Fmrl

Slight change of plan - I'm looking at a pre-March 2001 IS200SE Navigator at the moment (mainly to avoid the tax changes!). Is it possible to have the Lexus satnav upgraded so it's aware of any recent road layout changes? I'm guessing it's a DVD based system. Can this be done DIY or does it have to be done by a Lexus dealer? If so, does anyone know the rough cost?

I'm glad you're okay, that looks like one massive shunt in the rear - did the Golf manage to go underneath your car? I hope no one was in the back.

Its a customers car, wants to sell it before he has to shell out £51K for it. He was banding it around the dealers trying to get more for it. But sheffield have to send the car back to Lexus GB if he doesn't have it. Not all cars are sold yet as I have one order left for Sept/Oct delivery. Any takers? I just seen this car on Autotrader - looks a beauty. I wonder if they'd let me borrow it for a few weeks while they decide what to do with it. :D

I just replied but not sure if you got it!

(sorry ) If I could buy a 220d for £9k then I'd agree with you - unfortunately my budget won't stretch that far.

Yeah, I'm getting on a bit so I'd actually prefer an auto I thought the insurance on a modified 200 would end up being more than a standard 300 anyway. Probably not much in it though (and if I was really that bothered about the cost then I wouldn't be considering a Lexus!). One of the things I like about 300 over the 200 auto is the tiptronic buttons on the steering wheel so you can dabble with the gear changes if you're in the mood. (BTW, "innocence is no defence" - it's from a really old and obscure SPK song)

I'm looking for a part-ex on my current car so that rules out a private sale. You can have mine for £12k!! SUPERCHARGED. What car are trying to part-ex? I've got a Corolla TSport at the moment - has a decent amount of performance (for a Corolla!), quite cheap to run, very reliable, plus it's got all the toys I want, so it's been difficult finding something nice to replace it with. I've decided on an IS300 mainly as it doesn't seem to cost much more than an IS200 to buy, tax, and run. Can't see the point in supercharging a 200 to be honest. Just found another IS300 Sportcross for sale - £9k for a low mileage 53 plate. Hopefully going to see it some time this week or at the weekend.

I heard something about this on the radio this morning (as there's another fuel protest going on today)... there's rumours of a "rebellion" by some MPs over the new car tax rules - fingers crossed that the Gov might reconsider their decision.

Just a quick update on my search for a Lexus : I was planning on going to have a look at an IS300 Sportcross in Sheffield over the weekend (looked like really good value on Autotrader - 2004 reg, only 26k, with Satnav, parking, FLSH, etc.). Just before I set off I had a quick search on the Internet for the number plate and found it had previously been for sale here http://www.salvagesparefinder.co.uk/LEXUS+...CROSS-13714.htm From this... To this... :tsktsk: ...so I decided to stay at home instead! Possibly another couple of IS300s worth going to have a look at but the places that sell them don't offer warranties so I'm not sure if it's a good idea.

I had this problem with CDRs. The only way I found for it to eject the CD was to give the console on the passenger side a firm thump or two.

I'm looking for a part-ex on my current car so that rules out a private sale.

Bit of a disappointing weekend really. I went for a test drive in the IS300 but just before we set off I noticed a bit of masking tape hanging off one of the headlights. When I asked the sales guy about it he said that the car had only just come out of the bodyshop which started me worrying. The dealer was a bit vague as he just said it had been in an accident and most of the drivers side needed to be replaced or resprayed plus one of the tires was damaged (big chunk of rubber missing). I couldn't see underneath so I wasn't sure if there was damage to the chassis. Still quite a few scratches down one of the doors too. All the wheels were badly corroded and curbed but there was a possibility of getting them refurbed as part of the sale (as it's a known problem with all the IS200/IS300s why don't Lexus dealers just do this before they put their cars on the forecourt?) Car drove okayish - slight judder/wobble at high speed which I think indicates a tracking problem on the front. I love the IS300 gearbox though, so precise and smooth. I took an IS200 auto out for a drive too which seemed a better car (roughly the same age as the 300 but over a grand more!) - was seriously considering buying it but the dealer gave me an awful part-ex offer on my CTS and wouldn't really budge on the price more than a few quid so I walked away.

Thanks for the feedback everyone. After thinking long and hard about the pros and cons of buying an IS200 I've decided that maybe it's not such a good idea after all. So I'm thinking of buying an IS300 instead! Reasons behind this - car tax increases coming in next year are the same for the 200 and 300 (so I started thinking why not go for the higher spec if it costs the same). There's very little difference in price between the two now (I'm guessing this is because a lot of people are put off by the high insurance, tax, low mpg, etc. on the 300). Insurance probably isn't much more than what I'm paying now on my CTS (group 14/15?). The MPG is still a bit of a problem (I think the 300 only manages about 25 compared to about 28 on the 200 so it's not a huge difference) but these days I tend to do less than 8k a year so maybe it's just something I'll have to get used to. So I'm going to view/test drive a 2004 IS300LE over the weekend. Are there any major differences between the LE and SE? I'm guessing the 300 also suffers from the front tyre wear problem that affects the 200?

Probably a daft question to ask on the Lexus Owners Club forum but I'm still undecided about buying an IS200! I went to see a few at a local Lexus dealer at the weekend and one caught my eye. An IS200SE auto in silver 2004 (54 plate) with 24k on the clock. No satnav but that's not a big deal anyway as I've got one already. Price is nearly £12k. So, the only things I'm hesitant about are... Car tax going up next year, low mpg on the IS200, servicing costs, etc. ... I guess most of the cars I'd be looking at will be hit by these problems anyway. Wheel geometry ... do Lexus dealers sort out the front wheels properly now or is the concensus that I'll still need to get this done by WIM (in which case, is there somewhere nearish to Leeds who will do this?). My previous Lexus suffered from this problem. At the moment, IMO the only car that comes close to the IS200 is a Honda Accord Exec but there's not that many around in decent nick. Any thoughts and opinions?

Off topic but I thought it was funny a few weeks ago when Gordon Brown was complaining about Mugabe staying in charge of Zimbabwe when it was obvious that no one liked him and no one had voted for him! I'm 50/50 about buying another IS200 at the moment - I still think as a package they're one of the best cars out there but the spiralling costs do put me off a bit. I guess one option is to wait until next March and see if there's any bargains to be had once the new bandings are introduced - there's going to be a lot of cars sat on garage forecourts!

Something nice to look at sat rusting on the drive every morning while I set off walking towards the bus stop?

What I still don't understand is that UK inflation is still at 2.5%! I'm weighing up the pros and cons of buying an IS200 at the moment. I was considering an IS300 but the shocking price of fuel has really put me off buying anything with such low MPG figures (yeah, I know the 200 isn't that much better on fuel either!). I saw a lowe-miler 54 plate 200 SE at the weekend for about £10k on a Lexus forecourt so I guess the impending tax change is having an effect on prices.

I was just looking at Parkers website for IS200 specs (still thinking of buying one) and there's a Road Tax page... Rates effective from March 2008... IS200 12 months road tax Band F £210.00 Rates effective from March 2009... IS200 12 months road tax Band L £415.00 :shutit: Rates effective from March 2010... IS200 12 months road tax Band L £430.00 OUCH!!!

It's a good job I didn't mention that I know what SAAB stands for then! Also, did you know that Toyota should actually be Toyoda (named after the founder of the company) but the Japanese consider Toyota to be more lucky.

LEXUS = Luxury EXport US (as mentioned on UCR last week!) BMW = Bayerische Motoren Werke Also, another interesting but useless fact - contrary to popular belief, AUDI is not an abbreviation but is actually latin for "hark" (or Horch in German which is the surname of the company's founder). I think Volvo is latin too

I looked at a few CLKs a couple of weeks back but the value for money aspect really seems to let them down (and that's even before considering their unhelpful dealerships). All the different combinations and permutations of trim seems to be a bit confusing too. SLKs just seem a bit impractical for me and I've heard the handling on them isn't all that good (plus isn't the Crysler Crossfire just an SLK with a different body and a much cheaper pricetag?).

That's just the sort of car I'm looking for but I've got to sell my current car so that limits me to a part-ex deal. BTW, just out of curiosity - if the 300 is so good why are you looking at a Mercedez?

Is there one near Leeds? First thing I'm going to check when I see the car tonight is the state of the inside edge of the front tyres

BTW, I've just been reading through some of the threads about WIM and that brings back some unhappy memories - my IS200 suffered from that uneven front tyre wear problem (inside edges becoming worn out while the middle and outside edges were fine). I guess that the geometry definitely needs checking on all IS but am I right in thinking that Lexus dealers do this wrong and actually make the problem worse? If so, is it only WIM that can fix this problem? (only reason I ask is that I live near Leeds so a trip over to Hemel Hempstead just to get the car checked and adjusted is going to be a bit inconvenient).

Cheers Janet, I think that's swayed me - I'll pop round to the local dealer tonight and see about a test drive.