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TL;DR very smooth and good value. Hi all Thought I’d share my experience buying a car from cazoo as I got a few questions and this forum really helped me make the decision. I bought this car, A 64 plate premier in white with 34.5K miles for 20 300 https://www.cazoo.co.uk/used-car/f48827b8-0a97-5648-aa6f-0d6bed9958fa/ and it was about 4k cheaper than an equivalent car from a lexus dealer and I spoke to a few trying to get them to get close in price (I really wanted a Premier with Pano roof) The ad had very good pictures and 360 views but it’s very light on the detail but since it’s a premier, I could just read on the forum what the features was. They do list the service history but I had to contact them to get it added as it wasn’t on there at first. The purchase was very smooth you can opt to trade in your existing car which I didn’t (have an import so hard to get good value) hence not sure if it’s a good deal or not. You fill in your details, choose if you want the “Cazoo guard” paint and interior protection treatment for £250 (1/3rd of what lexus quoted me) which came with a ton of cleaning supplies as well. Credit terms were a lot less favourable than your normal bank hence i paid with my debit card. The money wasn’t actually taken until it was delivered though. You then choose a delivery time, my first available slot was 5 days (3 working days) away and that was basically it. I immediately got an email confirmation which outlined what I needed to do, how to activate the 7 day driveway insurance and how to register myself as the owner of the car with DVLA. Gave me everything I needed to request a parking permit from the council in advance. A few days before delivery I got an email reminder and also a call from customer service explaining the process and was able to answer any questions about the car if I had any. They also explained the 7 day return policy and 90 day warranty (extendable for a price). Basically, the 7 days is quibble free, they take it back no questions asked. Only caveat is that “Cazoo Guard” isn’t refunded and trade in cars aren’t returned. It had another service before I got it and from there I could see that Cazoo must have bought it in mid 19 and been with them for 18 months based on the milage in the service records. Since registering it on lexus.co.uk I can see all the service records as well On the day, the delivery man calls 15 mins before delivery. The car arrives in a small lorry and the is just serviced and valeted so it looks new. You get a few extras, like an umbrella, ice scraper etc. My delivery man Errol, was very knowledgable and showed all the features including waiting around for me to take a test drive. He had all the time in the world and was super helpful and friendly, genuinely interested in cars and making sure we had a good experience. The car was exactly like the pictures, it looked brand new except for small scratches on the back of the door handles, which is only visible if you look hard in the right place. I think the car mats had been replaced with new, non-nexus ones as they were pristine. Everything worked as described and I’m very pleased. After the delivery you get a notification that V5C has been digitally transferred and the normal “rate our service” emails. I'm sure service will get worse and prices become less competitive as Cazoo continue to scale and get a more dominant market position (I know startups better than cars!) but at the moment they are trying to get market share by spending their Venture capital funding and as such, a good time to buy as they are more concerned with attracting new customer for future profitability than making a profit now, hence having good value deals. Additionally, the delivery man alluded to the fact that they aren't great at pricing different trim levels and you get a better deal for top specced cars than the mid range, not sure if that is true but it was quite a good deal for my premier compared to the luxury ones they had in stock.

Roll on the summer and less deperessing short days!!!

Yer lucky they go the year right. Could been delivered before you were born instead of just yesterday.

I think we buy Lexus for its realiabilty then worry when we buy it that it may break down I have had a 55 gs300 a 2010 gs450 and now a 64 gs 450 and had no real bother with any of them apart from consumable items so i woudnt bother too much

Had an offer to change from 2018 nx to 2020 model; before I did I tried a UX250h (also have had one as a courtesy car). UX has better performance and a great hybrid system. Did the figures for roughly similar spec vehicles, on PCP - UX with a few option packs came out as around £40 month more a month than NX300h Premium sport. NX in my view was better, bigger (but not excessively so), obviously more roomy, higher driving position for better visibility, 4 wheel drive (ux quote was for 2 wheel drive version, 4 wheel drive version bumps price even more) and in my opinion a better interior. Went for the the NX. Hope they fit RAV 4 engine in the next NX release as even though there is nothing wrong with the existing engine it does feel behind the latest generation hydrid units that Toyota/ Lexus are using. NX is a lovely place to be when driving, fit Michelin across Climates to improve ride, and gives you genuine all weather ability. MPG from 38 - 42 mpg over 9500 miles the UX will be better than this. Try them both at your nearest dealership and then decide, everyone has different requirements

Sorry fellas, it was my mistake. I read EV for ECO. Apologies all round.

Tyre choice plays a big part in the secondary ride comfort of an NX. It’s a curious car sometimes. You feel the suspension working and it’s not too firm - primary ride comfort - and yet you feel every cat’s eye and tarmac ripple - secondary ride comfort. My experience with a previous NX was swapping to Goodyear Efficient Grip tyres eliminated this. Both the OE Yokohama’s and Bridgestones give this feeling. Plenty are saying that Michelin Cross Climates feel much better too. When you need to get round to it, changing to different tyres will help you I think 👍

5 years ago I’d have bought the more expensive one. Now I’d buy the cheaper one. I’m within 2-4 years of early retirement and I’m starting to make decisions more about minimising cost rather than what I can afford. Last July I moved out of a 2019 IS300h Sport and into a 2015 NX300h Luxury. Both had 18k miles. To drive, my NX still feels like a new car and certainly as tight as the IS. You have a choice of two vehicles with only 9k miles difference, which is almost negligible given the quality of these cars, but with a considerable difference in purchase price, which is not negligible. I’ve spent an absolute fortune on cars in the past and whilst I was happy to do that at the time I wouldn’t do it now. You’ll have to ask yourself whether the newer car is worth it to you but given your priorities and wanting to be at about £300 per month, I would have thought the cheaper one would be the best bet. Buy the cheaper one and treat yourself to a private registration plate for £300 - £500 from DVLA and most people will never know you bought the cheaper one? Like you said - decisions decisions decisions 😀 Good luck with whatever you choose 👍

Sounds like you should follow your own advice John and "digest the Handbook" ☺️ Starting off in Eco mode is perfectly fine. In fact, leaving the car in Eco mode for 100% of the time is also fine. From said manual:

Hi @Twellsie I almost sold mine to a member on here. And I would have done if he had been realistic on price. I was even open to giving a discount for it to go to a good home (not very rational but that’s how my brain works). But I’m not sure he was very realistic. The weird thing I found was the low balling by members trying to get a bargain. Rather than offering market value but getting the bonus of having much greater insight into the car and the reassurance of it coming from and enthusiast who would have looked after the car properly. Price / value is only ever as much as someone is willing to give you (obviously). Saying that I wouldn’t advocate the webuyanycar plus £1k approach...that way is just a race to the bottom set by the lowest common denominator in the market. Any F is a specialist proposition and it will come down to being set at the right price given the condition of the car. I have to say that a non-stock car would be a no no to me...unless it was from someone on this forum and had some provenance, etc...on which note, I’ve dm’d you!

It won't be £10k more expensive for sure, but it will be more desirable car and thus will sell easier and little bit more expensive. Looking at the prices now for 7 years old IS300h F-sport that could easily be £500-1000 more, compared to Luxury or Exec models (all rest being equal). Even Premier seems to be cheaper, despite being actually better equipped less "party piece" F-Sport dials. @Alex34 Yes indeed, buying new or nearly new car is best way to burn a lot of money in depreciation alone, added to that stupid new road tax means I would personally look for cars before April 2018 (when road tax changed). 2017 cars as such being almost perfect at the moment - still relatively new so that you don't feel like getting obsolete car, but already depreciated most of the way (~3years) and as well still new enough not to be worried about wear and tear.

I went from an NX to a UX.......the UX is ideal for a couple or occasional rear passenger. The only thing that I miss on the UX , is the higher seating position of the NX.

Update: I made this post describing purchasing Cazoo for anyone interested. Started a new thread to make it easier to find. I'm very, very happy with my new NX. It looks new (except for the resolution on the display and lack of android auto) and I'm pleased with the choice of premier as I got the heated steering wheel and the 360 cam (very handy when going through width restrictions) It's a tad firmer and noisier than I expected, I thought it would be like an american suv that floats rather than drives but it's a million times better than my old car. And the steering wheel moves when you're getting out of the car! All the features really makes it feel a lot newer than it is, just a shame about the resolution on the display. But beyond playing with all the functions, I really only use it for the camera. I already have the mud flaps and the boot liner but I've goten rubber mats (from lexuspartsdirect.co.uk) and just took delivery of a boot Hatchbag fitted boot liner. Then I need a tow bar fitted (read up on it here). It will be complete and hopefully keep as fresh as it is. Although the mud flaps help, I'm not sure I would recommend a white car during winter in the UK, especially when you drive on mud roads... Thanks again for all the help!

I'm pleased to say I've now concluded the purchase so I'm now in the LOC RX450H club officially. The space saver is there after all, once I'd told him exactly where to look. Pleased with the deal and spec - now just need to wait on it being delivered. Thanks again for all your help everyone Keith

Tyres should be rotated to equalise wear and then all replaced as a set. You will get some differences depending who is doing the testing. Also, some tyres work better on some cars than others. Drivers can also have individual preferences but don't get the opportunity to check a lot of makes/models so a pretty good indication is what members largely favour. It would be nice if we could have a poll to establish this. I much prefer the Cross Climates to the Dunlops my car came with. I asked Lexus Cheltenham what drivers were fitting most and they told me Cross Climates.

An appalling situation, but please think very carefully about claiming on insurance. It will affect your premiums for years to come, so will cost a lot more than your excess payment today

I was very lucky to recently stumble upon this GS460 so wasted no time in acquiring it. It's in pretty good condition with just a few fairly minor items to address including a routine service. At this early stage of ownership I'm not sure whether I shall simply restore it to order to be enjoyed in its original form or 'enhanced' for a little extra fun. I've started researching the detail of the GS460 and the potential to develop it a little. However it progresses, I thought it would be worth starting a build thread as it's rare to see a GS in this form. It's been called upon for work duty so hasn't been in a decent clean state for pictures yet so for as long as it remains available on You Tube, here is a link to the video the dealer made in support of the sale. www.youtube.com/embed/_e6YT_3sdOI?rel=0

You have to pay Lexus £60 for the check, then if it passes you get a years warranty on traction battery until car is 15.

Yes, same here. I can walk away after exiting the car and it does not lock itself. I need to touch the front of the handle or the key fob to lock it.

Just edited it John.

Having started work at 10.00am on the late shift I was then given 3 jobs before 12.00..I asked if they were also sending me a Delorean DMC 12

When they jacked up my other car at the side of the house, the MX5, I honestly thought that it would collapse because the cills are probably rotted through. It would have been funny 😄

Had a UX as a loan car, and while I quite liked it - especially the responsive 2-litre hybrid system - I was disappointed by the poor cabin quality compared with the NX, the claustrophobic rear seats, and the tiny boot. It's clearly a more modern design, but the NX still looks fresh, and in my view is much better value for money.

Wheels tend to be scabby. Welcome to the GS450h fan club.

@Bounce75 - just to add to what William said here, if you think you'll be off fairly quickly then that is good advice. If you think it'll be a longer stop, say at a level crossing, you can put the car in 'P' and apply the parking brake, but the crucial bit is never to put the car in 'N' because the hybrid system won't charge the batteries in neutral, only D or P.

Just remember that it's a hybrid, not a conventional car, and as such you need to alter your thinking and do some research about driving it and what to expect from it. For instance, hybrids don't have a starter motor or an alternator. Anything that would normally be belt-driven in a standard car, such as aircon compressor and power steering etc., is driven by electric motors instead, because the petrol engine isn't running all the time. DO NOT run out of petrol - if you do, you need at least 10 litres, 15 is better, in the tank when you try to start it again and be aware that if it fails to start three or four times in a row, the hybrid system can lock out and needs to be reset by the dealer. Oh, and if the aircon ever needs regassing, make sure to take it to a proper aircon specialist or to someone who knows what they're doing. The refrigerant gas is the same but the lubricating oil has to be a certain type, ie, ND11 instead of normal PAG oil, or you could end up thousands of pounds out of pocket. Just clue yourself up and enjoy the car. I've had an RX300 and now have an RX450h and they are fantastic cars!

I rarely use the foot operated parking brake. When I leave the car at night I just leave the gear selector in Park and like a conventional automatic that locks the transmission. But this isn't robust enough to hold the car on a hill so I use the parking brake if I'm parking on a hill. If you're doing a hill start you don't need to operate the parking brake. When you take your foot off the footbrake the car is held automatically by the brakes for around 3-4 seconds to give you time to shift your foot to the accelerator. But if you don't press the accelerator the car will start to roll backwards after these few seconds. And at traffic lights you just keep your foot on the footbrake until the lights change.

You may find it strange at first if your driving instincts expect to be changing gear. Part of what people like about an involved driving experience is the rev of the engine and the jolt as you change gear. You don't get that with an automatic. Instead, as you know, you pretty much keep your accelerator foot in one position rather than the dance between the accelerator and clutch in a manual car. The so-called eCVT in the IS300h is smoother than a conventional automatic because whereas you can still feel the gear changes in conventional automatics, in the Lexus hybrid there are no gear changes. The transmission is a permanently meshed planetary gearset. So it's completely smooth. Some people find that disconcerting at first. Instead, when you put your foot down the engine immediately races, rather like a plane applying full throttle, and then eases off as you reach the required speed. That can be disconcerting too and a lot of motoring journalists have been critical of this. And the car is limited to 125 mph to protect the electric motors which might be damaged if they turned too fast, so journalists aren't keen on that either. But most journalists don't live with the car. Most on this forum who use the car daily seem to like it a lot. Personally, I think the transmission is great. Very quiet, hardly any moving parts to go wrong. Completely smooth. Rather like driving an electric car except for the racing engine when you use full throttle. Would I get another one? Absolutely. I haven't owned manuals for 20 years or more and as an automatic this is the best I've had.

Sometimes there is a difference e.g. there is a point where Lexus started introducing LSS+ and other features which if you go with say 2013 model you wont get. On some other cars there are "facelifts" which are more preferable etc. But as far as I am aware 2017 was already "facelift" model for mk3 IS and the options remain more or less the same (don't quote me on that, but if there were differences they were mostly negligible). So really... what is the difference between 2017 and 2019 or 2020 cars? Sure there is few numbers being different on number plate, but apart of that not much... getting like £15k+ discount for having 9k extra miles is amazing saving. There is time and place for new cars and that mostly is - tax savings getting one on the company (paying from gross salary) and that you can choose colour and other options of your liking. But if you choosing from existing cars and one already has everything you would want anyway, then there is no actual benefit of having never car, especially for private buyer who won't save on tax.

I agree Malcolm and I’d feel the same way. I’m sure we’ve all been there, but frankly if you have a Lexus (or Merc, BMW, Porsche, Alfa, Lamborghini etc) my view is that you have to balance the pleasure of ownership and use against the risk that it could be the victim of an accident. Or, of course, that it’s a powerful Moron Magnet. I try to be pragmatic about the sort of damage you describe - especially if I caused it! In the worst cases, that’s what insurance is for. The alternative, I suppose, is to treat nice cars as objects for display rather than practical use. Since we left north London fifty years ago, I can only think of one supermarket trolley ding that we’ve acquired - and that’s to my wife’s Suzuki, so doesn’t really count (!) and which she still hasn’t noticed. Sadly, I think the bulk of vandalism that we do see tends to be by those who, in a desperate bid to conform to stereotype, bring it out from the Cities with them. Out here in the villages it’s pretty rare.

This is correct. There is no monitoring on those secondary cats. The air/fuel ratio sensors are on the exhaust manifold before the primary cats, and the O2 sensors monitoring cat efficiency (highlighted below) are after the primary cats on the front section of the exhaust but quite a way up from the secondary cats that have been stolen

^^ Totally agree @paulrnx. I’m running Winter wheels and tyres (Bridgestone Blizzak) currently, and the ride quality / road noise is significantly improved over the standard fit Summer Yokohamas. I’ll replace the Yokos next year with Falken, hopefully to get the superior refinement all year round.

Hello James. I am so glad you didn't decide this in October last year. I decided to change from an LS400 with 265000 miles on it to an LS460. I found one in the last week of October for £8950 with a full service history, most of it from Lexus, with only 42000 miles on it. I am really happy with it, although I was really quite sad when I finally sold the LS400 and I watched someone else drive away in the car I had owned and loved for the last 12 years. Just to clarify... No, I don't want to sell it. Steve.

The UX boot is tiny.

Excellent review @ErikSvenssonand I’m sure it will be useful for other members. Many thanks for taking the time to write and post it.

Having told me two hours previously it was 3/2/2021 (I have converted date to British measures).

That's probably true John, he also buys used tyres that don't last long. Still doesn't change the fact that the front axis uses rubber more than the rear.

Well, firstly it would certainly be cheaper to do it myself. All I lack is the equipment, the materials, the knowledge and the expertise! My chap offers a pick 'n mix selection of packages and optional upgrades. I went for a 'Medium Car' package at £750 plus four upgrades, totalling about £1600 plus VAT. But as I said, a lot of that I offset by calculating the fuel savings accrued by more than halving my annual mileage. To put all that in perspective, here's an outline of the four day's work. Multiple stage wash removing potentially damaging material. Engine bay cleaned and degreased. Wheels removed, cleaned both sides. Wheel wells degreased and decontaminated. Chemical and claybar decontamination. Paintwork assessment. A 2-stage paintwork enhancement. Interior detailing. Glass cleaned and polished inside and out. Multiple HD photos of detailing work (we shall see!) Also: Application of Modesta BC-04 & Modesta BC-05 Glass coatings to bodywork to give a coating life of 8-10 years. Application of baked-on ceramic protection for the wheels. Application of a hydrophobic coating to the glass. Removal and replacement of new laser-cut clear films on body panels. Most persuasive of all, he initially described the IS as a 'lovely looking car'. Clearly a man of discernment.

As soon as I saw the word “indeed” in the title I knew! https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/08-LEXUS-LS-460-SE-L-70K-MILES-380-BHP-4-6-V8-8-SPD-AUTO-MOT-430-CROWN-GS-NICE/303862785258?hash=item46bfa224ea:g:~lQAAOSwI2hgGYgw

Definitely take off the after market stuff. I wouldn't touch anything other than a stock car.

If it's not too rude, can I ask you the cost? Thinking about something similar in the spring but still toying with the idea of doing it myself

If only I was patient..... I've just bought a RX450H Premier! I did follow my own advice as far as price is concerned...... main dealer non franchise had the right car at the right price and specifications with full Lexus servicing and a year of the main Lexus warranty left to run for £4k below main dealer prices. Well chuffed, as is my daughter who's getting my NX.

The general view of Members is that your performance is lousy and you will need to work extremely hard to win confidence on this Forum. It`s up to you. Dan.

You'll have to be a bit more specific - does it get better or worse as speed increases? Straight lines or only when cornering? When braking or not? Dull thuds or loud bangs? What's wrong with the ride? Wallowy or harsh? It's a Premier so I assume air suspension? EDIT: - What tyres are on it? I believe Dunlops are horrendous for 'stepping' and cause lots of noise.

NX, according to a friend of mine that had an early NX, then changed to a UX, had it for 6 months and couldn’t wait to change back to a NX again

Hi Stuart, if you still have the water ingress try this. Remove both boot lid light clusters and the exterior trim that houses the reverse camera and number plate lights. See if you have any weld joint cracks along the seem that runs along this ridge. I only had a crack on the LH side but your ingress looks worse so maybe check the whole length of the seem to be sure.

****SOLVED! 👍🏻 So, in making the boot lid as light as possible (probably due to the added weight of the hybrid battery), it’s easy for people not in the know to assume it is a normal weight boot lid and slam it shut. So slamming over a period of years + thin panels and weld joints = cracks. At first I found a drop of water on the back of the light enclosure, the light fitting nuts were a bit loose plus water marks clearly showing on the top of the light fitting and foam pad. Then the crack caught my eye, problem spotted. Good old bit of silicone in the cracked joint, think my condensation issue finally done and dusted now.

£540 for a wheel bearing?? Are you sure that's not for all 4? Have a look at this: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lexus-IS200T-IS300H-Hybrid-2015-Front-Wheel-Hub-Bearing-Fast-Dispatch-/202967180472?_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49292 You could have it fitted by any decent car mechanic who has the right equipment, I wouldn't anticipate paying more than 2 hours labour charge.

Shiny nuts make all the difference.

I just placed an order for a 64 plate NX Premium in white from Cazoo. It's done 34.5k Miles and they wanted £20300 for it. I got everything I wanted, including full Lexus service history, except for the panoramic roof which I would have loved. Lexus was asking 24k for identical cars and none was willing to budge more than 1k on the price. I couldn't justify (and they couldn't either) why spending 3-4k more with the only benefit being 12 months warranty instead of 3 (although I can extend it). Taking delivery on Wednesday, a bit weird buying a car I've never seen or driven but they do offer 7 days full refund! Thanks for all the help on this thread