wharfhouse

P3000-388 Discharge Inhibition Control Malfunction. This code is triggered when the battery’s state of charge decreases due to the vehicle being left in N position, running low on fuel or a malfunction occurring in the HV control system. Possible causes include: HV control system, HV battery assembly or a fuel shortage

You obviously take care to make sure the system is dry in your car which is great. However, the propensity of issues (on all car forums) from people with smelly or leaking air con means that others don't appear to take that care. Although nothing scientific, the vast majority of these problems are from people who switch air con off and only have it on when they want cold air from time to time whereas those who leave it on all the time rarely report any problems. In addition, automatic air con, IMHO, is designed to be on full-time and I would have thought be engineered to maintain itself as much as possible in this mode - but I may be too trusting of designers...! Anyway, I'm happy doing what I have for decades - never had an issue with the systems or been ill.

I think we will have to agree to disagree since for decades I have run cars with AC always on (some to high mileage) and never had a problem with smells, leaks, misting up windows or any of the problems others often report. Making sure the AC is dry as you suggest would also work too but not always easy to remember - leaving it on all the time is certainly easier and I can assure everyone from my experience leaving it on 365 days a year prevents the old socks smell!

The fix is the same for all cars especially those with automatic air con like yours. Do not switch the air con off!!! - just leave it on auto all the time and set the desired temperature for the system to maintain. This way condensate does not settle in the system where bacteria can grow and produce the smell and also it prevents any seals from drying out and causing leaks. Regards the mould on the radiator i am assuming you mean mould in the condenser - if it was just on the outside of the radiator just clean it off. My plan of action would be to get the system cleaned again (maybe by a 3rd party air con specialist - also running the heating on max while driving around with the air con on for an hour or so on auto can help kill the bacteria though it might smell for a while but you can leave the windows open) and then leave the air con set on full time - you said yourself the smell only came back after switching it off. I have never had the problem with smells others often report on any of my cars but have always left air con on auto all of the time on all of them. With modern cars the impact on fuel consumption is negligible and the additional cost is certainly far, far less than any problems caused such as you appear to be experiencing.

That tallies with what I have always found - about 3psi between summer and winter - I alway use the same hand held pressure gauge and never ever rely on the garages... Even check after a service as they are often slightly out and different between tyres when I get the car back so I put them all right so I can monitor any change by comparing between tyres which then rules out any temperature difference. I also read that oxygen molecules actually leak through the rubber tyre whereas nitrogen molecules (being larger) do not. As air is approx 20% oxygen and 80% nitrogen over time (not sure how long) a tyre will naturally lose 20% of its air. That's why some tyre places fill with nitrogen as the pressure is more stable longer term.

If you are looking around £16/17K you are probably in the earlier years of the model range (2014/15) depending on trim - I have a pdf brochure I've attached here dated Jan 2016 that has the specs of all trims - over time specs change so may not be totally accurate for earlier cars but it might give you a reasonable starting point when comparing trim levels for what you might want to narrow down to. Lexus IS.pdf

Go into a Lexus dealer and tell them what you want and they will search their current stock (can do that across all dealers) which will be much the same as on the Lexus Used Car website but in addition they have an idea about what is just coming in or about to come in based on trade ins so you might be able to find what you want before it's advertised on the website. Mind you at that point you wouldn't have much negotiation clout... Personally I prefer to cast the net wider and then have an upper hand in price negotiations. When I bought mine I had a broad idea of what I wanted but when I started looking in earnest found an excellent deal on a 2 year old IS 300h but with 40k miles - higher mileage than I initially was thinking of but at a price that I couldn't ignore and so bought it. Nearly three years later it has never missed a beat and depreciation has been incredibly low. ..

Do you also have a lighting board as well? If the bike obscures lights/number plate you will need one. Depends how keen a following police car is but they do book people now and then. I looked into a tow bar for the IS 300h for this reason to fit a bike carrier and lighting board to (as well as for towing a boat). Although the IS 300h is rated to tow and there is a tow bar available from Lexus there are no 3rd party ones and looked like Lexus would want £1K+ to supply and fit.

Yep agreed - just that if BP were supplying to Sainsburys then although the additives may be different I would have expected the ethanol content to be the same - related to the above about BP Super Unleaded having no ethanol but Sainsburys shows as E5 for their super unleaded (unless they have just done that regardless of course to cover themselves).

I had read that Sainsburys fuel is (or at least was) supplied from BP - Sainsburys are showing the E5 sticker on both standard and super unleaded - of course their supply may have changed since I read that...

And this for vehicle compatibility with E10 fuels: https://www.acea.be/uploads/publications/ACEA_E10_compatibility.pdf - states for Lexus that: Lexus: E10 petrol is cleared for use in all Lexus European petrol models made from January 1998, excluding: • IS250 2.5 litre V6 with engine 4GR-FSE made between August 2005 and September ACEA E10 compatibility list – August 2018 10 2007. • GS300 3.0 litre V6 with engine 3GR-FSE made between January 2005 and September 2007. • LS460 4.6 litre V8 with engine 1UR-FSE made between August 2006 and September 2007.

See: https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/car-news/106137/official-e5-petrol-and-b7-diesel-fuel-pump-labels-introduced-on-uk-forecourts about new pump labeling from September - in fact I noticed my local Sainsburys already has this now - pumps are labelled E5 for petrol (with regular and super options both labelled E5 at my local Sainsburys) and B7 for diesel. Most (if not all) fuel has been E5 here for a long time, just that the fuel stations didn't have to label the pumps. In some EU countries you see E5 and E10 so can choose which to use. Here is another link about E10 fuels - a bit old now but useful: https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/advice/emissions/what-is-e10-fuel-and-how-could-it-affect-you/ - note the paras (about E10): Can it be used in all cars? In short, no. The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) estimates that 92.2% of the petrol-engined vehicles in the UK are compatible with E10, but the remainder are not. As of 2011, all new cars sold in the UK must be E10 compatible. As a rule, drivers of cars registered prior to 2002 are advised not to use E10 in their vehicle, as problems have been reported. The RAC’s technical director, David Bizley, said possible damage can be “caused by bioethanol's corrosive properties which can lead to damaged seals, plastics and metals.

Coincidently I have found the same on my IS 300h - if the fob is in my right hand trouser pocket, usually also with my wallet, I occasionally get the low battery key message. However, I can have it in a coat on the back seat and never get the warning - in the end I put it down to just that particular position and maybe the body shielding the signal - until I see the warning more frequently won't worry about changing the battery yet.

I second DanD - had lots of cars with automatic air con and never any bad smells but I have always leave air con running full time just adjusting the temperature as needed. When the air con isn't running some water accumulates in the system in which the bacteria grow and hence the smell and it's then very difficult to rid the car of it completely. The very small difference running air con all the time makes to mpg (in modern cars as it's regulated by the car as to how much is needed) is very small and well worth it to a) avoid the small of old socks and b) maintain all the O-rings etc. and avoid leaks as they get old and dry out by keeping the oil circulating. If you get the system cleaned and deodorised then leave the AC from there on out and hopefully the smell won't come back again.

I concur with all the above - I came to a Lexus IS 300h from a line of BMWs my latest being the E90 330i. I was looking for something a bit "different" but which had to be very reliable - I loved the BMWs I had but had got bored of the sameness of the cars year to year and didn't fancy a Merc or Audi. I read all the reviews etc. which gave a mixed picture and so booked a 24 hour test drive in the IS 300h and then wondered what all the all the journos were talking about! I found the car very impressive and the e-cvt incredibly well suited to modern day roads and traffic. In fact I went straight to the dealer the next day and purchased a 2 year old 40K miles IS 300h Executive trim which I have had for nearly 3 years now (its now done 75K miles). In that time I have been deeply impressed with the cars ability as a long distance tourer and the smoothness and fuel economy, especially in traffic - it's a very serene experience. The car's handling is not too far away from the BMW as some might make out. Performance wise, yes it's not as fast as my BMW 330i but in normal day-to-day driving it's perfectly fine and I don't miss the extra horses in my last BMW. I tend to drive in Eco mode most of the time as I seem to be either in heavy traffic or cruising on a motorway and so don't see any sense in paying more than I need to in petrol. If I need more instantaneous power then pop it into Sport mode and for making swifter progress on an empty road or for overtaking I'm happy. I will say that although I made a quick decision based on my test drive that it does take a couple of months of normal driving to really appreciate the e-cvt and the car as a whole. If you use a test drive as if you are on race track you will be disappointed - it's not what the car is designed to do - you really do need to test the car on your normal commute or decent length sensible journey to appreciate whether it's right for you. By the way I had a Merc C200 (8 speed autobox and petrol) for a few weeks whilst my IS 300h was in for some body damage (not my fault) and really hated it. The autobox was never in the right gear and was jerky and slow. Progress was hampered waiting for the autobox to change down gears (usually a few of them) followed by acceleration some time after I wanted it. Given the negative press leveled by some journos at the IS 300h e-cvt and yet not at the Merc I have now concluded that they really don't have a clue what they are talking about! After getting my IS 300h back again it really underlined that I made the right decision.

Strange how some get rattles and some don't - mine is a 2014 with 75K miles on it now and no rattles at all from the car although I have found that items left on the centre console box do sometimes rattle and it's surprising where you think those rattles are coming from - a few times I thought I had a rattle and then emptied the centre console and it was gone! Also I Gummi Pflege the door seals/rubbers about twice a year - the noise they can make also sounds like rattles (near the upper seatbelt mountings) and this stuff works really well in eliminating those (common to lots of cars).

Had a failed washer bottle sensor in my IS 300h last year - just over £420 to replace it - I have the Lexus extended warranty which covered it (probably wouldn't have replaced it without the extended warranty though).

Most of those items you list are overpriced and you can get them cheaper - but - they have a high commission for the dealers built into them and so can be a good negotiating chip - if you want any of them then the dealer will usually either give them for free or at a decent discount to get the deal over the line. However, if you have agreed on a price now for the car probably too late to negotiate on them.

If it's the leather that is ripped it will just need a new leather seat cover - the dealer should be able to sort that out - as for cost then I have no idea...

Maybe that is why - if someone wants the car take it as is then they don't do the work - also while it's being test driven or sat at the dealer it's getting dirty and may be subject to further scuffs I guess - I bought mine second hand at a Lexus dealer - 2 years old with 40K miles. That had been at the dealer a little while I think (as the mileage was relatively high for the age - however it had been only one owner, purchased at that dealer and serviced by that dealer so was a good car to buy in my view - also with a higher mileage it's most likely done the miles as unstressed motorway miles which are often better than a low mileage short journey only car) - I negotiated a discount (not quite as much as you are looking for perhaps but I was very happy) and it took them just under a week to then prep the car for collection - wasn't really much to do - mainly a good clean and polish etc.

In my experience the dealers don't always do the work until the car is sold

Executive trim has leather seats but manual adjustment

My 64 reg Executive has parking sensors front and rear but no rear camera. Has leather with manual seats (heated) and the standard sat nav. Do check though any specific car as the spec seemed to change each year...

Mine is 64 reg Executive spec and I'm very happy with the level of kit but then I've never been into having lots of tech in a car

As with any up market car when you come to selling the price will be influenced by a non-Lexus service history - how much that matters to you depends on your own circumstances and how long you plan to keep the car etc. Also a Lexus service gives you a free hybrid health check (extra 10k mile/1year warranty) but you can buy this seperate to servicing for £59. If you do take Lexus extended warranty the car must be serviced by Lexus.