2nd Hand Is300h

darrude · June 2, 2015

Hi,

My First post, been lurking for a while.

I have finally decided after 9years and 125,000miles of owning a faultless(ish) Mazda 3 that it is time for a change before it starts costing me money. I have finally decided on a IS300h but just have a couple of questions.

Unfortunatley I can't afford / justify a brand new one, but seen a few on Motorpoint for £18 to £19K and just wondered what your thoughts are.

I gave them a call and they are Ex Hire cars, 12 months old. I'm not adverse to buying an Ex-hire car, what does concern me is if the EV mode has been abused (read a few posts on here saying if the Battery is fully drained or fully charged then it can damage electrodes). Is this something I should be concerned about?

Is is worth paying extra for a car with Parking sensors (is the visibility acceptable)? or any other extra's that are deemed necessary.

Is there anything else I should look out for?

Many Thanks,

Darren.

Steve44 · June 2, 2015

Not read anything in this particular forum about ev abuse, I've driven mine pretty hard for 24k miles in 10 months, and it passed its hybrid health check last week as part of its service with flying colours. There have been Toyota Prius cars with 100k miles plus with no issues. There are of course cars with issues too, but no more risk of problems than any other car in my opinion.

Parking sensors are a must I'd say as the curvy front of the car makes judging where it stops is pretty difficult from the drivers seat.

The cars on motorpoint are all base model SE spec some have extras. I'd go for the the highest spec within your budget of course.

rayaans · June 2, 2015

The ones you mention are bought at auction, they've been used and abused and condition wise, they'll be pretty bad with poor repair jobs

Lexus dealers tend to snap up the good models at auction or otherwise.

There is one at Lexus Reading in your budget with 37k miles but it'll be in better condition. I'd be snapping that up if I were you, get them to put parking sensors in the deal and start at £17k. That way it may even be under budget if you haggle hard enough

ColinBarber · June 2, 2015

I'm not adverse to buying an Ex-hire car, what does concern me is if the EV mode has been abused (read a few posts on here saying if the battery is fully drained or fully charged then it can damage electrodes). Is this something I should be concerned about?

No, you cannot abuse the system. It has many sensors and will automatically come out of EV mode if the Battery levels become low, the temperatures are too high etc. etc.

CraigB · June 2, 2015

Hi,

I've gone through the same logic as you recently...Fancied a IS300H but couldn't afford the £30K asking price so started shopping around.

My local Lexus dealer (Bristol) has a few in stock , but they were £24k+, I saw those SE models on Motorpoint and was very tempted to go and have a look.

However I found Lexus Carlisle had an IS300h SE+Premium NAV + Sensors cheaper than Motorpoint...A few phone calls later and a very long drive and it's now mine. I'd recommend them giving them a call, it was worth it ($$$) , Ask for Derek Fulton.

Sensors = a must , visibility isn't great and neither is my judgement. They integrate quite nicely into the display, so I'd recommend looking for a car with factory fitted ones and not be tempted to fit aftermarket ones.

Premium NAV = Average, But I'd be quite annoyed if I'd paid £2k for it.

Car = Fantastic!

Hope that helps

Craig

DJP · June 3, 2015

Welcome to the club Darren! I'd follow the suggestions made here. It sounds like you care and look after your car, so I wouldn't start out with one that has probably been used and abused. Lexus dealers tend to look after their customers (one or two exceptions, that's life) so any niggles or things you are not sure about/comfortable with you I'm sure they'd be helpful.

I'd also go for the highest spec, particularly if you intend to keep the car for a good while.

Let us know what happens and pics are mandatory!

ganzoom · June 3, 2015

As other have said its pretty much impossible for the driver to abuse the hybrid system. It does what it wants, and of sitting there with one foot on the acclerator glued to the floor and one foot on the brake (old fashioned auto-brake boosting), I'm not sure how you can damage the abttery. Even than, I'm sure the Battery discharge/re-charge system will have built in safe guards.

Parking sensors are a must, and over all build quality/realiabitiy is fab - If I was a betting man, I would say ours will get to 100K without needing anything beyond just normal servicing.

When we were looking 8 months ago, used prices (especially higher spec cars) were quite firm, that combined with good offers on websites like drivethedeal (not doing any Lexus offers any more :() meant buying brand new was only a bit more expensive than buying used. But I imagine there now must be a decent selection of second hand stock around, I'm sure your have fun looking, Sonic Titanium is really nice colour BTW :)

darrude · June 3, 2015

Thank you all very much for taking the time to reply. Very useful and has put my mind fully at ease regarding the Battery.

I have decided to go for a car with Parking sensors (I was actually talking to a few colleagues today about my Mazda and was asked about a few scratches and a little bit of chipped paint on the rear bumper and I had an epiphany, while I might not need parking sensors, it will definitely save me money when I let my wife drive it!). I suppose they only have to stop one minor bump and they have paid for themselves.

I’ve seen a really good nice looking one at Lexus Edinburgh which I really like the colour of, so hopefully that might justify a weekend away as well :hocus-pokus:

Hopefully I can manage to blag a test drive of one this weekend then make a deal on the Edinburgh one (without actually seeing it!).

I was thinking if I paid for a RAC inspection and asked them to send me plenty of HiRes images then there shouldn’t be any surprises.

darrude · June 3, 2015

As other have said its pretty much impossible for the driver to abuse the hybrid system. It does what it wants, and of sitting there with one foot on the acclerator glued to the floor and one foot on the brake (old fashioned auto-brake boosting), I'm not sure how you can damage the abttery. Even than, I'm sure the battery discharge/re-charge system will have built in safe guards.

Parking sensors are a must, and over all build quality/realiabitiy is fab - If I was a betting man, I would say ours will get to 100K without needing anything beyond just normal servicing.

When we were looking 8 months ago, used prices (especially higher spec cars) were quite firm, that combined with good offers on websites like drivethedeal (not doing any Lexus offers any more :() meant buying brand new was only a bit more expensive than buying used. But I imagine there now must be a decent selection of second hand stock around, I'm sure your have fun looking, Sonic Titanium is really nice colour BTW :)

I was originally looking at a Toyota Auris Hybrid (although really wanted the Lexus), and came the same reasoning with that, the difference in cost meant I might as well just get a brand new one from drive the deal. But then I looked at what that money could buy on a 1 year old car and then got quite excited when I realised that an IS300h was (almost) within my grasp, but what are credit for if not bridging the Gap!

Roscobbc · June 3, 2015

I have had my IS300H for 8 months now and done 16K miles. As other have said parking sensors are a must. Whilst I have electric folding door mirrors - mirrors that 'dip' when selecting reverse would have been nice to enable parking closer to kerb. Having said that even without them the car seems less prone to rim scrape than other cars. Hybrid system is foolproof.

rayaans · June 3, 2015

As other have said its pretty much impossible for the driver to abuse the hybrid system. It does what it wants, and of sitting there with one foot on the acclerator glued to the floor and one foot on the brake (old fashioned auto-brake boosting), I'm not sure how you can damage the abttery. Even than, I'm sure the battery discharge/re-charge system will have built in safe guards.

Parking sensors are a must, and over all build quality/realiabitiy is fab - If I was a betting man, I would say ours will get to 100K without needing anything beyond just normal servicing.

When we were looking 8 months ago, used prices (especially higher spec cars) were quite firm, that combined with good offers on websites like drivethedeal (not doing any Lexus offers any more :() meant buying brand new was only a bit more expensive than buying used. But I imagine there now must be a decent selection of second hand stock around, I'm sure your have fun looking, Sonic Titanium is really nice colour BTW :)

I was originally looking at a Toyota Auris Hybrid (although really wanted the Lexus), and came the same reasoning with that, the difference in cost meant I might as well just get a brand new one from drive the deal. But then I looked at what that money could buy on a 1 year old car and then got quite excited when I realised that an IS300h was (almost) within my grasp, but what are credit for if not bridging the Gap!

Good luck. If you do find any nasty surprises you can reject the car of course :)

Eire Lexus · June 3, 2015

Hybrid system not an issue. 40k on mine and no issues and not one rattle. I also previously worked in car rental and ex rental cars not as abused as you think. Normally bumper scuffs or alloy scratches are the worst issues. To be honest most tourists don't drive cars that hard. I'd say I've driven my harder than any rental company and I've no issues.

ganzoom · June 4, 2015

Hopefully I can manage to blag a test drive of one this weekend then make a deal on the Edinburgh one (without actually seeing it!).

I was thinking if I paid for a RAC inspection and asked them to send me plenty of HiRes images then there shouldn’t be any surprises.

If your buying from a dealer I really wouldn't worry about reliability, one of the key attractions of the IS300H it's realibity. The hybrid drive is a very mature technology and tests in millions of Hybrid Toyotas before. Any other faults will be covered by warranty. Only things to look out for is interior wear/tear which can be hard to see in photos.

Don't worry about making a deal without seeing the car, I put down a deposit on my last car without seeing or even sitting in a similar car before!! Just be prepared to walk away of the deal isn't good enough or the car not up to scratch!! Good thing about buying used is you don't have to wait 8 weeks for one to arrive from Japan. Have fun looking :)

darrude · June 4, 2015

Right, so made a reservation to see a local car, started planning a trip with the intention of buying one in Edinburgh. Finished Work Early, decided to take a close look at one at the dealer just down the road from where I work. Walked out after paying £1K deposit on an brand new IS300H executive edition in Mica Metalic Grey with black leather interior.

Still not quite sure how that happened! They are hopeing that it will arrive by the 18th of June, can't wait :)

Right, now time to tell the wife what I have just done!

Thanks for all your feedback guys.

Time to do some reading on owning a Hybrid!

rayaans · June 4, 2015

Right, so made a reservation to see a local car, started planning a trip with the intention of buying one in Edinburgh. Finished Work Early, decided to take a close look at one at the dealer just down the road from where I work. Walked out after paying £1K deposit on an brand new IS300H executive edition in Mica Metalic Grey with black leather interior.

Still not quite sure how that happened! They are hopeing that it will arrive by the 18th of June, can't wait :)

Right, now time to tell the wife what I have just done!

Thanks for all your feedback guys.

Time to do some reading on owning a Hybrid!

or....... you could just keep it a secret :P Just roll up in it one day lol

DJP · June 4, 2015

Right, so made a reservation to see a local car, started planning a trip with the intention of buying one in Edinburgh. Finished Work Early, decided to take a close look at one at the dealer just down the road from where I work. Walked out after paying £1K deposit on an brand new IS300H executive edition in Mica Metalic Grey with black leather interior.

Still not quite sure how that happened! They are hopeing that it will arrive by the 18th of June, can't wait :)

Right, now time to tell the wife what I have just done!

Thanks for all your feedback guys.

Time to do some reading on owning a Hybrid!

Fantastic work, we like this approach!! Do let us know how it went with SWMBO, we might learn a thing or two

darrude · June 4, 2015

ok, so just had to google SWMBO!

I wish I had follow Rayaans advice and not told her. I bet she wouldn't of even noticed for a few weeks!

She was quite happy, but I did buy her a new car for her birthday last year!

DJP as for teaching you a thing or two, I haven't told her that it is beans on toast for the next 3 years now, maybe I'll break that one to her as a positive the next time she mentions her weight.....!

God I hope she never reads that comment!

rayaans · June 4, 2015

ok, so just had to google SWMBO!

I wish I had follow Rayaans advice and not told her. I bet she wouldn't of even noticed for a few weeks!

She was quite happy, but I did buy her a new car for her birthday last year!

DJP as for teaching you a thing or two, I haven't told her that it is beans on toast for the next 3 years now, maybe I'll break that one to her as a positive the next time she mentions her weight.....!

God I hope she never reads that comment!

I did that 3 years ago when I got my car. I collected on a Saturday morning at 9, rolled up in the house at 10 and got on with protection (I asked for no PDI, just removal of stickers and inspection). My wife was like "WTF?!"

Hmm beans on toast you say? Toast is valuable, beans and a spoon should suffice!

bluenose1940 · June 5, 2015

All of this is quite funny!! A few years ago when I bought my Rover 75 Connoisseur in dark blue, after I had had it for a few weeks, I began to wish that I had got the higher spec jobby and so, I started to look around for one and luckily one turned up, exactly the same colour as mine. There were a lot of differences mind, leather seats being one of them, different alloys, computer etc etc.

Went off and did the swap, got it home and the car was used on a daily basis by both of us but, it took my wife, friends and family close on 4 months before they realised that I had changed it!!!

darrude · June 17, 2015

Welcome to the club Darren! I'd follow the suggestions made here. It sounds like you care and look after your car, so I wouldn't start out with one that has probably been used and abused. Lexus dealers tend to look after their customers (one or two exceptions, that's life) so any niggles or things you are not sure about/comfortable with you I'm sure they'd be helpful.

I'd also go for the highest spec, particularly if you intend to keep the car for a good while.

Let us know what happens and pics are mandatory!

Well it has arrived. So glad I got the parking sensors and Nav. Absolutely loving it, although too busy at work to be able to play with it... !

2 guys from work are off to look at them at the weekend as they are that impressed with it.

Absolutely no idea how to post pictures though!

DJP · June 17, 2015

Glad you're pleased, and am sure you'll work out the picture posting process. We look forward to seeing them!!

DanD · June 18, 2015

Congrats on the new arrival. Enjoy!

@Geoff...

your story reminds me of an elderly gentleman I used to know, who owned a Rolls Royce (with private plates). He used to order a new one, every two years without a fault, but with always exactly the same spec, so that friends, family and neighbours would not know he could afford to replace such an expensive car that ofen!