Fmrl

Many thanks for the input Rikos (though I notice you don't have a 300 :winky: ). I guess I'm looking for something comfortable and relatively fast, not too big, preferably automatic, good reliability, and good value for money. Good MPG would be nice but there doesn't seem to be anything out there that ticks all the boxes. So far I've considered and rejected Audi A4, Volvo S40, BMW 3 series, Merc CLK, etc. Another IS200 would be an option I suppose but the forecourt prices of the 200 and 300 seem pretty similar these days (so I was just thinknig why not go for the higher spec).

Maybe it's so they can recognise each other? :winky: Or maybe it's a bit like the "Dazzle Ships" camoflage - ie. when a herd of cows are standing in a field together, the splodges of black and white make it difficult for a predator to outline and isolate individual animals. It's darn clever how this thing came about though - Evolution always gives me a headache.

I've finally decided to trade in my CTS so I've been looking round for a replacement recently and I keep coming back to an IS300 - they seem to be good value for money at the moment (eg. 2004 plate for around £14k) but there's always the worry of MPG, depreciation, servicing, etc. so I was wondering if anyone has a 300 and could give me some advice about pricing, what to look for when I go for a test drive, what are the alternatives to a 300? I had an IS200 a few years back that I really liked but the petrol consumption always seemed a bit high. And also, when I traded it in the money on offer wasn't that good so I'm guessing the situation has only got worse since the new IS came out - the long and the short of it is basically is it worth spending £14k on an IS300 any more?

Like it. I bet it not much fun going over speedbumps though.

Also, get the tracking and suspension checked and fixed FOC. Sounds like the dealer noticed that one tyre had too much wear and just replaced that without fixing what actually caused the problem in the first place (so if you hadn't checked up on it then you'd end up with another bald tyre). EDIT: BTW, I had an IS200 and I'm thinking of getting an IS300 - just waiting for a good one to turn up.

Hi, Dunno if you guys remember me but I had an IS200 a couple of years back. Anyway, I've been thinking of getting a IS300 Sportscross recently (just seen an 02 plate online going for under 10k which seems like a bargain ... unless there's something wrong with it ) and I noticed on the Parkers website that this model is classed as tax band F/G - does this mean it'll get hammered by the "4x4 tax"? Cheers!

How good are you at diy? If you're like me and totally hopeless with it then try asking a builder/decorator to view the house with you and give you some ideas about how much it would cost to put everything right. I'm guessing that to begin with there's only going to be you and your wife living there so you can do up one room while you're living in another so this might make things easier (sounds like your priority will be making the house "child friendly" anyway). You could view it as a long term investment and take your time over the refurb in which case you'll have more money and time to get the house looking exactly how you want.

I guess it depends what you're used to. Manchester can be a little rough around the edges in places, it tries to be all modern and cosmopolitan but it still has problems. If you know your way around though it should be fine. If you're driving into the centre of Manchester then be prepared for all the usual big-city-traffic-congestion-problems (I'm used to it now but it can be a right pain in the butt if you've never been there before). China Town is only about 5 minutes walk from Picadilly. There's a couple of pubs near the Printworks that I really like, I'll try to dig out the names. (EDIT : The Shakespeare on Fountain Street) If you fancy a bit of an adventure head over to the gay bars around canal street. :o

Manchester has a fantastic shopping area right in the middle of the city centre and there's also Trafford Park if you like your malls (only a few miles outside the centre). If you're looking for somewhere nice to eat try some of the restaurants in china town. There's some fantastic curry houses in Rusholme but it's a bit of a trek if you're in the middle of the city. Pubs in the centre tend to be the usual franchised places so it really depends what you're looking for. There's the Printworks with bars such as Tiger Tiger and the Hard Rock Cafe, or just have a wander around the city centre - there's plenty to choose from. Picadilly Gardens is a bit odd now that it's all concrete and water features - it seems to attract the wrong element which is a shame.

According to Alan Partridge - Lexi

Next time he scrapes your car he'll make sure there's no one looking :winky: Nice result though, I thought you'd end up having to pay for the repair yourself.

Where abouts in Yorkshire are you? I noticed this too (I'm sorta Leeds based at the moment). I really did like owning an IS but I was concerned about the mpg, the rate it went through tyres, cost of servicing, etc. Depreciation seems to have become a big problem with the IS too. I knew about the lack of performance before I bought the car so that wasn't a big problem for me. It's nice having a car with a bit more poke now though. :winky:

I keep wondering about laser surgery (I think I'm only about -2 in both) - I'm a bit squeamish about my eyes though. I was really keen on having it done last year, went for a consulation, etc. - then one of the consultants happened to mention that you can smell your eyeball burning

Maybe a bit of a stupid suggestion but have you tried slapping the side of the dash? I had a stuck CD in mine once, a quick slap fixed the problem.

I guess it depends where you live but I think you'd only get maybe 6500 or 7000 if you tried selling privately.

Both... Click here and specifically here

I had a suspension problem on mine so the tires looked fine if the wheels were straight, if you put them on full lock then you'd see that the tires were becoming worn on the inside edge - I think this has been discussed at length on the forum before.

I think the 3 year service is the big one so if that has been carried out by a Lexus dealer then you should be okay. Personally I'd insist that the 4 year service was carried out by the current owner at their expense before handing over any cash for the car. As for the car itself, have a good read through the Lexus knowledge base. If it was me I would have a good look at the tread wear on front tires (on full lock) as this is something that caught me out when I bought mine.

It's for sale if anyone's interested - a snip at 15 grand!!

Why take photos of it in the dark?

It's not an altezza though is it? EDIT : duh - ignore my last message, I'm still asleep.

And here's what happens in real life... Audi vs Bus (not nice so download at your own risk)

Is there a difference between a CD-R and a "Digital Audio" CD-R? I've got a Sony multi-changer and in the leaflet that came with it there's a line that says something like "only use CD-Rs that are Digital Audio compatible" - is this just a con by Sony to make us buy more expensive disks?

I got my IA licence last night - that lap of the Ring in the twitchy Merc is excellent, I don't think I've concentrated so much since I past my real driving test!

Or just keep doing the Subaru championship (Stars of Pleiades?) - gives you 10k per race win (5 in total), plus 75k for winning the series, plus a Subaru touring car which is worth 90k = 220 big ones (once you've got a decent enough scooby to win these races you can just let you B driver take over and rake in the cash).