Best year for lexus is 350
08-03-20, 05:08 PM
#1
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
Best year for lexus is 350
I am considering buying a Lexus IS350. What year is the best, and is the sport worth it? What about the all wheel is it worth the extra$?
08-04-20, 09:45 AM
#2
Lexus Champion
You really can't go wrong with any year 2nd Gen IS350 that is well maintained and taken care of, but if I was looking to buy a 2nd Gen IS350, IMO I would look for a lower mileage, one owner if possible between 2010 and 2013. Of course what you buy would be based on what your budget is and what you are willing to spend, but let me give you my reasoning. First off when I buy a car, I want it to have lower mileage (50K to 80K), I want to make sure it was well maintained, and I don't like cars that were passed around to several owners. Also when I buy a car, I don't want to have to sink money into it getting it up to spec, as I hold on to my cars at least 5 to 10 years before I pass them on or they die (never had a Toyota die on me in more than 25 years of ownership). When I bought my 2010 IS350 Sport in September of last year with 52K on it (and one owner), all I had to do was tires, brakes & rotors, and spark plugs when I hit 60K. Another reason I would pick a 2010 and on is they made some improvements from the 2010 models and on, and they are still under the "sticky dash" extended warranty (2010 ends this year).
As far as the IS350 Sport, I have that model and the only difference from the regular IS350 is 18" wheels, slightly stiffer suspension (not to be mistaken for F-Sport), leather wrapped steering wheel and shifter ****. There may be a few other options I'm missing, but I drove in a 2008 IS and the suspension is definitely stiffer in the Sport.
If you are mechanically inclined and don't mind buying a higher mileage car, as long as it was maintained properly the engine and trans should be good, it's the accessories that are peripheral to the engine and trans that begin to fail. I just don't have time to deal with that kind of *****, this is my daily driver that I plan to own for a long time, take it on lots of trips so I looked around (I spent months looking), found this one that had low mileage, one owner and was well maintained so I spent a bit more money on it
As far as the IS350 Sport, I have that model and the only difference from the regular IS350 is 18" wheels, slightly stiffer suspension (not to be mistaken for F-Sport), leather wrapped steering wheel and shifter ****. There may be a few other options I'm missing, but I drove in a 2008 IS and the suspension is definitely stiffer in the Sport.
If you are mechanically inclined and don't mind buying a higher mileage car, as long as it was maintained properly the engine and trans should be good, it's the accessories that are peripheral to the engine and trans that begin to fail. I just don't have time to deal with that kind of *****, this is my daily driver that I plan to own for a long time, take it on lots of trips so I looked around (I spent months looking), found this one that had low mileage, one owner and was well maintained so I spent a bit more money on it
Last edited by AMIRZA786; 08-04-20 at 09:51 AM.
08-05-20, 12:53 PM
#3
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
Thanks
You really can't go wrong with any year 2nd Gen IS350 that is well maintained and taken care of, but if I was looking to buy a 2nd Gen IS350, IMO I would look for a lower mileage, one owner if possible between 2010 and 2013. Of course what you buy would be based on what your budget is and what you are willing to spend, but let me give you my reasoning. First off when I buy a car, I want it to have lower mileage (50K to 80K), I want to make sure it was well maintained, and I don't like cars that were passed around to several owners. Also when I buy a car, I don't want to have to sink money into it getting it up to spec, as I hold on to my cars at least 5 to 10 years before I pass them on or they die (never had a Toyota die on me in more than 25 years of ownership). When I bought my 2010 IS350 Sport in September of last year with 52K on it (and one owner), all I had to do was tires, brakes & rotors, and spark plugs when I hit 60K. Another reason I would pick a 2010 and on is they made some improvements from the 2010 models and on, and they are still under the "sticky dash" extended warranty (2010 ends this year).
As far as the IS350 Sport, I have that model and the only difference from the regular IS350 is 18" wheels, slightly stiffer suspension (not to be mistaken for F-Sport), leather wrapped steering wheel and shifter ****. There may be a few other options I'm missing, but I drove in a 2008 IS and the suspension is definitely stiffer in the Sport.
If you are mechanically inclined and don't mind buying a higher mileage car, as long as it was maintained properly the engine and trans should be good, it's the accessories that are peripheral to the engine and trans that begin to fail. I just don't have time to deal with that kind of *****, this is my daily driver that I plan to own for a long time, take it on lots of trips so I looked around (I spent months looking), found this one that had low mileage, one owner and was well maintained so I spent a bit more money on it
As far as the IS350 Sport, I have that model and the only difference from the regular IS350 is 18" wheels, slightly stiffer suspension (not to be mistaken for F-Sport), leather wrapped steering wheel and shifter ****. There may be a few other options I'm missing, but I drove in a 2008 IS and the suspension is definitely stiffer in the Sport.
If you are mechanically inclined and don't mind buying a higher mileage car, as long as it was maintained properly the engine and trans should be good, it's the accessories that are peripheral to the engine and trans that begin to fail. I just don't have time to deal with that kind of *****, this is my daily driver that I plan to own for a long time, take it on lots of trips so I looked around (I spent months looking), found this one that had low mileage, one owner and was well maintained so I spent a bit more money on it
The following users liked this post:
AMIRZA786 (08-05-20)
08-05-20, 01:45 PM
#4
Lexus Champion
08-08-20, 02:40 PM
#6
Forum Administrator
iTrader: (2)
Make sure to check the FAQ sticky for the buyer's guide link https://www.clublexus.com/forums/is-...e-threads.html
08-08-20, 02:41 PM
#7
Lexus Champion
Looks good to me, low miles. Very low miles. What is the asking price? As I mentioned in my previous post, for myself if I was in the market I would be looking for something like this, as I buy for the long term ownership. I would probably pay around $24K, maybe $25K. I'm sure they are probably asking $30K plus. But since this is a 3rd gen, you should probably ask around in the 3rd gen forum, as 2nd gens are bought and sold between $5K and $15K
The following users liked this post:
ncatona (08-08-20)