yogi350

Yes you can notice .4 tenths, especially when you get down into the low 13's and faster. A 12.8 is A LOT faster than a 13.2 or in the case of these cars maybe a 13.1 compared to a 13.5

dspIS250

i agree. i think the 3 series looks good and i considered buying one before i got the IS, but the base 3 series is just cheap looking. the 16 inch wheels and interior look terrible vs. the equipment on the IS. you get more for your money with the IS imo. the 335 coupe looks like a much inferior version of the 645ci. this is understandable since the 645 costs 70 grand, but still, i wouldn't want a car that looks like a watered down version of another one. IS all the way.

CoasterG

iTrader: (1)

Well considering that many forum members who track their cars get 13.2-13.4 with their non/lightly modified IS350s and the 335i isn't a under 13 car itself.

Your really not going to have a significant difference between a IS350 and a 335i you chip your 335i, retune it - both of which will void your lovely factory warranty and probably lose all that free service you pay for when you buy the car.

Lex5150

I think I noted "everyday driving". Not on the track. In other words are you going to turn out of a Safeway parking lot onto a crowded street with stoplights every quarter mile and notice .4 tenths? Are you going to notice .4 tenths from your driveway to your parking spot at work? Probably not.

Old Oiler

Your IS is adequately fast. If you were looking to blow a 335 off of the road, you would not have purchased a Lexus IS350.

Enjoy your car for what it is, not what it is not. Unless you're a professional, most redlight races are just pissing matches anyway that wear out your car faster.

My co-worker has a fully loaded 07 335 with the retractable hardtop and she is already having wheel problems.

Now, what was it about the cars that you said? You're glad you got the Lexus, correct?

I thought so.

Cheers,
Old Oiler

Pwyll

AMEN Oiler

euro.r

Also, the 335 does not handle well in stock form even with the sports suspension; too soft and floaty. The IS sports suspension seems firmer but during cornering there's too much body roll.

OC 335d

The 335i handles EXCELLENT in stock form, you gotta be kidding me. It was only 4 seconds off the E46 M3 Nurburgring time (8 mile track). It beat many cars in a recent review at VIR as well. I think the Lexus has more body roll.

l1tech

I am not a huge Nascar fan but I give credit where it is due, if there were no driver skill or car challenge then why is it that all the cars aren't bunched together like sardines in a can race after race. We all may think that making left turns all day long on banked tracks is easy but try doing it at 150+ mph with 35 other cars, and lets not forget about Watkins Glen or Sears Point where the men are seperated from the boys...personally I prefer F1

pkvir

I went over a friends house last night and they had a brand new 335 loaner (auto) sitting in the driveway. Needless to say, I asked for the Keys and had at it. My seat of the pants told me the 335 was a little faster, and sounded better, but not worlds apart. With the traction control off, I had no problem laying rubber (no power braking). It is a great car and alot of fun, but I would not trade my IS for it. It is a pure sports car, and I like the luxury/ sport of the Lexus better.

ba-b4

^the bmw 335 a PURE sports car? nope think RX7 and S2000.. those are closer to pure sports cars.

llamaboiz

I watch F1/rolex/cart/irl, not NASCAR but i dont look down on those guys, they rock, takes jumbo coconut ***** to do what they do... just the organization did away with homologation and v-8/rwd cars dissapeared cept for a few

pkvir

Maybe true, I guess I should have said the 335 was more pure sports car then the 350. I'll still take the Lexus.

llamaboiz

is350 is no joke thou when you put your foot down it will move very quickly. When i roll i know that you gotta have something special if you wanna hang with me. Your a shark not a fish.

Old Oiler

I had a 93 twin turbo RX7. Pure sports car? Not in my opinion. Was it fast, yes, but not any faster than our stock IS350. I think the 0-60 was 5.5 maybe 4.9 on a good day.

Those cars that Mazda manufactured as the 3rd generation were the biggest piles of crap I've ever seen. Why do you think you hardly ever see one on the road? The only ones I see are ones that people have taken and rebuilt them or modified them some way for track racers. They were maintenance nightmares and VERY expensive to work on and certainly not commensurate with the price that Mazda was charging for it. It had an extended warranty on it. This is no joke, the repairs done under warranty by Mazda were over 20K. Dumped this car with 17K miles on it!

Were they good looking cars, yes in my opinion, but no more sports car than say a Vette or BMW in my opinion.

Please, lets not start a debate on 3rd generation RX7's now. The above are simply my opinions and from people I knew that had them also.

Cheers,

Old Oiler