ChrisIS200SportTTE

Coil packs don't start to fail. They either work or they don't. There's no symptoms of them "on their way out" If a coil pack goes then whichever cylinder it's connected to will misfire and your EML will come on the dash. It is recommended you change all together but at over £100 for a genuine Lexus/Toyota coil pack this isn't financially viable for everybody. At the least you should change them in pairs. I had coil pack go on number 2 cylinder so I changed number 1+2 together. Been perfect since...

As far as I know yes. I've never seen a 200 without snow button

Yeah £150 all in. Mesh included. £1700 was silver he just said at the end that I could change colour if I wanted but by that point the £1700 had scared me and I just wanted to get out of there! Lol... Never went into detail about another colour. After what you said I think it would be a lot more than £1700 if done properly. I re sprayed my MG metro turbo for £500 when I was 17 (20 years ago now). I had it done in purple by some cowboys. When you opened the doors, bonnet or boot the metal inside was the original white. Looked rubbish! Lol :)

If it snows heavy your gonna need a set of winter tyres or you won't even get off your drive! Lol....

Lol I like the confidence you have in me! :) Nah I don't fancy doing that. I had to be shown how to do the filters a few times and brake pads I still won't attempt without my mate around to help! :) Anyway local body shop will put it back as new for £150 inc VAT. Does that sound good to you? They quoted me £1700 for a full re spray and I can choose from from pretty much any colour I want! Ouch! Won't be doing that. The paint is £320 a litre and will need just over 4 litres. The rest is labour charge!

Yeah and not that much of a difference. Ever driven an IS200 in the snow? Lol... You really wouldn't spend money in an LSD.

Nobody would put a LSD on it im sure. There's no need to as the IS doesn't really need it, sport model or not. It would be a waste of money....

Reason I wanted a new one is that I thought I could pick up one for about £50 on fleabay and fitting a new one would be easier than a repair. I guess I can't get one for that price :( When you start talking about cutting mesh myself and bond compound and fibreglass resin I have absolutely no idea what your talking about! Lol.... All this goes way over my head! I'm not mechanically minded or practical in any way. I can change brake pads, oil and air filters, battery and thats about it! I'm gonna take it to the local body shop I drive past everyday and see what they say. Thanks for the help and tip on putting photos up :)

Ok so here's some pics as requested. Hope the links work as I've never used photo bucket before :) My IS:- http://i1247.photobu...rt/8443a1e5.jpg As you can see from a distance looks in great condition :) Smashed mesh:- http://i1247.photobu...rt/b6441f73.jpg http://i1247.photobu...rt/e63917ab.jpg Tar marks on front bumper:- http://i1247.photobu...rt/2289cf81.jpg Impossible to clean these off, believe me I've tried! Scratches around headlamps:- http://i1247.photobu...rt/4f042147.jpg These may be stress marks not scratches but they annoy the hell out of me and really show up in the sun. Stone chips:- http://i1247.photobu...rt/f50cd214.jpg These are all over the front bumper, hundreds of them! Scratched edges, prob from speed bumps. Both sides are like this :- http://i1247.photobu...rt/ac1cae58.jpg

Your gearbox sounds completely normal mate. Mine thuds at the back when changing 1st - 2nd, 2nd - 3rd and is notchy between these gears. Lots of other owners on here report the exact same characteristics with their IS200 manual boxes. Some were like this from new apparently. It annoyed me at first to be honest but now I've grown to like it. Feels rugged and I like the thump from 1st - 2nd at 6000rpm! Lol :) Also if you get some clutch judder when moving off, unless excessive its normal too!

Your just full of useful information today fella.... Lol!! Thanks. Will take some photos of the bumper close up tomorrow and post them on here. See what you think. :)

Lol.... I didn't know that either! :)

I don't own a computer so can't upload pics from my iPhone! I'll try at work tomorrow. You know what, it never occurred to me to get a quote from a body shop! Doh.... I fear tho that if I get them to do that I'll end up forking out for a full re spray as I'd love to get that done. Bloody stone chips and tar marks everywhere lower down on the body and a few scratches which annoy the hell out of me and also a patch of scratches on the drivers door where a previous owner obviously removed some bird crap or something with a scouring pad!

Blocked sunroof drain

Just looked at it. He's removed the mesh to make way for an intercooler! Haha the mesh is the main reason I wanted it! I could just buy the mesh but I wanted a whole new lip because mines got stone chips everywhere! I can't afford £300+ tho from main dealer!

Thanks for the tip :) When I say lower part I mean from below the bumper, the mesh bit. It's all smashed in, can't see it as the number plate is hiding it but I know its smashed and it annoys me! Also I want to put square plate on the front and the you would def be able to see the smashed mesh. I didn't realise it was all 1 part, thanks for that too! :)

Could yo explain more please. What's the beep sequence? I have this problem also and have resorted to locking the car with the key so as to not arm the alarm.

Mines lowered with LSD. 2001. :)

My brother in law bought a 3 year old 220d with 50k on the clock and it came with a 7 year, 110k Lexus warranty so still had 4 years on it. Not sure what the warranty covers exactly but definitely the head gasket which would be my biggest worry as it was my brother in laws :)

With only 7k on the clock and 4 years old everything's covered by Lexus still surely? Don't pass that up, if head gasket goes you'll get a new engine free, if fifth injector goes you'll get that free! Normally I say don't touch the 220d but in your case if def have it!! :)

What sjrainsford said....... :) Sounds like you just need to code your key to the doors via the "door dance" You'll find it on here if you do a search :)

The EML being on isn't a fail, not yet anyway. I work with a lad who had a 99 impreza and because of all the engine mods he's done his light is permently on. Passes the MOT every time :)

Turbo or supercharger will cost you more than the cars worth or pretty close to it mate. And that wont double the value of your car. I thought about it. £2000 for the supercharger and about £1700 for a turbo. So it's not a cheap mod. Theres no other mods that will give you more power, they are your only 2 options. Changing exhaust, air filter etc will give you no more power...If the power (or lack of it) is a problem for you, sell your 200 and get a 300 :) Affordable mods are getting 18's, pop out sat nav, DVD player. I have a ripspeed pop out touch screen sat nav/DVD player waiting to go in. The thing that stopped me doing it myself is all the horror stories of flat batteries after fitting aftermarket stereos! I will get around to it tho and find a very good auto electrician to do it.

Thing this the IS wasn't massively successful in 1 country. It enjoyed good sales across Europe, Australia and the US and as the Toyota altezza in Japan. But it was still outsold everywhere in the world by 3 series BMW's, Audi A4's and C class Mercedes Benz. US is where the most were sold and a lot of people on here talk about getting parts from the US. Just remember, genuine Lexus parts are engineered to last longer so they will be more expensive. My IS is 11 years old, 92k on the clock and I'm still on all original shock absorbers, springs, wheel bearings and exhaust. Tell me another car that's 11 years old with the factory fitted exhaust and suspension still working perfectly? You get what you pay for..... :)

Saw an Aztec Fire 200 at the services a while back with gold wheels..... Dont do it!!!! I think you can't beat shiny original alloys :)