steveledzep

Yes Dave, I wouldn't expect a water pump failure at 44k either. Routine servicing to the slide pins in the calipers would avoid siezing. I'm very surprised this isn't a part of the service schedule, particularly as it's an Achilles heel of the IS.

Torque converter.

I was advised of the water pump failure and siezed caliper and told they were awaiting confirmation from the warranty people and expected it to be authorised. Authorisation was confirmed just 30 minutes later. I expressed concern at the £138 diagnostic fee as I felt my problem would be instantly recognised by one of their technicians. It was explained to me that some "extra noise" problems can sometimes take a lot of dismantling to find the source. I was assured that discretion would prevail and a pro-rata fee would be charged. In the event, I wasn't charged as the problem was covered under the warranty. I've only been visiting Lexus Cardiff (infrequently) for three years and I've made a point of developing a rapport with all of the staff, as a result I consider that I'm always treated fairly.

Got my car back today, they didn't manage to complete the jobs yesterday. No matter, I had a courtesy car. Lexus would have charged £560 for replacing the water pump.....this is the quote on the Visual Safety Report. The invoice to the warranty people would be somewhat less I'm sure. All silent in the engine bay again now

Don't think I explained it properly Shaun.

I'll get the paperwork when I collect my car tomorrow, I'll let you know the costs then Rebecca. Yes, the extended warranty has been a good purchase for me. Last year I had nearside headlamp assembly replaced (condensation) and the rear nearside caliper replaced too. From memory £650 and £280 respectively. So this is another £280 for caliper and I dread to think what the water pump cost will be. I'm enjoying AA top membership too (Lexus Roadside Assistance) and my warranty doesn't expire until November. Cost me £895 I'll grab some biscuits for you guys when I'm there again tomorrow.

Been to Cardiff Lexus today. Usual coffee and greeting from Natalie. Explained the problem best I could and expressed my concern about the diagnosis charge (£138) as I suspected one of their technicians would have come across this before. Anyway, lift in to town together with coffee voucher for Marriott Hotel. Early afternoon I had an email on my phone with video of safety inspection, it highlighted usual stuff.....wiper smearing, brake disc lips, can of gunk in boot out of date etc.....and a siezed rear caliper on driver side. I then received a call from Natalie advising about the caliper and confirming that the water pump was u/s. She had received confirmation from warranty people that caliper and pump were both covered and would be replaced foc. Also, the diagnosis fee would be waived too. A courtesy car (CT200h) was provided as I was 60 miles from home. I'm returning tomorrow at 5:00pm to return CT and collect my IS. Excellent service !!!

Thanks James. After reading a lot of the RX threads on here at the moment, I'd virtually decided on the GS250, you have just added weight to my decision. The performance of my IS250C is adequate for my needs and being a convertible is actually heavier than the GS250 by 90kgs according to specs. So, I think it reasonable to expect very similar performance and mpg from a GS250.

Thanks John. I could probably do that, but don't know if the belt is the cause of the noise ? Don't have the time to faff with it if I'm honest, especially as it may be something completely different. Thanks Bernard. I'm familiar with that, it was very apparent on my previous IS250. It's not that I'm hearing, something different and less mechanical sounding. I'll find out on Tuesday I'm sure.

A minter by the look of it.....well done

Haha !.....you flatter my abilities ! Just watched this about replacing a water pump. I'd lose all the bits if I tried to dismantle all the stuff in order to get to the belt . Thanks for your input.

It's a little stronger than perhaps I've made out Shaun. My previous IS250 always sounded a bit "tappety", it had 78,000 on the clock. This one has only 44,000 and it sounds more than tappety. It sounds outside of the engine, not on the cams. While I was doing the tyres yesterday I asked my postman what he thought.....he said it sounded like water pump problem.

Over the past few weeks I've noticed a noise that shouldn't be there. I had the engine running yesterday to power the compressor while checking my tyre pressures and it was very noticeable. Difficult to describe, not heavy mechanical (engine's running sweetly). Did you ever use a clothes peg and cardboard to create a "clicker" on your bike as a kid ? It's a softer version of that and frequency increases with revs. As the offending part is rotating with the engine I can only think it may be a bearing from alternator or water pump maybe ? Any ideas ? I'm taking it to Lexus Cardiff on Tuesday, a 120 miles round trip ! Car is under Lexus Extended Warranty so I hope the offending part is covered. They have informed me that there will be a £138 diagnosing fee, which will be waived if the problem comes under the terms of the warranty. I'm sure that they will have heard my problem on more than one occasion before and diagnosis will take all of two minutes !! £138 a bit steep for that methinks ? Any thoughts ?

That is exactly one of the changes I am considering. Not sure whether to go for an RX instead though ? I need to test drive both.

Thank you all for your contributions. I am encouraged to our first choice of RX450h. I'll report back after our test drive experience in March.

Being in rural west Wales, I have the luxury of very little city driving, occasional visit to Swansea that's all. Most of my driving is on single carriageway A roads at between 30 and 60mph. That's why I'm also considering a GS250 which I would expect to deliver same mpg as my IS250C. A GS250 would be considerably cheaper than a hybrid (GS or RX) and I can buy a lot of petrol for £5,000 !

I'm not certain, but I believe the recommended mileage for plugs in the US is 100k. On my previous car, I had plugs changed at the fuel pressure recall. They only charged me for the plugs.

My commute is the same distance, but on uncongested roads, I may come to a standstill briefly at the pelican crossing or the roundabout. On that basis I should do a little better than you on my commute. You have encouraged me towards an RX450h Your reported mpg is excellent based on that usage. Thanks for your contribution, but meaningless without describing the type of journey.

Thanks Rayaans. I could live with that mpg as the IS only achieves 24 or 25mpg on the work commute and up to 38mpg on a long run. I have a feeling that the seats in my convertible are particularly low set as everyone who has a lift comments. Maybe lower than the saloons ? I'll pay particular attention when I visit the dealer (60 miles away from me, so not just a pop-in when passing). Thanks Luigi, I have only ridden for a short journey as a passenger in an RX450h and I paid particular attention to the feel. I did find it a nice place to be, the only thing I noticed was the noise when braking to a standstill. to do with the battery charging the driver told me. This was a lift into town from the Lexus dealership. Anyone else have any opinions ?

Mrs ledzep and I are both in our early sixties and plan to change the 250 convertible in the Spring and we have our sights on a 2013 vehicle. We both fancy something a wee bit more sedate and easier to get in and out of and the RX is our favourite at the moment. We consider the NX a bit like X3 or X5 and have decided that RX is the way to go if we take that route. We have some time off work in March and plan a trip to Cardiff Lexus to do some serious test driving. In the meantime, I have been studying various options and some current threads on here are very interesting. What is concerning me is how a hybrid would perform on our daily work commute of five miles each way (we work together) on uncongested country road at 30 and 50mph. My current IS250 has just reached temperature when I pull in to the car park. How would a GS or RX 450h react ? From October to April the heating is required in the car, so the ICE would start immediately. I've read reports of 20mpg or thereabouts in an RX in similar circumstances ! This 2x5 miles 5 days a week is the majority of our use with a 40 miles return trip to the supermarket fortnightly and three or four 300 mile round trips annually visiting our daughter. The boy racer in me would like a GS450h and the RX450h would satisfy my serene comfort aspirations. The GS300h is an option too, its performance isn't dissimilar to my current IS250, but how does hybrid work with a 5 mile commute with a/c and heating operating ? With my limited knowledge, the GS250 is favourite at the moment as I'd expect similar performance and mpg as my IS250C, averaging 29.8mpg doing the journeys outlined above. The GS250 would be a good deal less expensive to buy too ! Apologies for the long post, just want to be sure of pulling the trigger on the right vehicle in 3 or 4 months time. Thanks in anticipation.

What are you wanting the additives to do ? I've never felt the need to try any.

My thoughts too. Developing a rapport with your servicing agent (whether dealer or independent) is worth far more than a couple of quid saved.

You'll be charged to enter South Wales......we'll allow you to go home for free though !

I bet if Rebecca decides to drive the short distance from Hereford to join us, we'd have Lexus drivers from all corners of the UK

I suspect the only qualifying criterion is that you drive a Lexus ? I don't make the rules