Any Other 250c Owners Out There?

[Kit77]

I haven't had the pleasure of meeting any other 250c owners and would be interested in what they might think of their car.

I am very pleased with the car in general. There is a little bit more road noise than the saloon. Also there is some rattle from the roof (but I think a bit on lube on the seals might be all that is needed to solve that).

The 2010 HDD satnav system with gracenote, usb/ipod connection, DAB radio is a welcome upgrade. The sound is better and when the roof down it doesn't lose depth.

It is ever so slightly slower in acceleration than the saloon, but when the hood is down what is the point of burning off when getting the appraising looks!!.

One of the best new features is the extended seat heat/vent system which goes further up the back. Was roof down on a 10degree sunny morning and extremely comfortable. The climate control seems more responsive and effective than the saloon.

So, any others out there?

[Johnny777]

Not lucky enough to own one of these beauties, but am lucky enough to have a 10 month old IS250SEL. Was in Lexus Chester the other day, and they had 2 250C's in the showroom. Got to say, I think they are stunning, and if I had a spare £40k, I would be very tempted. Not sure Richard Hammond was quite so impressed recently though:-

http://blogs.mirror.co.uk/cars-motorbikes/...al---foldi.html

[Kit77]

Hammond, 2 car crashes and major head injury.... I rest my case.

No, seriously I agree the car is a cruiser not a bruiser in the engine stakes and it is a real shame it wasn't a 350c in the UK. But the satnav is much better than he states. I have had no problems with it. It even knows the country lanes I like (and it is dynamic so if you kind of know where you are heading it will help you along).

The dashboard is very easy to follow esp. as I have had the is250 previously.

I looked at the audi A5 convertible but the hard top swayed it for me (and the over all build quality / reliablity / customer service aspects).

I think when it comes down to it if the IS250c was really an IS350c it would be a perfect and even Hammond would be happy (but would still crash it even with acc/pcs)

[mayur]

I think the 250C is a classy car.You've made a good choice. You might want to try some carbaflo liquid for the seals, available from bmw dealers. Have heard good things about this on other forums.

[Cainey]

I haven't had the pleasure of meeting any other 250c owners and would be interested in what they might think of their car.

I am very pleased with the car in general. There is a little bit more road noise than the saloon. Also there is some rattle from the roof (but I think a bit on lube on the seals might be all that is needed to solve that).

The 2010 HDD satnav system with gracenote, usb/ipod connection, DAB radio is a welcome upgrade. The sound is better and when the roof down it doesn't lose depth.

It is ever so slightly slower in acceleration than the saloon, but when the hood is down what is the point of burning off when getting the appraising looks!!.

One of the best new features is the extended seat heat/vent system which goes further up the back. Was roof down on a 10degree sunny morning and extremely comfortable. The climate control seems more responsive and effective than the saloon.

So, any others out there?

I was lucky enough to have one of these this week whilst my 400h was in for a service. I have to say it was a very nice car, everything was in the same place as my previous 220D but it drove much better and the toys and gadgets were bang up to date (even more so than my 1 year old 400h). I have driven a few 250's and I have to say this was not much different to drive, quiet, comfortable and very smooth through the gears. It wasnt as quick as I thought it would be but I was quite happy to take it easy with the roof down given I only had it for a day. Space wasnt great in the back and as I have a family I dont think I could justify having this as our main family car, if there were just the 2 of us then I would consider a 250C next time.

[kenfoxy]

The 250C will do well sales wise. Soft top saloons are all about looks and class. This car hits the spot.

[Jabbar]

Hi Guys

I have just returned to Lexus after an absence of 3 years - I purchased the IS220d in early 2006 and hated it so much sold it within 6 weeks! I have just sold my Q7 and purchased a new IS250 Convertible in the range topping SEL (PCC/ACC/Multimedia) Trim. I drove the car and fell in love - its classy, a good drive and so refined! I just cant understand the reviews! Yes the engine is a little slow to get going but in every other aspect its as good as any car I have owned - including my BMW 335i M Sport Convertible which I purchased last year. I managed to get mine for £35k - a cool 21% of the list price from £44,135 (mine includes a tracker and few other goodies over and above the standard car at £43,350 plus metallic paint at £580).

So to sum up - typical Lexus - good looking, refined, beautifully put together and classy! I have seen comments on this forum about the price - just to give an example the Audi A5 Convertible in Standard S Line Trim in manual 2.0 Petrol FSI mode starts at £34k - thats before any Sat Nav, Bluetooth, Heated, electric seats, Auto box or a decent stereo!! Add all of these 'basics' and you are talking about £40k for a soft top!

Jabbar

[kenfoxy]

Doesn't surprise me about the Audi. Same can be said for BMW. Trouble is, whilst you may be able to accept an Audi or BMW without the "goodies", the second hand market won't. Have you noticed that when someone says they have a "new" car they always tell you about the "goodies" first. Not all those other less tangible things which will be the real reason they bought it.

[Normski]

Hi Guys

I have just returned to Lexus after an absence of 3 years - I purchased the IS220d in early 2006 and hated it so much sold it within 6 weeks! I have just sold my Q7 and purchased a new IS250 Convertible in the range topping SEL (PCC/ACC/Multimedia) Trim. I drove the car and fell in love - its classy, a good drive and so refined! I just cant understand the reviews! Yes the engine is a little slow to get going but in every other aspect its as good as any car I have owned - including my BMW 335i M Sport Convertible which I purchased last year. I managed to get mine for £35k - a cool 21% of the list price from £44,135 (mine includes a tracker and few other goodies over and above the standard car at £43,350 plus metallic paint at £580).

So to sum up - typical Lexus - good looking, refined, beautifully put together and classy! I have seen comments on this forum about the price - just to give an example the Audi A5 Convertible in Standard S Line Trim in manual 2.0 Petrol FSI mode starts at £34k - thats before any Sat Nav, Bluetooth, Heated, electric seats, Auto box or a decent stereo!! Add all of these 'basics' and you are talking about £40k for a soft top!

Jabbar

21% discount?!

That's a stunning discount!!!! I'm presuming this is via a car broker??

[Jabbar]

Hi Guys

I have just returned to Lexus after an absence of 3 years - I purchased the IS220d in early 2006 and hated it so much sold it within 6 weeks! I have just sold my Q7 and purchased a new IS250 Convertible in the range topping SEL (PCC/ACC/Multimedia) Trim. I drove the car and fell in love - its classy, a good drive and so refined! I just cant understand the reviews! Yes the engine is a little slow to get going but in every other aspect its as good as any car I have owned - including my BMW 335i M Sport Convertible which I purchased last year. I managed to get mine for £35k - a cool 21% of the list price from £44,135 (mine includes a tracker and few other goodies over and above the standard car at £43,350 plus metallic paint at £580).

So to sum up - typical Lexus - good looking, refined, beautifully put together and classy! I have seen comments on this forum about the price - just to give an example the Audi A5 Convertible in Standard S Line Trim in manual 2.0 Petrol FSI mode starts at £34k - thats before any Sat Nav, Bluetooth, Heated, electric seats, Auto box or a decent stereo!! Add all of these 'basics' and you are talking about £40k for a soft top!

Jabbar

21% discount?!

That's a stunning discount!!!! I'm presuming this is via a car broker??

Lexus Bradford actually!!! There are some good deals to be had - Lexus need to shift 250 of these cars between now and March 2010 - no doubt the price will hold firm once summer starts.

Jabbar

[TestPilot]

Hi Kit77.

I've had mine a couple of months now (Windsor Blue SEL but without the ACC etc). The driving style is quite different to my previous car, a Volvo turbo (max torque from 1800 rpm), but I'm getting used to letting the engine rev to get the most out of it. A little flick of the flappy paddles now and again helps get the revs in the right band for more rapid progress, but it does take a bit of getting used to after a manual box. Seems also that how fast (as well as how far) the right hand pedal is pushed makes a difference to the rate of progress... not to mention the little switch under the wheel that lights up more than a little green sign on the dash...

Mine too has a clonk in the roof on rough surfaces (to the rear on the driver's side) but apart from that everything seems rock solid. Must look out for some of that lube stuff. Or just have the roof down more often :)

Handling is predictable, with very little roll - the front double wishbones keep those fat tyres nice and parallel with the black stuff. Less slowing into corners means less accelerating out, so that helps with overall progress. However I'm not into hanging the back out in clouds of tyre smoke (too tight to keep buying new rubber) so not really explored the limits there by any means.

No idea what the hamster's problem with the satnav was - true, it's not as intuitive as a TomTom, but after a bit of practice seems to work just fine - and will reroute round traffic problems from the TMC data on the radio, no need to pay for a service and mobile call charges. True, on hols in Kent we did find a couple of oddities - like when it tried to get us to cross a main road then negotiate a couple of residential roads to emerge 50 yards down the road we would have crossed, rather than simply take a right turn... but there may have been something odd in the map data that would have caused Tommy to do something similar.

As for the buttons, the ones that are most needed are all easily accessible and identifiable. True the "satelite" switch and the unfreeze-your-wipers button are tucked away down by your right knee, but how often would a fishing expedition be required for those? The dials are really clear, even with the lid off on a sunny day, and at less than max illumination.

Took me a while to figure out that the auto wiper sensitivity knob works the opposite way to the intermittent time knob on our Prius... on the IS "big" means more sensitive, on the Prius "big" means more delay.

Big plusses...

The space in the boot with the lid down is mainly at the back where you can get to it. No need for a lift-the-roof-up-a-bit-to-get-under-it feature like the Volvo C70 or BMW Z4.

Gadgets included in the price - many other cars seem less expensive, until you get loose in the toyshop.

One-touch rear seat access. (The C70, for example, needs you to keep your finger on the button... but then Volvo don't believe in auto-close driver's windows either!)

Reversing camera. (Thought it was a gimmick, can't live without it now)

Cool things...

Light-up sills that say "Lexus" on them. Cool. (No, really - I've had several comments about them!)

Voice command (yes, still use it, for another couple of weeks, anyway)

Wish list...

An inch more legroom in the back - though it's not at all bad. I'm well over 6ft and can squeeze in behind the driver's seat when it's set for me.

The ability to select traffic announcements from one particular station - saves constant interruptions telling you about jams 50 miles away when doing the same old route to work. (Volvo had that)

Add follow-me-home headlamps.

Couldn't get one with the DAB option. I hope it's available as an add-on upgrade, cos I might keep this car past 2015.

Jabbar to negotiate the discount on my next car. :winky:

BTW - Which magazine has just issued a review: http://www.which.co.uk/lexusis250c .

[Exiled]

Excellent thread TestPilot. With regard to motoring correspondents, Honest John excluded, many seem to have an agenda which excludes anything manufactured outside Germany, I wasn't convinced by the propaganda or the cars.

[Kit77]

Wish list...

An inch more legroom in the back - though it's not at all bad. I'm well over 6ft and can squeeze in behind the driver's seat when it's set for me.

The ability to select traffic announcements from one particular station - saves constant interruptions telling you about jams 50 miles away when doing the same old route to work. (Volvo had that)

Add follow-me-home headlamps.

Couldn't get one with the DAB option. I hope it's available as an add-on upgrade, cos I might keep this car past 2015.

Jabbar to negotiate the discount on my next car. :winky:

BTW - Which magazine has just issued a review: http://www.which.co.uk/lexusis250c .

Nice summary, especially agree with the last point on your wish list

I have the DAB option and it does help with some of the broadcast clarity but for some reason the text option does not have much info such as current playlist or which show I'm listening to.

I don't tend to have need for the traffic announcements as I use the RDS-TMC for updates and it's pretty well updated.

[TestPilot]

Sadly my 250C was hit *hard* in the rear by a van on the motorway last week. However, the crash protection performed very well and though the car looks like its totalled, I'm still here. The doc confirms whiplash, but believe me, things could have been much worse.

Take care folks

[juicestop]

Sadly my 250C was hit *hard* in the rear by a van on the motorway last week. However, the crash protection performed very well and though the car looks like its totalled, I'm still here. The doc confirms whiplash, but believe me, things could have been much worse.

Take care folks

So sorry to hear that but like you say, it could have been much worse. Sounds like you're in for a nice bit of compo though... :winky:

[TestPilot]

Well, after more than two months of wrangling and waiting, the powers-that-be have finally decided that my 250C must be repaired (read: rebuilt). I'll let you know how it goes.

[m44rrt]

I am looking to buy a used 250c SEL for the wife - are there any special things to look out for?

Do they use run-flats as standard?