Thelongterm

Here too, the original MK2 IS is in my opinion the best looking Lexus ever. Something about the shape composition and the thought that wen into the exterior design, it's just right. Modern Lexus models imho have way too many creases and are getting close to distaste I feel when I look at a current shape Honda civic.

Although my 2007 time capsule was garaged all it's life by the lady who owned it, (and never neglected) I found few things worth looking for, especially with low usage examples. 1. The boot struts gas has escaped as the boot was hardly used. This made the tailgate door very heavy to lift. £50 for a new pair and easy enough to change by most people. The change in usability is excellent. The old boot struts look like they came yesterday from the factory. 2. The tailgate rubber seal was very dry on mine, making it brittle in one spot. I think this is easy replacement but original gasket is not easy to find. Seems to go for £20 to £30. For now a bit of 'sticklikes** glue seems to seal the crack well. 3. Although my rear sliding calipers pins didn't cease completely it was hard work to release them. My garage managed to release, clean and lubricate with red grease. £80 in total.

Are you sure it's not E10 unleaded giving you less efficiency?

Seems like Esso don't add Ethanol at all to their super unleaded in most of the country. https://www.thesun.co.uk/money/16012011/which-petrol-stations-still-offer-e5-petrol/

Strange, I looked at a couple of early SE's (my55) last year and although not having memory seats, the side mirrors did the auto-tilt upon pushing to R, I agree that otherwise only saw this function on SE-L's. Maybe it was a retrofit of some sort as both had some yobish mods that saw me walking away.

Checked the back wheels this morning by jacking up, place in N and spin. No binding detected, probably because this lady was garaged for most of her life. Booked her in for a full brakes service, made sure my mechanic has red grease, 1 hour labour at £50.

Super helpful guide. When I searched for my IS I noticed that all the SE-L plus F Sport up to 2010 had this' pointing downward when putting in reverse' party trick. I also noticed some SE had this though my example is basic enough not to have this or the other party trick of the 'erecting' stirring wheel on start-up. My question is: was these two provided as an option in the lower tier models?

Thanks Lucas, what do you mean by' Pin and Seal' from ebay? Is this some sort of kit like this one? https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/232510668185?hash=item3622b73d99:g:vAIAAOSwa81crwU9 I have done most of the basic DIY stuff before from cleaning the MAF and throttle body to changing coolant and engine oil. Even done the crappy polycarbonate lenses Mr T used to fit to their cars up to 2010 but I usually don't touch the brakes as we are in a part of the world where there is very few flat surfaces to jack up (see my crappy inclined drive below), garages are built for tiny 60's cars etc' but I am sure I can find somewhere. Just finished tackling the usual lens fogging situ, she is not too bad so thought I'll do it now before it looks like many cars from Lexus of that era.

Thank you very much for the comments, if it is a simple job then defo will give my garage a call and see if it can be done pronto.

My new to me IS250 SE Auto is an absolute stunner. I noticed that the service history was done ever since the car was new by a Lexus dealer. Last service which was marked as Minor was done at 43k (car is now at 45.5k) around June 2020. My question is: If Lexus services it will it mean that maybe the infamous guide pins were never serviced? As I am intending to get an annual oil change very soon will it be sensible to have the calliper's guide pins looked at as well? Is it something a competent garage can do ? (not a Lexus specialist but a good reliable one for our other Toyotas here, south of Gloucester). Also can anyone comment what are the quietest 17" tyres one should seek for this car? Currently the front has Pirellis (P7) at 5mm and the back are Dunlop SP on a similar thread depth. This combo seems a bit noisier than I like on the motorway. I am no intending doing much DIY on the car as I am in a position to pay good money for someone to look after it.

I was in the same position as you, but tomorrow I am finally going to collect precisely what I was looking for. It took the best part of a year and eventually settled on a 07 SE with 44k in what I can only describe as a time capsule. The car was sourced from a lady in Leeds who used it for about 3k a year with FSH from the local dealer. I had to see and pass many ropey examples, but that is the name of the game. The IS250 auto is a dying breed and to find one in almost new condition is a task and a half; luckily, I have more time this year after changing to work from home. The previous owner replaced the example I found for some awfully grey electric VW, which I think will probably sit in the same garage next decade. There are many people who could afford the Lexus brand, kept them hardly used for years and now switching to EV's meaning more good examples are coming online, so keep an eye. My criteria were to have a stock car without the useless infotainment system. I can't tell the difference between the ML stereo and the stock Pioneer, so this made it easy as I excluded those from the search. Pics to come soon. I paid 6k in total which is ok for a minty car.

Thanks again Pete, I am not far (Cam) so will be in touch once I have the right one in sight. Sent from my KOB-W09 using Tapatalk

Thanks for the advice Pete, I don't see many LS of any model around here south of Gloucester. I plan on using a trusted local garage for servicing but do you have a tip where I should look for more specialist stuff once I managed to aquire the LS400?

Hi, I am ready to swallow a brave pill and try put my hands on a good LS400. After lurking here for a while I've set my budget at around £2.5k. There are currently 4 nice examples on ebay from a seller called used_car_sales2016, which one of these four would you go for?

Saying hello from the West country. Only owning a Yaris Mk2 currently but when I lived in the US I went to buy a new car in 1993. I tested the LS400 but settled on a Camry 2.2 which which I kept for 4 years, ever since that magical test drive I hunkered after the the clean design and quality of the LS400. All these years passed now and I think I am ready to own one.