Thoughts on the lexus convertibles

Cactus · December 17, 2021

Obviously the LC is not in the question.

is250c or sc430. Price is similar

any thoughts would be great

Neil E · December 17, 2021

27 minutes ago, Cactus said:

Obviously the LC is not in the question.

is250c or sc430. Price is similar

any thoughts would be great

Of the two the SC430 is the one to choose. Plenty of thoughts and info on it in the SC430 section and further afield.

Marmite styling, it's really only a 2 seater, other than that, it's a great piece of kit.

Malc · December 19, 2021

I'm thinking I might buy one ( nuts really ......as a 3rd car ) come the spring

The SC430 intrigues me and they have longevity and durability ....... so it might be ok for me . it's only money eh !

Malc

Cactus · December 19, 2021

56 minutes ago, Malc said:

I'm thinking I might buy one ( nuts really ......as a 3rd car ) come the spring

The SC430 intrigues me and they have longevity and durability ....... so it might be ok for me . it's only money eh !

Malc

@Malc

i prefer sc430 too. Just worry abt the engine. The v6 is250c will undoubted by cheaper to maintain and more reliable

I will be running this alongside isf and nx300h so you are not nuts

Linas.P · December 19, 2021

I would vote for SC430 as well, styling is questionable, but V8 is what you want in convertible for sure. On top of that - although controversial now I thing it will be future classic. There is nothing wrong with IS250C, but it is not on the same level as SC, it is still 2-seater and V6 does not sound that well even at the best of the times, if anything from outside it sounds a bit like diesel because of injectors ticking and if driving with the roof down is at all important, then engine noise is kind of important as well. As far as equipment goes - both have very similar specs, IS has slightly more responsive automatic with paddle shifters, but hardly enough to make a difference. IS was as well slightly more modern back in 2006, but by now both are pretty old-school.

1 minute ago, Cactus said:

The v6 is250c will undoubted by cheaper to maintain and more reliable

V6 in IS250 is definitely LESS reliable than V8 in SC430. 4GR-FSE is lovely engine and I really like it, but as far as Lexus engines goes it is one of less reliable engines. The only three engines which are less reliable are 3GR-FSE, 2AD-FHV and 2AD-FTV... sure there is massive gap between reliability of 4GR-FSE and say 2AD-FHV, one being great, but not excellent and other being absolute piece of trash. But if we say majority of Lexus engines are 10/10 (including rather excellent 3UZ-FE in SC/LS/GS430), then large group is 9/10 (2GR-FSE in IS/GS350), then there are less reliable ones like 8/10 (4GR-FSE, 3GR-FSE) and finally there is 2AD-FHV which is literally 0/10 and improved version of it 2AD-FTV is just marginally better, but not much more than 3/10.

So SC430 is MORE reliable, but when it comes to cost of maintenance it kind of depends of what you consider maintenance. Sure it will be less efficient, so more fuel, more expensive insurance, higher road tax, more litres of oil used etc. So cost of ownership on SC430 is higher, but cost of mechanical maintenance overall is going to be similar if not less. Other thing - spare parts would be more expensive on SC430, because it shares very little with other Lexus models, IS250C in large part can use most parts from IS250/220d, meaning there are a lot of spare parts for them and they are cheaper.

Neil E · December 19, 2021

The IS250C is a fine car but it's not really in the same class for drivetrain or cabin quality. A well maintained SC430 is about as bulletproof a car as you're likely to find. The 3UZ-FE needs a timing belt service and waterpump change every 100k miles. The normal service parts will wear like any other car but they are fairly easy to work on and they do share a few parts with the IS and GS. Go for the 6-speed facelift if you can, expect to replace the odd headlamp bulb / light ballast, radiator and a couple of reluctor rings at somewhere close to 15 years or 130k miles and make sure it hasn't been sat neglected rusting in some damp recess for a few years and you should be fine.

If by chance you pick one that does actually go wrong, you will take centre stage on the SC forum as a serious failure is a very rare event.

Cactus · December 19, 2021

@Neil E @Linas.P

thank you for your input. Its reassuring to hear your view that the 3uz-fe is more reliable. I think i worry too much abt the interference engine business.

yea i test drove a an 05, 5 speed last week. Despite it being poorly looked after, it rode surprising well and peaceful, very different to what some youtubers or top gear LED me to believe.

i think finding the right one will take a while/ colour combination/facelift before the taxhike if possible.

barry

Neil E · December 19, 2021

Yes the 3UZ should be whisper quiet Barry. Completely disregard the limelight chasing youtubers and TG, they can't see past the obvious quirky bits to find a laugh or two. Try a decent 6-speed facelift model and make up your own mind. I would let you try mine but it's not very standard or frequently near Newcastle. Maybe there's a friendly owner in the North East.

If you read the various SC430 boards here and in the US it will give you a sense of what aspects of the car people address. Coil-overs or new standard struts will improve a tired ride and a throttle controller will cure the lag. The old tech that Linas rightly refers to, like that in the ISF, is a bit of a pain and expensive to upgrade if you really need to. The standard ML audio, though dated is very good, better than the newer IS/GS offering, as is the cabin quality fit and finish. They were really good value a year or so ago but finding a good one at a sensible price is becoming tricky.

Linas.P · December 20, 2021

3 hours ago, Neil E said:

Completely disregard the limelight chasing youtubers and TG, they can't see past the obvious quirky bits to find a laugh or two.

To be fair to them - when they looked at it they looked at it from perspective of it being brand new £60k+ car and going against the likes of contemporary BMW 6 series and MB SL/CL. Which likely costed less, were better styles for contemporary taste, were more practical, better driving etc. etc. So in that sort of comparison SC didn't make sense.

But like 10 years later, one could have SC for half price of what same vintage MB or BMW was going for and generally well under £10k... so with that in consideration it suddenly becomes very good value for money and a lot of car. Besides I would argue the style which was questionable at the time actually aged rather well and another thing - many appreciating classic cars are not appreciating because they were good in contemporary setting, but actually opposite - because they were weird or quirky in certain way, especially if not many were fold. So SC matches this aspect quite well - rare, not liked at the time, quirky etc.

I think with time it is only going appreciate more.

Malc · December 20, 2021

As with my personal driving of the the Ls400 for 20 plus years, I've been reading now about the 430 V8 engine for many many years and longevity and durability of the whole drivetrain is impeccable

Normal servicing and maintenance of course, as with any car results in complete peace of mind and less strain on the pocket too

cambelt, pulleys and waterpump every 100k miles .. avoiding air suspension too .......... and you have a classic in the making, if not already

fuel and insurance costs, well, it's a superb V8 with all the comfort and security of driving that one could ever wish .... you don't buy a V8 and expect to worry about mpg ........ ever

Malc

Linas.P · December 20, 2021

9 hours ago, Linas.P said:

To be fair to them - when they looked at it they looked at it from perspective of it being brand new £60k+ car and going against the likes of contemporary BMW 6 series and MB SL/CL. Which likely costed less, were better styles for contemporary taste, were more practical, better driving etc. etc. So in that sort of comparison SC didn't make sense.

But like 10 years later, one could have SC for half price of what same vintage MB or BMW was going for and generally well under £10k... so with that in consideration it suddenly becomes very good value for money and a lot of car. Besides I would argue the style which was questionable at the time actually aged rather well and another thing - many appreciating classic cars are not appreciating because they were good in contemporary setting, but actually opposite - because they were weird or quirky in certain way, especially if not many were fold. So SC matches this aspect quite well - rare, not liked at the time, quirky etc.

I think with time it is only going appreciate more.

Ohh and one more thing - contemporary BMW and MB nowadays are smoking pile of crap, with absolutely everything broken and nothing working. I was in the market for SL500 few months ago, looked at maybe 5 or 6 of them and they were all in absolutely horrible shape. I went there with OBD scanner and with paint gauge, but never even took them out of the backpack, the cars were so obviously rough that I needn't to use any damn gauges to tell it from miles away.

And that is where SC430 comes with excellent reliability and very little maintenance needed to be honest. BMW and MBs would last as well, but to maintain them one would have spent £2k a year consistently. To maintain SC is as much as dealer charges for the service, following service plan (plugs, belts, pump) and maybe odd set of tyres, brake pads and disks - that is all! Just so much easier to keep in good mechanical condition overall.

Malc · December 20, 2021

Oh and changing the radiator thingy every 100k miles 10 years to prevent the ingress of water into the gearbox and destroying the gearbox...... . the 430 and the 460 too

That's about it methinks :yes: .. comparatively as cheap as chips to maintain with simple regular, every 100k miles preventative maintenance

Malc

DAN@ADRIAN FLUX · December 20, 2021

Hi.

If you need any help with insurance at all for any model you're looking at then please feel free to give us a try.

Regards,

Dan.

Neil E · December 20, 2021

5 hours ago, Malc said:

Oh and changing the radiator thingy every 100k miles 10 years to prevent the ingress of water into the gearbox and destroying the gearbox...... . the 430 and the 460 too

I like the sound of an SC460. That would be nice👍

Linas.P · December 22, 2021

On 12/20/2021 at 9:23 PM, Neil E said:

I like the sound of an SC460. That would be nice👍

I assume conversion would not be that difficult.... more or less bolt on? Looking at your cars you can do that just foe giggles and have SC460 + GS430 😄

Neil E · December 22, 2021

2 hours ago, Linas.P said:

I assume conversion would not be that difficult.... more or less bolt on? Looking at your cars you can do that just foe giggles and have SC460 + GS430 😄

Yeah simple. 🤣 Sign me up for a long course of headache pills and I'll give it some thought.

Possible in theory but it would probably result in a 30 page build thread on the SC conversion. A 2UR swap would be the more exciting option, though perhaps that would be easier to do to the IS250 but I will stop there to avoid straying too far off topic and onto creating a hardtop SC500. Might need some insurance help with that one.

The SC is a great car but not the easiest to enhance and modify.