Is300H Colour Choice, Consumption & Spare Wheel

sc489 · February 14, 2015

I've been following this forum with interest as a prospective buyer and have just driven the IS 300H Executive Edition. The IS 300H is the only car I've driven to date which has been more refined and comfortable than my current Honda Accord. The trip computer was reset at the start of test drive and registered 49 mpg overall from cold on a cold day on a 20 mile journey (10 miles motorway outbound and 10 miles urban / rural driving on return). My current 2 litre petrol Accord does 38 mpg on the same route, so I'd be quite content with the IS 300H consumption.

I have a few more test drives to arrange but the IS 300H is currently my leading choice. My preferred colours are Satin Silver or Sonic Titanium. Which of these colours suits the IS 300H styling best and does one colour result in a better resale value? I would choose the Executive version which has the choice of grey or ivory leather. I quite like the look of the ivory leather. Is this a good choice for a silver car where perhaps most people would choose grey or black and would choosing ivory affect the resale value?

The main drawback of the car in my opinion is the lack of a spare wheel and no where to store one. How do IS 300H owners cope with this situation? Do you just rely on the repair kit or do you have have a solution to the spare wheel issue?

DJP · February 14, 2015

Welcome Steve, I have no idea whether it was pure kidology but my dealer said the silver colours were more likely to appeal to the average Lexus purchaser so residuals would be stronger.

Irrespective of that I fell in love with the Sonic T and here's mine

The car seems to change colour in different lighting conditions.

TBH I'd have the colour that I liked rather the nebulous hope of a higher resale value. Each to their own of course.

As far as the spare wheel or lack of, I'm not sure I'd even be able to get the wheel off the car and so am reliant on the roadside assistance that comes with the purchase of the car.

Sent from my Iphone using Lexus OC

Roscobbc · February 14, 2015

Mine is also an Exec Edition. I choose black (initially with great reservation - didn't want to be in car wash all the time) but am happy with the colour. Interior is black - (which is really a very dark grey - black is not the correct description) - INHO the grey leather looked too incipid - and the ivory also - but just my opinion. Shame the red interior is not avaialable - thany would have been a good choice.

Greenfield · February 14, 2015

I ended up with silver and the light grey interior as the car (new) was in stock so instant delivery and I could actually see the car, not sure I would have chosen this however seeing it for real I was very taken although silver could be considered a bit yesterday compared to Sonic T which would have been my first choice. After 4 months of ownership I have not seen another silver one so makes an exclusive car more exclusive! I purchased a space saver from eBay along with a nice zipped cover and keep it in the boot although it takes up a huge amount of room in an already small boot howwever.

sc489 · February 14, 2015

In reply to Post 3, I prefer Silver since it doesn't show the dirt!

tinka · February 14, 2015

Mine is ultra blue, not my first choice, that was sonic titanium, but this one came up at a fair price. Although I was unsure to start with, I have only seen one other Ultra Blue IS, in 6 months.

ColinBarber · February 14, 2015

Ultra Blue is easily the best colour ;) but it is an F Sport only option

para999 · February 14, 2015

bit like mine eh

capese21 · February 14, 2015

I wanted an F Sport in Mesa Red. I never even considered the resale value!!

This is mine and I am happy with the colour and imho looks great with the gun metal alloys and the black leatehr interior. Choose the colour you like and enjoy the car. Two week in and I am loving mine more and more. The total lack of diesel rattle and engine noise is superb as is the overall build quality.

ganzoom · February 15, 2015

We went for sonic titanium and ivory leather.

As for the spare wheel...why bother? We've not had a spare wheel in either family cars for the last 5 years +. AA will tow you anywhere you need to go.

para999 · February 15, 2015

I work for the AA and being towed wherever you want to go is not necessarily true. it all depends on what level of cover you have and also what time of day it is.yes you would/could be towed to a tyre dealer but not taken miles after business hours. just as aside point we are experimenting with a multi-fit spacesaver because the business of puncture with no manufacturers spare is costing the business a fortune in both time and monetary terms.

mind you any car supplied with a spare from new but doesn't have one for one reason or another will not get the same level of service.

DJP · February 15, 2015

just as aside point we are experimenting with a multi-fit spacesaver because the business of puncture with no manufacturers spare is costing the business a fortune in both time and monetary terms.

mind you any car supplied with a spare from new but doesn't have one for one reason or another will not get the same level of service.

That's interesting, so the technician whacks on the spacesaver, off goes the car, how do you get it back? Or would you have some sort of arrangement with the tyre repair centres?

Sent from my Iphone using Lexus OC

sc489 · February 15, 2015

In reply to post 11, I hope the AA is lobbying manufacturers to reinstate spare wheels in new cars. Interestingly, Lexus sees fit to provide a space saver wheel for the CT 200H and NX 300H but not the IS 300H.

para999 · February 15, 2015

the AA, RAC and I believe watchdog have been trying to apply pressure on the manufacturers to return to spares but its stalemate at the mo as unless the car's still under warranty the cost is not down to them. I'm sure you all probably know this but just in case a percentage of the purchase price is to cover any breakdowns. I can't say for lexus as I don't know but with one manufacturer its £1,000 per new car which is to cover breakdowns etc, which of course is passed on to the buyer.

having previously owned audi's my last one had a spare which probably means the words getting through.

with the I.S 300h I cannot see spare wheels being provided in the future unless a rework is done on the body, as unlike the CT, which comes with a spacesaver. the reason for this is the batteries on the CT are behind the seats and because the batteries for the I.S are under the floor there just isn't enough room for a spare without reducing considerably the space in the boot.

the question about what happens to the spacesaver once used is, once the car is taken to either a dealership or tyre dealer its left there and postage is prepaid to have the wheel returned to the supplier, which will be arranged by the garage concerned, or if its local the patrol can pick it up themselves.as I say this is in the development stage at the moment so things still to be sorted.

splatty · February 15, 2015

Colour is very subjective, and TBH, I have ordered a white F-Sport because I love sporty model cars in white.

I think the IS looks great in white with the dark wheels, but go with what you like.

Below is my current A5, and my previous A4. Plus my little Fireblade toy !!

DJP · February 15, 2015

No doubting you like white splatty!

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splatty · February 15, 2015

Easier to keep clean than black Dave !!

DJP · February 15, 2015

Agreed, my 2nd gen IS was black and looked stunning when clean. Lasted about 10 minutes!

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ganzoom · February 16, 2015

I work for the AA and being towed wherever you want to go is not necessarily true. it all depends on what level of cover you have and also what time of day it is.yes you would/could be towed to a tyre dealer but not taken miles after business hours. just as aside point we are experimenting with a multi-fit spacesaver because the business of puncture with no manufacturers spare is costing the business a fortune in both time and monetary terms.

mind you any car supplied with a spare from new but doesn't have one for one reason or another will not get the same level of service.

I didn't know this. I pay for relay cover, I'm more than happy to change wheels my self, I do it for both cars twice a year for changing from winter/summers, but the last thing I want to do on the side of the busy road is to try and put a spare wheel on. Even if my car had a spare I would be quite reluctant to use it on my car, especially given having different wheel sizes at the rear is going to cause havoc with the LSD/TC. I much rather they tow it back to my house so I can stick on a full set of same sized wheels.

If it was my wife using the car herself and she got a puncture, regardless of having a spare wheel in the back or not I would tell her to call the AA. Surely that's the point of paying for a breakdown service.

The few times I've used AA I've been more than happy with the service, but if they refused to tow my car back home after a breakdown/puncture I would be a little bit more than not happy.

capese21 · February 16, 2015

Is the can of sealant not of any use? It is what Lexus supply so surely must be useable? I have not owned a car without a spare before. Anyone used it?

para999 · February 16, 2015

i'm not saying you can't call us if you do or don't have a spare wheel. what i'm saying is when it comes to mobile tyre fitters which is what is used after hours if the car comes with a spare as standard and its not there the cost of the callout + plus the tyre is down to the member but if it does not have one fitted as standard the AA pays the callout charge the member just pays for the tyre.note we are talking out of hours here. if its during work hours both spares as standard but not there or no spare as standard would be taken to local tyre dealer.as for recovery of your vehicle if the car can be repaired locally then that would be the option,i cannot imagine they would authorise recovery of lets say 100 miles or more for a puncture when there's the possibility of a local repair but this decision is not down to us on the road but the office but it is in the terms and conditions.

I hope this clears things up.

one further point is that if your car came with a spare then its tried and tested by the manufacturer so should'nt cause any problems and you, or your wife, can call the AA and they will come and change the wheel for you, as you say that's why you pay for a breakdown service.

as for the can of gunk if you spot a nail in your tyre whilst its on the drive your in with a shout,to get it to the local tyre dealer, but if your driving along and you get a puncture by the time you get to stop safely, its usually damaged beyond repair and the gunk is useless.thats why they now provide a tyre pressure monitor as standard,so any loss in pressure gives you some sort of warning ( no good with a blow out of course)

zippyone · February 16, 2015

Hi Steve, and welcome.

My IS Sonic T Exec. arrived on 28/01/15, it came with a full tank +/- ! I migrated from a CT which I always filled to the second click and was getting about 61/62 mpg from.

I kept a daily record of the first tank of petrol in the IS of which there were 12, some were duplicated, all were from cold starts : mpg 34.4, 54.3, 55.3, 50.4, 51.4, 52.3. The average was 49.55mpg on first refill, over a distance of 562m with 11m spare (all recorded). The ambient temp. was -6/10°c, generally -1/4°c.

To my office 20m away in the CT was a regular 67mpg, in the IS 54mpg, 60% motorway. When I put the data into ,'Fuelly' and 'Spirit monitor,' they came up with an ave. of 43.45mpg. It was a new car and in the cold so very happy with that.

My wife was asleep within minutes, allowing me to relax and enjoy my new experience. Let me suggest that you get the wife to select the colour to give you a

quiet life, they always know best, show her DJP's motor, she'll love it. I find the lighter metallic colours best as they do not show the dirt so much, they just go dull instead of shining, but rarely look dirty, look at other cars as your driving around. Buy the car for her, not the person that will buy it from you in 3/4 years time, it will probably lose at least half its value before then anyway, you are buying a cracking motor for your/her comfort, not someone a few years down the line.

Yesterday, I filled up for the first time, 58.93L to the second click, this showed a range of 673m, I hope to get 700 + though. I generally drive at 10kph above the stated speeds and between 62/80mph on the motorway. I find it is difficult to judge speed well in the IS. It's a smooth operator.

Just after my fill up my rear nearside tyre went 'pyong,' like a stone being catapulted from it, then, after about 500mtrs the ominus clunking of a flat tyre. The car remained steady and there was no need for that funny icon on the dash, to tell me the obvious. Upon inspection I found a split on the side wall, about 1/2cm long, near the circumference of the tyre just below base of the tread, it was probably caused by a piece of debris not cleared up from an accident. This was not a job for that silly ( IMO ) gunk stuff, not that I would use it anyway. Time to call ' Lexelpus from the legion Japanicus,' ( Latin you know) his man showed up after about 30mins and took the car away, leaving the wife and myself to make our way home, 4°c and raining, wonderful. (20 miles on the bus) We were lucky that we were besides the bus stop, it was Sunday, you know, the day when you can never get b all done.

I fitted a space saver to the CT and will get one for the IS, I was only talking about it last week, but the dealer wanted too much. Probably the next generation of lexus models will come complete with a 3D printer made in plastic, or sugar cane, so we can print our own space saver as required, or, a small, flat bag, full of powder, just p on it and vwoluh (spelling) it will grow into a wheel. It could be called, ' Instant space saver .' It is the 21st century, after all.

Enjoy your new car Steve, it's a wife pleaser.

Regards.

Michael.

sc489 · February 16, 2015

Thanks to zippyone for the last post. Bad luck about the flat tyre so soon after purchase. Please post where you find a space saver spare wheel. If I buy the car, I'll need one since I frequently do long motorway journeys.

michaelH · February 16, 2015

I suppose someone must have said this already but I don't recall it so there is no harm in saying it again: one problem with space saver wheels is that the one you have to replace it with will be full sized and almost certainly filthy. If the boot is half empty, then OK, but if not (and on a longer journey it may well be full) then the only way out may be to empty the boot and put any clean bags etc on the back seat - assuming you have space there , of course. Perhaps someone can be told to walk?

ganzoom · February 16, 2015

i'm not saying you can't call us if you do or don't have a spare wheel. what i'm saying is when it comes to mobile tyre fitters which is what is used after hours if the car comes with a spare as standard and its not there the cost of the callout + plus the tyre is down to the member but if it does not have one fitted as standard the AA pays the callout charge the member just pays for the tyre.note we are talking out of hours here. if its during work hours both spares as standard but not there or no spare as standard would be taken to local tyre dealer.as for recovery of your vehicle if the car can be repaired locally then that would be the option,i cannot imagine they would authorise recovery of lets say 100 miles or more for a puncture when there's the possibility of a local repair but this decision is not down to us on the road but the office but it is in the terms and conditions.

I hope this clears things up.

But in the terms and conditions it clear says if I have relay and the car cannot be repaired by the road side, the car + passengers can be recovered to any location in the UK. If your saying this isn't true, than I'm cancelling my AA membership, since its clearly not the service I've been sold/signed up for.