Holy Schnikies! New Lexus IS 350 is fast.

[jimb05]

I was absolutely shocked to see the new Lexus IS 350 (NA V6) matching the performance of the beloved Mustang GT. Car and Driver just did a comparo in 100+ degree heat in the desert and this thing turned 0-60 in 5.1 and 1/4 in 13.7 off an auto tranny!

I just thought I'd let folks know that they may represent a challenge performance wise. Of course, it still looks like a melted bar of soap and I'm sure pricing will be high $30k to low $40k.

It cannot even compare to the Mustang in style and personality and it is unlikely to be as fun to drive. I was just marveling at what would seem to be an awesome level of performance from NA V6 sedan.

I know I am opening myself up to flames for mentioning another car but we are all auto enthusiasts in addition to Mustang enthusiasts and I thought the info was interesting. Yes, yes, before anyone starts; I know the cars Are not in the same class and it's ugly yada yada

 

[merlinsteele]

I may be opening myself up to be flamed, too, but IMHO Lexus is a car company that has a lot of respect, even from me. I admire about any car slanted towards performance, even if that is not it's main objective. I personally won't spent that kind of money on a car, unless I get a job paying twice what I'm paying now, but I don't blame others for getting one. Pretty nice cars!

 

[DarkFireGT]

There are alot of luxury cars that can beat the Mustang. But the aftermarket for them is not there, and 99% of them aren't sold to people looking to tune and race them. Look at the BMW 6 series and 7 series. There's some awesome cars. V8's with 360 hp & v12's with 438 hp, though those aren't quite as responsive... then you have the new V series Caddy's, and the list goes on and on.. There's tons of cars that can keep up and/or beat the Mustang, but they're in a completely different catagory, and the vast majority will never be raced, and only a slight few will be modified.

Plus, come on... exhaust sound? How many new luxury rides roll with aftermarket exhaust. Not many. As said earlier, completely different type of car. Can't be compared.

 

[Pliskin]

Of course, it still looks like a melted bar of soap

Ha ha ha thats hilarious. Those BMWs piss me off. but the thing is, there's always a car that'll tear you up but the real kicker is is that its a v6.
Ah well. I love my red leather and running pony.

 

[turrizt]

i had a 2003 lexus is300. left in the garage a few weeks in the winter... started it up when i got home and a fuel injector blew out... WTF? $500+ to fix it... needless to say, i sold that and got a mustang

 

[351CJ]

i had a 2003 lexus is300. left in the garage a few weeks in the winter... started it up when i got home and a fuel injector blew out... WTF? $500+ to fix it... needless to say, i sold that and got a mustang

Why wasn't the repair covered under warranty?

 

[bigcat]

i remember a few years ago when the is300 or maybe is400 was the fastest production 4 door car in america. in '99 i drove many of them, and they are FAST. dont know the numbers, but i was impressed.

 

[turrizt]

Why wasn't the repair covered under warranty?

just passed mileage limit... even if it was under warranty i would not have been impressed. i've had ****ty cars before that never had anything that costly happen in the engine.

 

[Turbo 05]

i remember a few years ago when the is300 or maybe is400 was the fastest production 4 door car in america. in '99 i drove many of them, and they are FAST. dont know the numbers, but i was impressed.

cant be.
there was no is400 (at least sold in america) and the is 300 ran mid to high 14's not even close to the fastest production 4 door car in america. Even a WRX runs low 14's (4 doors) and the STI which has been out a few years runs low 13's (4 doors), i can go on and on with cars that have 4 doors and sold in america that can smoke an IS300

 

[bigcat]

cant be.
there was no is400 (at least sold in america) and the is 300 ran mid to high 14's not even close to the fastest production 4 door car in america. Even a WRX runs low 14's (4 doors) and the STI which has been out a few years runs low 13's (4 doors), i can go on and on with cars that have 4 doors and sold in america that can smoke an IS300

damn, maybe it was the GS then.....my bad. IS came out just a few years ago, right? DAMN lexus, cant they give thier cars a name instead of numbers?

 

[Turbo 05]

damn, maybe it was the GS then.....my bad. IS came out just a few years ago, right? DAMN lexus, cant they give thier cars a name instead of numbers?

yeah the gs400 or gs430 have some decent power

 

[delurker]

gs430 has 300 hp, but weighs a lot. Probably no match for a WRX STI, definitely no match for a 500 hp BMW M5 sedan.

Most luxury (and near-luxury) carmakers use letters/numbers to designate their models. Think BMW, Audi, Jaguar, Mercedes, Lexus, Infiniti etc. No names in the bunch.

 

[chrisred05]

There was one IS 400 built by Rod Millin a couple of years ago. It was a one off car and was not really duplicated.

 

[Owner1]

The car tested by C&D was a pre-production car, and these often perform differently than production vehicles. Road and Track also tested the car in 93 degree weather and got a 0-60 of 6.0, and a 1/4 mile of 14.5 at 98 mph. The car has 306 horsepower, 277 ft/lb torque, automatic transmission, it weighs 3620 pounds, and uses 4:08 gears.

For comparison, Road and Track has also tested '05 Mustangs on 2 occasions, and got 0-60 of 5.2, and 4.9, and 1/4 mile times of 13.7, and 13.4.

The Lexus, with an additional 100 lb of weight, 40 less ft/lb of torque and an automatic transmission, should be significantly slower than the Mustang. And, not counting pre-production variation, it is.

Owner1