Looking for a used IS250 for my daughter. Finding a lot of late 2nd gen with less than 100K miles for under $12K. I'm thinking they should be good for another 100K miles but what kind of maintenance cost can I expect to spend over those 100K miles? Not very familiar with Lexus, I've always had Honda/Acuras but not crazy about the direction they have taken in the last 20 years. Daughter loves the IS, and I think the 2011-2013 seems to be the best bang for the buck.

 

no it will not be good for 100k without maintenance so be prepared.

the lexus is250 is a direct injection engine vs. is350 which is direct and port injection engine. (suggest is350 instead)

the is250 being a direct injection is very common with carbon build up after the 100-130k mark and will need a carbon clean up at toyota or lexus dealership which ranges around $900-$1300 depending on their charges. there are ways to avoid carbon build up before it gets bad. you should redline your engine here and there, it is good for the soul of it and helps with getting rid of deposits inside and you should try seafoam valve cleaner it is one of the best carbon clean up products with proof.
but other than that the is250/350 is a very reliable car being from toyota. the only real major problem that you need to beware of is the carbon build up.

the is350 is more unlikely to experience carbon build up because it is also port injected meaning it sprays fuel into the valves which helps clean up any deposit.

 

I think the IS250 is perfect for your daughter. Take it from me someone who has put all their eggs in 1 basket. I bought my 2010 IS250 from lexus dealer for 14k. I put 5K down and financed the rest of the 9k. The mileage it had was 89K. I have had this car for almost 2 years. Not a single repair. Just oil change. One thing that bothers me is the tread life on the tires. I had to buy another set of 4 tires for 1,000$ as they cost more than the average car. I ran through those last year and this year I put another set of AVsports for $900 w/ alignment. This car is a head turner and requires little maintenance. As for the Carbon build up, i experienced it and felt like the car was jerking back and fourth while in Park mode. Rev the engine real hard and hit that road with a little aggression because remember you are buying a Performance based car, so its fast and has great handles.

2010 IS 250

 

with late 2nd gen IS250s there shouldn't be much to spend on aside from the typical wear and tear maintenance items. A thing to look out for would be front tires given the car's tendency for dynamic toe changes under braking which will eat away the inside of the front tires while the rest of the tire looks to have good tread. carbon buildup problems have been slightly mitigated by better piston designs but it'll eventually get it down the road. It's not as easy as just driving aggressively as the carbon is caked on to the valves and needs to be walnut blasted.

 

Ya your right about the Walnut blasting. I have not found 1 person in South West Florida to do the blasting. Someone told me try Volkswagen dealer as they do it for their engines all the time. Like Aspect said it caked up on the valves. If if makes you feel better or confident in your purchase, we got a guy near me with 180,000 miles and carbon build up is not an issue. Dont get me wrong Im sure if you do a Top Engine Clean or tackle the carb issue it would run alot more smoother. But still really nice car, or even a starter car for someone that wants to gain experience and have a solid comfortable ride

 

Having just purchased a '08 IS250 for our daughter I think you'll be making a good decision. During my research there were two things that I wanted to be sure of 1) the dash and door panels were replaced if necessary and 2) the carbon buildup issue wouldn't be a problem. We ended up finding a one-owner with 152,000 miles for just under $8k. Other than a fuel pump that went out the first week (we figured it had seen it's life at 150k) it's been relatively problem free. The dash and door panels were already replaced during the previous owners tenure and look brand new. As others have mentioned the carbon buildup issue is there and was noted by the dealer, however, this can be fixed with a simple can of Seafoam from time to time and WOT. I've personally driven the vehicle and it runs and drives great...no issues at all. Of course the IS350 doesn't have the carbon buildup issue but we didn't want to hand over that much power to a 20 yr old.

As noted front tire wear is an issue...especially since you can't just rotate the tires front to back. The rear tires are a different size.

 

What is this about the dash and the door?

 

Is the 3rd gen IS huge improvement?

 

there was a recall for sticky dash and door panels, given that in the hotter and more humid states the plastic would sort of melt and get sticky

 

Yep, the Toyota "ZE6 customer support program" as it was called expired in 2017 IIRC. So if you purchase a early model 2IS that has sticky or unslightly dash and door panels you are probably out of luck.

 

You would think most people affected would have taken care of this, unless they're living off the grid

 

$12k for a 100k IS250 seems high. $8k seems more like the price range around here for that amount of miles. This has been one of the best cars I've owned in terms of build quality feel and chassis stability. For such a heavy car, it certain stays flat in corners. The only other thing I can think of mentioning for a new buyer is the somewhat poor MPG to HP ratio. 22-23mpg for 200hp ain't great and the engine requires 91-93 premium fuel.

 

yes the 3is is a huge upgrade from 2is.

not only is it a newer body style and everything, it rides smoother, much more comfortable and the whole entire tech and interior is great.

i own an 08 is350 and a 14 is250.