RamshakleZ

Exactly. True, the guy who gets the turbo might still feel his car is "better" (which technically it is), but he definately can't say with authority that the 911 is underpowered in the grand scheme of things. Yes, I have been talking about 'power' but if you read my posts carefully, you'll notice that I have been refering to how the 250 is just slow to respond to things. I'm not talking about 0-60 times.

Both the Carrera and Turbo will get up and move on a dime! Plus, the Turbo costs about $50,000 more than just the standard Carrera. That is an ENTIRELY different league. If you want to run a fair comparison, you'd have to use the varying models in the BMW 3-series.

cmusic

Each one of us 2IS owners come from different backgrounds and experiences. Not all of us had BMW 3 series or simular cars before the 2IS. My previous car (2001 Chevy Monte Carlo SS) had a 200 HP FWD 3.8L V6 and weighed a whopping 4500 Lbs. It also got about 16 MPG city and 25 MPG Hwy. Even though the 2IS is only rated at 204 HP it is about 1000 pounds lighter, making it a lot more quicker and nimble than what I was previously driving. I'm also getting about 22-23 MPG city and 31-33 MPG Hwy. My commute to work is only 5 miles and I don't have a desire to drive agressively anymore. For me the 250 is a huge leap in performance, economy, and luxury over what I had before. For my needs a 350 would just be a waste of 100 Hp and $5,000 or more.

RamshakleZ

Very true - we do all come from different cars and it is a very valid point you make. My previous two cars were both SUVs... a 255hp Chevy Tahoe (1998) and currently a 310 hp VW Touareg (2004).

I mentioned earlier that maybe it is the torque I need to be referring to more than the actual HP. In both of my SUVs, even though they are both slower than the 250, they felt like when I told them to do something, they did it. Especially the Touareg which is just barely slower than the 250 yet weights in at 6,500 lbs... almost twice as much as the 250.

Yes, it is all a matter of perspective. I guess I'm coming from the thought process that if I'm going to go from a car that weighs 1/2 as much, it had better be more nimble, perform better, and do what I ask of it on a dime.

But, like you said, each has their own experiences / needs.

projectdna

iTrader: (56)

i saw it in a slightly different way when i was shopping around for my 2is...

did i need 306 hp? no.
did i need sports pkg? nope.
did i need nav? uh-uh.
did i need ml? not at all.
heck, did i need a 2is? not really.

but is it nice to have during those times when i need it?

hell yah.

lesson learned: better to have and not need, than to need and not have...

Stars

Just putting in my 2cents worth, and I dont know is it mentioned in the previous pages~ I guess its not underpowered, considered that it is like 100kg+ heavier than any competitor, and thats with a space saver~ so its over weight? Not for me, cos I guess that weight is in insulation and thick as steel~ I like quietness~ Plus, the power topic is just acceleration~ its not like the IS250 cant reach 200km/h~


Peace Out, From Australia

is4fsr

Basically have same reasoning between 250 and 350 but I went for the 250 because there is no body style/exterior distinction between the two except for the brakes. It's nice to have the POWER if you need it but I don't. I live in Inland Empire. I don't see myself driving faster than 60mph on 91fwy at 7AM. I used the $$ difference to accessorize my ride.

RXISF

Wow, this easily became the 250's vs the 350's. Better gas mileage isn't always about money. I wanted the IS because of the looks and then picked the 250 because it was more 'green' than the 350. If I can save 100 gallons of gas a year (polluting less) and have the car I want (not an ugly Prius), then it's all good.
Yes, sometimes the 250 doesn't feel very responsive, but I personally only notice it in the higher gears. If it didn't get the better gas mileage, I probably would have ended up looking more towards the Lexus hybrids. We are all entitled to our own reasons for buying the cars we did.

ben_r_

NO! more power means more gas! Theres a reason I drive the smallest engine Lexus makes but with most of the options added. I like the look, like the name, like the ride, love the technology, but I hate DUMPING (or should I say literally burning) money on these stupid gas prices we have now. Its such a waste. Now... that said, had gas been around 2 bucks a gallon instead of creeping toward 4 like it is here I would have gotten the IS350 in a heartbeat!

kattanh3

you guys are lucky!! u had the choice between to different engines

Memout

I'm not an IS250 owner,YET....but I'm currently driving a 2000 3.2 TL (225hp) and I've also driven my friend's TSX.
To be honest I didn't expect the IS250 to be like the TL, but I did expect it to be better than the TSX.

When I went to test drive it, felt like I was driving a TSX, then again to be fair I wasn't pushing the car since the salesman was in the car with me.

Minor disappointment there, but after reading what you guys wrote, it makes sense, you're paying for the luxury and if you want HP then go for the IS350

l1tech

Yeah I think you need to drive it again. I have a friend who has a 2000 3.2TL and have yet to be beat by him(except when we switched cars) 0-60. I also took him 2 out of 3 times at the local 1/4 mile track. The 250 is by no means a fast car but then again neither is the 3.2 TL. I had some yo-yo in a TSX one day racing me from stop light to stop light but I didn't pay attention to him until the last light. When it turned green we took off and it wasn't even close..the 250 accelerates way faster than one of those. Even the folks over at acurazine.com admit that the TSX is at best an 8.5 to 9 sec 0-60 car.

NotoriousB

More torque would be cool, but i still like my car and more power would only get me more tickets!

tjZ06

My $0.02...

My other car (commuter beater excluded) is a '02 Z06 'vette. It's highly modded and makes more HP than a IS250 and a IS350 combined (roughly 525 crank HP, 453 RWHP). Yet I'm very pleased with the way my 250 drives. I guess in a way having the Z0 even the 350 feels slow, so the 250 seems no more inadequate. I still enjoy the 250 on a nice back road. If I want to go seriously fast and raise my pulse, I'll take the 'vette. If I want to move along quickly, but in complete comfort and isolation I'll take my Lexus.

As such, the added MPG of the 250 makes the most sense for me. However, I will note that stock C5 Z06s (which are 405 crank HP) actually record similar MPG numbers when driven soft as a 250. And my highly modded C5 Z06 still gets 350 numbers (on the rare occasion I'm not flogging it). However, weight, aero, gearing (double overdrive 6 speed manual) etc. play a large part in that equation. But the generalization that more HP = less MPG is not necessarily true.

-TJ

SugarRush

I have to admit when i buy the is250 awd it is purely personal finance reason.

I used to have an SUV (Pathfinder, then Murano) and a roadster (miata, then bmw z3). I enjoyed the 2 cars combo: one for touring and hauling and bad weather, and the other one for my personal toy.
Then one day, a (sad) realization come to mind.

I am single, have no kids and all my friends, in our 25-35 years old age, selfishly drive themselves anywhere we go. The roadster is a joy to drive. It is small, fun, nimble, rwd, very classic.
But gas prices were also starting to hover around $3.5 a gallon.
My line of work does not require me to have an suv (I have an office job). The murano is a 'bit' too small to do some serious hauling anyway. Example: I have to pay for delivery to my home when I bought furniture/bed/sofa. I ended up not driving the suv as much. It was just seating there collecting dust, depreciating and under-utilized. Told myself to just sell the suv and have the roadster as my only car.
"But it is not practicall" , my GF told me. True indeed, I admit.

Then, the IS250 AWD came along.
It has the awd with rwd biased.
It has the lexus reliability
It has the nav and tech and all kind of safety features.
Power to weight ratio close to the murano.
It has some luggage space (trunk).
It has 1/2 of the comfort/touring of my SUV and 1/2 the fun of my roadstrer.
I sold my suv and roadster, and got the IS250AWD.
I save $600 alone in car insurance yearly by going from 2 cars to one ;-).
Not to mention depreciation, registration, maintenance, gas...phew~

ldc

I wanted the car to be lighter.

I'm not sure where the bulk of the weight is but it's somewhere...