Lexus IS300 owners (or previous owners)...

[HiSpec]

What are some of the common issues with the IS300? Any particular years to avoid?

[JZS_147]

-clutch damper makes it feel like the clutch is worn out, you can eliminate it pretty easy

-sway bar bushings get squeaky

-top end tanks of radiator starts to leak


As long as you do the services (timing belt, water pump, regular oil changes) it will be a very good and reliable car.

[BokCh0y]

Had an IS300 for close to 4 years, best car i've ever had. No signifcant issues to be honest, I did all the required maintanence though.

Only issue was i had a small rattle under the drivers side dash when i hit 60+km. Invenstigated with Lexus on this, what it was was the AC lines are mounted on the drivers side under the dash by the speedometer. So the lines were for some reason vibrating by the speedo or vice versa causing the rattle. Lexus rosolved it by tossing in more insulation.

Most reliable car i've ever owned.

[JZS_147]

Yep just like almost every Lexus of that generation. They're solid cars with awesome longevity.

[bigboom]

Only issue I had with mine is the clutch bearing squeek.

[ddduke]

I have never owned one personally but my friend got one when they were new for his 16 bday, still has it to this day. He never changed the oil on time, always drove the piss out of it and just generally did not take care of it at all. Still drives great today, I'd say they're built to last.

[HiSpec]

I am noticing there are only 01-03 available on Kijiji, that's why I would like to know if those years a prone to issues since there are nothing beyond 03 available.

Also, I read that manual transmission from 2002 have premature clutch wear (not likely due to driver error).

[BokCh0y]

Everything is the same between 01-05. Think minor trim changes, armrest package in 02+ along with memory seats and auto dimming mirros for 02+. Think 04/05 they have the option to disable the rear foglights. Really...taht's about it.

Mechanically same across the board.

[Neil4Speed]

I have also heard they are solid, but deceptively difficult to drive in winter even with Winter Tires. Take that with a grain of salt, but I would be interested to see what other owners would say about it.

[JZS_147]

They drive fine in the winter. Not any worse than an SC, GS, or LS.

[AE92_TreunoSC]

Not made for tall people :(

[BokCh0y]

Like I said, had one, 4 years. Drove it as my DD, winter too.

Drove fine, just make sure you have a good set of winters - toyo observe garit kx/ht or blizzak's and you're fine. Another thing to take in consideration is toyota uses a throttle controlled TCS, so i found that in winter, it was easier to drive with it off, especially for really slick situations than drive with it on. Redlight stop and go was a great time to turn it off. I usually drove with mine off unless the road was super sketchy. Personal preferance though. Was good that for those model years 01-05 you could physically turn off TSC. The 2006 IS, you can't....well at least can't disable fully unless you do that peddle hack trick.

[azian_advanced]

My dad has one in manual that he's currently selling (in Winnipeg) but I drove it all of last winter and really enjoyed driving it. Winter tires are a must as for any RWD. Also, 5 spd manual came out in 02 but are hard to come across. To me, the car is excellent in every way except that it's a little heavy on gas.

[HiSpec]

Thanks for all the advices!

And yes, it is so hard to find a manual one.

Does anyone know if the 2002+ automatic comes with LSD?

[hamkered]

LSD was available on all years with both trannies, if I'm not mistaken.

[BokCh0y]

LSD is also an option.


How to tell if my IS300 has LSD?
Look at the sticker on your driver door sill/jamb, look for the area that reads "A/TM"
You'll see numbers such as B02A, B02B, B02C
A=no LSD
B,C = LSD
If you are still unsure, call 1800 25 LEXUS and ask them to look up your VIN and they can tell you what options it came equipped it from the factory.

If you bought your car second hand, there is a possibility the owner of a non-LSD IS300 swapped in a factory LSD, if this is not disclosed, it makes things a bit more challenging.
Here are pics and info on how to distinguish the two by looking at the gears;
http://my.is/forums/showthread.php?p...68#post3637468

More info on LSD's in the link below.
Official OEM LSD thread: Case closed, important info inside

The methods of doing a burn out and checking if there are one or two tire marks / jacking up the car and spinning the wheels are somewhat debated and I am unsure if this is a valid way of determining if your car has lsd or not.

Info on how to perform a swap; http://my.is/forums/4278310-post10.html


Got that from IS Forum I am on.

[mugensix]

Aren't the auto tranny's on these weak?

[BokCh0y]

Originally posted by mugensix
Aren't the auto tranny's on these weak?

not that've experienced or heard. Tranny and engine is probably one of Toyota's best.

[Crow]

Lots of the drag IS300s run auto with a vb upgrade.

[HiSpec]

Another option is some of the high-powered IS300 upgrade to Supra auto tranny with higher stall point.

IS300 auto tranny can handle higher power than manual tranny.

[mr2mike]

Originally posted by Neil4Speed
I have also heard they are solid, but deceptively difficult to drive in winter even with Winter Tires.
Same as any RWD car, I think. I liked mine in winter, except with it lowered and front and rear frame braces, I would get high centered a lot. So just powered through and would cringe at the scrape sounds.
The "Winter" mode or whatever, doesn't really work. I would turn my traction and winter mode off and run in sport mode all the time. Traction control sucks and basically brakes the car. So I would rather spin.


Originally posted by HiSpec

IS300 auto tranny can handle higher power than manual tranny.
I highly doubt that unless you upgrade the torque converter and valve bodies in there which is pretty costly. This is why anyone who turbo's the IS300 run the manual tranny and the 2002+ is sought after for the manual.

These guys can do the autp torque converter stuff for you if you choose. http://www.converter.com/dragon.htm

My opinion:
I had mine and hated it. I originally had loved the car's style since 2001 when they came out. So when I had the chance, I jumped on it.

Underpowered by far for an inline 6. Probably the slowest car I've owned.

Gas guzzler too. For the power I didn't get, I sure spent a lot filling it up with the shitty MPG I got... and requires premium for the high compression motor that puts down minimal power.

You can however, build it to handle like a beast. frame braces, TRD sways, shocks and springs and you're lovin' life in the corners.

Wouldn't get one again unless I was going to throw in the turbo motor from a Aristo or Supra.

[Neil4Speed]

Originally posted by mr2mike

The "Winter" mode or whatever, doesn't really work. I would turn my traction and winter mode off and run in sport mode all the time. Traction control sucks and basically brakes the car. So I would rather spin.

Well in the 02+ models IS's got the VSC which worked with the TRAC mode. I know some people people are not a big fan of TRAC as at slow speeds it doesn't really help too much for the "skilled" driver. Ie. rather preferring to doing a controlled drift so to speak

Where TRAC is really useful is at speeds which even the most skilled drivers cannot prevent a skid. Where I noticed it the best was driving out on Ghost Lake, at about 60km/h you would hit patches of snow resulting in different amounts of traction for either wheel. You would start the skid coming on, but the TRAC would modulate at the brakes and straighten you out. Amazing technology in practice.

[azian_advanced]

i, too, always drove with TRAC off. much more enjoyable that way and as long as you don't do anything stupid like trying to drift around other drivers and pedestrians.

my dad's 02 manual didn't have VSC at all. apparently it was only the automatics that had them and the worst part is that you can't turn it off (without pulling a fuse) and takes all the fun away. turning TRAC OFF doesn't simply turn VSC off.

all the more reason to buy a manual.