grantwils

I'm not disagreeing, just making a couple of points. The average annual temperature in the UK is 8.5-11 degrees. The average temp is below 7 degrees everywhere in the UK in winter. So, based on that, pretty much everyone benefits from winter tyres. The experience of negative road holding in summer on winter tyres is an order of magnitude less of an issue than the road holding of summer tyres in winter. So based on that winter tyres all year round is better than summer tyres all year round. Adverse handling of winter tyres in summer would only be experienced if you were making serious progress anyway. I've used winter tyres all year round on a C-class and a V6 Touareg and noticed no difference in wear rates or fuel consumption. I get the same range out tank regardless of what tyres are on them. I was really surprised at the wear rates I got from winters in summer. I haven't done the maths but I'd say the cost of alleged increased fuel consumption would easily be offset by the fact good winter tyres are generally cheaper and certainly by the cost & inconvenience of getting stuck or having a bump or kerbing a rim. All seasons are a compromise in both winter and summer. It's better than using winter tyres in summer and better than summer tyres in winter, but it's also not as good as summer rubber in summer and winter rubber in winter. Best bet is two sets of wheels and tyres if you have space to store them. Winter rubber all year is easily a better idea than summer rubber all year. All seasons are a good idea if you can't have two sets or if you can avoid the more extreme winter conditions. Given that I live at the bottom of a hill in central Scotland and have two kids with underlying health issues we'd choose winter all year over all seasons.

Again, each to their own. But if you can save money and be safer, with less risk of collisions, getting stuck or wheel damage... why would you not?

Fair points except the mushy bit between the ears doesn't help you get up an icy/snowy hill when you're caught out by unexpected snow, doesn't help you get to hospital when the kid is unwell and ambulance can't get to you and doesn't help you avoid hitting the idiot out of control on your side of the road. Winter tyres have proved their worth for me in every one of those situations.

Totally agree with Rich. Ran Vredestein Wintrac Xtreme S all year round on a 262bhp Touareg with no issues at all. Same with TS830Ps on a C-class. Either have two sets of wheels & tyres for summer and winter use or just use all season or winter all year round. It's far more sensible than using summers all year round. Here's some videos but they only show extreme conditions. Massive improvements in safety just when it's cold and wet with no snow or ice is the main reason I use them. The fact that they mean you can go anywhere in snow is just a nice to have. It's often cheaper to run separate winter and summer tyres than it is to use summer tyres all year round too, contrary to popular belief.

Absolutely 100% do it. I run winter tyres on all my cars. On my C200CDI I've been running them since October last year. On my 2015 Touareg 262bhp V6 I ran them from Oct 16 to June 17. In my C200 which is RWD auto I've towed 4WD freelanders and imprezas up hills they couldn't get up despite having 4WD. In my Touareg I towed a fully loaded 2WD 7.5t truck with trailer up a hill that cars couldn't get up. Aside from being an absolute machine in the snow you'll take great comfort in the fact your car will have massive safety improvements in terms of braking and cornering when it's just wet and cold. I wouldn't want my kids being in any car over winter that wasn't wearing winter rubber. I'd much rather they used winter tyres in summer if i couldn't afford 2 sets. Even cheap winter tyres are orders of magnitude better than expensive summer tyres in winter. I generally have 2 sets of wheels as changing rubber is £40 a time so £80/year. A second hand set of OEM wheels can be had for £200 for most cars. I got new OEM VW rims for the VW for the Touareg; 2nd hand Merc rims for £250 for the Merc; and refurbished (diamond cut) Kia rims for the RX for £330. I always go to the smallest diameter wheel which fits over the caliper because tyres are cheaper, comfort improves, and potholes are less damaging. You really won't regret it, and if you do you'll get decent money for the wheels and tyres second hand. Just check if any relevant tyre pressure sensors are included. Sometimes they're not (I've never bothered).

That’s a great help. Thanks for posting! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I've had several V6's which all sounded miles better than the RX350. It's the most disappointing thing about the car! LoL

Hi All We’re just settling in with the 2007 RX350 Ltd Edition and have a few Q’s? 1) is there an Aux port or can I fit one? 2) has anyone done anything to improve the engine sound? It sounds crap for a V6 so I’m thinking of induction kit or exhaust to make it a little bit better, don’t want anything daft though. 3) has anyone done LED interior upgrade and can tell me what bulbs/kits do/don’t cause issues? Thanks all. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Full winters are more appropriate year round for most cars on UK roads than full summers, certainly for 4x4/SUV types. I'm surprised RAC/AA/IAM haven't campaigned for cars to be shipped with, at least, All Seasons in the UK for road safety reasons. Less people would get stuck, less people would have accidents and the country wouldn't come to a standstill as easily as it does. I was surprised at how well my Vredestein winters stood up to the heat of summer, despite getting thrashed occasionally with 262bhp and a shedload of torque on a 2 ton car. In winter 2016 I towed a stuck, fully loaded, 7.5t truck with a heavy trailer up a slope in heavy snow to unblock a main road. Even other 4x4s with summer tyres were stuck and they didn't have a 7.5t truck and trailer to tow. I was blown away by the performance of the Vreds in snow. Even without snow or ice on just wet, cold, greasy roundabouts they still got a huge amount more power down than the tyres that came on the car.

You’d be crazy to go with summer tyres. Go all season or full winter. Unless you’re driving it like you stole it you’ll never get any benefit of summers. I ran Vredestein wintrac Xtreme S on my 2015 Touareg. If I didn’t have 7mm on 4 corners on the RX I just bought I’d be putting the Vreds on it too. Just so happens my wheels and winters from my other car will fit the RX too so I’ve got winter and summer wheels with winter and summer rubber too. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks guys. We're doing a road trip with the sprogs (1 & 2) from Glasgow to Sheffield on Saturday then staying with friends in Lancaster to split the journey. I know it's sacrilege but I'm extremely tempted to stick an induction kit on it to make the most of that V6 sound. What other subtle mods are people doing? LED lighting, side steps, etc? Does the DVD changer on these play videos or just MP3s off a DVD? If it does play movies is there an output to enable playback for the kids in the rear seats? Is there anything I should know or be double checking on the car before we finally sign? We have only seen pictures and are trusting that since it's a main dealer they're not going to be sneaky about anything. Are they all four wheel drive? Rayaan, do I recognise you from DW?

Well, after 4 years without a Lexus we're back in the club with an RX350 if all goes to plan. I've put a deposit down on this badboy http://sheffield.usedcars.lexus.co.uk/en/used-lexus/Lexus/RX-350/35-Limited-Edition-r1bkgtj I couldn't see past 10 Lexus main dealer service stamps and main dealer warranty. I've not seen it in the flesh though. We chopped the IS200 in for an SLK280 in 2013, that turned out to be a (leaking) lemon and went the same way as my IS200 with electrical gremlins caused by water ingress. Merc took it back and we got a C200 CDI (guess who's got 2 kids now) which we've still got. We had a new Touareg R-line 262bhp for a couple of years on a lease which was replaced with a new Infiniti Q30S in June. The Q30S spent almost as much time in the garage for repairs as it did on the road and was finally bought back by the dealer for a full refund. We very nearly bought a Mini Countryman Cooper S Chilli on a lease but, after contemplating the bangernomics model and looking at X5's, Range Rovers I came across a 2007 RX350 from a local dealer for £5k. It had no history and the guy sounded rough as hell on the phone.A quick check on the Lexus used car website brought up the RX350 at Sheffield with a full Lexus service history and main dealer warranty. It was nearly 50% more expensive but the history and warranty was worth the premium in my opinion. It's for the Mrs and will only do around 5000 miles a year. She likes the height of a 4x4, she wanted auto and heated seats, I wanted memory seats because she's 5'5 and i'm 5'11, I have gorilla arms and she's stumpy. She doesn't like less than 6 cylinders (4 is OK if it's turbo'd) and she likes at least 200bhp. I can't think of any other car that would come close to what we're getting with the RX. I've got a set of Kia winter wheels with winter rubber which were bought for the Infiniti but will fit the RX so it'll be a monster in the snow (we're at the bottom of a hill in Scotland a bit off the beaten track). Will need spigot rings though as centre bore is 7mm bigger on Kia rims. Does anyone want to swap a cream interior for a black one? How easy is it to fit rear screens to this for the kids?

Well, after 4 years without a Lexus we're back in the club with an RX350 if all goes to plan. I've put a deposit down on this badboy http://sheffield.usedcars.lexus.co.uk/en/used-lexus/Lexus/RX-350/35-Limited-Edition-r1bkgtj I couldn't see past 10 Lexus main dealer service stamps and main dealer warranty. I've not seen it in the flesh though. We chopped the IS200 in for an SLK280 in 2013, that turned out to be a (leaking) lemon and went the same way as my IS200 with electrical gremlins caused by water ingress. Merc took it back and we got a C200 CDI (guess who's got 2 kids now) which we've still got. We had a new Touareg R-line 262bhp for a couple of years on a lease which was replaced with a new Infiniti Q30S in June. The Q30S spent almost as much time in the garage for repairs as it did on the road and was finally bought back by the dealer for a full refund. We very nearly bought a Mini Countryman Cooper S Chilli on a lease but, after contemplating the bangernomics model and looking at X5's, Range Rovers I came across a 2007 RX350 from a local dealer for £5k. It had no history and the guy sounded rough as hell on the phone.A quick check on the Lexus used car website brought up the RX350 at Sheffield with a full Lexus service history and main dealer warranty. It was nearly 50% more expensive but the history and warranty was worth the premium in my opinion. It's for the Mrs and will only do around 5000 miles a year. She likes the height of a 4x4, she wanted auto and heated seats, I wanted memory seats because she's 5'5 and i'm 5'11, I have gorilla arms and she's stumpy. She doesn't like less than 6 cylinders (4 is OK if it's turbo'd) and she likes at least 200bhp. I can't think of any other car that would come close to what we're getting with the RX. I've got a set of Kia winter wheels with winter rubber which were bought for the Infiniti but will fit the RX so it'll be a monster in the snow (we're at the bottom of a hill in Scotland a bit off the beaten track). Will need spigot rings though as centre bore is 7mm bigger on Kia rims. Does anyone want to swap a cream interior for a black one? How easy is it to fit rear screens to this for the kids?

Well... after just over 3 years of IS200 ownership we've decided to chop it in for something with a bit more... I'd like to take this opportunity to thank the users and moderators of this forum who have provided lots of valuable advice - probably more than I contributed in return. I'd do it all again but I'd go for a manual with the dark interior rather than the auto with cream interior. The new steed has 230BHP and 300NM of 3ltr Merc V6 and only 2 seats... so I don't think I'll be on here much in future. Thanks everyone!

Thanks all. I'm thinking about the Alpine W530BT which has everything we need including Parrot Bluetooth and dual zone video so we can watch TV in front and headrest units (when fitted) can watch a video with headphones. All for £335 including bypass leads and facia/fitting kit.

Hi all I'm fitting an aftermarket stereo to my IS200. I'm just trying to get some ideas. I don't want to spend more than £300 including the extra cables etc... That's assuming I can use the existing speakers after bypassing the amp. Ideally I want bluetooth but might just fit a Parrot CK3100 at the same time as they're easy to fit and use. I don't want to over complicate things. Please feel free to share your pics and experiences. I can't work out if single din will look naf or not...

Thanks both for your replies. I've had all the boot liners/carpets out. The three gromits in the wheel well are fine as are the ones in each side well. I've spent some time today fiddling with the boot seal which was definitely at least partly to blame. Seems to have improved a bit but only time will tell. I'll take the time to re-seal the flaps you both mention. The car has been off the road for 4 months and was parked facing uphill which I don't think has helped!

Hi All I'm still persevering with my IS200 but every time I think I've got it sorted I find another issue needing dealt with. I recently found a small amount of water in the spare wheel well. When I checked in daylight I found both side compartments (where the jack goes and on the other side) were FULL of water. There must have been 2-3 litres in each side at least. I'm assuming this isn't normal but there are some strange flaps in each compartment that seem to be letting water in. Does anyone know what these flaps are for? Stupid question but is it normal to have water in this bit of the car? The sunroof is draining fine so it's not coming from there but the boot seal seems to be letting water in. I don't want to spunk £80+VAT on a boot seal if I'm not 100% sure it's the only problem. I don't see the point in buying a boot seal from a breaker either. I have removed, cleaned and refitted the boot seal in a couple of positions but it just seems to move the leak around. I'd recommend you check your next time you're in the boot. Is it happening to your car? Any ideas how to fix this? Regards Grant

Another update on this... I had condensation issues and had removed all sorts of interior trim looking for a leak which I never found. A couple of weeks ago I replaced the cabin filter (less than 5 mins, less then £15, easier than changing a bulb) and condensation issue is gone. I suspect knackered old cabin filter contributed to or caused this issue which resulted in condensation dripping into electrics in footwells causing headlight issues.

Hi Grantwils, i had the same issue with my car, the car leaked prior to my ownership however they got a sparky in who bypassed everything and the result was the loss of the Auto Lights. I seriously recommend you read my thread to make sure you haven't been left with the same dangerous bypass. Linky I think I'll be checking this weekend!

any more info on how to do this please jay?

update... Autospark has sorted it. Not sure how but there's no auto-lights any more.

my 2001 S200SE is in the auto-sparkies place. HLC relay and Theft Deterrent ECU were changed but this made no difference... Will update soon...

That's what I thought but when I unplugged the theft deterrant ECU the relay still buzzed away.

It could be the dreaded water in the electrics that a lot of people seem to be experiencing at the moment (including me). Check out the threads related to headlights. If you can't check it yourself you're going to have to pay an autospark but it seems that it can be so random/intermittent that they might never get to the bottom of it properly.