darkoracle

Pollen filter may be the problem. Also if the filiter has in some way been contaminated by water/vapour, it could be growing cultures/mould and that's not good. When the filter is changed ask them to inspect it for anything out of the ordinary, like sponging or growth. If they do find something, you need to flag up the odour issue and ask them to investigate. My IS250 has a neutral air smell, so this is definitely not normal.

Geoff, I can't give you a comparison in terms of the 220d, but I have an IS250 Advance. You don't say what year/mileage you are looking to get but the Advance gives you a good spec. You can get the advance with either HDD or Disk set navigation - go for the HDD if you can find one. The petrol V6 gives me good acceleration, but then I'm not exactly a youngster and I use that for smart overtaking, rather than for screaming away from the lights. I'm someone who likes sedate and comfortable driving, rather than the thrill of a rally-type excursion. Multimedia - USB, MP3 sockets a decent sound system with 13 speakers, 6 CD auto-changer etc. Some come with 18 inch alloys- mine has 17. Nice smooth auto-gearbox. Mine has manually adjusted steering wheel and although it has heated front seats, they are not the perforated type that I think the SE-L has. No wood inside, no memory seat adjustment but other than that I think the comparison of fitment is good.

I was looking for refinement at a good price. I've had Mercs in the past, but the level of fitment within is not up to the Lexus, or at least you would have to pay for it as extras. They are also not as well known (generally by the public) as Mercs and BMWs and I like that anonimity. This is my first Lexus (IS250 Advance, now had it two months) - Would I buy another? Too early to say, but I make the following observations. Electric everything:- This always seems good at the time, but when you have set the seats once and you are the only driver, those motors will never get used again until the next owner. Electric windows are nearly standard in many mid-range cars. Voice activation:- Again seems great at the time until you realise it doesn't always work well and you end up just pressing the buttons. Sat Nav:- Brilliant, but again becoming standard in many mid-range cars. Leather:- Yes, definitely worth it. Heated front seats:- Yes (from my wife), but I already have these in my Freelander. Comfort:- Quite impressive, though I don't like the firmer ride - much prefer the gliding feel of the Merc (E class). Sound system:- Excellent - and love the USB slot which holds as many tracks as you are likely to want. Engine/Auto box:- Smooth and enough power and torque for me. (Beats the Merc's straight four). - alhough the top gear in the auto range is never engaged - so not sure what's going on there. Security:- Brilliant - though would have liked the auto-locking mechanism, when the car is left unattended for n minutes. General Build quality:- So far seems excellent. Economy:- Well we don't buy these cars to do 80mpg do we? Cost of upkeep:- Same applies really. If you buy any top lane car you have to expect higher costs. Dealership care:- Not too impressed (my experience so far), though I've read many heart warming tales on LOC forums. The advertised spec. for mine was inaccurate and I found many inconsistencies. Once they had my money, it was difficult to get anyone to take an interest in my follow-up points.

Has anyone used the rotary type brushes for alloys on their beloved Lexus? I have seen a couple of them advertised - Water powered (from the water hose pressure), Battery operated and cordless drill accessory. I think that I would rule out the cordless drill accessory as it might be a tad aggresive. I'd love to hear of anyone using either of the others and their reviews.

Oh No - don't stop now. Paul's rational and adult comments shouldn't be allowed to kill this. I am one of those 'kids that enjoy bickering about the weather', though coming up to my 65th birthday. The whole point of this thread is that Neal (Oh and thanks Neal for this), infers initially that his service book will be stamped with an 'official' Lexus stamp while doing the servicing himself. I know that he's changed his story somewhat since that opening gambit, but if we stick with those first statements, we all know that this is action is highly dubious. (And I am being very kind when I use that phrase.) If nothing else it has taught me an amazing lesson. When the time comes to change my lovely Lexus I will insist on an electronic check against all the service history on my replacement car.

I looked at GM myself and couldn't see any earth shattering advantages. Insurance discounts would have to be pretty special with so many comparison sites around. Selling my car for free? Not just yet, only had it a couple of months. Hopefully I won't be needing spare parts either with the warranty still a way to go. The membership pack sounds a riot but I'm still not tempted. Perhaps the benefits are not being given a high enough profile; the overview given in the link is not the most glowing or product packed. Would I get special free invites to launches or special treatment at a Lexus dealership? Are there free/discounted tickets to any classic car meets. Discounts on sevicing at a Lexus dealership or at a Valeting company? For me a membership to any club has to be something more than just having the word gold in the name. I'm not knocking it, each to their own, but I remember getting one of those gold prestige charge cards and paying for the privilage. After a month of showing it around I was bored with it and realised I was paying eighty quid to service my own vanity, and didn't renew. There were very few benefits, other than flashing it around - or hiding it when I saw a Platinum card holder!! I'd love to hear from any GM with any benefits that I'm not aware of - or do I need the secret handshake to find that out?

No offence taken Stefan. Essentially much of what you wrote is true, though perhaps written with a little too much passion. No browser or hardware architecture is 100% and each has its merits. Through my experience I am never complacent about any software installed on my hardware. I have a full Internet and virus application that continually watches for any anomalies. I also have another application that scans every web page that I access which detects dangerous scripts and Trojans. I close down my computer with another application that thoroughly destroys all traces of browsing – and I don’t mean delete the traces, I do mean destroy! So many people think when they delete something that it is gone, not so, it’s just flagged as no longer used – it’s still on your computer. I have a separate programme that specifically protects my passwords and my central core operating system security. This is all on top of the standard firewall that I have on my router and server. There will be some out there that will call me paranoid, but as someone once said, ‘It’s not paranoid if someone IS really after you.’ Interestingly Google Chrome is the biggest culprit for snooping as it now stores your browsing records on its own servers and not locally. This means that you can no longer control what happens to it. If you believe Google they say by checking a box in the settings this will not happen – really?

Thanks for the advice Stefan: I do have chrome and its fine with that. I also have 30 years experience in programming, database design and development. I've worked on PCs, Macs, mainframes, Unix boxes and Linux software. I know about hacking, back-door access and which browsers have what vulnerabilities. My post was about an issue with the website for those using a browser that is still a major part of the current home computer scene despite your reservations. When developing websites or stand-alone applications, a designer has to consider all options and all platforms. Just because some of us have views about certain browsers and hardware doesn’t negate the fact that people still use IE ; therefore good programmers will always accommodate them – including those Lexus owners using PCs with IE installed.

Recently I've been getting a pop-up message warning me that a script running on this site is causing Internet Explorer to slow. This happens each time I click on the 'Forum' link at the top of the page. Anyone else getting this? I am given the option to stop the script from running, which I accept, but then it happens again when returning to the main Forum page. Using OS XP Prof. IE8

BenIS - an interesting story about PBs. I held a number of them a few years ago and then sold them to help buy a house. While I had them they paid out the occasional £50 prize on a reasonably regular basis. After the house was bought, I was able to invest in exactly the same number of bonds but didn't win zilch for nearly two years. I wrote to the EARNI guys and suggested that my numbers had not been entered - and they got very shirty. Gave me lots of tech speak in the hope of dismissing my concerns, but as a computer systems designer and programmer I knew a thing or two, and I wasn't satisfied. I sold the lot again and re-bought the same number immediately. In the first month that they were eligible I had a win and I am now getting the same rate of return as I did with the first batch. You could argue that as the numbers are randomly selected, that I was unlucky for two years, but i don't think so. If you hold a good number of bonds (say 1000 plus) and have won nothing in the last year or two, consider cashing them in and re-investing in a new batch.

Tel: I agree that the ambient temperature is maintained well by the ‘Auto’ system, but it is the methodology and its configuration in maintaining that temperature that I was questioning. When the phrase ‘Automatic Climate Control’ is used I expect that the system to maintain the said climate in a way that is almost imperceptible by the operator/driver. The point that both I and Exiled are making is that the comfort of the passenger or driver can only be maintained by intervention. Not then truly automatic. Its Achilles’ heel appears to be that only the temperature is managed separately but not the airflow. Airflow will always appear cooler to the touch relative to the rate of flow, and some people can tolerate that better than others.

During the recent weather extremes I have had the opportunity to test out the climate control on my IS250 and I am unclear, after reading the manual, what constitutes 'Sector Climate Control'. I know of course that the passenger and driver sides can be temperature controlled independently, but what of the fan(s) and ducts. My wife finds the continual rush of cool air to her feet uncomfortable and keeps upping the temperature on her side to compensate. This is not because she is cold from the legs up, but purely from the cooling effect of the lower cabin fans. If I change the fan setting to head only, the system switches off the Auto mode. Do I conclude then that the system is not true climate control – only sector heating control, or am I missing something? I don’t see anywhere a facility to control the air flow for the passenger side independently from the driver’s side. What is the impact of turning off ‘Auto’ mode? Will the temperature between the two sides still be maintained independently?

Thanks for that. Although not quite the facility I was looking for, it helps. Can you also help with the filtering? After following your instructions I can get the most recent posts, but there is another filter to restrict which forum that I am interested in. When I click on IS250 section, the tick appears next to the forum name. I save it and the screen refreshes but only to display ALL forums. When I go back to the forum filter the tick has reverted back to 'All Forms' again. Tried this a couple of times with same result. To Administrator: It would be good if there was a filter check box section, where you can check any box to fiter/show areas/topics of interest. e.g. IS250 Forum, Latest Posts (weeks), Mechanical, Coachworks, Audio etc. Of course I realise that the database would need to be re-organised and members would need to flag the appropriate sections when they post, but it would help to focus in on specific areas of interest; not unlike looking to buy a particular vehicle where you simply check the elements that you are looking for (Automatic, Petrol, Cruise control etc.) I hope this doesn't come across as negative. I love the site and find it extremely useful - I guess it's just my old system programming days peering over my shoulder!

I read a lot of topics where members are getting repairs/engine rebuilds under warranty with miles in excess of 100k and with many years since new. I recently bought an IS250 ex demonstrator with 2 years+ remaining on the warranty (originally 3yrs) up to a max of 60k miles. Has the warranty conditions changed in recent years? Is it dependant upon the model? There seems to be a massive discrepency between current warranties and those held by some members.

I am trying to find how to order the posts within topics in date order descending (newest first). I know it must be there somewhere, but can't see it for looking. Sorry if this is basic stuff to existing members, but I tried a search and nothing came back. ("order posts", "ordering posts" etc.) Thanks.

Learned in a Triumph Herald and Ford Zephyr Owned: Austin A35 Van ( Gives my age away) Standard Vanguard (Had a valve radio – wow) Jaguar Mk 1 (Never got to drive it – wheels were thieved while awaiting restoration) Hillman Minx Estate - side valve (Looked like a hearse) Jaguar Mk 2 (The dogs bouncy round things at the time) Austin 1100 (It wasn’t my fault – honest) Cortina Mk 2 (Very smart – ivory leather interior – thieved and written off) Morris Marina (Yeuk – heap of junk) Ford Cortina Crusader (Leaked like a sieve through the floor pan) Mazda 626 (My first auto – I was very impressed) Citroen GS (My first new company Car – applying the brakes was like hitting a 6ft thick wall) Ford Orion (Second company car – my first fuel injection) Nissan Silva (Third Company car - went like a rocket) Vauxhall Carlton (Fourth company car – very reliable) Mercedes 190E (sigh :heart: ) Mercedes E200 (Sad to see this go but needed a utility vehicle ) Landrover Freelander 1 (Current) Lexus IS250 Advance (Current - Latest)

Useless until the day comes when you’re standing in a car park wondering where your car has gone. An option is just that - you can choose to use it or not. My real point was that Lexus have an option to lock the car after reaching 12mph, when you are already inside the car and quite capable of locking the doors yourself, but is happy to allow the driver to walk away and leave the car unattended without offering a similar option. My previous car (E-class) had this facility, as does my wife’s Skoda. I don’t believe that I’m the only person who has arrived at a meeting or shopping centre and had that awful feeling of ‘did I remember to lock my car?’ I wish that I had your unshakeable faith that I will never leave my car without pressing that button. With modern vehicles where it is unnecessary to have either key or fob in your hand to lock and unlock them, it can be all too easy to just walk away.

That's a shame, even my wife's Skoda has this feature. It's odd that Lexus go to so much trouble around security but miss what might be described as the very obvious - i.e. a driver simply forgetting to lock the car. It would surely be a simple matter to monitor the absence of the keyfob/card and perform the locking sequence. Anyone left inside could still unlock from the door switches/levers. The option to lock doors once the car reaches 12mph must require far more complex programming.

I am trying to find out if the current IS250 Advance automatically locks all doors after occupants have left the vehicle unattended for a set time. Some of my previous vehicles have had this, which is very useful if your mind is on something else and you forget to press the door button or press the fob. I've worked through the manual and can't seem to find anything - plenty about autolocking after you have moved off. Any info if this exists and whether there is a programmable time delay etc. gratefully received.

AS a new member myself, I don't know my round this site yet, but it seems to me that one of the best ways this club could help Lexus users, is by having feedback scores for dealerships. This would help us all be wary of unscrupulous and lazy workshops and at the same time offer a 'carrot' to them to mend their ways. Too many poor feedback scores will damage their reputation and their business, while good feedback will give Lexus owners confidence in those with good scores. Yes, I know there will be some who will try to scew the scores by placing false feedback, but in the main those tend to show up as obvious an misleading comments. I guess that this is something for the sdministrators.