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Funny, as someone who doesn't own an IS but has followed it since its introduction I didn't notice any difference until the two pics were posted side-by-side. I can definitely appreciate the 10" screen since I had a loaner with the smaller screen and could never figure out why it had 1 1/2" of black plastic on either side. I guess Lexus couldn't either. I mean, my S5 has it but it is an 8 year old model.
Some nice improvements, Lexus heard some of our common woes. The larger screen and better resolution are a welcome improvement, as is the Climate/Audio panel trimming (the little things ). The exterior will likely need to be seen in person to fully appreciate it.
I'd call the facelift a wash. There are improvements and downgrades. The larger nav screen is nice, but is really more of a catching up thing that should have been that way from the start.
I like the new rear valance. It has some subtle added style and the new tailpipe tips are far more stylish than plumbing pipe circles.
New taillights are modern and sleek. The last design reverted back to the 2005 white, square reverse light blocks which I could never understand.
The front is where things went downhill in my opinion. The front of the pre-facelift was already on the obnoxious side, and this is even more. There are way too many gashes, cuts, and vertical gapes. The new headlights are now too tall, which is not a sporty thing.
And what's up with keeping the same rims for the F-Sport? They are nice rims to begin with, but nearly all facelifts include new wheels.
The new upgraded rims for the non F-Sport look terrific. The current mesh jobs on today's car are too busy and fussy. Curious to see what the base, base model rims look like.
Overall, I like the non-F-Sport front better. It's cleaner, yet still sporty (but still obnoxious). In fact, there is now very little to distinguish the F-Sport and non-F-Sport from a quick glance. Today's model differences are very apparent.
I miss the days when Lexus had timeless, classy, refined, and elegant styling. That is what brought me to the brand in the first place. The current crop is immature and extroverted. This is probably good for the company's bottom line, but not for my settled-down ways.