JAD90

On 9/3/2020 at 4:48 PM, Toothy said:

Interesting thoughts, thanks for taking the time to give your impressions. I think you've been quite kind in your honesty.

I've got an 11 plate, and have driven an 08 too. The ride is a bit more crashy on the older cars and I do enjoy the LSD, in damp conditions especially.
No aftermarket exhaust for me, but have an intake and have disabled the second intake flap. Keeps that roar going from much lower down.

I didn't like the pedal map either, so I fitted an Apexi throttle controller. Perfect now. I like a sensitive pedal.

I think the shifting is pretty darn good on the whole and dont notice it change gears much at slow speed. It does sometimes get a bit confused, holding 1st for a bit longer than i think it should or reacting a bit slowly to a stomp from the right foot.

ACC is good, but I have little experience of it in other cars, so for all I know it's terrible in comparison. I like that it was standard though, was a cost option for the RC-F. It's annoying it brakes on a motorway quite early if coming up to something though.

I think it handles pretty darn well for what it is, keeps super flat in the corners and inspires confidence. Not much can keep up with me in the real world.

It is a massive sleeper, but those who know, know. Makes receiving comments or thumbs up extra special.

Never noticed noisy pumps? Maybe yours were a bit faulty?

Sounds like you've targeted a few of the downfalls with the ISF in standard form! - Nice

My comment about the low speed shifting was a bit unfair to be honest, It was pretty darn good considering the age of the vehicle and the nature of the transmission. I think the area that i always picked up on was when you slow for a speed bump and it select 1st gear, sometimes it would hold onto 1st for a little longer than seemed necessary - perhaps just a small error state in the calibration.

The ACC was OK i guess considering that in 2008 this was one of the first to be introduced with such technology. The other thing that used to bug me, and perhaps there is a way to do it, is that the ACC only went up and down in 5mph increments?

Regarding the handling, perhaps i'll retract that comment. I hadn't pushed it too hard and when i did it was on the awful roads by me. I think the stiff damping felt like it was unsettling the car on bad roads when cornering hard. I'd of liked to do a track day to really understand it's limits and then perhaps i'd of come back with a completely different opinion. 

Regarding the pumps, perhaps i'm exaggerating a bit and was comparing it to the silent idle from previous LS400 / GS430 that I've owned. They were not direct injection though so not a fair comparison. The high pressure pumps on the ISF however, were absolutely noticeable at idle. Not a negative i suppose, just a characteristic of a DI system. They all do it to varying degrees of intrusiveness.

Cheers

On 9/3/2020 at 3:33 PM, scott-o said:

I think i'd probably have more of your views if i had it as a weekend toy but i use mine as a daily driver (or near as dammit) and its great for that. The fact people think its a 'normal' car is one of the main reasons i wanted an ISF, like you say to some its a pro, others a con.

I think some small changes to yours would have rid you of some of your cons, Michelin PS4S tyres for example, pretty much black hoops of magic 😂 The first proper hooligan drive out on undulating twisties i had in mine when i got it, i was expecting it to be like a bit barge-like as i have a very focused weekend car, i couldnt have been more surprised.

Agree with the pedal settings though, i find myself driving around the issue in normal mode and just pressing my foot down more to compensate but i am considering one of those controllers to alter the modes, that might have got rid of that con.

If its any consolation the adaptive cruise is no worse in this than my previous Golf R, which was 7-8 years newer. I tend to find myself operating it like i did with normal cruise on previous cars but it involves a lot of cancelling then resuming.

 

I think you're right, If this had been my daily driver then i'm sure some of my views would be different. It's a fantastic daily that ticks all the boxes but unfortunately not special enough to drive to be solely a weekend garage queen. 

My old ISF is currently for sale on eBay too, by the trader I sold it to based in Ashford, Kent. I can vouch for it being a nice well sorted example! Terrible advert though 

Hello everyone

I owned my ISF for about 6 months and sold it recently,  here's my pros/cons list from my own experience  / opinion. It may help some who are looking to buy, and perhaps push people to go for a later model. It's all in my opinion of course, and some of the things are personal preference.

Pros

Reliability

Looks - Black the best colour 😝

Gear Shifts when driving hard using the paddles

Intake noise when secondary intake flaps opens - fantastic

Goes like the clappers!

'Blips' under heavy braking and downshifting - intoxicating!

Fuel Economy is fantastic for what it is (32+mpg on a run)

Cons

Harsh Ride (Mine was a 58 plate) but this is common knowledge and I knew this before purchasing.

Exhaust note - Mine had a Joe-Z style cat back. I never really liked the way it sounded like at idle and when you rev it a touch. Perhaps a different exhaust would solve that but it's not a touch on the C63

Pedal Map - Normal mode has the most annoying dead zone at the top of the pedal, sport mode is way too sensitive for low speed driving.(IMO)

Low speed shifting - found it too shift busy, but it does have 8 cogs to go through, with a fair amount of 'slip' between each at low speed.

Adaptive Cruise Control - Who on earth calibrated it - it's awful!

Chassis - Never really inspired confidence in the corners, not sure what it is,  just didn't feel that nimble or planted in the twisties?

Differential - On a car of this calibre, pulling out of a junction in the wet and performing a 'one tyre fire' is not cool. (Hence the 2010+ cars being favourable)

What is it? - People think you're driving a £2500 IS250. For some that's a pro, for me it was a huge con. I get more attention in my Golf MK5 GTi daily!

The cam driven high pressure fuel pumps are noisy, borderline annoying at idle! - Was worried sick there was an issue, then concluded it was normal!

Brutally honest there chaps, and interested in your views / opinion. I found myself driving the car hard most of the time, as found it boring to drive slow as it lacked 'character'

I think perhaps i'd consider a 2010+ car a few years down the line when I need a 'one car fits all' approach.... I used mine occasionally in the week but mainly at weekends. It lacked soul and character and the 'special' factor for me, especially as it was predominantly a weekend toy

Anyway, interested in others opinions either way.

Over the top price too.... any reason why it’s atleast £6k over priced?

.

On 2/7/2020 at 1:33 PM, Linas.P said:

Obviously, just an opinion, but I think... must be the price. Early 2008 IS-F starts at £12-14k and that is ignoring some more tired examples on facebook going for £9k. Yes these cars have 30-40k miles less, but nevertheless they are out of warranty and early model year cars. If you ask me I would not pay extra £3-4k for the same car only because it is 60k miles and not 96k, mileage is not exactly a problem for Lexus as long as there is service history. Equally, not sure if that is still the case, but around summer time there were several 2010 cars at similar price ~17-18k, so why would one take 2008 model, when 2010 can be had for similar price? So again, the type of buyer who is going for 12 years old sports car with high mileage is likely to be a person who is trying to get it at cheap price and not exactly in position to pay premium just to knock down few miles and these cars are just too expensive.

I decided to go for a low mileage early ISF (45k to be exact) and certainly did pay the extra ~£3k over one with >100k miles. I agree, the engine / transmission are totally fine up to much higher mileage. My justification for spending the extra was;

1) Suspension components / wheel bearings / general chassis components are likely to be more tired on a higher mileage car, and I would expect to be replacing some of those components on higher mileage vehicles during ownership - Labour intensive and unlikely to be cheap

2) Re-sale - not so much the value, but the difficulty to sell. Low mileage sells cars, fact

With 45k miles, the car feels 100% tight, and looks / smells and drives like new 😀

Regarding your comment about 2010 cars, those you mentioned must've been high mileage 2010 cars at that price point. In addition, I was too impatient to wait! 2010+ cars are sooo scarce and when they do come up, with sensible mileage, fetch very strong money.

Either way you look at it all ISF value is very stable with most the depreciation already gone (£60k 10 years ago). The cars are selling at their current pricing and the rarity keeps the market value stable, imo.

Just my 2 cents. 

After wanting one since my early twenties, I've finally achieved it, i'll be turning 30 in a couple of months.... So far i'm thrilled with the ISF! does everything so well, the daily commute pottering along listening to LBC,  then the weekend blat with the windows down!....Perfect! 😀

dandydons car in the for sale section on here, despite the higher mileage, has fantastic service history record, and is still under Lexus warranty.

It's well within your budget, too.

Good Luck!

49 minutes ago, Toothy said:

I use a Stoplock Pro
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Stoplock-Pro-Elite-Steering-Anti-Theft/dp/B003S51WII

Not sure about a disclock. More difficult to store when not in use i would suspect. But more secure.

Thanks for the reply, Toothy

This is very alarming, and not far from where I live.

Does anyone on here use additional steering wheel locks / braces / clamps etc to add some extra security and piece of mind to their vehicles whilst parked up?

Wondering if the DiskLok devices would foul on the steering wheel paddles.....

Anyone?

Thanks all for the replies. I'm purchasing an extremely well looked after example from a forum member on here. It's a well known car on the forum.

Looking forward to joining the 'F' club!

Joe

Thanks, i'm in discussion with dandydons. The service history is very comprehensive, despite the high mileage. 

Hi All,

Does anyone on here know the history of this car? It looks very clean despite the higher than average mileage

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201911134331311?postcode=da38lg&model=IS%20F&sort=year-desc&make=LEXUS&advertising-location=at_cars&radius=1500&price-from=500&onesearchad=Used&onesearchad=Nearly%20New&onesearchad=New&page=1

Thanks

Joe

1 hour ago, ollie isf said:

Sorry I I've re-read my post and it was a little unclear as I mentioned Lexus service history.

The main point of my post was actually regarding the number of services and not where they have been carried out. I have seen 2008 cars that should have (at least) 11 services but they have only had 7 or 8 yet this is still described as a full service history. The black 2008 car I refer to has has 11 services and is low miles, has warranty left to run etc as well as in the OP's preferred colour hence I was just interested in why it had been dismissed as it looked like a great example. Hopefully @JAD90 will shed some light.

Hi Ollie

Thanks for responding to my post. By using the term exhausted perhaps I was a little unclear. I wasn’t suggesting that I’d ‘dismissed’ all for sale. Just that I’d seen them all and was curious if any other were coming up for sale soon.

The £18k car on autotrader I’d noticed that the front wheels are on the wrong sides (correct me if I’m wrong). Also, perhaps the modifications put me off a little, especially the aftermarket intake.

Also, I’m sure this question has been asked many times, and I know the main differences in the hardware, but overall is it worth spending a little more to stretch to a 2010+ vehicle? They seem even less common than the earlier cars. 
 
has anyone driven both pre and post facelift vehicles?

Regards

Joe 

Hello everyone,

I’m now in the market for a nice isf, After wanting one since 2009, I’m finally in the position to afford one!

Colour must be black or pearl white

2010+ ideally but would consider clean pre facelift cars 

Exhausted the few examples currently available online, wondered if anyone on here is selling up soon or know any others for sale

Thanks

Joe