My poor IS 220D (06), buying a IS250(07)

[PhilEFT]

Hello, I have sadly just been informed that my 2006 Is220d (full info, sat nav, reversing camara) has to be scraped because of a head gasket issue..,  Wednesday 6th November 2024, I was cruising down the duel carriage way, touching the accelerate, just a tad harder and the engine and car just floated past a lorry without even missing a beat.. I just said to myself.. I LOVE THIS CAR 🤩🤩🤩

What a star of a car I have/had😢

Yesterday(Thursday) the car went in to the garage to have a full service and a renewed windscreen bottle replacement... was expecting a good chunk of money to be spent on it to give me at least another year to glide past people and not even feel a bump, but didn't think that was a bad move, as I love my IS220D...

Sadly the garage called me a few times, after finding a pool of antifreeze on the bottom plates and investigating the reason..

This is what i was told, in a sad voice..(the machanic likes Lexus' also.. and must have felt my pain), the engine has exhaust gases going into the head (head gasket gone) need you to find someone to hug, or at least have a shoulder to soak with your tears, because the head gasket has gone and the car will need changing ASAP, his extra advise was this won't get you 5 minutes down the road without major issues, so start looking for a new car or £3000 + VAT engine repair.. minimum..

After a small tear dropped down my check, walking the short distance to the garage because I own a IS220D I am pretty manly, so was just enough tear, to show my feminine side and thinking that the universe was punishing me for enjoying my IS220D (06) to much, for 8 years with very little issue.. with a few mechanical jobs being done to it, and the Lexus dealership charging me 10 times the amount in £s for a job, that a normal garage would.

I now have to buy a new car on a budget that is so small I might need to choose not to eat for a while.. 

So I have seen a IS250 Sport (07) (Only says sport not SE-I), this car is without the sat nav, camara, or blue tooth cons, so a little sad with that.. but I was nearly hit with a heart attack, bowel release and jaw hitting the floor, when I was told that LEXUS IS250 sport (07) Road Tax is £710 per yer.. 

I have seen some say, £480 just like the 220d, others less, but I need a car now.. with a budget of £2500 and Love my lexus 220d... but want a IS250.. now, so is it true...

£710 per year🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🥶😵‍💫

[mk_lon]

19 hours ago, PhilEFT said:

Hello, I have sadly just been informed that my 2006 Is220d (full info, sat nav, reversing camara) has to be scraped because of a head gasket issue..,  Wednesday 6th November 2024, I was cruising down the duel carriage way, touching the accelerate, just a tad harder and the engine and car just floated past a lorry without even missing a beat.. I just said to myself.. I LOVE THIS CAR 🤩🤩🤩

What a star of a car I have/had😢

Yesterday(Thursday) the car went in to the garage to have a full service and a renewed windscreen bottle replacement... was expecting a good chunk of money to be spent on it to give me at least another year to glide past people and not even feel a bump, but didn't think that was a bad move, as I love my IS220D...

Sadly the garage called me a few times, after finding a pool of antifreeze on the bottom plates and investigating the reason..

This is what i was told, in a sad voice..(the machanic likes Lexus' also.. and must have felt my pain), the engine has exhaust gases going into the head (head gasket gone) need you to find someone to hug, or at least have a shoulder to soak with your tears, because the head gasket has gone and the car will need changing ASAP, his extra advise was this won't get you 5 minutes down the road without major issues, so start looking for a new car or £3000 + VAT engine repair.. minimum..

After a small tear dropped down my check, walking the short distance to the garage because I own a IS220D I am pretty manly, so was just enough tear, to show my feminine side and thinking that the universe was punishing me for enjoying my IS220D (06) to much, for 8 years with very little issue.. with a few mechanical jobs being done to it, and the Lexus dealership charging me 10 times the amount in £s for a job, that a normal garage would.

I now have to buy a new car on a budget that is so small I might need to choose not to eat for a while.. 

So I have seen a IS250 Sport (07) (Only says sport not SE-I), this car is without the sat nav, camara, or blue tooth cons, so a little sad with that.. but I was nearly hit with a heart attack, bowel release and jaw hitting the floor, when I was told that LEXUS IS250 sport (07) Road Tax is £710 per yer.. 

I have seen some say, £480 just like the 220d, others less, but I need a car now.. with a budget of £2500 and Love my lexus 220d... but want a IS250.. now, so is it true...

£710 per year🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🥶😵‍💫

The auto petrol is cheaper to tax, better mpg, cheaper to insure and many said a better drive than the manual. 

I'm surprised to read your post as your the only person I have ever read that speaks so highly of the IS220d in 12 years of being on this forum, thus I think you will be pleasantly surprised with the is250. It really is a great car. 

Pending your budget you should find a fully spec sel model...don't be afraid of high mileage cars as the engines are bullet proof... Best of luck with the search. 

[Spock66]

I was going to say surely £3,000 for a head gasket replacement is way over the top, but this thread confirms the diagnosis.

 

[PhilEFT]

@mk_lon

Don't get my wrong, I had to get the DPF sorted 3 times, a new radiator, water pump, ECG Unit and some other things that cost me double the worth of the car.. worth around £5000.. Obviously this is lexus center prices.. so £30 anywhere else

But maybe I just got a IS220d that was  not as bad as the others.. I have been in that car and glided.. 

I must admit, for my first car, Peugeot 1260cc, I was quite happy to not be walking or cycling..

So maybe I will have this other car IS250 and see that my IS220d wasn't so great.. but when all is said and done, the IS220d, gave me a good amount to get around slow drivers on A roads, lorries and general gave me some comfort..

When my IS220d was in getting the most expensive, DPF/Catalytic convertor renewed in the lexus centre(2021), I drove a 2021 lexus service car and I wasn't that impressed with the whole thing.. more than happy to get back into the IS220d.. and hopefully the IS250 will bring me as much driving happiness

The IS220D always started, never once did it not start, unless the Battery was died, after I did something.. but always started and got me toa destination.. so that's all we need...

Maybe you have had better cars, but I made sure people know I was making there house prices rise due to me having a lexus outside of their house.. so maybe that was the reason I like it so much

[JamesIS220]

Sorry to hear of your IS220D woes.

I bought a 2006 IS220D 5 years ago on a whim thinking better MPG and reliable. Never failed an MOT or any advisories and serviced yearly. Had 172,000 miles and was clean.

Paid £1,475 for it on eBay.

Fitted a full size spare alloy by cutting out the boot tray. New AC condenser so ice cold AC. New Avon 7V7 tyres all round 2 months prior to scrapping it!

On collection drove fine and no HG failure. Lasted 19 months before coolant pressurising and coming out the vent pipe overflow and down the rad/fan.

Gradually got worse  and scrapped it for £350.

Mine was a basic SE trim. loved the build quality, safety kit and the colour. Mismatched  gearbox and turbo lag I didn't like.

Prior and still drive the old rear wheel drive Volvo 740, 240 and since 2016 a 1996 Volvo 940 SE LPT, petrol auto estate. Paid £250 then and still going strong at 211,000 miles.

Should of bought a IS250

Soon after bought a Toyota Auris Hybrid TS. Cheap to run and does it's job.

 

Photo of it on day of collection for scrap. Said they scrapped 4 a week. Injectors keeping, cut off the cat, wheels and tyres as looked really good. Body panels no demand!

James.

 

[PhilEFT]

@JamesIS220

That's the same colour as mine... love that colour now...

Sorry to hear you had such a bad experience.. hopefully my experience will be just as good with a IS250 

[Linas.P]

40 minutes ago, PhilEFT said:

@JamesIS220

That's the same colour as mine... love that colour now...

Sorry to hear you had such a bad experience.. hopefully my experience will be just as good with a IS250 

Hopefully better. The only advantage or manual IS250 has over automatic... is initial purchase price. After hat all other thing are positives - smoothness, power, reliability, it is just objectively better car. Sure - getting one in good condition could make or break the experience, because neglected examples can cause headaches, but assuming IS220d is in same overall condition as IS250 auto, then IS250 is just improvement in very possible way. So my hope would be that you will be much happier with IS250 and realise what you were missing all the time 🙂

Certainly there is other side of it - IS250 being NA is kind of anaemic below 3000 RPM, but it is really rewarding the more you push it, it really encourages spirited driving, it sounds goods, it is very responsive etc. Kind of surprising in a way as it is a bit of luxury barge, but it is quite an enthusiast car in a sense, then it actually likes being revved out. This will be quite different from turbo car which has the power band between ~1800RPM and maybe ~3600RPM and then nothing. In IS250 you can rev it all the way to like 6,000 (red line is 6,850, btu I reckon there isn't much in it after 6,000).

Just curious - what is happening with your IS220d considering it is now blown and unlikely to be economical repair. 

[JamesIS220]

13 hours ago, PhilEFT said:

@JamesIS220

That's the same colour as mine... love that colour now...

Sorry to hear you had such a bad experience.. hopefully my experience will be just as good with a IS250 

I liked the colour too. If you're not aware you can put the REG number of any potential car purchase and see the MOT history here.

What is the vehicle's registration number - Check MOT history – GOV.UK

Hope you find your ideal IS 250. 

James.

[T man 545645]

Hi 

Nice to hear how much you like the diesel lexus, i test drove one like 13 years ago but wanted to try a auto car and ended up with a 250 which i've been very happy with ever since. 

Try and hold out for a sat nav / rear cam one. 

On the 250 it will need to have had a water pump also, doubt there are many people who still have the factory one running okay. 

Its a totally refined and luxury car. i'm holding on to mine as long as i can as i know the next car will be some sort of skoda or similar family wagon.

[mk_lon]

Given my experience and others on this thread, I think you will be very happy with the Is250. Happy motoring my friend 😊

I agree with you about the new shape too. The exterior is fine but the interior in the mk3 / 2013 onwards reminds me of a cheap looking alba stereo from argos in the 90s.

 

 

[Linas.P]

5 hours ago, mk_lon said:

Given my experience and others on this thread, I think you will be very happy with the Is250. Happy motoring my friend 😊

I agree with you about the new shape too. The exterior is fine but the interior in the mk3 / 2013 onwards reminds me of a cheap looking alba stereo from argos in the 90s.

mk3 interior built quality is definitely worse than mk2, both materials and how it is put together is step down. 

That said mk3 is functionally quite modern and mk2 is a bit dated... for example you get Bluetooth integration by default (only late mk2s had it and it is nowhere near as straightforward), also upgrading head unit to android one is much easier affair on mk3, much less compatibility issues and it looks life factory option, because there is already glass in console, you just put larger screen behind it. If you get F-Sport with digital dash, then honestly + android unit then honestly 2013 IS is as good as any 2024 car, it doesn't feel like 10 years old car inside.

[H3XME]

@PhilEFT If you're after a manual with cheaper tax then you need '55 or early '06 plate cars.

My mate is selling his IS250, around 110,000miles, black on black, sat nav M&L car, automatic. Think he's after around 2500-3000.. Had it for years, just upgraded to something with folding rear seats.