Dylanlewis2000

I cannot stand these fees. I have noticed that Motorline do it, it just feels a bit underhand. My local Cardiff dealership does it and it honestly puts me off buying a car from them.

Thank you for the replies. I have taken it to an independent garage who said that I have a few more miles left in them yet. As others have mentioned, I have looked online at Lexus essential servicing and saw that the prices were around £550 ish but I still couldn't fathom why they were another £300 on top. I guess I'll see what happens in a few months time. The local indi said it shouldn't cost anywhere near the prices quoted... here's to hoping!

I always like to think that Lexus would take care of their customers. I understand they are in the business to make money but can’t help feeling like they are taking the mic with this one. I’m going to try an indie on Friday to see what they say. I know everyone is saying do it yourself, my other fear is messing it up and not having anyone to turn to in the event of me not being able to do something e.g push the piston back in the callipers.

Yes. Front and back.

Hi all, ive just been quoted just under £850 for disk and pad replacement in my 2012 IS250. Seems a bit steep. Halfords wanted less however, I thought I’d ask to see how much you had paid in the past. I don’t really have the time to do it myself.

My IS does this, however, if I put the car in numeral, put the break on, then put it back into drive and release the break she stays put. It caught me out when I had the car new. Just for reference mine is a 2012 IS therefore not a hybrid. I don’t really ever leave the auto box hold me on a hill, that’s what my foot brake is for.

Thank you for that detailed response. I guess i'll just keep on looking. I too had a Volvo, however mine was the S40 sport with the D5 geartronic. I will admit that the Volvo did feel as if it had a lot more shove, and if it was in second/ third gear then nothing was going to pass it as the acceleration was brutal in a light weight car. I guess I was expecting the 450 to be a bit more like that in terms of 'put back in seat' enjoyment. It seems that they made updates to the 2015 spec, just before the face lift, so probably that's the best one to look for if i want to make sure I have everything. HUD is not a deal breaker, but having it on the NX was nice. My main requirements would be the ML sound system, large screen, radar cruise and heated seats. Anything else is a bonus. Not sure when i'm looking to change, as I still have one more service on my service plan with Lexus, so it could be a year from now, but its nice to see what's out there at the moment as I can keep an eye on prices. Thank you to all who have contributed so far, if anyone else would like to weigh in, feel free!

This makes sense as i've seen some with HUD. Long story short, I really like the NX however I think i prefer the driving position of my IS. I'd happily look at another IS, however the 450h is that bit more power and in my eyes a bit more fun. The one thing that puts me off with the IS is the size of the screen inside it, it seems small for the car, although new versions have changed, it will take a few years for these to filter on down. The NXs I have had in the past have been a mix of SE and Luxury trim, however the last one was a premier with the ML, heated steering wheel etc let's just say I was smitten.

Thank you for the replies so far. I'm trying to plan my next move well in advance, but so far there doesn't seem to be a lot of GSs out there. My car is a 62 plate (2012) so ideally I would like to look at a 2015 car which puts me on the cross between the new shape and the old. The one other thing which I cannot get my head around is the pre 2015 with the large screen will not display the map across the full screen, whereas the newer one does. Surely this should be available as a software update.

My IS250 was in for a service and a recall in my local Lexus dealer when I noticed a red 64 plate GS450h lurking on the forecourt. I've had my IS for nearly three years, love it to bits, however I would like to think that a Hybrid would be quite nice to try. The car itself is a Luxury trim with the Premium Nav. It doesn't have the Mark Levinson but it does have the 12.3" display. I requested to take it for a quick spin however, I have a few questions which hopefully GS owners can answer 1 - Gear Stick Vibration This was something that struck me as totally weird. I'm not sure why, however the gear selector seemed to have a lot of 'feedback' coming through it. In my IS I can hold my hand on the gear stick and not feel any vibration, however with the GS I could. Is this a characteristic of the car? With one of my previous cars this was a sign of a worn gear box. This car was under 37,000 miles so seemed unlikely that the CVT would be 'worn'. 2 - Radar Cruise What do I need to look for in order to get radar cruise on the GS450h? They had a slightly newer 65 plate 300h in the new shape GS which had it, however the sales man did say that it was very uncommon to see. Is this something which is standard on the newer shape GS cars? Did it appear in certain trims? 3 - Sport/SPORT+ This model did have the 'Sport' dial but not sport plus. What does sport plus add? The car didn't feel overly quick, however, the wife did say that it had a bit more go than the IS. 4 - Service Schedules My IS has a £250 service then a £480 service and now and again a £699 service. Is this the same for the GS? The warranty seems to be a few £100 more than the IS too, does that mean that things with this car are generally more expensive? 5 - Economy My daily commute is around 12 miles with annual mileage clocking in at around 6-7000 a year. In the winter the IS is hitting around 26-29 mpg summer is more like 30+. On a run on the motorway I can usually get 43mpg+ (once had over 50!). What's the real world economy like on the GS? 6 - Battery I have had a few NXs on loan whilst my IS has been in for service. What I have noticed with the NXs is that they will go a reasonable length on battery power alone. The GS during the test drive warmed up quickly however, it wouldn't really move on battery power alone. When we stopped at traffic lights, it did turn the engine off, then as soon as we proceeded to move, the ICE kicked in. The sales man said this was due to it being an older type of hybrid system where it was merely meant to 'assist' rather than 'drive' the car. How true is this? It seems that the NX can move up to around 30mph before the ICE kicks in. 7 - Trim levels The trim levels are a little confusing. If I want to get the Levinson sound system, heated seats, 12.3" screen and radar cruise what trim do I need to be looking for? Sorry for the questions.

OK, thank you, i'll ring them tomorrow. I have heard that Lexus typically do a 'sorry' gift for this type of thing... does this still happen?

Sorry, should have said, its the Airbag letter. I have had the car 3 years in May.

This evening after arriving home from work a recall letter was waiting for me. I have a service booked in for the start of March, do you think it will be done then. Also, what will be done? Does anyone know? Regards, Dylan.

60 mpg is amazing for this, I am starting to look out for a 450h, however my 2012 IS250 has seen upto 50mpg on the motorway. I don’t typically do motorway miles, mainly around town.

Pushy sales does work, it must do as people keep doing it. When buying cars in the past if someones being too pushy I will usually walk away, just leave and say thank you. Most of the time as I usually have done my homework I will know more about the car than the sales people in the dealership. The one thing that is starting to annoy me, and even some Lexus dealers are doing it is the purchase fee / admin fee they are putting onto used cars. Include it in the price!

Did you put 255 | 35 | R18 on your IS250 or is that for the 300?

Yes, where did you get those from? Do you have a link?? these are the cheapest I have found.

so the question to everyone... Are these: https://www.protyre.co.uk/tyres/car-tyres/falken/azenis-fk510/#/car/255/40/18/99/Y/all worth getting? These are what someone else recommended in the thread https://www.protyre.co.uk/tyres/car-tyres/goodyear/eagle-f1-asymmetric-2/#/car/255/40/18/99/Y/all Or I could stick with Bridgestone https://www.protyre.co.uk/tyres/car-tyres/bridgestone/potenza-re050a/#/car/255/40/18/99/Y/all Falken £117 Bridgestone £170 Goodyear £179 Coupled with my big service this month... the Lexus is going to cost me!

Yes, 255 / 40 / R18 what price have you seen them for? What I’m struggling with is that if the cheap brand is higher rated and quieter, apart from the ‘brand’ value, what else is there?

Just to update, this is on the todo list.... So, i have found that the Falken FK510 are available for just under £120, E rated for fuel, A rated for wet and they seem to be one of the quietest out there at 70dB. Are these any good? The best rated tyre i have seen is this one : https://www.halfordsautocentres.com/tyres/landsail/ls588/255-40-r18-99w-xl

Dear all, Just after a little bit of info. I am after a rear tyre for the IS. She currently has Bridgestone on her which is what Lexus put on her when I purchased her. I only need one for the passenger side as the other still has 4mm of tred left. Just wondering what everyone's opinion was. I am after a quiet tyre and eventually will replace the set once she needs them. What's your opinion?

I picked my car up after a service from Lexus in Cardiff and drove home. I reset the trip computer outside Lexus and this is what the car was telling me when I arrived home.Pretty pleased with that... :-)

After having an NX300h for a few days as part of a curtesy car whilst my IS was in for a service I thought that I would write a little review on my findings. I picked the car up late on Thursday evening form my local Cardiff Lexus. The car was a demonstrator; SE spec. From what I understand the SE is not the base model but one up. It had some of the usual refinements that I like, heated seats, sat nav etc, but it was missing the basics such as parking sensors, although it did have a reversing camera! One thing that I really did think was a serious need for improvement was the info entertainment system. There was a USB port but it seemed this was to be used to charge phones and not as a socket where you could plug a USB stick full of music. The audio quality on the standard system was not amazing either. Visually the car is very striking to look at. What’s really weird is when you first start driving it. Being a Hybrid the first time you turn it on its complete silence. Even when the engine springs into life it doesn’t really make much more noise. The cabin layout was nice with a screen upon the dash, heating controls underneath and the usual buttons on the steering wheel allowing you to change the volume, answer phone calls etc. This car also featured an electronic hand break. This can be activated via the press of a button, or when the vehicle is placed in ‘Park’. Something that was a little strange was the break hold. This comes on automatically on my partners Golf, but you need to press the ‘break hold’ button at the start of each journey to activate it. Once the ignition is turned off you have to turn the break hold feature back on. This essentially puts the hand break on when you come to a stop regardless of whether you are in park or not, a handy feature. As previously mentioned, the driving element of this is fun. Initially I didn’t like it as much but as I drove around town I found myself fixated on the energy monitor. The Hybrid system will start you off, and, providing you are light with the throttle, can take you up to speeds of 40MPH. However, the range is incredibly limited, although this maybe down to the fact that I live in Wales and we have lots of hills here (I think I managed just over a mile on battery power). The car is almost silent when driving below 10MPH, and it doesn’t really get much noisier when you go faster. If I am being truthfully honest though I do think my IS is quieter at speed. The gearbox in this car is not a traditional 6 speed automatic. The E-CVT is a ‘gearless’ gearbox which does have massive benefits around town. You will never feel it change gear… as it doesn’t! The gearbox seemed to cope really well with around town driving, however when driving back to the dealership there was a section of road on the motorway which was uphill. When I put my foot down to overtake the engine did roar into live to give a little extra boost. Some of the car reviews slate this, but honestly it’s not as bad as people make out. If you are going to be planting the throttle everywhere you go then yes, the engine will generate quite a bit of noise, but if you are gentle with it, then you’ll be fine. Most of my driving is usually around town. On the motorway the car’s trip computer displayed 44MPG. When handing it back it was showing 42MPG. That included Cardiff to Swansea and the return trip one trip to work and a trip to a local city in total probably around 200 miles. Although this is not an acid test as I didn’t have the car long enough to do a lot of town driving I still feel that around town economy was better than what the IS would usually give. Motorway driving however, was disappointing. Considering the official figures are low 50s, this falls short. So I suppose the million dollar question would be would I buy one? At the moment the prices are too high for me, as typically I like to buy second hand and there’s not too many of them around. I did like the size and rear space (not that I take many people) and I did like the elevated driving position, but I do feel that there needs to be tweaks made. It would be nice if the battery range was a little longer as Mitsubishi have a 38 mile range in their SUV equivalent (although it’s a PHEV). The other thing that I found strange was the battery technology that Lexus are using, I would have thought LiPO would have been put into their modern cars. All in all an enjoyable drive.

I have had a number of cars over the years including Honda, Volvo, Renault and VW however, I am appalled with the quality of my Lexus' paint work. It seems that the paint marks and scratches very easily In comparison to the other brands. My Passat's paint was bomb proof and apart from rust on the arches was in quite good order. A bird decided to deposit a lovely present on the car bonnet the other day. It was a very hot day and the maximum that the droppings could have been on the car was 5-6 hours. Upon washing off there was a clear sign that the droppings had eaten into the surface of the paint. After a machine polish I was able to take this stain out - thankfully. Today, same thing happened only this time it was not as warm and I was able to get to the droppings quickly. Upon wiping it off I was horrified to see that I had inadvertently scratched the paint. This to me is soft paint. I really do like the car but things like this really do annoy me when you pay so much for a premium brand. I have polished the car multiple times and put a good coat of wax on her but it seems that nothing can stop this. Does anyone have any solutions to this problem??

My 2012 IS 250 has vertical scratches. I've noticed that in comparison to my old VW Passat the Lexus is not as hard wearing. I had bird droppings on the car for less than 2 hours and it marked the paint. With regards to the glass I have tried polishing with a machine and by hand all to no avail. I'm sure if you get the correct paste and tools that you could grind it down a bit but is there any point?