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The CRINGE factor between the two of them is now off the scale, even recording the program and watch with lots of fast forward and the sound off doesn't really help. Great shame because the cars are great. Mike.

I owned a BMW 320 petrol , 320d & 330d.. The 320petrol was thirstier than the Lexus is250 and no comparison to the Lexus ride quality, the 320d averaged around 43mpg and the 330d around 30mpg. My is 250 averages around 27-31mpg mainly town driving. I have a gs450h which averages around 25-30mpg also mainly town driving. I think the is250 for a v6 is a very economic engine. You have to put things into perspective, a BMW 318 for instance will probably see you in the mid 30mpg but it's such a dull car inside and out. I got rid of my Bmw's because I was sick of the image and also I found the interiors in particular to be very boring and lacking in creature comforts. Everybody has Bmw's or audi's. I genuinely feel good to drive something less common on the road and the Lexus badge holds a certain status which I feel proud to own.

QW compared the old Range Rover against a RX450 in an off road test,completely missing the point of the RX

Another toy to try and discover on my Mk3 then!

Guy Martin great character, just watched him in our Guy in india (very good) he reminds me of a modern day fred Dibnah, also channel 4's Car sos is very good, and classic car rescue with Bernie and Mario although staged is hilarious.

Absolutely agree. After improving slightly in prog 2, they have slipped back to zero chemistry, though I missed this weeks, so will watch it on iplayer when I get home. When you think about it, good car programs have been thin on the ground over many years.

If they fit an LS430 with 17" wheels then they're not worth much at all, especially as I may be in the market!!!!! Although of course I'm not allowed to show any interest.

I've tried a few times to get the memory seat linked to the key but it never works on my 2011 model. What was your way of doing it Keith? Once you have set your desired seating/steering/mirror position to a number on the door turn the ignition all the way off. Then (with no power to the car) press and hold that number on the door and the door lock button on your fob at the same time. You must press them at the same time or it won't work. The car should emit a long beep when it's set but the car might still lock with you inside. Then test it by moving your seat back a bit, get out the car and lock it. Once you touch the handle to re-open it, you should see your seat move back to your position. Then do the same for your partner's fob (but on a different door number obviously). Hopefully that will work for you but the procedures are in the owner's manual (they are in mine anyway)! Good luck.

Im not so sure the 6 gears even exist. When I drove the IS300h, it felt like the car was dabbing the actual brakes to mimick a gear change? It feels much better left in auto really!

16 5 is low mpg

It stands for Region. It allows the listener to lock down the stations to those being broadcast in your region of the country. This only works for those countries whose broadcasters use this. I believe that if you have Reg set to 'on' it reduces the amount of hopping around the frequencies. With AF turned on a list of alternative frequencies is downloaded to the radio, which the radio can use to jump to an alternative stronger signal, when the one being listened to drops below a certain threshold. If Reg is selected the radio downloads a list of pairs of frequencies for stations, one being a regional variation of the other. I suppose the analogy is TV where we would have BBC One Yorkshire and BBC One Lincolnshire on different frequencies. If you were moving whilst watching one of those TV channels, and the signal became too weak, it would switch to the other giving you a different regional variation of the same station. Sorry, I am no expert - so may be vague on detail, but this is what I found by Googling around.

If the leakage is slight, you check the coolant level daily and the temperature gauge remains normal it should be OK for a short while.

I spoke to the dealer "face to face" thats why they did the service. Thanks for the advice though not. I expected the car to be spotless but perhaps I was expecting to much. I didn't immediately notice the dirt so told them the next day. Why would it be even slightly acceptable for me to arrive and then sit there for an hour and a half and then say they have not got the parts. A phone call in the morning and the appointment could have been rearranged. The receptionist could have been told by the service manager. Do you honestly feel that it is just a rant and unreasonable to have expected a higher standard? BMW & Audi dealers dont do that well in surveys whereas Lexus come top. Thats why I was expecting better from them. They only offer a hamper if you recommend them for having impeccable service but imho they do not. I didn't post on here expecting them to read although on the Jag XF forum the customer service guy does read and did respond to posts. The reason for "ranting" on here is to see if my dealer is just not very good or if it is it normal. I may try a different one next time. Ed.

Hi, Id second all the other comments here. My MPG averages around 29-30, but can get 32 If I make a bit of an effort (gentle right foot, good anticipation) and thats with very few motorway miles.Do the usual stuff, such as keep on top off correct tyre pressures etc. and these figures are fairly easy to see. Auto box is fantastically smooth. A really brilliant bit of engineering. V6 makes a satisfying noise when revved, but its also a comfy cruiser. I had an e90 3 series saloon (previous 05-12 model) a few years back, a 325i straight six petrol manual. The main difference between the two in my experience is the interior material and build quality. Better on the Lexus. Ride was also harsh on the BMW due to run flat tyres being standard. The BMW has better cabin space. Im 6'2 and sit comfortably in the Lexus but the rear is cramped. Overall ownership experience I have to say goes to the Lexus. And the BM loses its special feeling quick as they are so common. What to look out for - not an exhaustive list but the spark plugs need changing at 60k miles service and its expensive (£500-£600 at main dealer), the brake calipers are prone to seizing up. Seach this forum for lots of good info. You dont say what age\mileage of car you looking at but BM diesels dont like big mileages. My neighbours have a 120d and 320d and both needed expensive turbo rebuilds before 80k miles. The 320d needed two come to think of it. Overall - Personally I wouldnt have a diesel 3 series auto over the IS250 auto.

We bought our premiere through Drivethedeal.com They were doing 15% off list price, so on an executive spec will be about £25.5k. If you take out Lexus finance your get an extra £1.5k (Was only £1k when we ordered ours) off bringing the total down to £24k. We paid £34.5k for our premiere, list price was £41k....Local dealer couldn't get any where near that price!! We are going to pay off the finance after 1 month, after putting down largest deposit possible. The terms and conditions state early repayment charge apply as dictated by law...which is 1% of out standing debt which in our case will be £235, so essentially we got an additional £725 off list price by taking up Lexus finance contribution. That figure will be bigger in your case because the Excutive spec is cheaper, and finance contribution is up by £500!! Have fun picking your car....Hardest bit is waiting for delivery....We ordered ours late November last year, we are due to pick up this Sunday :) Oh the 'Sport' mode is next to useless on the IS, but that's not really USP of the car.

Hey hoodrich. Im shortly going to be back in the lexus game with a GS400 With e-shift. very excited. Miss my IS200 immensely

I like the programme. But she is about as useful as an ash tray, on the back mudguard on a motorbike

left the car running on the drive to see what occurs under the bonnnet. after a couple of mins - coolant resivoir seems empty after five mins - level of coolant starts to rise after six to seven mins - coolant starts to boil and escapes through overflow pipe from cap car still seems to run ok the majority of the time but will lose its grunt on some occasions when temp rises. when the cap is taken off coolant tank when cooled down there is a large whoosh and the pressure can be felt. checked with Lexus and the warranty period is up to 111 000 miles. thanks for your replies