Friends IS300 Pre-Purchase Inquiry
12-04-10, 05:27 PM
#1
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Friends IS300 Pre-Purchase Inquiry
Hey Guys, my friend is interested in a first gen IS300 and had a few questions, so I'm letting him write up the following post with a few questions. Thanks for any help you can provide him with.
How reliable are the IS300's? Also I am looking for a manual and having a hard finding them, any suggestions on where to look? I tried autotrader and Clist but couldn't fine many. Also what can I expect for maintenance costs/insurance? I'm 21 male and have a clean record and live in a good area in mass. How are the manual transmissions on these? Do they offer good performance with decent economy? I like to get around quickly around town and the highway but i don't plan on beating on it. Mainly just get up to speed when getting on the highway or over taking on the highway. I don't want to have to floor it to just make it by, like in the 05 Matrix i'm driving. How is the car in the winter, since its RWD, will I get around fine with commuting to school and such? I plan to keep it stock and i don't want one that has been "done up". Are there any common problems for this car?
Any information or tips on the car would be great,
Thanks in advance!
How reliable are the IS300's? Also I am looking for a manual and having a hard finding them, any suggestions on where to look? I tried autotrader and Clist but couldn't fine many. Also what can I expect for maintenance costs/insurance? I'm 21 male and have a clean record and live in a good area in mass. How are the manual transmissions on these? Do they offer good performance with decent economy? I like to get around quickly around town and the highway but i don't plan on beating on it. Mainly just get up to speed when getting on the highway or over taking on the highway. I don't want to have to floor it to just make it by, like in the 05 Matrix i'm driving. How is the car in the winter, since its RWD, will I get around fine with commuting to school and such? I plan to keep it stock and i don't want one that has been "done up". Are there any common problems for this car?
Any information or tips on the car would be great,
Thanks in advance!
12-05-10, 04:07 AM
#5
Manuals are out there, it is hard to find one that hasn't been beat or modded. There are usually a few nice ones on ebay.
Insurance tends to be high for the IS300, I pay more for my 300 than my 350 and my new 4Runner.
Snow tires are a must, even then it takes some skill to keep it on the road.
Insurance tends to be high for the IS300, I pay more for my 300 than my 350 and my new 4Runner.
Snow tires are a must, even then it takes some skill to keep it on the road.
12-05-10, 08:14 AM
#6
Manuals are out there, it is hard to find one that hasn't been beat or modded. There are usually a few nice ones on ebay.
Insurance tends to be high for the IS300, I pay more for my 300 than my 350 and my new 4Runner.
Snow tires are a must, even then it takes some skill to keep it on the road.
Insurance tends to be high for the IS300, I pay more for my 300 than my 350 and my new 4Runner.
Snow tires are a must, even then it takes some skill to keep it on the road.
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12-05-10, 08:55 PM
#9
Manuals are out there, it is hard to find one that hasn't been beat or modded. There are usually a few nice ones on ebay.
Insurance tends to be high for the IS300, I pay more for my 300 than my 350 and my new 4Runner.
Snow tires are a must, even then it takes some skill to keep it on the road.
Insurance tends to be high for the IS300, I pay more for my 300 than my 350 and my new 4Runner.
Snow tires are a must, even then it takes some skill to keep it on the road.
i always unmodded ISs on Autotrader
12-06-10, 08:05 AM
#11
Reliability is great!
mpg sucks!
Car is slow.....but drives very nice and stable for a DD. A few engine and suspension mods though will really improve the overall performance of this car.
Insurance is on the high end.
Maintenance is not bad if you take it to a Toyota for service.
It drives fine in the snow with a good set of winter tires.
Yes, manuals are rare but be patient and they will come up for sale.....keep looking on ebay, craigslist, or autotrader.
mpg sucks!
Car is slow.....but drives very nice and stable for a DD. A few engine and suspension mods though will really improve the overall performance of this car.
Insurance is on the high end.
Maintenance is not bad if you take it to a Toyota for service.
It drives fine in the snow with a good set of winter tires.
Yes, manuals are rare but be patient and they will come up for sale.....keep looking on ebay, craigslist, or autotrader.
12-06-10, 08:44 AM
#12
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Nah I was driving on the interstate when it started snowing.
Eventually as the snow got worse I couldn't go more than 30mph without losing the rear.
Even 25mph was a task so I was reduced to driving in the slow lane with flashers on....
Eventually I spun out (at about 25mph) complete spin out, lost total control.
Crossed over all 3 lanes and the back end smashed the center divider..
Luckily I was only going 25mph and there was no traffic around me or it could have been a lot worse..
Yeah it's all better now
After my accident I got the sudden urge to modify my car.
So I guess the crash was for the better.
Eventually as the snow got worse I couldn't go more than 30mph without losing the rear.
Even 25mph was a task so I was reduced to driving in the slow lane with flashers on....
Eventually I spun out (at about 25mph) complete spin out, lost total control.
Crossed over all 3 lanes and the back end smashed the center divider..
Luckily I was only going 25mph and there was no traffic around me or it could have been a lot worse..
Yeah it's all better now
After my accident I got the sudden urge to modify my car.
So I guess the crash was for the better.
Last edited by llllllllll; 12-06-10 at 08:48 AM.
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