Ian J. Parsley

Lexus Belfast must be doing okay, I've now lost count of the number I've seen here. I saw the very first one that came in had obviously now been bought the other day! I haven't yet seen any on my monthly trips to London, though.

The autofold-on-exit is available only on the Premium. I have Lux with Nav but no autofold-on-exit. One advantage you'll have is there is a useful cubby behind the rotary dial (I had one on a courtesy car) into which a smartphone fits perfectly. That's not there with the mouse (which I have). Enjoy the car!

DTH, If you can, get the sensors as well. The reverse camera is great, but a wee bit deceptive in terms of distance. Also, you could be really unlucky and receive a call while reversing or some such, which cancels the camera but not the censors. I have leather but had a courtesy with cloth. It's fine actually - it's half leather anyway so it looks the part. If I were you, I'd see if you can negotiate it down - there's no way you should pay full price for them. But in truth, if they won't be budged, you'll survive without either!

Let your wife choose!! Or do you not want a quiet life?!

Mine was a fleet sale - albeit for my own firm. Don't be afraid to seek different providers and balance them off.

Younshould be able to negotiate free satnav anyway. Go for it! Fun to drive, comfortable, and just get used to not spending so long in petrol stations! I'm at 46/48mpg averaging c 28mph. My last car, a 2.4 diesel Volvo, was 30mpg.

Folks, I honestly would *not* let this put you off buying the car. Think about it: there are hundreds of happy customers out there with no satellite/audio problems at all. How likely are they to frequent a forum and a thread such as this?! If you haven't bought the car yet, maybe wait for a Year 2 model (MY15) to be sure. Any gremlins are likely to be sorted by then. But *do* buy one, it's a fantastic car way ahead of the 2IS.

Mine aren't as bad, but are fundamentally similar. My sat-nav generally works okay (occasionally it gives up on the dash-screen). But functions associated with the Lexus Portal (sending routes directly to car; navigating via google) almost never work. I have been into Lexus Belfast twice, most recently at the end of 2013 when they said they'd look for a solution, but they seem to have given up!

I would hope so! Another white F-sport seen in Belfast City Centre yesterday. That's quite a few I've seen now - although they're still very much rare enough to notice!

They're all over here obviously - saw another one, a white F-sport, near Stormont in Belfast yesterday. I often see the showroom's cars out and about but recognise them as such and don't "count" them!

Just an update. I was having three problems, primarily, prior to the update mid-month: - slow response to changing channel/song instructions; - failure when attempting to use online functions, notably including attempting to access routes sent from the Lexus Portal to the car; and - occasional freezing. The update may have solved the last of these (I cannot be sure as it was only occasional), but hasn't solved the first two. Notably, the use of online functions still fails completely (this includes what I wrote above, but also accessing "Online Search" functions and such like). Attempt to access "external points" are met with "Error ID=214", and attempts to use Online Search with "Error ID=00" - this is peculiar as both worked when I first got the car but soon failed 99% of the time. The update did vastly improve the navigation screen on the actual dashboard - this is now extremely clear and hugely more helpful than it was pre-update (pre-update there was no override and no colour display - it was all a bit confusing frankly and I found myself requiring the main screen). Lexus Belfast has been left thoroughly perplexed. They had arranged to take my car in again to try the update again today, but upon seeing the problem opted to leave the car with me and seek out instruction (presumably from Japan?) It doesn't really bother me, frankly, but there is little point making big fuss of all these Online services if they, er, don't ever work...

Another black one on the M2 (NI) into Belfast yesterday morning - saw no detail as it was the other side of the barrier, but not an F-sport.

Congrats on your new car!

Congratulations. It has its oddities, but that's a decision you won't regret!

I've now had a 300h Luxury for nearly 4000 miles, since 1 August. Consumption has dipped in the cooler weather I have to say - I'm at 44mpg currently, on a typical mix (I probably tend marginally towards shorter journeys compared to most of you - I'd say you would expect 46-48mpg ordinarily). I have always hitherto had Volvos, but my wife has always had Audis. Strolling out to the driveway for a quick jaunt to the shops, I used to prefer the Audi marginally over the Volvo. But now I take the Lexus every time without hesitation. (So I don't pine for the Germans at all, even when I have access to one! Granted, that's a personal view.) The good: the drive is great; the seat is great; the controls take a bit of getting used to but are fantastic once you do; the car looks a class apart; the modes are really distinct (giving a fundamentally different drive if you want, even over the same route); it's just a lot of fun. The bad: takes ages to re-fuel (has anyone else had this? I'm going to try holding the nozzle out); the boot lid is awful. Oh yes, and customer service is excellent. Highly recommended - do it!

Mike et al, That was exactly my problem - actually began to happen more frequently this month. I actually owe you all a debt of gratitude - having seen you writing about it here, I sought and got the software update on Thursday from Lexus Belfast (who were surprised by my request but, when they sought info from Lexus UK they were able to proceed with it). As mine was the first car in for the update, they gave me a courtesy car for 24 hours, so I've no idea how long it takes!

In addition to the USB F-sport that clearly "lives" nearby (which I first saw in October), I also saw a white F-sport in Belfast City Centre today. I also had a 2IS both in front and behind at one stage today, slightly unusually!

The only other one I've seen "on the road" here in Northern Ireland (although I see it frequently as we obviously shop at the same place) is an ultra blue F-sport. My own view is you were wise to choose silver - the blue almost looks purple. But everyone has their own judgement, of course!

Charles, I'm just past 3000 miles and agree with every word. Just one thing - my mpg has crashed somewhat in the last few days (in the cold). Have you noticed that? Like you, I was typically 48mpg, then seemed to be 46mpg over the last 1000 miles, but in the last couple of days I've been barely 42mpg. These have been over usual routes, so only thing I can think of is the weather? Ian P.

I have the metallic black, which I personally really like, but they had the solid in the showroom too at the time and it looked fine. Just a touch lighter, I thought.

For me, the Lexus Portal is the bigger problem. I've actually just given up using it altogether - "Send to Car" never seems to work, even when I connect the car to WiFi (which, in itself, means sitting still in the driveway before setting off). There's the odd bug in the system - it turned itself off and on today, for example. But by and large I don't seem to have had it as bad as some of you.

AutoExpress is *the* worst for German bias. But then, just open the magazine and see who's invariably advertising inside the front cover...

Jim, Welcome. I have the Lux trim (and on lease), so a few points... EV mode: As far as I can tell, this is primarily of use when shifting the car over short distances (as I'm doing quite frequently at the moment due to decorators in). As soon as I turn the car on, I hit EV and that enables me to move the car (over a short distance, say in and out of the driveway) without the engine/fuel supply. I also occasionally hit EV in slow-moving traffic, again to stop the engine kicking in at all. Brakes: The trick here that the car *doesn't actually brake* until the final 5mph. When you hit the "brake" pedal, what you are actually doing is reversing the engine to reduce speed - it would be better termed a "deceleration" pedal. The brakes only kick in when it becomes evident you actually want to stop the car. Once you understand that, it becomes easier to operate the pedal, as you know what to expect. In other words, I can see why the reviewers are a bit concerned about it, but you soon get used to it (particularly once you understand what's really going on!) Cruise: I don't know - it's possible you're right. I rarely use eco mode (again, only in traffic). Lease: Worth tossing in the road tax will almost certainly save you around 15 quid/month too; and you can reclaim full rental as opposed to 85% (I'm not sure if the 320d allows that - I doubt it, the barrier is 130g if memory serves). Drone: I've ranted about that on here enough - it's a complete phantom. I suspect one reviewer had the "simulation" thing on too loud and the rest just copied that one! For all that, the 320d is the BMW I would have gone for if I were remotely so inclined - what makes you consider the change?

Sorry to say the parking sensors *are* displayed in the centre console, but you have to set them up. As for the paint, sorry, can't help - would your local dealer not step in for something comparatively minor right at the start?

Would share that advice, but YouTube clips are good. You're directly opposite us on the east coast of NI, and we don't get much snow either. So I'll happily stick... for now...