DAW

This shows perfectly just how poor the quality control is for most of the German manufacturers these days and that they are still peddling this I idea that they are producing a quality product. A friend had a 525 from new that went through a set of coil packs every yr & BMW could not get to the bottom of it. In the end he traded it because BMW were not prepared to shoulder the ongoing costs of replacing them even though they accepted the problem had been there from new. I have heard so many similar stories from people who have had these kind of experiences with all the German manufacturers. It amazes me really that they are still so popular given how common these issues are becoming, but I suspect the relative lack of alternatives probably plays its part. Owning a German performance car only seems to make sense to me during the 1st 3 yrs while it's under the manufacturers warranty, but a risky proposition beyond that without the hefty expense of an extended warranty (which you will likely need). It's a great shame because the problems I had totally spoiled the ownership experience of some really good cars for me. I was seriously considering buying a very low mileage Porsche 997 C2S recently, which like most petrol heads I have always wanted to own at some point. But when it came down to it I couldn't face going back to that nagging feeling that something was going to go wrong completely out of the blue. That and the fact that when I thought about it I really didn't want to loose the F. The ISF is the 1st car in a while that I have the confidence to consider keeping for a longer period. I hope I haven't just jinxed myself!!

Owned a sting of German cars and over a 15 yr period the bills got progressively worse culminating in my last 2 Audi's which required repairs totalling £10.5k over a 2 yr period. Both cars were low mileage fully historied approved used with one previous owner and I look after my cars. 1st car had a design fault (tension slider - engine out) 2nd car had manufacturing fault requiring new gearbox. So as I'm sure you can appreciate I was happy to move away from the German manufacturers who are all to busy trying to out do & out sell each other at the expense of quality. li had owned a Supra Turbo in the 90's which I hdd for 6 yrs & then passed on to my brother in law who kept it for a further 6 yrs. it didn't require anything other than standard servicing for either of us. So I was quite exited when I read the Evo write up on the ISF because there was finally an alternative that took on the M3/RS4/C63. its proved to be everything I hoped it would be without any the compromises of the German cars.

A friend is an A/C project manager & his advice was as above re putting the Air con on full heat for a while. As already said gets rid of the condensation that build up in the system and also causes the stale smell..

Hi Dave thanks for the info - really useful to have a recommended alternative.

Oh ok I get free MOT's, but then possibly that might be because I have also got a service plan. I thought it was the warranty, but if that's not the case sorry for the bum steer!

Warranty also includes free MOT's, MOT cover & key cover which together with the full European breakdown cover for £450 a year (on a 2 yr for price of 1 basis) I think make it pretty good value for the peace of mind it provides. Also guarantees it will be Lexus who do the work. I've had the warranty from the beginning & bought another two years to run from when the original runs out in May. I'm sure there is a fair chance I won't need to use it, but I would be buying breakdown cover & paying for MOT's anyway so the relatively little extra cost seems worth it for the piece of mind.

Welcome to the club Jon

As already mentioned above I would wait & see with the exhaust. Quite a common mod for the ISF as so well sound insulated that below 3.5k rpm engine isn't quite as audible as most of us would prefer. Also the fake exhaust tips are known to occasionally come off which requires a new panel usually, at a cost of some £400/corner (from Lexus), so £1k for a stainless steel CAT back exhaust is a bargain relatively speaking.

If this is the car then it looks like it has a custom exhaust with the fake tip panels removed. Welcome to the club & I'm sure you will love the car - I'm not jealous at all regarding the roads you will be enjoying the F on!!

Thanks for the info I will definitely give it a go & I won't forget the ahem Lube!!

Definitely worth all the hard work, car looks stunning!! Still my favourite colour for the car. I haven't used a clay bar and really must give it a go. I would be interested in any recommendations re brand etc? I also use the Autoglym Super Resin Polish and finish iwith Autoglym High definition wax which does seem to last better than anything else I've used to date. Might be worth giving it a go - it also seems to give a glassier finish as the wax ages.

Yes it is a small world, & other than Goodwood, yours is the only one I've ever seen in the wild so to speak!!. I hope you didn't mind me asking, but curiosity got the better of me, and I thought there was a fair chance it might be you given how few of us there are. I saw you 1st when you passed me in my friends car at the back of Sainsbury's, and I thought then wow what were the chances, not expecting to see another one again. Then about six months later you were already parked at the Star when we arrived, again in my friends car. I've been going to the Star for years, but I don't tend to take the F because of the issues parking at times. With any luck we will pass each other at some point and If you're in the Star again I'll at least say hello now we are aware of each other. Might have seemed a bit strange to have a complete stranger interrupt your pint/dinner out of the blue!!

Welcome to the club just a shame about the colour - NOT!!! I'm sure you will have fun driving home!!

I hope your right and thanks for the info especially about the wiring harness. On an unrelated matter, and if you don't mind me asking, do you ever drive through Heathfield or frequent the Star in old Heathfield?. Only I have friends who live in Broad Oak, so am in Heathfield frequently and have seen a blue ISF, but have never been in my own car to acknowledge a fellow owner.

Look forward to hearing how you rate them!!

Thats a good idea, but how would I know the plugs they showed me came from my car. I will certainly do that in the hope that its enough to ensure its done though, so thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately the workshop is also a separate site from the dealership so I can't even see them do it as @Big Rat sensibly suggested. Perhaps ignorance is bliss as long as the book is stamped and I will just have to trust them. I may, after all, be being overly pessimistic!!

Hi @Defratos love the car!! Really wished the red leather had been an option in the uk. Had red leather Recaros in my last "Silver" Audi S4 and it always made the car feel different and more of an event to drive. Don't get me wrong I love the Blue/black combination I have currently, reminds me of my original "Silver" Supra turbo, which also had a blue interior. Sorry I know i've mentioned that colour!!, but its probably my favourite, although I'm loving the Fsport metallic white

Digital speedo can be switched between mph/kph. I always do that when driving in Europe. Your manual will tell you how and it was a simple task. It's been a while since I've done it, but I seem to recall it being a combination of selecting the odometer display and holding one of the buttons until it switches to kph. You just repeat the process to put it back mph.

I changed from Pirelli Rosso's (OEM), on my 1st Audi, to Goodyear F1's. Went to Elite tyres in Rainham and they recommended them, because they were felt to be just as good, but also a lot quieter and with better side wall protection for the alloys - and they were much better. My next Audi (S4) came with Conti's (OEM) and when they needed replacing, having been impressed with the Goodyear's previously, I changed to the latest versions of the F1's. To my surprise and disappointment the F1's were not a patch on the Conti's. I would not have believed the difference would be that noticable during everyday use (as oppsosed to on a track), but they had no where near the same levels of grip in the wet or dry. The Conti's just gave you more confidence!!

Paul & David Thanks for pointing this out. I probably won't bother while I have the warranty unless the front tyre wear starts to become an issue!!

Thought I would just go back & check re mileage issue I mentioned earlier as wasn't sure I had remembered all the details correctly. In fact, not only was the last digit of the job sheet mileage over written, but was 2 miles higher than was showing on the odometer when I picked the car up (not under). Thanks for the info & booking in advance is no problem - will certainly give them a go if I have any more issues. TBO I'm always wary about the car being picked up because you just don't know how someone will drive the car. At my last service my car was driven the short distance from the work shop by a new young member of the service team who proceeded to tell me that they really liked the car, didn't know what it was & were a bit surprised by how powerful it was!!. There was clearly no harm done & I'm sure it would seem powerful, even at relatively low speeds, to anyone only used to driving cars that someone of that age could insure. But again didn't exactly fill me with confidence!!

Oh ok, yes i have the Lexus warranty but didn't think it would be an issue . I seem to recall some of the members on hear with custom exhausts have apparently spoken to them in the past, & as long as it was only Cat back, that it wasn't an issue. Hadn't considered that fitting none OEM bushes might be a problem!! It's not like it's a major performance upgrade.

If I have any other issues I might consider them as an alternative if they do servicing at weekends etc. Always helpful to be able to choose based on a recommendation. I originally considered Hatfield because its a similar distance from home, but chose Woodford as it had the advantage of being easily accessible from London for pick ups after work etc.

I haven't noticed this on my 2011 model either, but then i'm only doing about 2k a year and the car has only done 11.5k in total so not really a surprise. I was seriously considering getting the US RS's last year, but never have shipped anything from the US and now with brexit I have to say i've been stalling.

Hi Paul I absolutely agree with you. I may be being overly pessimistic about the dealer - I'm just hoping they do replace them, especially as I've paid for them to be replaced as part of my service plan!! This is the problem when you have issues with dealers like I have described above. You can't help but question how trustworthy they really are!! Sorry I should have quoted you as it was your remarks that made me post the above. I'm a relative novice to this as this is the 1st forum I've ever been involved in. In fact I've only realised recently that I have not been clicking to show when I like something etc. Hi Mark If I had to put money on it, I suspect it was the sales team and to be fair to the service department they outwardly appeared to take my complaint very seriously. But without the photograph of my mileage I couldn't prove it, which is why I now keep photos from every visit to them. Its a shame!!