RE: SOTW Lexus IS200

[RemarkLima]

I'd have had a Altezza RS200 (IS200 with a N/A 2 litre 4 pot that revs to 8500rpm and makes 230bhp!) if the arse hadn't fallen out of the GBP and the Yen done a Hulk on the world.

Double wishbones all round to boot!

Anyway, ended up with a 3 series...

[Leptons]

pSyCoSiS said:

Didn't Lexus revolutionise the chav tuning scene with these rear lights?

Even BMW did something stupid by fitting those style lights to the rear of the E46 compacts?!

This is the only car that suits these lights IMHO.

I think they look pretty terrible now, even on the car that had them as standard.
In fact my first thought when I saw the pics was "some wkers fitted chav lights"

Oh, wait.

[pSyCoSiS]

Leptons said:

I think they look pretty terrible now, even on the car that had them as standard.
In fact my first thought when I saw the pics was "some wkers fitted chav lights"

Oh, wait.

HAHAHAHA! Fair comment.

[Gridl0k]

That would be why they're colloquially known as "lexarse lights"

[Johnboy Mac]

RemarkLima said:

I'd have had a Altezza RS200 (IS200 with a N/A 2 litre 4 pot that revs to 8500rpm and makes 230bhp!) if the arse hadn't fallen out of the GBP and the Yen done a Hulk on the world.

Double wishbones all round to boot!

Anyway, ended up with a 3 series...

I often wondered would it be fairly easy to modify an RS200 to look exactly like an IS SE or Sport? I might have been tempted to have an RS200 then.

[andy43]

thewheelman said:

andy43 said:

FlashBastd said:

I ran an IS300 for about 8 months, it was without doubt my worst ever motoring decision. Bought at 3yrs old, 29k for £12k, sold 8 months later (took that long to find a buyer) for £8.5k. I hated it that much.

211 BHP - check
RWD - check
LSD - check
Dull as dishwater - check
Incredibly naff hard plastic interior - check
ESP that you can't turn off, and that beeps at you when activated - check
Incredibly thirsty even when driven gently - check

Quick, yes, but no character whatsoever. Also incredibly juicy. A cheaper more reliable 3 series it is not.

That does sum it up - it's all too lightweight, too fake, too domestic appliance compared to a 3er. Everything's there, it just doesn't do much for me personally. But at this level of reliability and toys for sub-£1000...?

Haha, you think a 3 series has "character", & The Lexus too "domestic appliance compared to a 3 series". If anything the more mass produced 3 series is the appliance.

Neither have real character, let's face it, they're both boring, to suit their original owners. But the BM at least has a quality feel to it, even if the reliability isn't as good. The Lexus is too plasticky inside, dials and lights are dated now, think Samsung vs Bosch
And any comparable 6 pot E46 meeting sotw budget requirements will be hideous in the extreme, if you can even find one for a grand.

[TypeRTom]

I like these but was put off by the fuel consumption and (lack of) performance. The Japanese Toyota Altezza I believe had a 4 pot 3S-GE Beams engine with 210bhp, which would no doubt be more economical and quicker. The 3S-GE was used in Celicas and MR2s up to '99 ish.

Still, probably quite a nice car for not a lot of money as long as there are no major faults.

[Johnboy Mac]

andy43 said:

The Lexus is too plasticky inside, dials and lights are dated now

Not at the time, one of the IS selling points was the interior, especially the SE & Sport. The SE had SatNav (no big deal now, but it was then along with the extra standard equipment) as standard too, much nicer finished seats also than a 3. A lot of 3 Series owners or potential owners were won over. It's easy to knock the IS now but at the time it was a better buy in many respects an a 320i.

[ecs0set]

I can't get past the 1980s Toyota Starlet (or other humdrum equivelent) door handles. They would depress me every time I got out.

Not helped by the fact that the ad has a terrible photo of the interior. Were it not for the sat nav, this pic could have been posted on www.usedminicabs.co.uk.

[Matt_N]

Johnboy Mac said:

Not at the time, one of the IS selling points was the interior, especially the SE & Sport. The SE had SatNav (no big deal now, but it was then along with the extra standard equipment) as standard too, much nicer finished seats also than a 3.

Afaik Sat Nav wasn't standard on any of the models, you had SE Navigator / Sport Navigator which included nav.

I looked at a few SE's, none had nav.

[Crimp a Length!]

Friend of mine had one of these brand new.
Dull as dishwater and slow.
I remember a diesel golf blowing him into the rafters once when he'd had it a couple of weeks.
Suffice to say he sold it and bought a BMW not long after.

[RemarkLima]

Johnboy Mac said:

RemarkLima said:

I'd have had a Altezza RS200 (IS200 with a N/A 2 litre 4 pot that revs to 8500rpm and makes 230bhp!) if the arse hadn't fallen out of the GBP and the Yen done a Hulk on the world.

Double wishbones all round to boot!

Anyway, ended up with a 3 series...

I often wondered would it be fairly easy to modify an RS200 to look exactly like an IS SE or Sport? I might have been tempted to have an RS200 then.

It was just a bumper by the looks of things to me... Either way, the import costs ended up so high it was a no brainer to go for the 3er.

[RedWhiteMonkey]

I also had an IS200 for a short while and like others have highlighted on this thread they just don’t quite work. Nice enough place to sit but far too thirsty for the level of performance it delivered. The traction control seemed very slow and outdated when compared to similar era BMW traction control, and as with many Japanese cars too many beeps and electronic warning noises.

[Johnboy Mac]

Matt_N said:

Afaik Sat Nav wasn't standard on any of the models, you had SE Navigator / Sport Navigator which included nav.

I looked at a few SE's, none had nav.

You could well be correct, (mine) a '99 SE had it and at the time so had the other IS's in the dealers. Very possible I just didn't see one without it bar the basic S version.

Edited by Johnboy Mac on Friday 27th July 12:58

[MiseryStreak]

thewheelman said:

On the downside.............Alan Partridge...........

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YllyBr_4Kxk

Edited by thewheelman on Friday 27th July 11:12

cough

MiseryStreak earlier said:

It's the Japanese Mercedes!

cough

[e36er]

I'm surprised at the numerous "dull as dishwater" comments. Did none of you make use of the LSD?!

I'm a huge BMW fan, but I chose the IS200 over an e46 for a few reasons:

Great engine, albeit not very powerful
It's nicer to drive and a helluva lot more fun
Nicer gearbox - 4th, 5th and 6th are very close together which helps the little engine
Lovely steering
The certain ability the LSD gives


Re the steering, yes, I know it lacks feel, but feel is not something I've ever hankered after or indeed 'get'. I've driven a fair few decent cars - 996s, 997s, an F430, Atom and so on, but I've never found the steering in any car to give any indication of the car's balance.

[The Obeast]

Toms made some Altezza's (altezzi??) with turbo power and 280bhp. they look awesome.

also when i worked in the motor trade i got to have a fair few goes in a is300 sport, i genuinely loved everything apart from autobox only. had the 18inch rims and bodykit, really nice blue colour, much more interesting than the equalivent BMW.

[bobbybee]

My Dad had the first IS200SE sold in the UK from june 99.
At the official unveiling of the model at our local Lexus dealer the actual car on show plated T699*** had already been bought by my dad sight unseen, not test driven, he just liked it (on paper) and thought why not.
All three IS200 models were the same car, but with different specs, base was simply that, the SE had partial leather better stereo nicer wheels, the 'Sport' had lowered suspension and body kit. None of which had SAT-NAV as standard, but it was an option on the SE & Sport

One of the local press was milling around, asking the invited guests their opinion and asked my dad "do you like the new Lexus?", my dad simply replied "I'd better I've just bought it"
The press guy took it as a joke, but you should have seen his face when at the end of the 'do' my dad was handed the keys and we drove off home in it.

He had it until the Prius came out and part-exed it.
When I asked him why trade down from an IS200 to a Prius? his answer was "they don't make a small hybrid.... yet"
As soon as the CT came out, yep, he got himself one of them. (he even named it KC = Kylie's Car)

Just thought I'd share

Edited by bobbybee on Friday 27th July 13:24

[Luca Brasi]

Hateful things.

[monzaxjr]

Had a go in one of these a few years back. Very disappointing, wouldn't pull the skin off a rice pudding. No doubt it will be reliable though!