nolizma Posted September 11, 2017 Share Posted September 11, 2017 What are peoples thoughts / opinions on these? Anyone with first hand experience? I am looking at the 2005-2013 gen. in auto. Any thoughts on the gearbox? I like the idea of a 6 speed auto with paddles but a bit sceptical due to age/price. Anything to look out for? Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scooter Posted September 11, 2017 Share Posted September 11, 2017 Parents have one with all the toys (radar cruise, reverse camera etc). Drives nice enough (drove it for a airport pickup and nothing bad to say about it really) and are paddles ok, no issues likes a bit of oil compared to Supra's but nothing too drastic, slight rattle on startup from the vvti valve gear I think but theirs is a little leggy and an early one. PS massively annoying satnav! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh42 Posted September 12, 2017 Share Posted September 12, 2017 My dad had one for a few years back in 2009. His was a 2005 (55) SE-L in Windsor blue with Grey leather. It had the active cruise control, pre-crash system, auto rear blind, heated and air conditioned seats, reversing camera, sat nav + more. It was a fantastic car and he had zero issues with it in the three years of ownership. Lexus were fantastic to deal with too. In contrary to the above, I always found the sat nav to be excellent. It was actively looking for traffic at all times and gave clear instructions. He now has a 2010 GS450H, which he has had for 4 years. He's looking at an RCF now as he's very happy with the Lexus brand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_bandido Posted September 12, 2017 Share Posted September 12, 2017 I've got one and I love it. Not the fastest thing in the world, but it isn't slow either. Paddles are okay and it's bomb proof. Only recurring fault I've had with mine is the rear calipers ceasing up. I've got to go and replace another one now and this will be the 4th I've had over 65,000 miles. I'm planning on replacing my brakes with ones from the v6 GS300 (which will require 18" F-sport wheels if you swap the fronts). Uses quite a bit of oil, but I put in a litre every 6000 miles and that just about keeps it okay. Handling is alright, could do with stiffer roll bars. If you feel like modifying it, you can swap in the GS300 3GR-FSE head and block to go up to 3 litre without needing any new management or bits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nolizma Posted September 12, 2017 Author Share Posted September 12, 2017 Thanks for all the info guys! much appreciated! Any tips on how to look for seized calipers? Will it be too obvious on a test drive? I found one I like but it has 100K miles on it. Should I avoid high mileage cars? Any expensive service items to look for in the service history? Whats the fuel consumption like? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_bandido Posted September 12, 2017 Share Posted September 12, 2017 It will be incredibly obvious on a test drive. If it's knackered you will hear it dragging against the disc. If it's on the way out, you'll have a pretty nasty judder under hard brake pedal after they have warmed up. Mines got 152k on it and it's pretty much good as new, aside from the brakes. Fuel: Long journey: Stick to the actual speed limit on a run and the best I've ever done is 43mpg. Drive at 80 on the same journey and that will drop down to about 32-35mpg. Drive at 90 and you'll see about 30mpg. Round town: Very much depends, when I'm just doing town driving or country lanes, I hoon it everywhere on the paddles and get about 22mpg. The auto is better on fuel than the manual. My lifetime average is 27.6mpg according to the dial, but from doing previous fuel tank calcs, a more realistic number is about 26mpg. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_bandido Posted September 16, 2017 Share Posted September 16, 2017 also forgot to say - crack the driver's window open, put it in S and lock the gear to 2nd, then do 30-60 with full throttle. If that sound doesn't sell it to you, the car isn't for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mk4Gaz Posted September 16, 2017 Share Posted September 16, 2017 I found one I like but it has 100K miles on it. Should I avoid high mileage cars? 100k miles is barely run in! The stigma of high mileage cars is a thing of the past. Modern technology means most cars will run forever, if well maintained I've said it many times before - I'd rather have a high mileage motorway used car, than a low mileage town used car, any day of the week Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeiretto Posted September 16, 2017 Share Posted September 16, 2017 My brother had one. It could keep up pretty good with an N/A 5 speed Supra. The IS250 is a great, great car! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
formatzero Posted September 16, 2017 Share Posted September 16, 2017 According to driver power results in Auto Express Lexus feature highly in reliability,tempted to make one my next buy,coupe of course !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_bandido Posted September 17, 2017 Share Posted September 17, 2017 My brother had one. It could keep up pretty good with an N/A 5 speed Supra. The IS250 is a great, great car! As an owner of an NA5 and an auto IS250, the IS250 is night on identical in speed to the point where you have to be on it with the gear shifts in the Supra to keep up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rock on Posted September 17, 2017 Share Posted September 17, 2017 Check out the Lexus owners club. Similar to on here they will know of traders to be wary about if it's not a private sale, They may know the car & plenty of info about owning/buying/running it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nolizma Posted September 18, 2017 Author Share Posted September 18, 2017 Hey guys thanks for all the info! I think you sold it to me already. lol I will go to the lexus club and ask around there too. Went and saw one the other day close to mine but this one looked to have a rough life. Anyway i'm not in a rush as I need to sell my mini first. The only downside im finding so far (on paper) is the high road tax compared to other cars of this category but Im ok with that since it ticks all the other boxes. They are pretty cheap too for what they are imo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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