PRT68

Haven't purchased anything for the Lexus, but have for a recently bought Abarth 595. A centre arm rest for £26 delivered. Normally about £75 from places in the UK. Best bargains have been for the alloy wheels. I removed the centre hub caps, and replaced with wheel centres with the Abarth logo, and chromed wheel nut caps. Did all 4 wheels for less than £6!! 4 valve caps with the Abarth logo for 75p as well! Delivered within a week.

As the above poster says, buy a car and it already has tyres on it. Do people immediately purchase a set of tyres to replace them? I suppose some do. Do people refuse to hire a car when on holiday unless it has new tyres on it before driving away? Do people refuse to get into a taxi unless it has new tyres on it? I was a taxi driver for 22 years. Nobody checked all my tyres before they got in......

Failure quota to show they're being thorough?

I also use that Amazon protector, along with a piece of yoga mat underneath. Never any marks or indentations

Wouldn't bother. If you do it, all 4 tyres will need replacing at the same time. If you leave alone, only the driven wheels will need doing.

Judging by some of the negative comments towards cyclists on the cycling thread, consider yourself lucky to be alive!!

No, hasn't happened to me.

Surely this has to be a faulty plug or coil pack. I had exactly the same symptoms in Prius, and it was a plug. Genuine Toyota plug that failed after 20,000 miles. Don't know which one it was as I changed all 4. Couldn't be bothered to faff about, and that sorted it. If that hadn't worked, I would have bought a new coil pack and swapped it about until cured.

As mentioned before, I was a taxi driver for over 22 years, clocking up well over a million miles personally in many vehicles, and had several other vehicles I rented out to other drivers doing mega miles. I used to buy them at about 100k, and taking many to 200k. All meticulously maintained, with a lot of preventative maintainance. All serviced every 10k miles. Never stranded at the side of the road, and never had to limp home. Many of my friends and colleagues didn't do the same. One or two had engine problems, but by far the biggest killers of cars was low coolant and cambelts snapping. Really, many of you are making mountains out of mole hills. If you're doing 10k per year in a Lexus, service once a year and save yourself money, and be done with it.

Waste of money. I used the cheapest, relevant oil in my Prius when I was a taxi driver. Changed every 10k. Took it up to 192k, when I sold it, and it carried on until over 230k with the next owner before it was written off in an accident. Didn't change the transmission oil either.

You can keep the car, I want the garage!!! It looks huge, I'd love it!

Have you already been a Private Hire driver, or is this a new venture? I did it for nearly 25 years.

Same for me. I've had my RC300h for 5 years now, and was itching for a change. If there was an IS300h estate I would change to that. I don't want an SUV thing, nor a late IS300h, as I suppose they're a bit dated now, and really no better than what I've got. Mine has only done 37k, so may as well keep it, especially with the Relax warranty. So, I've done the very sensible thing, and spent the £11k burning a hole in my pocket and bought an Abarth 595. 145bhp, soon to be 170!! It's a riot to drive, and smiles from ear to ear!

That looks to me as if stone chips as well. The white is most probably where the lacquer has been 'punctured'. Get some colour coded T- cut to fill the chips (even black would be ok). Power washing is OK, but only as a rinse.

Had many high performance cars in my driving life of 53 years, culminating in an ISF that I part exchanged for an RC300h five years ago. I've wanted another quick car, small and nippy, that I could have a final fling in. With my 70th birthday coming up next week, I've just been and bought myself an Abarth 595, 70th anniversary edition. It has the lowest performance of the Abarth range with only 145 bhp, but it's an absolute hoot. A little pocket rocket that makes you smile all the time!! (Doesn't cost a lot to get it up to 180bhp either). It sits on the drive alongside the Lexus, which I've had to keep of course, as my wife will never come out in it (thank goodness!!!)