Lexus IS200 2.0 24v Sport 4dr Review

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Lexus IS200 2.0 24v Sport 4dr
4.4 stars
Average rating for this product is: 4.4 out of 5

From 10 ratings and 25 reviews

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T W Gee.'s Review of Lexus IS200 2.0 24v Sport 4dr

5th Jun 2002

Overall Rating

4.5 stars
  • Value for money
    5 stars
  • Practicality
    4 stars
  • Performance
    4 stars
  • Reliability
    5 stars
Good Points

Superb service, Excellent finish, Tight body, smooth motor.


Bad Points

clutch and transmission not good off the mark except when being very slow or pressing hard. Occasional mysterious thump in top gear something like transmission lash.


General Comments

My manual Lexus IS200 has just turned 10,000K and overall it's a pleasant enough car to drive especially on the open road at speed. You must be prepared to go up a gear (or sometimes two) to keep it on song - a bit like a motorcycle. This does not mean thrashing the car it just means adapting to a different driving style than needed in torquier cars.

Staying with traffic from the lights puts you in a bit of a no man's land in that the car is happy with either very leisurely departures or fairly full on ones. Most of us would want something in beween.

My car from new had a faint beating sound when the air conditioning was on. A replacement air box (I assume including fan) fixed this.

The transmission lash and occasional thump in top gear is not too concerning but they are there and really shouldn't be in a car of this quality.

I wanted a German design made by the Japanese. The Lexus is close but the above shortcomings and the body styling aren't there yet in my opinion. I do suspect however that the production quality is better than Merc or BMW and I have owned both.

Revise the rear end styling, add the three litre motor with a sorted 5 or 6 speed manual transmission and the Lexus would murder the opposition if the price was still right.

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