Manolo1

I had the car at the dealer and asked them to fix the flat... When they told me it was not repairable I had two choices: ask them to mount the donut and go somewhere else (and lose another two or three hours of my time if not more) or agree to their outrageous price and let it be... I opted for the second as my time is more valuable than the $50 to $80 I could have saved somewhere else...

Why not? It is just an IS250, not an Sti or an RS4... :P Based on that when my IS350 had a non-fixable rear flat after 5K miles I should have bought two rear tires... no way Jose! One tire was enough...and it already hurt a lot... the dealer charged me $350...ughh!

For starters the size must be 225/45VR17 not just R. I am taking the contrarian position. The tire is not the best but it has given you a good service so far. I would buy the one Firestone is offering, if it is exactly the same. The price is unbeatable as Tire Rack has the real right tire at $205 or $175 for an even better one...see below. I will not change tires until you need 4 new ones and I will buy the Michelin Pilot Exalto A/S, not just any Michelin!!! Anything else is a big waste of money, but it is your money. I would do what I am recommending... 215/45ZR17 Blackwall Subaru Price: $175.00 (each) Estimated Availability:In Stock Optional Road Hazard Program: additional $21.00 per tire 225/45VR17 Blackwall Serv. Desc: 91V Price: $206.00 (each) Estimated Availability: 04/03/08 Optional Road Hazard Program: additional $24.72 per tire

Start using them more and you'll enjoy them

My dealer adjusted them at no charge...and I am sure they were within spec, but a tad too low...big difference one mm can do 100 yards in front...

The real money is in all the maintenance and, if you go by the book, the chances of having a major repair are small. I sold my previous Lexus with 100K miles and zero repairs...

Stopped at a Hess gas station the other day and when I saw their gas has 10% of ethanol or less I kept on driving to my trusted Chevron station. Can we use gas with 10% ethanol in our cars?

A complete waste of money unless peace of mind is your utmost priority...

easy but you are going to make a lot of people mad...

Perhaps neither car will do. Test drive the Infiniti G35 AWD.

1- 1950 VW Beetle 2- 1970 Renault R6 3- 1972 Montesa Scorpion 4- 1972 Dodge Dart 5- 1973 Seat 1430 6- 1974 Dodge Dart 7- 1978 Ford Fairlane 500 6- 1979 Fiat Strada 7- 1980 Chevy Malibu 8- 1982 Toyota Land Cruiser 9- 1985 Ford Mustang GT 10- 1992 Mazda 626 11- 1994 Buick LeSabre 12- 1996 Volvo 850 Turbo 13- 1998 Honda Civic 14- 1999 Porsche Boxster 15- 2003 Porsche Boxster 14- 2006 Toyota Corolla 15- Lexus IS 350 additionally my wife and kids have had as many cars as me if not more...details later...

When tinting my windows, the installer damaged (almost unnoticeable unless you look close) the rear right B pillar black shiny plastic piece forward of the window glass (with the heat gun...). The installer already deducted from the price I paid the cost of a new piece which is $40+ and told me that he will remove the old one and install the new one at no cost. I am uncomfortable with him changing that unless it is really easy. Do you know how easy it really is? He says that the old one snaps out and the new one snaps in. True? Thanks for your advice. I am seriously planning on not replacing it as it is really very minor damage.

Get a 3M invisible bra. It is worth it.

My lifetime average is 21.7 but in this tank I am experimenting and after 150 miles I am getting 30 mpg !!! I am driving really slooow... One tank and that's it. Hopefully I will raise the lifetime avg to 22 mpg...

Brake fluid is highly hydroscopic and it is a very good habit to change it every year to two years depending on situation (average external humidity would be one factor to consider...)

a G35X deserves a test drive and it comes in manual too...

On an IS250 you don't really need the ultra high performance tires as the car is not as fast as the 350, so here are some additional expert recommendations: ... trade-off for higher levels of handling and grip achieved by performance tires, however, has often been tread life. We reintroduced tread wear to our tire-testing program last year. This year, we made our test more demanding by extending it from 7,200 miles to 16,000 miles, including more driving on city-type roads. We found that wear varied from model to model and did not necessarily follow tread-wear warranties. Performance all-season tires have a higher speed rating than standard all-season tires (see Types, available to subscribers). They generally provide better handling and braking, and usually have a lower profile (shorter sidewall height) and a wider footprint. Performance all-season tires, as we define them, come in two speed ratings: H-rated (130 mph). The most common performance all-season tires on the market are designed to handle and grip better on wet and dry roads than conventional tires, without giving up much in ride comfort. We found some substantial differences among the H-rated all-season tires we tested. Most were very good or excellent in our tests of braking and handling on both dry and wet pavement. And most were good to excellent at resisting the tendency to hydroplane, or lose grip, when they hit standing water. Almost half of them were competent at coping with snow and ice, comparable to good conventional all-season tires. V-rated (149 mph). Generally, these tires are more tuned to performance than H-rated all-season tires. Here, too, we found some significant differences between the V-rated tire models in our tests. Some V-rated tires sacrificed winter grip for superior cleared-road handling and grip. Other V-rated tires behaved more like H-rated tires, with good all-season qualities but less ultimate grip than the more performance-oriented models. If long tread wear is important: H-rated: Michelin Energy MXV4 Plus Goodyear Assurance TripleTred Kumho Solus KH16 V-rated: Michelin Pilot HX MXM4 Michelin Pilot Exalto A/S Michelin Energy MXV4 Plus Best for all weather conditions: H-rated: Dunlop SP Sport 5000 Michelin Pilot Exalto A/S Falken Ziex ZE 512 V-rated: Michelin Pilot HX MXM4 Michelin Pilot Exalto A/S Continental ContiProContact Others to consider if winter grip doesn’t matter: H-rated: Continental ContiProContact Michelin Pilot XGT H4 Bridgestone Potenza RE950 V-rated: Yokohama Avid V4s Falken Ziex ZE 512 Bridgestone Potenza RE950

If the route is hilly no effect as the cruise maintains speed, not rpms, you do not want to keep a new car at the same rpms for a long period of time...

Basically you are around 2 gallons from REAL empty when you get the zero miles marker. If you have had a tank avg consumption of 20 mpg then you are really 40 miles from running dry... and if you were "hypermiling" and getting on avg 30 mpg then your are 60 miles from dry... What makes you think zero miles is really zero miles? If that were the case you'll see plenty of drivers on the side of the road with a plastic gas can. I would be one of those as I have run to the zero miles indicator three times...

Verbatim from Road & Track magazine: "Recently we visited Roulands, a major brake-pad manufacturer, courtesy of Baer Brakes. There, we were strongly advised that brake dust is almost always a byproduct of performance brake pads, and that anything we could do to educate enthusiasts about the inevitability of dusty brakes on performance cars would be a good thing. That said, brake dust continues as a common complaint with owners, and hence low-dust is a requirement by most OEMs, even if it means braking performance is compromised. "

Lexol cleaner works for me.

According to my "gasbuddy.com" records I have an avg consumption of 21.22 mpg in 26 fill ups. I find it great as my previous sports car (slower than my IS350) was getting less than 20... Of course, my average speed (on the tollway..) is somewhere between 90 and 110 mph...

Buy your set of rims, sensors (you may skipp the sensors if you want to) and tires from tire rack. They will arrive (overnite if you want to) already mounted, so all you have to do is take the existing ones off and put the new ones, not a big deal. Prices for a complete set (4 tires, 4 rims, 4 sensors) at tire rack start at $1,334.00 Yes, go for the 17", they are cheaper and in winter you just want to stay on the road, you don't need "handling"...! BTW: do you drive with the Snow switch ON? that is also a must!!!! 17X8 MSW Type 14 Silver Painted for 2007 Lexus IS350 12/19/07 012345678 $96.00 $384.00 225/45VR17 XL Michelin Pilot Alpin PA2 Blackwall for 2007 Lexus IS350 In Stock 012345678 $136.00 $272.00 245/45VR17 XL Michelin Pilot Alpin PA2 Blackwall for 2007 Lexus IS350 In Stock 012345678 $154.00 $308.00 TIRE PRESSURE SENSOR for 2007 Lexus IS350 4 $86.00 $344.00 In Stock 4 $6.50 $26.00 Hunter Road Force™ Mounting and Balancing Total: $1,334.00 (before tax and shipping)

Check with the installer. They have different color samples and only then you will be able to make a decision.

Keep in mind there is a new A4 for 2009 due in fall 08, so anything you buy now will be old model in less than a year. I will wait....buy a used anything now and hold on until the new A4 comes in October 08