Thinking of purchasing my first Lexus - IS 250
02-19-14, 11:53 AM
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Thinking of purchasing my first Lexus - IS 250
Hey everyone... new member here. My name is Scott.
I have always been a big Toyota fan, but have never owned a Lexus. I currently drive a Toyota Tundra 4 door, 5.7L big ole truck! I have loved it over the past few years, but I must say.. it gets really poor gas mileage. I work about 30+ miles away from my work, so I have a 60+ mile round trip daily commute. Not to mention, going to lunch, any other personal stuff after work, weekends, etc. With my truck, I see around 14 mpg average. I drive alot of highway, but that is my average. My truck has now hit 148k miles and even though its a Toyota, Im getting a little scared of upcoming repairs and expenses.
So I have been looking around at different options. Im really leaning towards a car, something with better gas mileage. Being that I do have kids, I need something 4 door. Here is where I start having issues. There are very few 4 door cars I even like... And even fewer in my price range.
Thats when I came across the IS 250. I have always liked them, even the older IS300. But never really gave them much thought for some reason. So I came across one at my local dealer. Its a 2008, 60k miles, pearl white, tan leather, navigation, heated seats, rearview camera, etc. Seems like it has almost all the options possible. Very pretty and I sorta fell in love!! Did some negotiating and came to a fair price. My payments are going to go up about $100/mo, but I save $100/mo in gas. So I dont really "save" anything now like I had originally wanted to. But I would end up with a nicer car, alot less miles, higher resale, etc.
So here I am asking for advice. My main concerns are the size. The only cars I have ever owned were Mustangs and "sports" cars in the past and that was a while back. My last few cars were both 4 door Tundras. So even though I dont really haul anything but maybe a couple times a year, I am kinda used to the interior size of a 4 door truck. Other than driving to work, picking up kids from school, I dont really do big road trips or really see a specific reason I NEED alot of room. But Im just wondering how bad it will be? or will it be ok and not so bad afterall?
I do play alot of golf, so really as long as my clubs fit in the trunk, i am happy
really, any advice or things to look for, i would appreicate it. Thanks!
I have always been a big Toyota fan, but have never owned a Lexus. I currently drive a Toyota Tundra 4 door, 5.7L big ole truck! I have loved it over the past few years, but I must say.. it gets really poor gas mileage. I work about 30+ miles away from my work, so I have a 60+ mile round trip daily commute. Not to mention, going to lunch, any other personal stuff after work, weekends, etc. With my truck, I see around 14 mpg average. I drive alot of highway, but that is my average. My truck has now hit 148k miles and even though its a Toyota, Im getting a little scared of upcoming repairs and expenses.
So I have been looking around at different options. Im really leaning towards a car, something with better gas mileage. Being that I do have kids, I need something 4 door. Here is where I start having issues. There are very few 4 door cars I even like... And even fewer in my price range.
Thats when I came across the IS 250. I have always liked them, even the older IS300. But never really gave them much thought for some reason. So I came across one at my local dealer. Its a 2008, 60k miles, pearl white, tan leather, navigation, heated seats, rearview camera, etc. Seems like it has almost all the options possible. Very pretty and I sorta fell in love!! Did some negotiating and came to a fair price. My payments are going to go up about $100/mo, but I save $100/mo in gas. So I dont really "save" anything now like I had originally wanted to. But I would end up with a nicer car, alot less miles, higher resale, etc.
So here I am asking for advice. My main concerns are the size. The only cars I have ever owned were Mustangs and "sports" cars in the past and that was a while back. My last few cars were both 4 door Tundras. So even though I dont really haul anything but maybe a couple times a year, I am kinda used to the interior size of a 4 door truck. Other than driving to work, picking up kids from school, I dont really do big road trips or really see a specific reason I NEED alot of room. But Im just wondering how bad it will be? or will it be ok and not so bad afterall?
I do play alot of golf, so really as long as my clubs fit in the trunk, i am happy
really, any advice or things to look for, i would appreicate it. Thanks!
02-19-14, 01:07 PM
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I just bought my wife a 2012 IS250 Starfire Pearl White a few weeks ago. Our little guy is still in a car seat and he fits fine in the backseat - even with me riding in front of him (I am 6'2"). I wouldnt plan any road trips with 4 adults though.
Oh and you can get a few sets of golf clubs in the trunk no problem
Oh and you can get a few sets of golf clubs in the trunk no problem
02-19-14, 02:02 PM
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question for those of you who may know.... i know the car has bluetooth because I see the buttons on the right side of the steering wheel. So does that mean it will stream songs from my phone via bluetooth or just telephone stuff?
02-19-14, 02:15 PM
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Ill chiime in
We have had tundras in the family, I know what it is like going from a large suv/truck. I came from both my Denali and escalade it was a huge step down for me, size wise.
It came down a few years ago, I had to really ask myself "do I really need this much space". Having both the Denali and esky full size suv, third row etc. It was too big for just one person and like you my commute to work was lengthy over 100+miles a day. We picked up a GS350 few years ago traded the esky for, loved it never looked back. Now it came time to get rid of the denali, I went (in this order) MB c350, MB c250, BMW 335i, then the IS350.
Having going through my car selection, I wanted something just for me, great on gas, fun to drive. Both the mercedes was a complete downfall. Got the BMW LOVED IT, til the repairs came. Started racking up the miles and needed another car. Since owning the GS for awhile it was a no brainer to what was going to come next an IS.
As far as the size decrease Im doing okay with it, all the kids are grown so no need to shuttle anymore. The only gripe really is that my GS trunk is so lame it cant fit and ice chest but the IS can barely do it. Go for it, you'll love it!
We have had tundras in the family, I know what it is like going from a large suv/truck. I came from both my Denali and escalade it was a huge step down for me, size wise.
It came down a few years ago, I had to really ask myself "do I really need this much space". Having both the Denali and esky full size suv, third row etc. It was too big for just one person and like you my commute to work was lengthy over 100+miles a day. We picked up a GS350 few years ago traded the esky for, loved it never looked back. Now it came time to get rid of the denali, I went (in this order) MB c350, MB c250, BMW 335i, then the IS350.
Having going through my car selection, I wanted something just for me, great on gas, fun to drive. Both the mercedes was a complete downfall. Got the BMW LOVED IT, til the repairs came. Started racking up the miles and needed another car. Since owning the GS for awhile it was a no brainer to what was going to come next an IS.
As far as the size decrease Im doing okay with it, all the kids are grown so no need to shuttle anymore. The only gripe really is that my GS trunk is so lame it cant fit and ice chest but the IS can barely do it. Go for it, you'll love it!
02-19-14, 02:16 PM
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Yes what Dstun said, but the 2010+ come with BT streaming music
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02-19-14, 02:28 PM
#8
Welcome to CL and you e come to the right place to get your questions answered. I'd also suggest the GS over the IS unless your kids are young. Take the kids to sit in the IS with you driving is what I suggest. Here's some info for you to look at. Good luck with your decision. https://www.clublexus.com/forums/is-...iy-thread.html
02-19-14, 02:50 PM
#9
Not sure if you know already because I didn't until after I purchased the car, and that was the back seats dont fold down. If its not a problem for you, ignore my post
FYI - aside from the back seat not folding down I love my IS. The interior is best I have ever seen
FYI - aside from the back seat not folding down I love my IS. The interior is best I have ever seen
02-19-14, 08:56 PM
#10
The car is small. I have a 8 year old and a 1 year old... My family fits but it is tight. When I had a rear facing car seat installed my wife was crammed all the way forward. For a family car the Lexus ES makes more sense... or if you want to save a few $'s, the Camry would be even better. You can make the IS work with 2 kids and its not that bad but it is considered a compact. I ended up buying a new Sienna recently and the IS will be my daily driver (I also drive 35mi each way). Be prepared to go through front tires every 30K no matter what tires you buy and realize that the MPG display is probably wrong (mine shows 31MPG when I am really getting 27). Other than that, the car is great and is actually fun to take for a weekend road trip.
02-20-14, 05:55 AM
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Thanks for all the responses. I'm on the fence here. I really do like the car alot. I've never had a car fully loaded like that before with navigation, leather, heated seats, rearview cameras, etc. That alone is a big selling point to me. Since I spend so much time in my car every day, I want the inside to be nice!
That being said, the car is mostly for me. Im single, have 2 kids part time. So when they are with me, my son who is older would sit in the front, and my daughter who is 8 would sit in the back. Again, we dont really do much other than the usual running around to go out to eat, movies, etc. But over 50% of the time, I will be in the car by myself.
Thing is, Im recently divorced and on a budget for a car payment. Based on my interest rate and everything, I really want to stay with something under $20k. So my options are limited. If I want to go to a 4 door car, good gas mileage, nice inside, still looks nice outside and dependable (very important since I rack up alot of miles)... I really do not see many other options... if any at all.
The main 2 things I have heard from people are 1. its small and 2. is a girls car.
I did sit in one the other day and seemed to be ok.. I mean its smaller than my truck, but I thought it was ok. I even sat in the backseat and although I wouldnt want to do that for a long trip or anything myself, I thought it would be ok for my daughter or anyone else for a short period of time. I did notice the seats did feel REALLY comfortable.
as for it being a girl car, hmmm... thats got me puzzled. I didnt really think of it like that at first, but now more than 1 person has said that... maybe its the color? I personally thought the pearl white color was really nice. But maybe I should look for black?
That being said, the car is mostly for me. Im single, have 2 kids part time. So when they are with me, my son who is older would sit in the front, and my daughter who is 8 would sit in the back. Again, we dont really do much other than the usual running around to go out to eat, movies, etc. But over 50% of the time, I will be in the car by myself.
Thing is, Im recently divorced and on a budget for a car payment. Based on my interest rate and everything, I really want to stay with something under $20k. So my options are limited. If I want to go to a 4 door car, good gas mileage, nice inside, still looks nice outside and dependable (very important since I rack up alot of miles)... I really do not see many other options... if any at all.
The main 2 things I have heard from people are 1. its small and 2. is a girls car.
I did sit in one the other day and seemed to be ok.. I mean its smaller than my truck, but I thought it was ok. I even sat in the backseat and although I wouldnt want to do that for a long trip or anything myself, I thought it would be ok for my daughter or anyone else for a short period of time. I did notice the seats did feel REALLY comfortable.
as for it being a girl car, hmmm... thats got me puzzled. I didnt really think of it like that at first, but now more than 1 person has said that... maybe its the color? I personally thought the pearl white color was really nice. But maybe I should look for black?
02-20-14, 07:23 AM
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as for it being a girl car, hmmm... thats got me puzzled. I didnt really think of it like that at first, but now more than 1 person has said that... maybe its the color? I personally thought the pearl white color was really nice. But maybe I should look for black?[/QUOTE]
Where is it written that a man must drive a "masculine" (whatever that is) car? The same criticism is applied to the BMW 1-series (girl's car), but to my eye, the BMW looks pugnacious while the IS250 looks sophisticated. Feminine versus masculine are but two of many terms that one might use as descriptors for either car; all terms are situated within conventions of meaning, and all are highly susceptible to subjective interpretation. But, to your question: colour is a variable in these comparisons, and so too are bolt-ons. A black BMW or Lexus connotes masculine while powder blue connotes feminine in our conventions of colour (as if there are no black females or white males!). But one can modify the "implications" of either colour in either direction; bulgier tires or aggressive spoilers promote a "masculine" look, even on a pink car (well, maybe that's too extreme an example!). (Nothing I'm saying here is profound or original.)
Btw, Stephen Bayley has an editorial related to this subject in the latest Octane magazine (Feb 2014).
Where is it written that a man must drive a "masculine" (whatever that is) car? The same criticism is applied to the BMW 1-series (girl's car), but to my eye, the BMW looks pugnacious while the IS250 looks sophisticated. Feminine versus masculine are but two of many terms that one might use as descriptors for either car; all terms are situated within conventions of meaning, and all are highly susceptible to subjective interpretation. But, to your question: colour is a variable in these comparisons, and so too are bolt-ons. A black BMW or Lexus connotes masculine while powder blue connotes feminine in our conventions of colour (as if there are no black females or white males!). But one can modify the "implications" of either colour in either direction; bulgier tires or aggressive spoilers promote a "masculine" look, even on a pink car (well, maybe that's too extreme an example!). (Nothing I'm saying here is profound or original.)
Btw, Stephen Bayley has an editorial related to this subject in the latest Octane magazine (Feb 2014).
Last edited by dabIS; 02-20-14 at 11:54 AM.
