I currently drive a Lexus IS220D in the UK. It's a perfectly good car that I baby and I haven't had any problems despite its apparently bad reputation. I was thinking of getting a petrol to keep my options open, because the government here is probably going to clamp down hard on diesels. So I've got some pros and cons for the two cars I've decided on:

LS400 Pros:

• Last 1m miles if maintained correctly.
• Older, easier tech to maintain.
• People have had success converting to LPG.
• On average x3 times cheaper than the IS-F. So leaves more in the budget for repairs.
• Less stressed engine. 250BHP > 4L.
• Bigger and probably more confortable for family members.
• People have had success converting to manual transmission

Cons:

• Older car, as Scotty mentions the rubber starts to degrade after a few decades.
• UK says cars older than 2011 will suffer damage to internal parts from E10 petrol. All petrol will be E10 in the future. Chemicals to combat it will add to fuel costs.
• Don't know if I can replace all parts with E10 resistant ones.
• Rubber timing belt. Suppose I'll just buy 10 and seal them from the atmosphere.
• 20-30 years old, so parts may be harder to obtain. But then Lexus are pretty good at keeping the old stock.

Lexus (old version) IS-F Pros:

• It's like having a gorgeous supermodel girlfriend wife that I'll want to keep forever.
• What's not to like at 416 BHP.
• It's understated.
• Tax and MOT are unbelievably the same as LS400.
• MPG is also roughly the same.

Cons:

• x2 to 3 times more expensive than the LS400.
• Don't know if it can be converted to LPG. Only thinking of this to avoid potential E10 issues.
• More of a target for thieves.
• More complicated tech, likely higher maintenance costs and tyres etc.
• Hasn't been around long enough for people to say it's lasted 500,000 miles or more.
• Generally owned by owners who track or trash them on a regular basis.

So head vs heart, and I'm currently leaning towards the LS400. I don't really believe the government about cars from 2011 onwards being immune to the effects of ethanol, but we'll see. On the other hand, I'm still young enough and I know this will be my last chance to get a fast car and I've never had one before. What was it Richard Pryor said about looking back?...

Being the responsible bloke your entire life can literally get a bit old after a while. Heh.