noby76

i think it looks good.. it has its own identity on the road it doesnt try to look like Audi, BMW or Merc... i mean look at the merc next to the RC on the first photo and you can see how dull and less interesting the merc looks. the RC is an interesting car to look at... most also go on about fake exhasut tips on the IS-F/RC but i have seen plenty on modern cars. infact the merc next to the RC on the first is also wearing fake exhaust tips. ;)

but this is not a bad thing Chris. carbon fibre is the same mould used in F1 cars... advantage this has over metal/steel is its very light and strong. i believe the actual structure is aluminium and carbon fibre and plastic was used on other parts to keep weight at a minimum which equals 3.5 secs to 60 and 200mph all day long and even recording the 12th fastest production car around the ring. the same weight reduction and balanced philosophy is applied to the No.1 best selling sports car of all time which is the Mazda MX-5. not a lot of power but get a "Driver" behind one of these and as Mazda engineers say "rider and horse become one" . :)

you mean they are made of Aluminium to keep them light? considering it makes almost 100bhp more than an IS-F and IS-F only manages to better it by 5mpg Extra Urban confirms its not bad on fuel after all.. but plenty plenty fast and lets be honest these are more exotic aswell...

why dont you knock your self out with America's best sports cars. these things sound amazing http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201409127353405/sort/default/quicksearch/true/make/corvette/page/1/onesearchad/used%2Cnearlynew%2Cnew/usedcars/radius/200/postcode/mk160ay?logcode=p

Lol u certainly do your research mate ,some say train spotter or plane spotter ,hmm your defo car spotter lo ...

Yeh i most guys in the US have even recorded quicker lap times in an IS350 comapred to an M3 of around the same year.. driver input has a lot to do with this but i recon the IS350 is not far off in terms of real life performance compared to the IS-F..

when it comes to overtaking ability i think we could all attest it boils down to the car in front which one is trying to over take and at which speed and gear the overtaking is about to take place.. although say a 911 Carera S sits lower and lighter than an IS-F, the 911 will not accelerate any faster in an overtaking manoeuvre if it happens between 50 to 75mph as they both achive it in 2.4 - 2.8 seconds in fact the IS-F has been tested to achieve 4.5 seconds from 50-70mph in 5th gear compared to the Carrera S's 5.9 secs in 5th when trying an overtake manoeuvre. even a 335d BMW is quicker(4.7 secs) in 5th gear between 50-70mph compared to say a Carrera S overtaking at the same speeds in 5th. so will all depend on the car in front one is trying to overtake.. but the Porshe looks to fit the bill perfectly in terms of what you kinda looking for ..

Yeh i agree apart from Porsche..there a not a lot of sub 4 - 4.5 secs to 60 and 170+mph automatic sports cars out there for taking without resulting to Exotics like Ferrari's or Lambo's and the likes unless you are willing to modify a not soo powerful one to meet the performance criteria you need. but if it doesn't necessarily need to do 4 - 4.5 secs to 60mph or at least 170mph and be a dual clutch automatic then there are plenty Sports cars out there for the taking. thing one needs to have in mind is 0-60mph or top speed figures are only important when one is at the right place(German Autobhan) where there is enough open clear road to hit them top speeds and right time(at the traffic lights) for a quick shoot out against another car. apart from these two scenarious, 0-60 and anything over 155mph is not so important when it actually comes to a drivers car for the streets or track. and this is evident in cars like the MX-5's, Integra R, GT86's and S2000's where they dont do 4.5secs to 60 mph and make no more than 250bhp in stock form but are all hailed to be exiting street/track cars to drive and in most cases punch above their weight in terms or real life performance against powerful cars which makes them even more exciting and entertaining since the driver has to put in the work in order to reap the benefits. i think its more about how the car makes the driver feel than brute performance figures. but saying that there are the 911's, the GTR's, Lotus's, TVR's on the other scale which are ridiculously fast and exciting and scary at the same time as some reviewers put it lol. i think you looking for something to put you on the edge whilst driving and even though i personally haven't driven one i recon you wont go wrong with the 911. the RS5 is fast but i recon it wont give you that blood rushing feeling..worth test driving all the options tho then you can decide.

think you might need to decide if you want a Sports Car or a high performance Car. GTR, LFA, Evora, MX-5, S2000, Subaru BRZ, BMW Z models, 370Z, Toyota GT86, 911 are out and out sports cars...2 doors, less luxurious, harsh ride, able to throw around corners and apexes, low sound proofing so engine can be smelled and heard..even ones with as low as 160bhp to their name like the MX-5's are said by car mags/reviewrs to be very exciting and rewarding to drive. Due to being a sports car, bhp is not so relevant instead its more driver involvement and enjoyment. your likes of IS-F, Maserati, Audi RS5/6, C63, M3/M5, XKR/XF-R fall into the luxury high performance category they are not out and out sports cars and although fast with good handling and huge bhp figures, might not really give that driving enjoyment like what say a 911, BMW Z, S2000, Evora or GT86 has to offer to the driver.. luxury performance cars adds practicality and luxury whilst giving the driver a taste of sports car experience but not 100% of it. which explains why you yearning for that driver excitement/involvement. although you have over 400bhp at your right foots disposal. a 911 will give you that driver involvement and excitement but might not be luxurious and pampering when compared to say the RS5 Audi. as ones aim is to be a sports car and the other a performance car with a touch of luxury and practicality. and example of a sports car / luxury performance car comparison will be the new BMW M5/ RS6 Avant and GTR Nissan. similar power, similar weight, delimited will all do 200+mph but the GTR will be fun to drive, will easily be toss-able around corners and will easily out drag and out run those two in a straight line or race track.. so worth deciding if you want a sports car or a luxury performance car. as a sports cars aim is to give driving enjoyment and excitement and the other gives some taste of sports car experience not 100% whilst adding practicality and luxury. will make it easy for you. 9 1 1 :winky: but i personally with 30K to spend will be a GTR for track days and S2000 for the streets. takes a lot to beat a GTR round a race track and takes a lot to keep up with a screaming 9000rpm light weight 2 litre round winding streets .i recon 30K budget can buy me those two cars.

wow do you drive like miss Daisy or what lol... thats very impressive to run things like tyres for 50 - 70k, pads/disks being changed once, rear disks still originals..hats off... which brand tyres do you run on the IS? I recon you should run it for another 9 years since you average about 23k miles a year and this will take it to 500,000 miles then donate it to Lexus GB for display at thier headquaters in exchange for an IS-F :winky: .. As already mentioned get the suspension bit like trak rod end's ball joints control arms looked at due to wear and tear as 300,000 miles is risking most cars would have gone through about 5-10 of these parts by the time they hit those mileages and yours are still originals.. mine pads and discs only lasts about 20k tops lol

thats impressive.,.goes to show how well engineered these engines and chassis are..built like diesel trucks . besides the usual wear and tear items like discs pads ,ball joints what major part did you have to replace? just curious.

As Barney confirmed it will be cheaper and more cost effective to buy an IS300 you can find lower mileage ones from £2500 which is pretty mush your budget for the Turbo kit. a supercharger offered by Lexus for the IS200 bumped up the hp to around 210-220bhp safely without changing internals i.e. cams, pistons, valves so I presume in order to turbo the stock IS200's engine using the stock internals only around 210-220 bhp could be extracted out of it to be safe. anything more then you will need to be swapping cams, pistons, head etc as the 1G-FE engine was not designed to be a performance engine. IS300 being a tiptronic will allow one to pick and select gears if they wish so its not 100% automatic as some always think. the IS300's engine is a detuned version of the ones used in Supra twin turbo although pistons and other internal parts are not the same, its pretty much the same so they are quite good for boosting as compared to the IS200's engine. alternatively drop the GS/LS V8 engine in there.. but if you really want a cheaper way for power upgrade from an IS200 I would say just buy an IS300..they are not quick off the mark but where they tend to come alive are the in gear accelerations in 3, 4 5 gears in M PWR mode.

I have been reading this thread thinking Lexus should not be slayed for not offering to help towards the cost of the pump failure. if you see it from their point of view Tony, the car is 8 years old with over 200,000 miles on the clock. this is a mileage which most originally factory fitted parts start failing on any car. in fact some parts on a car wouldn't even make it that far before they fail. to Lexus is will be like them throwing money into the drain considering the year and mileage of the vehicle. one could argue they had serviced your car ever since you bought it so they bear some form of responsibility or at least should contribute towards the repair but at the same time they are not obliged to. they will only cover any parts changed or fitted during the service which is around 12months or 12,000 miles once the car is out of warranty. I had my car serviced couple of months ago, went through MOT and passed with flying colours 2 weeks later my radiator failed on my way from Luton and I only found out when I stopped at traffic lights and noticed my bonnet steaming.. so do I then go back to the garage demanding help towards the cost of replacing the radiator due to the fact they serviced my car and passed my mot with flying colours? most parts can just fail on high mileage cars without warnings as not all parts are linked to the on board ECU or computer and unfortunately the hybrid pump was one of them. in my humble opinion I think your GS450h served well by clocking those trouble free mileages until the pump went. at over 200,000 miles I wouldn't complain if a factory fitted part went on my IS..most cars wouldn't get to that mileage before they get scrapped.

if its a lower sporty car you desire then the 911, Evora S or even a 370Z will all be enjoyable to drive.. so will boil down to your preference..

sounds like the IS-F actually has what you looking for since your list involved: luxury, practical, reliable, big boot for weekends away and should hold 1 child. noticed you didn't mention BMW M3/M5 or Mercedes C63/E63 AMG or Audi RS4/RS6 so i take it those are not worth considering.. Why an XKR-S when you can have an XFR-S?? more practical and still as quick as XKR-S Lotus Evora :- will def be involving and enjoyable to drive. uses the same 3.5 engine as that of US IS350 so will def be reliable..practical its not RC-F :- new one from the bunch.. eye catcher, looks immense will be more practical compared to Evora or 911 and pricey Aston DB9? maybe when you are 40+ lol.. nice car all the same but my guess will be it wont give you that driving pleasure more a GT Cruiser. Masseratti:- I do like their rareness on the roads nice engine /exhaust note but as you say reliability is questionable. so coming back to 911, it will be fun to drive, wont be practical, will call it spEditorty but not luxurious, have Porches ever known to be reliable? if i had to choose and it has to have a touch of luxury, practical, quick and reliable then cant beat ISF. if it has to be something other than a BM. Merc or Audi i would enter Jaguars dealers for an XFR-S. if it has to be fun to drive with a touch of practicality then WRX STi or Evo X in manual box. and if it doesnt need to be practical but sporty and involving then the 911 but what can 911's do these days that modern hot hatches like Megane RS's or SEAT Leon's cant?? Are they even worth the price tag??

so in other words Ganesh, we should keep our MK1 IS's and run them as long as possible and forget about making an upgrade to newer IS's or GS's? LOL.. :)

No worries mate.. theres a 'Like' button at the buttom right which give thumbs up.. :winky:

if 350 bhp is your limit then might aswell settle for the 540i as its close to 300bhp from factory and being a larger displacement V8 engine, it will take Intake, Header, Exhaust mod very well which could free up some more horses maybe 15-20bhp which might take it to around 310 maybe 320bhp which is close to your target of 350. alternatively, opt for the GS430 rated as 280bhp but most guys in US have had theirs dynoed and it actually makes around 300bhp at crank. same intake header exhaust mods could also be done for this which could bump out put to around 320bhp taking it close to your target. this will also have 5 speed gearbox and VVTi as opposed to Gen 1 GS300. one advantage of going NA instead of Turbo is no Turbo lag and also you wont have to be replacing turbos if and when they go which keeps cost down. on the road, there might not be a lot of difference in performance between 320bhp and 350bhp car if they are of equal weight. who ever has better gear ratios, and an efficient gearbox which wont loose a lot of the crank horse power from engine to the wheels and flatter torque curve will come out on top. so if the car does not necessarily need to be a Turbo the GS430 will be your best bet and might also work out cheaper to buy and run in the long run compared to going NA-T in a GS300 unless you aiming for 4-500bhp+ then i'll say go NA-T GS300

will all depend on your budget, type of power you looking at, where the car will be spending most of it time i.e. on the street, motorway or at the tracks and what you would like to be 'seen' driving in. As you already aware the Gen1 GS's have the potential since they share pretty much the same engine parts as the Twin Turbo version used in the Aristo V300 and Supra so the potential is there. £300 for the GS was a bargain so long as the engine and gearbox are still in good health, the other issues are just cosmetics which could be sorted out thats if you willing to put the money into it. the 540i is also a good base to start. its a v8 with almost 290bhp but as you said it wont be cheap. 3000GT are quite old and rare so you will have to look hard for one in good condition. RX8's also have potential so will boil down to if you want something practical aswell in terms of space. but for high way cruisers it will boil down to two if i had to choose from your list.. which is the GS300 or 540i. so next will be how much power you looking to get out of it and how reliable they will run once boosted. also consider if its worth just getting the E39 M5 over the 540i or alternatively importing a Twin turbo Aristo from Japan and tuning it further.

Prolex UK do manifolds which can crank up power for the IS250 to almost 240bhp when coupled with a full performance exhaust system which i find very impressive for a non Turbo car. then again IS250 runs a very high compression ratio of 12:0 1 so has the capability of extracting more energy from air/fuel ratio so their claim might be possible. you can contact them for a before and after evidence of an IS250 making this power after manifold and exhaust fitted and if they have proof of this you can then make a decision of if its worth the ££'s. http://prolex-uk.com/shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=595_168_215&products_id=739 this is another mode which could make your throttle responsive when compared to factoring throttle settings. wont give any more power though http://prolex-uk.com/shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=595_168_215&products_id=834 alternatively get a GS450h which has a 3.5 V6 makes over 300bhp and returns the same mpg if not better than an IS250 V6. :)

thanks mate..thats what i thought.. i personally do like the design more so in Type S with the body kits and lower stance. the 2.4's are also quiet rare on the roads which i like but for comfort and refinement, cant beat Lexus for sure. IS250's look quiet tempting at the moment but if i want to upgrade to another Lex it would have to be a GS..

of topic toffee_pie but how would you compare your previous CL9 2.4 Accord to the IS250? without including the quietness and smoothness of a Lexus 6 cylinder engine how does it compre in terms of build quality, toys, mpg, power delivery and handling? am considering one in the Executive trim or a Subaru Legacy but haven't test driven those 2.4 accords yet to compare to my IS but reviews i have read so far shower them praises..

22mpg is the official urban(town) driving mpg IS250 will return so not sure why you would want say 31mpg if you drive primarily in London? your confirming of averaging around 21 - 24 mpg is accurate if not a bonus against the official figure of 22mpg. A rated tyres do save fuel but not a lot in it when compared to a G rated tyre which is meant to be the worst. works out about 1p per mile for A rated tyres tested by Michelin against G rated when travelling at constant speed of 50mph this works out at around £100 saving over 10,000 miles which sounds good but question is do we all travel at a constant speed of 50mph when we hop in our cars? tyre manufactures also mention results do vary based on the type of car or climate conditions this means one wont reap the benefits of A rated tyres once they travel above this speed on an open road where 60mph or above is the legal speed.so i dont bother with A rated tyres. few things you could try is run your tyres at 33psi keep your max revs around 3000rpm and hold trottle when you get to this rpm, your gear box will learn to shift up every time it gets to 3000 drive with ECT PWR mode. this makes thorthle responsive and makes the your engine build up speed quickly then you can ease of once desired speed is reached. try and use the best engine oil and fuel you can afford. must admit when it comes to oil and fuel, am a brand snob so i stay away from Halrfords and Asda oil or fuel from Asda or Tesco.. and only buy from oil company brands like, Petronas, Castrol, Mobil and Shell. i only use fuels from Esso, Shell and BP.. 97 - 99 RON. but in all honesty you are returning the official town mpg for IS250 which is 22mpg

yeh Ganesh they are meant to be very good handling cars for a front wheel drive not a lot of power but their handling and light weight gives them a lot of advantage.. might get a VVTLi in T sport trim as a second car just to have fun with and maybe do some track days lol.. also do like those Honda S2000's.. might aswell enjoy it for sometime Petay and get back into an IS or GS once you get bored or more so keep both and have the celica as a project track day car lol.. their engines are also meant to take a super charger well as they could be found in the Lotus Exige's .. :winky:

oh ok power might have been dropped by 10bhp in the later or US models as they are down as 190bhp in Europe. i think Toyota designed these as an answer to Honda Integra Type R at that time but the celica had more toys, better styling and looked more grown up than the raw looking boy racer Integra. I can tell you still miss the IS200 so might aswell trade in the Celica for an IS300 or more so GS300/GS400 which will give you more space for the bike :)