355F1

Sounds like it....and at about the right mileage.....

caliburn

Test drove it today, loved it, no carbon buildup symptoms or dashboard rattle. There are 3 half inch cracks on windshield (the salesman said they would fix it)

I am taking it to a mechanic on monday to get it checked and get a second opinion on the condition.

The salesman is not budging on the price, says its already below KBB, after talking to his manager he said he'll take the chances as this is a busy season. They reduced it from 16,993 to 15,494 recently. Should I just go for it? or is there a room for negotiation.

JdSwiper

iTrader: (4)

I say take it for the $15,500.. You wont be sorry

caliburn

Waited too long, car got sold

Spent 3-4 hrs on IS 250 research daily for the past week, mostly on carbon buildup. Would've moved faster if not for this thanksgiving long weekend.

Noeh

iTrader: (3)

Don't worry, there are plenty of IS250's out there.

p0lo8

15.5k was not that great anyway. Just keep looking and I am sure you will end up with even better deal.

caliburn

Thanks for the support and advice guys, really appreciate it.

Looking at CPO IS models now (years 11-12) I found a 2012 IS 250 AWD for 31k with 17k miles, it was only owned for 7 months and been sitting on dealership's lot since may this year. They are providing 3years/100k miles limited warranty

Originally the idea was to buy something old, use it for a year and then buy a new, or a year old car. I am not finding good cars like the one I just lost anymore.
Now I am thinking about getting a CPO car, take a 60month finance (so I wont be paying much every month), trade it in after a year and get a new car or CPO new model car. If I take the GAP insurance (which would be maybe 60-80$ extra a year) depreciation won't affect me.

This whole hassle is because I am not sure between BMW and Lexus. But apart from the facts that BMW's handling is the best and has more rear leg room / trunk space, am not really interested in BMW. So I wanted to drive a used lexus for a year and check how happy I would be with IS. Because honestly am not a racer and don't need BMW's handling/performance, and so for daily commute and long road trips I might not even notice the difference.
Lexus is definitely more luxurious, your butt hurts after a long roadtrip in BMW. I really like 2012 IS model's sunroof. But JD Power says IIHS gave the roof an "acceptable" rating for strength.

Any feedback would be appreciated. Please let me know if this is a dumb way to go about deciding and if there are better alternatives. Thanks for all the input again you guys rock

Noeh

iTrader: (3)

If you are getting a newer Lexus (up to 3 years and 40k miles), consider a non-CPO used one. The reasons are:
- they still have factory warranty, which is bumper to bumper and better than CPO warranty
- you save $2-5k in CPO certification premium
- you have ~1year/10k to find any problems. If the car is good changes are it will remain so for a Lexus
- you can still get a Lexus extended warranty before your factory warranty expires

If you want a BMW, definitely get a certified one...The E90 series drive awesome, and the engine in the 328 is pretty reliable and more powerful than the IS250. Early 335 with the N54 and N55 engines to have issues so I would avoid...

caliburn

Ah Ok, Thank you! Unfortunately at the closest lexus dealer, there are just 4 IS 250's above 2010 year, 2 are certified, and other 2 have very low miles and almost costing the same as certified. The one am looking at is a 2012 model, owned only for 7 months, and been sitting on their lot for past 6 months, originally priced at 32,998, now reduced to 31,500.

Raybean

iTrader: (3)

definitely get a certified one if you going with a bmw e90. even with the newer N52 motor they are pretty well known for leaking rear main seal, water pump, valve cover gasket.

caliburn

Finally Got my Lexus last night, 2011 Matador Red IS250. I would've posted pictures, but I took delivery at night and also it snowed, and so the car is all dirty already :P

Thanks for yours help guys

Kappy550

iTrader: (4)

I bought my 07 250 AWD with right at 100k. Complete service history. Great car, runs perfectly. Had the dealer check it out on Saturday with 111k on the clock, said not a thing wrong with it. Im happy. I just change my oil every 5k with full synthetic. Make sure to get on it every once and a while so you don't have to deal with the carbon build up problem.

mandyfig

Post pics soonest. Almost ended up with the same color.