Nismo

The IS F is nowhere close to the CTS V, C63 AMG, or M3.

Neither the IS 350 F Sport nor the GS 350 F Sport come close to the CTS V Sport; not sure about those others.

Christobol

Nope, and Lexus didn't try to make a car to compete with those. If they had the cars would cost 30 and 20k more, and basically be on their competitors.

natnut

The IS-F has similar track times to the previous generation M3.

sarmyth

Did you have traction control on or off on the track? I'm curious to know if the limited slip emulation still functions with the traction control system disabled.

lazerlazer

Since we are on the traction control issue, when I hold press the traction control button it says on the console "Trac Off" when i hold the button down for 5 seconds then a light with a picture of a car laying down some rubber shows up on the console. What is the difference of the two, what is it disabling on each step?

redspencer

iTrader: (1)

I just wanted to clarify that the IS F-Sport also does not have a mechanical LSD. It utilizes an eLSD like the GS350 F-Sport (which is okay for the streets but less than desirable for the track). Besides the LFA, IS-F, and LS F-Sport, no other current Lexus US model has a mechanical LSD. The upcoming RC350 F-Sport and RC-F will also have mechanical LSDs.

jamodeo

iTrader: (1)

TRAC OFF is just traction control, you can break the tires loose pretty much going straight, when it has the light that you are talking about illuminated it means that VSC is also disabled, which is what prevents you from losing stability like your back end from sliding out (if you wanted to go drifting in your car, you would need both off) if you wanted to do a burnout, you would only need the first step turned off. VSC stands for vehicle stability control. Also, if you have PCS, turning it completely off disables Pre-Crash Brakes.

-Joe

Nismo

At the track, I have so far always kept the traction & stability control system turned on (car isn't paid off yet!). In the winter it was ok, but I won't do it again in the summer. I didn't catch it in time--shame on me for not checking the brake condition after every session--so it not only destroyed the pads, but also chewed up the rotors and destroyed the rubber piston sealing boots. Had I caught it sooner, it would have only meant a pad change.

At autocross, I turn off the stability control system and the car spins the inside tire coming out of corners fairly easily. So I'd say with the stability system off, it does disable the 'LSD effect' (i.e. doesn't apply the brakes to the inside rear wheel when powering out of a corner).

I like the GS a lot, but it is still just a sporty street car, as opposed to a real track-capable car like the Cadillac. When the RC F debuts, hopefully we'll find out Lexus made it more like the CTS than the GS.

sarmyth

Wow! I would have thought our cars would have sensors to detect brake pad wear, but I guess not... that's a good thing to watch out for.

Thanks for confirming the stability control eLSD link ... I suspected as much but have never been in a sustained max-effort situation to truly confirm in this car.

sarmyth

Also if you just push the button briefly instead of holding it down, traction control will re-engage above 20 or 25 mph... I think the purpose of that feature was to get the car moving through sand or snow by letting the tires freely spin.

To actually disable the system and have some fun you'll need to press and hold for the 10 for 15 seconds to fully disable the system.