Kar don

not quite, it probably means Faster than an E46 M3 though.

MercedesFTW

Wow, a 2008 production car faster than a 2001 production car in similar categories!


Very Impressive.

glomar83

+1

IdriveFast

i wouldnt call that much of an accomplishment. The E46 M3 debuted in 2001

dragonAMG

The bubble hood is the only thing I don't like visually on the car. Everything else looks pretty good.

anthuny85

i think that is pretty nice looking..?.i seem to be the only one lol

c32used

SORRY GUYS BUT LEXUS(OR TOYOTA) IS TRYING AND IT DID PRETTY WELL SO FAR. I AM A FAN OF LEXUS AND IF THIS CAR IS PRICED RIGHT IT IMO IS BETTER THAN A C32 OR C55 OR ALOT OF CARS OUT THERE. TECHNOLOGY WISE THESE HIGHER END COSTING CARS ARE OF NO COMPARISON. ADD A SC TO THAT V8 AND U HAVE OVER 500HP ON TAP.............I AM NOT GONNA SAY ITS A BETTER LOOKER THAN ALOT OF WHAT IT COMPETES AGAINST BUT ITS A HELL MORE RELIABLE BEING A TOYOTA. YOU WANT PERFORMANCE WELL THE LEXUS SHOWS ENOUGH TO KEEP MOST HAPPY WHILE IT COVERS YOU IN COMFORTS. IF THE IS350 WAS PRICED RIGHT I WOULD HAVE GOTTEN ANOTHER ONE INSTEAD OF THE C32 I HAVE NOW. I ONLY HAD THAT CAR 4 MONTHS NEW AND MISS IT STILL BUT WON'T PAY 45K FOR ONE EITHER. I WILL CONTENPLATE THE IS500 WHILE THINKING ON A USED E55 OR CLS55 WHICH ARE ABOUT 50K+ RIGHT NOW. NOT HATING ON MB BUT SHOWING PRAISE ON LEXUS. AFTER ALL ITS A LUXURY COMFORT WORLD...............I CAN TRUST THE 400HP V8 MORE ON LEXUS THEN I CAN TRUST JUST ABOUT ANY HIGH PERFOMANCE ENGINE IN AMG AND THEY ARE NOT HAND BUILT. GIVE CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE. I BET ANYONE IN A C32 OR C55 WILL LOOK AT THAT CAR AS A THREAT EVEN THE AUDI AND BMW WILL. THE IS HAS A HUGE FOLLOWING WITH A TON OF AFTERMARKET ITEMS FOR IT. ITS NOT THE BEST LOOKER BUT I LIKE IT MORE IN APPEARANCE OVER A C32 C55 OR BMW OR AUDI RS ANYTHING. LEXUS/TOYOTA HAS TAKEN PLENTY OF SALES AWAY FROM HIGHER END BRANDS AND CONTINUE INOVATING WHILE MB AUDI AND BMW ARE WATCHING ONLY EACHOTHER GIVING LEXUS TIME TO CATCH UP. MAYBE IT WONT BE A COMPETETIVE AS THE NEW MB AUDI OR BMW BUT IT WILL BE THERE WITH THEM WHILE LEAVING THE OLDER VERSIONS GASPING FOR AIR UNLESS YOU ARE MODDED OF COURSE. NOT HATING LIKE I SAID JUST PRAISING WHERE ITS NEEDED.

c32used

NO YOU ARE NOT THE ONLY ONE.

c32used

HEY IF AUTO MAKERS LIKE LEXUS WENT INTO DIRECT COMPETITION WITH MB,AUDI OR BMW THEN THE IS WOULD BE STRONGER..........WELL ITS ABOVE THE OLD VERSIONS IMO

FrankW

too lazy to read what everyone said above, but I actually like it. looks like they chop down the size of the hideous side mirrors too.

btw, I drove one of my friend's IS350. the only two thing I didn't like was the minivan style steering feel/weight and the cheesy looking wood trim.

gkstar

If the IS 350 had a normal steering (not fully electric/electronic, how dumb is that on a sporty car ???) and one could defeat the electronic stability intrusion (which is perhaps always present as the body/train is not as rigid as it should be), it should have rated higher than the 330i. That is assuming that mags were unbiased toward the bimer of course.

The latest IS models are really good achievements for Lexus...

ultraseven

Correct me if I am wrong but did the 07 models come with a "fully" defeatable switch? R & T also recently compared an IS against the TL Type S and G35 and mentioned that once the VDIM was switched off, they can hang the tail out. I believe this wasn't possible in the past when the system couldn't be completely turned off.

tee_tz

I think the 'Toyota' comments about Lexus are now getting a little old. Let's call Bentley a Volkswagen then shall we? And what about Jaguar, that old Ford. At the end of the day, it's the model that we're judging not the parent company and management. And to Lexus, I mean TOYOTA's credit, how about the credential of soon to become the World's Number 1 Automaker, in sales and profitability!

Onto the Lexus IS, I think I need more to finalize an opinion. I mean when I first saw the BMW 7-Series I thought it was the ugliest car in the world (including some of those Russian made cars; no offense to anyone who may/do have one). But after seeing it in person, letting myself look at car all around, I felt the design was modern, a brand new look that won't get outdated in a while and needless to say, I like it (especially the new revised one). Therefore, I think we need to see more and get more info before we can make a good judgment. Everything is quite open -- "delivering more than 400 horsepower" (Okay, but exactly how much); "quick 0-60 acceleration in less than 4.9 seconds" (like 4.8 or 4.5?).

So for me, based on that general paragraph and the photo, I can't say I'm very impressed - but - I am looking forward to hearing more about it and seeing it in person.


Tee_Tz.

ralleyone

Allow me to be a little bit more politically incorrect.

I agree with waiting to see what it looks like in person, but my God, those pictures are a testament to some serious overstyling!

It reminds me of the Flintstone's car, where this oversized hulk of a body rests on Fred and Wilma's little legs.

But hey, there may be some magic translation that occurs going from pics to reality. I can only hope (for everyone's sake, because like a good song sung by a crappy singer that will never get redone, it would suck if these decent stats were paired to an ugly stepchild).

14cue

i agree. i don’t like it when people call my car a Chrysler so this shouldn’t be any different.

looking at the pictures, the design is horrific but lets wait it out and see what actually comes of it. i am not familiar with teh current IS interior but the old IS's is fugly to say the least.

amgmark

It shouldn't be difficult to top a C32 since it will be a 6 year old model in 2008.. Same with the C55.. it will be a 3 year old model. I'm sure the next MB C class will be better than the new Lexus.. at least that is what history has shown us.. my two cents..

Kar don

well of what we know now this will be pretty much on par or more power than the E92 V8 M3. The japanese have finally stepped up and overcome the 300hp plateau.

Fifth Ring

Subaru (WRX Sti) and Mitsubishi (Evo) have been there a while. Of course, these cars are not viewed as competitive with the M3, RS4 and C55. Get them on-track and they are more than competitive!

tee_tz

Actually you'd be surprised. Company budgets change, safety standards change, innovation technique changes, consumer demand changes, and most recently - efficiency in regards to pollution changes (U.S./World emissions standards). Therefore, it's not EASY to top a 6 year old model (at least not in everything), and sometimes it's not really achieved - there are cars/models that this is evident in. Sometimes it's even a minimal improvement (performance-wise) between newer and older models.


Tee_Tz.

14cue

more pictures can be seen here, they're not the biggest shots when you click on the thumbs but good enough. the exhaust is hideous!

14cue

oops, link here: http://pressroom.toyota.com/Images?criteria=08LexusISF

sales@eurocharged.com

Tump43

Final opinion. That thing is a boy racer. It will draw far too much attention to itself. Cops will pull it over on principle.

Thats what I like about MB, very classy, very subtle.

c32used

the same interior overall except the cf trim

c32used

true but the same technology would cost alot more on the MB. its hard to compare cars that are dated 2-6 years apart. one thing thou automaker like infiniti,lexus and acura are doing more to their cars then MB AUDI OR BMW. these are upscale cars but the technology in them isn't quite at par with it JAP counterparts.