IS300H 2015 Premier Review

[TBi]

Just bought IS300h Premier (2015) and here are rambling thoughts after one week of ownership. It's the (almost) fully loaded version with Mark Levinson Audio and Premium Sat Nav.

Almost didn't buy it due to all the reviews. I've driven the same vintage 3 series and A4 and they just don't compare. The 3 series was a better drivers car, by a small margin, but are generally diesel and diesel is the devils fuel.

The IS is very smooth and refined during normal driving, no loud diesel clattering as you drive around. The engine does rev up and get loud when you floor it but you only really notice due to the lack of noise the rest of the time. There's also enough power (for me) to perform brisk overtakes without flooring it. The more i drive it, the more i like it.

The CVT gearbox is far better than people say. I drove the 8 speed auto 3 series which was very smooth for a regular auto but you could still feel the gear changes. It was never a perfectly smooth drive like the IS. Also that car had a lag when flooring it just like the IS in normal mode. (Combination of turbo lag and the gearbox hunting for a lower gear).

Another plus of the IS is the tech you get with it as standard. (We have an i3 with the upgraded widescreen sat nav, which is great, but lights for the vanity mirrors in the sunshades was an extra. Unfortunately that box wasn't ticked so we have no lights there.) I actually quite like the remote touch 'mouse' and find it quick and easy to get around. I really love how the mouse feel 'adjusts' to the buttons so you can feel the cursor going over them. My biggest issue is how slow the system is, possibly this is why people get aggravated with it. When you come from super smooth BMW iDrive it really does show it's weaknesses. Even changing songs on iPod is far too slow.

Average fuel consumption is 5.9l/100k (48MPG) at the moment and i'm not doing any fancy fuel saving maneuveres. I know a diesel might get better economy but life is too short to drive a diesel...

Thanks to every poster here who helped me make the correct decision for my new car!

[Guest]

It would also be nice to know your thoughts on your i3 and how it is to live with on a daily basis.?Is it pure electric or the hybrid extender version.

Glad to hear you are enjoying your IS300H.

[TBi]

The i3 is electric only with the 22kw Battery. Normal usage you'll see around 120KM (75Miles) range, up to 160km in summer and down to 90ish km on a harsh winter day. Although if you slow down to 80kmh you can increase the range 10-20%. Great car to drive, very nippy (leaves the IS and most almost all cars for dust) and i love the one pedal driving. Hopefully it will be the most reliable (and last) BMW i'll ever own. Also preconditioning is great on cold winter mornings, having a nice warm car to sit into and all the ice melted.

As a second car i definitely recommend an electric car. My wife does a 90km round trip every day, which costs about ~€1.40 on night rate. The IS300h is doing 6l/100km so would cost around €7 for same trip. However we couldn't justify having an electric only household yet with the current range limitations (can't drive between the two major city's in Ireland yet with one charge unless it's a Tesla).

The biggest drawback we see so far is that no one is investing in charging infrastructure in Ireland and there are a lot more electric cars (and PHEV's) on the road now. Almost all the chargers are taken every day which can be a pain if you need to charge to get home. The worst offenders are the PHEV's who are taking advantage of free parking in the cities and leaving fully charged cars plugged in all day.

[parkman]

I read an article in the Irish Sunday Independent, about two weeks ago, with the journalist being lent a VW Golf electric for a week.

His biggest issue is exactly as Mark [TBi] has mentioned. Driving from A to B and then finding any charging points being blocked by cars left plugged in and left.

I agree about the idea of buying an all-electric at the moment, I couldn't justify the comparatively short travel distance ability, and I wouldn't be interested until there are enough points to be certain of finding an empty point if I am travelling.

I have just had a run from Dublin to the Rochestown Hotel, from there to Waterford, from there to Wexford, and then back to Dublin. All in two days, down to Cork last Friday and then to Waterford. Stayed overnight in Waterford and then to Wexford, and lastly back up to Dublin all in one day, today. Got home around 20:30. 

Very easy, comfortable journey, only needed some fuel once and not a full tank at that, and averaged 54 mpg.

I really don't think my previous E220 cdi [sold two weeks ago] would have done much better.

The other thing that was mentioned is the IS gearbox, and compared to a 2004 Mercedes E220 cdi autobox it is very quiet and slick. I used to find that E220 used to give a noticeable "thump" when you stuck your foot down, to do a quick overtaking move for instance. The autobox also used to get a bit mixed up in slow moving traffic. If you did some slow, slow, quick quick, slow moves the Mercedes box would often try to change up and suddenly down in rapid time and it would eventually change down into first with a very noticeable jolt.

The autobox was in perfect condition, it was tested by Mercedes in the UK when I had it there, it was just the electronics in the box trying to do very quick up and down changes and getting "tongue-tied".

The IS is a pleasure to drive in comparison, and I just suspect that newer Mercedes E300h gearboxes may be no better.

So I said farewell to Mercedes and bought my 300h in the UK from Lexus and imported it into Ireland, and, so far, I am very pleased with it. I really can't see myself ever going back to Mercedes after the Lexus.

Parkman.

[Mr Vlad]

Hello Mark. I've got a Premier Premium  (as advertised ) and it's my 2nd (a new post is coming soon) and I've had this one just under a week. 

I agree with your review and love this car.

I supposeafter you having a 3 series with I drive you can do a good comparison between the information systems. Personally I find the lexus system very response though I feel I may have a problem with the Bluetooth side of things (new post coming) but everyone will have their own reviews on it. Enjoy.

[TBi]

4 hours ago, Mr Vlad said:

I supposeafter you having a 3 series with I drive you can do a good comparison between the information systems. Personally I find the lexus system very response though I feel I may have a problem with the bluetooth side of things (new post coming) but everyone will have their own reviews on it. Enjoy.

What version of software do you have? If you bought from a dealer bring it back and get them to put the latest version on.

[Mr Vlad]

Hi Mark I don't know what version software I have. But I'm waiting for the dealer to phone me as he said he would and I'm going to get him to book my car in to get the latest version for gratis.