V8-Powered Lexus Models Meet in Chicago

First meet of 2019 for the Chicago Lexus F Club brings out some great-sounding, tire-slaying luxury machines.

The Chicago Lexus F Club recently had their first meet and greet of 2019 and the host of the Bullets Garage YouTube channel was there to catch all of the action. He wasn’t able to take his GS F and the day started off with some rainy, dreary weather that may have kept some members of the club away, but with around 20 cars in attendance, it was a solid turnout that led to some great V8-powered Lexus action.

Heading to the Meet

The video begins in the host’s garage, where we see that his Lexus GS F is not in one piece, so rather than driving himself to the meet and greet, he is riding with his buddy Adrian. Adrian arrives in an IS F, giving a couple good, hard revs before shutting the car down for a quick bath.

Once the car is cleaned up, the crew heads off to the first meet and greet of 2019 for the Chicago F Club. When they arrive, there are two rows of cars, many of which are either black or white, but there is at least one IS F in Ultrasonic Blue Mica and Matador Red Mica.

The early portions of the footage from the meet provide us with a ton of close-up shots of the various IS F, GS F and RC F models in attendance. Some of the cars are stock, some have basic upgrades like wheels and others have body modifications to help them stand out from the crowd. There are also some non-F models with the group, presumably that belong to people who didn’t want to bring their V8-powered luxury machine out in the rain.

Lexus V8s Roar

After we see the Lexus F models in attendance in detail, it is time to hear this V8-powered luxury machines in action. Each of these cars is powered by a 5.0-liter V8, with the IS F being powered by the early version that delivers 416 horsepower and 371 lb-ft of torque while the RC F and GS F are powered by the newer 5.0-liter mill with 467 horsepower and 389 lb-ft of torque.

In stock form, all of these Japanese luxury cars will roar, but it is clear that the cars revving their engines have aftermarket exhaust upgrades and, in some cases, other engine modifications. We get to watch and listen as an RC F goes first, backing into place at idle before revving the engine hard a few times, followed by a quick, hard rev by a GS F.

Next, an IS F and GS F rev back and forth at each other, giving us a chance to hear how different the two variations of the Lexus V8 sound under hard throttle. Finally, a black IS F backs into a spot and revs the engine, proving itself as the loudest car in the video.

V8s in Action

Through the middle of the video, the Chicago F Club has a brief meeting where they discuss the growth of the group’s Instagram channel along with making plans for future events.

After that, the real action begins, with the various V8-powered Lexus F models leave the lot where they met. First, a white IS F leaves and it sounds pretty sweet rolling away, but when the black IS F from the exhaust sounds portion of the video fires up, it is eargasm time. This deafening beast rolls onto the street and pops the throttle to just give us a taste of the roar of the Japanese V8.

Next, the GS F pulls out of the lot and hammers hard as it races off into the distance, followed by the loud RC F and a blue IS F that puts on a great smoke show. That is followed up by a white IS F that did a shorter burnout and a quick launch by the Matador Red IS F, but the video saves the best for last.

While we are watching cars speed away from the lot, one of the IS F owners made his way to the empty parking lot next to the meet and greet lot where he cooks up some wicked, smoky donuts that are accompanied by the awesome roar of the V8.

Crank up your speakers and enjoy!

Patrick Rall

"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.

"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.

"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.

"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.

"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.

"Being based on Detroit," says Rall, "I never miss the North American International Auto Show, the Woodward Dream Cruise and Roadkill Nights, along with spending plenty of time raising hell on Detroit's Woodward Avenue with the best muscle car crowd in the world.

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