355F1

Hello, everyone. I recently bought my first Lexus and after browsing the chat forums it appears that this is by far the most widely used.

So, I purchased a 2007 Tungsten Pearl IS 250 with NAV in June for the amazing price of $22,900 from a non-Lexus dealer. It had 31k miles on it and NO signs of hard use. This car was PRISTINE!!! Clean Carfax & Autocheck!!!

Picked it up and took it down the Lexus dealer for an oil change/check-up. Although most dealers will not give you the service records prior to your date of ownership I talked the service writer into giving them to me.

This car was taken in EVERY 5K (it was a lease-return) for oil changes, and the chick who owned it brouught it in for the 30k service ($600) ONE WEEK before turning it in to LFS. I was stoked to have found such a well-taken care of machine!!!

So...the ONLY problem she had with the car was in Feb 2009 where she had some DTCs pop up. Lexus dealer found that "rear height control sensor accidentally installed upside down during body work. Please bill Car West...."

WTF??????

After checking the internet for about 30 minutes I find a body shop with those words in the business title in California and call them.

They tell me that they did some repair work in Jan 2009 and sent me the R/O.

COMPLETE REAR END COLLISION PAID IN FULL BY STATE FARM. TOTAL REPAIR BILL OF $14,538. W T F ???????

Police reports filed and everything. Car was PRISTINE. These guys seriously did a FABULOUS job--I was thoroughly impressed.

So...Carfax....??? Autocheck...??? Where the F was the damage report from 18 months ago????

Well, the dealer took the car back US Bank let me cancel the loan by simply returning the original check total from the check they issued me to go buy the car.

So...what to do now??? I can't find any good used IS's, and I made my decision to buy an IS.

So, I finally decide on getting a 2010 Starfire Pearl IS 250 AWD with NAV and the Luxury Package with the nicer leather among other items. The black leather with the white stitching is just SICK!!!

What got me into this was the 1.9% LFS financing for 60 months!!!

Guys, I use my car 30k miles per year for work. I travel to all of my clients homes and I work 80 hours a week. The car I just sold was a 2007 Honda Civic EX with 90k miles on it that I bought brand new. I am going to miss the gas mileage.

I spend a lot of time in snow and ice, which is why I ultimately decided on the AWD.

I bought the 18" G-Spider rims and am debating on the F-Sport lowering springs due to the fact that I will be putting the OEM 17" rims back on with dedicated winter studded tires so that I can go anywhere. My Civic never got stuck--even in 12" of snow!

Well, I have only driven it 800 miles but I absolutely love it. This is my DD and the F-Sport Intake I put on actually sounds amazing. I'm not planning on doing anything else to it, however. Althought I drive a lot of miles, I am actually only using my DD 1-2 weeks a month. I work all over the country and fly everywhere (rental cars), but I work in Oregon (my home state) and drive all over the state for work when I am home. I take 3-4 days off per month.

Anyway, I just wanted to say hello to everyone. Not my first forum, but it is the first Lexus I have ever purchased.

The only real questions I have are:

1. Does anyone know the true sizes of ALL the speakers in this car?

In my 2004 BMW 330ci ZHP I only added a JL 10" Sub in a custom fiberglass enclosure with the factory stereo (removed the factory rear deck subs) and it sounded perfect. I am thinking of adding just a sub and amp to this set-up. However, I am wondering if the 3-way ($2k/set) Focals will fit in here. I'd run a new amp for the entire car but leave the factory nav setup.

2. Is it possible to find a used or new ML amp and speakers for a direct-drop replacement?

OK, guys, this is my DD and I am not interested in modding this car. As you can see, I already have a fun weekend machine.

Yes, it is my 1999 Ferrari F355 Spider F1. Tour de France Blue/Cuoio. I put some more info in my garage.

She is my baby and I love her dearly.

Enjoy the pics guys. I'm gone on a business trip but I will get some pics of the cars together eventually.

And I hope to see some of you soon!

JoshIS408

iTrader: (11)

Well you got the best of best worlds seems like. Slower car for DD. and a faster one for the weekend. welcome to CL

Sffd103

iTrader: (16)

Great story. Nice rides and welcome.

Mv350

iTrader: (23)

good things everything got taken care of congrats on the new ride. and nice pony

o ya and welcome to Club Lexus

TOPSECRTIS

iTrader: (4)

Dang, I can't believe that both carfax and auto check missed that one! I am glad everything worked out in the end.

Silec

iTrader: (10)

Congrats and welcome!

very nice weekend car you have there.

Fizzboy7

Love your new car with the G-spiders. A drop on F-springs would compliment the sporty stock look perfectly.

355F1

I think the F-Sport lowering springs are going to be purchased this week. I am just worried about the mountain roads I drive on on a regular basis in the winter to see my clients. Yes...MOUNTAIN ROADS with ruts, washouts, tree branches, etc.

I'm nuts for driving cars for my work vehicle. But driving 30k miles/year in an SUV is way more money than any car. Besides, my Civic NEVER got stuck or damaged.

I'll keep everyone posted on the spring situation.

Anyone know the answers to my stereo questions?

Thanks for all the welcomes, guys. Always appreciated.

Enjoy my 2 vids.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLsxptt6tJw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oIVpg_rHRg

loftus112

iTrader: (2)

Interesting, wasn't expecting a twist in the story when I first read this thread. It's unbelievable how not even a $14k worth of damage showed up on both history reports. Anyhoos, you were lucky to have found out that it had major rear end collision/damage and glad you were able to return it.

Welcome to your new CL family!

Fizzboy7

Best I can tell ya is the F-sport springs are pretty mild. Since having mine on, I have yet to bottom out or scrape. A little caution when coming to a driveway or speed bump is all that's needed.

355F1

I've done the research and I think I'll be okay with the approximate 1" drop. But remember, speed bumps are not what I am concerned about.

I drive on dirt roads all the time and sometimes mountain roads. Dropping back to the OEM 17s with winter tires might drop it a little too much. I don't want to have to change the springs out every time I change that season's tires--that's way too much wasted money.



One more question: For my 355 I only use Ricambi for OEM parts. For my old BMW it was Mile High BMW. Who does everyone use on here for the cheapest priced OEM Lexus parts and accessories???

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

Welcome. Nice rides!

Kurtz

iTrader: (1)

The ML system uses a different number of speakers, but more importantly the rears are in a different location.

The stock system has 3 in each front door, 3 in each rear door, and one sub in the trunk for 13 speakers.

The ML system has 3 in each front door, 2 in each rear door, 2 in the rear deck, 1 sub in the trunk, and 1 center speaker in the center front dash.

The base system is 4 ohm and the ML is 8 ohm.

So you'd at least a place to install the rear deck speakers, and probably some wiring changes, in addition to the swapping all the speakers and amp... doubt it'd be worth doing given what Lexus gets for parts.

(you'll also need to swap the CD changer for a DVD changer if you wanted to play DVDs)

metalgear

Welcome to CL, nice weekend car.

516IS

iTrader: (12)

Welcome to CL, very sick ferrari you got there.