PhoeNicks

That's a real shame about the GS. I've only driven the old C63 and the new C63s. They are both torque monsters and feel very fast from low revs. The 5.0litre in the RCF (same as the ISF) needs more time to wind up. Higher up the rev range the AMGs and the Fs feel similar, neither feels like it will or can change direction like an M4, but they don't feel overly nose heavy either. The AMGs 'felt' faster to me as they are more aggressive and sound louder. They look very premium inside due to the more conventional interior layout, but there isn't more quality. I think it's really down to a more cohesive feeling of 'This is a weapon, it will go stupidly fast'. I didn't think the steering was all that great in the AMGs, nor the ride which was very firm in both, more so in the old car. And neither is very subtle, in looks nor how the sound. Horses for courses, but if you want a car with blunt performance and noise, that looks mean and shouty, you'll not buy a Lexus over the AMG. But then, that's exactly why I don't own an AMG.

I should have perhaps been a little more specific in my post. You alluded to it anyway; the RCF isn't trying to sell itself to buyers looking at M3s and C63s. Those buyers will buy those cars because that is exactly what they are after. However Lexus is still aiming to sell the RCF to the sort of people who will consider other German models. This is how they are pitched and priced. All the other manufactures have realised that they have to change tact and we've seen them reduce weight, engine sizes and improve economy. By doing this you'll get a byproduct or better handling, but this may not be the primary aim. Lexus buyers may not care about sports car handling, but the will care about running costs and perceived value for money. I want Lexus to do well, I think the RCF is so close already, but as I originally stated, the next one needs changes to keep up with other brands. At the end of the day, Lexus are in this to sell cars. I would like to see them bring out another ISF, I think that has been missing from their F line-up for some time. Actually they'll need a new GSF now too, but I haven't seen much speculation about either. Atm its only the RCF thats keeping the F brand alive.

Lexus need to get into the right decade with the satnav at least. The Japanese know technology if nothing else, so why is this area still lagging behind ze Germans? The current gen RCF is still a desirable car, but Lexus are going to have to up their game (and down the weight) with the next one, if they really want to compete with the German marques.

No experience of the kumhos, however I've a spare set of the original fit Bridgestones looking for a new home 😁

I once flagged down a gritter and made him stop so my new (to me) car didnt get peppered. Id done it before i even realised how bizzarre it must have seemed. He did stop though, possibly out of confusion. Its been unseasonably warm this year and only now feels like winter is setting in. My first in several years without a quattro Audi, which just refused to get stuck in the Scottish snow. The ISF is skittish in rain, so I'm going to have to find an alternative if/when it snows. I'm not going down the winter tyre route though, I love my shiny paintwork too much.

When I got my warranty, the dealer said they needed to inspect the car if it was outside of 3 months from the previous warranty expiring and them having last seen the car. Best phone and check.

Enjoy the new car. Got mine in July and I still love it. I Should have got one earlier!

Looking good Dan, I like the rear boot spoiler, nice and subtle. Wait... a 3 bucket method, what dark sorcery is this??

Hi there, car looks great and I'm loving the colour of the seats. I chose an E36 M3 Evo over the breadvan at the time, but often wish I had just gotten use to the smaller cabin. They do sound awesome however.

I think the main issue with PPF is the cost. The old film could look tatty after a while, but with the new self healing stuff this wouldn't be so much of an issue. However to cover your bonnet, wings and bumper, well it's likely to cost the same as a front end respray. Like I said, for the right car and under the right conditions I'd go for the film. Just as a side note regarding paint hardness - Clark said my paint was all original but was surprised as it was quite thick and very hard. He assumed it would be soft and easy to correct, but it wasn't and took far more effort. I don't know if this applies to just USB, but I wouldn't have thought so.

Having recently had Clark @ Polished Bliss correct my paint properly and ceramic coat it, I am fully away that if I use the car daily (that's what's it for) the paint is going to pick up imperfections. Short of covering every panel with self healing protection film - which is very expensive - I've gone as far as I am prepared to go (coating wise) to protect the paint. I'll still park strategically in the works car park, but im going to stop worrying about my paint, or looking at it under a microscope after every journey. Life is too short. Maybe when I get a classic or weekend car, I'll look at the film again, but for now I'm just going to enjoy driving 😎

Pete, what seats are those? They look really good and supportive. Liking your steering wheel also, that's not the original outter rim though, is it?

I had a quick look at this the other day, and I couldn't get the standard 19s as winters with the same brand front and back. This was with black circles with whom I normally purchase all my tyres. Was I being special?

Ah, I have some competition in the shiny stakes. Looks 'well 'ard' in black 😎

Good find Paul, I was thinking about this vid tonight. Funny that the points Clarkson makes fun of (the gearbox and exhausts tips) are totally normal these days. I think he was being overly harsh as the ISF was way ahead of its time. Still enjoy watching it, even if I should have bought the M3 lol.

Interesting point Pete re the loneliness of the modified scene, ive experienced this before when buying new cars that didn't have the knowledge or products available in the UK. Luckily in this case we've got you blazing a trail for us👍 Good to know re H&S, I'll need to have a good think about my options. Cheers.

Thanks Pete, I'll definitely come your way re modifications. I have to be careful when I look at or read about your beast... far too helping to follow suit. Interesting note about the AOS. Does this only affect modified cars or standard too? I'll check out the US forums this week. Yeah I've been bad for wobbles in the past, however the ISF is my first decent all rounder that has the power to make it really fun. Do you rate the H&S system quality wise then? I've read a lot of feedback on them recently, but there's also much that is mixed; some examples show really poor workmanship, like it was just rushed. Ive been looking also at Jap systems but the price with import duties and carriage make them pricey. Need to think really hard on this as the build and finish looks stunning.

Thanks. I wasnt really planning much initially; I knew I wanted to protect the paintwork and put new tyres on, but then I had the option to move my detail from Dec to Oct and it all snowballed from there. At least I'm happy now the paintwork and wheels are ready for winter, not that she'll see much use anyway.

Not going to lie, I fell in love with the colour as much as the car itself. Having tried different foam pads, i settled on 3M clear double sided acrylic square pads. Do a search on Amazon and you should see various option. Simple to use and stick very well as long as you clean the surface properly first. It really depends on the condition of your paintwork, your detailer would need a viewing to make a judgement. My car had a correction to remove any minor marks/scratches and bring the deep luster back to the colour. This can take several days depending on the paint hardness and amount of defects to correct. My car looked very good, but still took several days, apparently the paint was original, but quite thick and hard. After this a Gyeon durabead ceramic coating was applied, rather than polish. This takes up to a day to apply to the bodywork and wheels but suposedly lasts up to 5 yrs. It can protect the paint from minor chips, blemishes and dirt, making it much easier to clean. I used it on my last car and essentally the finish was more durable, lasted longer and stopped dirt and bird crap from etching to the paint. There are many different coatings out there, depends what you want, how much you want to spend and what your detailer is familiar with.

Thanks Paul. It's been a bit hectic trying to tie-in all these streams of new parts, refurbs, the car being away for a week, getting everything swapped over and organising myself around work (which has been has been crazy busy of late). Gladly it's all come together as you see in the pics and I'm really happy with the car now. Yeah I think I'm going to hang here for a while and explore things further with Lexus. Ive done BMWs to death and this feels like a fresh start. Im conflicted about keeping the car original or moving away down the modified route. I'm going to look at some areas where things can easily be put back to stock and see how we go. This is my daily so I don't want to upset the balance too much. I'll be sure to continue to seek advice from you guys as this is a great forum with plenty of knowledge and ideas 😎 👍

Haha, sorry i feel like a bit of a charlatan now... sadly the workshop isn't my garage. The pics were taken just before I picked the car up. My garage is fairly normal and currently full of spare wheels and tyres. My workshop is also full of junk... Thanks for the comments guys.

Haha, hoping to hold onto this one a bit longer 😉

This has been a little while coming, so please bear with me. I'm a bit of a perfectionist (it's a curse) and never more so than with my cars. I have a bit of a history with 'refreshing' cars. This usually involves returning cars to a better than pristine state and then (lots of money later), getting bored, selling and starting again. Thus it's hard for me really appreciate my cars and to keep them for any long duration. Like I said, a curse. Anyway I'm hoping to change my ways with my move to Lexus. It just ticks so many boxes for me right now. The base car was a really good place to start: low mileage and a full service history from the original dealer. The car had been well looked after; the paint work original, in good nick and the mechanicals sound. However, as with everything that gets used, it picks up some perfections along the way. The first thing I wanted to do was sort the paint. The car had picked up some front end blemishes/marks and the odd chip. To do this properly required a complete front end refresh. The next issue is that nothing lets a fresh paint job down more than putting tatty trim back on. So new headlights, grills, and a plate mount later and we were looking good. I love the original look of the ISF, so while salivating over an amazing set of forged Vossen alloys, I chose to refurb the oem 10 spokes for now. I didnt want the car sitting on axel stands for a week, so i opted for getting another set. After sourcing a great set from a very helpful member on here, we got these refurbished and sent up to me. The wheels came with new Bridgestones, however I'd already bought some PS4Ss which had been in the garage, getting in the way of the Mrs. I really rate these, having used PSSs for years. New wheel centers finish these off well. Turns out the old ones were actually in very good condition anyway. The ISF's interior is in really good condition, if a little dark. Theres nothing i hate more than saggy seats with crumpled bolsters. It was also a nice surprise considering how badly my previous new Audi seats wore over 2 years of light use. I toyed with the idea of a quilted cream retrim, having seen how good the colour looks combined with an USB car. I'm going to sit (haha) on this for a bit as it strays from original and I'm not sure how well it resists dirt (i have a little one on the way). Ive settled for now with a new set of Lexus mats, Lexus boot liner and some replacement plastic trims (replaced some scuffed boot trays and sill trims). Finally, to tie everything in, the car came back today after several days away with a really nice man called Clark. His reputation preceeds him and im never dissapointed with his work. He treated the ISF to a paint correction, detail and a protective quartz coating on the body, trim and wheels. Next plans... well I'm currently trying to source a Jap s/s & titanium exhaust to help the v8 sound a bit meaner. Then I'll see how I feel about the Vossens and the retrim again. Big thanks again to Mr Rat and Sam at Lexus Cheltenham for helping me out big-time with the wheels. Top blokes. Right, ive prattled on enough, see what you think:

Isn't that odd? I've had older cars that used this, and if the tech is there already why wouldn't they use it in the UK?

Quick question chaps, I was under the impression the ISF had tyre pressure monioring valves and I'm sure I saw a TPMS section in one of the car's menus. I've just been informed the uk cars dont have this. Maybe I've been reading info on the web about the US cars which do use them. News to anyone else?