I'll give you a counter offer. Since my payoff is 48k, I'll give you 1k to steal it from my.

 

you paid 48 otd?? what did your IS come with???

 

Well than all you have to do is get some suspension work done, then all that would
be left to hate is the lack of "the bmw steering feel"... Any car you get, your not
going to like every single thing about it.. If that's all you have left to hate on it,
Then your doing okay.. Take the evo for instince, I'm sure you cant stand the interior,
exterior and ride comfort, along with the noisyness of it...

 

maybe you're comparing the handling of the s2k to the IS? If you liked the mazda6, they did just come out with the mazdaspeed6, but then again you already have an AWD turbo car.

 

Gaijin, why don't you wait another year or so for the new G35 to come out and then trade it up. It'll have over 300hp, and the infiniti's tend to have more of that precise steering feedback that BMW's do. Or.... how about waiting another year for the BMW 335 (turbo I-6) to come out and get that. It'll likely get to 60 around 5.0 seconds or so if not a little under. The interior will be more luxurious than your EVO (if thats something you are looking for) and will have the driving dynamics you seem to want in a car. But hey, look at the brightside, you still have your EVO to drive around in the meantime. Good luck!

EDIT: for anyone who hasn't driven an Evo or STI, i highly recommend test driving one. Then you'll be able to understand why people out there say the IS (or most other cars) have crappy handling compared to them. If a person's priority is not luxury and ride quality, those two cars are the best value hands down for a real drivers car.

EDIT #2: Come on guys, don't flame him. We have more class than that. He's not some troll who's coming on the board dissin the IS for no reason, he OWNS one and shelled out $48,000 of his hard-earned money for it. He has every right to feel the way he does. His priorities in a car may be different than those of most people on this board, but that doesn't mean he's wrong to have those priorities.

 

i think the IS350 is pretty fcukin sweeeet.....

 

I think most people here have been respectful and haven't been flaming him. I don't know what he's talking about "flaming"

 

Yeh even if you sell the car now there is not much other choice at this moment, i was thinking about waiting until bimmer coupe and new g35 came out, but couldn't wait 1 year. If you have time just wait until you get more choice of new cars. So many new models coming out in 1 to 2 years.

But I have to disagree, how can you say the M5 is just a proper sedan, its a $80k near--super car. You can't compare a $40k near-luxury sports sedan with those. And like others said IS does handle okay for sports sedan (Audi A4, Bimmer 3 series, Infiniti G35, Acura TL), you can't compare it to a all wheel-drive 3300 lb rally car.

I was seriously considering the Evo IX or MR but the interior was way too ugly.

 

If the weight of the car is an issue for you, you probably don't want to be in the entry luxury sport sedan segment. The difference in weight among this car, the 330i, and the G35 (it's two closest competitors) is less than 100 lbs. Take one passenger with you and that is more or less the difference. You are probably just spoiled by your S2k

 

I was spoiled by the handling of my S2K and the Evo, but I feel like my Mazda 6 had better driving dynamics than the Lex. I apologize for the flame comment as you guys are much more mature than people on the other forums I belong to.

I financed 48k because I took a bath on my S2k. I bought it for $20,600 plus fees and put 2k down in June. After 5 payments, my payoff was $19, 500 and I only got $17,500 on trade for an '02 with 27,000 miles. There was a $2,000 mile add to the book value because of the low miles, but when you trade a car it doesn't factor, only when you buy it. I think I paid like $42,500 for my IS with Luxory and nav plus ttl plus payoff equals $48k. Now if I figure my IS is worth what, like $38k maybe, then I am $10k flipped so I can't exactly just go trade it for a different car.

The car I originally was thinking about was like a '91 M5. I have always wanted one and I love the way those drive. I'm not a fan of most newer cars except the Evos because I think they capture the pure driving sensation that the older E30 M3s and those M5s possessed. I was looking for a car that would have a similar feel to that older M5 while still have enough luxory and comfort for daily driving.

 

I agree - trying going onto an STI board and telling 'em that is one fugly **** and you'll get ripped a new one...
Reminds me of this story - I was at an aftermarket wheels shop and this guy comes in with a 360 Modena Stradale - and he complained about the interior noice levels - I was like wtf - complain abt a Stradale that was track ready - the sound of that engine would be music to my ears!
Oh well, to each his own....

 

Compared to the all-or-none, beast-like performance of turobo-charged cars like Evo and WRX, the IS can certainly feel too civilized, and even bland. You don't expect every car to handle like a Corvette, as you don't expect them to all ride like an LS, either. Each car strikes its own balance of performance, handling and luxury. The IS was never intended as a all-out handling car like an M3--it's still a luxury car with some sporty flair/trait; as that it exels in many ways. Although I am impressed by the performance numbers of Evo, WRX, and S2000 on paper, I would not be able to live with one on a daily basis.

 

The interior on the Evo VIII is ugly, but it is a purpose built car and you can definately tell that the interior is more of an afterthought. The interior in the IX is much improved, but still won't match that on pretty much any other car in the same price range.

I don't really care about interior design as much as driving feel. The M3 would have probably been the best choice for me, but I have friends that have already had them, so I wanted something new.

I am not comparing the handling of the IS to the Evo, just to cars like the '91 M5 whose driving dynamics I was hoping would be paralleled in this car. It seemed like a pretty fair request, but I think that Lexus has missed the sports sedan mark a little and just made another sedan with a kick *** engine.

Audi A4, Bimmer 3 series, Infiniti G35, Acura TL

Of all those that you mentioned, there is a reason the 3 series always wins when mags do comparos. It is the only true sports sedan on that list. I don't think that the other car makers quite get that it is about the total balance between all the aspects of performance. I don't want a 3 series because they are too common. I was hoping for something a little more unique and I liked being one of the first people in my area to have the new IS.

If Pugeot or Renault make it over here with some of there sport sedan offerings, that might be a little more up my ally. I was also considering an S60R so maybe some of you can see where I am going with this.

 

Might as well wait and see if the car "grows" on you. If you still don't like the IS after a month or so, get rid of it and find something you like...life is too short

I hope you can find a buyer via a private sale, shouldn't be too hard since the demand for the IS350 is still high. Would hate to see you lose money by trading the car to a dealer. Good luck!

 

I know how you feel. It's hard to transition to any other car when you've driven an evo

If you want the luxury and "clout" of a luxury car but want decent driving dynamics as well (beyond mere straight line acceleration) . . . i'd recommend the BMW 3-series.