OK, so I know that posting this in a BMW forum will open myself up to a barrage of bias comments but please if you do have something to say try to be as un-bias as you can, constructive and justify your comments so they are actually useful.
So, I've decided that for my next car I'm going to dig a little deeper into my pockets and get something decent, comfortable and an easy driving bit of luxury. Right now I've narrowed my choices down to a Lexus IS300h and a BMW 3 Series saloon 320d. I've had a test drive in the BMW (an M-Sport in exactly my price range) about a few hours ago actually and I have to say it did feel like a nice solid well put together car, looked great on the outside with the large M-Sport alloys in the exact colour I would chose but a little bland on the inside I have to say and the seats were a bit narrow, the wings of the seat stuck in my back a bit. All in all I wasn't blown away by it but not put off either, it felt like a sensible choice.
My next choice is a Lexus IS300h, the nearest dealer is quite a bit further away but I will be going over to have a go in one and see one in the flesh before I decide. At the moment my main concern is the engine, I've never had a hybrid before or a Lexus so don't know how reliable they are. I don't do much city or suburban driving and don't get stuck in traffic it's mainly country and B roads so I'm worried that I won't see much of the efficiency of the Hybrid as compared to the BMW 320 diesel engine. I explained my predicament to the BMW sales person and he was very understanding and didn't in anyway try to put me off the Lexus he just gave me exactly what I wanted, the facts and figures of the car I was looking at.
I really am 50/50 on this right now, I know I still need to see and try the Lexus but when your spending a lot of money you want to make sure you do as much as possible to make the right fully informed decision. I'm not buying new, my budget is around £20000 and price wise both cars are almost identical for what I want. If anyone can help shed some light on my situation please do so but like I said please try to keep it un-bias (I know that's a bit silly to ask in a BMW forum but try anyway) but also constructive and justifiable.
Thanks in Advance
Dave
