I recently purchased IS250 and I used to drive a Nissan truck. I was never into speeding and handling but after driving for a bit, I am addicted to handling and performance on top of the luxury the car offers. Now I want IS350...

Never knew this side of myself until I got IS250. Its scary I actually want to feel the acceleration and speed

 

Yes everything is relative. I am a power junkie compare to 98% of the general population who think a high 14s car is crazy fast. I am only average fast on a track day because I can't drive and I am scare of crashing

Try getting off the bike on the freeway at 80+ mph in heavy traffic surrended by 6000 lbs SUVs that have tiny brakes driven by moms talking on the phone while watching a movie/listening to the radio at the same time and trying to calm down her 2 kids in the backseats That's what I call a hardcore thrill seeker, living on the edge

The vehicle I need is a daily communter, not a Sunday fun toy

 

Civic Si is not even in the same realm as a Lexus IS250. That's a downgrade...(Yes that's my opinion). If you said an Accord V6, maybe I'll give you that much... but a Civic is still a Civic.

If a person's decision to buy an IS250 OVER an IS350 is because there's no Manual transmission in the IS350, I'd be surprised. If Manual Transmission was the key main factor in deciding the car, the Lexus IS250 isn't really the best Manual transmission car out there. There are much smoother ones out there.

 

In terms of "luxury", sure. But the Civic doesn't try to be a luxury car. And the 50% lower price (compared to the IS250) reflects that. You like wood- and leather-embellished interiors, soft seats and soft ride. And I like "fun". So I call moving to the Si an upgrade, not a downgrade.

You should read more of the comments on this forum. That is the primary reason why many people buy the 250 over the 350. It's the lack of a manual in the 350.

You should try a BMW 3 Series sometime.

 

Just traded my 06 IS250 base for a 2007 IS250 navi. I lease my cars, and worked a deal that kept my payments the same. So, I basically upgraded to more toys (and another 5k free service).
Very happy with my IS250.

 

I agree.

That's why my combo of a 99 LS400 and 00 SV650 was the perfect garage for me.

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f4...n/03_16_51.jpg

 

love the cafe racer look

 

thats why i don't ride on the street, track only.... too many idiots driving 6000lbs steel weapons...

I've driven the new Z06 and an 800hp supra, honestly my R1 still "felt" faster. "Power junkie" is all relative.

 

No, not many because if it were truly many there would be a manual IS350. The numbers don't support the effort required to produce a manual. And yes, I fully understand BMW have bowed to customer pressure to produce manual transmission cars despite their most excellent SMGs. BMW have a different demographic than Lexus, and Lexus clearly has decided not to pursue those customers. Their numbers are too small for a company knocking at the door of the #1 global automobile producer.

We enthusiasts will continue to complain, our wives will continue to disagree about buying manuals, and the factories will do their best to eliminate manual shift vehicles for a lot of solid reasons. However, Mercedes has gone to fully automated shifting with a clutch in their class 6 trucks. It means 4 x the normal service life for the clutch and synchros with smoother shifts, and a very significantly reduced TCO. True manuals are a rapidly dying breed, and should be.

 

From the mfg's point of view, they should be, yes. I just hope there's enough of the rest of us that don't go down without putting up a good fight.

 

Interesting... my brother gets 20 MPG city in his '00 Vette and 28 Hwy. While the 250 is rated 24/32. I can understand if you went to a hybrid but for an extra 4 MPG??

 

wife didn't like the vette either, that was also a factor

 

Most of the high end Luxury sports cars have all moved towards a non-manual shifting option... more in the line of the tiptronic.

I guess if a person received a choice between a Manual IS250 or a Tiptronics Ferrari Modena, and they absolutely LOVE manual, they would go for the IS250. /endsarcasm.

Let's be serious here.. comparing the Lexus IS250 as a comparable model vs. Civic Si is not even a fair comparison. Go to a Honda dealership and tell me which salesman would tell you the "Other" cars that are comparable based on Price/Quality of the car, and he would mention Lexus IS. If you said Evo or Subaru WRX, then ya, I can understand somewhat... at least the price is there, and the fun factor is there.

 

Even that's not a fair comparison. The Si is pretty slow compared to the Evo and the STi. It's even slow compared to a base WRX. It's pretty much in the same league as a Scion tC with the TRD supercharger for cost and performance.

Speaking of which, I chose not to get the 250 primarily because it cost a LOT more than the manual tC but doesn't produce performance numbers any better, with the only exception being fuel efficiency. I wasn't keen on spending twice the money for a car with only equal performance (and the four doors I needed.)

 

Clarification :

I was trying to compare the price range of the Sti/Evo in the realm of IS's.... not to Civics. :P