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"Verbal contract" as such is not legally bounding today.. My grandfather, a respected businessman, told me how back in his day it was the most common form of legal agreement and i often wonder what's gone wrong with the world since then.. Taking a dodgy car trader to court without solid legal case is a waste of time and money. Your word against his. I personally would look him up and beat my plates out of him :D yes it sounds barbaric and rude (and i do not advise You to do that) but i have learned some lessons in life, that certain people must be spoken to in a certain way.

Hi Dustcap - perhaps I can help? - I tend to drive 'very hard' (even though at a 'pensionable' age - I do have a 500+ bhp classic for 'fun' weekends). My previous 'daily' was BMW 120D Sport. This had an 8 speed auto gearbox - arguably one of the very best auto transmissions currently available (must be really efficient as auto is lower on CO than 6 speed manual) - this was a great town car (and open road/motorway car), very much a drivers vehicle with 0-60's a second or so less than IS300H. However 0-60's are not always an accurate reflection of performance. 50 mph to 80 mph is more representative of real world driving.The Lexus IS300H at typical 70-80 mph motorway speeds has 'significantly' better acceleration, up to and past 100 mph than my BMW. OK so you are always aware of its bulk, not in terms of actual handling but in rapid transitions of balls out, flat to the floor stuff and subsequent heavy braking - there is a lot of spun-up inertia in the power train to reel in. In terms of traffic light grand prix stuff it certainly won't be as fast a some - BUT with the hybrid drive train it will actually be the quickest away with seemingly the least effort. DO NOT take any notice of magazine road tests telling you that the car is unresponsive - NOT true - using 'sport' mode the car is extremely responsive. Lexus's best kept secret!

If it was me, and the body was good, and it ran well, I'd certainly have it done. You won't find anything to replace it with that's as good, and that will last many more years. Mine went for an MOT this week, and apart from it not passing because the horn doesn't work (which I knew about) the only advisory was a chip on the windscreen. Not bad for a 13 year old!

I know a few pubs as my wife works in Cambridge. I'll have a think but The Plough in Fen Ditton was the one that sprung to mind first really. might be a bit pricey though so maybe worth checking if they have a menu on website. The Granchester pubs are nice but their car parks can fill up at weekend. i'll ask the missus and her mates for advice too :)

Thanks for all the helpful replies, will be patient with my search as it has to be the right car mechanically and also colour, i personally like the dark green, ATB