Let’s begin the onslaught of retarded biased comments from people who decided the moment they saw this car was to be released as a Lexus that it would suck.

This ‘review’ basically describes how I thought the car would drive, which is no bad thing. Sounds good to me, the looks are of course subjective, but performance wise I think it sounds like it’ll be a decent competitor, and exactly what all of the stupid people on this site said Lexus couldn’t build.

well, I don’t see oversteer as a bad thing necessarily… understeer is what scares me.

It’s a nice car. I hope Lexus has success with it. Yeah I feel ya LamborghiniZ, I can’t wait to hear all the people start bashing this, it seems like people on LLN have nothing nice to say about anything now-a-days. On a final note, I can’t wait for the next gen CTS-V to come out, It’ll be interesting to see these two head to head.

You’re right, looks are subjective. But this looks like a Toyota with a poorly designed body kit and ugly rims. And Toyota’s cheap plastic buttons makes the interior appear shoddy. But the exhaust is unique. Just so I don’t catch heat from you bleeding-heart import lovers, I’m sure this car performs very well.

I think the styling of this car has been debated enough, but I doubt we’ve heard the last of the rantings…( I don’t care much for it either). Based on LLN’s driving impression, it would seem that it drives well… direct (if a bit numb) steering, smooth strong power delivery, firm quick shifts, strong fade-free brakes, progressive suspension and a tendency to oversteer… I dunno about anybody else, but in my book that sounds like a proper driver’s car. I’ll take mine in black… if someone’s willing to buy me one that is…………

This is a great highperformance sedan that will surprise the Germans. Its a Lexus so you know your getting the very best quality and durability, and its nice looking (in my opinion) and very fast. This is the kind of car I would love to take on a cross country trip (across Germany on the autobahn!) I just wonder which will hold its value more after 5 years. The Lexus or the new M3?

Oversteer on a small car with huge engine is to be expected. I think it looks better then larger family members. Does it need V8? If a lot of people will acquire it yes, my guess it is a waste of emotion.

planet_drive, at $3.25/gallon and mind you this one will require premium. therefore at $3.55-3.60/gallon the best holding value vehicle is I4 Honda Accord (or next of kin Acura TSX).

bryce shhhhhh the exaust is a good looking gimmic like a hood scoop on a tacoma.
i am not opposed to this car i always liked the is350 and this is that car on steroids.\
jamaciandude i agree i want mine in black please.
planet_drive, infinity might make me stray away from bmw but lexus needs a few more years in my book.

autonut the people who will buy this probably dont care about fuel mileage.

CTS, I agree and it is exuberant consumption. The really sad part that very same people will not appreciate oversteer the engine puts on the rear wheels as well as dynamics of a sport sedan. Do you really need V8 to enjoy your 525? Real car enthusiast would drive Lotus Elise. Whoever will clime behind wheel of this marvel can’t actually drive all that well: do you see third pedal? Hence “excessive oversteer”.
There is an interesting theoretical question: is it more fun to drive slow car fast, or fast car slow?

‘Bryce’, BINGO!

OBJECTIVELY, the front half is unattractive. The fact that 10 different people opine with varying levels of aesthetics is subjective. To this day and everyday forward, I cannot and will not understand how that design was ever approved.

For me, regardless of what LLN or any other magazine or auto evaluator states as to its performance, I have no interest in owning the keys to this set of wheels.

I think its nice.Its about time Toyota bring back some form of sport car and I think they should build the LFA

It looks awful, in my opinion. Lexus doesn’t know how to style a car that communicates ‘power’ to people inherently.

They have to nail plastic bits randomly about it. Yuck.

Inline, it is subjective opi, but I prefer interior of Lexus over Infinity. I think Infinity has more sparkles and glitz inside screaming “cheap faux”. This one is dark plastic: no fake leather or wood.

I was going to say this is a decent sporty car and a good effort from Toyota, but then I remembered that Toyota built the Supra. Toyota you can do better than this, you already have.

The styling is something out of Japan in the nineties. Other than putting a bag over this car to drive it, I’d own it.

The front styling just doesn’t look quite right. I’m sure it will be a popular car with those less secure about purchasing a euro sports sedan.

I hope that oversteer tendancy was a result of over stressed tires and somebody’s lead foot, otherwise that may be something Lexus should work on correcting :S

Yeah, unfortunately for Toyota and auto enthusiasts the last model Supra lived in the wrong time, hence why Toyota and other companies like Mazda had to kill off the RX-7 and Supra. I’d like to see the Lexus LF-A come to production soon although it’s going to be priced in the six figure range, and I’ll never see one on the road. But Toyota def needs to bring back the Supra, or the Celica or the MR2. The only 2dr coupe they have is the Camry Solara, and the SCION TC which I can’t stand. Bring back the SUPRA Toyota!

Man, I was in Vegas two weeks ago and saw the black car. I geeked out because it wasn’t released yet. My wife wwas like -It’s just a Lexus.
Anyway the car lives up to the pictures. If you’re borderline on the looks then seeing it in person won’t help.
I’ll take it for a spin when it gets to my dealer.

Id take an M3 way ahead of it “its the engeneering”, also dont like front end looks dopey to me. But it does sound if they are taking a more AMG like approach and maybe from a sales point of view that will be good for them. AMG is growing really fast and making mad cash.
Is it just me or do all Infinitis’ look better on outside and Lexus are all finer quality on the inside.

Just don’t get your hand stuck in between the real exhaust pipe and its “exhaust tips”.

option # 1 autonut, if i got passed by a yugo i would have to say that guy was having some serious fun.

LamboZ – it comes down to handling and just how sporty it drives. Anyone can put a big engine and some riced out terrible-looking (subjective) fender scoops, but in the end it is about how the car performs: does it weigh too much? how good is it at cornering? and all those kinds of things.

Bottom line is that Lexus agreed that this car is not good enough to make on BMW’s M division and Benz’s AMG division and would wait until the next generation. So yes, it basically is yet another failed attempt by Lexus to enter the sports car market. But it’s okay in my mind because Toy builds boring cars. The Scion cars are just basic buckets that are ready to be riced out (after some loyal 48 year old Toy fans buy them for their college kids), Toy is one of the blandest car companies that is running on its “reliable” reputation, and Lexus builds good-quality cars that are filled with unnecessary tech-geek bs like 8-speed trannys and self-park systems. Impressive? Sure. But it is useless. For Lexus to all of a sudden start building high-performance cars would be like the biggest geek in high school to suddenly because varsity quaterback. It’s not gonna happen.

Typo: “Bottom line is that Lexus agreed that this car is not good enough” should read “Bottom line is that LLN agreed…”

MORE BIASED CRAP FROM COMMODORE. you had already made up you’re mind about this car because it’s a lexus or japanese (to be general on all your views). you then go on about how Toyota is only running on its reliable reputation. Now I AM NOT a toyota fan but at least it has a good reputation, what reputation does that company you glorify (GM) have, one of the worst.
new CTS is the only good luxury car that GM has ever built and of a decent standard but it’s still an inferior choice to the german three and lexus.

Right on, Commodore: Considering the other cars in it’s class, I think you’d have to pretty much be a moron to consider buying one of these.

This Alteeza looks a lot like the new Accord. That’s not a bad thing

I agree with commodore. This car is a piece of crap. It’s ugly, has no finasse, and a 5.0L V8 is too big for that output range and this class.

I keep an open mind for all car companies regardless of what country they’re from. But you just can’t compare this to a BMW M3. It’s going to fail.

I’m sure it drives like a bat out of xxxxing hell. 420 hp in that body is going to be insanely fast and furious – their review sounds muted and castrated.

This car will place behind the M3, AMG, and the next RS4 (maybe the present one also) in every mag comparo you read over the next year or two.
Dear Toyota: Please bring back celica or MR-2 or Supra, or even a rear drive corolla. Until then nice knowing you.

I’m w/ swerve on this. offer a frickin diesel for the USDM LC!!!

Looks are subjective and the only thing wrong with the car is the price tag. For many people they prefer more luxury than pure performance anyway, so it might sell but certainly not for me.

cardesigner5 – you are the biased one because you always generalize things. I can quote you on at least 5 recent GM articles on LLN that you have commented on and said “more GM crap” or something of that sort.

MORE IMPORTANTLY, I am not even talking about GM here!!! I am comparing this car to the car it tries to compete with — the BMW M3!!! Now, can you honestly say that this car has better performance than the M3? The answer is you don’t know. However, LLN has test driven the IS-F and they say that basically the M3 is still better, and all my comment stated was that I am not surprised. I didn’t have high expectations for a Lexus “sports” car (I mean, c’mon – that Lexus LF-A they are talking about is going to be a HYBRID). Anyway, Cadillac doesn’t ever have any car that competes with this (CTS is meant as a 5 series competitors and CTS-V has not even been shown yet).

The point is you are the biased one, the Toyota apologist who defends Toy against everything. When they have a recall (or many recalls actually) you defend them, when their sales decrease you defend them , when they build a not-so-sporty “sports”car you defend them…….why don’t you just admit it when they are bad.

There are things Toyota can do, such as building automotive appliences for people who don’t really like cars but need to go places, and then there are things Toy can’t do (such as building exciting performance cars). Be fair now, c’mon.

HIDEOUS front. This thing needs a bigger grill or something to offset that giant hunch of a hood bulge. The stacked non functional tailpipes make me want to vomit. I don’t understand why all these magazines are being so polite. It’s like they’re afraid of just coming out and saying this car blows for what it has to compete against. Lexus must be paying some good money to someone.

but GM cars are also appliances accept for the CTS which I would have over any TOYOTA, lexus. the only difference is what GM products are badly built appliances.
i can only refer to GM being crap when the are crap. if the could produce more cars like the CTS the would deserve some credit.
you name some good class leading cars the build.

cardesigner5, in no particular order:
Buick Enclave/GMC Acadia
Cadillac Escalade
Cadillac CTS
Chevy Silverado/GMC Sierra
Chevy Tahoe/Suburban
Chevy Avalanche
Chevy Express/GMC Savanna
Chevy Kodiak/GMC Topkick
Chevy HHR
Chevy Corvette
Hummer H1, H2, and H3
Pontiac Solstice/Saturn Sky
Saturn Aura (Malibu pending, even though I’m not thrilled)

YOU’RE TRYING TO DO STANDUP COMEDY RIGHT, YOU SHOULD, YOU’D BE GOOD AT IT,OR MAYBE YOU’RE JUST VERY DILLUSIONAL, YEAH THOUGH SO,
most of these cars were tested by european motoring journalists and were slated.
the whole hummer range is rubbish,badldy built and apalling packaging and is all about image, that being (I DRIVE A HUMMER CAUSE I HAVE AVERY SMALL PENIS)
SOLSTICE,SKY we get as opel GT is europe is rubbish, supposed to be an MX-5 competitor,but handling is no where near as good and end’s up feeling like a corvette with half it cylinders missing.
saturn aura,mailbu- anything off that platform eg euro vectra is substandard.
HHR is GM version of a pt cruiser (joke car)
escalade, the novelty has worn off and the tacky interior , awfull dynamics and ride jus sum it up.
EXPRESS, SAVANNA oh look here comes the A-TEAM.

I can agree the corvette proves a point and does what is supposed to to, provide the driver with a tire smoking laugh, but the interior is more DAEWOO than anything else and it has the chassis technology of a wheelebarrow, (****ing leaf springs), and the new CTS is only car has impressed british motoring journalists but it is still considered the inferior choice to the germans, and I suppose the british are being biased here.

I’d also add the Pontiac G8 (and all cars based on GM’s Holden Commodore), the Saturn Sky (and Chevrolet Captiva, Daewoo Winstorm, and Opel Antara), and also the upcoming Chevrolet Camato (and a Pontiac variant if there is one), the XLR also looks better than anything at Toyonda (but it costs a little much), and the Malibu is definately on the list – I saw all trims in person yesterday as well as a LTZ model parked next to a Camry and the Chevy looks like its a luxury midsizer and definately not an applience.

You’ve made a very weak and emotionally-driven argument. Hummers are very capable off-road vehicles. Their quality isn’t diminished because certain consumers buy them for status. And you’ve proven my point if you think that the Solstice and Sky feel like a Corvette. The HHR dominated the PT Cruiser in sales. It’s powerplants are far superior (Ecotec engines are near bulletproof) and the design and interior fit and finish is great. Also, the Escalade has never been a novelty (that’s basic knowledge for any automotive enthusiast) and it’s interior and ride are exceptional (by what standard is it tacky? Yours?). ‘Awfull dynamics’ is your own pork. Unless you have a real example. And Mr. T pities you, fool.

For similar money, I’d take a BMW, thank you very much.

Or for significantly less, I’d buy a Pontiac G8 GT with a nicer exterior, interior, and quad tips that actually meet the exhaust pipes. I’ll take some of the saved money and put it into a LS2 twin-turbo kit, and then pocket the rest.

And I have the added benefit of NOT having Lexus badges on my car either way.

cardesigner:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_d5-K109DQ

just check out any european motoring website you idiots.
The HHR dominated the ptcruiser in sales, big deal you’d think it was a good thing to hear you, the pt cruiser is rubbish. seen alot of HHR’S when I was in san francisco, all the GAYS were driving them, that say’s it all, just look at the thing.

BRYCE you then say I have proven your point by saying the solstice and sky feel like a corvette with half its cylinders missing, that is not a good thing,the corvette would be pure crap with half it’s cylinders, that V8 is very good and the only thing that saves it.
we get the sky,solstice in europe as opel GT and it is no good in terms of dyanmics compared to the MX-5 and has been rated as average here.we also get the captiva here and it is still recongised as a DAEWOO.maybe because it is and is built in s.korea by daewoo.

XLR is caddys attempt at a MERC SL rival and it falls way short in terms of everything, its only more reliable and a bit cheaper in more ways than price. it recieved 9/20 by topgear magazine

the escalade was given 2 out of 5 stars by car magazine.com. you then go on to call it exceptional in terms of ride and interior compared to what, certainly not the X5,Q7,ML ,toureg, landcruiser ,xc90. The HUMMER H3 also recieved 2 out of 5 by autoexpress.H2 WAS WORSE.

as for the malibu, you guys are easily impressed,based on the opel vectra (also no class leader in europe)and saab 9-3, except this has a worse interior. yea id rather have one over a camry, but that certainly ain’t a complement.

american cars are famous for awfull dynamics,your cars are designed for straight roads.

In europe and the rest of the world people laugh at fat american cars to carry your big fat asses around.
check out these websites for test drives of the cars you mentioned and you’ll get the picture, topgear,autoexpress,autocar.
my argument is not emotionally driven and am referring to test drives by motoring journalists who know what the are talking about.

cd5: you going around measuring?

I agree with you, however that the HHR is a joke. It’s no significant advance on the PT cruiser, which was too small and cheap.

Those stacked tailpipes look like ****.

cardesigner5yearold although i think you are an ass of epic proportions, (hummer is by far more reliable than your precious rovers), i have a link here for you and 1115 that you might really enjoy, just read it carefully.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frigidaire,

XLR is caddys attempt at a MERC SL rival and it falls way short in terms of everything, its only more reliable and a bit cheaper in more ways than price
.
its only more reliable……exactly its more reliable, jeebus who cres how nice your car is when its in for “unscheduled maintenance visits”

‘Veda’, get some glasses.

‘HotMustard’, you’ve hit on something rarely addressed … magazines, and LLN, keep their mouths shut when a car is current and only truly comment on its aesthetics after it’s redone. NEVER rely on their views. Mine on the other hand … I tell it OBJECTIVELY. And this front end is WRONG, as is the exhaust design … mark my words, in a few years ALL the mags will tell it like it REALLY is.

i ain’t british i jus live there. hummer may be more reliable but it certainly ain’t a better car.

CTS DRIVER you being american probably have an ass of epic proportions

Cardesigner, as fun as it is to watch/read, anyone who refers to Top Gear for objective car reviews is a moron.

not the programme the ****in magazine

cd5: there’s nothinmg better than a hummer. Note the lowercase “h.”

hahahaha, cd5 what did you think of the appliance link?
.
by the way when you try to insult americans you insult everybody like mexicans, brits, frenchies and everybody from all parts of the world….unless you actually think americans are a race of people like homeboy234 used to say. so it really dont work very well when you guys refer to americans, the melting pot of the world.
.
by the way also cd5 aside from an h3, i would drive any rover over the other 2 hummers.

ooooooohhhhhhh you’re so nasty, i tought we were best buddies, i could be your other sidekick next to commodore.

honestly i like every single individual on this site.

in the 4th paragraph there is a misspelling, the author uses quite instead of quiet, which he meant. Just thought the author should be aware.
“The cabin of the IS-F is extremely quite and keeps the 5.0L V8 fairly muted, even under full throttle.”

especially, deantj,impulsive jjt and ricardo….you too autonut.

CTS: If you get your oil changed at Dutton Motors, you might run into me. I might have to go up that far to get the Enclave I want

jackjimturkey, I can locate and deliver any Enclave in the nation.

I love how we refute every point cardesigner5 makes and then he doesn’t know what to say. He actually agrees with us and says something like “Well yea you are right, but…but…but….whatever!!”

Every American car that you call crap pretty much is NOT. What are you comparing them to anyway? What direct competitor to the Solstice/Sky does Toyoda have? NONE, because Toy does not make exciting cars…I’m sorry – it’s just a fact. And why would it be a bad thing that the Sky has 1/2 the cylinders of the Corvette? That doesn’t matter because the Sky is HALF the weight of the Corvette so it doesn’t need more power plus it is HALF THE PRICE!!

The HHR is a great car for what it is made to do, and again beats out anything from Toyonda because they have nothing like it. Also, notice that the HHR has an exciting design (no matter if you think it is a good or bad design, it is certainly not conservative like a Toyonda product).

Obviously, you are influenced by biased publications like TopGear that only favor European cars and also you are influenced by your racism and anti-americanism (you clearly believe every stereotype). It’s like if I start talking about British people’s horrible teeth. Who cares? You need to STOP generalizing and stereotyping American cars because, if you haven’t realized, this is a Lexus IS-F topic and it has nothing to do with neither Europe or America.

O, and what about Ford? I have heard tons of good stuff about how well Brits think of Ford (especially cars such as the Mondeo and Focus)

‘CTS’, you’re all right too … just be aware, if you ever state nonsense here, I’ll be all over you.

sorry commodore i have respect for ford of europe, it’s european developed models are all very good and it has managed it overseas operations very well like MAZDA,VOLVO,LANDROVER. GM has squandered their’s(SAAB is on it’s knee’s,it exploited ISUZU,and made no development with subaru when it controlled it’s future), most opel models are no better than average.

ford on it’s home market frankly sucks when the could achieve so much with lincoln it continue’s with mercury. It has had some amazing concept models (427 sedan,interceptor) yet put’s none of this creativity into practice.

Bryce: I want a blue-gold crystal metallic 7-seat FWD CXL. With DVD and dark titanium leather interior

jackjimturkey, there are 13 in the country. The nearest ones to either of us (I’m assuming you’re in CA) are in OK and TX. The one in OK is MSRP $39,685. What’s your timeframe?

I thought you would cardesigner5. I too loved Ford vehicles when I lived in Europe. Opel’s were a little behind back then, but with their new Astra, Corsa, Agila, Zafira, and so on, they are on the comeback.

I can agree with you that GM ****ed up Saab, hopefully the 9-4x and future 9-5 will be as good as the 9-3 refresh. Subaru was never fully owned by GM….they just used the Legacy (I think) and made it into a Saab 9-2 (bad idea). Isuzu was just used for their diesels, so yeah GM pretty much raped them. They did produce the Axiom which I still think is a good vehicles…it looks good.

Yes, everyone wants Ford to bring Euro models to America and they will soon. The next Focus will be the same internationally. The reason they don’t do it immediately is because it takes time to make all the modifications to comply with a different market and that sort of thing which takes about 3 years to do (as evidenced by the Astra). As for beautiful cars like the Interceptor and 427 – they are not built because of our government’s CAFE standards. That is the same reason that GM’s Zeta program of RWD large cars may be halted. Luckily, GM starts plans to build their sweet concepts and import their best cars from abroad early, so they were able to do it before Ford. It’s kind of ironic that it happened this way because the reason GM is in a better position than Ford right now is because GM started to tank before Ford so they started their recovery plan before Ford did.

Oklahoma?

how would that work?

Commodore: It was Wrong to just give Saab cars from other divisions and rebadge them? A Saab buyer wants a Saab, not a trailblazer

It’s entirely at the discretion of the other dealership. If we secured the vehicle, you’d need to send us a deposit and sign the paperwork (which we’d send through FedEx). We would likely then trade vehicles for it and freight or drive it back. After, depending upon how the deal structures, we could drive or freight it to your location, or we could fly you out here for delivery. A driving delivery is free and freight is $1.25 – $1.50 per mile.

Can I get my local (San Diego/Riverside County) dealer to do that? I remember interviewing a dealer about the strike, and he says they can get parts or vehicles from around the country if inventory goes low.

Sure. But it depends upon the dealer. The farthest I’ve gone to get a vehicle is Boise. Many won’t travel very far, especially if they have to pay freight. They’re more apt to find you a similar model.

Commodore: GM used the Impreza, not the Legacy, btw

some cute little familial **** going on here lately, very endearing guys

Commodore- I assume you’re one of those people who said “Lexus is never gonna make it” back in the late 1980s.

Rob – well I was barely 20 back then and I wasn’t that interested in cars. I just hate the late 70s to early 90s cars. ESPECIALLY those in the midst of that time period. Worst cars ever made (designwise and otherwise) if you ask me.

But no, I never assumed that Lexus wasn’t going to make it. I am one of those “wait and see, not too optimistic, not too pessimistic” type of people. I did appreciate Toy’s quality BACK THEN so I thought they had a better chance of making it than not. Their first car, the LS was quite impressive…..they clearly put alot of money and effort into it.

I won’t pretend I wasn’t surprised that they are #1 in the US though. I could see Cadillac and Lincoln losing that spot, but I expected Germans to occupy it before Caddy took it back someday, not Lexus