Stormforge

yup, my point exactly; you stated it concisely.

socalJD

Hmmm, I avg 23 on 80/20 hwy/city daily commute in my GS350 - must be that cheap TX gas

It must be the torque steer that gives you that impression in corners, because every skidpad figure I've seen has the ES significantly lower than the GS. I agree about the softer, floaty suspension on the ES

Speaking of which, I predict that the HS will be a disappointment - what was Lexus thinking ? The HS appears to be no more than a hybrid corolla given a Lexus makeover. The Prius is successful because it is unique, there is no other conventional gas equivalent model - the platform, body style & drivetrain are not cannibalized. Lexus is going off the reservation with the HS since there is no true market for it. They'd be better served offering a hybrid ES, especially since the ES is already their best selling model and has an established market. I'd rather see a true IS coupe or the GS-F before the HS . . .

I8ABMR

350 hands down. I have ben launching the car recently from light to light ( bumping some new music gets me feeling racy) and I have to admit I cant imagine what it feel like with a 50 hp decrease. Not my bag. How would anyone pay this much for a car that didnt pull like te competitors. I dont care how old lexus drivers are, we all like to feel some power under your foot

BigDave

that's the problem. it's got so much get up and go, that I end up goosing it and really puttin the screws to it. Oh and I have 4 tickets so far in the 350 and none in the 300.

as far as gas is concerned, it's not just the cost, but the fact that I have to fill up much more often. which is annoying. I find I drive a more relaxed style in the 300. Maybe I'm just weird.

socalJD

^ No not weird, just an enthusiast. Reminds me of the GS460 commercial from last year, the one with the GS doing doughnuts and hi speed corner drifts, the GS *should* not be driven that way, but it CAN drive that way. . .

echelon

We bought the 300 for my wife who never takes the car above 3K rpm so the power difference from the 300 to the 350 wasn't worth the almost $6K difference when we bought it. If we didn't need to replace her old car I would have loved to wait for the price on the 350 to come down I'd definitely would like the extra 50hp, her on the other hand couldn't care less.

kyang91

iTrader: (5)

The only thing that I can say about this is that I am glad that I got the GS350.......^^

Pchaser

iTrader: (1)

I just bought my wife a pre-owned 06 GS300AWD Nov 08 ...I was not happy with the power at all but it was for her, I couldve gotten an pre-owned 07 GS350 for $27k with 45k miles but i didnt see the point in spending an extra $2k for more power when she drives like a snail anyway & spending an extra $2k on something u dont need is a big deal when your not financing

.....however i love the car & if it were for me i would have waited another 3 months to save & got the 350

echelon

Same exact situation I was in. Amen

Pchaser

iTrader: (1)

speaking of a smoother ride
I know the AWD GS's have a harsh ride (for a lexus) Ive driven every model & gen lexus in the US except the new LS & 3rd Gen RWD GS
i think it is the "roughest" riding lexus ever built
i dont mean its bad but most lexus even the older GS3&4 felt much smoother

does the RWD GS have a harsh ride also?
ive heard it doesnt but never driven a 3rd gen RWD GS

The G Man

The RWD GS350 rides the same as the AWD, pretty rough ride for a Lexus, the GS460 can a bit smoother because it a adjustable suspension.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

lol you guys should drive the is-f

i think the ride of the gs is pretty ok, as long as it's not on runflats. that's what kill everything, no matter what car you are in

The G Man

The IS-F rides worst than the M3, that is bad. Lexus suspensions have gotten much better over the years, but they are still way behind BMW, Acura and Audi. They are also falling behind in the vector AWD technology and the active suspension technology.

IS-SV

Yes I have a loaner ES350 and it rides soft, has so-so handling, overly light numb steering and too much torque steer.

maying856

iTrader: (31)

It all depends on the driver, personally the 300 is adequate for me. Ive test driven the 350 and 430, and they definitely feel a lot more beefier when it comes to power. I had the choice of getting a either the 300 or 430/350, but I chose the 300 instead. To me there was no point in spending the extra money for something that I dont need. So I would rather put that extra money into the car for mods. To make it simple, I like to cruise and look good But if you like frequent spiritual driving then the 430/350 are the way to go