Lexus IS200's Views please.

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Spamalot

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Hello, despite my thread last week about getting a fast ish car I want an IS200.

[exited]Always like them and I think they might now be coming into budget.[/exited]

Whats you general view on them? I never really hear much about them around these parts. Never get mention among any of Fox's bargin bardge threads, lol!

Whats the reliability on them like? Do they follow the jap car rule?

Are running costs going to be stupidly hight on a late 90's 100Ker?

And one of the most important questions, what sort of price am I looking at for one of the early ones and what should I look out for.

Thanks knolagable people.
 
im sure that i have seen fox comment on them a lot of times, something along the line of a poor jap version of an e46 3 series.

personally i like them a lot, however if you are saying they are coming into budget, you must be looking at the older cars, which means high mileage etc, but nothing you cant expect from any equivalent.

also, they wouldnt be included in any bargain barges threads, because they arent bargain compared to things like 5 series / a6 / passat / mondeo :p

you can get them for under 5k now, or import one for even cheaper.
 
I like them, lovely interiors, decent to drive, a tiny bit lacking in poke though.
 
whats your budget? im guessing around 5-7k?

would imagine you can get some e46 330's for that price
 
The E46 BMW 3 series betters it in just about every area bar reliability. Having driven both extensively I would pick the E46 without a doubt.

Take for example an E46 320i which would be the 'equivalent' to the IS200 although larger engined versions are available.
It's faster, it handles better, it has a more involving drive, it doesn't bore you on B roads, the interior is ever so slightly less tacky. The Lexus is a bit flat and boring compared. The only place I can think that the Lexus betters the BMW is reliability. One thing I hated about the IS200 was the manual box, the throw was awful compared to the 3 series I have driven.

If I had a set budget and had to choose, it would be the BMW every time. There are a lot more of them available on the used market, you can almost specify exactly what you want and get it without a problem.

The E46, you know it makes sense ;)
 
Morba said:
whats your budget? im guessing around 5-7k?

would imagine you can get some e46 330's for that price
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Between 4-5K with a little bargining.

Is reliablility going to be a massive problem on a 100Ker? See lots of 200K BMW's on auto trader but not many IS's any reason?
 
Guys, if he wanted a BMW then im sure he would have asked for advice on one. Its fair enough saying "oh you do realise that for the same money you can get an E46", but it seems that people are always trying to push BMWs onto others.

If he is worried about the running costs of a Lexus them im sure a BMW would be out of the question.

Your best bet is to find a lexus specific forum mate, they usually have member written buying guides that tell you exactly what to look out for. And have a read around, nearly every model of car has a few problems and its an easy way to learn about them.

here:

http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/index.php

IS200 spec sheet
 
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MNuTz said:
Guys, if he wanted a BMW then im sure he would have asked for advice on one. Its fair enough saying "oh you do realise that for the same money you can get an E46", but it seems that people are always trying to push BMWs onto others.

If he is worried about the running costs of a Lexus them im sure a BMW would be out of the question.
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How are we to know whether or not he is aware that he can get a better car for the same money? Are we to pretend that alternative options do not exist? This is a forum where ideas and opinions are shared. A topic does not require that the specific subject be rigidly adhered to. That's why these forums are so good, different people with different ideas.

With regard to running costs, from the research I did, there wasn't much difference in the two. If anything, the Lexus is more expensive for repairs and parts because it isn't quite as common as the BMW.
 
Scuzi said:
How are we to know whether or not he is aware that he can get a better car for the same money? Are we to pretend that alternative options do not exist? This is a forum where ideas and opinions are shared. A topic does not require that the specific subject be rigidly adhered to. That's why these forums are so good, different people with different ideas.
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Normally people ask for suggestions for alternatives, "i have £5k to spend, suggest some cars" however the OP asked purely for opinions on the IS200. As i said, its ok to let him know that there are other cars out there for the same money but it does seem on this forum that people are trying to make others lean towards the BMW route.

With regard to running costs, from the research I did, there wasn't much difference in the two. If anything, the Lexus is more expensive for repairs and parts because it isn't quite as common as the BMW.
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Im aware that the price of parts are about equal for the two types, however im always hearing about the high labour charges of BMW garages. Of course im presuming that he will be using a dealership and not an indy garage. As for petrol/mpg i havent a clue.
 
How tall are you?

I really wanted the IS200 sport, but this comes with a sunroof as standard. Although there is good adjustment with the seats, my head was way to close to the reinforcing ring around the sunroof making driving uncomfortable/ impossible. I am 6'3".
 
my 6ft 5in mate fits in his no problem


he's considering ditching it cos it's sooooo thirsty tho

it's also worth noting that clutch/flywheel will run you about 1500 quid at an indy
 
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I had a few hours test drive in one.

Plus points
very smooth 6 cylinder engine.
Quiet and comfortable
Excellent handling with firm suspension
Lots of toys
Excellent reliability (apparently)
Distinctive interior
Great external looks

Negative points
The 2.0 just isnt fast enough IMO, and the auto seems to change at strange points. 3.0 would be great though.
Interior could also be seen as a bit gimmicky. The clock arrangements are fussy. The one I test drove was an 05 with 40K, and bits of the interior, such as electric mirror buttons had paint flaking off.

Overall very nice cars, but the reason I didnt buy was because the 2.0 was underpowered and I couldnt find a 3.0. Why they dont do more engine options I dont know....
 
MNuTz said:
Normally people ask for suggestions for alternatives, "i have £5k to spend, suggest some cars" however the OP asked purely for opinions on the IS200. As i said, its ok to let him know that there are other cars out there for the same money but it does seem on this forum that people are trying to make others lean towards the BMW route.
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to give a decent opinion, the only way is to compare against other cars in the same market.
 
bmw? no thanks.

back to subject i realy like the is200 very very nice looking cars i have not drove one but when i see em on the road they realy do look smart.
 
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