2008-2014

[cidersteve]

have had a 2008 IS250 for nearly 5 years now and looking to upgrade to the next generation , first of all, are the brakes still as bad on the newer generation and is there any other pointers i should be looking for , thanks in appreciation of any replies.probably looking at a 2014.

[Mr Vlad]

Wow owning a car with bad brakes for 5 years? You must be really tolerable. If you're looking at a 2014 car then it'll be the 3rd generation IS which is a superb car in any guise.

I'd  say the new car will have much better brakes. What's  stopping you taking one out for a test drive?

In the meantime have you never had your brakes checked? 

[bobmc]

maybe he's referencing the sticking caliper issue rather than their effectiveness

 

[cidersteve]

yes i was reffering to the caliper sticking problem , i can,t test drive until saturday was just hoping i could have a few pointers as to what to look at when i go looking.

[J Henderson]

Discs and calipers are the same as the 2IS, but the hybrid also has regenerative braking, so better stopping power overall.

Anytime I've had one as a loaner, the sharpness of the brakes has always caught me by surprise compared to my own car.

[rayaans]

Havent heard of any sticking caliper issues on the 3IS either tbh

[Mr Vlad]

Ah sticking calipers eh! Can't say I've seen anything anywhere about sticking calipers on the 3rd gen IS. 

[route66]

19 hours ago, cidersteve said:

have had a 2008 IS250 for nearly 5 years now and looking to upgrade to the next generation , first of all, are the brakes still as bad on the newer generation and is there any other pointers i should be looking for , thanks in appreciation of any replies.probably looking at a 2014.

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.

[bobmc]

So if the discs and calipers are the same on 2IS and 3IS - how come the 3IS don't suffer from the same sticking caliper issue? Is it just that 3IS cars haven't been around long enough or is it down to regenerative braking - or something else?

 

[rayaans]

3 hours ago, bobmc said:

So if the discs and calipers are the same on 2IS and 3IS - how come the 3IS don't suffer from the same sticking caliper issue? Is it just that 3IS cars haven't been around long enough or is it down to regenerative braking - or something else?

 

Would have thought regen would make it worse as the rears dont get used as much as conventional brakes

Discs and pads may be the same but Im not sure about calipers - they look entirely different

[ColinBarber]

The rear brakes are different between series II and series III.

Sticking issues don't really start to appear until a vehicle is 4 or 5 years old. So we are only going to know if the issue has been resolved or not on the series III in the year or two once we get enough vehicles passed that age.

[cidersteve]

thanks all , have e-mailed hedge end for a price on mine and will progress if the price is right 

[Jules PF]

Think I've posted on this before, when I had the 2nd gen is 250. The slide pins on the caliper just need to be lubricated regularly ( maybe every 2 years). If they are stuck the braking is very poor, but replacement pins and rubber boots are available, getting them out can be a trial, on mine I had to drill, tap and insert a bolt to remove the broken corroded pin. 

Many cars have this issue,  Jaguar I know of ( having done the same job!) but its a maintenance issue that any competent garage should check and perform at servicing.

[bobmc]

1 hour ago, Jules PF said:

any competent garage should check and perform at servicing.

This is the problem, they generally don't especially Lexus dealers.

 

[Jules PF]

1 hour ago, bobmc said:

This is the problem, they generally don't especially Lexus dealers.

 

Yes agree. I don't know why, I'm only a reasonably competent DIYer and have seen this problem for at least 15 years. How this extremely simple and cheap 'grease and seal' job gets past a Lexus (plus jaguar and others) technicians is beyond me, particularly when its brakes! So somewhat important!

[Farqui]

Why would dealers grease a couple of pins annually when they can leave them (less effort) AND get paid to replace the entire caliper (unnecessarily).  

Do dealers actually replace the caliper or just clean it up/release the pins and charge for a new caliper?

[normski2]

They just replace them and charge handsomely for it.

[cidersteve]

deposit paid , good price for mine, test drive on saturday 

[bobmc]

@cidersteve good luck - hope it's a good 'un  Is this with a Lexus dealer or an indy?

 

[cidersteve]

thanks bobmc , lexus dealer in hedge end , been discounted a few times , looks like a good price with the usual lexus warrenty .

[cidersteve]

well bought it on saturday, will be delivered on thursday , few surprises that i wasn't expecting on the luxury model , had reversing camera and heated seats , so all that is missing is electric seats and ml stereo. i can see what people say about the boot , nearly took my head off when i looked in the boot  , compared to the gen 2 which i had to assist the boot to open . i managed to park them side to side at there is certainly a lot of difference externally , much more than i expected , and the inside is totally different , well pleased with the price and the customer interface was brilliant .full service and mot and delivered to my door at no extra cost.

[Jules PF]

My boot doesn't do that at all. Think it could be the boot strut or spring needs replacement, as its not damping the action sufficiently.

[Rebecca]

The generation 3 IS has redesigned calipers fitted and do not suffer the same seizing issues assosiated with the generation 2.

Personally I would still pay the £30 or so extra at service time to have the pins greased up just for piece of mind, but generally you won't have an issue.

[Jules PF]

I was referring to the boot flying open when released. A few have posted this previously. 

[rayaans]

5 hours ago, cidersteve said:

well bought it on saturday, will be delivered on thursday , few surprises that i wasn't expecting on the luxury model , had reversing camera and heated seats , so all that is missing is electric seats and ml stereo. i can see what people say about the boot , nearly took my head off when i looked in the boot  , compared to the gen 2 which i had to assist the boot to open . i managed to park them side to side at there is certainly a lot of difference externally , much more than i expected , and the inside is totally different , well pleased with the price and the customer interface was brilliant .full service and mot and delivered to my door at no extra cost.

Urm, the boot shouldnt be swinging up

It just pops and then you have to do it manually. Obviously, don't stick your chin in the way.