mrfunex

I had a Mercedes SL500 when I was 26. That was a magnificent, if perilously unreliable car! Thank goodness for Warranty Direct - I'm probably on their blacklist now!

Think of some of these cars less as 'underdogs', more of cars with soul and character! I've driven a new-ish M3 recently, and whilst it was probably slightly better in almost every way than my ISF, it felt sterile and a bit unexciting. In comparison, the ISF has (imo) a bit too much power for the chassis, which makes it lairy, too loud and so, so much fun! Just because the journos argue it's not a class leader, doesn't make it a bad car. My 'toy' is a Honda S2000. Not as nimble as an Elise, not as controllable as a MX5, not as powerful as a Boxster and not really very tuneable. It puts a massive smile on my face however, and it'd have to be an astonishingly good machine to persuade me jump ship!

Unfortunately I have no idea how much these would cost from the dealer. I would imagine they'd be prohibitively expensive compared to aftermarket, most parts seem to be very pricy on these cars. Common aftermarket options seem to be BC BR coilovers - roughly £800ish KW v3 coilovers - roughly £1400ish (...at least they were when i checked...) I've always found the main dealer to be very helpful - pop in and ask, and enjoy a free cuppa! Sorry I can't be more helpful.

Stolen from srt4evah's post on Clublexus.com - the parts numbers people need... Quote: SPRING, FRONT COIL, LH (need 2) part #4813153460 ABSORBER ASSY, SHOCK, FRONT LH MARK 48520-0W060 part #4852009Y90 ABSORBER ASSY, SHOCK, FRONT RH MARK 48510-0W080 part #485108Z072 SPRING, COIL, REAR LH (need 2) part #4823153390 BUMPER, REAR SPRING, NO.1 LH (need 2) part #4834130140 ABSORBER ASSY, SHOCK, REAR RH MARK 48530-0W070 (need 2) part #4853009X70

A few weeks after buying my 2008 ISF, after the honeymoon period, I began to realise how firm the standard suspension was. Actually, that's a total understatement - it was ridiculously firm to the point of pain; my wife hated it and I got weary of constantly weaving about on the road to find a smooth path through the potholes, bumps and other minuscule imperfections. Even small potholes sent huge bangs through the chassis, expansion joints made my teeth rattle and I had little confidence in the car around fast corners. The car is my daily driver, so a crashy, nervous drive becomes tiresome very quickly. This was one of the few complaints most journalists had with the car when it was released. I tried lowering the tyre pressures a bit (quite high as standard), which made the ride softer, although gave the steering a heavier, "wading through treacle" feel - not a permanent solution. I researched a few coilover options, specifically the KW V3s and the cheaper BC BR kit, but choosing my own spring rates for front and back presented a level of uncertainty I was uncomfortable with. I'm not an engineer/suspension guru and I'd hate to choose the wrong springs, change them, get it wrong, then have to buy more and have another go. I couldn't afford that kind of "wild stab in the dark" approach. As these cars are pretty rare, chances to have a ride in one with the suspension options I was interested in were almost nil. Even if I got the right combination by luck, I have no idea how to set bump, rebound, etc and wanted the ride height to remain standard. I'd almost given up, when a great guy on here (PeterP18) put me in contact with a chap who'd fitted 2013 spec coilovers to his 2008 and found the ride much improved, but after 500ish miles, swapped again to an adjustable setup in order to lower the ride height. A few emails later, he seemed genuine and still had the old 2013 ones for sale, so I snapped them up! My local main dealer fitted them and were extremely competitive on price too. The springs and shocks were a straight swap but unusually, the 2013 setup doesn't use rubber cups between the springs and the shocks. They're metal-on-metal. So.... What a difference! The ride height is unchanged and bumps are now damped extremely effectively. Larger lumps are still evident (it'll always be a firm car), but the effect is much reduced without feeling detached from the road. The car seems more composed and flat around corners, and inside the cabin seems a bit quieter. All in all, how the car should have been when it left the factory! I'm really happy and I'd recommend the change to anybody! If anyone's interested in the part numbers required, I can dig them out and pop them on here...

If it's a Guernsey car, it's probably had a dozen or so sets of wing mirrors smashed off it in its life. ****, those roads are narrow. I believe you can take our extra mirror insurance on hire cars, it's such an issue!

Welcome!

£13.3k.... Pretty cheap!

Are you using the 14kg front springs and 10 on the rears?

Be good to hear how the ride and handling has changed! 😃

It's always sad when you hear stories like this. In a super competitive market, sometimes good service makes all the difference. My wife and I can't fault Lexus Hedge End (Southampton). Customer service has been exemplary. Probably the reason why we've had 3 so far, she's still on her RX450h and loves it, I originally had a GS450h and now have an ISF.

Last guy to own mine tried yellowstuff pads. He reckoned they tore up the discs pretty badly, and when I bought the car it'd just had new discs and new oem pads. I've not had any experience myself though...

I'd love a set of winters, but I don't really think I can be bothered with the hassle! What tyres are everyone else running? Happy with them?

About 24mpg here. It's been as high as 33-34ish on a long motorway journey. Most of my driving is town and hoon (not much in between)

They do get good reviews... Better than the Michelin PS3s or Continental Sport Contact 3s?

Hi all, I'm starting to need replacement tyres as I've clearly been enjoying the F far too much during its first few months with me! Thought I'd get them done before the winter weather sets in. I've got the standard wheels on mine, so fitment is 225/40R19 at the front and 255/35R19 at the rear. Tyres are currently Bridgestone Potenza RE050. I'm not going to track this car (got somethi else for that), so I'm after a good all-weather performance tyre. Any recommendations? The current set seem a little vague in the rain especially in standing water, but could just be low tread depth. Thanks!

Ford Fiesta 1.25 BMW 323i Ford Mondeo TDCi Ford Mondeo ST220 Mercedes SL500 Porsche 911 Turbo X50 Lexus GS450h Honda S2000 Lexus ISF I've loved each and every one, in their own way!

I can't make any of those dates (damned work) - sorry chaps!

I'd like to do a dyno day - be interesting to see what the H&S exhaust and Takeda intake has achieved!

I asked H&S about having a switchable exhaust. They told me they couldn't do a system to quieten an already loud exhaust, you'd have to have a quiet exhaust and a valve to make it louder, if that makes sense!

Thanks for the replies so far. It's fine apart from the odd road which brings out the "****!" comments... ..I'll just grow a pair!

Hi guys, I've been the owner of an ISF for about 2 months now and absolutely love it. However, it does seem to ride on the "holy moly" side of firm on some of the roads round here! It's a 2008 model, so way before Lexus started softening everything up. The car will never see a track day (got something else for that), so any suggestions on how to make it softer would be appreciated! There seems to be a lot of info out there on making it a total track weapon, but not much going the other way... ...or should I just man-up a bit?

You'll get used to it - I believe after a week or so it quietens down a bit anyway. Certainly is, by far, the best sounding car I've ever owned :-)

Just out of interest, do you go round lots of roundabouts quickly? Not noticed a problem yet with my ISF, but the previous owner recommended the tracking be checked regularly. It's a heavy car, so slow right hand corners, taken with 'verve', would wear the front left more than the others? May be worth booking an appointment at the nearest centre with a Hunter machine for a full geo. Budget about £90 - it'll be worth it.

Some really good advice, thanks! I shall give the vinegar a go, purely due to convenience (I have some), then it might be a trip to the local dry cleaners.