Help me decide please, Always wanted a Lexus. What to purchace. is 250, gs300 or a gs450

[ColinBarber]

6 minutes ago, Chasdad said:

The rear seats can be folded down though

In what? No GS has folding seats.

[royoftherovers]

6 minutes ago, Mossypossy said:

Not in GS450h they can't.

I agree.

[Chasdad]

Ill go check. Sure i saw buttons on mine

[Chasdad]

No i was wrong. It was the covers for the child seatbelt 

[Lwerewolf]

No folding seats on the GS, no pass-through on the gs either (at least on the 450h).

The 450h in EU-spec does 0-60 in 5.9sec stated, >6sec tested. US/JDM have a 3.769 final drive, rest of the world (EU, UK, Australia, Singapore, etc...) get 3.266 - higher top speed (for whatever it's worth), worse off-the-line performance, higher maximum "ev" speed (Above a certain speed, the ICE always spins).

gs300 (3rd gen) - no drivetrain belt. Only the 3uz (gs430) has that in the 3rd gen. The 2nd gen gs300 has a 2jz-ge.

[ColinBarber]

26 minutes ago, Lwerewolf said:

The 450h in EU-spec does 0-60 in 5.9sec stated

It was actually stated as 0-62 mph in 5.9 sec so the actual 0-60 time is around 5.6 to 5.7 sec. I very much doubt it was actually a EU spec vehicle they actually tested though - as you say it is going to be > 6 seconds but still no slouch.

[Lwerewolf]

...unless they also did a "slightly rolling start"... 😄

Otherwise true, takes some time to get going but then it only gains momentum.  A bit counterintuitive for most people thinking "hybrid/electric". The power source is the engine, and it doesn't get to max RPM until ~85mph, and then it's license time 😁

Saying all this, I still haven't gotten a US/JDM-spec diff for mine.

[rich1068]

Well, well...

 

[Mossypossy]

Lincolnshire to Leicestershire must be close enough.

How can you resist?

[royoftherovers]

4 minutes ago, Mossypossy said:

Lincolnshire to Leicestershire must be close enough.

How can you resist?

He`s never had one Steve, so it could indeed be a first.Let`s wait and see.

[Riccccccardo]

On 2/7/2021 at 10:18 PM, Steven Lockey said:

I'd say a lot depends on your budget. 

A decent 450h will probably be the most expensive, having said that mine only cost about £4k total (most
of that buying a replacement traction battery lol) but you have to really hunt for one that cheap and if it hasn't
ad Lexus hybrid checks every year, be prepared to have to replace or recondition the hybrid battery which isn't cheap.

For long distance cruising the GS450h is lovely. I mainly do fairly long trips (2 hours each way) so wanted
something for motorway cruising and its perfect for that. It just sits there barely straining at *ahem* fast
motorway speeds 🙂 With a 0-60 of 5.2s its not sluggish either when you put your foot down and 32 mph
is normal for me so that isn't too bad either, not great but its not a small car.

Comfort level is a++, not been in a car more comfortable including mercs and BMWs. The seating position
is a bit weird at first (for me at least) compared to european cars but very comfortable once you setup the
seat right.

Also it'll run practically forever if treated right other than normal wear and tear on parts. A lot of them hit 250k+
miles before having an issues beyond the hybrid battery. If its had the lexus hybrid check every year (£60 a go roughly)
then Lexus will sort any battery issues for the first 15 years. Mine is at 175k and has no major parts replaced other
than the hybrid battery. Mechanic had a through look over it and couldn't see anything that he thought would be
an issue either. Other thing that tends to need replacement on both the 300 and 450h are the suspension struts
which can go as its a heavy car.

Only downside is really it isn't great dealing with bumpy roads at low speeds and your insurance might cost a bit more.

The GS300 is a very similar car, slightly small and lighter and has a lot less power so its no-where near as
fast. I've heard some complaints about the engine used as apparently it using a belt instead of a chain that can
go pop.

I wouldn't say the 300 is a bad car but I'd def go for the 450 unless there was a big price/quality difference.
Both are really solid build quality but the hybrid system on the 450 gives it similar fuel economy with a lot
better performance.

I'd never get a IS 250..... its one of those cars which tries to look fast but really isn't 😉
I'm not a fan with 0-60 at 9 seconds, well unless you really really want to put the top down, I just don't see
many benefits to it over the other two. 

I agree particularly about the weight it no feather at almost two ton weight Especially over bumpy road can be a bit rough but in normal mode the steering light so Cool.