JasonKoch

ad for the car ; https://www.themotormall.com/vehicle...0b37ac387431b2

So, some backstory, I work with the owner and I've always liked the car but never considered it. Saw the price and I feel like it's decently priced for 69k miles. It is the RWD version which i'm more a fan of than AWD, I've done some research on the car and the recalls and issues, I'm not really sure what to think of it, I love the look and modding potential for the car, I guess I'm looking for a reason to buy it or not, are the recalls actually that large of an issue(like VVT wearing cams) Thank you!

Zmon

iTrader: (2)

Surprised to see an IS with cloth seats in the States. Looks like it was imported from Canada. 0 options, completely base. Don't know if I'd personally be willing to spend that much on an 11 year old car with known issues even with that mileage (assuming dash/door panels were at least replaced, you still have the whole carbon build up issue to look forward to down the line). As long as all the other recalls were done, you really only need to worry about carbon build up. It's a nice car though, don't get me wrong.

You're the only one who can decide to buy it, it's your money.

EZLex

The body and interior do look in very good shape. Like Zmon said, completely base though. Personally i always loved the cloth seats. It's a very clean example. Ad says Glacier frost Mice but im pretty sure thats Tungsten Pearl? Also, i wonder why it has on the 2009+ awd wheels instead. The rwd rims looks much better imo.

Honestly if it were me id skip it. I'm sure it'd do you well and be a great daily driver, but for that price i'd go for a IS350 with more mileage. More fun to drive and dont have to worry about some of the issues with the 250.

Petet

Looks clean and I kind of like the seats. But I like heated and cooled option. I agree with above.

JasonKoch

I might actually do that, what seems to be a good range of miles to buy a used is 350? like obviously under 100k, but what are some things I should consider when looking at a 350 compared to the 250?

JasonKoch

Yeah, I didn't realize how un-optioned this car was, I would like heated seats for sure especially if I'm going to be spending ~$9,000

Zmon

iTrader: (2)

The most important thing I would like into is if they've had the dash and door panels replaced. Your location says Michigan, so I can imagine the issue is a bit less pronounced there so people may have not taken their cars in to have them done if they weren't experiencing the issue. It's not something I would want to be stuck with dealing with a few years down the line. If they weren't done, I would try and negotiate with the seller (assuming a dealer) to have them replaced on condition of buying the car. Otherwise, there really isn't much that goes wrong with the 350's besides regular maintenance stuff on a higher mileage car (suspension components, gaskets, water pump, etc). Should mention the calipers are prone to seizing, especially on rust belt cars. Other than that, just make sure all recalls are done as there are quite a few. The car is really easy to work on if you like to DIY. Should also note that the 350's love eating tires if you have a bit of a lead foot, it's not unheard of to go through a set of rears in 10k or so.

I'm at 160k miles now and the only things I've really changed is the water pump, rear driver side strut, rear driver side caliper, trans fluid flushed (it's not a lifetime fluid no matter what anyone says), and the fuel pressure sensor. Everything else is original otherwise. Typical Toyota maintenance costs, cheap.

JasonKoch

Awesome, got it thank you. On a scale of 1-10 how much higher would you rank buying a IS350 over a IS250? I dont care for speed so that's not an issue for me with the 250, I'm mainly concerned with reliability when it comes to buying a car I want a nice luxurious comfortable car that I can trust to take on trips.

MikeyK02

iTrader: (7)

YouTube carbon buildup Lexus and you'll have the issue with the IS250.

Zmon

iTrader: (2)

10, but I'll be biased since I own a 350.

JasonKoch

why though? Like what are some of the actual reasons you’d recommend it over the 250

EZLex

I got a 2008 IS250 AWD, ~100k miles.There's days i'm disappointed i didn't go for the IS350. Mainly just for the extra power would be really fun. The IS250 just feels under-powered and its a heavy car. It's not unbearably slow or anything, keeps up well in traffic and the engine & transmission is smooth. I just like to drive spirited some days and i feel the 350 would be much better for that. But you say power isnt something thats an issue to you. Other than the power, the carbon build up issue would be a main reason. Luckily i haven't experienced any issue with that (knock on wood) and there is ways of combating it ie: walnut blasting. After 100k miles im still on original suspension, original brake calipers, changed spark plugs myself ~5k miles ago, original water pump. The only "big" thing i had to do was my midpipe rotted out (salt and snow here in Ontario) and had to have new pipe welded in. Car drives and feels like it has lots of life left. Maybe take it for a test drive if you havent?

Petet

The look of the is259 body is what got me interested in purchasing an IS. I test drove a few different is250’s and the power just wasn’t there. I live in New England and we do get snow. Having awd is a nice option. Once I test drove a rwd 350 I was hooked. Power wasn’t a factor when I was shopping but it was once I drove the 250. I was coming out of a Toyota celica which is probably one of the slowest cars I have ever owned but it got great mileage for my 600 mile weekly commute. Now screw mileage the 350 is a blast to drive. And the 250 vs 350 mileage is pretty close. I’ve owned it for a little over a year and still enjoy hitting that start button.

StanleyR

I never got to drive (never bothered) an IS250. Using my experience from the BMW world, I recall cross shopping a 318is vs a 325is.
Not only did the 325is have more features, but the powertrain didn't feel/sound as laboured when driving spiritedly/normally. To me, that was the most important part.

Since then I've always insisted on choosing the larger displacement engine cars. You'll never feel like your being missing out on something better. Any fuel economy savings are negligible.

The theory hasn't proved me wrong yet.

JasonKoch

See, I feel like we all say "power isn't a worry" but when it comes down to it on the highway or an open road and we want to do a pull, we'd all be dissapointed with the power of a IS 250 for sure, I most likely will lean towards a 350 MAINLY because the engine issues are a bit less than the 250 as I care about reliability more than power, but the power will be a plus for sure