chiawei

Took the wife out to alameda point to drive the IS350. Have to say that this car is a huge dissapointment. Lexus took a gigantic step backward in driving dynamic with the IS. My 2001 IS was fun to drive, easy tossable, and give driver a real sense of confident in pushing the car. This is simply not the case anymore with IS350.

My wife wanted to checked out the IS350 because she is still not sold on the 330i and need to test drive the IS350. So in order for her to feel the difference between the two. She and i went with 330i 1st. The 330i was fun to drive. Excellent steering response. Good power. The chassis is so willing to be tossed around. This car is simply fun to drive. My wife was extremely impressed by the driving dynamic of 330i. The car simply gives driver so much confidence on the course that lexus setup. The steering is laser like precisel with great steering response. As speed builds up the steering tightens. Just what you expect from a sports sedan. The brake is excellent with great feedback.

Then come the IS350. The interior is nice and warm. Material is good but not great. The car I drove has 785 miles on it, unlike other lexus this one has a rattle from the passenger door (probably an isolate case). However, there is a huge problem i have with IS350's interior. The steering wheel is way too thin and offers very poor grip. For what suppose to be a performance car in the lineup, the thin steering wheel simply does not cut it.

Now the driving impression. I really don't know where to begin. This car is so confused on its purpose. Let's start with the good. The engine and transmission on the IS350 is excellent. There is no doubt about it. The power comes on quickly and ferociously. In a good driving dynamic car, this is a good thing. But for IS350 this is an negative. The problem with IS350 is that the driving dynamic is simply horrible. The steering is way over boosted and never tightens as the speed builds up. It is simply way too light thus making the steering response totally numb. As a driver you simply have no clue where you are heading. There is way too much body roll, the suspension is way too soft. So when the power comes, the driver simply has no clue where the car is going. The 330i feels so much confident and poised through the turns, and apply the power, the driver can confidently power out of curve. With IS350, the power come on quickly, but with lousy steering and body roll. The driver simply have no clue where the car is going. You are just fumbling through out the turn. This car is just awful to drive. My wife after test driving the IS350 was totally turned off by it. According to her, the IS350 is simply awful to drive. She has no clue where the car is going. The steering is way too soft. She feels like she is losing control through out the course. The car just floats way too much. Her exact comment was that she has no clue why lexus would even bring the 330i sport in the same test. The IS350 was a totally embarassment.

So quick scorecard.

Engine- A+. The 3.5 V6 is powerful, quiet and smooth. Excellent engine.
Transmission- A. Again smooth and quick reaction.
Chassis/suspension- F. Suspension is way too soft for a sport sedan. The chassis is tuned way too much toward comfort. Body roll is abundant through out the turn. This car simply does not like to be tossed around.
Steering response- F. Too much boost through the speed range. The steering never tightens when speeds builds up. At higher speed turns, the steering wheel is so light to the touch it is down right scary. The steering response is so vague. As a driver, you simply have no clue which way your tires is turned and how much. This is not what a performance sport sedan should be.
Brake- A. The brake's stopping power is good.
Brake response- D. Lexus has copied mercedes SBC unlinear response verbatim. The brake response is not linear and way too agressive. 330i's brake response is far more linear and easier to modulate.

Overall vehicle dynamic- F. This car is all engine. The powertrain simply overshadows the chassis, the suspension, and steering. Through out the test drive. I felt that the rest of the car simply is overmatched by excellent power train. It seems like lexus spend all of the resource on desiging an excellent engine and transmission and has nothing else for the car.

Interior packaing- A. The dash is clean and legible. The navigation screen is good. All the buttons are exactly where you expect it to be. Good material inside as well. The leather and wood are decent as well. For $45k this should be expected.

Space- D. The room up front is not bad, but not great either. As a driver i felt a little tight. The windshield it too close to the driver and give a sense of tightness. The 330i on the other hand feels much more open up front. The back on the IS350 is simply not acceptable. It is simply too small for it to be useful.

Oveall interior- B. This is simply due to the lousy backseat .

Overall- D-.

This is a huge dissapointment from lexus. My old 2001 IS300 was fun to drive. Even though it is little under power. The car is so tossable around the corner. The old IS300 gives driver more confidence in driving it hard. It was just fun to drive. Even though the old IS300's dash is little too busy and has not useable backseat. The vehicle dynamic made up for all those short coming.

Fast foward to 2005. The power is now there. The engine is great. But what happened to the vehcile dynamic? Lousy steering response. Too soft tuning of chassis and suspension. This car is no longer fun to drive. The car no longer gives driver the confidence to push it hard. This is no longer a fun car.

I really don't understand what lexus is aiming to achieve with the IS. IS is suppose to be a small RWD sedan with excellent handling and performance. For straightline performance, IS did suceed on that front. But handling is simply not there. If lexus is going to take that away, why bother with the IS. Put the 3.5V6 in the ES and call it a day. The ES is roomier and probably will do just as bad as IS did in turns. For $45k loaded for an IS350, the ES is a much better buy with more usable space at $38k.

To be honest. I really can't think of a car that has this bad driving dynamic in this class. This is just a horrible car with great power. Lexus killed the IS. This car is no longer fun to drive. Yes, lexus did improve the cheap IS300 interior by a ton. The engine got improved by light year. But there is more to a car other than a good interior and powertrain. If lexus is serious in taking a shot a 3 series they need to do a better job. The new IS is simply a small car with no useable rear and good at only straight line performance. I am real dissappointed. They took a little fun car and killed it. Had lexus kept the IS300 driving dynamic and simply stuffed this great 3.5 V6 in it. That car would be a winner. As it stands, this car really blows.

Badman Forever

I have to admit that the new is350 stock suspension is a little softer and floaty compared to the is300. but guess what, lexus is trying to attract a larger market which will consist of older buyers who like a softer feel. i have yet to test drive a sport tuned is350, but i'm sure it will be alittle tighter and stiffer than the stock suspension. the lexus quality and reliability surpasses bmw, and that's a fact. if you need the track style suspension, you can easily spend a grand or so on aftermarket coilovers and sway bars whenever it comes out. it'll probably still be cheaper than the bmw.

rdrunner

yes the suspension is not as good.. as is steering. But the IS350 when the throttle is on full is like a rocket. I had a good time in it. I still think I would rather have the 350 vs the 330 just due to reliability. Just up to your personal preference I guess.

flipside909

I agree the 330i is still going to be the handling king. But a little aftermarket suspension work on the IS350, that can be a different story.

pocky

iTrader: (12)

I can agree with you on this one. As I went to Taste of Lexus today.

I felt somewhat unsafe to push the IS350 through the turns because of the suspension and power delivery. I was a bit dissapointed, as this is the car I wanted. I then drove the 330i, having driven this car many times, I went through the track like a king. I decided to try the IS350 a second time around, this time I commented to a track official how I didn't like the body roll, then he asked me if I wanted to hop into a Sport Packaged 350, of course I happily obliged. After driving that, I can tell you for sure it was a improvement already. Still not on par with the 330i. But I felt more safe and pushed the car to my limits. I left the event pleased.

With some nice aftermarket upgrades, I think I will be happy and content with this car. Now, seeing Glacier Frost Mica in person....

4CYLNDR

well i certainly appreciate the candid report.

i will have to test drive the car myself, but it helps to have a review from someone who seems to understand at least to some degree the driving dynamics of a well-made vehicle. Might go with another car if i end up agreeing with you during my test drive.

Gian

After reading this review, I think I'm totally convinced the IS is the perfect car for me. He gives it minus points for comfort-oriented supsension, I suggest otherwise.

Now, I know I'm not in for a harsh ride. Phew.

05RollaXRS

If you want to test the handling limits, only drive it with the sport suspension.

4CYLNDR

Be careful not to assume that a car must necessarily have a less-harsh ride simply because it doesn't handle as well. Conversely, cars that have a harsher ride do not necessarily perform better.

A while ago, BMW had an event where the participants got to drive around in a 745i, an S500, and an LS430, and the LS430 was by far the worst around the track, exhibiting the most body roll and the slowest steering response. The 7-series, on the other hand, handled almost as well as a sports car with a much quicker and smoother steering response, and yet rode just as comfortably as the Lexus.

I know this is a Lexus forum, so the reponse amongst the vast majority of its members are going to be by and large a selection artifact reflecting the opinions of those already "in love" with the Lexus, but objectively speaking, cars that handle better / exhibit less body roll (sans the oversteer / understeer issues) are safer on the road and less likely to be unpredictable during emergency situations. All else being equal (comfort-wise), I'll take the car that handles better.

I'll be sure to post up when I go out for my test drives.

4CYLNDR

He didn't say he was trying to test the handling limits. He was just comparing the 350 with the BMW. If the 330 wasn't a "sport suspension" packaged car, then I think the comparison is still pretty valid.

AM1

iTrader: (6)

I was at the event today as well and i drove the 330i first then the IS350. i have to say that the bmw stills handles better though nbot by much. the IS350 does have more power and i love the power band..to say that the you don't know where the IS350's going is just dumb. The course really was not that long to begin with and the little time i spent behind the wheel the differences were almost non exsistant. i feel that if i had a real autocross course and more time then things would be different......Until then i still think once the price of the IS350 gets lower it will be the car to get in this class. And for the record i still couldnt figure out how to get the radio in the 330i turned on, stupid iDrive.

D&G

Nice review and I do feel that the steering was way too light!!! With more than 300hp you would like to feel the road as you are driving fast. I also thought the suspension was too floaty too but that can be fixed by spending $1500 for an aft mkt coilovers such as TEIN's. Other than that the IS350 is a pretty good car.

Gian

I don't understand large, overpowered cars having praised handling capabilities when they're too big to begin with. The bigger sedans are obviously meant to cater the passengers and driver altogether; so naturally I'm inclined to believe the LS shines in this area alone (with regards to quietude and smoothness, among others). You'd probably beg to differ, but pushing those cars to their limits is completely assinine to me (especially when you're attempting to dodge traffic ).

I don't even understand the enjoyment one can reap by "tossing" a car around. I might seem a little **** for my age, but I love the ease of driving Toyota automobilies as opposed to the strenuous steering of a go-kart a la BMW. Yeah, there's a certain connection one might feel with the road, but putting strain on my arms for long periods of time isn't my idea of "fun" or "the ultimate driving experience," if you will.

BMWs aren't bumpy, intolerable vehicles, per se. The 3-series, in particular, just doesn't offer the level of refinement and luxury (which I value more than handling, needless to say) the IS has, or any Lexus for that matter. Handling goes to the 3 series as performance goes to the IS. But throw in qualitiy, reliability and comfort, I would never even think of BMW.

In fact, the only emergency situation I can think of is adding further back pain from nasty BMW rides. Definitely comfort over handling, for me.

Gian

Valid? More like: overstated.

4CYLNDR

1. the bigger the sedan, the MORE important it is to have it handle well, since in those cars you have at least 2 tons being tossed around. Even if you could care less about driving cars the way they were meant to be driven, it is still a safety issue and to the extent that safety matters, like i said before, all else being equal, i'd take the car that handles better.

2. Unless you're benching well under 95lbs, i wouldn't call the BMW's steering "strenuous" by any means, AND, in situations where one loses control of the car, having a delayed, non-responsive steering mechanism further execerabates the situation and lessens the likelihood of a competent driver fixing the problem.

3. the 7-series and the S-class are just as smooth as the LS as far as comfort, and differ primarily on the quality of handling. Unless price is a huge issue, or subjective conclusions about which company's "leather interior" is more luxurious, one would think that choosing a car with better handling characteristics, for both performance and safety reasons, is the only rational outcome.

4. this debate, unfortunately, will never end. i've been on enough car forums to realize that cognitive dissonance is particularly prevalent amongst car people. I know that a car is a huge investment, and that one has a large stake in defending his choice after the fact, and in convincing oneself that whatever they bought was the best choice. But my situation is a bit different: im still trying to figure out what i want for my next car, and have no stake in defending the Lexus.

5. ANY reliability issue that you think BMW might have based on whatever data you based it on, i would think, would be offset by the fact that maintenance is completely free on them right now. And "back pain from nasty BMW rides"? ?? I've never heard that one before.