Lexus IS 220d/200d vs BMW/Audi

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These seem to be astonishingly good value compared to German equivalents.

Now accepting inferior handling (Lexus are more for comfort I'd have thought) why would these be so much cheaper/lower mileage/newer than equivalently priced 325/330d BMWs?

My brother is looking at about £7-7.5k and can choose between 2005ish, 90k miles 330d's and 2006/2007 IS220d/200d with 55k on the lock (and enter spec)

Is there a catch?
 
Im not sure about not being as nice inside or out. I prefer the inside and out of the IS at this age over a 2005 3 series.

However, they can appear good value. Best bet is the try one and see what you think.

Im pretty sure the engine has a number of recalls and issues with it and was eventually discontinued, so check up on that. Some models can be quite well specced for the money with decent leather, nav etc. Spec can be a bit random though.

Not sure what mileage they will be doing, but a IS250 is a better bet overall.

At this value out of the options I would look at the IS over a 2005 3 series personally.


Edit:

Price wise they are cheap due to the image, they aint exactly in with the kids :)
Also, due to the issues with the diesel engine and the generally inefficient petrol engines, that doesn't help either
 
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Well I'd disagree that cosmetically they aren't as nice, especially when you get nearly 2 years newer.

Externally (and the age group) is good too (he's 36). I'll look into recalls, though honest John seems to suggest nothing too sinister (compared to a twice as high mileage older example, anyway).
 
The IS of that era has quite a nice exterior design, but the interior really isn't as nice as the 3. The IS suffers from plastic overload from huge swathes of smooth plastic with no detail.
 
PMKeates said:
The IS of that era has quite a nice exterior design, but the interior really isn't as nice as the 3. The IS suffers from plastic overload from huge swathes of smooth plastic with no detail.
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Yeah because the E90 hasn't got any rattley plastic :rolleyes:

Go for the IS, the E90 is a rattly plasticy tin can piece of crap. Owned a 330i and it was the worst.
 
pepsilol said:
Yeah because the E90 hasn't got any rattley plastic :rolleyes:

Go for the IS, the E90 is a rattly plasticy tin can piece of crap. Owned a 330i and it was the worst.
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It might rattle, but you can cure that. You can't cure the fact that the IS has a rubbish form, structure and design.

Lexus is not really a competitive premium brand. They linger behind the Germans consistently and have since inception. I find people who can't tell the difference have no actual appreciation of quality or attention to detail. The LS has a lot of redeeming qualities, but the rest don't, though the latest crop are better.
 
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My dad used to have a 220d SE-L basically top of the range minus nav.

He was never happy with it, the car itself was excellent with great levels of kit but he had several problems with the engine has already been said by others. Several recalls and full injectors replaced it must have had £3ks worth of engine warranty work done in the 4 years he had it, his was one of the first to be bought in the uk in march 06 mind so later ones may be better.

He only used to be able to manage 35mpg on a run too, and it never liked 6th gear till 80mph was one of the main reasons for the economy, but he did say loan cars were ok in this matter but never did get his solved.

I'd look into it but do the research first.
 
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I really like the IS of that age inside and out, but as above they have some real problems - not minor niggles either. Whether the mechanical side of things has generally been sorted out now I'm not sure but as above they aren't great on fuel for a diesel. Less than 6 cylinder BMW diesel economy without the power to go with it.

If you buy one from Lexus they have an absolutely excellent reputation for sorting things out though - or at least that's been what has come back from anyone I know that's either owned one or had as a co car.

Bmw dealers generally are hit and miss, with Lexus that's where they really put in the effort
 
PMKeates said:
It might rattle, but you can cure that. You can't cure the fact that the IS has a rubbish form, structure and design.

Lexus is not really a competitive premium brand. They linger behind the Germans consistently and have since inception. I find people who can't tell the difference have no actual appreciation of quality or attention to detail. The LS has a lot of redeeming qualities, but the rest don't, though the latest crop are better.
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I agree in principle but the E90 is hardly great. At least the Lexus is cheap and underwhelming, the e90 is expensive to buy and run and underwhelming.
 
Apparently the diesels were a bit naff on the IS, with a lot of stories of poor reliability.
Buy a petrol and enjoy the smoothness.
 
Mr_Sukebe said:
Apparently the diesels were a bit naff on the IS, with a lot of stories of poor reliability.
Buy a petrol and enjoy the smoothness.
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True there were a lot of issues with the diesels.

If he can, go for a IS250. I've had mine for a year and put 20k on it. Its not the most engaging drive, but there is little fun to be had sat in traffic during the week. I have the weekend car for fun. Infact if you start throwing it around a bit it does wallow around with a fair bit of body roll. Just how the car is setup for comfort over distances.

I'm averaging 34mpg (mixture of motorway and town) which I'm happy with. So far nothing has broke, just a couple of routine services.
 
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