Afraid to pull the trigger

MariusGT · December 25, 2023

Hi Everyone,

I’m looking to upgrade from my 2011 Ford Fiesta. I was looking at 2017+ Lexus is 300h Premier. It would set me back around £19k (car, insurance, dashcam, etc). The car I am looking at has had 2 owners, full dealership history and it’s selling for about £16.5k.

I am planning to get it AA inspected before purchase as well.

Is there anything else I need to look after?
Is the Premier option really worth it? Since the Advanced one seems reasonable as well (but no upgraded screen or ML).
Does the car have Bluetooth connectivity (Music, phone calls).
I know Lexus has its own application, what can it actually do? i.e. can it set the temperature or remote start the car to heat it up in advance?

I don't drive to/from work, so it will be more of a weekend car, but I do quite a few city breaks and I have to drive for about 400 miles about once a month to see my parents.

Thank you in advance and Merry Christmas!

LenT · December 25, 2023

1 hour ago, MariusGT said:

Hi Everyone,

I’m looking to upgrade from my 2011 Ford Fiesta. I was looking at 2017+ Lexus is 300h Premier. It would set me back around £19k (car, insurance, dashcam, etc). The car I am looking at has had 2 owners, full dealership history and it’s selling for about £16.5k.

I am planning to get it AA inspected before purchase as well.

Is there anything else I need to look after?

Is the Premier option really worth it? Since the Advanced one seems reasonable as well (but no upgraded screen or ML).

Does the car have bluetooth connectivity (Music, phone calls).

I know Lexus has its own application, what can it actually do? i.e. can it set the temperature or remote start the car to heat it up in advance?

I don't drive to/from work, so it will be more of a weekend car, but I do quite a few city breaks and I have to drive for about 400 miles about once a month to see my parents.

Thank you in advance and Merry Christmas!

Marius…

Hopefully, this page at lexus.co.uk will present you with a list of relevant manuals and guides which will answer your questions.

Just look up your vehicle in the list.

Whether you regard the Premier versions as worth it rather depends on how much value you put on a superior sound system, for example. The ML installation is generally considered superior to the unit in the other grades, but not worth the extra if you’re not likely to appreciate the difference.

https://www.lexus.co.uk/content/lexus/uk/en/customer/manuals

matt8 · December 25, 2023

Find a used approved and you’ll get 12 months of warranty from the day you buy. They are solid and reliable cars.

That will be peace of mind for you, if you’re afraid to pull the trigger.

Are you inclined to continue with dealership servicing? You get warranty for up to 10 years if you keep up with dealership servicing. That will give great peace of mind too, as if something goes wrong (you’re in the premium sector now) then it can be costly. Thankfully issues are rare. I personally operate without relying on Lexus warranty. Specialist servicing instead of main dealer.

The app is quite useless. Pretend it is not an option. There is no auto heated windscreens or connectivity.

You might be better spending money on an aftermarket upgrade of the screen, adding in apple CarPlay or Android Auto functionality. ML audio is nice but if you don’t appreciate the audio, no need for the upgrade. All editions have Bluetooth audio and calls.

Not sure AA inspection is worth the paper it is written on. Find a fine specimen with a careful previous owner / enthusiast.

I personally prefer the F-Sport styling.

Notamech · December 25, 2023

3 hours ago, MariusGT said:

Hi Everyone,

I’m looking to upgrade from my 2011 Ford Fiesta. I was looking at 2017+ Lexus is 300h Premier. It would set me back around £19k (car, insurance, dashcam, etc). The car I am looking at has had 2 owners, full dealership history and it’s selling for about £16.5k.

I am planning to get it AA inspected before purchase as well.

Is there anything else I need to look after?

Is the Premier option really worth it? Since the Advanced one seems reasonable as well (but no upgraded screen or ML).

Does the car have bluetooth connectivity (Music, phone calls).

I know Lexus has its own application, what can it actually do? i.e. can it set the temperature or remote start the car to heat it up in advance?

I don't drive to/from work, so it will be more of a weekend car, but I do quite a few city breaks and I have to drive for about 400 miles about once a month to see my parents.

Thank you in advance and Merry Christmas!

If it has full dealership history and is a 2017. It probably has warranty on it. Lexus offers 1 year or 10,000 miles of warranty everytime the car is serviced at lexus. This goes on for up to 10 years or 100,000 miles. So unlikely you will have to worry about much. Not sure about how good an AA eval is but Lexus is probably one of the few brands a you can potentially take a risk with.

As far as which variant to get. It all depends on how long you plan on keeping the car. If you plan on keeping it long i would recommend forking out the extra for the premier...especially because a lot of things you get on the premier variant cant be fit aftermarket e.g the Mark Levinson sound system, radar cross traffic detection etc. I have a 2014 executive variant and i often think it would have been great if i had just spent a couple of grand extra and bought the Premier variant because i plan on keeping the car for at least another 5 years. Like you my usage is very low and primarily in the city which is why the few moments i spend in it i wish i had all the toys possible. If budget is an issue I would say don't shy away from older cars 2016 and older cars for example have a lower tax than the 2017 cars and will be cheaper as well but might miss out on some upgrades that happened in 2017.

Overall they're great cars quite frugal and reliable you can't go wrong really if you've test driven one and are happy with the way it feels and drives.

PaulWhitt20 · December 25, 2023

Just one thing to think about, if it spends a lot of time not being driven the 12v Battery can go flat, so consider a trickle charger.
Otherwise a great car when you get used to how to drive a hybrid.
Have a great Christmas and welcome to LOC.

IS300FSPORT · December 25, 2023

1 hour ago, PaulWhitt20 said:

Just one thing to think about, if it spends a lot of time not being driven the 12v battery can go flat, so consider a trickle charger.
Otherwise a great car when you get used to how to drive a hybrid.
Have a great Christmas and welcome to LOC.

100% echo this...

DavidCM · December 25, 2023

∆∆∆∆∆∆∆∆∆∆

Ditto on trickle charger, otherwise perfect.

ganzoom · December 26, 2023

When the only 'worry' that comes about a use car is the 12V Battery it tells you everything you need to know about reliability:).

For balance, our 2015 IS300H which we've owned from new is still on its original 12V Battery, and has done less than 40k miles so spends lots of time sitting around, never trickle charged, and so far still no signs the 12V needs replacing!

IS300FSPORT · December 26, 2023

35 minutes ago, ganzoom said:

When the only 'worry' that comes about a use car is the 12V battery it tells you everything you need to know about reliability:).

For balance, our 2015 IS300H which we've owned from new is still on its original 12V battery, and has done less than 40k miles so spends lots of time sitting around, never trickle charged, and so far still no signs the 12V needs replacing!

Your 12v Battery has done very well if its never been trickle charged. You must be using it just enough to keep it topped up. Is your Battery AGM? I think they handle discharge & recover much better than the lead acid batteries.

(For info/awareness for the original poster)

There are no tell tale signs the Battery is dying like a conventional non-hybrid engine where a slow turnover of the starter motor gives it away the Battery is dying. Hybrids dont have a starter motor so its not picked up early enough. Owners have reported pushing the power button & the warning message popping up put it into P.

A simple powerpack like a Noco GB40 charged & kept in the boot reduces your chances of being stranded.

The below are not faults as such more keeping ontop of maintenance:

- Squeaky brakes is usually caused by seized slider pins that just need a regrease.

- Hybrid cooling fan if higher mileage get the fan & filter cleaned it can get blocked with dust or pet hairs.

wharfhouse · December 26, 2023

I have 2014 IS 300h (Executive trim) - I bought the car when it was 2 years old with 40k mile on it. Car now has 142k miles. In that time the only repairs have been:

- screen wash water bottle sensor

- new front wheel bearings at 80k miles (also had front discs/pads changed at same time)

- new spring on bonnet latch at 140k miles (became weak and bonnet wouldn't stay latched properly)

Still have the original 12V Battery and can leave the car over a week and it starts no problem but I do keep a lithium jump pack in the car for the inevitable day when the 12V Battery gives up.

Still on original rear discs and pads (4mm remaining) but last couple of services reporting them as pitted/corroded now and so will need changing in the next couple of years I guess.

Tyres have consistently lasted 20k miles on the rear and 40k miles on the front.

Other than being maintained by Lexus on schedule through its life that's it - everything still works as it should.

Colinb623 · December 26, 2023

5 hours ago, wharfhouse said:

I have 2014 IS 300h (Executive trim) - I bought the car when it was 2 years old with 40k mile on it. Car now has 142k miles. In that time the only repairs have been:

- screen wash water bottle sensor

- new front wheel bearings at 80k miles (also had front discs/pads changed at same time)

- new spring on bonnet latch at 140k miles (became weak and bonnet wouldn't stay latched properly)

Still have the original 12V battery and can leave the car over a week and it starts no problem but I do keep a lithium jump pack in the car for the inevitable day when the 12V battery gives up.

Still on original rear discs and pads (4mm remaining) but last couple of services reporting them as pitted/corroded now and so will need changing in the next couple of years I guess.

Tyres have consistently lasted 20k miles on the rear and 40k miles on the front.

Other than being maintained by Lexus on schedule through its life that's it - everything still works as it should.

This is more than enough evidence of how reliable these cars are 👍

Djwbiker · December 27, 2023

Marius, checkout my advert on the For Sale page, exactly what your looking for and will save you £££'s with Lexus warranty, only £10 per year tax.

Message me. or phone if you have any questions

thanks

Dave

RONNIE W HODGEKINSON · December 27, 2023

I Agree With You About The AA Inspection........Not Worth The money..!!

DAN@ADRIAN FLUX · December 27, 2023

Hi and welcome.

When you're ready if you need any help with insurance at all then please feel free to drop me a line.

Regards,

Dan.

Dells · January 6

I had owned Mercedes for 30 plus years and my last turned out to be 1/2 a Renault so purchased my 2017 300is back in July last year from a Lexus dealership with 24,000 on the clock and I love it apart from getting out of it but I am 70 , I had a problem with the water pump leaking but it was done at my local Lexus dealership under warranty the mechanic said it was probably because the car had been stood a lot because the coolant also lubricated the seals, £10 road tax but insurance extra and that was probably because my B class was 1600 and the Lexus is 2.5 , go for one you won’t regret it .

Dell