DanD

Must go to Landshut (my son was born there!), Erding (home of the famous Erdinger Weissbier...lived a mile from the brewery!), Neuschwanstein, Garmish-Patenkirchen, Eibsee...

I owned a string of French and Italian cars... from Renault Twingo to Maserati... all with iffy to appalling reliability records, made worse by indifferent after sales service. Decided that enough was enough and checked out car magazines and reliability surveys. Top two were consistently Skoda and Lexus. Since I'd always liked the looks of the RX400h, I decided to go for one and never looked back... and eventually switched to a 450h... which will be replaced by a NX... or possibly a GS450h Reliability, silence, short list of options and most of all excellent customer service, which to me is an integral part of car ownership. I have been so impressed with my two Lexus and my local dealer that I have no intention to move away from Lexus... My last car before switching to Lexus was a Renault Grand Scenic 1.6 which, over the same period of ownership and mileage, cost me more to run that my previous RX400h... even though the RX was maintained by the dealer! - Need I say more!? In terms of innovation, I am not at all sure that Lexus lead the way anymore. Quality, comfort and reliability are certainly still at the top, but it seems to me that they are being overtaken by other makes where technology is concerned, in particular with regards to infotainment (sat nav graphics and less than intuitive menus, ease of use and functionality etc). Admittedly, this may have changed with the new RX... I have yet to sit in one!

You may need the umlaut... or try Muenchen instead. (Brilliant place to visit... lived there for some years!)

I doubt your wife would have been able to hear your son through her phone: if a Bluetooth connection is made, the audio is routed to the car system and the phone speaker disabled in the process. Bluetooth range can be up to 10 meters.

I believe these are the ones you need: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/10x-Black-Plastic-Rivet-Style-Body-Trim-Panel-Retainer-Clips-for-Toyota-Lexus-/400853117308?hash=item5d54b5297c:g:ikAAAOSwUuFW17sa

Default was ON with my previous 400h, but it is OFF with the 450h. I don't have an ODBD adaptor... so I guess that I'll wait until my next trip to the dealer.

Very good. Made me smile. well done.

You know that spare wheel you were looking for.... Can't believe Lexus let you drive away with this!

Safest place to park is next to another Lexus driver!!!

I want to program my remote (key) to allow long presses of the buttons to open/close all the windows. Is this something I can do myself, or does it have to be done at the dealer's? Thanks!

Looks like you are correct and that I was mislead. Ultra Blue... Azure Blue... Sky Blue... I wonder what the rationale is behind having three shades that are so similar... yet again, there are so many shades of grey, it makes a nice change. Incidentally, there is an Audi dealer near me that has a new A4 in a metallic bottle green... Would you?

You worry too much!

When should the power mode be Accessory? I only use it to open/close windows or open the boot (RX has power boot, so not sure whether this applies to the IS), folding the mirrors, wipe the windscreen clean etc... while waiting for someone.

I use Gliptone's Liquid Leather Intensive Cleaner twice a year and Gentle Cleaner the rest of the time + Leather Conditioner. I also use their leather aroma pad. Bit of a faff, but follow their instructions and you'll be pleased with the result. Worth the money in my opinion.

'sick cell' in the 12 volt battery Says it all. Nothing wrong with the Hybrid system. I had a similar problem with previous RX400h... you just need a new battery. ... after about 15 mins listening to the radio with the power mode selected to Accessory. As a rule, NEVER, EVER listen to the radio with power mode selected to Accessory, otherwise the problem will keep recurring. ALWAYS make sure the system is in READY mode and the car in P (not Neutral).

I would suggest that too... Lexus guys are usually quite happy to give advice over the phone at no cost... I have certainly used this in the past...

If you buy a car like the RX, with complicated gadgets and electronics, you have to be prepared to foot the bills that come with it! £120 is a pretty fair price in my opinion. If you are going to do the replacement yourself (note that I have NOT done it myself), be careful not to damage anything else in the process... HID unit, AFS sensors and mechanism, self leveling sensors,...

A manufacturer will never give this kind of information over the phone... they will never give information that has not already be made available through press releases and statements because of the implication on share prices, and also insider trading regulations etc. Furthermore, they cannot run the risk of releasing unofficial statements and then see themselves sued. In short, unless the information is "out there" already, you won't get zilch from them. Unless you have "contacts"... (we have Rayaan!)

I just don't know how you guys do it... Admittedly, mine is a pre-facelift model, but I am lucky if I get to 31mpg. I drove from Winchester in Hampshire to West Bay in Dorset yesterday, mainly on single lane A-roads, and managed just under 31 MPG. I usually achieve around 28.5MPG, although I have to say that I... ermm... enjoy the car ;-)

Yes there is a water pump, and yes, Lexus often recommends to change it at the same time as the cambelt. This was certainly done on my previous 400h.

Not sure why the LEDs are not available in Europe for the IS when you can get them on other Lexus models...

Don't know what a respray would cost, but you could look into a wrap. These are typically between £1000 and £1500... and you can pick the colour and finish you want... including patterns etc and change it when you feel like it while your paintwork is protected from scratches and stone chips. A colleague of mine has an Aston Martin that he had wrapped and the finish was incredible. Also, some weeks ago I saw in London a 2010 RX450h that had been wrapped. The colour was not dissimilar to Chris' Azure Blue IS... but in a matt finish. It looked stunning.

I agree. Same for the NX. Incidentally, I saw a brand new Azure Blue NX at my local dealership at the weekend. It does look lighter than the Ultra Blue, however this was indoors...

Congrats... and thanks for posting the pics. Looks awesome. Couple of questions from me: - Are the alloys the standard fit ones for the F-Sport? - Are the seats full leather? The centre part looks like it could be cloth, but this could be because of the perforations. Thanks... looking forward to your full reports in a few weeks time!

How different is the azure blue from the ultra blue? Is it lighter?