lexus is 200s for under a grand

[Guest bangerfan101]

having failed to reach 100mph in my fiesta 1.25 zetec on a downhill stretch of the m1 foot to floor and ragging it.  . im in the market for something with a bit more grunt .

 

please enliten me on the lexus is200 . 

 

the rwd is almost selling it to me

 

 

[Asimo]

Rare chance for straight-six without BMW stigma.

[cort16]

They're really good cars. Parts are a bit salty and the interior aren't quite up to the 3 series.

Lexus freely admitted they copied the 3 series but that's not a terrible thing.They also invented Lexus rear lights as seen on many a Barry'd corsa but came like that from the factory.

[gordonbennet]

Daughters boyfriend picked a good one up for £850, only thing i could see wrong with it is a holed sill, so check them carefully.

 

Even the 2 litre is heavy on fuel if you boot it, i've driven the 300 with the same body and that is really quick (wouldn't mind a Sport Cross 300 mesen), prone to instant wheelspin despite the electronics, reckon crap tyres could see you in the hedge bottom easily enough.

 

I know a chap who managed to plummet from a flyover and land on the road underneath upside down in one many years ago, no one inside seriously injured, they are tough.

 

The only real problem is that they have fallen into the same hands as 3 series BM's as they've aged, so finding that elusive well cared for example isn't easy.

[Rusty_Rocket]

Must just be me.. but the last is200 I drove felt so slow and boring, I can't imagine it's the sort of thing anyone would buy to love and adore 

[cort16]

They're not fast I think it's only got 150bhp or something

[Guest bangerfan101]

thats still about 90 more than the fiesta tho

 

as for loving it , i'll be jumping in it from working on a building site everyday ,

[HillmanImp]

My mate had one but got shot of it as it was sooooo dull. Perfectly adequate but nothing special. In a similar fashion to when you split up with a nice adequate but nothing special lass, he went from that to a slutty Integra Type R for a whirlwind romance until he settled down with a CLK.

[Junkman]

192 OMGBHP out-dulling the Lexushite by a square mile FTW!

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/HYUNDAI-XG-30-192-BHP-/181421877067

[Bren]

144 bhp and pish fuel consumption are not much of an attraction.

 

Alloy wheels seem to shed paint like dandruff if you as much look at them.

[Cavcraft]

Heavy/very heavy on fuel. My neighbour and a lad I knew had one, said running costs bordered on the frightening. 

[eddyramrod]

Dave862 is the man to ask, he's running one as his daily at the moment.

[Guest bangerfan101]

it would look well burried in the back of a stinkbridge motor at sheffield for willys last meeting if he gets bored of it .

[dugong]

£1000 is way too rich for an IS200. Only the Sports had an LSD. They have bog-all torque and are quite heavy. If you like hysterical, screaming shit-bag engines, they're great in a wallet battering, foot to the floor way.

 

Apparently the four-pot turbo Altezzas are better, but they're classed as a import and attract JDM-yo scene tax.

 

I'll buy a cheap one so I can cross it off the list.

 

A Sport appeared recently on eBay for £550 with rent and test; it went quickly.

[Spiny Norman]

I thought I wanted one once.

Went and looked at a nice 5 year old one at a dealer, sat in it, went 'YUK' and got out again. I know Jap cars are often a bit shit inside but the IS200 was a joke with its silly watch face dials and corrugated cardboard dash & door trims.

 

Bought a 156 instead, and it's coming to something when an Alfa Romeo looks and feels better built than a Toyota.....

[Lacquer Peel]

I borrowed my girlfriend's stepdad's one for a week. I'd want more power for high-20s MPG but they're a nice smooth drive with an appealing straight-6 soundtrack. I wonder what the IS300 jobs are like.

The dashboard is probably a deal-breaker - I quite like it.

[saucedoctor]

One of my mates had one about 4 years ago. I really liked it, especially the dashboard, and as LP says they sound great. My buddy got shot of it due to the OMGMPG, and the fact that during that period when he owned it, we had about 10 days of very cold weather, and the IS was completely undriveable in snow and ice. He got a Rover 75 1.8 Povo to replace it (still has it, too)

[willswitchengage]

Silky smooth, that straight six is super fast, super reliability as you'd imagine from Lexus etc. You can pick them up for peanuts too as they're not "cool".

 

It's more a fast and blingy Toyota than the traditional European luxury car, also the "estate" is quite pointless as the boot is tiny.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

I love these, theyre a sharp looker and a very nice drive though perhaps not as fast as you might be hoping. Great stereo in em too.