ColinBarber

Slightly more detailed spec list. CT200hequip_list2011.pdf

Welcome back :)

The Lexus web site has the details of exactly what is performed on the services. It is very expensive, Lexus have enforced price increases to their dealers who now all officially quote the same price. It seems to be an issue for Lexus compared to the competition. Only a few years ago Lexus were actively promoting the fact that hybrids cost less to run, now they are charging bordering on obscene prices. £120+ labour rates and huge markup on oil are the two main costs of a service.

Welcome Tim This all depends on what age you are considering. At launch, in 2011, there were three grades: Oct 2011 added the F Sport In 2013 the lineup changed to: S SE (old SE-I) Luxury (old SE-L) F Sport Premier (old SE-L Premier)

That is a bit odd too. Did they have the same tyres? In theory they should but Lexus chop and change tyre vendors.

The trader was understanding because he was fully liable for the cost of repair under the sale of goods act, warranty or no warranty. The vehicle has to be fit for purpose unless faults are disclosed at the point of sale and the buyer accepts. When you purchase a second hand vehicle from a trader you expect all four brakes to be working correctly.

The US always call their vehicles a year ahead. The GS430 came out in Oct 2000 but in the US it is known as a 2001 model. The GS430 didn't exist as an official 2000 model - that was the GS400 (which was never sold here in the UK). If your vehicle was registered in the second half of the year then just select the following year on US websites.

A fuel injector issue commonly causes multiple cylinder misfire error codes on the IS200 engine, this is more likely than two coil packs failing at the same time. As Zotto stated above try some injector cleaner, although that doesn't always fix injector issues, and try moving the coil packs, e.g. move cylinder 1 or cylinder 2 to see if the error code moves to help diagnose the issue - cheaper than just purchasing new coil packs.

Plugs should be changed every 60k miles.

Seems sensible Seems sensible but illegal.

I'm pointing out the VAT situation for other people's benefit. Be aware, and budget for, the full amount of tax due when importing parts, if you get charged less then it's a bonus.

Welcome back. Great colour.

It is more integrated than a Toyota hybrid system on a road vehicle. The output motor is directly connected to the engine/turbo before the conventional gearbox. They also use a heat recovery system to help charge the battery store.

But anything over £15 does attracts VAT.

One of the cheapest around but then again it has certainly done some mileage and doesn't look in A1 condition so I'd say it is priced about right. There is another one similar for only £200 more on auto trader.

My local police force have a policy to put up signs in areas where they are deploying speed traps. They seem to want to educate people and make them more aware of speed rather than catch and fine as many people as they can. This seems a good approach to me but it is at their discretion and they could change their policy at anytime. The above just seems to want to catch as many people as possible, maybe to improve their statistics. If the police force and government where truly interested in making sure there was no speeding then just put up an average speed camera at each end of a stretch of road, don't employ people to sit in tractors.

Open the tailgate and pour some water down the side channel. The water should run behind the rear light trim and come out onto the bumper. That channel may need clearing. The light clusters have a seal on the back of them that can come loose resulting in water getting into the lights and possibly into the boot. Make sure you don't see signs of water at the bottom of the light cluster. Similar with the bonnet, open and pour water around the wipers. The water should run out into the engine bay.

Have a search through the IS forum, several people were fitted Superchargers and Turbos to their IS200s. Ideally you would want a programmable fuel control computer set up on a rolling road, for example a HKS F-CON.

Yes, for the mirrors to dip the adjuster has to be turn on for one of the mirrors. If it is off then the mirrors won't dip.

Not many, only 43 sold last year and 26 as of the end of September for this year. 2012 was the worst year with only 20 sold.

£1,000 option on the standard LS. The long wheelbase models still have it as standard.

Both the current GS and LS only have the sunroof as an option rather than standard equipment. Once it becomes an option you will find most people will do without it, they rarely use it and would rather have the extra headroom and the extra £1,000 in their pocket.

Lexus have revised all the service schedules so you would need to double check with your dealership. What is stated in your service booklet is out of date.

I can understand the difference between the 18" wheel models and the 17" ones, it is the same with the IS. But to experience the F Sport, with the same size wheels and stiffer suspension, as having better ride quality over the Premier just doesn't seem right.

That's still well under half the price I had to pay. Not near prices in the US but at least a lot better.