helriser

Hello all,

I know this is not a BMW board, but I'm sure just like me a lot of lexus members here also have an interest in bimmers. As I will soon have a very prominet job or make more money, I've been thinking of what car will I get to display whatever ounce of success I'd like to display in a few months. My choices have been strickly between BMW and Lexus. At first it was going to be the 3, then once it came out the design turned me off. The IS came and lifted my spirit, but I have come to realize a convertible coupe is what I really want (nonthing like having your top down in the summer time. Absolutely nothing like it.) So I checked out the SC430, wonderful interior but I hate 2 seaters with a passion. Although it has 2 seats in the back, but we all know no real humans can fit back there and enjoy the ride at the same time. It got Xed out.

So, when I heared BMW would come out with a convertible hardtop I thought maybe this might be it, but after looking at these spie pictures (http://www.worldcarfans.com/spyphoto...01/country/gcf) All I want to say is why is the 3 so badly styled compared to the 5, 6 and 7 series? I guess now that leaves the IS convertible. If it's coming more than a year from now, I don't know if I can wait that long. If that's the case I may be forced into an SC430 and keep my little honda when I need to cater to 4 people or so. I don't want to buy 2 nice cars. Just one nice ride.

Is there any spie shots of the IS coupe floating around at all?

Also, rumor has it that the next SC430 will have proper rear seats. How truthful is it and will it be the 07 or 08 model? And Lexus if you are reading this at all, for the love of God, fix the SC's only weakness; it's rear end.

Thanks in advance for all the replies!

LexFather

Nice post.
1. No true IS coupe shots. The ones in the mags and floating on the internet all originated from Photoshops from members here, lol
2. No real news on the next gen SC. The only thing I've heard is it will be GS based. As for model replacement, not sure at all.

Gojirra99

The IS350 CS will be a year or less from now so I think it's worth the wait. It'll have more usable back seats with more legroom at the back than the SC430, but my guess is that the rear seats will still not be too comfortable to sit in for any lengthy period of time except for kids/young teens.

The SC430 just got a facelift last fall & my guess is it will last til the 08 model year at least.

mmarshall

How about this? I don't think this is one of the Photoshops ones that 1SICK was referring to.

http://www.japanesecarfans.com/spyph...001.Mini6L.jpg

linh811

The ultimate convertible has 2 wheels, not four

PhilipMSPT

iTrader: (5)

Unconfirmed info states that the IS coupe and convertible will be available by Jan 2007. That's only 10 months away. Also, there is no confirmed info if the SC will be discontinued or revived in the future.

I'd wait. You have plenty of time to save up for the convertible, so you're down payment will be significant.

P.S. By the way, the ultimate convertible does come with only two wheels...

linh811

Nice garage

PhilipMSPT

iTrader: (5)

Thanks. Your's too. Isn't the 2008 R1 coming out with 189 hp?

rominl

iTrader: (4)

umm, actually, what's your budget? that will help. if budget is no issue, i would just choose from ls460 (this fall), sc430, 7 series, or the 6 series. that's how you show your status.

i have to be honest, driving 3 series or IS, that's not going to really show much. they are nice cars, and for sure you need some money to get them. but they are a dime a donzen out there.

i am NOT trying to offend anyone, i used to have is300

SteVTEC

LOL, I'm having a similar problem.

A BMW E60 5-series suits me way better than the Lexus GS does. But Lexus quality, reliaiblity, and attention to detail suits me much better than BMW's lack thereof does. I've been surfing the BMW forums and I found that BMW engines are plagued with VANOS issues. Poorly designed oil seals in the vanos actuator piston can cause erratic action of the valve timing causing powerband issues, high fuel consumption, degraded emissions, and best of all cold start / stalling issues. $1000 to fix, and the problem can recur yearly. Lovely. That's just icing on the cake to go along with all of the other i-drive and electrical issues (window regulators, door seals, etc). Will have to go sit in a GS again, and give the Infiniti M a 2nd look after this.

doug_999

Steve, this is going to come off as a BMW guy sticking up for his brand (ok, it is!), but seriously, I have not heard much about VANOS issues on the e60. Worse, I can't imagine many people paying for these fixes as the car has only been out two years.

The car is not as reliable as the GS - that's for sure. But the 3rd gen GS certainly has had its share of problems as well.

helriser

Thank you for all the replies eveyone.



I do agree, there is no real status with 3 and IS. That is why I really wanted SC430. But I simply got to have 2 decent rear seats. My 97 convertible 328i BMW doesn't have a very spacious rear, but I could at leat get 2 friends in the back with no problem. The SC however that's not possible at all. That's my only issue. Like I said, maybe I'll just have 2 cars; a hoopty for the crowd and the SC for showoff moments.

diablo1

I dunno, I think it depends on how old you are too. A BMW 3-series or similar car has been the "I've arrived" car for 20-somethings for a while now. But I'm not that impressed if the guy driving it is 40. a 30-yr-old in an M5 is impressive. A 65-yr-old in a 7-series, not that impressive. Does that make sense?

And, an 18-yr-old in a Bentley Continental GT (which I saw a couple weeks ago) is not impressive, because his daddy obviously bought it for him!

rominl

iTrader: (4)

well you can't really compare the sc430 to the 3 series convertible. the 3 convertible is sitll designed to have 4 people, but the sc430 is only 2 seaters. the rear seats are only there for insurance purposes imho. although my wife can fit in the rear no problem, it's still no fun. i never plan to have more than 3 people in the sc430 anyway

and if you wanna compare, the sc430 should be compared to the 6 series size wise (though still different), and the rear seats of 6 is no fun too. maybe a tad better, but still

SteVTEC

It's just a question of how well an E60 would suit our needs beyond that of other cars, how much we would truly enjoy ownership of the car, and if that would be enough to offset the frustration from whatever problems we have to deal with that we wouldn't have otherwise in say a Japanese vehicle. I think we'll probably give it a shot when we're ready in a year or two, but I do need to do my research on the BMW boards and lower my expectations a bit. I don't like surprises.