be improved but DJP has put it more eloquently than I would when comparing interior to competitors. The indicators will take some getting used to but aren't most cars built that way now? In terms of numbers stacking up, tax saving is great - even better if you do low mileage - and I would advise a real world fuel cost based on low 40s. That is my average for mixed motoring and around 10 to 15% better than the diesel. Long A road runs at steady 40 should return over 50. By the way, performance and noise levels perfectly acceptable for me and my passengers.

I could go completely off topic as I had 2 children graduate from DMU but let's stick to the original press review for Bluenose. The 300h is the first petrol engine I have had for 20 years and the first ever auto box. I find it very relaxing and quiet to drive and travel in. All cars are personal preference, as Ganzoom illustrates, so don't just look at the performance and noise levels, also take in your surroundings - IMO far better than the German competition - and make your own mind up. Comfort and space much improved cf Series 2 IS.

Always good to read a real in depth review. Well done and pleased to see you made a good decision. 24 hours in a FSport would have convinced me sooner if I'd had the chance. I agree that colour choice would have been difficult if I had bought new. Sonic T with ivory was my preference as, like DJP said, they seem to always look different. Had to take what was available in the pre-owned market but (at the risk of adding to your confusion) no complaints from me about the Mercury.

I changed up twice and didn't really notice much difference in mpg. Biggest difference was found in move from 220 to 200d. Although it still performed well, the downgraded engine was noticeably more sluggish and not well matched to the 6 speed box.

Just back from first long run (200 mile round trip) for 2 months and have smile on my face at mpg recorded - 49.4. Better than my previous 200d Advance on same journey, but did I drive differently today? I find the hybrid more sedate and perhaps don't accelerate away from standing the same. Average speed may be lower as well as I don't recall driving the diesel at 75 for long distances - it was usually 80ish. Anyone else noticed a change of driving style?

Best of luck with the purchasing decision this weekend. Timing is critical to get best deals I feel. When I bought mine back in August, I trawled the Lexus used cars and other websites. There seemed to be some great deals scattered around country on preregistered 14 plates, probably to get sales before reg changed. May be some left. There were a few Executives with £5k off but I got tempted by a 63 plate low mileage F-Sport in local dealer. Very pleased now that I made the step up. Hope your dealer looks after you well.

I was looking forward to a cold and frosty morning to test my seats. Expectation dampened somewhat now. Those in the Series II were excellent I thought. Seems like Lexus cannot make 2 cars the same - or is it all drivers are different. Sound system via USB is brilliant IMO and my phone has connected every time. Sat-nav seems little different to set postcode destination than Series II but has some extra features which I need to test. Best improvement would be liner in the bottle holder to use for rubbish - my banana skins keep staining the fascia!

That will make it stand out from the crowd, albeit a (relatively) small elite one. Difficult to comment on size of badge without getting sense of scale on the car but looks fine to me.

Wigzie - that diesel must have been a real enjoyable workhorse. Best of luck with the 250. This wasn't the original theme of this thread but I can concur with blackcts; there is something wrong when average is only 32-35 on runs. I had 3 diesels before moving to hybrid and all were similar in consumption - 36 local journeys and up to 50 on long motorway and A road trips. 300h giving about same but still learning driving tricks or trying to find them!

My best advice to assess how it performs is to put the energy monitor on. Select 'trip information' and watch how car responds to different road conditions and driving style.

I can add my experience to this. After 3 months, there is still lots to learn about driving the hybrid, including the early morning thirst described by James. Last few weeks of cold mornings have been particularly noticeable with rear screen and front demist running. Impact on overall figures depends on how far you have to drive. My normal commute is only 3 miles so average drops to around 38 (similarly to the 200d I replaced). However, if I travel to a different location, over 10 miles away, on a (reasonably) flat route, average will increase by around 20%. If I take an alternative uphill route, that is a different story - worst outcome is down to 36. At the end of the day, the car has a 2.5 lt petrol engine which will be thirsty when pushed. Great car though - and good colour choice James.

My Nokia 520 windows phone has given excellent service via Bluetooth, as has my Nokia 301 work 'brick'. Better connection than I ever had in my previous 220d, which gave intermittent connection and would never allow me to swap phones once set up.

Sounds like you need a few car mags and brochures Bratman to brush your skills. My wife had spotted the Inspector's IS was a 3rd generation but didn't get close enough to assess whether it was hybrid or petrol. May need a few more episodes sadly.

You may have noticed Steve that the FSport display seems to have graphics for everything. It tells you when you move a wiper switch, etc, even though you know from the resultant action that you hit the right switch! I do love the 'fillers' between the seat and console. I was always losing stuff, particularly my mobile, down the gap in the old one. I agree the boot hinges are a backward step from the Mk 2. Presumably done to maintain height of boot with all those batteries underneath so not an easy one for the engineers - or ergonomists - to solve.

Extension of this topic is whether the car we drive changes as we get older. Had my first Lexus (IS diesel) at 54. Now on my 4th (IS hybrid) at 62 and had considered CT. Family told me I am not old enough for that yet and I'm glad they did. Will the 20 something's stick to IS / GS or whatever they drive now?