dr j

Withing the range of Lexus vehicles you made the right choice. That´s why they killed the diesel. If you value comfort over MPG and handling, it is an excellent choice. But even in the gasoline vehicle world, there are better options and far easier to maintain in Europe. European love for diesels only to remove DPF´s, put in tuning chips and squeeze out laughable horsepower with overburdened engines thanks to turbos has always confused me. A naturally aspirated V6 running on gasoline vs a four banger running on diesel and spewing black smoke is a no brainer. In my case, gasoline is not an option due to the taxation in Portugal. Hybrid is probably the only sensible option, unfortunately the CVT gearbox is causing major issues and the new line of vehicles is hideous. As long as you´re happy you made the right choice. I made the wrong choice and have been lucky.

Because the diesel version of the car was hideous by Lexus "perceived" standards. The build quality was basically ok - shell of an IS 250 - fair enough. But the engine was shoehorned into the car from an Avensis, then mated to an obsolete truck transmission (2005 Tundra) to account for the RWD and amount of torque. Added with the hideous gearing ratios on all cars except the Sport as well as the added weight (upwards of 100 kilos compared to a 320d or a C-Class) and you had: Good looking car as is the IS 250 (but lacking the dual tailpipes, making the rear end bland) A slow car off the line due to the long gear ratio Mileage that easily topped 9 litres/100 km without pushing the car. Upwards of 10 and 11 litres if in a Sport version and driving hard. Expensive DPF issues due to the DPF being welded to the Cat converter, and easy blockage. Constant regeneration via 5th injector with a horrible sooty smell and extreme quantities of smoke generated. Noisy, clunky gearbox with reports of gearbox slippage. So basically a Lexus made for Europe in which all the adaptations "made for Europe" were horrible. I imagine Peugeot or Citroen attempting to make a muscle car and selling it in the US lol. I know. I own an IS 220d. It has been chugging along and I have high mileage, but no enjoyment whatsoever. It´s not fun, it´s not smooth, it does nothing particularly poorly yet is not really good at anything either. The gasoline version is by no means a massive hit. In the US it is average at best. Europe doesn´t have the 350 or the 250 awd. When I asked my mechanic what he thought of the car - "Depends on what you want". If you want to keep driving a diesel, you could do worse. Lexus - "Pursuit Of Perfection" Lexus IS 220d - "You could do worse" Hardly a glowing endorsement. Cheers

I have just passed 300 000 kms, and my dpf is fine. The pressure differential sensor as stated clogs easily. There is a dpf cleaner from wurth that works well as far as the dpf itself, but once the metalic tube leading to the sensor clogs, the error appears. The car may or may not go into limp mode. A substitute was made for the outlet tube as it had a bend that was exaggerated and led to easier clogging. But regular maintenance ie, disconnecting the hose and applying compressed air to the metallic section leading towards the dpg usually unclogs it. Any questions feel free to ask. Cheers

It´s a 2006. Overall I haven´t had any major problems, but I just prefer the petrol version. I bought the diesel version because I would have been taxed to death here for the 250 (60000 euros base price).

Hello all, Just to report that my IS 220d has just passed the 300 000 km mark. Pretty much the only issue is my Check VSC goes on (without the car going into limp mode). Apparently the tube going to the DPF pressure sensor gets easily clogged and I have to clean it every once in awhile. The DPF is original, as are all mechanical parts. Fuel mileage is poor, I can get about 8 L/100 km driving softly, stomp on it and it goes above 10. It´s the Sport Version with the truck transmission but I think most oilburner owners already know the flaws with this car. That said, I anxiously await the day when I can purchase a real Lexus (petrol) and never look back on diesel again. And congrats Lexus on having the balls to dump diesels for hybrids. Cheers, John

I had mine looked at, it was never cleaned, but I´ve had the oil breather going to a catch tank since about 150 000 kms. It took about half an hour to remove, but needed no cleaning. If you have your car stored for a while or being worked on you can remove it but you won´t find much more than the expected and that will need no cleaning.

I had mine looked at, it was never cleaned, but I´ve had the oil breather going to a catch tank since about 150 000 kms. It took about half an hour to remove, but needed no cleaning. If you have your car stored for a while or being worked on you can remove it but you won´t find much more than the expected and that will need no cleaning.

I havent had my DPF removed but: Does it effect the emissions for MOT? - No - As far as I know the dpf is gutted out so it will still be there if the MOT tester checks (which it isnt a requirement as yet AFAIK) Does it improve performance/mpg? - not sure about performance, but you should be an increase in mpg due to the car not regenerating Does it damage the car in any way? - No, definately not - all the emulator does is emulate a healthy working D-CAT system, its not like the cars ECU is changed in any way - the dpf will be gutted out, but chances are its already scrap if you are going down the road of DPF removal. If you ever decided to get a DPF fitted down the line, all that would need to be done is remove the emulator from the car, disconnect the battery (to clear information stored the ECU) and follow lexus service procedures with regards to fitting the new DPF (can be found on ebay or lexus website, think access is like 3 euro per hour). Do I have to take the car to a specialist? - definately, you will need to find someone who has done this before and knows what they are at. Cheers Agreed. The removal however will be a pain in the "#" because the cat converter and the DPF are in the same unit. It won´t be long before emissions testing include particulate testing and only DPF equipped cars will pass. Here (Portugal) they have discussed using the OBD port for vehicle analysis. That in itself will be a problem. In Australia vehicles with detectable smoke in their exhaust are fined. DPF gutted vehicles have disgusting black smoke on acceleration. My advice - go for a petrol car. Diesel is dead in the long run.

It´s not a system that´s exclusive to French cars, German cars use the same system in general. The fifth injector also isn´t exclusive to Toyota/Lexus, Alfa Romeo also use it. The DPF cleaner is basically a detergent/combustion mixture that increases the exhaust temperature and attempts to clean the DPF. The vehicle also adjusts the injection for a higher combustion. It sounds decent in theory, but most French cars have their DPF´s replaced at about 100 000 kms or they are simply removed as Mercedes owners and BMW owners do with theirs. The system isn´t failsafe and DPF saturation occurs earlier than planned. The Fifth injector causes a DPF burn until the temperature reaches about 800ºC (not sure about the exact temp). This system is also eventually insufficient. Dousing the DPF with a cleaner as used in the French cars isn´t a solution, as it must be mixed with fuel and has to go through the combustion process. For the Lexus, the DPF cleaner foam made by Wurth is probably the best option. It´s a foam that fills the space ahead of the DPF and basically sticks to the soot. When the car is taken for a run, the soot is released. The only problem is that the nozzle doesn´t fit the hole for the temperature sensor that is used to inject the foam. My solution was using a smaller nozzle, like that from a WD 40 can. It doesn´t spray it as well, but it does the job. Most cars have their DPFs removed and their ECU´s remapped. The DPF/FAP has been around since about 2005 and really no DPF is as long lasting or problem free as advertised. My cousin was head mechanic at Citroen and the DPFs last about 100 000 kms. He studied the fifth injector system on my car and said that it was the better of the two systems. The best solution? Buy a petrol car lol. But seriously, after some headaches my car is running fine and I´ve just passed the 268 000 km mark.

It´s not a system that´s exclusive to French cars, German cars use the same system in general. The fifth injector also isn´t exclusive to Toyota/Lexus, Alfa Romeo also use it. The DPF cleaner is basically a detergent/combustion mixture that increases the exhaust temperature and attempts to clean the DPF. The vehicle also adjusts the injection for a higher combustion. It sounds decent in theory, but most French cars have their DPF´s replaced at about 100 000 kms or they are simply removed as Mercedes owners and BMW owners do with theirs. The system isn´t failsafe and DPF saturation occurs earlier than planned. The Fifth injector causes a DPF burn until the temperature reaches about 800ºC (not sure about the exact temp). This system is also eventually insufficient. Dousing the DPF with a cleaner as used in the French cars isn´t a solution, as it must be mixed with fuel and has to go through the combustion process. For the Lexus, the DPF cleaner foam made by Wurth is probably the best option. It´s a foam that fills the space ahead of the DPF and basically sticks to the soot. When the car is taken for a run, the soot is released. The only problem is that the nozzle doesn´t fit the hole for the temperature sensor that is used to inject the foam. My solution was using a smaller nozzle, like that from a WD 40 can. It doesn´t spray it as well, but it does the job.

This is not an easy car to have the DPF removed. It´s not just a cheap bolt-on can like BMW has. It is literally welded together with the Cat converter. It is cleaned by a complex fifth injector system. There is a pressure differential that will read an error when no DPF is there to cause positive pressure. The system is complex but is probably the best by far. I have 268 000 kms on mine and exhaust flux through the DPF is normal. On another note, I don´t particularly like diesel engines because of their pollution, and the DPF solves that somewhat. It´s a ****ty fuel and no matter what you do it will end up clogging something over the long haul.

Hello, check my post on maintenance. DPF cleaners that mix with fuel are ok but you may have other problems. The error code is common to a number of problems and you have to check each. The fifth injector actually works quite well, most problems have to do with the pressure differential sensor. the inlet and outlet hoses clog easily and give erroneous readings.

Hello, I assume you are referring to the EGR inlet manifold? It´s easy to remove, just a couple of bolts on the engine side and a couple over the EGR. Once that is taken off you can actually see the valve itself. It can also be removed easily and pretty much any industrial strength degreaser will do the job. I use Locktite. Not sure how much they´ll charge. It´s at most a 25-30 euro job, much less work than an oil change.

Folks, I just realized I made a typo when typing the mileage. The mileage when I wrote this was 258 000, it´s now 268 000. My apologies.

The other important problem I had was with the Diesel particulate filter. Mileage was dropping and the fifth injector kept turning on, giving a vary unique "sweet smell" when the windows were down. The car began to regenerate more than usual and the dreaded CHECK VSC light came on. This happened at 150 000 kms. I took the car to Lexus and they did a DPF "burn" with the Lexus diagnostic program. This program allows the fifth injector to be turned on "manually" for a longer amount of time, resulting in a prolonged burn that theoretically cleans the soot in the Filter. This worked for awhile, then problems came up at about 180 000. I then bought a DPF cleaner foam from WURTH (around €30). This is inserted via the orifice for the temperature probe BEFORE the DPF (there are two, one before the filter, one after - when the filter is blocked the temperature before the filter is higher than the exit temperature - this is one parameter of measuring filter blockage) The foam is inserted, the temperature probe is placed and the car is taken for a run at 3000 rpm. The foam attaches to the soot and the heat of the exhaust then destroys the particles which are eliminated. I did another 15 000 kms until the CHECK VSC came up again. My cousin (a mechanic) decided on analyzing the problem and for this car it is highly recommended that a Toyota/Lexus Specific Program be used - He purchased a cheap copy of the Techstream program online and installed it on his computer. The only accessory needed was a cable to link the computer to the car (a USB/OBD compatible cable). The program shows various parameters, allows for a manual burn of the DPF, The temperature sensors had similar temperatures, but the Pressure sensor had negative values (this sensor is located at the back of the engine bay, near the battery and has two hoses, one runs from the DPF towards the sensor and the other back to the DPF. It should show a positive pressure (there must always be a positive pressure against the resistance of the Filter). He suspected the error was from the Sensor (the program also shows the error codes) and decided to clean the sensor and the hoses. After cleaning the hoses (compressed air) the error disappeared (and the program was used to delete it from the memory) and the car has 3000 kms after the cleaning. The Techstream program does everything the dealership does except remap the ECU and I highly recommend it. The car has a huge amount of information available and with this program many problems are easily diagnosed and solved. The filter seems to be porous and working fine, which means that the WURTH foam probably did its job. The program should be used by someone familiar with mechanical work, but I highly recommend it. The pressure sensor costs over 500 euros, the DPF comes in one piece with the catalytic converter and also costs well over 600 euros. I didn´t need to replace either and probably only the pressure sensor is prone to damage, as it is a flimsy piece of hardware. Cheers, John

I think UK fuel is as good as any other fuel. I drive alot on the highway, which is probably the ideal place to drive a diesel. That said: My first problem was with the EGR (back at around 100 000 kms). The EGR blocked and sent my car into limp mode. I had it replaced and shortly after it blocked again. The problem isn´t the EGR, it´s the soot build-up before the EGR. One option is removing the aluminum pipe that runs from the engine block to the EGR and cleaning it regularly, as well as cleaning the valve itself. If done regularly it won´t block. I opted for doing an EGR bypass - I cut the pipe from the engine to the EGR in half, removed the half that came from the engine and put a metal plate over the outlet where the pipe was placed. I then attached a rubber hose to the other half of the pipe (the half that is still bolted onto the EGR) and ran it around the back of the engine bay and fit it onto the oil beather inlet just after the air filter. The oil breather hose was then attached to a catch tank (placed near the air filter housing) and the exit hose from the catch tank was then piped towards the underbody of the car, The result - 1. The air entering the EGR comes for the Fresh Air in the intake hose. 2. The greasy oil vapor from the oil breather outlet is not sent into the intake, but channeled to the catch tank - excess oil is left in the catch tank and only a slight vapor leaves the hose exiting the underbelly of the car. 3. The only maintenance is emptying the catch tank every 30 000 kms. 4. No Errors registered - the EGR still functions normally, only the air passing through is not heated soot but instead cooler fresher air. 5. Acceleration is improved, combustion is cleaner. Problems - 1. I don´t like having a hose running from one side of the engine to the other, despite the fact that with the engine bay covers it is hardly visible. 2. I don´t like any type of vapor or smoke leaving the car. I decided to channel the hose towards the underbelly because at the front of the car and especially at night and with xenon lights, the car looked like it was smoking a Cuban Cigar. Some vapor is still evident, but less. No EGR problems since. Options, Attaching a Y shaped inlet on the intake, and thereby having the a common hose for the EGR and oil vapor - no messy vapor leaving the car, no need for a catch tank and a still functional bypass.

Hello all, Despite the killing of the diesel option by Lexus (which I did agree with), I am the owner of a 2007 IS 220d Sport. I have visited this site many times with relation to some problems I have experienced, and others I had heard about but did not have the pain of trying to solve. First of all, most of my problems were minor and of the "easily solved variety". My car as stated is an IS 220d from 2007 with pretty much the full package (except the ML stereo system). As of today I have just over 268 000 kms on the odometer and have basically done nothing aside from basic maintenance. Only one EGR was placed in the beginning and out of warranty due to poor research on my part. Other problems with the DPF, battery etc have all been solved without much expense and the car is presently running as new. No cabin rattles, suspension is fine, acceleration is well under 8 seconds and fuel consumption is around 7-8 L/100 kms, very reasonable for this car. Same water pump, transmission, clutch, DPF, injectors, fifth injector, muffler, suspension etc. Although I am a fan of all things Lexus and gasoline, my living in Portugal along with frequent trips made me opt for the diesel. Some headaches aside, the car is actually quite fine and I´d love to help or attempt to help out anyone that loves the car but is having a problem that may be solved without great expense. Cheers, John 2007 IS 220d Sport 268 000 kms and counting.

The IS 250 has its problems, I just don´t think it is a good car for Europe. It´s considered entry level in North America for a business car, almost a fleet car, in Europe it´s overpriced. In Portugal is outrageously priced (60 k euros new, which in a poor economy means NO sales) The IS 250 awd and IS 350 are the Award Winners, but Europe will never get a sniff of them. The head gasket issue is common on Forums, I have never heard of one here, mind you only 4 of my colleagues have IS 220d´s THE major issue is the EGR. A properly done bypass will eliminate that problem. The DPF is what is it. Proper fuel, occassional additives and some highway driving to keep it as clean as possible. I do not recommend removing it as some low end tuners suggest. It´s there to reduce pollution, let´s try to keep the environment as clean as we can :) So far I have 1300 kms without any error on the dash after cleaning the DPF. An oil maintenance light came one. That can be erased easily by pressing the odometer button on the dash with the car off, then simultaneously pressing the START button twice (ignition lights on without starting the car). It resets itself and the light disappears. Cheers and happy new year to everyone in the UK.

@Silver Arrow - You are absolutely right, no it´s not as simple as that. My gearbox is the sport version and it´s anything but notchy. The "normal" version is long and useless for normal driving. I sincerely hope your BMW lives a healthy life. Three colleagues dumped their 320´s after about 120k kms - all had to have new turbos, one had DPF issues and kept going into limp mode. All complained of the poor build quality. One had a tail light fail driving out of the lot. The 3L diesel holds up alot better over time. Back then, after testing the competition, the only car I crossed off the list was the 320d - just too common and poorly built to justify the price. However, each person has his own story and I hope yours works out as well as mine has so far. I feel that as a company BMW reached a point of such mass sales that they simply ******* on their customers. As a point of comparison last July I went back home and dropped by Calgary. In Canada you don´t see alot of BMW´s, but you count about 40 Lexus an hour and about 100 Toyotas. Audi´s and to a lesser extent Mercedes sell very well. Dropped by the dealership and saw just how well they treat their customers. Customer service was extremely polite and very informed. They knew about the IS 220d, asked me about it and we traded opinions on everything from gasoline vs diesel and vehicle tastes in each continent. As a fan of vehicles, I only wish Europe had more options. I´ll be around here for awhile with my high mileage IS 220d, with pics coming soon, just to keep the bashers in their place :P

The problem is that Lexus vehicles in general are tops in JD Power rankings. The IS 220d brought out problems that no vehicle with a Lexus badge came close to having in it the company´s 23 years of existence. Lexus vehicles are dead quiet and very smooth, they have more than enough power and issues related to dirty diesel simply didn´t exist. People don´t love the IS 220d because it´s a diesel, they love it because it´s an IS. They chose diesel because of Europe´s ludicrous prices. That aside, they have done a very decent job with this car. The German equivalents outsell, but most are low spec vehicles (cloth interior, <177 hp tuned engines, almost no extras). I have friends with BMs, Audi´s, Mercedes, all have issues, some are major. Their forums are filled with horror stories that make a busted head gasket seem like cake. The IS 220d will be remembered as a less than perfect Lexus, but a very good car. And let´s face it, we´re here because we love Lexus vehicles and if a 220d was the car we could afford to buy and keep, then that was the Lexus for Europe. I think however that diesel will die out over the long run. Emissions in oilburners are controlled through complex gas recycling, particulate filters and CAT converters that will get more complex over time and will break down sooner and sooner. My car has it´s original DPF and I am as of right now the highest mileage IS 220d in Portugal with an original DPF (247 000 kms). I love the car, I knew what to expect, I will never again buy a diesel, but I will forever own a Lexus. The diesel was the price I paid for having a car to drive every day in Europe. The next one will be hybrid. German cars? Overrated, especially the BMW´s. To get to 250 000 kms I would have had to go through two 320 d´s in parts. So if you like it, buy it, know what to expect, and remember that diesel is what it is, a dirty alternative. But the IS 220d is worth it.

I own a 2006 IS 220d Sport, right now I have 247 000 kms. The car is not perfect by far and I have had my headaches, but searching around you´ll find alot of diesels using Diesel Particulate Filters, EGR etc have problems. Clean diesels mean that high mileage diesels aren´t as simple as they were in the days of a Mercedes E 190d. What have I done to the car? Had a problem with the EGR, had it replaced then I had it blocked off. The EGR is hooked up to the Oil Breather inlet, and the Oil breather tube now goes to a catch tank. The Check VSC kept lighting up, the error was DPF related (this at about 200 000 kms), I tried Diesel additives (some success), had Lexus do a DPF regeneration by programming the 5th injector, and this cleaned out alot of the soot, however the error kept appearing. I had the DPF cleaned with a Wurth product applied directly to the DPF, and the soot was destroyed, the error disappeared and I have already put 300 kms on after the application. This will become part of my routine maintenance until the DPF dies. As for the rest, regular oil changes, filter changes and a recent paint touch up and the car runs fine. One set of rotors, three sets of brake pads. So no, it´s not a gasoline vehicle, it´s not as fast as a BM or Audi, has slightly poorer mileage than it´s German rivals, however apart from diesel-related issues it is a very good car. 247 000 kms, I´d say that makes it a damn fine car! Cheers

Not sure if there are differences between the 520d and the 320d, but the 320d is plagued by a number of problems - most of which appear after the two year warranty expires. My colleagues complain of turbo failure at around 120k kms, poor build quality issues, electronic problems etc. The fuel consumption and power is fantastic, and in some countries the brand name slows depreciation, however I would never own one. The 320d feels cheap, looks common and is simply overpriced. The Lexus (diesel) problems are more annoying than serious (except the cat converter and DPNR issues aside, those I have never heard of). If I had to choose amongst German brands, I would probably go for the Audi A4, it feels sportier, solid and well built. However, the cars are so different in ride and comfort I wouldn´t compare them directly. I value comfort and reliability. But as I have said, my IS 220d has gone past 230 000 kms and is going strong. Perhaps Lexus dealerships in the UK aren´t treating their customers well? I have my car serviced in Oporto, I have a replacement vehicle (Lexus) at no cost and have 24 hour pick-up service. That alone tips the choice in favor of the IS. Would I buy it again? Yes, although I would seriously consider a petrol. John

Hello, I have a 2007 IS 220d Sport with 235 000 kms. I had one EGR replaced at about 120 000, then did an EGR bypass. I use 5W30 Synthetic oil only, change oil at 15 000 km intervals and only do major check-ups at Lexus. Regular oil/filter changes are done by me. I replaced the stock air filter with a K&N. Thus far the only problems I have had: - EGR replaced once after warranty - Tightened the shifter because of 4th gear slippage (early on) - Replaced a transmission gasket - Replaced the Piezo injector seals (30 euros) - Had to oil a spring in the driver seat that squeaked on corners. - Had to change the driver side mirror thanks to an idiot that used a power washer on the side mirror. The mileage varies, but if I ease up I can get 6.5 L/100 kms, if I drive hard, it goes up to around 10L/100 kms.(I have 18 inch wheels and 255/40/Z18 tires on the rear, which raise the consumption. I use STP diesel injector cleaner every third deposit. It goes 0-100 kph in under 8 seconds and with the short gearbox (highly recommended) the gear ratios work well for city and highway driving. Otherwise, no issues. Electronics fine, no cabin noise, rides like a charm and the clutch and suspension are like new. Got 80 000 kms with a set of Vredsteins, now I´m using Dunlop Sport GT. Other than the EGR issue, the car is a pleasure to drive and easily the best in its class. 230 000+ kms is high mileage and I don´t expect problems other than DPNR/FAP issues. Cheers from Portugal John