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Hi guys. I'm not sure if I'm writing on the proper thread, but yeah.
I got really obsessed with the IS250 models and I wanted to buy one as my main driver and my second car ever bought I recently searched some of the common problems and found one for sale that I really like and I would like an opinion on it.
With this thread come some questions as well:
- Should I buy one, is it still worth it in 2024?
- Problems that I should be worried about;
- Do I find parts commonly and is it expensive?
- How reliable is it?
Thank you guys,
Leo. Photo of the Lexus from the Ad Photo of the Lexus from the Ad Photo of the Lexus from the Ad Mileage of the Lexus from the Ad Photo of the Lexus from the Ad
Ad of the car:
FOR SALE Lexus is250 year 2006, 217000km 209hp and 250nm 2,5 v6 6 speed automatic, RWD. The car has been lowered considerably A newly reviewed no comment
What's new:
-New exhaust system and fittings 2023
-Petrol tank and fences
-Alternator
-Wheel bearings at the back
-Rear disks and front left side
-Springs in the back
-Bulbs in the headlights
-Think the previous owner had the valve cover gasket replaced but not entirely sure.
Comes with 4 summers and nail tires on rims: Summer tires 19 inches, used 1 summer; Nail tires 17 inches, used for 2 winters The car was most of its years in the Westmannaeyjar and is therefore very little driven for the last 10 years.
Always been using supplements since E10 came along (comes with a couple of flasks with the car)
If the car is local it's not much work to go over and have a look.
Look well.
If it's many miles away, I'd want several good pics of the underneath of the car on front and back, just in case it was a winter driver.
Hi again! It pretty far away, around 300 kilometers away. He said this about the car:
As for the car being a winter driver, I'm living in Iceland where ice and winter is almost 9 months/year. Salt is very common here.
Not sure what you're paying... but I would try to get an is350. Especially if you're going RWD, there seems to be plenty RWD is350s available in my area and the prices aren't too much higher.
Not sure what you're paying... but I would try to get an is350. Especially if you're going RWD, there seems to be plenty RWD is350s available in my area and the prices aren't too much higher.
Yeah I was searching for a gs350 and a is350, cannot find any here in Iceland unfortunately.
The 2.5 had bad carbon build-up issues. My 2008 started at only 30k miles. Lexus took care of it twice and extended the warranty, but eventually that ended. Not sure if there ever was a permanent fix, but I don't think so.
Also have the melted dash issue on most Lexus from that time. Was also taken care of by Lexus, but many people let it go and then it was too later to address it.
Everything else was pretty solid on my 2008. The engine was butter smooth, reliable, and the car handled and drove well.
I'd avoid any modded car. Usually never done right and adds strain to the car's systems.
The newer and lower the miles, the better. Check for no accidents and no repainting.
First of all when you are asking Qs like these, you should always specify country/region you are coming from, otherwise you are going to get advice that is going to be useless to you, or downright wrong, since cars can differ from market to market.
So first lets get all the useless advice out of the way:
1. "Buy IS350"
He can't, they weren't available in Europe.
2. "Buy Acura"
Again, Acura is brand for US market, in EU they are branded as Honda, and often it's more complicated then simple rebranding...
3. "Avoid cause of carbon build-up issues"
Again, this is Europe, a land of diesels, and where direct injection was invented and introduced to mass market to begin with. Half of the car owners have to deal with carbon issues sometime in the lifespan of the car, it's not that big of a deal over here...
Now on to the actual topic, the OPs car. You say you need car for snow driving? Well RWD without LSD is the worst kind of drive for snow and ice driving. Not impossible, but you've been warned
Then again about the mods. Don't know how it's in Iceland, but if it's like in central Europe, you can't just slap parts from ebay on a car and expect to be road legal. All parts need to be type approved (homologated) by homologation authority of your country. In some countries this is virtually impossible if parts already don't have a valid TUV certificate. So then check your laws, and ask the owner about the legality of the changes, cause these might make it impossible for you to register a car...
Last edited by jedan; 06-25-24 at 05:40 AM.
Reason: accedental post
No pictures of interior, can't event tell which option package is this. No parking sensors, no xenons. It's automatic, so probably it's not base trim, but I would ask this before, if you are living in cold climate heated seats are probably a must. In any case i wouldn't even bothered with checking one live before seeing the pictures of interior. If interior is worn and torn, it doesn't matter if car is mechanically solid, you are still going to feel as if you are driving in a junk
Also, since you are living in Europe, word of advice, these cars are pretty exotic here. Sure many mechanical components are you standard Toyota parts, but some other Lexus specific parts can be quite expensive to get new, and very hard to get used. Also don't trust the Toyota reliability hype, reliable does not mean "without problems" it just means it has less problems on average then competition. Every car has issues, especially after 200+ KM. So if by "reliable" you actually mean "wont have any issues", there's no such car, eventually everything breaks. And if by "reliable" you mean "cheap to repair", your average VW Golf is more "reliable" in that case if you are living in Europe, then Lexus...
06-20-24, 08:48 AM
Want to buy an IS250
I recently searched some of the common problems and found one for sale that I really like and I would like an opinion on it.
