fjcfarrar

What they sell it for is just what they think they can get for it. This can be modified if the dealership prioritises monthly cash-flow or will wait for maximal profit. Most are keener to throw in Warranties & stuff that doesn't cost them much but would cost you lots rather than cut the price. Go for it.

Simple.

Firstly, The fleet market has collapsed and companies no longer aim to provide "prestige" brands to staff, preferring Hyundais or anything cheap of the right size.

Secondly, Lexus have made the policy decision to move towards the Hybrid/Electric technologies in the sector aiming for economical/green usage and to pile money into diesel development would be like flogging a dead horse.

Thirdly, Although the IS220D and its successor were by no means bad cars, they were undisputably & by a very long stretch the worst cars Lexus have ever made and single-handedly account for Lexus's descent in JD Power & other tables of quality, reliability & owner satisfaction.

Well it's now been 7 months of ownership and 4,000 miles travelled so thought I would give a little update on the car.

The car was bought as a "practical" replacement for my SLK 350 as needed a car with space for a baby seat. I can safely say little one is a true fan of the car, he loves the sound of the engine and even seems to enjoy the stiff ride with little complaint even on long journeys :)

Have had no problem with fitting of car seat, getting little one in and out or fitting pram and everything else in the boot for 2 adults + baby for going away.

The car has been a pleasure to own, needless to say nothing has gone wrong and the only trip to the dealer I have made was just to ask them to tighten the foot brake as the torque of the engine meant the car would still creep forwards even with it on.

Motorway cruising is effortless with engine barely ticking over, refinement is superb with quiet cabin and using the ACC lends to a very relaxed journey, 30+mpg is obtainable and v.high 20's easy on a motorway cruise.

Around town mpg drops to the late teens depending on traffic flow, temp etc. Depending on how much motorway you do compared to urban the claim of 24 average is realistic (Was also satisfying to speak to a new Golf R owner who was complaining they only got 26/27mpg out of that - 2L Turbo vs 5L NA )

Sport mode really brings the car alive allowing the switch between a relaxed gentle cruise and proper sports sedan, M mode with paddles works superbly but I have found it very difficult to keep the ride smooth (Probably more from lack of practice TBH) so not used much with wife and little one in the car

As with other owners have had issues with brake dust and how to keep on top of it - I did take Tel's advice and bought myself some Poorboys however I don't seem to always remember to use it however I can tell you the single best product I have found for sorting the residue out once on your wheels - Iron X - you can get it in Spray and Paste form, I purchased a large bottle of the paste version (the paste version sticks to the rims so can work longer on the residue) http://polishyourcar...aste-500ml.html just needs rubbing over the wheel and leaving for a few mins (It reacts with the Iron residue making it water soluble) now I just need to make sure to use the Poorboys after

Car sounds superb under hard acceleration and once you hit 3500+rpm the noise is glorious!!! Always becomes a difficult choice - listen to the amazing stereo or listen to the amazing engine...!!!!

Would I change anything? Hmm yes the suspension for the 2011MY - although I don't find it overly hard there is definitely room for a more relaxed ride when cruising. However it's a small point and the car still continues to amaze and brings a smile to my face every time I start it up

Also still only seen 1 other on the road, so exclusive and rare, just adds to the appeal!!

Totally agree with you. I'm not bothered by the firm ride, but if I lived where the roads are worse I might prefer the softer MY11 ride.

Even the brake dust issue is a thing of the past. After 5 summers, the paint has hardened and become more impervious so that it no longer gets embedded by brake dust - it just rinses off.

I would have preferred the Sport-button to be in its newer place but am used to it now.

The SatNav is a little convoluted to use and the post-code option is both too well hidden and full entry would have been better - but the newer version is not a lot better and the link between postcodes and their actual location is inherently so tenous that full entry wouldn't help much.

Only annoyance: SatNav update price is taking the P*ss. It should have been available as a download either free or cheaply to reflect the minimal cost to Lexus of providing what they already have & install in new cars. In other word you have to pay for what comes for free.

fjcfarrar, youtube timing does not lie at 0:05 martin started from 0mph and was already doing 10mph and was doing 60mph at 0:11 so your comment above is just guessing so are you saying your ISF does 2.4 secs to 60 mph and the speedo error and timing increments pushes it up to 4.6secs as stated by Lexus? we both know it doesnt... youtube clock timing is accurate give or take + or - a thousand of a second depending on when one pauses the video at 60. car times in UK are measered from 0 to 60 mph. and both IS300 and Celica 190 deliver 60mph 2.2 seconds faster than thier stated time and i doubt the ISF does it in 2.4 secs.

Youtube timing is not accurate to anywhere near a thousandth of a second. The display increments in 0.01 minute steps - which is 0.6seconds and this is only updated at the display rate of 50 frames per second. Because the incremental rate, the display rate and the You-tube master clock are not synchronous, each timing point has fractionaly more than 0.6 seconds of vagueness, totalling + or - 1.2 seconds for the overall measurement with no way of knowing where the true timing lies within these boundaries.

Add to this speedos which are subject to all sorts of errors but are legally required to never under-read, and is likely to over-read by 3-4 mph to secure enough margin to never under-read at that speed. Add to this a measurement of 0-60mph time that is actually meant to be a 0-62mph time means that the possible errors soon mount up, and the time is quite probably close to the stated 8.2 seconds.

This goes to show that you need to know how to interpret measurements to include what are known as uncertainties which as the title suggests represents the grey area which includes the range of true possible results for that measurement and gives a result which is a number +/- these uncertainties. In this case probably 8.2 +/- 2 or 3 seconds or putting it another way the answer lies between about 6s and 11s for 0-62 mph with no possible way to determine whereabouts without better measurement technique - which is almost certainly what manufacturers have available to them to arrive at the figure they can quote with reasonable confidence. There is nothing in it for them to get it wrong. Too fast & they will soon get caught out; too slow and they are underselling their product.

Given all that, the IS300 is a really nice car that goes well reliably and for a long time, and is also great to drive - but it is no ball of fire, and further to this, few drivers of true high-performance cars will find themselves drawn to compete with one, so relative performance is tough to verify.

Given that the Lexus figures are for 0 - 62 mph, your timing increments are 0.6 second steps and your speedo error is likely to be as much as 4 or so mph optimistic; your runs are fairly close to an equivalent of 8 or so seconds for 0 - 62 mph - maybe a fraction faster or slower. Sorry, but your experiment isn't accurate enough to prove it to be any better. You would need a track, proper timer & accurate speed-measuring equipment for that.

The IS300 is no slouch and gains over say the BMW330i by the faster automatic gear changes but looses more a by a slower "racing start" - and because the IS300 auto-box is much less mechanically efficient than a manual box is probably a little slower when measured by standard methods. For some parts of the whole speed band the IS300 will beat other cars because of its gear ratios and for other parts it will not because it is limited by modest power.

Neither is exactly rapid by today's standards but that doesn't stop the IS300 from being a fine, comfortable and luxurious, fairly quick car for a surprisingly low cost.

Hello guys,

I realised my expansion tank was totally empty... really close to dry to be honest.

Now call me daft but for the whole time I had the car I do not remember checking it before... so today I have done the service I went to Lexus (Toyota) and picked up my 1lt coolant which they had specifically ordered £12 after VAT!!! This is the reason they do not stock it they said.

Anyhow, I topped it up 50%-50% so in total added about 700mls of fluids ... more less.

Tonight I realised my expansion tank was empty again :( :( :( it emptied gradually ... and not in one go.

I did not remember seeing any paddles....but just now at the Tesco Car Park I have seen a little pool of water under my car placed between the radiator and the engine block...

I could not see any wet patches under the car though (on the plastic covers)

No steam is coming from the car so I assume might be a hose???

Are there any weak points on the IS300 to look for?

I will lift the car tomorrow on tripods and go under to have a look... I am a bit gutted as this is now my only car.

Forgot to mention there is no overheating... and the engine is running like a dream, there is no smoke coming from the exhaust, other than the normal while until the engine half warms up (as I have read elsewere it is the condensation in the catalytic converter usually). After that there is no smoke from the exhaust at all....

Any ideas??

Have a very careful check around the water-pump - the seals are known to give out eventually. If there are dried stains from the coolant anywhere near and particularly where the shaft sticks out of it - that will be it.

Just had a shocking week, and last night just topped it of!

last Tuesday, some idiot sky driver pulled out of the parking space with no way near enough room, and swiped the front bumper on my IS. I found it was a sky driver when I rewound the CCTV. But sky were quick to say he could be a contractor so if theres no number plate they can't do much! :(

Now I woke up this morning, and found my lip spoiler had been stolen!

Rewound the CCTV to find two hooded men, who first went round the car and then decided to pull the spoiler off. From one of my camera angles I managed to see it was in fact a black IS200 which the men got out from, so no doubt stole the spoiler for their car.

It just makes me sick that for the sake of a £25 spoiler, people would resort to steeling, I mean if you can afford to run an is200, surley you can afford £25 rather than thieving one!

On both events, the number plates arent visible :(

Im just more annoyed that one Lexus owner would do that to another!

Start off by telling Sky that it is immaterial who was driving the very obviously Sky Van unless they can demonstrate that they had one stolen at that time & thus not in their charge. Point out that this is what their Public Liability Insurance is for - and that this means they are entirely responsible at all times for all vans in their ownership or legitimately carrying their livery with respect to accidents, damage etc. and they are also required to know who drives them when and where whether direct employees or contractors. If after they have settled with you, they then wish to pursue their driver; that is up to them.

Sadly there is nothing you can do about the hooded ba**ards with a black IS200 & no conscience who stole from you. Its just a sign that there are more than you imagine who only ever think thieving is wrong if it involves a chance of getting caught!

thanks for the tips and advise guys only asked that coz about 4 months after buying the lexus found out it would have been more practical to buy a more eco friendly car (just became a dad :D ). but as i love my little girl and the lexus equally they are just going to have to get along .

. Also accelerating no more than you need to reach the speed you want can make a big difference.

Sorry to say, this part is a false economy, if you need to get to 40mph, then get their quickish, don't take your time, as accelerating, no matter how quick or slow, always uses fuel, so if you take 20 seconds getting to 40mph, that is 20 seconds at say, 10mpg, rather than 5-6 seconds at 8mpg. Plus, you won't annoy the people behind you that would like to do 40mph.

My wifes old car, a Seat toledo 1.8 automatic was especially noticeable at this, as it has a digital dynamic mpg readout, and sure enough, her car would show 8-10mpg under slow acceleration, and 8 mpg under brisk or swift acceleration, then would settle at about 28mpg, which is really where you want it to for the majority of the time.

Sorry, should have been clearer about accelerating. Yes brisk accelearation is good; but with all cars there is a point where extra pressure with the right foot doesn't make it accelerate any faster - just gasp and use more fuel. The effect is much less with good fuel injection than it used to be with carburation, but is still there. In the extreme case, ramming your foot to the floor and waiting for the engine to speed up is neither as fuel-efficient nor as effective in accelerating as keeping your right foot as light and gradual as possible for the acceleration you are after - whether lots or a little.

On MM versions, at the bottom just above the ash-tray - Marked TA......

Hi all,

Does anyone know what the cost would be to replace the front drivers side parking sensor? Mine was somewhat eaten! Yup, its true. I was in Longleat Safari Park and a bloomin' monkey started chewing on the sensor! It still works, but its pretty damaged.

Thanks!

I don't actually know - but can predict it will be more than you wsould believe possible. Maybe a trip to the breakers yard or eBay?

If just the outside and particularly the edge is damaged you should be able to fake it up with resin filler without affecting its performance.

Thanks ! Yes, I have had experience of the alarm systems 'character' before in the dead of night!, anyhow....battery on charge....if you could indulge me I have had a good look and feel around the drivers footwell/fuses area and as far back as my pinkies will go...bone dry, when charged i will open up the sunroof and have a poke around to hopefully clear the drainage tubes......is there any way you can test if the sunroof drains are working, without turning the car into the world's largest mobile fishtank?!... and where else might one have a peek/feel for the dreaded water?

If in this weather when you open the sunroof and the channels are dry - the drains are not blocked. Prove the point by squirting a little water into them from a discarded washing up liquid bottle and watch it disappear.

There are a few electrical bits and pieces in the boot eg. the bulb-failure detect module, so make sure that is dry too.

While you are at it, open each door in turn & make sure that the interior lights turn off EVERY SINGLE TIME when you press the door switches (in small rubber boots that are pressed when the door closes) & turn on again EVERY SINGLE TIME when you let go. If these are in the slightest bit erratic, the system can assume the doors are not shut or were never opened for you to leave the car & will foul up the operation of the Alarm System, auto-headlights and a few other functions of the management system/ECU to produce some really peculiar symptoms. If faulty, and these switches do fail fairly often as they get older and the contacts oxidise; they are easy to change with just a cross-head screwdriver - but the wires to them are very short; so tie a piece of string etc. to them before you pull the connectors off the switch to prevent the wires from disappearing down the switch-hole (they are difficult to retrieve).

Good luck! The IS300 is a fine car and worth going to a bit of trouble yourself before thinking about chancing huge expense with a Lexus garage - and to be honest, they will have difficulty with electrical problems unless they are very obvious.

Thanks for your replies but i'm looking for the mesh grill without the Lexus badge.

you can just pop it off from the back, i just got one from lexus b. ham as above for £36 plus postage

Yes the 'L' badge comes off easy but the 'sport' emblem doesn't - that's stuck well into the mesh.

I started with one of these and replaced the mesh for some without the 'sport' emblem too.

TG

Get the mesh grille for the LE then.

If this latest is NOT due to water-ingress affecting the ECU/Management System, it could be connected with the original neutral-detection switch problem. The switch-fault could be misleading the management system by not receiving the signal that the car is in neutral or just as likely thinking it is permanently in neutral - anyway sending unexpected and conflicting signals to the Management System, and then maybe not not completing the switch-off sequence because expecting you to restart the engine etc., and ending up running stuff in the background, thus flattening the Battery.

When the Battery gets close to flat, all sorts of strange things do happen with the anti-theft/alarm system which would account for the odd clicks and sounds.

The first step is to disconnect and fully charge the Battery. The disconnection will mainly reset the management system, and you can then see if too much current is being drawn with ignition off. Too much should definitely be a lot less than with the ignition on. I'm not sure what the standby current should be with the ignition off; but am guessing below about 50 mA with interior lights, exterior lights, fans and Radio all off.

You also need to be satisfied that the auto-lighting facility works reliably. The door-switches can cause this to behave erratically, not ALWAYS switching the lights permanently off when you leave the car. So until you have sorted the immediate problems, just leave the lights in manual mode.

None of your problems are likely to be due to failure of expensive parts and particularly not the ECU/Management electronic modules which very rarely fail - but are often incorrectly blamed. The real causes are usually very tedious to locate and involve peripheries like dirty or corroded contacts in fuse-panels, connectors and switches plus the rods, levers etc. that actuate them.

I would be inclined to start by looking for the original problem, because likely to be the root cause of other symptoms. Then if necessary, checking to make sure that water has not got into connectors and associated fuses to the ECU/Management System. All if you have no garage, in the pi**ing rain!

But I could well be wrong, and others will surely come up with better theories.

The fault may allow you to start the engine in gear & both that and the warning light might mean MOT failure.

It is probably a problem with the switch worked by the linkage to the gear lever to detect it is in neutral and/or its connector. You can find where it is by exploring the workshop Manual here:

http://bahamutcars.free.fr/workshop/IS_98-05/menu_tree.html

Once you have found it, you can check its function using a borrowed multimeter for continuity - unless it is obvious that the linkage is not mechanically operating it or it is misaligned etc. If faulty, you could obtain & fit a new switch - which won't be difficult. The workshop manual has links to how to check things and handy hints on replacing them when it is not obvious.

OR - if you don't fancy this which could get a bit greasy; you could get someone with reasonable common sense and ordinary tools to do it for you.

A World total of 850. ALL Kodiak Grey (a darkish metallic silver which was not available on other versions). Manufactured late 2003 to early 2004, and was the most fully-loaded version of the IS200 with full dark Grey leather, HID headlamps, Armrest, Auto-Aircon, Auto headlights, Self-darkening mirrors (all of them), sunroof, "Titanium" Gearknob (that gets red-hot in sunlight) LE Badges, fitted Lexus floor mats front & rear, 8-speaker system (the tweeters count as speakers) & Chrome exhaust tailpiece.

The very last of them had charcoal alloys and darkened glass on lamp assemblies as did the very last of the other versions. A few had fitted Satnav - but since it was a very, very expensive option (£1300) & not wonderful, most just had the damped-hinge housing for it. The OTR price was around £21k to £22k. There were a few Lexus options like rear spoilers (lip on boot & raised about 12cm) & blue-illuminated sill-plates.

thanks for the tips and advise guys only asked that coz about 4 months after buying the lexus found out it would have been more practical to buy a more eco friendly car (just became a dad :D ). but as i love my little girl and the lexus equally they are just going to have to get along .

Just take comfort that the reliability of the IS200 will keep down the rest of the running costs. If this is your first 6-cylinder car, your driving style will probably change as you adapt to its characteristics and give you slightly better mpg. Just try driving so as to less often use the brakes except to stop - slow down by taking your foot off, anticipating when you want to go slower. Do this for a while to see what difference it makes and also using the best gear - the MPG indicator helps a bit with revs versus gear choices. Try to steer as smoothly as possible which also helps with tyre wear. Screeching tyres is a sign of extra fuel consumption as well as extra tyre wear. Also accelerating no more than you need to reach the speed you want can make a big difference. These things can make the drive seem a bit boring (but you don't have to go as far as driving like an elderly chauffeur with the Queen in the back) and make suprisingly little difference to journey-times compared with driving it like it was competing in F1; but will help stretch the cash in your pocket.

Thanks for your reply :-).

The trouble is I don't have set it to auto. In reality I only have two heat settings when adjusting the temperature knob - extremely hot or extremely cold.

It only controls to the set temperature in Auto.

Hi all,

Done a lot of googling on this issue, a lot of topics and not too many solutions so this is my last attempt before I cave in to take in to a shop.

My air conditioning unit either blows full cold or full hot. Setting the temperature to the coldest blows cold air as it should, but putting it up two notces gives me hot air as if I had to put it the warmest setting.

I have checked to see if the room sensor under the steering wheel was sitting in it's correct place and that that the solar sensor by the windshield was plugged in and both we all good. From what I can tell all the servo motors are functioning as normal, is their anything else I have missed by chance and anything I can check before I open my wallet?

Cheers fellas

It will tend to do that in "Auto" until the cabin temperature reaches the set value, when it should settle down. The blower fan then slows and the servos then control the mixture of hot and cold to maintain it - with the A/C pump switching on & off as required.

Hi all, Like all of you my gearbox ratios are strange, is it possible to remap the engine to help the car accomadate such strange ratios. and to get rid of the Turbo lag that kills it below 2k revs. your help and advice is most welcome.

The IS220D is not a bad car, but it has its diesel-related foibles. It is hard to dispel the feeling that the diesel engine is the work of the Devil except he would have made a better job of it, and the idea of a Diesel "sport" is a bit of a laugh.

Everything people dislike about the IS220D can be overcome by reversing the mistake of buying one and replacing it with the real driving pleasure of the IS250 Auto at the expense of inreased day-to-day running cost - and even this is not massive unless you are unfortunate enough to have a major commute.

The big problem is that if you go to enough expense and effort to successfully make the engine do what you want, which is essentially to make it drive a bit more like the Petrol IS; it will inevitably gag down more fuel - thus removing the only conceivable advantage the Diesel has over the Petrol IS.

i wouldnt pay anymore for it...its a car that drinks fuel and is coming to ten years old....

The IS200 is a bit thirstier than most 2L cars; but overall running-costs are lower because of much better reliabilty & durability.

The yellow one isn't rare because of poor sales, it's rare because it's limited edition.

Very true, but popular Limited Editions have not been restricted to such tiny numbers or took so long to shift.

It is all down to opinion, and how can I put it; a bright Yellow Lexus is not a mainstream desire nor one for those known for their taste & discernment.

On the one side the Yellow Rose colour is rare. On the other side, it is rare because it is deeply repulsive (to most) on the IS200 which is why it didn't last long.

So Value/Price could go either way and it has also reached the age where it is only to be found privately or out the back of showrooms with the older trade-ins.

And yes, yellow cars really do attract insects in droves. I know because embarassingly, I bought a brand-new yellow (Colour-Name "Turmeric") Rover SDI in 1980 when scarily, the colour was still just about fashionable together with its brown velour seats & gold carpets. It makes my toes curl to think about it now, even though in every other way it then completely outshone everything in its class from GB, France, Italy, Germany, Scandinavia and Japan - and that really is almost impossible to believe now!

I have already taken the car to Lexus who charged £100 to tell me either the amp or headunit was at fault (I knew that already!) At which point they explained a new amp would be £2000 or the head unit £5000! They then want another £100 for me to take the car back and swap the amp with a dummy from another car to test which is at fault. I personally feel they should have done this anyway at the time instead of giving me a "courtesy" hand car wash!!

So before I start the laborious task of finding the problem (I can't justify paying 2k for a new one) I just want to check if it is an internal fault with the amp by testing it in another car. Thanks fjc you give me some optimism! Still hoping a nice fellow owner may be able to help me with the first step : )

Would like to help but Camberley is a bit far and am not sure if my multimedia is identical or just similar. If your problem proves to be that amp all is not lost. Because it occasionally works, running it with the casing off and poking with a plastic prod (dead Bic Biro) may locate a dry joint or similar problem. The head unit is a bit more of a pain to get at to do something similar. And then there are breakers yards.........

I find that the prices generally mimic any other nearby stations anyway, however I do tend to stay away from Supermarket petrol probably deterred by the memory of Tesco screwing up peoples cars:

http://www.guardian....ransportintheuk

Even more shocking is remembering that petrol was 88p 5 years ago :(

Off topic.

I started driving when I was very, very young and my first gallon after passing the test was 11.5p inc Tax (newly arrived cut-price Jet Petrol - the company, not stuff for aeroplanes) - even more to think about because that was higher against the cost of living than it is now, and really slow lousy 1litre cars then rarely managed as good as 30mpg.

Even more to think about - my first Insurance Premium was £2.75 (3rd Party, Fire & Theft) for a whole year for a truly dreadful, rotted 10 year old 1172 cc Hillman Minx. It went down when I got to be 18! Then went up to £4 when I got a "tuned" Ford V8 Pilot.......