Brent

hey guys,

im thinking of turning my is250 into a promo vehicle, and tricking it up a bit (visually, no performace / engine upgrades).

its for a print, design and marketing firm. www.vincenthunter.com.au

what are your thoughts? should i not...? I dont want anyone saying 'what a waste of a nice car' haha...

hey guys,

im thinking of turning my is250 into a promo vehicle, and tricking it up a bit (visually, no performace / engine upgrades).

its for a print, design and marketing firm. www.vincenthunter.com.au

what are your thoughts? should i not...? I dont want anyone saying 'what a waste of a nice car' haha...

hmmm.. im thinking of signwriting my is250. i've had it for around 10 months.

what are ppls thoughts? I have a print, design and marketing business, should i not?

www.vincenthunter.com.au

im pretty sure they are region 4 "as australia is region 4".

why does it matter, how often do you play DVDs from overseas?

Besides, you can only play them when the car isnt in motion, whats the point?

Why bother? once your car leaves the show room, it will just depreciate whether there is a scratch or not. I cant stand wrapping up remote controls, mobile phones, psp, and now is250 satnav. Whats next, your 65" LCD? It looks cheap like glad wrap and it distorts the view a bit too. Get over it......

lol. so true.

Brent, real sorry to hear what's happened to you. I've got an Oct 07 built car and I can't think of anything that I could fault on mine that could be considered a fault.

DEMAND resolution from your dealer. Let them know there is no way you'll accept anything but total satisfaction, and that you're prepared to do whatever it takes to obtain it.

Thanks Last1. I think i've been too nice, at one point, i even apologised for complaining so much. How much of an idiot was I for doing that?!

I paid a lot for this car and it is faulty. F**k 'em! Time i got angry.

Brent - if you get an independent mechanic to do an inspection of the car, they should be able to tell immediately if there was an accident. I use Melbourne Auto Check (about $160) - write a comprehensive 10 page report, compression test on the engine etc. who even use a machine to measure the thickness of the duco on every panel. The only thing I could think of is if the vehicle was pranged before you took 'delivery' of the vehicle, but that seems almost implausable (although not impossible).

I bought ex.demo and got a 3 hr look over by the independent mechanic (who in fact drives a Lexus himself!) - got the all clear, and my car is running perfectly (minor those slight little niggles I mentioned above). The dealership said they simply do not sell vehicles involved in any collision involving work to panels.

Other advice to you - would be to log all your dealer visits. A mechanics report might add weight to it. I know in Victoria you could take such a claim to VCAT (Civil and Adminsitrative Tribunal) under the Fair Traiding Act for a ~$200 fee and get a magistrate to deal with the issue. I'm sure other States have the same set-up.

Hi Sapphire,

One step ahead of you. I've had 4 independent assessments. One from a suspension specialist to determine the handling issue, they determined (with advanced testing technology) that the suspension arms / bushes were 'soft' and gave way upon applying the brakes, which resulted in unexpected veering.

Lexus immediately rejected this assessment, claiming it was incorrect. Lexus of Townsville's answer was my 18" aftermarket rims, though Lexus of Cairns refused to accept that this was the cause. I paid for multiple assessments from a tyre and wheel expert, who determined the aftermarket rims were not the cause. Lexus of Townsville then informed me it 'could' be the tyres. I revisited the wheel and tyre expert, they confirmed the tyres were NOT the cause.

Lexus of townsville still insisted the wheels and or tyres were the cause. So after a long winded battle with Lexus of Cairns, they took back the 18" aftermarket wheels and replaced them with genuine lexus wheels, as per Lexus of Townsvilles instructions. Not to my surprise, this did not fix it.

Then came the accident. So now when i get the car back, i get to go through the same process. im sure now they'll just blame the crash. fun fun.

Brent - terribly sorry for your grief. I am staggered at those issues, and even more staggered at Lexus' response. Iam assuming you bought new - the reason I ask is because your steering and handling issues sound to me like the vehicle has been in a major accident and the 'tracking' of the vehicle is irreversibly damaged, which a wheel alignment wont fix. Also the fact that the panel are moving, also indicates its suffered a major shock and there might be a deep-seated electrical short-circuit somewhere explaining the other problems. Otherwise, I dont know really what to say...

Before I bought my is250, I checked many forums, blogs and articles on reliability and quality. And in this class, the is250 was above any of its competitors by a fair way. Benz, BMW, Audi and Alfa have more issues with their vehicles than Lexus does in this class of vehicle. No car is perfect, and whilst a 3-series, C-class, 159 and A4 will have a higher ratio of problems per vehicle, your situation is totally unacceptable and inexcusable!

Admittedly, mine is not perfect either but only had problems with buzzing rear parcel shelf (fixed by dealer), squeaky drivers seat (fixed by dealer) and slight sunroof creak (which was allegedly fixed by dealer, but not to my satisifaction). At least my issues are trivial and dont affect the driveability of my vehicle (unlike yourself).

I will be updating my vehicle in 2009, and probably still will go with an is250 again. sadly, I dont think you will be!

I would keep hounding Lexus Australia. I would even involve your State's Consumer Affairs Department. Get a second opinion - call another Lexus dealer. The other option is (although they are trying to delineate as much as possible), is to speak to the parent company Toyota and even the old threat of legal action never hurt.

Good luck Brent.

I forgot to add, as for your remark on the vehicle being crashed - i too thought that. My vehicle wasnt second hand, it was purchased from the dealership, but it had been driven prior to my purchasing it. I asked the dealership, they said in writing that the car had in fact NOT been in any kind of crash / collision.

Let's just hope they are telling the truth.

Brent - terribly sorry for your grief. I am staggered at those issues, and even more staggered at Lexus' response. Iam assuming you bought new - the reason I ask is because your steering and handling issues sound to me like the vehicle has been in a major accident and the 'tracking' of the vehicle is irreversibly damaged, which a wheel alignment wont fix. Also the fact that the panel are moving, also indicates its suffered a major shock and there might be a deep-seated electrical short-circuit somewhere explaining the other problems. Otherwise, I dont know really what to say...

Before I bought my is250, I checked many forums, blogs and articles on reliability and quality. And in this class, the is250 was above any of its competitors by a fair way. Benz, BMW, Audi and Alfa have more issues with their vehicles than Lexus does in this class of vehicle. No car is perfect, and whilst a 3-series, C-class, 159 and A4 will have a higher ratio of problems per vehicle, your situation is totally unacceptable and inexcusable!

Admittedly, mine is not perfect either but only had problems with buzzing rear parcel shelf (fixed by dealer), squeaky drivers seat (fixed by dealer) and slight sunroof creak (which was allegedly fixed by dealer, but not to my satisifaction). At least my issues are trivial and dont affect the driveability of my vehicle (unlike yourself).

I will be updating my vehicle in 2009, and probably still will go with an is250 again. sadly, I dont think you will be!

I would keep hounding Lexus Australia. I would even involve your State's Consumer Affairs Department. Get a second opinion - call another Lexus dealer. The other option is (although they are trying to delineate as much as possible), is to speak to the parent company Toyota and even the old threat of legal action never hurt.

Good luck Brent.

Hi Sapphire,

Thanks for your advice, though i have tried all of those! I contacted consumer affairs, they told me I am entitled to a refund as the product does not 'do the job it is intended to do'. I called the dealership and corporate, but they both insisted all they are required to do is assist me under the warranty agreement. The legal path looks like my next option.. Alternatively, Tracy Grimshaw of ACA can be quite persuasive.

The issue is more than just the car faults, the dealership and corporate seem almost as if they dont want to assist. They are just doing it because 'they have to'.

To make matters worse, after speaking with a vehicle repairer it sounds as if my airbags should have been deployed in the collision - but they weren't. Could this be another fault with the car? I had an accident 2 years ago and my right leg was severely injured. I bought the IS250 because of the knee airbags. The knee airbags that didn't go off when my knees hit the dash in May.

I think i will continue to take the car to the dealership until EVERYTHING is 100% to my satisfaction, I anticipate the dealership will give up soon - it has been inspected 11 times already. 25th time's a charm!

Brent, another minor issue which is apparent in the IS is the vibration of the rear view mirror.

Mine has it but i can live with it, however does any know the fix for this?

Hi there,

Yes mine rattles too... but only when the bass is up :P

Aside from that, my car is a total piece of *BLEEP*.

My DEC '07 IS250 prestige with EMV pack has been a total nightmare. I started experiencing problems within the first week of owning it. It has had the following issues;

=======================================================

Handling

- The vehicle veers from side to side upon application of brakes.

Audio System

- The audio system cuts out, CD continues to play but no sound. Car needs to be restarted.

Key Detection

- Both original and spare are frequently 'undetected', multiple attempts necessary.

Sunroof

- Jams, though no physical problems. Jammed on highway between towns, it began to rain. i spent 3 hours under a tree in a town i can only call 'hick-ville'.

Steering

- Steering wheel out of line. Must be held on an angle to drive straight (not wheel alignment related).

Reversing Camera

- Cuts out, just displays a black screen (doesnt display parking type icons, so it isnt the image. its the screen/software itself).

Dash / Console

- Panels beginning to separate and gaps are forming - slowly but surely increasing in size.

EMV screen

- Messages and prompts appear for milliseconds only. Voice has changed accents, prompts only partially read aloud.

=======================================================

Vehicle has been inspected by lexus 12 times, not one of these issues has been fixed. the car is returned to me with the report saying "could not find issue, did wheel alignment, car is ok" though the dealership staff have experienced these issues. my last resort was contacting corporate. Their answer - "take it back to the dealership", its like this big circle. I've asked for a refund though i was refused. I asked for a replacement car though i was refused. Corporate just talk about their commitment to acting under the lexus warranty.

The car has had 4 or 5 wheel alignments.

Their answer for the handling issue was my aftermarket rims (fitted by lexus BEFORE i bought the car). After much deliberation, they agreed to take back the wheels and replace with Genuine Lexus rims. As i anticipated, the problem did not go away. It had nothing to do with my aftermarket rims.

I was told by a lexus staff member "Brent, you definitely have a lemon".

The steering and handling issue caused an accident 2 months ago. Upon braking my vehicle veered to the side, I then hit a car upon correcting it. My insurance company launched a full investigation, including flying up Melbourne forensic police investigators. I should mention 2 months later, I still dont have my car back.

I just have no idea on what to do. One woman on here with the topic "is250 quality" received a refund.

Any suggestions?

Well,

I dont mean to sound like a meanie, but today i received a pro-rata refund for my December 06, Lexus IS250 Prestiage with EMV Pack.

For those who dont know, i had been receiving a never ending list of problems with my car the list is as follows:

First Service (approximatley 1200kms)

- Seat "crackling" noise, solution - "retightening" of seat

- Sunroof "squeeking", solution - "lubricant" in the seals

- 1 day in service

Second Service (approximatley 3000kms)

- A pillar knock/rattle, solution - check and reinstall of a pillar

- Dash scratching sounds, solution - removal of dash and completiong of TSB

- squeek/rattle from roof lining, solution - replacement of "warped" roof lining x2!! (two roof linings on the service report!)

- 8 days in service!

Third Service (approximatley 3005kms - thats right, when i picked up the car!)

- Passenger Door lock jambed

- 1 day in service

Fourth Service (approximatley 3005kms - Again, when i picked up the car after the 3rd service!)

- Passenger door trim (the one where the lock was "fixed") hanging loose, from broken clips!

- 30 mins wait for them to fix it again

Recent Issues (approximatley 3500kms)

- Lubricant seeping from gaps in the dash!!!, especially when the weather warms up

- Sun visor screw caps physically damaged coming loose when using sun visors

- Audio system comepltely out of alignment, LHS, you can see the chassis of the dash!

- More squeeks from the roof lining behind the sunroof

These issues seem to stem from the first and 2nd services i had!

All these issues in under 4000kms, and less then 3 months ownership. Suffice to say i will never buy a Lexus again. Do yourself a favor pay the extra dosh, and get the BMW.

For those unfortunate enough to have already purchased one, please make sure you check all the work done on the car for any service or issues you find. Chances are, they would have stuffed up more then what was there at the begining.

I have been provided a "refund" for the vehicle, which was a reasonable amount of $60,000, so i have lost about 10k (because of early exit fees on finance) for less then 4 months ownership.

Trust me, the car was so disappointing, that a 10k loss was worth it!

I have pictures of the issues (but clearly i dont know how to upload them!) if anyone is interested.

Leeman

Lexus? Never again!

I have had very similar issues, my DEC '07 IS250 prestige with EMV pack has had the following issues;

Handling

- The vehicle veers from side to side upon application of brakes.

Audio System

- The audio system cuts out, CD continues to play but no sound. Car needs to be restarted.

Key Detection

- Both original and spare are frequently 'undetected', multiple attempts necessary.

Sunroof

- Jams, though no physical problems. Jammed on highway between towns, it began to rain. i spent 3 hours under a tree in a town i can only call 'hick-ville'.

Steering

- Steering wheel out of line. Must be held on an angle to drive straight (not wheel alignment related).

Reversing Camera

- Cuts out, just displays a black screen (doesnt display parking type icons, so it isnt the image. its the screen/software itself).

Dash / Console

- Panels beginning to separate and gaps are forming - slowly but surely increasing in size.

EMV screen

- Messages and prompts appear for milliseconds only. Voice has changed accents, prompts only partially read aloud.

Vehicle has been inspected 12 times, not one of these issues has been fixed. the car is returned to me with the report saying "could not find" though the dealership staff have experienced these issues. my last resort was contacting corporate. Their answer "take it back to the dealership". Its a circle. I've asked for a refund though i was refused. I asked for a replacement car though i was refused.

The steering and handling issue caused an accident 2 months ago. (see pic). I veered tot he side, then hit a car upon correcting it. My insurance company launched a full investigation, including the forensic police investigators.

What do i do next?

Hi, how much 2nd service cost you guys? (30000kms) on Is250 prestige model

I was quoted $505 by my lexus service centre. though, try non lexus service centres.

Ensure they are authorised, as it will void your warranty (it will be classed as a missed service if they arent).

HI ...I wanted to know if I were to mod the wiring loom at the back of the navigation unit on my Sport Luxury...does it void warranty or insurance?

it voids your warranty. dont risk it, the systems are $7000 to replace should something go wrong (it frequently does!)

Thanks - I am really happy with it!!!!!

I would like to override the original system to enable telephone and destination input whilst the car is moving. Being able to watch a DVD (passengers not driver!!) whilst moving would also be great.

I understand there is a secret menu with an override button in 2006 and older models but Lexus has removed it in 2007+ models.

I am hoping to find someone in Canberra or Sydney how can rewire the unit to enable these features (and remove the "I agree"!!)

Manialxs I would be interested in hearing more about the aftermarket mods you mentioned.

Cheers

In the 2006 and preceeding models, the override can be done by touching sections of the screen, which accesses a secret menu. this is not possible on 07+ models. The only way to do it is with hot wiring / cabling which affects your warranty.

Interesting reading about these hacks. But does it void the warranty?

plain and simple......yes...yes it does, so if your bluetooth or sat nav unit *BLEEP* themselves, good luck, sat nav unit costs a bit lol

Both the sat nav in my IS, and my friends have sh*t themselves - for no reason. Both cars are 6 months old. To replace them are $7000each - they are being covered under warranty. I ALMOST had my DVD player hacked.

Moral of the story - DONT VOID YOUR WARRANTY WITH HOTWIRING!

I got the Prestige and now that people say the SAT NAT are very limited, i am glad i didnt get the Luxury models.

25K premium over the Prestige is not something im willing to pay even though it's got a few other goodies too.

You arent paying just for the sat nav, you get the reversing camera, sunroof, dvd player and amazing mark levinson sound system. Whether you're young like me, and enjoy pumping up the bass, or just like the clarity of a decent speaker - the sound system alone is worth the $9000 upgrade (for prestige models).

Hello to all,

I'm new to this forum as i've recently purchased a Lexus IS 250 Sports Luxury from Lexus of Chatswood in Sydney. When i 1st test drove the car, i was extremely disappointed with the limited headroom in the cabin(moonroof equipped). Because of that, i had no choice but to order one without the moonroof which didn't make my wife happy! She just loves the airy feel that the moonroof offers. Another disappointing feature in the car which has heaps of technology is the foot operated parking brake... i just felt that Lexus could have installed an electronic parking brake, similar to the LS 460 or at the very least, a proper handbrake. Lastly, i felt that the gear upshifts progressed too quickly... and that somehow affects quick acceleration in my opinion.

However, having mentioned all the bad stuff, i am overall impressed with the stability of the car on tight corners! it managed to negotiate most corners with minimal body roll thus inspiring confidence. Brakes are has got a real meaty bite to it and the modulation is absolutely spot on...yet another confidence builder. Gadgets...well, what can i say... top class audio system, idiot-proof navigation system, cleverly thought of heated/ventilated seats with memory and yes, those auto tilt side mirrors when reverse gear is engaged! Of course...many many more.

I would love to hear what all of you have to share.... so hope to hear from you soon.

p/s: the '08 IS250s has a really classy white coloured LED scuff plate... which somehow made the older blue LED scuffs tacky.

I guess the foot-brake is each to their own, i quite like it. I was given a mercedes for the long weekend recently, which was equipped with an electronic brake and i didnt like it.

As for the acceleration and gear ratio, you may be like me and come from a larger / faster car. I drove an XR before this and was accustomed to a 4.0ltr V6. I really noticed the power difference when i changed to the lexus. In saying that, it is quite a fast 2.5ltr V6.

You may be better off driving it in manual mode, or wearing some heavier shoes! :D

Hi Guys,

A question for all you IS250 drivers out there. How is the fuel milage on this car? I presently have a IS200 AUTO and manage to get around 550K out of a tank of PULP which costs around 87 to fill. How are you guys finding the IS250? How much to fill and how many k's do you get? I am a little worries the way prices are going up these days!!!

Also I do a ton of k's for work, so was wondering can you put the E10 fuel in this car? and what do you do when there is no PULP? Can you put normal ULP? There have been quite a few shortages for PULP around Sydney in the last few weeks.

God, dont complain about fuel if you are driving an IS. Mine was recently in an accident, its been 2 months and the car is still being repaired. I've been driving a jeep in the meantime and it is KILLING me. Its costing me $250 a week in fuel, my lexus costs me maybe $90.

Anyone wanna exchange? or buy?

or i should change to aftermarket 19inch instead?

I have to agree with Niick, i had larger non genuine rims with low profile tyres. I am younger, so i had to 'teen' it up a bit. I ignored my fathers warning - the ride was ridiculously bumpy and noisy. More so on sh*tty city roads.

The wheels were deemed incorrect for the vehicle so i changed back to the sports luxury genuine lexus rims, on normal tyres. We later found out the rims WERE correct, and i changed for no reason.

Its certainly acceptable to negotiate the price with the dealer. Even though there are only a few hundred of them in Australia, you can definately get some sort of price reduction on the car.

Plus, they would definately like to sell as much as they could at this time of the year, since the financial year is coming to an end very soon.

FYI, i managed to get a $5000 discount on my IS250. I got mine in mid 2006, and at time, there was a 3month wait.

BTW, where are you located??

I'm in Queensland

Hi there, i too am in queensland. I got a quote on an is250 prestsige, with upgraded wheels and the mark levinson sat nav / dvd / sunroof pack for $75,000. Upon visiting the dealership (as I am quite young) I wasnt offered a test drive or anything, i guess i "couldnt afford it".

Anyhow, I went to the next dealership (next down) and ended up snapping one up for $65,000 (exact same specs). It was a demo, but it had bugger all k's on it.

The car turned out to be a total lemon, but aside from that, i saved money hahaha.

I just went to Sydney City Service department and the service was not as good as the sales. The reception made me sound like I owe an apology from budging in without an appointment and when I state the name of my dealer and that I have spoken to him about it. She called him and asked him to stick to the rule of booking by saying, "You know the rules, Thomas" in a sarcastic one and not to ask customer to just walk-in like this.

When a serviceman comes down and grabs my key to check with what's the issue of the plates not lighting up even though the dome lights are on auto and they bring illuminated. He came down ten minutes later and said they couldn't understand why they won't lit up. Maybe its broken, go change another pair and come back again.

this sh*tty service is typical of lexus. my new IS250 has had about 20 BIG issues, from suspension to sunroof, audio system to reversing camera failing. everytime i get told "i dont know". its disgusting. we pay the better half of 100k for a car and get treated like this? be better off with a bloody holden.