Lexus IS Saloon (2005 - 2012) 220d Sport 4d Owner Review

Best seats of any car I have owned. Quality interior, except for a few sudden temperature related cracking noises from inside dash. Engine/transmission not of satisfactory quality/refinement for a car of this class. Abysmally heavy fuel consumption for a diesel. Good at mororway speeds, but lack of low end power makes it dangerously slow to accelerate from standstill. Using cheap fuel causes torque flat spots. Faults: - DPF blocked (vsc light) - EGR blockage worst ever seen by garage. They even took photos. Needs regular cleaning every two services. Vehicle always run on Shell V-Power, so can't blame poor fuel. - Severe DMF rattle and jerky clutch - a £1500 part available only manufactured by LUK. - Squeeky clutch releae bearing - Fuel leak from filter assembly needed whole assembly replaced. - Fundementaly flawed gearbox design is characteristic of this model. Low end acceleration is worse than even the cheapest car, although above about 2000rpm it is comparable to other cars of similar cost. 6th gear so long that is useless at any legal road speed. - Extremely smoky when cold sometimes, to the point of obscuring other drivers view. It is apparently normal for the is220d - I have seen lots of 200/220ds that do the same, and Lexus has no recall notice to fix the issue. Can be absolutely stink of diesel after shutdown. - Head gasket leaks, ejecting coolant from expansion tank overflow. - Injector seal failed on number 3 inector, filling cabin with diesel smoke. - De-mister interferes with radio reception - Be careful to to put loose CDs in glove compartment. There is a slot inside, that if interfered with by a CD, causes climate control to stop working, until rogue CD is removed.