McShmoopy

5 hours ago, Herbie said:

But do they?

There is nothing 'Lexus-specific' about the aircon system so being a Lexus/Toyota specialist means nothing in this context.

Personally, I go to mechanics for mechanical problems; auto-electricians for electrical issues (unless we're talking about the hybrid system) and aircon specialists for aircon issues.

Hmm that is an excellent point to be fair, I was planning on doing all the general servicing myself such as filters oil changes etc but its been a hectic few weeks so free time is limited. This reason alone I may consider servicing myself next year at least you know its done that way! The IS250's seem pretty nice to work on yourself compared to most other makes 

26 minutes ago, AntC said:

As Herbie said, the refrigerant does not evaporate or wear out. If you had to have the car regassed in the first place, it means you have a leak somewhere.

There is also the possibility of the hot/cold air valve not switching completely to the cold position.

Also, the AC compressor is using oil of its own that should be changed occasionally to avoid buying a new compressor.

However, as others have stated, I would first check for any leaks.

What usually causes the leaks, wear and tear? I do tend to look after my cars but the previous owner did alot of motorway miles and was the sole owner. 

14 minutes ago, steve2006 said:

I know it’s illegal to simply vent refrigerant gas to the atmosphere ( and indeed somewhat dangerous).

I also believe that AC work is required to be carried out only by registered operators to ensure the job is done properly i.e. the system is thoroughly checked for leaks both visually and a nitrogen/uv dye mix, carry out any required repairs to ensure the system is gas tight, purge and apply a vacuum to confirm and only then recharge the system with the correct type and amount of refrigerant/ oil.

My Celsior is still ice cold on AC and never had a recharge in 27 years!

For that reason this is why I've taken my car to this garage as they state they're a Lexus / Toyota specialist and I'd rather have people who know what they're doing! But that is good to know that you should only need to recharge AC if there's an issue or a very minor leak. 

6 minutes ago, Herbie said:

Exactly as Peter said above.

It sounds very much like they've just regassed it but without properly testing it first, which is very poor in my opinion. The refrigerant gas does not wear out or get converted to something else - the only possible reason for a lack of gas is a leak somewhere.

Thanks for the input, very disappointing indeed which is a shame as I've taken my mums IS250C here and not had any prior issues. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt and see if they can rectify this on Monday hopefully without charge. 

11 minutes ago, NemesisUK said:

Does sound like a leak. The a/c will be cold immediately after regassing but if the leak isn't catastrophic it will only slowly deteriorate in performance.

That all said they should have tested it for leaks, not simply regass it. Most machines will pull a vacuum to test the system.

Maybe take it to an aircon specialist instead?

Thanks for the insight, I did suspect they maybe missed a leak although that is disappointing considering I paid £50 and they claimed to have checked it all. Depending how it goes on Monday I may have to take it to an aircon specialist 

Hi Guys

Recently my cars Air Con suddenly started blowing warm air compared to before when it was ice cold. I figured it'd be the refrigerant that needs gassing or some sort of leak so I've taken it to a Lexus specialist in Nottingham they just advised it was empty so they had regassed it alongside my MOT and oil and filter changes. 

Now on the drive back I noticed the Air Con was slightly colder but no where near compared to before. I figured I'll drive it home and see if it got colder over time but no improvement. I've just rang the garage back up and I'll be taking the car back on Monday for them to take a look however the guy assured me the air con was ice cold after he gassed it. 

Thought I'd get a second opinion from you guys before I take it back, could this perhaps be a refrigerant leak somewhere or some other potential fault?

13 hours ago, ZedZed said:

Hi everyone. New member here. Just bought a lovely 2007 LS 460 and am delighted with it. When the time comes for servicing, I usually take my cars to independent specialists rather than the main dealer network. Anyone got any suggestions for the Nottingham or Leicester areas?  Any help gratefully received. Thanks!

 

This is the beauty!

 

Congrats on the car it looks great! I took my mums newly purchased CATD IS250C to a lexus specialist based in Colwick called A&M and they did a nice job sorting out the seized callipers but it may be worth speaking to them and seeing if they're well equipped to handle an LS.

https://www.aandmnottinghamltd.co.uk

18 hours ago, J8k1122 said:

 

 

Hello everyone, I am potentially going to be a proud owner of an IS and have been reading extensively on them. I have a ‘what if’ question. I don’t know much about cars so I’m sorry if it’s a dumb question.

since the 220d and the 200d have the same engine and the 200d solved a lot of the issues with the engine… could you remap a 220d down to a 200d? Or even… would remapping in general help some of the problems with a 220d? I’ve seen some decent 220d out there but i don’t want to buy a problem car.
 

thanks

I was in a similar predicament where I was really after a ultrasonic blue IS and I almost gave in and got an F sport 200d, my heartfelt recommendation is steer clear. 

Even if remapped or just straight up buying a 200d, you’d experience clunky gear changes, unexceptional economy and from what I’ve been told the car is quite sluggish in comparison not to mention the reliability issues. 

Whereas with the IS250 the gearbox is a silky smooth automatic and the economy is acceptable and almost beats out the 200d and 220d. 

3 hours ago, Ozzay said:

The only issue I have had with my IS250 is that I have the most basic one. I don't have any parking sensors and reverse cam unit and would like the radar control system as well. Other than that its great.

You could get one of those android head units fitted in and combine that with 360 parking cameras. This was an option I consisted but it was tricky finding some something compatible with the existing NAVI so I opted for a GROM.

Few possibilities

￡155.46  40％ Off | Carplay+Auto Android 11 6+128G For Lexus IS IS250 IS300 IS350 2005-2011 Car Radio Stereo Multimedia Player GPS Navigation 4G Lte
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￡118.21  42％ Off | Car Radio Android 10.0 10.1'' DVD Player For Lexus IS250 IS300 IS200 IS220 IS350 2005-2012 Stereo 2 Din Head Unit GPS Navigation
https://a.aliexpress.com/_vCx082
 

￡181.77  3％ Off | Car AHD 3D 360 degree Camera Driving Panorama Recorder Bird View Parking Front Rear Side DVR Kit For Toyota Prado 2016-2020
https://a.aliexpress.com/_vcpXnM

Congrats on the new Lexus, I've had my IS250 F Sport for around 9 months and its certainly has been a welcome upgrade from my Corsa! I'm not able to answer some of your questions but I'll try and provide as much info as I can. 

The sunglasses holder I believe was only for non UK spec vehicles like the US, as UK cars have the alarm / immobiliser fitted in that area so I don't think its worth you trying to retrofit anything into there.

I think I have experienced the seat getting warm at times but I can't easily reproduce do that so I'll do some investigating myself on that front. 

I'm not sure about your boot issue but like mine and the IS250C we got for my mum, it had worn out struts so it may be worth replacing these with some from SGS engineering to have the boot easily open.

In terms of the type of fuel the car needs, it will do fine on 95 which is the bare minimum in the UK as far as I'm aware . Depending on the year of your car (I believe yours is 2005 based on sig) you may occasionally benefit from using the higher octane fuel as pre 2009 IS250s suffered from carbon build up issues so those higher octane fuels with their additives do help with keeping the engine clean and will help prolong the life of the car and minimise issues. My car is a 2010 and I've not had an issue using Texaco Unleaded 95 fuel and the car seems to return 400ish miles of range depending on my drive style.

The range on the trip computer is somewhat misleading as it depends on how light your foot is but you can usually go off tank average. Cruise control at 70mph will easily return 40 to 43 mpg depending on your load so while the car isnt exactly economical its not bad for a 2.5L V6!

One thing worth doing in your car depending if it came with the NAVI system or not is upgrade the infotainment. I myself have a GROM VLINE2 in my car and while its not perfect, its getting me Wireless apple CarPlay in my car while preserving all the OEM functions so it does help modernise the car! 

7 hours ago, Beamish said:

 

Hi Bilal,

Last year I sourced a pair of Strong Arm struts for my car from   LiftSupportsDepot.com   in the US . 

The cost was $82.00 including shipping to Ireland.

They have reduced the amount of effort required when lifting the boot lid but it still requires a little more than one would expect.

Quality seems fine and they are an easy fit.

Dec.

Thanks for the heads up mate! I assume your car is an IS250C also? I may consider this option as it seems cheaper then LEXUS Nottingham in any case.

20 hours ago, PRT68 said:

I had some  struts made up from Metrol Springs  Northampton. 

Ah I didn't realise you could get them custom made, in fairness SGS engineering isnt too far from me as they're based in Derby so it may be worth me giving them a ring... 

Hi Guys

I've recently changed out my boot struts for my IS250 F Sport with some from SGS engineering and they've worked a treat. However with my mums IS250C which I look after, I notice it suffers from the same issue as my car so I thought I'd try and see if the same struts can be used for it. Unfortunately it looks like they're a completely different length so I don't think it would quite work. 

Has anyone else managed to replace the struts on their IS250C's specifically? Lexus Nottingham quoted me £180 for the pair and £58 via SGS engineering was enough of an ask! 

32 minutes ago, gordon shenton said:

Hi .

I am looking to purchase a Lexus is 250c if anyone out there is thinking of selling.

Also any advice on purchasing the above would be appreciated.

What mpg can i expect ?

Regards Gordon

 

Hi Gordon

i managed to bag a CAT D write off IS250C for my mum and it’s great! Had to address an issue with the brakes and a few scuffs but nothing major.

I recently took a trip to heathrow in the IS250C to give it a good run with my mum and her heavy suitcases and with cruise control at 73 my average MPG was around 41 to 43mpg according to the tank average. 
town driving this will drop to 28 to 32 just depending on how light of a foot you have, comparing it to my IS250 F sport it’s very similar economy I’d say. 

Generally when buying follow the same rules as the IS250 and the pinned buyers guide will Help you out, the only exception is make sure the convertible roof is operating smoothly and doesn’t make an excessive amount of noise. As they can be pricey to fix if it were to fail. 

On 8/2/2021 at 4:38 PM, PJD69 said:

Thanks all for the comments chaps.. 🙂

All taken on board and enjoying the community vibe here..

It's quite simple..

I've struggled to find an IS250 locally with the Sat Nav in a year and trim I like.. they are turning up without the screen.

So wondering if/how long it's worth holding out...

There's quite a pricey one locally but with a superb history and it ticks all the boxes for me aside from the screen.. production date 2011, F Sport bodykit, Mark Levinson system, low mileage, FLSH, in the gorgeous Arctic Pearl.. the screen is the only thing missing.

I do like techy stuff so I was hankering after the screen, but not for any practical reason really and @Linas.P has a point that the buttons offer direct access vs using a touch screen whilst on the move..

Reversing camera would be nice for reversing out of a tight space at home, but I've already sourced a 'blink' camera to help with that..

I think I’ve seen the car you’re talking about on auto trader / eBay and it’s a beauty! The spec is very desirable and while it doesn’t have memory seats unlike the 2010 F sport, I’d say it’s worth the pennies but it’s always worth haggling when possible 😉

I myself haven’t had any problem using the screen while driving, sure it’s resistive and not capacitive but for the era it seems to work well enough. 

if you’re like me and you appreciate your tech you’d benefit from adding a GROM unit to modernise the infotainment and this really brings the car into 2021. I did do a few support videos for GROM to troubleshoot issues I’ve had  and now that it pretty much has full Functionality id take a look at this. 

I believe it very much depends on what year of vehicle you get. Having an OEM screen is nice for features like climate control and audio playback, but to give you an idea there are pre 2009 NAVI systems with limited features and facelift 2009+ systems which include a few more features. Having a reverse camera with the trajectory lines as well as parallel park assist and not having to deal with the hassle of fitting one yourself alone is a good reason to get a NAVI unit car. 

As far as I'm aware, you only get AUX connectivity with the Pre 2009 systems to get music, but you do get the Mark Levinson audio as an option which Is arguably one of the best stock speaker systems in a vehicle (almost audiophile level). Many people retrofit a GROM VLINE2 unit into this, to not only get Bluetooth audio but a full Android Experience as well as wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. 

Now I have a 2010 Lexus IS250 F Sport which has the facelift Navi unit as well as the Mark Levinson audio which became rarer after the facelift. This gives us USB connectivity to iPhones / iPods as well as Bluetooth music as a standard, which eliminates the need for most people to make any upgrades or retrofits. I however did get a GROM VLINE2 to provide me a full android experience mainly for Wireless apple CarPlay. 

You can opt to replace a non NAVI system with an android unit and get a much better user experience, but do be mindful what android unit you get as you can be seriously degrading the audio quality greatly and even the stock Pioneer audio system is fantastic. 

On 5/20/2021 at 12:26 PM, Jamescokell said:

Well they're on, subtle difference but love them.

Congrats on sourcing the alloys! I have the same on my F Sport 2010 IS250 and while they're not my favourite type they do look great on the IS. I'd probably say its worth visiting breakers when possible, my brother in law happened to be at a breaker and found me these F Sport alloys and I got them for £20 a wheel! They need some refurbing and cleaning but thats something I plan to do in a few weeks time 

8 hours ago, Phil xxkr said:

Why? Just try your smartphone? Mine works brilliantly well and yes, sometimes, it drops out but its infrequent unless of course you are seeking concert hall performance in which case sell the car and buy a debenture for the Royal Albert Hall and use taxis 😅

Haha I actually agree, I heard the DAB tuner for this gen Lexus was quite patchy signal wise so Im not fussed. I actually use apple CarPlay in my 2010 IS250 with a GROM VLINE2 unit and while it didn't work at first, a few back and forth and patience with GROM and I got it working 100%.

1 minute ago, Phil xxkr said:

Don't suppose you are an erectile dysfunctional specialist by any chance? 😂

I do have a Biomedical Science degree so I may be 20% qualified to talk about ED 😂 sadly not a specialist though 

On 6/29/2021 at 11:04 PM, stevetees said:

Hi everyone - is there a way to get DAB radio on an IS250 F-Sport 2011 with ML system. The DAB and HDD is greyed out on the unit and there is an AM/DAB button on the system.

I believe the only way to get the DAB is to buy the DAB module from Lexus or source it second hand, plug it into the stereo module alongside an antenna possibly. I found these two parts in the Lexus Parts website, while it lists it one as a CT device it is under the IS phase 2 section so I suspect either of these would be the part we need. 

https://lexuspartsdirect.co.uk/parts/category/lexus-is/lexus-is-phase-ii-2006-2013/lexus-is-2-exterior-interior/page/2/

https://lexuspartsdirect.co.uk/parts/lexus-ct/lexus-ct-2010-onwards/lexus-ct-electrical/lexus-ct-phase-1-dab-tuner/

When did this issue start happening, and is there anything obstructing the area where the convertible cover is? 

Been a while since an update, have been busy doing some DIY projects around the house and I managed to get an absolute bargain for an IS250C for my mum, I'll be making some posts about that in the coming days.  After a few months of silence, GROM contacted me advising they had fixed the issues I had with the unit previously. I honestly wasn't expecting to hear back, but thanks to their proactiveness I bit the bullet purchasing the VLINE2 again (Was more comfortable knowing I could get all my money back via Paypal in any case) and while it did work more so than before, there were still some issues.

After a few weeks of liaising with the GROM customer support, they pushed out an update for me that has made the unit almost 100% usable. There are a few quirks but Wireless apple CarPlay working reliably for me outweighs any small issues I'm currently having and it works like a dream. I made a short video demonstrating the usage of this and can recommend the unit to anyone with a facelift IS like myself craving a modern infotainment. It is not at all cheap whatsoever so do try and get it on a group buy to save some extra pennies !

!

Slight update for the OP, I've been liaising with GROM further and they finally pushed out a software update to make the GROM for the most part fully functional. I'll be providing a more detailed update on my personal thread in the Mods section but here's a quick video I made. This should theoretically work as flawlessly for Android auto but as I don't have an android device I cant provide any testing! 

Bit late to the party but vehicles from 2005 to 2008 didn’t come with Bluetooth streaming but this could be easily achieved via a third party accessory to plug into the aux connection or the stereo directly.
 

2009 onwards came with Bluetooth music streaming, you can tell this because the infotainment screen came in white instead of the black which was pre2009. I’ve just bought a 2009 IS250C for my mum and that came with the new style infotainment with an iPod / Iphone connection and Bluetooth music streaming. 
 

Hope this helps!

7 hours ago, Mr Vlad said:

Excellent video you made proving without doubt just what a load of rubbish the grom thing is. Utter waste of money. I wouldn't have tolerated anywhere near as much as you with those issues. I'd have sent the thing back and got a full refund. 

Thanks for that Vlad, it is quite annoying and the £500 price point does merit better customer support if nothing else but aside from a sketchy android unit or an awkward double din fascia there doesn't seem to be any other product that meets all my requirements for infotainment.  My understanding is that pre 2009 GROMS are far better as it uses the old infotainment system but I'll probably provide an update on this when GROM provide further updates. With any luck GROM can get their fingers out of their rear and sort the facelift version of this out!

On 4/30/2021 at 7:42 AM, Steve67 said:

Thanks for the replies.. the Lexus we are hoping to buy is a 2010 SE i with navigation....so I look at the info you have provided.. cheers

No worries Steve, I have a 2010 F Sport and while I have installed the GROM I’m currently missing with their support team to get full functionality it may be worth watching this video I made for them before you decide to purchase something. 

3 hours ago, Superduner said:

Actually I've found Grom help (based in Texas) to be pretty good.  They have recently sorted out a gps problem that several users were experiencing.

Firmware and software upgrades happen fairly regularly.

I use the Agama skin, which I think helps the user experience a lot.

Yes to their credit they are pushing out regular software updates and they have addressed a few issues I've had, my main gripe is even for complex issues they don't let you call them direct and they can be a little slow to reply and get back to you.