Convince Me Please People...

[DTH]

Ex IS200SE owner (2001 - 2007) who took the diesel dollar / company car tax option of a diesel instead of the 'take the cash' option when the IS clicked over to 165,000 miles when all that went wrong was a blown sidelight bulb. Daft / Crazy ... yeah I know.

So, the lease on the current company car (Mercedes C220 CDi - the company car tax efficient one .. 109 CO2 kg/something?) is due to be returned in June.

I've done the sums of cash v company car and as I live in area where crash for cash (OL11) is considered a skilled occupation, the sums (down payment + tyres + batteries + exhausts +servicing + insurance + 40k miles per annum) tend to make me favour taking the car instead of the cash.

I've driven the IS300h for about 2 hours and was very impressed, but can someone who runs one day in day out, putting say 100 miles a day on it vouch for its real world MPG / livability. Especially hacking up and down a motorway for 80% of its life.

Many thanks in advance of all the responses.

[DJP]

My driving is not the same as yours, so I'm not sure how helpful this will be, but anyway. For me, the car is a dream to drive. You've had enough time behind the wheel to know the hybrid whine is a non issue, and the comfort and handling IMO are excellent. It works well as an about town vehicle and a motorway cruiser, with the Sports mode giving it a real boost when you want to have a bit of fun.

I did a 200 mile round trip twice this week, I would say 50% motorway, 50% dual carriage way/ town driving. I have driven without great concern for fuel economy and in Normal mode all the time. I have returned 44 mpg according to the computer. I have also spent some time at railway stations on pick up duty with the engine running, so if I had been more ecologically minded would have returned better than this.

I don't have any experience of the Merc you mention so can't comment on that. Re the servicing, my service plan with Lexus is cheaper than it was for my IS250 as there are less moving parts (apparently), not sure whether you have factored that in.

I'm sure others will chime in with their thoughts.

Good luck and keep us posted!

[mille]

My thoughts would be that on the motorway you won't be able to beat German diesels, especially the ones tuned for economy. In the city it should be other way around. I'm speaking from research standpoint and a few days of test drives, as still waiting for delivery. I chose this car for the looks and the near silent low speed gliding effect. Love it!

As for reliability, it should require little maintenance, I believe. The Battery should last lifetime and hybrid drivetrain is really robust, more so than a modern diesel, or direct injected, turbochared gasoline engine. Only this thread with low-rev vibrations worries me a bit. Wouldn't mind some convincing on this account as well... ; )

[Tel]

I have owned Mk1 & Mk2 IS & traded in my Mk2 ISF for my F-Sport Mk3.

The car is beautifully built & is admired by many @ Home & Abroad.

I drive swiftly & will never use the Prius option.

Have been to the South of France & driven c. Ik. miles on UK Motorways.

Mpg as follows-----City 58

Rural 48

Uk/M 48 (c.80mph)

" " 58 ( c.70 " )

Auto/R 53 ( c.90 " )

Winter >10 miles 38

Performance betters the IS250 in S,the CVT is sublime & I drive in D 99% of the time.

Tel

[gt03raf]

give me about 4 weeks and i'll let you know...

mines due to be delivered in two weeks time.. I currently run a company BMW 520d and my journey is 10 minutes, 5 miles town driving to the M1, 35 minutes/miles to the north circular and then about 30 minutes, 8 miles into west london...

I'm hoping the 300h will match pretty close to the BMW mpg, will be cheaper to fuel because of the difference between diesel and petrol and also save me £90 a month in tax :-)

i'll post an update at the end of february.

p.s. i have gone for the f-sport in white, no accessories....

[DTH]

Thanks for all the feedback.

Much appreciated.

[Blisteringblue]

I see it as a company car buster. 12% tax, 50+ mpg with 24p per mile claim for business mileage.

Will be cheaper to run than a 1.6 Ford Focus on our company car scheme.

[DTH]

Thanks Blisteringblue and all you other respondents.

I totally forgot about the diesel v petrol discrepancy pence per mile fandango. No doubt HMRC will be looking to close the loophole in the near future so I might as well fill my boots while it lasts.

I can see what the leasing companies are up to as well, providing higher than benchmarked (for the P11d values) quotations but then putting the onus on the company car tax payer to pay less tax. Doing the sums here the Lexus works out approximately £50-£100 per month cheaper than equivalents from BMW / Merc / Audi although the initial wooden dollars (lease cost) extracted from the salary sacrifice are significantly higher (£80 - £120 per month more).

I've got one coming on a three day demo so I'll see how I get on comparing like for like and will keep you informed.

Once again, many thanks to all. Your input and comments are really appreciated.

[gt03raf]

I checked the exact theft (i mean tax) differences this morning.. my current 520dSE costs me £260 a month in tax, the Lexus is going to cost me £147 as i have to pay a whopping £29 a month towards the white paintwork. so all in all a saving in the order of £113. But as i get 14p a mile in the BMW and 25p a mile in the Lexus i'll also be a little better off there too as long as the Lexus delivers on its promises... and from the test drives i had i have no reason to suspect it won't.

[Blisteringblue]

I'm a little anal with my mpg, have been since giving up my fuel card almost 10 years ago now. I ran numbers for 40mpg, 45mpg and 50 mpg against my actual mileage over the past 3 years. Sad I know but it makes interesting reading.

At worse case 40mpg I will be paying the same overall (Tax + Fuel Claimed) as I am now for my 1.6 DrivE Volvo. Anything better than 40mpg and the car costs me less, so 50+ and it is a proper bargain.

Obviously when HMRC notice this I fully expect a Hybrid Company Car Rate like there currently is for LPG, but likewise I'll make hay while the sun shines.

Enjoy your demo though, I had mine for 5 days and managed over 500 miles, mainly motorway and I averaged 51.4mpg in that time.

PS. Don't forget any SE or Luxury fleet orders before 31st March get a free SatNav upgrade (neutral on the P11D too)

[Ian J. Parsley]

Younshould be able to negotiate free satnav anyway.

Go for it! Fun to drive, comfortable, and just get used to not spending so long in petrol stations!

I'm at 46/48mpg averaging c 28mph. My last car, a 2.4 diesel Volvo, was 30mpg.

[Blisteringblue]

Younshould be able to negotiate free satnav anyway.

If buying private then yes maybe, you struggle to get any negotiation with fleet sales, they know it is not your money.

[Ian J. Parsley]

Mine was a fleet sale - albeit for my own firm.

Don't be afraid to seek different providers and balance them off.

[Blisteringblue]

Alas we don't get a choice, but I've ordered mine with the free offer in place.

[DTH]

Thanks for all the responses.

I think my mind is made up and it'll be an IS300h SE with Nav and parking sensors that gets ordered. I've managed to blag an extended test drive (3 days) and so long as it's not a million miles away from my current mpg (53.3 mpg over the last 70,000 miles) then I'll order one.

Anybody got any colour suggestions or should I let my wife choose?

[DJP]

Dangerous to ask us which colour combo, I'm sure we all think our own is the best lol. Couldn't possibly comment on the suitability or otherwise of Mrs DTH choosing! What are your thoughts?

[Ian J. Parsley]

Let your wife choose!!

Or do you not want a quiet life?!

[normski2]

My 250 was in for a service so I took the opportunity to try out a 300h for a few hours. This is not a car write up its just a couple of hours observations.

First time in one, the only other hybrid I’d driven was the CT200h. It was a 2013 Se model in Satin Silver. Very nice body contours and the spindle grill all make for a very distinctive and pleasing look.

Very different dash layout which took a little understanding. In fairness you could say that of any new car I guess. Navigated around the MM unit and got my phone bluetoothed and a Sat Nav destination input too. The seats are firmer for sure although they do grip you well too. Leg room across the thighs is much less than my 250. My left leg was up against the centre console the entire drive. I’m not a biggie (6ft and 13st) but a larger person would be cramped I feel. Not a lot more on the door side either.

Nice to see 2 USB’s and a power socket in the centre console. Don’t particularly like the 2 cup recesses being on permanent display and the console lid is a bit plasticky and light.

Anyway..fire her up and off we go. Is it running…yes it is…barely audible. Nice pull away and acceleration with subtle gear changing. I’m in D mode to start while I get the feel of it. The car feels bigger than my 250…it probably isn’t but it feels so. Its very quiet indeed, all you hear is tyre and road noise. Tyre choice may be crucial. I had Turanzas on 16” wheels so the ride would be more cushioned than my 250 on 18” wheels. The car feels nicely planted on the road and the steering has a very nice weight to it. Better than my 250. Either they have tweaked the electric steering or the Battery weight is perhaps a factor.

Refuelling caught me out….where the heck is the cover lid button.? There isn’t one! With the car unlocked you just press the fuel cover lid and it pops open.

Nice to see the Nav has been improved in some areas. Noticeable is the audble warning of approaching speed cameras and a visual of the speed limit to. Let’s you know when you are over it with a 'ding'. Like all Navs it tried to send me up a farm track that was most definitely not a road.

Indicator stalk takes a bit of getting used to. It’s a sort of soft touch type release. So you can easily end up signalling Left then Right then Left until you’ve worked it out!

I spent several hours driving on different road types and using ECO, Sport and D mode. Like my 250 there are also the paddles and the ability to toggle the gear stick manually if you desire. Stick her in Sport mode and there is considerable wellie at your feet. This thing shifts impressively. I’d like to take her across France…maybe 70mpg is achieveable.

I drove carefully at first and got to 62mpg and upon return was showing 53mpg. Overall I have to say I was very impressed and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. It is a very nice car to drive and looks very good too. As I said earlier this is just a brief foray. Didn't even check out the boot or jump in the back to see what leg room was like.

It’s definitely something I would consider next time round. Zero road tax is rather nice too!

[gt03raf]

My white 300h F-sport is on its way from the factory arrives at the dealers on Friday next week and delivered to me on Monday :D

I'm counting down the sleeps.... it's been on order since end of October...

[Simon99]

I've got just 4 weeks left to wait now! Ordered my ultra blue F sport back in October. Seems a long time ago now! Really looking forward to taking delivery on 1st March.

[AlGriff01]

Just placed order for Luxury spec in celestial black with ivory leather seats with the complimentary nav. First experience with Lexus though demo car (admittedly in F Sport spec) impressed not only myself but the other half as well. Only two weeks to wait as exact spec sitting on the dockside at Portbury import centre. In fortunate position of being able to choose own company car, and promise of low tax (both personal and company) major selling points.

Will provide feedback once arrives and get chance to put a few miles under the bonnet (about 30,000 per annum)

[Lexus Si]

If it helps I got my Celestial black on black leather delivered today, I like the stealth look! Lovely car. AVS is sublime, can't believe how it shrugs of potholes on 35 section tyres - better than my X3 on 60's. Voice control is all over the place though - a minor annoyance but as the mouse controller is somewhat idiosyncratic then would be handy if it worked - any tips out there?

[DJP]

Congratulations on your new car, and good luck keeping it clean! My 2nd Gen was the same colour and got dirty so quickly (especially in this weather!!). The upside is that they look a million dollars when they are clean!

As far as the mouse is concerned, it just takes a bit of getting used to. The voice recognition has never worked well for me so I can't be of any help there I'm afraid.

Enjoy the car!

[Lexus Si]

Yes I'll have to invest in a good chamois. Had a Merc in flat black so it will be interesting to see if the metallic is any easier. Just bored of grey though and not brave enough for the blue or red which do look stunning in the showroom, especially the Mesa red.

[johnm112]

Lexus Si

On my GS the sensitivity of the mouse controller can be reduced, this does help a little but its surprising how quickly you will get used to operating the mouse. Have a look at Set up screen/General settings/Feedback force