Should I Buy A New Lexus

[Dustcap]

Ok, so I know this question is a personal thing but I thought I would ask those of you out there who own these cars if you would recommend one to me......

At the moment I drive an Alfa Romeo Spider 2010 2.2JTS and I am looking to change vehicle soon..

These Lexus IS has caught my eye and I love the styling.

I am turning 40 this year, love a dynamic car but also like something that moves well. When I put my foot down I expect it to go. Not something that thinks about going, complain about it then try's its best to go.... when your overtaking does it do it with ease? I usually sit at 70-80mph on the motorway, can it cope with this ok?

looking at the performance it says they're in the 8.3secs 0-60, which is similar to my Alfa (slightly quicker) but do they feel like they are moving or are they a more of a gliding car??

Anyway, thanks for any responses....

DC

[stevet]

I've had 3 Alfa's in the past and loved the sound of the engines and like you say they give an immediate response to the throttle. If its a sport saloon your after have a look at a used ISF.

[michaelH]

Yes, it will sit all day at 70-80 uphill or down and without breaking sweat. A very relaxed refined and economical fast cruiser, and well-equipped too. Mpg may be a little lower than some four pot turbo diesels on the open road, but then petrol is cheaper and it won't sound like a tractor when you start up. I get about 45 actual / 48 displayed from mixed winter driving and was getting 50 mpg on summer tyres in warmer weather. It is very quick off the mark if put into sport mode (and very easy then to flick it back into either normal or eco mode once you are away). Or leave it in sport and it feels very responsive, and corners and rides well on 17" tyres (I have heard mixed reports about a harder ride on 18s but have not tried them myself on this model) The revs will soar for a short time if you floor it to overtake on a short straight,which can be a bit disconcerting for the first couple of times. But if you want a true rocket ship sports saloon then it isn't one of those and doesn't pretend to be. The new coupe or (as suggested above) a used ISF might appeal if that is what you want.

[steve2006]

Plus any Lexus dealer would be happy to provide an extended test drive, most will give you the car for a weekend :)

[Dustcap]

Really??? I have often thought car sales should let you use a car 'in the real world' as it were but thought (ever the cynic) they would never let you do that as you would find reasons for not buying........ Perhaps Lexus are so confident that their happy for you to test properly...........

DC

[capese21]

I find my is300h F-sport fast and nippy. I drive mostly in normal but had a try in sport mode yesterday while the roads was quiet and thought it wasn't that quick to accelerate to 70 and looked and was doing 93.

It is fast away from the line if you enjoy the traffic light grand prix although I cannot be bothered anymore!!

Joining the motorway going from 30 to 70 it is particularly lively (and quicker than diesel rivals) which for real life driving is more important imho than the 0 to 60 time.

The road holding on corners is excellent.

If you want to drive like on a Top Gear test then maybe not the car for you but for real driving on the public roads then it is fast.

I was going to buy an XF but after a test drive in the Lexus I changed my mind. I am getting around 45mpg mixed normal driving.

What I like the most is the refinement. No diesel clatter no black smoke on acceleration and no DPF to worry about. In slow traffic the engine is off so uses no fuel and totally silent.

I wasn't convinced until the test drive thats the only way to know if it suits you.

Good Luck

Ed.

[Dustcap]

well, booked myself in for a test drive in about an hour lol. Took the NX out at the weekend and it didn't really work for us, but the IS sat there next to the NX and I kept looking at it thinking, oh that is nice, shall report later on my thoughts....

DC

[noby76]

although 0-60 figures does not paint the whole picture when it comes to an overall performace of a vehicle it surely does sell cars but saying that, it depends on the level of performance you looking for.

the performace figure of the alfa compared to the 300h is about the same in terms of 0-60 but i will put my money on the 300h when it comes to rolling acceleration. since the batteries are capable of generating 300NM of instant tourque when fully charged thats equivalent to a 6 cylinder 3.0 litre NA engine so for rolling acceleration up to a point the 300h will feel quicker

and because Lexus tends to have smooth drive trains you dont actually feel you are going quick but your are. my 300 sits at 70mph on motorway and it feels like am doing half that. side to side the Alfa spider driver will feel like they are going fast at 70mph and the 300h driver will feel like they are doing half that.

but for out and out performance hybrids i would say i would say look at 2-3 year old GS450h's or the Infiniti M35h's and pocket the change on splashing out on a new 15 plate £30-40,000 IS300h.. since they have done most of their depreciation and can accelerate to 60 in less than 6 secs infact the Infinit hybrid holds the world record for the fastest accelerating production hybrid neither of the German hybrids can match it. IS-F might be over kill in terms of what you looking for?

thats a 450h being put through some stress and it handles it without breaking a sweat

[Dustcap]

lol, that vid made me chuckle.....

So I just got back from the text drive, was only a short one but It was a good one. Compared to the NX i took out at the weekend it was a whole other car. It felt firm, accelerated as I expected and very nice to drive.

Now, it wasn't a new car, but a 12 month old (Dec '13) with 13K on the clock. Looks the business and drives like a dream and all for 26K....

for me that seems like a pretty good deal...

Any thoughts?

thanks

DC

[rayaans]

lol, that vid made me chuckle.....

So I just got back from the text drive, was only a short one but It was a good one. Compared to the NX i took out at the weekend it was a whole other car. It felt firm, accelerated as I expected and very nice to drive.

Now, it wasn't a new car, but a 12 month old (Dec '13) with 13K on the clock. Looks the business and drives like a dream and all for 26K....

for me that seems like a pretty good deal...

Any thoughts?

thanks

DC

Im guessing this is the black one in Milton Keynes right? Be careful - paint seems to be swirled pretty bad on the back bumper. Make sure you get it sorted before buying. Apart from that, pretty confident its a great car. And yes - don't pay the sticker price - new number plate coming out - start off at £24k, pay £25k tops.

Oh and the wheels seem like their not the original factory finish. Make sure you're happy with the colour and that all 4 are the same as they are notoriously difficult to get right.

[Dustcap]

yes it is that car. It was just getting dark when got there and whilst I looked around the car a bit, didn't notice anything to be concerned about but the light wasn't good.....

Shall speak to the mrs and see what she thinks, then its down to take her for a drive, see what she thinks of how it drives...

I wasn't offered what I was expecting on mine though (I don't suppose anyone is) but that needs considering..

time to put my thinking cap on.....

DC

[rayaans]

yes it is that car. It was just getting dark when got there and whilst I looked around the car a bit, didn't notice anything to be concerned about but the light wasn't good.....

Shall speak to the mrs and see what she thinks, then its down to take her for a drive, see what she thinks of how it drives...

I wasn't offered what I was expecting on mine though (I don't suppose anyone is) but that needs considering..

time to put my thinking cap on.....

DC

Well you can buy the car and when collecting, let the salesman know that you've noticed these things and they'll most likely offer to sort it out at your convenience.

They always give you a low ball offer on part exchange to begin with. Keep pushing and they'll get closer, promise! They seem to be paying webuyanycar.com prices on average so make sure you get a value from those car buying websites first

[adamsmith]

I would highly recommend the 300h, I came from a 3.0l Audi A5 quattro sport, remapped, 0-60 in 4.6 secs.....

..... I love my lexus, to the point I have just done an Advert promoting it for Lexus....

.... buy it, you will love it.

[etypejag]

We are picking up a new Lexus IS300h on Sunday exchanging our Alfa 159 2.4 jtd. The Alfa was a fast good handling car being a Diesel had loads of mid range torque but the Fuel economy was so bad, 20mpg in rush hour traffic and 35 mpg tops on motorway. was looking at a Merc A or C class as replacement but after testing the Lexus and seeing what you get for the price went ahead and brought it, felt fast enough on the test drive around town and on motorway and the fuel economy looks great. Will report more after a couple of weeks

[ganzoom]

If your after a drivers car the IS300H's drive train just doesn't do it for me. I had one on a 24hr test drive, even in 'sport mode' with the paddles the drive train simply isn't responsive enough to deliver a driving experience any where near what your get from a M3 or similar....and if you thrash the engine it's not all that economical either

Still I cannot wait to pick up our IS300H from the dealer. 90% of the time the car is perfect, more than fast enough, refined, and economical.....For the other 10% of the time the twin turbo unit in my BMW 335i keeps me happy :D.....But if we only could have one car....Humm I'm afraid the IS300H wouldn't be parked up on my drive way, though it'll probably still be a hybrid, either a GS450H or Infiniti Q50 Hybrid.

[Dustcap]

Im not a mad for it M3 kind of guy. Yes I want some poke when I need it and after todays test drive the IS 300h seems to have enough for me. Don get me wrong, if its speed I want I take out one of the bikes, that'll out do any M3

So, I kind of like the Hybrid system, around town its going to save a few quid, and on the motorway can still do as I need. Coming from the Spider at an average 25mpg i shall be happy with 30-40. Also, one thing of note, before I experienced it i thought the audible engine note in the car would be a bit, well, crappy, but actually I was quite impressed with it.....

The fact this particular car is the F Sport Premium with Premium satnav I'm kind of thinking its a good deal....

Of course, I don't have to give him the asking price do I

DC

[C Mclean]

If you can get a good deal, go for it.

[ganzoom]

I would love something like a Ducati 1098, but given I have a track record of crashing my pedal bike due to trying to go round corners too quickly, I think I would be in hospital with-in 24hrs of getting a motorbike :)

If you like the Lexus go for it, £26k is a decent saving off the new price, but there's a no harm in going in with a low offer. You can also get 15% off the list price if you buy new through a website like drive the deal....Apparently the IS we ordered last December is arriving at the dealer today, but despite phoning and emailing numerous times to get an update last few days the dealer hasn't got back to me....If I don't hear anything today I'm going to threaten to cancel the order....Not a great start to my Lexus ownership experience :(

[DJP]

I bought my F Sport brand new on 1st Sept 13 and haven't regretted it for a minute. Makes me weep to see the price you're considering but that's the deal when you buy brand new.

From what I can glean from your posts I think it will do exactly what you want - it'll save money as you crawl through traffic and endure the congestion, but is more than quick enough to deal with motorway driving. I've also found on the odd occasion that it's worth putting it into Sport it really does go. I agree with others, it's not a "drivers" car in the true sense of the word for petrolheads, but it ticks all the boxes for the rest of us.

[Dustcap]

Sorry to hear your woe's ganzoom... I thought Lexus prided themselves on their customer service..... Of course, mine has been good so far, but then I havn't yet bought the car. Oh and probably best you stay on 4 wheels if your that clumsy on 2

DJP, yes sorry it's a little less than you probably paid for yours, but I have something against buying new.... Losing so much within minutes of driving off the forcourt just doesn't sit well with me.

thanks for all the feedback guys, so much help thank you.

DC

:ooh-ducky:

[ganzoom]

Just had some good news, car is at dealership :)

Also just had a chap come round to pick up the wife's old Civic, all the paper work now sorted on the IS....

I take back what I said about customer service, the dealership apologised for not getting back to me earlier, and are opening 30 min early on Sunday so that we can pick up the car on the 1st of March

[rayaans]

Sorry to hear your woe's ganzoom... I thought Lexus prided themselves on their customer service..... Of course, mine has been good so far, but then I havn't yet bought the car. Oh and probably best you stay on 4 wheels if your that clumsy on 2

DJP, yes sorry it's a little less than you probably paid for yours, but I have something against buying new.... Losing so much within minutes of driving off the forcourt just doesn't sit well with me.

thanks for all the feedback guys, so much help thank you.

DC

:ooh-ducky:

Im guessing you put all 3 offers on that black car in the space of a day? lol

[Dustcap]

Sorry to hear your woe's ganzoom... I thought Lexus prided themselves on their customer service..... Of course, mine has been good so far, but then I havn't yet bought the car. Oh and probably best you stay on 4 wheels if your that clumsy on 2

DJP, yes sorry it's a little less than you probably paid for yours, but I have something against buying new.... Losing so much within minutes of driving off the forcourt just doesn't sit well with me.

thanks for all the feedback guys, so much help thank you.

DC

:ooh-ducky:

Im guessing you put all 3 offers on that black car in the space of a day? lol

well, the one i was originally looking at was sold this afternoon, so thought I would enquire about the one in Guildford, but the website didn't make it obvious the offer had gone. so I kept trying

do you work for Lexus? or is their something on the site suggesting the offers had been made?

DC

[rayaans]

Sorry to hear your woe's ganzoom... I thought Lexus prided themselves on their customer service..... Of course, mine has been good so far, but then I havn't yet bought the car. Oh and probably best you stay on 4 wheels if your that clumsy on 2

DJP, yes sorry it's a little less than you probably paid for yours, but I have something against buying new.... Losing so much within minutes of driving off the forcourt just doesn't sit well with me.

thanks for all the feedback guys, so much help thank you.

DC

:ooh-ducky:

Im guessing you put all 3 offers on that black car in the space of a day? lol

well, the one i was originally looking at was sold this afternoon, so thought I would enquire about the one in Guildford, but the website didn't make it obvious the offer had gone. so I kept trying

do you work for Lexus? or is their something on the site suggesting the offers had been made?

DC

Nope dont work for Lexus! It shows on the used website how many offers have been put up. Im surprised the one in milton keynes is gone, its still up on the website!

The guildford one is £1k more but I cant work out why. Its practically got the same spec and nearly the same mileage.

[Dustcap]

Yeah I know, but have offered the same as was willing to give MK. Shall call them tomorrow.

DC