The Negatives About The Is220/250

[Saraj]

Hi,

What I want to hear from owners is what there dislike about there IS220 or IS250.

I love the car and looking at buying one in the near furture and very biased in the sence of it being perfect.

But it would be interesting to hear what owners thing, who may have driven one for a few years or months now.

Thanks

[dgman]

the most annoying thing is that there is no night time illumination of the lights/indicator/wiper stalks,having lived with my car for three years i still cannot see the positive in this arrangement.

[ashpilot]

when cold the is250 engine sounds like all the tappets and injectors are knackered until it warms up.

[Scarlet Pimpernell]

Probably the most emotive subject in the world and another thread which could go downwards . It's a topic that becomes very heated and the lines between subjective and objective become blurred all too easy !!

Just do a search on here and check out the poll - it's worth spending a few hours trawling through the threads. If you want the perfect car and believe in the science, then remember it's only a car, and no car is perfect:

Ultimately you will have to decide and live by it, but generally I wouldn't just buy a car because of reputation or what humans have put have down on Customer Satisfaction surveys ever again!!!! It's a personal thing and the car has to fit your budget, your family and feel connected to you when you drive it....

If you're a Lexus fan, there is nothing better on the road...and even if you're not, the IS250 Auto with MM makes a compelling case. It's a good car. Diesel? Well that's another story!! Concentrate on the gearing, the clutch, fuel economy, quality of fit and finish ahead of the toys in the car...and make sure you subjectively compare it to the competition too...

[Haf]

Its annoying that, when raining, opening the drivers door usually results in water falling on the seat

[giorgoXXI]

Most annoying thing from the IS are the rattles! Apart from that it is a great car... not very economical but then you do get a lot of extras for your money!

[mick77]

I've got a 220d SE-L with MM. The toys are great (you must have multimedia!) and the car is very comfortable and civilised. It does turn heads!

However, my particular car has very poor MPG, much less than advertised and Lexus seem resigned to it and (most annoyingly) tell me it is "normal", and my diesel is not so much fun to drive if you want to throw it around a bit from time to time - the gearbox is poor and it does not make it a pleasure shifting in and out of gears. You sometimes have to really force the gearstick in, so akin to driving an old lorry gearbox! This may be just particular to my car though, of couse you will see what yours is like on a test drive.

If you are getting a new one, all in all I would recommend it despite my issues so long as you make sure the dealer fixes any niggles prompty when in warranty. Standards of dealer service do seem to vary quite a bit from dealer to dealer!

However, if I could choose again I'd probably go for the 250 SE-L petrol auto.

[MeOfLeeds]

What a strange question to ask - I suppose that you've posted the same query on all your alternative car options forums?

If everyone based their purchases on what was written on (supposedly) informed forums, you'd never go on holiday, own a LCD TV, buy a particular brand of biscuit/dog food/soap (insert your own option) let alone a car.

[Exiled]

Probably the most emotive subject in the world and another thread which could go downwards . It's a topic that becomes very heated and the lines between subjective and objective become blurred all too easy !!

Just do a search on here and check out the poll - it's worth spending a few hours trawling through the threads. If you want the perfect car and believe in the science, then remember it's only a car, and no car is perfect:

Ultimately you will have to decide and live by it, but generally I wouldn't just buy a car because of reputation or what humans have put have down on Customer Satisfaction surveys ever again!!!! It's a personal thing and the car has to fit your budget, your family and feel connected to you when you drive it....

If you're a Lexus fan, there is nothing better on the road...and even if you're not, the IS250 Auto with MM makes a compelling case. It's a good car. Diesel? Well that's another story!! Concentrate on the gearing, the clutch, fuel economy, quality of fit and finish ahead of the toys in the car...and make sure you subjectively compare it to the competition too...

The above is really good advice especially the bit about reputation and customer satisfaction surveys.

If you are prepared to wade through all the threads on this forum you will come out at the other end knowing the answers to 99% of your questions, I have and I did.

The only other thing is to have a test drive in both the diesel and the petrol models, at least a full day in each. If you are going into this with the idea you don't want an auto then put your prejudice on hold, try one, it's a different animal.

[stewiegriffin]

Probably the most emotive subject in the world and another thread which could go downwards . It's a topic that becomes very heated and the lines between subjective and objective become blurred all too easy !!

Just do a search on here and check out the poll - it's worth spending a few hours trawling through the threads. If you want the perfect car and believe in the science, then remember it's only a car, and no car is perfect:

Ultimately you will have to decide and live by it, but generally I wouldn't just buy a car because of reputation or what humans have put have down on Customer Satisfaction surveys ever again!!!! It's a personal thing and the car has to fit your budget, your family and feel connected to you when you drive it....

If you're a Lexus fan, there is nothing better on the road...and even if you're not, the IS250 Auto with MM makes a compelling case. It's a good car. Diesel? Well that's another story!! Concentrate on the gearing, the clutch, fuel economy, quality of fit and finish ahead of the toys in the car...and make sure you subjectively compare it to the competition too...

The above is really good advice especially the bit about reputation and customer satisfaction surveys.

If you are prepared to wade through all the threads on this forum you will come out at the other end knowing the answers to 99% of your questions, I have and I did.

The only other thing is to have a test drive in both the diesel and the petrol models, at least a full day in each. If you are going into this with the idea you don't want an auto then put your prejudice on hold, try one, it's a different animal.

I would tend to go along with this. I generally like my 220d SE but it is let down terribly by fuel consumption, turbo lag & the gear ratios. & I've got to agree with HAF, your seat does get wet if you open the door when it's been raining The car has also locked me out once when I put my jacket with the key in the pocket onto the backseat then shut the door & it locked.

In most driving conditions the car drives very well & is a pleasure to be in but sometimes the gear ratios & turbo lag can catch you out.

In my experience the dealer has been fairly faultless too - except over fuel consumption.

If I were to get another lexus it'd probably be the IS250SE auto with multimedia. I had one for a day when mine was being serviced, I loved the auto box & got the same mpg as my diesel.

I'll be replacing mine in a few months (contract hire) & would like another IS but unless the new diesel version is considerably better I will be looking elsewhere - or going for the petrol version.

Test drive both versions & make up your own mind

[Gunther]

Road noise from tyres. I find this tiring sometimes. But the stereo makes up for this. Turbo Lag - can be dangerous at times!!! Especially when you need to take off at roundabouts. Rear seat space. I think it too small in the back and people bang their head when they climb into back of the car.

Gearbox is notchy.

[Parthiban]

There's isn't a whole lot wrong with the IS250, same niggles I guess you'd have with any car except maybe the rattles that seem to be a problem for some owners.......

the most annoying thing is that there is no night time illumination of the lights/indicator/wiper stalks,having lived with my car for three years i still cannot see the positive in this arrangement.

What car does have illuminated stalks? If you leave the lights on auto, then you don't need that stalk (can count the number of times I've used the switch in my 7 years of ownership using my fingers) and the wipers are intuitive (and aren't they auto as well on the IS?)

[simon k]

things i dislike are

ratlles and creaks

poor paint quality

services every 10 k

having to top up the oil before the service is due

2 sets of tyres in 28000 miles 3 if you count the ones that came on the car

poor mpg

lack of interest in solving the poor mpg issues

things i like are

the car looks fantastic

[Boothby Coggles]

What do I like about the IS 220?

The fact that I'm about to p/x it for an IS 250 auto :D

However:

I've had issues with the consumption until recently. It was in at the dealer for another matter a couple of weeks or so ago & I asked them to look at the consumption, and it's now had the latest ECU mod or whatever. The consumption now seems better as I got 43 mpg today on a 70 mile or so run back home from Kettering this afternoon. Having said that, traffic & weather conditions made me take it steady. If I'd been a bit more "lively" then I imagine it would have been somewhere about the 40 mark.

I don't have any real problem now with turbo lag. That's down either to my having adapted my drving style to cope with it, or more likely, the fact that I use Millers Diesel Power Sport has helped. It's probably helped a bit with consumption as well.

[Mincey]

Its annoying that, when raining, opening the drivers door usually results in water falling on the seat

And getting a boot full of snow unless you clear it all off the lid before opening it.