Jan_

Here's my unbiased opinion :D According to the technical specifications - the saloon has boot capacity of 400 litres compared with 343 litres on the Sportcross (with the seats up). However with the Sportcross, you can probably load 'bulkier' items because of the higher roof line in the boot. Plus you've got the flexibility of the rear split seats - and the front passenger seat folds down for long loads too! :) A hatchback is probably a more accurate description of the Sportcross as opposed to an estate. Took an IS200 Sportcross for a test drive - and was shocked at the handling!! Expecting it to drive like a "fat man's cruiser" it handled corners not far off my old nippy VW Polo 16v I was trading in. Surprisingly - I never test drove the saloon version the boot was too small / inflexible for me My only gripe I have with the IS200 Sportcross is that it comes with 16" wheels Doesn't make sense to me because it has all the other 'Sport' extras - even the SE gets 17" wheels as standard. .... Oh and it could do with an extra 30 Bhp for a bit more grunt.... other than that I'm happy :D

The first time I tried Shell Optimax, it was mixed with half a tank of Tesco's petrol.... got 350+ miles from a full tank. 50/50 Motorways and heavy traffic.... I think this figure compares well with what I've read from other IS200 owners. I think it makes the car a little more responsive... although the engine maybe starting to loosen up (only done 1200 miles so far). However - it definitely makes the engine sound / run smoother. Shell's main website sends you on a wild goose chase if you want to locate a garage selling Optimax :iraqi-info-minister: :winky: Here's the Optimax Garage locater!!! www.shellstation.biz

The clutch pedal problem you describe sounds exactly like the one I had. The dealer said it was the carpet mats, I wasn't convinced but didn't care because the car was less than a week old and they fixed it! I noticed that if I applied sideways pressure (to the left) when I released the pedal, the 'click' disappeared. So I personally think it was a case of tightening / adjusting something on the pedal mechanism itself (I hope)!! :D

Had exactly the same problem with my new IS200 SportX.... I also noticed the clicking feeling / noise disappeared if I released the clutch with side-wise pressure - not a very comfortable way to drive! Took it back to the dealer and they sorted it out while I waited. They said it was the carpet mats catching the pedal; and they'd adjusted it. Call me cynical but when I looked at the clutch pedal before (sticking my head in the footwell and pushing it with my hand) I couldn't see anything catching on it. I agree with UKPulse, if you're going to dig into your pockets - get the dealer to fix it first. I drove my car with this problem for 4 days and it's very, very irratating!!!