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Lexus IS350 review

Discussion in 'Other Toyota Vehicles' started by ColoradoTJ, Nov 5, 2016.

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  1. Aug 22, 2017 at 8:59 AM
    #31
    ColoradoTJ

    #31
    ColoradoTJ [OP] Certified tow LEO Staff Member

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    Calibrated Power 5 Tune pack, Allison 1000 tune, PPE deep trans pan, Cold/Hot CAC pipes, Banks CAI, PCV reroute, resonator delete, S&B 62 gal fuel tank, B&W GN hitch
    Little update:

    First year of ownership.

    Miles driven ~11500, and this is the fuelly details:

    IMG_2133.jpg


    Car is a blast to drive. Period. Getting around town and parking is so much easier.

    Maintenance to date:

    3 oil changes
    Front brakes and rotors
    Transmission service 88.00, drain and fill.
    Rear differential lube change
    Front windshield since it was 10 years old.

    Lexus service department:

    Totally different experience. Not sure why Toyota service departments don't mimic Lexus. I actually started buying my oil filters for my Tacoma there as well since the prices and service was superior.

    Yesterday I had my transmission serviced. They did inform me it would be up to 125.00. I pulled in, there were people waiting on me, after I signed paperwork has a nice ES350 with a driver to take me home and pick me up when finished. No hassle. When I returned, the bill was only 88.00. I asked why and he said "we only bill for what is used, not a flat rate, keeps costs down for you."
    Perfect. They have never tried upselling me or my wife on anything, so that is a huge plus.

    Tires:

    I have learned to deal with the Continental DWS06 tires. They work really well all around. The flat spotting after sitting all night in cooler temps is a bit annoying, but will be resolved with a set of Michelins next go around.
     
    ColoradoTJ, Aug 22, 2017
    #31
    Wrongside, T-Rex266 and trayday like this.
  2. Aug 2, 2018 at 11:39 PM
    #32
    ColoradoTJ

    #32
    ColoradoTJ [OP] Certified tow LEO Staff Member

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    Time for a 2 year update. :eek2: @landphil

    Now I have 95K+ miles on the car.

    Maintenance Items:

    Windshield(s). I have not had a lot of luck with windshields in this car. Colorado eats them up, so I just deal with it.
    Rear brakes/rotors are due around 100K miles. These are the same ones installed from the factory. I'm good with that.
    Shocks will probably be due between 100-120K miles. Alignment is still factory and tires wear smooth.

    Tires, well we should chat about this. If you are dumb enough to buy a rear wheel drive car with a 255 width tire like I did, just plan on buying two sets of tires. I now have a set of snow tires and summer tires. My wife does now as well for her Subaru. The weather in the winter in my area gets hammered. The snow tires for the Lexus are only for getting home from a surprise snow. I would not just head out in 6" of snow with this car for shits n giggles.

    The Continental DWS06 tires have turned out to be pretty good tires. Once the tread started to wear down, the flat spotting wasn't as bad. Breaking these tires loose is difficult. The Michelin Pilots could drift a corner easier...:D The tire warranty for an off set wheels is still 40K miles, which is unheard of. However, my next set of summer tires might be something a little lighter and better performing during the summer months. I'll probably go back to Michelin's.

    Overall:

    This has been a daily enjoyment to drive. If you put the car in power mode, don't expect but 22-23mpg, regular 25-29 mpg, snow mode is so slow it doesn't stay there long...:D

    Handling is point and shoot. The electric steering is very good. This has prevented at least 3 accidents between myself and the wife. Brakes are very strong and with the handling....awesome.

    I expect to see 200K out of this car without many issues.

    I can see having a Lexus in the driveway until I hang up the keys for good and no longer can drive.
     
    ColoradoTJ, Aug 2, 2018
    #32
    GODZILLA, osidepunker, T-Rex266 and 1 other person like this.
  3. Aug 2, 2018 at 11:43 PM
    #33
    ColoradoTJ

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    ColoradoTJ [OP] Certified tow LEO Staff Member

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    Calibrated Power 5 Tune pack, Allison 1000 tune, PPE deep trans pan, Cold/Hot CAC pipes, Banks CAI, PCV reroute, resonator delete, S&B 62 gal fuel tank, B&W GN hitch
    C53A5046-3450-4A73-86AC-59B714BC1496.jpg
     
    ColoradoTJ, Aug 2, 2018
    #33
    GODZILLA, T-Rex266 and landphil like this.
  4. Aug 3, 2018 at 12:36 AM
    #34
    landphil

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    landphil Fish are food, not friends!

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    You're fuel economy numbers are better than I'd expected for the IS350, not bad at all. Of course, an AWD version would loose some, but it's on par with the IS250 numbers I'd found. That said, the numbers I'd found didn't seem to make a distinction for AWD vs RWD IS250's, and I think it's a moot point now anyway. Good info, thanks.
     
    landphil, Aug 3, 2018
    #34
    ColoradoTJ[QUOTED][OP] likes this.
  5. Aug 3, 2018 at 1:47 AM
    #35
    ColoradoTJ

    #35
    ColoradoTJ [OP] Certified tow LEO Staff Member

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    Calibrated Power 5 Tune pack, Allison 1000 tune, PPE deep trans pan, Cold/Hot CAC pipes, Banks CAI, PCV reroute, resonator delete, S&B 62 gal fuel tank, B&W GN hitch
    No problem Phil.

    Good thing about the AWD is being able to rotate tires front and back.

    I was pleasantly surprised on the fuel economy, which is a good thing since premium is required (11.8 lbs/sq in compression).

    On a side note, just an FYI, the hood and trunk lid are aluminum. The hail really had fun with my car this year.
     
    ColoradoTJ, Aug 3, 2018
    #35
    landphil[QUOTED] likes this.
  6. Aug 8, 2018 at 7:31 PM
    #36
    Aron9000

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    Aron9000 New Member

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    Had a "vintage" Lexus, 1992 SC300. Bought it in 2012 with 60k miles on it, sold it a couple months ago with 103k on it. Loved that car, it was what I'd call "a nice one", stock when I got it, always garaged and old man kept. Only changes I did were the wheels, and switched all the gold badges to chrome, because I'm not Mr T or MC Hammer.

    All the import fan boys(the ones who knew cars) would just jizz their pants over this car. Yeah, 2JZ-GE, 5 speed manual stock, blah blah blah it isn't fast(quick, but not FAST). Really wish Lexus had done the 1JZ-GTE/R154(beefy 5 speed manual) combo like they got in Japan, similar drive-train to the Mark IV Supra, little less displacement, different turbos, 5 speed instead of 6 speed manual, VERY MOD FRIENDLY, the JDM spec car.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
    Look in the background, my truck put the "beat" into beater lol

    [​IMG]
     
    Aron9000, Aug 8, 2018
    #36
    ColoradoTJ[OP] likes this.
  7. Aug 8, 2018 at 7:50 PM
    #37
    ninjajay

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    ninjajay Posting from the toilet

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    I almost bought an IS-F back in 2010, ended up with one of its competitors instead. While I haven't had any major issues I'm still definitely more nervous than if I had gone with the Lexus.
     
    ninjajay, Aug 8, 2018
    #37
  8. Aug 8, 2018 at 7:58 PM
    #38
    Aron9000

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    Aron9000 New Member

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    What did you buy, a Cadillac CTS-V????? That car is still on my bucket list, but in wagon form. Outrageous styling, 556hp stock, factory supercharged V8, easy to mod with a huge aftermarket. Mainly its the blower and the styling though, love the sound of that engine and the look of that car.
     
    Aron9000, Aug 8, 2018
    #38
  9. Aug 8, 2018 at 8:00 PM
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    papasmurf

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    papasmurf Savage Fabrication

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    papasmurf, Aug 8, 2018
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  10. Aug 8, 2018 at 8:17 PM
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    ninjajay

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    ninjajay Posting from the toilet

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    E90 M3
     
    ninjajay, Aug 8, 2018
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  11. Aug 8, 2018 at 10:39 PM
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    Aron9000

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    That's a really exciting and special car. One of the last real M cars with a special engine. I'm not much of a BMW guy(more fond of Benz if we are talking german), but I do respect all those special M cars that had a unique engine. What does that rev to 8000, 8500 RPM???? I know that engine absolutely rips on the top end and sounds like F1 if you open up the pipes
     
    Aron9000, Aug 8, 2018
    #41
  12. Aug 10, 2018 at 4:42 AM
    #42
    osidepunker

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    osidepunker OsidePunker

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    hahaha!

    No.
     
    osidepunker, Aug 10, 2018
    #42
  13. Aug 10, 2018 at 5:07 AM
    #43
    osidepunker

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    osidepunker OsidePunker

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    @ColoradoTJ

    Ok I will LOL Lexus is dope AF. Super smooth quiet bulletproof. I didn't get the MPG you're getting, but I usually do 80-90mph on my way to work. My average was about 21-23 depending on where I'm going. I could get 25 if I keep my speed to 70mph for a full tank, but thats hard to do. But in the end I got rid of mine because it was just too small. I thought I could live with it, but the cockpit is narrow and confined and not enough trunk. Too bad lexus doesn't make a sports crossover because I would have bought one. But all their wagons are neutered. I ended up picking this one up after shopping for 3 weeks:

    20180808_154221.jpg 20180808_161646.jpg 20180808_155838.jpg 20180808_155936.jpg 20180808_155849.jpg

    So it cost about 10k more than the Lexus I had (2017 IS350 F sport with nav/mark levinson). But I gained a wagon, 30/70 AWD, and slight power bump (about a half pound less weight per horsepower). Also better brakes and 9 speed dual clutch transmission.

    I sacrificed 4 mpgs, seat coolers, radar, lane keeping assist, and maybe reliability if you think a #1 spot on JD long term list is that much better than a #3 spot.

    Interior I gained 360 camera, self parking, Bermeister stereo (sounds a little better than mark levinson), and much better nav/infotainment.

    I've never in my life driven a german car. Only japanese my whole life. But I will say this, the germans spank the japanese in the fun factor and the details factor. There are tons of little touches that this car has that the lexus doesn't. the lexus is refined and nice, but it's definitively a plain boring car LOL I might go back to lexus one day, but they have to make a fun car that isn't 90-100k
     
    osidepunker, Aug 10, 2018
    #43
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  14. Apr 3, 2022 at 1:15 PM
    #44
    ColoradoTJ

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    ColoradoTJ [OP] Certified tow LEO Staff Member

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    Calibrated Power 5 Tune pack, Allison 1000 tune, PPE deep trans pan, Cold/Hot CAC pipes, Banks CAI, PCV reroute, resonator delete, S&B 62 gal fuel tank, B&W GN hitch
    It has been a while since I’ve updated this thread.

    Mileage 142,412 miles.

    Total maintenance:

    Two front brakes/rotors, one set rear brakes/rotors.

    Water pump ~100k miles.

    Shocks ~100k miles and alignment.

    Alternator burnt up (literally) 142k miles. This job was the devil.

    Spark plugs, rear diff fluid, trans fluid 120k miles

    Battery 135k miles. It was 7 years old and getting weak.

    Bent two wheels and one snakebite on front tire. Potholes.

    So far, Goodyear and Michelin tires have been best on this car. No flat spotting and good mileage. Purchased a used wheel set for winter tires (Michelin Ice X).

    Fuel and oil changes. Been a damn good commuter.
     
    ColoradoTJ, Apr 3, 2022
    #44
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  15. Apr 3, 2022 at 3:05 PM
    #45
    ColoradoTJ

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    ColoradoTJ [OP] Certified tow LEO Staff Member

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    I totally missed this Alex.

    How’s the Merc holding up?
     
    ColoradoTJ, Apr 3, 2022
    #45
  16. Jul 29, 2023 at 12:09 PM
    #46
    ColoradoTJ

    #46
    ColoradoTJ [OP] Certified tow LEO Staff Member

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    Calibrated Power 5 Tune pack, Allison 1000 tune, PPE deep trans pan, Cold/Hot CAC pipes, Banks CAI, PCV reroute, resonator delete, S&B 62 gal fuel tank, B&W GN hitch
    Car still keeps on going. 160K miles. Brakes, Tires, Oil changes.

    I did do the thermostat housing at 145K miles and is part of the scheduled maintenance.
     
    ColoradoTJ, Jul 29, 2023
    #46
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