rayaans

Less tax. They pay 10% sales tax and no VAT whereas we pay 20% VAT on cars. I think we have more import duties too. Also, because Lexus sells sooo many cars in the US they can afford to sell them cheaper - sort of like more volume = more profit (even though profit on 1 unit is less)

My IS is 3 stage pearlescent mesa red I doubt a decent bodyshop would prep & spray it for £120!! The smart repair would have been nice finish he just didnt prep it properly. Doesn't matter. Paint cost is pretty much the same anyway regardless

Id say - Wash and sealant - wax won't last too long, sealants are generally better for the winter. Alloy wheel protection - again a sealant is best Clean the arches thoroughly and seal them too with a sealant/protector depending on material Make sure you dont leave parking brake on in freezing conditions after travelling in rain/snow- mine froze lol - needed a tow to Lexus to get it off.

i got my whole rear end resprayed and dent removal after I backed into a low wall which parking sensors didn't pick up on my RX300 for £120?!

Ideally, if you want to make your job easier, just tell them to remove the stickers and transport wax but don't put it through the valet. Itll make polishing much easier, you may not even have to do it lol

Apparently polishing will affect it - the only thing you "should" use according to the handbook is something non-abrasive like Autoglym SRP. However, having said that, you can get polishes which are self-healing paint recommended and they work well. BUT - I used a normal polish - Sonax Perfect Finish which is very good for all Lexus paint and it was fine so frankly, the Self-healing paint is a bit of a marketing gimmick. It may heal very minor swirls but you'd never notice. Waxing will not affect it as wax is non-abrasive

I cleaned the Dark Rose leather with Gliptone as it wasnt very dirty. However, I noticed that the MF cloth had pinky red parts on it after using the MF to remove the cleaner. The thing is, when the cleaner is removed, the whole seat was fine - there were no faded bit or anything like that so I'm just wondering why its doing this I wonder if the cleaner is getting into perforations and then the dye is coming out of the perforations? Odd, as the seat looks brand new now!

Its very similiar to Autosmart Highstyle that one, just way more expensive. The dealers use Autosmart Highstyle, I managed to get a 5L tub off my Autosmart rep for £20 which would only get you 2 bottles of Megs Endurance. Ive found that using a brush is the leading cause of splatter (the way the dealers do it). It basically overloads the tyre and it has nowhere to go but on your paint. I use a small sponge piece to wipe it around the tyre and then give a quick wipe with MF to reduce the chance of any splatter. Definitely works for me anyway

I'd expect it to sell more than the V6 due to lower tax and claimed mpg. We all know it'll probably get the same in town although with 8 gears it should be good on the motorway

Well yes which is why it will be a lot quicker and livelier. The 250 had 260nm and it was adequate, we're talking 350 nm now hehe!!

Its actually 1s slower than 0-62mph! :P However, the car has some serious grunt - 350nm of it in fact! Thats about the same as the IS350 so it'll definitely be a hoot to drive. HP doesn't really matter as its what "holds" speed. In the real world, torque is what you want to be looking at. TBF the 0-62mph time is conservative like I mentioned. How can the NX get to 62mph with more weight and a slower transmission (Autoexpress got the NX to be 6.8s! btw). Id bet a badger itd hit 62mph in 6.5s!

imho yes as its vunerable, the bumper certainly is as the (not so) Smart repair technician noticed yesterday. The part of the rear door that has it applied is also vulnerable maybe that's why Lexus specified it. Ed Maybe it is but I can't see how much as it only really sticks out 2cm or so on each side from the rest of the car when you look at width. However, having said that this is my wife's car so essentially, it is being used mainly in town and for school runs/shopping etc - therefore, its very very very unlikely to get a stone chip there!

LOL does it matter? Its a forum run by Yobbos for other Yobbos, obviously its going to get nasty when you start talking about other vehicles on a Mercedes forum, they think its the best car in the world Starting a thread about another car manufacturer in a brand forum is just asking for trouble - i'm THAT trouble. Actually they natter about other marques a lot in there, and most of them appreciate there are differences and not always in MB favour, they even have a "defectors" thread. Anyway, it doesn't make this forum look very good.........trouble is as trouble does......... and I have no idea what that means Aah well its all done now anyway ha!

LOL does it matter? Its a forum run by Yobbos for other Yobbos, obviously its going to get nasty when you start talking about other vehicles on a Mercedes forum, they think its the best car in the world Starting a thread about another car manufacturer in a brand forum is just asking for trouble - i'm THAT trouble.

Ive got 2 white cars - Ill be honest, ive never had any splatter from any tyre product! The only splatter comes from water running over the surface and then hitting the car but that happens on every product ive tried. Ive stuck to Autosmart Highstyle - only need to use a bit and no splatter at all

Surely they should have just stick a strip on the bonnet then? *bangs head against wall*

My reply was also perfectly balanced. Merc make very good use of cost cutting photocopier designs, as do Audi and BMW now. Atleast Lexus has still got different looks to the front and rear. Swapping a Merc over to an IS sure shows how pathetic the Merc was when its supposed to be "premium". Only see old folk twice my age driving them now too

May have been moved since it wasn't actually about the IS?

Nah mate. Have you seen the new Merc GLE coupe? That's the definition of ugly lol. What about the B class, that's not pretty. Mercs just slapping the exact same front and rear to every car they make. Take a look at GLE Coupe, S Class coupe, new C Class coupe, S Class and C Class WTF.

You can have a badger for £5 lol

Lexus LS. Only problems is that it uses cheap switchgear found in the 2nd gen RX. Also it's bloody mahoosive and drinks loads of fuel

Stone chips on the bumper will not rust the part of the door protected by the film will. No car manufacturer fits things that are not required. Ed The whole car has a primer underneath it. The stone needs to penetrate the clear coat, base coat and the primer. Very unlikely. In 20 years of owning cars, not one has rusted on the doors

And opening pan roof is £1295

The advance gets the basic nav system which has 6 speakers. Remote dial is the rotary knob mate. The Premium navigation is the remote touch controller

I was told 4 claims BUT each tyre is counted as a claim! BTW when it comes to paying time, your insurance will wriggle out of it and cause great frustration - like they all do!