darrude

using an online broker a brand new F-sport can be had for around 28K. So 5K cheaper. But not much warranty left and 50k on the clock. Depends how you value those and how you calculate that into your overall cost of ownership really (Ie, cost after a set amount of time when you intend to sell). If you're financing as well maybe the newer might not be so much more expensive... https://broadspeed.com/new_cars/Lexus/IS/4_Doors/Saloon/Petrol/2.5/ Have you ever used CarWow, basically a reverse blind auction where dealers bid to sell you your desired spec of car. Both of these still allow trade in as well. I used both services to judge the amount of discount I should be aiming for at the dealer and played hardball until I got the discount that I thought was reasonable, which was a match of the broadspeed price at the time.

Mine was fitted yesterday, took just shy of 2 weeks for the parts to come. Not really used the car yet to see if the issue is fixed though.

Driving through Coventry last night, some little sh!ts throwing rocks at cars. I now have a large dent and no paint in 1" square area. Think its a good job by the time i'd stopped they had ran away as I think otherwise i'd have had a dented car and a criminal record. Why did nothing like this happen to my 10 year old Mazda!!! I bought smart insurance when i bought the car, hopefully that will cover it, just submitted a claim online.

with regards to the RWD drive Vs FWD I disagree with Colin, you can notice the difference, albeit not so much during normal driving in traffic or down the motorway. Positives: Better steering feel, especially accelerating out of a corner. Better off the line grip. Balanced feel when hard cornering. No torque steer. Negatives: Increased risk of oversteer when accelerating out of corners (wet / cold). Poor Snow grip. Largely down to Engine placement. FWD, Generally Engine Mass is in front of the front axle. RWD, Engine is pushed rearwards allowing the wheels to sit further forward meaning engine mass is between the axles and weight is distributed equally between the front and rear axles. Hence front wheel drive car prone to understeer, even when converted to AWD.

I was saying to a friend that the car has a 180BHP petrol engine and a 140BHP electric engine but that equals 220bhp which got me thinking of why that might be. I have a theory, but know nothing about electric engines, and not that much about petrol engines, but here goes.... Petrol Engine outputs 180BHP at say 5,500 RPM. Electric Motor produces 140BHP at 15,000 RPM (completely plucked this figure out of thin air). Engine and Electric motor both drive into the gear box on the same shaft (complete assumption of how hybrids work), so when both are running there is no slip between them (assuming a clutch disengages engine when engine switches off). So Max output of car is: Peak Engine power 180BHP + Power output of electric at 5,500rpm (40bhp maybe), and hence we only 220bhp. Or am I completely wrong and it is due to battery discharge rate protection or something else. Does it go Engine -> Electric motor -> Gearbox -> Wheels? Or is it Engine -> Gearbox -> Electric motor -> Wheels? in which case the the power output of the electric motor could only be calculated by the input speed into the rear diff..... So confusing, but the Geeky side of me wants to know though!

Nope, still there in all modes.

My understanding (and I could be wrong!) is that there is no Calorific difference in the fuels, only a the higher Ron Fuel having more resistance to detonation. Using higher ron offers performance gains by allowing a leaning fuel to air ratio. Can modern ECU's map for this. I remember reading a scientific study about 8 years ago (I think it was a Golf as the test car), and it showed no performance or economy benefits of the 2 fuels. ColinBarber Can you confirm where you got your info from for the toyota engines. Surely the fact that it is a hybrid wouldn't make a difference as it would be to do with the amount of fuel used to power expelled?

I'm trying to convince my wife to go for a Ct200h instead of a 1 series, be interested to know how you find the switch as my wife likes the IS... Hope your back gets better soon.

Well ECU update did absolutely nothing.... will keep pushing for the dampener fix. This and the bluetooth disconnecting all the time are really ruining this car.

Definitely engine speed related as well, as the engine revs up / down you can hear and feel the car go through the "vibration" zone if that makes sense. I have only noticed it in the roadworks on the M1 from derby to sheffield where there is a 20 mile 50mph zone. If it wasn't for this stretch of motorway I think I would be unaware and just assume that occasional vibrations were just down to road surface.. hope you never find it Steve44!

Mine is booked in for a software update on wednesday. Went from through 20miles of a 50Mph zone on the M1 on Friday and my god was it annoying. Not sure if worse than before or just because I'm sensitive to it now. They didn't mention anything about a dampener change even though I asked the specific question, but did say the fix was an ECU software update.

Hi Guys, I have noticed a vibration on mine at 50mph but only when on a slight incline. I know this is subjective, but just how bad is it on your cars. I would say mine is more of a oh, that doesn't seem right, rather than OMG what is wrong with the car, at first i thought it might have been due to the road surface / natural resonance but it is definitely coming from the drive train. I'm wondering whether to book mine in or not. But as it has only ever happens in the roadworks on the M1 and I can't make it happen when driving around locally i'm not sure if the lexus dealership will say they can find anything wrong. Is it a case with your cars that is always happens when driving at this speed? Any tips on how to test for it so I can show the dealer. Although my bluetooth keeps disconnecting so might take it in for a firmware update anyway. Thanks, Darren.

Well it has arrived. So glad I got the parking sensors and Nav. Absolutely loving it, although too busy at work to be able to play with it... ! 2 guys from work are off to look at them at the weekend as they are that impressed with it. Absolutely no idea how to post pictures though!

Guys thank you very much for the quick replies. sounds like it is going to be a very easy car to live with. Talking to colleague at work, he just sent me a spreadsheet showing all the ranking from the Auto Express Power Survey with the IS coming 1st overall, and in the top quarter of the table in every category.

I'm soon to pick up my Is300h and just have a couple of questions that i can't find the answer to. 1. Sitting in heavy traffic, is it best to knock the car into neutral / transmission park or leave it in Drive (long term clutch wear etc)? I test drove a Toyota Auris before the lexus and on this car they said to knock it into neutral on the test drive, on the lexus he said just leave it in drive. 2. If the electric engine is 141bhp and petrol engine 179bhp and the combined is 221, where does the other 100bhp go, is there a reason why this is limited? 3. Is the transmission park on CVT a suitable replacement to the handbrake, or would it be ill advised to rely on this (My wife wasn't very happy when she saw where the handbrake was and in her last car (slush box) generally just used the transmission park even though I told her not to as i believe it is just a small pin to lock the cogs so putting pressure on this, in my head at least, sounds like a bad idea). Only a week and a day to wait :) Many Thanks Darren.

ok, so just had to google SWMBO! I wish I had follow Rayaans advice and not told her. I bet she wouldn't of even noticed for a few weeks! She was quite happy, but I did buy her a new car for her birthday last year! DJP as for teaching you a thing or two, I haven't told her that it is beans on toast for the next 3 years now, maybe I'll break that one to her as a positive the next time she mentions her weight.....! God I hope she never reads that comment!

Right, so made a reservation to see a local car, started planning a trip with the intention of buying one in Edinburgh. Finished Work Early, decided to take a close look at one at the dealer just down the road from where I work. Walked out after paying £1K deposit on an brand new IS300H executive edition in Mica Metalic Grey with black leather interior. Still not quite sure how that happened! They are hopeing that it will arrive by the 18th of June, can't wait :) Right, now time to tell the wife what I have just done! Thanks for all your feedback guys. Time to do some reading on owning a Hybrid!

I was originally looking at a Toyota Auris Hybrid (although really wanted the Lexus), and came the same reasoning with that, the difference in cost meant I might as well just get a brand new one from drive the deal. But then I looked at what that money could buy on a 1 year old car and then got quite excited when I realised that an IS300h was (almost) within my grasp, but what are credit for if not bridging the Gap!

Thank you all very much for taking the time to reply. Very useful and has put my mind fully at ease regarding the battery. I have decided to go for a car with Parking sensors (I was actually talking to a few colleagues today about my Mazda and was asked about a few scratches and a little bit of chipped paint on the rear bumper and I had an epiphany, while I might not need parking sensors, it will definitely save me money when I let my wife drive it!). I suppose they only have to stop one minor bump and they have paid for themselves. I’ve seen a really good nice looking one at Lexus Edinburgh which I really like the colour of, so hopefully that might justify a weekend away as well :hocus-pokus: Hopefully I can manage to blag a test drive of one this weekend then make a deal on the Edinburgh one (without actually seeing it!). I was thinking if I paid for a RAC inspection and asked them to send me plenty of HiRes images then there shouldn’t be any surprises.

I'm hoping to become a new owner shortly at 35...

Hi, My First post, been lurking for a while. I have finally decided after 9years and 125,000miles of owning a faultless(ish) Mazda 3 that it is time for a change before it starts costing me money. I have finally decided on a IS300h but just have a couple of questions. Unfortunatley I can't afford / justify a brand new one, but seen a few on Motorpoint for £18 to £19K and just wondered what your thoughts are. I gave them a call and they are Ex Hire cars, 12 months old. I'm not adverse to buying an Ex-hire car, what does concern me is if the EV mode has been abused (read a few posts on here saying if the battery is fully drained or fully charged then it can damage electrodes). Is this something I should be concerned about? Is is worth paying extra for a car with Parking sensors (is the visibility acceptable)? or any other extra's that are deemed necessary. Is there anything else I should look out for? Many Thanks, Darren.