General Questions About The Is250

[AKK]

I have an 04 TSX now and want to get something else. I have some questions

about the IS250

1) What other 'features' does the nav provide besides navigation?

Ie is it used for the stereo, climate control. Any fancy music equalizer/display on it?

Used for the bluetooth? Does it have MPG info? (I know it does the back up camera).

How limited is it when driving? I've read you can't use much of it when the car is moving?

2) Is it easy to find the Base car + the nav, or is the nav option bundled with other packages? (I would only be interested in the Nav)

If you don't get the nav do you miss the MPG info, tire pressure info(?)

3) Does a child seat fit in the back? Can it fit in the middle seat? (Latch is for the middle as well, or only the 2 side seats)

When I ask about the seat, i mean physically does it fit, since the back is so small.

4) My wife is 5 ft, so if she's driving could a 5"6 adult fit back there? I've heard about how cramped it is and am worried.

With short people in the front, can adults fit back there for a 1 hour drive?

5) Brake dust: Does that just mean they get dirty, or someone else is wrong?

Brake squeaking: Is this a major problem? A performance issue? Does the dealer fix it?

6)Does Lexus offer any special financing? I got a new Civic for 4.9% from Honda. My credit score is 832, so I should qualify. I've bought acura's in the past and they've got me 4.9% regardless of special 'limited deals'. Anyone have exp with this?

7) I presume Lexus offers extended warranties, how much can you negotiate those for? (Bumper-to-Bumper for 7yr/100K)

8) If anyone had a TSX, how was the move to the IS250? How do the cars compare?

Thanks!

[Walker-san]

3) Does a child seat fit in the back? Can it fit in the middle seat? (Latch is for the middle as well, or only the 2 side seats)

When I ask about the seat, i mean physically does it fit, since the back is so small.

Sorry I don't have an answer, but I'm also curious (or should I say 'concerned') about this. I am thinking about buying an '07 IS, but the ability to put car seats in the back is a deal maker/breaker for me.

I took a test drive yesterday and crawled into the backseat to sit down myself (I'm about 5'10" on a good day). It was small back there, but it seemed to me like I should be able to get a couple of car seats in there w/o the kids having to sit with their knees in their faces. Dunno.... maybe it was just wishful thinking. I'll know for sure next weekend, though (The dealer is loaning me the car for 24 hours so that I can see how it works out for me and my family.)

As for the putting a car seat in the "middle seat"; I put "middle seat" in quotes, because it doesn't really seem to exist. The left and right seats are slightly bucketed, and the "middle seat" is a very narrow (10" maybe?) section between the two buckets. I didn't catch whether there were LATCH connectors specifically for the middle, but even if there are none.... the back seat is small enough that you should be able to use one LATCH point from the left seat and one LATCH point from the right seat to secure a seat in the middle.

I will say that if you put a child seat in the middle, you can probably forget about putting anyone else in the rear cabin.

The car claims to be able to seat 5, but I don't think that's true. There may be 5 seat belts in there, but it seems like you can really only put two people in the back (or one, if they are in the middle).

Anyway, like I said, I don't actually own this car and am just drawing on my hands on experience from yesterday when I was at the dealership, so maybe someone who actually has one will chime in here and lay down the law. I'll post my own experiences back here after I borrow the car next weekend.

[AKK]

3) Does a child seat fit in the back? Can it fit in the middle seat? (Latch is for the middle as well, or only the 2 side seats)

When I ask about the seat, i mean physically does it fit, since the back is so small.

Sorry I don't have an answer, but I'm also curious (or should I say 'concerned') about this. I am thinking about buying an '07 IS, but the ability to put car seats in the back is a deal maker/breaker for me.

I took a test drive yesterday and crawled into the backseat to sit down myself (I'm about 5'10" on a good day). It was small back there, but it seemed to me like I should be able to get a couple of car seats in there w/o the kids having to sit with their knees in their faces. Dunno.... maybe it was just wishful thinking. I'll know for sure next weekend, though (The dealer is loaning me the car for 24 hours so that I can see how it works out for me and my family.)

As for the putting a car seat in the "middle seat"; I put "middle seat" in quotes, because it doesn't really seem to exist. The left and right seats are slightly bucketed, and the "middle seat" is a very narrow (10" maybe?) section between the two buckets. I didn't catch whether there were LATCH connectors specifically for the middle, but even if there are none.... the back seat is small enough that you should be able to use one LATCH point from the left seat and one LATCH point from the right seat to secure a seat in the middle.

I will say that if you put a child seat in the middle, you can probably forget about putting anyone else in the rear cabin.

The car claims to be able to seat 5, but I don't think that's true. There may be 5 seat belts in there, but it seems like you can really only put two people in the back (or one, if they are in the middle).

Anyway, like I said, I don't actually own this car and am just drawing on my hands on experience from yesterday when I was at the dealership, so maybe someone who actually has one will chime in here and lay down the law. I'll post my own experiences back here after I borrow the car next weekend.

Thanks, I look forward to your response.

No one else can answer my questions?

[Rx330driver]

1) What other 'features' does the nav provide besides navigation?

Ie is it used for the stereo, climate control. Any fancy music equalizer/display on it?

Used for the bluetooth? Does it have MPG info? (I know it does the back up camera).

How limited is it when driving? I've read you can't use much of it when the car is moving?

You get climate control, audo speaker positioning and song/artist information. The Audio section is actually on a separate part of the dash but you get to see it in the nav screen so you dont have to look down. You get trip information which is MPG and miles driven etc. And obviously the Nav stuff like marked points, POIs and such. Oh and your Clock adjustments. lol

(p.s. you mentioned tire pressure...There is no direct tire pressure on the nav screen. You will only see a yellow light on the instrument panel is there is low pressure in a tire)

4) My wife is 5 ft, so if she's driving could a 5"6 adult fit back there? I've heard about how cramped it is and am worried.

With short people in the front, can adults fit back there for a 1 hour drive?

Im 6ft, and when i put the chair back in my IS300 (i hear similar legroom is present), small children can sit behind me. Seeing how your wife is in the 5ft range, and i do like my chair scooted really back, i think an adult whose not particularly big can fit perfectly, but not for long trips.

3) Does a child seat fit in the back? Can it fit in the middle seat? (Latch is for the middle as well, or only the 2 side seats)

When I ask about the seat, i mean physically does it fit, since the back is so small.

all lexus models come with an easy latch for child safety seats. Im sure it will fit perfectly on the middle seat, but it wont hurt to bring the seat when you test drive the car. I think it is available on all seats in the back.

5) Brake dust: Does that just mean they get dirty, or someone else is wrong?

Brake squeaking: Is this a major problem? A performance issue? Does the dealer fix it?

there is a TSB out there to change to better ceramic pads to reduce the brake dust. I hear mixed results. It just means the tires get black faster and its kinda a pain for people who care about that stuff. The squeaking...i think that is an isolated problem. Im sure they would fix it.

[Snoopy1357]

3) Does a child seat fit in the back? Can it fit in the middle seat? (Latch is for the middle as well, or only the 2 side seats)

When I ask about the seat, i mean physically does it fit, since the back is so small.

4) My wife is 5 ft, so if she's driving could a 5"6 adult fit back there? I've heard about how cramped it is and am worried.

With short people in the front, can adults fit back there for a 1 hour drive?

Yes, ISOFIX is provided for car seats. Three upper anchors are provided to fit 3 car seats (I have seen an example of an IS with three kids at the back, although one was on a booster seat). Only 4 lower anchors are provided so the middle one have to share with the two outer seats for lower anchorage. The lower anchorage makes putting one child seat in the middle problematic; besides eating into adult space of the two outer seats, both left and right covers of the lower anchorage have to be flipped opened making the outer seats even less comfortable and unsightly.

If "adults" means two of them of reasonable size, say 5'9" or less, they can survive more than an hour in the back. The problem is more with getting in and out rather than riding. With three adults, I have doubts about their health for anything more than 15 minutes, especially the one sitting in the middle.

However, if moving five people around is your main concern, I would recommand either a multi-purpose van or a front wheel drive vechicle.

[tex2670]

I have an 04 TSX now and want to get something else. I have some questions

about the IS250

1) What other 'features' does the nav provide besides navigation?

Ie is it used for the stereo, climate control. Any fancy music equalizer/display on it?

Used for the bluetooth? Does it have MPG info? (I know it does the back up camera).

How limited is it when driving? I've read you can't use much of it when the car is moving?

It's the only way to get Bluetooth. You use the Nav screen for the audio and climate control too, but there are some basic functions for those systems that you don't need to use the nav screen for, like on/of, temp setting, volume, scan, preset change. MPG info is not thru the nav screen--it is on the display b/t the tach and speedo. While you are driving, you cannot input an address (but you can use many of the other functions), and if you want to make a phone call, you can only do it thru your preset speed dials--you can't manually dial a number on the screen (although you could do it on your phone). It's not like the screen is locked.

2) Is it easy to find the Base car + the nav, or is the nav option bundled with other packages? (I would only be interested in the Nav)

If you don't get the nav do you miss the MPG info, tire pressure info(?)

It varies by region, so I'm not sure about SoCal, but I'd be surprised if you could get nav only w/o having to get wood trim and a few other "lower cost" options. You could always special order, but I've read a number of special order horror stories--waited 4 months and it was totally wrong. W/o nav, you still get MPG and TPM.

3) Does a child seat fit in the back? Can it fit in the middle seat? (Latch is for the middle as well, or only the 2 side seats)

When I ask about the seat, i mean physically does it fit, since the back is so small.

I have a convertible infant car seat (facing forward), and a toddler booster in my back seat. There's a lot of kicking on the back of the front seats, but there's room. I'm not sure how well if would fit in the middle seat, since the back seat isn't flat. When I test drove, they let me test out the car seats in the back, and the stroller fit in the trunk. Also, I had a !Removed! of a time getting the lower LATCHes to click. If you have a rear-facing seat, good luck. Maybe delay your purchase until baby's 1st bday. I used to have a rear-facing seat in the middle of my TL's back seat (b/f bottom LATCHES), and it would tip over around curves because the seat wasn't flat. So I had to move it to the side.

4) My wife is 5 ft, so if she's driving could a 5"6 adult fit back there? I've heard about how cramped it is and am worried.

With short people in the front, can adults fit back there for a 1 hour drive?

Yes, they can fit. It's no LS 460L, but there's room (although, maybe not with the car seat in back).

5) Brake dust: Does that just mean they get dirty, or someone else is wrong?

Brake squeaking: Is this a major problem? A performance issue? Does the dealer fix it?

The wheels get DIRTY. My car's silver, so the dirt on the car itself doesn't show up so much, but within a week, you can notice how dirty the front wheels get--but probably no worse than EVERY German car you see on the road. There is TSB for Lexus to fix it (although it appears not all service depts are aware of it--better if you have a copy and give it to them). Allegedly, there is some decrease in braking performance, but I haven't read from anyone that it was noticeable. There's nothing wrong with the brakes, though.

6)Does Lexus offer any special financing? I got a new Civic for 4.9% from Honda. My credit score is 832, so I should qualify. I've bought acura's in the past and they've got me 4.9% regardless of special 'limited deals'. Anyone have exp with this?

Don't know, but here in the NE, they are currently running a leasing special for 250AWD @ $369/mo, so there might be.

7) I presume Lexus offers extended warranties, how much can you negotiate those for? (Bumper-to-Bumper for 7yr/100K)

Not sure--I wouldn't bother getting one for a Lexus. Invest the money in a CD instead.

8) If anyone had a TSX, how was the move to the IS250? How do the cars compare?

Thanks!

I've driven a TSX--the IS is much more luxurious. It's quieter, the leather is way better, I think the styling is much better, the V6 engine has much less buzz than the TSX's I-4. The TSX has a bigger back seat, though, and feels more spacious inside, since there's not a significant tranny tunnel with the FWD.

[CrunchySkippy]

My wife has an 2004 TSX. Here's my $.02 on the comparison...

If we have to move 4 adults, we take the TSX.

If we need additional trunk space (i.e. a trip to Costco), we take the TSX.

Any other time, we take the IS.

It boils down to the TSX actually "feels" like it is roomier, both inside and in the trunk. However, the TSX really feels like a Honda Civic compared to the IS. The TSX is very loud at highway speeds with wind and tire noise. The 4 cylinder engine (while very torque-y), it always seems to scream when under hard acceleration and and there's nothing smooth about the acceleration or automatic shifting. Lastly, the finish inside again reminds me of a Honda.

You seem to be thinking this through in the correct fashion. While I enjoy my IS, be sure it fits your needs.

[AKK]

My wife has an 2004 TSX. Here's my $.02 on the comparison...

If we have to move 4 adults, we take the TSX.

If we need additional trunk space (i.e. a trip to Costco), we take the TSX.

Any other time, we take the IS.

It boils down to the TSX actually "feels" like it is roomier, both inside and in the trunk. However, the TSX really feels like a Honda Civic compared to the IS. The TSX is very loud at highway speeds with wind and tire noise. The 4 cylinder engine (while very torque-y), it always seems to scream when under hard acceleration and and there's nothing smooth about the acceleration or automatic shifting. Lastly, the finish inside again reminds me of a Honda.

You seem to be thinking this through in the correct fashion. While I enjoy my IS, be sure it fits your needs.

Thanks for all the replies.

I'm married and have a 3 yr old, so I'm not concerned about adults in the back, just 1, possibly 2 car seats.

My only concern for adults, is like maybe once every 6 mo if we have to drive with my wife's family and another short person needs to get back there. (Everyone in our families are short).

Nav: I'd like to get it, since I have it on the TSX, but I really don't use it that much. I like how all the audio controls are on the touch screen etc.

Plus MPG info, past fill up MPG history, predicted range etc. I dont know if the lexus one has all of those featuers.

I'd also like to get an extended warranty, I don't think I could swing both, so I'd have to pick one over the other.

I love the finish of the TSX, i'll hold judgment until I test drive the Lexus.

Anyone bought a lexus via the Costco program?

Another question: I read some review of the IS250 from England, and they get real time traffic info on their nav? Does the IS here in the US get that?

[tex2670]

My wife has an 2004 TSX. Here's my $.02 on the comparison...

If we have to move 4 adults, we take the TSX.

If we need additional trunk space (i.e. a trip to Costco), we take the TSX.

Any other time, we take the IS.

It boils down to the TSX actually "feels" like it is roomier, both inside and in the trunk. However, the TSX really feels like a Honda Civic compared to the IS. The TSX is very loud at highway speeds with wind and tire noise. The 4 cylinder engine (while very torque-y), it always seems to scream when under hard acceleration and and there's nothing smooth about the acceleration or automatic shifting. Lastly, the finish inside again reminds me of a Honda.

You seem to be thinking this through in the correct fashion. While I enjoy my IS, be sure it fits your needs.

Thanks for all the replies.

I'm married and have a 3 yr old, so I'm not concerned about adults in the back, just 1, possibly 2 car seats.

My only concern for adults, is like maybe once every 6 mo if we have to drive with my wife's family and another short person needs to get back there. (Everyone in our families are short).

Nav: I'd like to get it, since I have it on the TSX, but I really don't use it that much. I like how all the audio controls are on the touch screen etc.

Plus MPG info, past fill up MPG history, predicted range etc. I dont know if the lexus one has all of those featuers.

I'd also like to get an extended warranty, I don't think I could swing both, so I'd have to pick one over the other.

I love the finish of the TSX, i'll hold judgment until I test drive the Lexus.

Anyone bought a lexus via the Costco program?

Another question: I read some review of the IS250 from England, and they get real time traffic info on their nav? Does the IS here in the US get that?

I do not have Costco, but I do have AAA. They did not have a special price. My insurance co has a price negotiations service, but when I told them the price I had (about $700 over dealer invoice), they said that they could not do any better--they shoot for Edmunds True Market Value Price.

Nav does not offer Nav Traffic.

If I were you, I'd put the money into the nav rather than the extended warranty. I got the warranty for my 2000 TL from Honda Finance (not some 3rd party), and it was a total waste. First, it wasn't a true "bumper to bumper" warranty--there were a lot of exclusions (they wouldn't cover my auto-dimming rear view mirror because the warranty excludes glass/mirrrors, even though it was the stuff inside the mirror that went bad, and even though I ended up reading later on a TL owner's forum that this was a common problem that the mirror maker took care of for FREE). There was a $50 deductible. And, frankly, I didn't have $1200 worth of stuff go wrong.

The one thing you should be careful about is the "possibly 2 car seats". If that means maybe another one in the future, facing backwards, I think that's going to be really tight.

The IS has, on the dash, MPG (immediate, average and tank average), range, avg speed, outside temp, current gear.

[AKK]

My wife has an 2004 TSX. Here's my $.02 on the comparison...

If we have to move 4 adults, we take the TSX.

If we need additional trunk space (i.e. a trip to Costco), we take the TSX.

Any other time, we take the IS.

It boils down to the TSX actually "feels" like it is roomier, both inside and in the trunk. However, the TSX really feels like a Honda Civic compared to the IS. The TSX is very loud at highway speeds with wind and tire noise. The 4 cylinder engine (while very torque-y), it always seems to scream when under hard acceleration and and there's nothing smooth about the acceleration or automatic shifting. Lastly, the finish inside again reminds me of a Honda.

You seem to be thinking this through in the correct fashion. While I enjoy my IS, be sure it fits your needs.

Thanks for all the replies.

I'm married and have a 3 yr old, so I'm not concerned about adults in the back, just 1, possibly 2 car seats.

My only concern for adults, is like maybe once every 6 mo if we have to drive with my wife's family and another short person needs to get back there. (Everyone in our families are short).

Nav: I'd like to get it, since I have it on the TSX, but I really don't use it that much. I like how all the audio controls are on the touch screen etc.

Plus MPG info, past fill up MPG history, predicted range etc. I dont know if the lexus one has all of those featuers.

I'd also like to get an extended warranty, I don't think I could swing both, so I'd have to pick one over the other.

I love the finish of the TSX, i'll hold judgment until I test drive the Lexus.

Anyone bought a lexus via the Costco program?

Another question: I read some review of the IS250 from England, and they get real time traffic info on their nav? Does the IS here in the US get that?

I do not have Costco, but I do have AAA. They did not have a special price. My insurance co has a price negotiations service, but when I told them the price I had (about $700 over dealer invoice), they said that they could not do any better--they shoot for Edmunds True Market Value Price.

Nav does not offer Nav Traffic.

If I were you, I'd put the money into the nav rather than the extended warranty. I got the warranty for my 2000 TL from Honda Finance (not some 3rd party), and it was a total waste. First, it wasn't a true "bumper to bumper" warranty--there were a lot of exclusions (they wouldn't cover my auto-dimming rear view mirror because the warranty excludes glass/mirrrors, even though it was the stuff inside the mirror that went bad, and even though I ended up reading later on a TL owner's forum that this was a common problem that the mirror maker took care of for FREE). There was a $50 deductible. And, frankly, I didn't have $1200 worth of stuff go wrong.

The one thing you should be careful about is the "possibly 2 car seats". If that means maybe another one in the future, facing backwards, I think that's going to be really tight.

The IS has, on the dash, MPG (immediate, average and tank average), range, avg speed, outside temp, current gear.

I've got good use out of my extended warranties in the past. I've had the nav changed, AC compressor, and 3 sets of rotors.

I paid $1400 for it.

If Lexus makes a car for 30 somethings, how can car seats not fit in the back? Don't they by law have to fit?(latch requirements?)

For 35K, they better fit. They fit in a Civic just fine.

[Walker-san]

Thanks for all the replies.

I'm married and have a 3 yr old, so I'm not concerned about adults in the back, just 1, possibly 2 car seats.

My only concern for adults, is like maybe once every 6 mo if we have to drive with my wife's family and another short person needs to get back there. (Everyone in our families are short).

Sorry about lagging on my response, but I was able to put both my 4.5 year old and 2.5 year old in the back fine. Like tex said, there is some kicking on the back seats, but they fit.

I decided the day after they let me borrow it that I was going to get it. They finally located one that mostly matches what I wanted (I had to give up on the idea of the manual unless I wanted to wait 3 months), and I'm picking it up tomorrow.

One other comment regarding financing; I went around and around with the dealer today on this one, but the best they can give me is 5.99% APR (my credit score is near 800).

-walker