2008 Lexus IS 250/350
I’ve always wondered what would happen if you put cloth seats onto a BMW 3 Series, an Audi A4, or a Mercedes C Class, made the rest of the interior a bit more rubbish, then put it on sale for thousands less and sold it with a less prestigious badge. Would anyone actually bother to buy one of these cars? If you talk to people who buy these baby luxury vehicles and ask “why didn’t you buy something like a Mazda 6 or a Honda Accord instead… which are cheaper and bigger?” Many will tell you that these baby German sedans are superior in many non superficial ways, which in some instances is actually true; but, the honest ones will tell you that these cars are superior simply because of the prestige and that saying “I own a BMW” always seems more impressive than saying “I own a Honda” but honestly who are you really going to impress?
I strongly believe that well over 90% of baby luxury car drivers, especially those who own a 3 series are jerks because they’re trying very hard to look more important and wealthier than they really are. Also, I'm sure we can all testify to this, most of the time you get carved up on the road it's usually a baby luxury car that did it... either that or some teenager in a modded car. I’m sure if you survey all the owners of these cars and ask why they haven’t got a 5 series, an A6, or an E Class, the overwhelming majority will tell you they can’t afford one. So what this ultimately means is that if you own a baby luxury car, you want to look rich and successful but you aren’t because if you were you’d have a larger car… That doesn’t seem very impressive to me.
There is however one baby luxury car which I have no idea if this same principle applies, partly because it’s not German and partly because of the banner it flies… I am of course talking about the Lexus IS. The average age of a Lexus owner is sixty one… 6-1! And for years the baby of the range was the Camry based ES which is actually quite large and old people love it, but in order to entice more youthful buyers Lexus brought over the Toyota Altezza, put in luxury fitments and called it the IS 300. I certainly never saw anyone over forty in an IS 300 and likewise I haven’t seen anyone under forty in any other Lexus. So if you own an IS you could argue that you wanted a Lexus because they’re incredibly well put together cars, but you are much to young to be seen in any other model.
End Social Commentary… if you just want to know what this car is like start reading here!
Now though, there is a new IS (250 or 350) which is based on the sort of sporty rear drive GS platform which is a good start, but unlike with the GS, Lexus really pushed to make the IS a “sports sedan.” You can tell this is the case from the looks alone. The car has really sharp sporty edges, which some people don’t like for some reason… personally I think it looks amazing… huge alloy wheels with low profile tires painted on them, a small diameter steering wheel, flappy paddles for the automatic gearbox’s manual mode and there’s even warning lights on the tachometer to tell you it’s about time to change gear. Things look good but are they?
Positives: I’ll start by saying that yes Toyota still remembers how to make a sports car, despite not having made one for years. The new IS rides a bit harder than the rest of the Lexus lineup, but on the upside that means significantly less roll when you decide to corner too quickly and huge amounts of un-Lexus like grip! Everything about the way this car handles/corners is such a far departure from what Lexus usually does and it’s fantastic. Pretty much all Toyota products, especially the cars from Lexus, feel solidly built, but they also have a wallowy, floaty feel as well... the IS on the other hand is different in the best way possible. You can actually sense just how stiff the chassis is as you drive along because the car gives you a sports car sense of solidity on the road, and it just feels absolutely planted.
Another un-Lexus like thing appears instantly as well, the steering wheel actually provides feedback! I’ve never driven a Toyota product built in the recent past that fed cornering confidence to the driver through the wheel, so the IS is a welcome surprise. The steering feel isn’t nearly as good as what the 3 series BMW offers, but the fact that a Lexus has steering feel already blows me away. These facts won’t let you know just how good this car feels to drive, but I can say one line that probably will. This car almost demands that you drop your weekend plans and go to the nearest mountain to drive around. You actually feel bad for the car if you don’t because it genuinely is a fun little car. Also, the car just looks like it belongs on a racetrack or a nice twisty road rather than in a traffic jam.
If you don’t happen to live near a mountain or a race track, this car can still put a huge smile on your face in the city. The basic city weave is fairly entertaining in the IS, but you start to garner a greater appreciation for this car when you go up circular highway onramps or when you take turns a bit too quickly. The IS just feels light, nimble, and plain sporty whenever the moment takes you, and I really quite like that.
One thing I never understood about baby luxury cars is the necessity of having huge amounts of power under the bonnet… I’m not complaining, but it does appear to be compulsory. All the cars in this class are really no bigger than a Civic, yet if you had a BMW with a 1.8 liter 140 hp engine you would be angry about the miserable amount of horsepower. In fact to some the 2.5 liter V6 in the Lexus might seem a bit weak as well, but 204 hp is quite a lot for a car of this size. If you use the flappy paddles and drop into the right gear the IS 250 flies. It’s no super car, but for what it is it’s certainly quick. What’s more, the engine is very lively and happily revs to its redline which makes the speed sensation even greater. If you think the 250 is a bit slow though, there is a 3.5 liter 306 hp model, and the monstrous IS-F which will more than happily stick you to your seat, but honestly if you’re going to spend most of your time being a law abiding citizen the 250 is more than enough.
If you do opt for the 3.5 liter V6 version though, you won’t regret it… until your license gets revoked. The difference in speed from the 250 to the 350 is clearly noticeable. In the 250 you feel like you’re in a quick fun car, but in the 350 you get the feeling that you’re in something simply volcanic. The inside of the car is very Lexus like, in the sense that it just seems to be a relaxing place to be… so once you engage sport mode on the 350, drop it down a couple of gears and floor the car, you simply become amazed by the acceleration of the thing. It’s so easy in the 350 to just blow straight by the speed limit and simply not notice. What’s more the noise (though rather quiet), the sensation of the whole thing, and the excitement of seeing the speedometer shoot up so quickly in this comfort box is so intoxicating, that you just want to keep doing it. Obviously I would advise against that for legal reasons.
Speed is good and all, but if you sometimes just want to relax and have your car waft home quietly and comfortably, the IS 250 is still a Lexus so when you go from crazy teenager mode to civilized adult it’ll still float your boat. Compared to the GS or LS the IS does indeed provide a stiffer, louder, less comfortable ride, but honestly the IS is still a very comfortable car to be in. The suspension still irons out most road imperfections, and you can still hear classical music from the stereo at highway speeds. Nothing about this car will ever wear you out on a long journey.
The inside is still built with unrivaled quality, and all the material used to make the car is definitely top shelf. The leather used for the seats for instance definitely feels of a higher grade than Louis Vuitton hand bags. Also, like the larger Lexus cars, the IS’s engines are still smoother than a lotion model’s skin. I have no idea what witch craft Lexus engineers have done to these engines, but I have never seen smoother engines in my life other than the unorthodox rotaries. Even if you rev the engine hard and make the needle bounce off the rev limiter the engine still feels like it can rev another 5000 rpm just because it’s so smooth. Overall, the only major difference as far as the luxury drive feel from the IS to its larger siblings is that the IS feels like it’s hugging the road rather than gliding over it, which I like better.
What’s more, unlike a BMW 3 series the Lexus comes with plenty of standard kit (and it costs less to start!), and adding the two or three extra things that you could possibly want won’t cost you a Toyota Yaris. I was particularly pleased that the sunroof and the “Smart Access” keyless system comes as standard. If you don’t know what Smart Access is, it’s a system that allows you to keep your keys in your pocket and the car sort of detects if you’re nearby. After that it’ll unlock the doors for you (or you can push a button on the side of the car) then you get in, put your foot on the brake pedal (or clutch if you get the super rare manual) push the starter button and you’re off! I quite like that feature.
Negatives: I absolutely love this car, but I think it’s my responsibility to point out one or two issues. The first problem being the rear seats, which are almost useless. Even with a short guy like me at the wheel, you’ll have sparse legroom in the back and if you stick anyone six foot and over at the wheel, the back seats realistically can only be used to hold extra cargo. Then again this is an issue in most baby luxury sedans.
Let's see, I guess I don't like the fact that the automatic gearbox changes up for you sometimes in "sport mode"... but if you use the paddles a couple of times it stops doing that, so that's not really a problem...
The next bit is uh… I really can’t think of another fault this car has that isn’t expected when you buy anything from this class of car…
Conclusion: If I had to buy a baby luxury sedan for whatever reason, I would definitely drop by the Lexus showroom to sign some papers. The IS simply looks better than its competitors, it’s less expensive than its rivals, out drives all but the BMW, is more reliable than the others, and it seems to give off the smallest jerk vibe. I can find pretty much no drawback in buying a Lexus IS over its German rivals, but to those about to run off to the Lexus dealership, I would recommend paying a visit to Infinity for a look at the G35 as well. The G35 is priced to compete with the IS, but somehow I don’t feel that it’s really in the same class which is why I kind of ignored it’s existence this whole time; however it is definitely worth a look.
I started this review off asking if people would actually buy a stripped down version of the baby German sedans and I still don’t know the answer to that question, but I definitely would buy stripped down version of the IS because I couldn’t give a toss about the badge. This is a properly good car.
Summary:
The Good: Nearly as good to drive as a 3-series BMW, but much cheaper and better equipped!
The Bad: Interior is a little bit tight, but uh… that’s to be expected
Verdict: Easily the smart choice
Random Stats:
Engines: (IS 250) 2.5 liter V6, 204 hp, 185 lb-ft torque; (IS 350) 3.5 liter V6, 306 hp, 277 lb-ft torque
EPA fuel estimates: (IS 250) 21/29; (IS 350) 18/25
