route66

When I checked this out in Ireland, the story sounded much different to yours: from my research, Irish Insurance companies tended to not want to know anything about "Written Off" cars. And yes, of course, some of these can be repaired back to 100% of their original state ... In my own case, the car I looked at was a CAT D. I got photos of the damage and it didn't look bad. It had 20K less miles than mine but against that was a private sale, had marked wheels and missed a complete service (i.e. no service over a 25K miles period). It was for sale for £13K and the guy said he'd only go as low as £12.8K. The list price on mine was £13.3K including fees (I also had to pay currency charges but they would apply to any car). For me, I'd want to be saving about what you stated £4-5K before I'd consider one; £500 is not enough.

The CAT C car is no longer listed. I considered a CAT D car before I bought my 300H. I did some research on insuring CAT C or D cars and that put me off. Some insurance companies won't touch it, other require an engineer's report before they will consider it and a few will only consider it if you are already a customer. It really doesn't mater how bad the car was or how well it was repaired, the phrase "Category C/D write off" is enough to put the insurance companies off. And that's just insuring it. When the time comes to sell, the history will make it impossible to move on - unless you sell to the trade and that will be for buttons. The cars I looked at didn't even offer a big discount - £3-4K at most - on an unmolested one. I'd say if you have contacts in the insurance business and intend to hold on to the car until it dies, then you could consider these, otherwise, forget it. Like you, I'm also based in Ireland and drove an Alfa (156) for 10 years. The choice between the 330E and the IS300H will come down to the usual - and often subjective - thoughts. The 330E might be closer to the Alfa in terms of sportiness but for me, the IS300H was a no-brainer. My 1 owner, August 2014 IS300H Executive with 68K miles recorded cost me about £13.5K which translated into €17.5 precisely once VRT (Irish import tax), flights, ferry, currency charges, fuel - even food - were taken into account. I've no regrets at all and am delighted with the car - most especially when a x-colleague sent me a picture of his 18-month old 330E up on a trailer. A drivetrain error came up directly after he heard "an almighty rattle under the car". Another 530E colleague has also had the car back to BMW with other - albeit, less alarming - drivetrain issues. You can't beat Lexus reliability!

Forget what other people think - what do you think ?

I'm not in the car now, but the basic thing you need to do - once in the media player - is to move the wheel LEFT to get a menu that will allow folder access

Firmware updates are doable by yourself if you have premium navigation - You can purchase these yourself from the Lexus website. If you have regular Navigation (or, no Nav), in theory, this is a dealer-only option. An alternative is to look around EBay for independent suppliers whose solutions work with either Nav system. A quick search will give you details.

I agree, the lights on my IS300H are nothing to write home about. My main comparison is with my last car - a 2004 Honda Accord with regular lights and bulbs

Here are my own newbie thoughts from an earlier thread:

But what if you imported - say - an early 2014 Luxury with extra cost: Leather Premium Sat Nav Seats - Heated Seats - Cooled Seats - Electrically adjustable I imported an Executive which (other than metallic paint?) is a fixed spec and the "VRT process" was very simple. Dunno what the story would have been with the above though ...

The good news is there is very little to look out for. I bought a 2014 - one keeper - IS300H recently and did a lot of research before taking the plunge. The only thing that comes to mind is that the leather edges of the seat squab (base) get crushed easily and most cars seem to suffer. It's probably just the soft leather that Lexus use. There are also various small bugs in the earlier infotainment systems and most that I have come across have never been updated with newer firmware. Other than that, you are just looking at generic things. Lots of these cars are x-company and some company car drivers look after their cars and some actively abuse them.

Or, to put it another way: Has anyone, ever, upgraded their infotainment system software on an IS300H - with non-premium software - themselves? I'd really love to do this but fear of turning my infotainment system - or even the car - into a brick is holding me back

... Sorry, should add that these updates presented themselves to me when I typed in my VIN. Would it be too much of a leap to say that I wouldn't have been offered them unless they were applicable to my actual car?

Does this work for "regular" Satnav or is it for premium only? My software version is VC18100A

+1 - I'd like to know the answer to this question also. And - an additional query. As per my introductory thread (here), I'd like to know if this also updates the software version? My details: I have "Lexus Navigation 13CY" My Map version is "02-34-02 (2013-10-2)" My software version is "VC18100A" Latest versions of the above are "02-37-51" and "VC18101B" respectively

But is that even possible? Is there a link somewhere to how this can be achieved on an IS300H (I couldn't find one)?

I don't think that's relevant to IS owners this side of the pond as there are no IS300Hs (= CVT) over there. The gearboxes these guys are talking about would be regular automatics and therefore the oil change requirement - and indeed the process for changing it - would be different. And it looks like there is no process for replacing the IS300H fluid ... The question for me really is "Why would Lexus want all its IS300Hs to expire prematurely due to transmission failure?" They have a service schedule in place for other stuff like engine oil, brake fluid differential oil, etc, etc; why would they leave the transmission oil out? Unless, maybe, they designed it so that it does actually last for ever?

Here is the excerpt from the manual on how to disable the keyfob broadcasting it's signal. I have broadcasting disabled on my spare key to help preserve the battery, but it can of course be used on the main key as well - easy to disable and to reenable:

When I bought mine last October from an Independent dealer, I made passing the Lexus Hybrid Health check a condition of sale - it passed as I expected it to. As well as checking the hybrid system, this check also gives you a year's warranty on the Hybrid systems and peace of mind that all the Hybrid specific stuff (i.e. the expensive stuff to repair!) is functioning correctly. My car had 67K on the clock and - as stated elsewhere here - these cars can take mileages without a problem. Do check the service history as bigger miles means smaller purchase prices!

Thanks for the replies. And yes, I've been there with firmware updates ... Is there anyone on here who has done this themselves with the non-premium satnav? As Paul said above, I could just ask the dealer to do it at the next service - but that's nearly a year away!

I recently acquired a 2014 Lexus IS300H Executive. It replaced an almost 14-year old Honda accord so as you can expect, I'm very impressed! Picture attached (Now on Irish plates) My wife drives a similar vintage Toyota Prius Plus (7 seater) and I found it interesting to compare the hybrid systems on the 2. The Lexus engine is definitely smoother and more powerful but does lose out on economy - 45 Vs 39 MPG - probably a factor of its extra weight and capacity. Some other rambling thoughts: Auto Engine starting when stationary in traffic much more noticeable than Prius Plus – bigger engine? Like the audible-warning once-off override for the parking sensors - e.g. front: too close to traffic Prius Plus has "3 trip computers" for fuel consumption. IS300H has only 1, albeit switchable I'm also missing the reversing camera on the Prius - again only available on IS300Hs with premium Satnav. Light sensitivity setting - not enough adjustment. Lights are on in morning at min sensitivity impacting on ability to run on battery power Like the white Diamond on mpg bar scale – mine shows mpg since reset Warning message if you don't wait for bootup before putting the lever in Drive and the need to put the gear lever in park - or the car stays in accessory mode – when switching off are annoying Various beeps - e.g. If door opened when reversing - are annoying. Double-press on menu brings up Sat Nav - nice Engine very smooth - straight six-esq. I can think of no reason why ASC should be enabled. I gave it a go for a few weeks thinking it was making the engine sound smooth but I was wrong - it is actually very smooth - most particularly considering it is a large capacity 4 cylinder. The soundtrack when using the gear paddles is especially artificial. I've got rid of the economy gauge and permanently replaced it with a rev clock. I know this happens by default when you go into sports mode, but I find that too responsive. I find it interesting to experience all the algorithms working away and changing how the car is operating. Examples of this include how switching from Eco to Sport mode can cause the engine to fire up (and visa versa). Also how extra electrical loads or temperature requirements can cause the engine to fire; turning them down/off causes it to shutdown - does anyone else feel guilty when turning heating down to get increase efficiency? The reported fuel consumption figures are optimistic. When I check my consumption the old fashioned way, I find they are less by as much as 5 MPG. So far , over 2000 miles I have seen 42, 39, 34 and 42 MPG - about 50% better than my Honda. The Lexus is LOW! I am not looking forward to the first time I crunch the lovely looking front spoiler on a kerb. Because I'm old school, I'm very uncomfortable with the fact it has no spare wheel. I will probably purchase one in Ebay (I hear IS220D ones work well) and I have already figured out where to keep it: strapped up semi-vertically and parallel to the back seat at the back of the boot. Based on information in a thread here, I purchased a diagnostic plug and downloaded the Toyota/Lexus software. I haven't tried it yet ... I find that the operation of the central screen is occasionally buggy. From little things like the hybrid screen showing the engine as off when I can see the rev clock showing it running to the very large delays in operation I see sometimes. From what I have read here, this should be upgradable but I don't know the details - see question below. Despite it's considerable advantages over the Honda, it doesn't beat it everywhere. My Honda had electric seats and a sunroof for example, something never available on the IS300H executive model (I think you had to buy a premium for these). It was also seriously reliable - these 2.0 litre Honda VTEC engines will go on for ever; let's hope the Lexus is as good! Because it was FWD, it also had considerably more interior space than the IS300H. And where's the spare wheel? Despite sporting 7 seats, our Prius Plus has room for a space saver and storage space at the back. This is because of its use of newer battery technology - Lithium batteries stored in the central armrest. And on to a question, if I may. My Executive has Sat Nav, but not the Premium version. I went on to the Lexus site - https://www.lexus-mapupdates.eu/ - and learned the following: I have "Lexus Navigation 13CY" My Map version is "02-34-02 (2013-10-2)" My software version is "VC18100A" Latest versions of the above are "02-37-51" and "VC18101B" respectively It says that an update for my car is a dealer-only update; does anyone know if my "standard" Satnav can be updated by the end user with a USB key? I have made contact with a guy on Ebay who claims he can provide me with the necessary to update both my "Map version" and "Software version" to"02-37-51" and "VC18101B" respectively but I'd like to know if this is actually possible if you are not a dealer, before I get back to him. Loving this forum and have got lots of useful information here already - thanks for listening!

Anyone got any thoughts on my query, 4 posts above (extract): Does anyone know if my "standard" Satnav (i.e. the one on the Executive) can be updated by the end user with a USB key? I don't want to go out and buy the upgrade on EBay if it's not possible.

I have a 2014 Lexus IS300H Executive. It has Sat Nav, but not the Premium version. I went on to the Lexus site - https://www.lexus-mapupdates.eu/ - and learned the following: > I have "Lexus Navigation 13CY" > My Map version is "02-34-02 (2013-10-2)" > My software version is "VC18100A" > Latest versions of the above are "02-37-51" and "VC18101B" respectively It says that an update for my car is a dealer-only update. Does anyone know if my "standard" Satnav (i.e. the one on the Executive) can be updated by the end user with a USB key? I have made contact with a guy on Ebay who claims he can provide me with the necessary to update both my "Map version" and "Software version" to"02-37-51" and "VC18101B" respectively.