zoricib

@Linas.P do you happen to have the passenger side front bumper lip/splitter? Must have left mine in a puddle somewhere...

When I got my car 4 years ago it came with the Vlands. Wasn't a fan at the beginning but they grew on me. The light pattern is a bit scattered on high beam, but visibility is great and had no issues on MOTs etc. They've lasted me 4 years + whatever they've lasted the previous owner, so no issues with durability from me.

Look up an IS350 for sale and get a quote on comparethemarket/ money supermarket etc. It's extremely likely that your details and circumstances will have more of an impact on the price than the insurance group.

Got a link by any chance?

On the repair I asked the mechanic to take a look whilst I had my oil changed as I thought the exhaust had a blow somewhere & he welded it a bit but did mention the metal was thin and he won't be able to do a great job on it. For £10, that's exactly how I was expecting it to last 😄. Gives me a reason to switch the resonator though, which I always wanted to do.

Depending on where the blow is, it could be repairable. If you're changing just the backboxes you can get a non-oem replacement from ebay for £250 but the quality will not be great - it could last 2 years or 10... Or you could get stainless steel backboxes for about £350. Mine is now blowing by the middle box/ resonator (had it welded once but lasted a few weeks because the metal is so thin), so will have it replaced with an aftermarket one. There are plenty of options to repair or replace, but depends on how much you want to spend on this.

I'm interested, can you dm me the cost including postage to CV10 please?

Rant time: Any time I called AF for my IS250 I don't think the quotes been below £1,500-£2,000 whilst every other insurer went for the £500-£600 mark... I don't see the point of advertising your services if you surely know your figures will be way way above market averages...

That's the plan on oil changes. I'm waiting to see when the rattle comes in to set it as a benchmark for the shorter intervals.

Thanks Vlad! Will have a look at the ZX1.

Would also recommend trying other comparison websites. Compare the market used to be the cheapest for me but in the past 2 years GoCompare was 150-200 cheaper. As to why some things don't make sense, I think it's very strongly statistics based - if people with 2k excess had more crashes compared to those with 200, then they potentially see it as a risk. In some countries they insure a car against a person but then anyone can drive the car...isn't that a dream!

If you have a friend with UK driving experience & over 30 who would be willing to appear as a second driver on your policy, that might help reduce it. When I started driving I added my GF on a provisional licence and my insurance went down!

The asymmetric are on the back, on the front I have the efficient grips. Haven't noticed any changes in the steering from the tyres. However, when I was on holiday and rented a Fiat Panda for a week, when I came back I felt like I was battling the steering wheel in the lexus...maybe with you driving the Ford now too you're feeling a difference? I also like to run my tyres a bit more inflated - from memory it's 40psi/2.8 bar fronts and 43psi/3 bar rears - I feel it handles better with more air in the tyres. I think you can adjust the steering wheel weight if you get a copy of techstream? I remember moving it up a number when I got the car as it was feeling rather light for my liking

Can't not take care of it when I like the car so much 😄 I still enjoy driving it and always turn to look back at it after I park.

Are you using any comparison websites for insurance? Also as daft as it sounds, comprehensive insurance is cheaper than 3rd party only, in case that's what you were looking at.

Hi all, A few days ago was the 4 year ownership anniversary of my 2005 plate IS250, which was purchased from a fellow forum member. As I kept track of most of the spending on the car, I thought I'd share the ownership costs over the 4 years. Apart from the ATF change, which I'm not sure I'll tackle as it at 120k miles now, I think I completed all big maintenance items for the age & mileage of the car. Also will start changing the oil sooner, 6-8k intervals, as I noticed the chain rattle comes back once the oil degrades. Next will look at replacing brake fluid and diff oil, as well as front pads and discs. As a general observation, noticed that the car is happier with Motul 8100 Eco Energy oil and it does not burn any of it. Tried OEM Lexus & Petronas as well, but had to top up around 200ml after around 5k miles to keep the level bang on in the middle. Maintenance Cost to date £3,162.00 2020 £1,037.00 2021 £145.00 2022 £888.00 2023 £962.00 2024 £130.00 Av cost per month since ownership £65.88 Date Description Cost July 2020 After Purchase Service with OEM Lexus/Toyota parts- oil, oil filter, air filter, cabin filter, sparkplugs, brake fluid, coolant, diff oil £430.00 September 2020 rear tyres Avon ZV7 & 4wheel alignment £250.00 October 2020 MOT £37.00 October 2020 water pump, belt & pulleys + coolant again £230.00 November 2020 Battery Boch £90.00 21 Aug 2021 oil (Motul) & filters (oil, cabin, air) Change @92,730 £100.00 October 2021 MOT £45.00 March 2022 stainless steel back boxes £380.00 August 2022 brake sliding pins all 4 corners £50.00 August 2022 new front tyres - Goodyear efficient grip 2 £140.00 August 2022 oil & filters - parts £84.00 August 2022 rear brake safety pins - parts £30.00 August 2022 oil (motul), filters & brakes service - labour @102,282 £150.00 October 2022 MOT £54.00 April 2023 gsf front bushes purchased & installed £130.00 July 2023 oil (petronas), filters, brakes cleaned, sliding pins lubed, rear pads changed @112,483 £250.00 September 2023 New rear tyres - Goodyear Asy 6 - old ZV7 tyres started perishing despite about 5mm thread remaining October 2023 MOT £49.00 November 2023 stud lug replacement (parts and labour) £100.00 November 2023 Alternator £125.00 November 2023 Alternator fitting £166.00 November 2023 4 wheel tracking - check & adjust £38.00 November 2023 2 service packs ordered from Opie oils - Motul 8100 Eco Energy £104.00 April 2024 Oil (Motul), filters & all 4 sliding pins greased @122,222 - labour only £130.00 Visual Mods Cost to date £430 Date Description Cost March 2022 Ceramic window tints front and back £185.00 August 2023 rear reflectors LED £45.00 November 2023 wheel refurb £180.00 November 2023 calliper paint diy £20.00

check on the alternator too - mine was having a whine sound before it gave up

Thanks everyone for your input. looks like I'll either go for the bigger breaks or will go with some cheapish low dust pads.

Hi everyone, I'm looking to replace my front discs and pads at the next service in a few months. Should I go with OEM-like quality or is an EBC Green stuff & their discs upgrade worth it? Any other low-dust pads recommended?

Any chance this is a forum member?😁 Impressive drive from the UK to Portugal...thought the plane trip was on the long side.

I replaced the water pump in 2020 (water pump, a pulley, the accessories belt & coolant) for £230 inc labour. Water pump alone was around 130 if I remember right... The alternator I replaced with a remanufactured part from ebay which cost £125 & £166 for labour - it's known to be quite tricky to replace because of lack of space.

If prior to your issue you started your car for a very short time (e.g. engine ran for around 30s), the engine could be flooded - this happened to me too. Start it over 4-5 times with your accelerator at the floor so it clears the unburnt petrol.

Thanks Linas! Mouldings was the word I was after, not clips😄

Any idea if they'll replace the exterior clips on a typical windscreen replacement? Mine has been done before (I think) and it has lots of micro-pitting so I was considering putting a claim in (and a hammer through the windshield to qualify 😅) but the external clips don't look great & know they're quite expensive to replace.

Nice one! Ordered 2