2018 GS : 200t or 300h

LexusFanBoy · January 1, 2020

Happy New Year!

I am considering buying my first Lexus, a 2018 GS, for the Lexus dependability over long term reputation.

I am going for GS as the only one to have the 200t engine, plus is discontinued in EU and hope to get a better price.

Before I am posting my questions I will have to say I am not interested in fuel economy, but in long term dependability.

I would appreciate your comments on:

200t vs 300h : tend to go with 200t as I am having a hard time standing the CVT, but then again Lexus reputation is not build on turbocharged engines
I am not expecting a sports car, but does the 200t have any life in it? I see it was put, and discontinued, in the RX as well
gearbox servicing : is specified by Lexus or the lifetime confusion is in place like for BMW and rest
is it such a big difference between Mark Levinson and standard audio
is that Lexus that different that I depend on the dealership, or is quite similar to German ones when it comes to servicing.

Thanks in advance!

johnatg · January 1, 2020

I am puzzled by your references to GS200t - there's no such thing. The only 200T is the NX - a completely different thing. And the CT200. Neither are anything like a GS. There was an IS200T (briefly). There was a GS250 - 2.5 litre V6 normally aspirated - that was replaced by the GS300h some years ago

The GS most recently came as GS450h (3.5 litre V6 hybrid) or GS300h (2 litre straight 4 hybrid). Both engines are normally aspirated, not turbo.

Both only come with CVT gearbox.

Prices of GS have not really changed much with discontinuation of GS - you just need to look around for the car you want.

No gearbox servicing is specified by Lexus.- all recent Lexus gearboxes are CVT.

The ML audio is definitely better, but not by a huge margin. Standard audio is fine, but it depends on your criteria for listening to audio. Even a GS is hardly a sound studio!

Lexus cars are easy to service, diy or independent - BUT - if or when it comes to trade-in dealers are not interested in non-Lexus serviced cars. So if you want to retain value and expect to trade in at a Lexus dealer, it is advisable to get the car serviced by Lexus.

If you get a hybrid - and that's your only choice with a recent Lexus - you need at least to have a hybrid health check at least annually by a dealer.

LexusFanBoy · January 1, 2020

Thanks John!

It maybe better known as GS300, same engine like in the IS and NX, or even RX in some countries (!)

Question still stands: is Lexus good with turbos? Any idea why IS 200t was just for a while? Could never imagine it on the RX, would be a stressed up engine from power on.

Is the Aisin gearbox reliable?

johnatg · January 1, 2020

Correction - the GS300h of course has a 2.5 litre straight 4 engine.

The GS300 is long gone - was last in gen 3 guise?

All recent (3 - 4 years) Lexus cars in UK are hybrids with CVT gearboxes - some are RWD (eg IS and GS), some are FWD and some of them have an additional electric motor driving the rear wheels.

The IS200T was dropped when Lexus went all hybrid.

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johnatg · January 1, 2020

johnatg · January 1, 2020

There are no recent Lexus turbos.

IS250 only had 2.5 litre V6. (In Gen2 & 3 forms). There were diesel variants and the IS200T. Now there is only the IS300h - same power train as GS300h.

Not sure who makes the CVT boxes but all Lexus gearboxes are ultra-reliable.

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johnatg · January 1, 2020

Actually, it's not quite true that all Lexus cars are hybrid with CVT. The LC F and a version of the RC are/will be available with a 5 litre V8 and multi-speed gearbox. But the cars for ordinary mortals are as I said!

LexusFanBoy · January 2, 2020

Thank you again John.

I have to say is really hard to form an opinion about Lexus. I like the image of a reliable car Lexus has, but there is so less info on the web, there are not so many on the street and on top of that the infotainment ... makes me wonder if was the only poor design choice. More, the whole interior is outdated :(((

Adding price on top of all this, start to make sense.

johnatg · January 2, 2020

There is no doubt that Lexus is a left field choice.

I think the thing to note is the disparity between magazine road testers' views and those of owners. Testers in newspapers, magazines, Autotrader etc rarely rate any Lexus cars highly - see reviews of NX, RX etc - even reviews of LC and RC are pretty lukewarm. The GS gen 4 got fairly good reviews at launch but was still rated below the german, etc. mainstream opposition. Some of that was due to lack of a diesel option at the time, but look where that has gone!

But then see owners' ratings and comments - once people have experienced ownership of a Lexus, many are hooked for life. And even many who stray end up coming back!

For all their shortcomings - and there are some - they are a great ownership and driving experience overall. And you're driving something that most of the rest of the world don't even know about!

F.A. · January 3, 2020

@LexusFanBoy, what country do you live in? I only ask as whilst there is no such thing as a 4th Gen GS200t or GS300 in the UK, the GS200t ( which was then rebadged GS300) was available with the 2.0 t engine you are referring to in the USA and probably some other countries also.

LexusFanBoy · January 6, 2020

Thank you again John.

I have to say is really hard to form an opinion about Lexus. I like the image of a reliable car Lexus has, but there is so less info on the web, there are not so many on the street and on top of that the infotainment ... makes me wonder if was the only poor design choice. More, the whole interior is outdated :(((

Adding price on top of all this, start to make sense.

LexusFanBoy · January 6, 2020

On 1/3/2020 at 8:02 PM, F.A. said:

@LexusFanBoy, what country do you live in?

I found the car on sale in Germany, ... good point, I will check to see whether is an import.

superatticman · January 6, 2020

12 hours ago, LexusFanBoy said:

I found the car on sale in Germany, ... good point, I will check to see whether is an import.

Was it a left hand drive?? Possible ex US serviceman's car if so.

johnatg · January 7, 2020

Er..not sure how that marks it out. Most cars in Germany are left hand drive!😉

LexusFanBoy · January 7, 2020

16 hours ago, superatticman said:

Was it a left hand drive?? Possible ex US serviceman's car if so.

Yes, left hand drive.

johnatg · January 7, 2020

I think I'd be forgetting the idea of a GS200t if for use in UK - they were not imported to UK - I don't know if they were available in Japan, but those are your only real sources of RHD cars. I suspect they were not made in RHD form. Do you really want the hassle of LHD and no dealer support (I doubt they'd be interested) for a relatively newish car?

Why not look for an IS200t? There are a few on Autotrader.

superatticman · January 7, 2020

Its a bit of a shame they didn't release the GS200T here as it does fill the gap between the GS300h and GS450. Most big saloons recently have had a 2 litre turbo as their semi-performance option. Then again it probably just wouldn't have sold to you average Lexus owner.

Owning an import, especially what will be an extremely rare car in the UK may prove to be a bit of a headache, even if its probably going to be very reliable. If its got a 'cult' following like the Soarer had then there will usually be plenty of enthusiasts online and a handful of specialist garages around the country.