Steve_L

Interesting topic as I am in same process of replacement. Having driven company cars for 20 years, I had no idea there were so many good tyre offers out there. Had SP Sport and Pilot fitted to last IS220. Both were fine but cost high. I had raised the topic on the Wheels and Tyres pages and had useful feedback, including pointing me to Camskill, Event and others. Based on various reviews, I decided to go for Falken FK452, which Mytyres do for under £60 + fitting and have lots of local fitters. Only just under 3mm - all round after 15,500 miles - so have put off the replacement for a month.

Thanks to advice received, I have now placed an order - for 4 tyres as the back are ready to go too at 15,500 miles. Ordered Falken as well, but the FK452's. Mytyres quote best (and they had a local garage for fitting), but another contact has done them for almost same price - £70 inc each. Will report experience in due course. Cheers

As posted elsewhere, the choice is very personal and depends on your key criteria and usage. You asked for 220 views, so here are mine. My criteria were good performance whilst still getting good consumption when I ordered my first 220 on company lease in 2006. It gave great performance (compared with my previous cars, which have been diesel for nearly 20 years) but consumption was disappointing - only crept to c. 40 general driving by time I got to 40k miles but varied between 42 and 47 on long motorway and A road runs from the start. Never thought that 6th gear was a problem like some do and really loved the car. At end of 3 years, I had to purchase a replacement myself. 220d was still high on the list and I chose a 6 month old 09 SE from the Approved Used demonstrator stock in preference to tough competition. I have not regretted it, even though the consumption only showed improvements (as claimed by Lexus) on long runs - up to 50. That was until a month ago at c. 14k miles. It now does over 40 general driving and just returned over 50 on a 200 mile mainly motorway run from Derbyshire to south Wales averaging about 70 mph with stretches somewhat higher. Pulls great from 70 in 6th gear as well. Pic shows read out - by the way mileage was from full tank and still over 1/4 left. I may be an exception, but it is a cracking car and I would recommend it from a cost perspective compared to the 250. By the way, my consumption is using Total Excellium fuel, which I find better than others. Best of luck with the decision.

Hi James My 09 model mists up at the back in wet weather but I can't figure out why either - no leaks found. My old one didn't do this so seems to be some change to the air circulation in latest model. Demist with aircon on and rear vents open seems to work best to clear. I'll be interested in a solution as well.

Welcome to the club from another contented 22O driver. I'm on my second; the first being a company car that ran great for 45k miles over 3 years and the second bought with my own money (well Lexus Finance but they'll get it all back). The first one got better on fuel with age and this one is doing the same (only 14k to date), so stick with it. Long motorway runs should give you 45mpg +, it's the town driving that gets thirsty. I believe all recall work should be registered on Lexus central database so your local dealer should be able to give you details, assuming it has been serviced at a main dealer. Enjoy it.

Hi James Variability seems to be the norm with this engine. I'm on my second one. 56 plate was averaging around 38 before it went back at 45k miles, but would do 44/45 on long motorway runs. Current 09 plate with 14 k on clock will do 50 on long motorway (2k revs max) and reasonably clear A road runs, but round town, with lots of stop start and a few hills, will only do 38ish. Been using Total Excellium fuel. That does give me better mpg, especially on runs. Seems yours could need a check to ensure settings are all ok.

Welcome Benc. After falling in love with my first 220 (which I had for 3 years), it was difficult to look at others. I was buying this one with hard earned money so I had to look. Conclusion was that the sums for others didn't stack up and, as some have said, too many variations. Furthermore, BMW, Merc and Audi all have grand ideas about the price of their demonstrators. My 6 month old purchase was a few grand less than same age with others - even though they are really common. My wife really made the difference though when she told me how good she felt as a Lexus passenger (she doesn't drive). She still feels the same even though I bought a Cadoxton instead of the Brechin I had before. Enjoy the car.

Thanks Tango and others. I'm with you in thinking that modern engines shouldn't need 'super fuels', but the marketing blurb is compelling in some ways. With all the talk about the EGR valve on the 220 sooting up, I just wondered whether these fuels would give any benefit to keeping that clean. The extra cost of Techron (7p per litre) adds about £80 to the cost of fuel per 10,000 miles, which to some may be a small price to pay for the placebo effect of 'better performance'. My preference is for tangible benefits (like better consumption), which is why I will keep stopping at my local garage to fill up with Excellium. If I need to fill up when near a Shell station, then perhaps I will try the V-Power. Cheers

Thank you E910 for taking the time to reply. I take it that the answer to the question in my post is "LOC time has no official status". lol

Just spotted that the posts are being timed at GMT and not BST. Not a major issue but can I use LOC time when I'm late for a meeting??

Tried this on General Forum but no 'traffic' there so trying again here. Has anyone had experience – good or bad – with the ‘new’ enhanced fuels? I had used Total Excellium in my last IS220 and found improvement in fuel consumption exceeded the c.4% penalty on cost. However, cost differential has gone up from 4p to 6p per litre, which makes it marginal on economy but does it have other benefits? I still use it though. Same goes for Texaco Techron, except that experience from the one tank I have used to date suggests there is no benefit on economy (which Texaco don’t claim it will) but a heavy 7p per litre penalty means it needs to give good benefits elsewhere. Does it really do what it says? Would it have any effect on the EGR valve? Does the IS220 need a fuel that cleans the engine? I can do the maths on economy and cost benefit but can’t be certain on the techie bit. I'm sure some of you out there will have an answer. Cheers

Hope you don't mind a 220 owner coming in. I used Maguiars Gold Class Shampoo (and Polish) on last car and thought it was great. However, I had some Showroom Shine for Xmas and now use that instead. Cleans and waxes in one go. Other exchanges about waterless cleaners talked about scratching paintwork but I find it gives a superb finish with no blemishes.

Interesting to see this getting positive. 2 x 150 mile run on A roads last week (with some town and traffic holdups) saw a return of 45 + and I don't drive like Daisy either (no point having a 177 output Lexus if I did). Been managing 40ish on local driving since. I put post on general forum last week about enhanced fuels. My figures are with Excellium, which I find gives better return than standard. Any other experience - with Total, Texaco or others?

Thanks Kam I did a bit of research after posting my request yesterday. Neither Event nor Blackcircles covers my home area, but prices at mytyres or etyres or tyresfitdirect looked good. Even had Yokohama C (at etyres I think) for less than I was quoted for Michelin at ATS (who I have used for 6 years for my lease cars). Don't know much about Yokohama though. Perhaps trueblue would benefit from having a look at these mobile fitting sites. Any other 220 drivers with experience on tyre wear? Is 14000 miles about average?

Has anyone had experience – good or bad – with the ‘new’ enhanced fuels? I had used Total Excellium in my last IS220 and found improvement in fuel consumption exceeded the c.4% penalty on cost. However, cost differential has gone up from 4p to 6p per litre, which makes it marginal on economy but does it have other benefits? I still use it though. Same goes for Texaco Techron, except that experience from the one tank I have used to date suggests there is no benefit on economy (which Texaco don’t claim it will) but a heavy 7p per litre penalty means it needs to give good benefits elsewhere. Does it really do what it says? Would it have any effect on the EGR valve? Does the IS220 need a fuel that cleans the engine? I can do the maths on economy and cost benefit but can’t be certain on the techie bit. I'm sure some of you out there will have an answer. Cheers

If I remember what the manual says correctly, the 'range' is recalculated frequently to reflect the consumption being achieved over most recent driving. However, in reality it is a bit of a mystery that I have not yet fathomed out and just accept it as an approximate guide for when I need to fill up. The real 'guide' for fuel consumption is that shown by the tank and trip average. I can well believe that Mondeo man (and VW/Audi man and Honda man and ...) sees a range of > 1000km on the computer and achieves somewhere close to it.

Hi all. There must be a discussion on this topic somewhere on this site but I have not seen one since joining, so forgive me if I am repeating. My IS220 will need front tyres soon – c. 14k miles – and prices for the replacement with Potenza's fitted at new seem to be rather high. Wondered if anyone has good experience with the other makes - in terms of price and wear - and a good supplier. By the way, my last 220 was reshod with Dunlop (SP I think) at request of lease company. They gave about same mileage.

As Harrydavy has said, this thread will just keep running because the Lexus Diesel will disappoint on mpg compared to Audi/VW, Honda, etc. It does have other qualities, but the biggest problem it raises for me is that there is so much variability, which Lexus UK will not address. My 09MY is a self purchased replacement for a 56 plate leased model. As a result, I was aware I would not get the claimed mpg from the car. Old one did 36-38 average with up to 48 on long motorway run. The expectation was that the advertising blurb for 'retuned' model was correct and I could expect an improvement of over 10%. Well I have for motorway runs (bettered 50 on one run) but I don't do enough of those. Urban use is the killer and I reckon the official urban figure should be nearer 30 than 39.8. As a result, average still remains about 38 but with 13000 on clock now, my last 2 tanks have improved slightly. I will continue to track. When I raised the average with my dealer at 10k service, his attitude was that 38 average is good! Hence, not interested in doing anything.

Hi MeoL (and other guys) Just come back to see how the decision is going. If you've submitted that list to your employer, then decision perhaps out of your hands now, but good to know the IS is still there. You seem to have accounted for the 2 main factors I detect from your posts - comfort and economy. On the first, I agree that comfort excellent for driver. The 09 model I have now is even more comfortable than the 56 I had before, no matter what the length of journey or road type. With regard to economy, you seem to do a lot of distance. In my experience, that is the IS's strength. The new one is much better on motorway journeys - I set 2k revs as my max and usually get 48 - 50 mpg (43-45 on old one). I'd be happy with that if I did decent runs all the time. The killer is stop-start in urban driving. As a result, there is no overall improvement from a full tank. Never been as low as 28 though! I have never had any of the horrendous problems suffered by Motorped and a few others. I can understand them going elsewhere. Nearly forgot to say it still looks great on my drive, especially after a Showroom Shine wash today - but that's another topic. Cheers

Hi YouofLeeds! MeofWakefield but been living in exile in south Wales for nearly 40 years - yes I am old enough for a Merc and nearly bought one as an outcome of the same agonys as you are going through. For me, I had to consider the overall cost as I was buying for first time in 20 years. The Lexus was the only marque I could get a good deal on - 6 month old 09MY 220dSE (the new 'base model') and (strangely) it was the only one my family felt comfortable in - even though rear room is not that good. A few prompts from my thinking - fuel consumption improved? - I am still disappointed that the claims have not materialised. Achieved a trip return of c. 50mpg on 200 mile motorway run, but urban consumption is around 30 by my reckoning and I tend to get 36 ish from each tank - not good enough really. Hence, great as motorway car performance good - don't really use the 177 bhp to full potential but when I do it is always responsive excellent spec - got everything I need without picking from long list of costly extras (although I understand Lexus are cutting back). No sat nav or MM for me but then I am a simple sole who likes to feel I don't get lost and extra quality hi-fi is for the home a pig in the snow - yes it is still but then most rear wheel drives are. I can cope with it once a year - well third time for us now this winter looks good - personal taste but I do love the styling Best of luck with your decision.

No idea what causes it as my dealer said there was nothing wrong when I complained about my 06 model. Sounded and felt like I was driving over a brick (ok perhaps a pebble)when it happened. New model - 09 MY - has not had the problem - yet. Hope she doesn't worry about it too much.

ormi,i have never had to top up my oil. My assessment from colleagues with the full range of 220's is that it was the Sport model that had oil problem. Others were ok. Always worth keeping up the regular check though.

Seems ages since my last post but still the widely differing experiences come in. Thanks guys. I said I would feedback after my 10k service. I specifically mentioned there was no improvement in consumption despite claims. Outcome is .... no change. Still doing around 35 mainly urban. HOWEVER, the pleasing news is that I did 2 long motorway runs before the service. One over 200 miles, the other 80+ miles. Achieved over 50 mpg - yes 50 - on both. Kept revs below 2000 but still averaged over 70 mph. As soon as I started local mileage again, down came the consumption. Other pleasures include - it performs to its 178bhp (if I want it to), it has not let me down and it looks far better on my drive than the BMW 3 ever could (personal taste I know). Toppa33 - I'm with you as your suggestion about Lexus taking note is exactly what I was looking for when I restarted this topic. Surely Lexus UK would take note if enough of us questioned the accuracy of their claims. I for one have enough evidence to show that the 09 MY does not perform better than the 06 MY. Perhaps they took an old engine off the shelf in the factory when they built mine???? Happy motoring

Hi Toppa. Welcome. No problem with your decision. I have recently taken possession of my second 220 - a 2009SE. Still monitoring whether Lexus have made the improvements claimed and trying to get feedback from others. Is yours a 2009 model or earlier?

Didn't expect to start a philosophical debate about the merits of diesel technology and Lexus' commitment to improving their status in the green revolution! But thanks for the contributions. Sorry to hear about your troubles Monsterped. My concerns pale into insignificance against that but I had a genuine expectation of improved fuel consumption compared to that for the 47,000 miles of my first 220d, which I was obviously happy with otherwise I would not have bought one. 2 points come to mind in response to the 'philosophy'. First, it is difficult to understand how Lexus fail where others - e.g. VW/Audi and Mercedes - go from strength to strength with their diesel engines. [i nearly bought a C Class because of the superior 'official' (and probably real) figures]. Secondly, I have to resign myself to the 220d being a thirsty animal in town and around the hills of South Wales. Still love it and pleased to have it sitting on my drive waiting to prove me wrong - probably on the next motorway run. If anyone is still interested, I will provide feedback after the service booked for early December. Cheers