The Swede

Tried. No reply. :(

I've driven many 911's and it remains a dream car. That being said, I love a car that is hard to drive on the limit. No achievement in driving an Audi RS4, IS-F or a BMW M3.They're just heaps of metal that go fast.

Then again, drove a few heroes that turned out to be big disappointments:

1. Aston Marton DB9. Considered buying one and never been so disappointed by a car. Looks great, but really heavy to drive. A truck is more nimble than a DB9.

2. Mercedes W126. This was THE car when I was a child and since my dad always drove the W123 / W124, the car we'd aspire to. I was always told the W124 was actually a "small S-class". Drove an immaculate 300SE a while ago and was very disappointed. The W124 actually drove much better.

3. Latest disappointment had been the BMW 7 series (F01). As I drive an S myself, but always quite liked the 7, I was really thrilled when Sixt gave me a 740 as renter one week. Turns out that the old principles of "The Merc is the comfortable one and the BMW is the sporty one", doesn't exist anymore. The Merc is way sharper and more nimble to drive that the current airplane carrier of BMW.

There are a whole series of other disappointing cars (M5, BMW X5 35d, Audi R8, etc) but none that were really heroes.

On the other hand, there are still a few cars that absolutely enthuse me when driving them or that were really pleasant surprises. Except for those I owned myself, there is the Range Rover (and RR Sport) TDV8, the 911 C2 (not c4 or C4S), the Citroën DS3 1.6 (150hp), Jag' S-Type 2.5 V6 Sport, Honda Civic Type R (first gen.), Ferrari 348 GTS (also a pig to drive), Focus St 2.5, Merc R320CDi (yup, amazing machine for traveling),

Only had a bit of snow on the mountains between here and Monaco last monday. Only problem I had was slower moving traffic

Bought a Mk2 GS from a forum member and would love to pick up a new set of Lexus mats when picking up the car in the UK.

Looked around on the web and most "tailored mats" suppliers really focus on Chav-mobiles and cheap imitation carpets.

Any tips on who supplies genuine Lexus carpets, or look-a-likes?

The ones we have in the IS are top quality.

One word, when I see the above "thing": CHAV.

There is an entire broadcast about this car of Wheeler Dealers where they sort this problem out. Check it out on Youtube.

Looking at a GS430, but it seems the remote control doesn't close the car anymore.

So worst case, the receiver packed up and I need a new one. (plus keys??).

Any idea on approximate cost?

Thanks for your replies guys!

I cant find any is300s and the few which are out there are priced too damn high!

From what ive read on the forums I thought a pannel filter and exhaust system would give me at least 10-15 extra bhp and better acceleration. So my first step was the exhaust but don't know if a full system is the way to go.

There are actually 2 IS300's for sale on this forum for a price that you will get also from your IS200.

Go and spend £260 on parts for an exhaust, plus a few hundred on labour, and you will have spent one fifth of the price of a good IS300 of the generation of your car...

And you won't get any of the power returns you expect.

Hi, and welcome.

Perfect buy for a lady. Mine absolutely loves her IS300 and has told me I am only allowed to replace it by a GS if it will be as good to drive.

As long as I know, it's got a belt that needs changing every 100000 miles.

As I am detailing the car, I though a set of new numberplates would make it look a bit fresher :)

A potential good solution except that unless I'm mistaken, studded tyres have been banned for use on UK roads since the 1960s.

Easy answer, you're mistaken

They even still sell studdable tyres in the UK. Ask Pirelli.

I passed my MOT on these tyres 2 years ago. And when it was snowing, I was stopped by the police as they didn't understand how I managed to drive at normal speeds as everyone was crawling around. They checked the tyres and were more amazed than bothered.

People just live in the middle ages think studded tyres in 2012 are still the same as in 1960's. They think you can only drive 56mph, that you'll lose the studs, that you cannot drive on dry tarmac, etcetc.

I have driven 150mph with as well my Impreza as with the Evo on these tyres, never lost one.

As said, only inconvenience is that they're a bit more noisy and on dry tarmac, you will not have the same precision as with a good summer tyre.

I would be surprised if anyone would say they did NOT have problems with Lexus alloys

It's a known problem. I am just shocked that it does not seem to have been solved throughout the years. Sure it cannot be that difficult to solve for a company driving so much for perfection.

What is weird, is that it seems to be caused by the wheels themselves. Many of us get their wheels refurbished and... 3 years later, they're flaking again. (might be some of us used the wrong refurb guy)

Actually, I know the Lexus Brand Manager for Europe. I'm gonna drop him a line once to get a reaction on this ongoing problem.

Ian, I have this on my Merc S63 and it's a great thing. Never though I'd actually be using it this much.

It takes getting used to, but in commuting traffic on the motorway, especially on the M25 for instance, it's really practical: the car just follows the one in front and stops and accelerates as he does.

The Merc system works at any speed upto 150mph. I only use it upto 90 ish, afterwards, I wanna be boss myself.

Bends are no problem, don't worry, it takes the steering angle in account.

Overtaking a car is also not a problem, unless you try getting too close before changing lanes. Otherwise, on a motorway, it only looks at whether the guy in the other lane (which you are overtaking) is moving towards your lane. If he doesn't, it keeps going. If he does (risk of him pulling out in front), it slows down.

All in all, it's much more intelligent than I thougt and I'd take it as option any time again.

WOW man! studded tires! that looks sweet :) how much did that cost you if i can ask?

They're not more expensive than normal winter tyres. These were approx £220 per corner new.

In general in UK and western European countries, the winter tyres offered are more for driving in wet weather, cut through standing water, occasionally deal with wet snow.

In Scandinavia, especially the North, you got to cope with ice and snow on all roads (incl motorways) for 6 to 9 months per year. Winter tyres are more "aggressive" but also more noisy.

Mine are the ones I used on my Evo IX which I have in Finland. They were "worn" to pass 450bhp on to icey roads, but work perfectly in the UK or on the snow in the Alps.

Coming for free with my car for the potential buyer ;)

The OEM system has good gas flow, so there will be absolutely no power gain or change in reponsiveness with any system you fit. People will say there are improvements but these are 99% illusory and due to most sytems making more noise or having a sweeter sound.

Very true. The only way to gain power by putting new hardware is to tell the engine map that it can use this new hardware. Otherwise, there is no gain what so ever.

Question now is how to renew since I live in France and not anymore in the UK

I could offer you a solution!

We could of course swap, with you living in Northern Ireland, while I in France.

I would be more than willing to forgo my membership discounts if you would be agreeable to a move :-)

Just had a look at the weather-forecast and temperatures in Northern Ireland and compared the colour of the sea with the one I see from the living room (and the bedroom, and the office :D ) ...

Considering it was 18°C here, I think I'll pay pay full price for my servicing and stick up with the French anyway, but thanks for the offer !

Simple:

1. For the discount you get when servicing (pays immediately for the membership fee)

2. To support the club

Question I got more now is how to renew since I live in France and not anymore in the UK

Question is whether this is the best way to get more power.

If you sell your IS200, you'll fetch similar money for it as for an IS300 of the same age and mileage... You get 70bhp in the swap, loads more torque, an LSD and a few more toys... and you still have an original car ;)

Can't help you with the differences, but they should be easy to pick up from the IS250 forum here.

As to high mileage, I find the IS250's to not age as well as their predecessor IS200/IS300. Bit too much focus on the American market (same goes for the difference between a Mk2 and Mk3 GS in my opinion). Then again, if you go for a high miler, a Lexus is probably the safest bet you have. ... and I am actually a Mercedes fan

Why not save yourself a lot of cash though and get an former model IS300 ? These engines are known to be absolutely bulletproof (still the straight six and not the V6), super smooth and the car ages very very well.

With what you'd pay for an IS300 now, you will lose only few hundred quid over the next 3 years and you will be driving virtually for free.

A 4-5 year old IS250 still fetches £8500-9000 and will plummet to £3000-4000 in 3 years.

My two cent.

Not sure how bad your insurance is, but I pay some £300 for myself and my girlfriend (who's 27) fully comp for the IS300.

I always go via the internet to get the best deal.

That being said, we have a clean "no claims" (touch wood) and clean driving license.

Not sure you will be much better off by buying another car really.

I've seen these as a group buy here few years ago and wanted to get some myself also afterwards, but it looks like sourcing them is really hard. Japan only thing?

im sure in lrts the boot is smaller on the sx

also the saloon has the lsd depending on the spec ie sport....

I thought all saloons were "Sports" by definition. Or did I get that wrong?

I'm not sure if ours is one sport or not even

I am sure if you look in the IS300 Saloon specs you will find the LSD is standard as well ... not an optional extra ;-)

IS300 Saloon Specs here http://lexusownerscl...eet%20IS300.pdf

IS300 SportCross Specs here http://teamlexus.co....t%20IS300SC.pdf

Explains why that car has its rear axle riveted to ground.

im sure in lrts the boot is smaller on the sx

also the saloon has the lsd depending on the spec ie sport....

I thought all saloons were "Sports" by definition. Or did I get that wrong?

I'm not sure if ours is one sport or not even

Dear Tony,

You might be mixing two problems here:

1. Your key is physically broken. I had the same problem and just bought two of these "housings" over the internet and then localised a specialist key cutter to cut the metal part. The only thing I then needed to do was to swap the inside of my broken key and put it into the new housing, which is a 1 minute job.

It does require thought that the housing you buy is the correct one.

Now if your key only has two buttons and the housing has space for 3, you either need to hope the two holes on the new housing will match exactly where your buttons need to go (chances are slim), or you need to source the correct housing with two holes.

2. There is something wrong with the inside part of the key.

A. you seem to miss the Battery. So task 1 is to fit a Battery and try if the fob will open the car from a distance (it should work whether it's in a housing or not). If it does, it's good news, if it doesn't, it means the car doesn't recognise the key and you either need to reprogramme it... or, worst case, it's broken and Lexus needs to sell you a new set of keys.

B. you seem to miss a button making your normal 3-button key look like 2-button one. Normally, even if the plastic "button" is missing, you should still be able to press the sensor and see if that function of the key works. A bit of DIY-ing can help you cut a small piece of plastic to size and make a new button to glue on the sensor. In the end, that's only a mechanical bit.

If you press the area where the button should be and nothing happens, you again have an issue with a key and should go back to the dealer.

Do you actually have two keys with the car?

It does remind everyone you should only buy a car with two keys in good working order as replacements are very expensive.

Back on topic: The IS300 can't be faulted really. Very reliable, comfortable and cheap to run.

The driving experience is nothing like an RX as you sit very low and it feels more like a sporty coupé than a family car.

Question: why getting a SportCross? It doesn't have such a massively bigger boot than a saloon (as the SportCross really has a small boot for an estate) and most people never use the extra bootspace. You'll have a wider choice when choosing and, in my opinion, the saloon look much better.