jngjng

Hi everyone,

Anyone out there with an IS250 with a manual transmission? How do you like it? Anyone compare it with the 3 series or the new C-Class?

Recluse

There is simply no comparison. The BMW manual is MUCH better. And while I can't speak to the current C-Class, the manual on the previous generation's C-Class was MUCH better as well.

The manual in the IS is noisy and feels distinctly low-rent compared to the rest of the car. You would do well to read this thread:

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=253475

Also, feel free to search under my user name for comments about the issues I had when I owned mine.

kickin8

iTrader: (1)

I would recommend you test drive it before you buy.....

sahara78

Its been about 6 weeks since I got my MT 250. Smooth shift to first and first to second gear is hard to achieve, but generally it's very fun to drive. 4th gear is my favorite

sailing217

DITTO. The clutch is crap. That said, I still would get a MT 250 over a Auto 250. But I think if I did it over, I'd buck up and get the 350.

I get alot more feel with a manual tranny, but if I close my eyes, I feel like I'm driving my old Celica.

sktn77a

iTrader: (2)

Agree with Recluse - the BMW manuals are very good. I drove both the manual and automatic IS250 and the manual was simply awful - clunky shifter, grabby clutch, impossible to drive smoothly (I've driven manuals all my life so it wasn't me). I ended up getting the automatic, although the manual position and the paddle shifters are a joke - they don't shift gears, as you would think, they simply change the range of available gears for the automatic to shift through!

I've driven BMWs all my life but I wouldn't buy any of the current crop - they're all butt ugly! But I do miss my 2001 530i manual, which my daughter commandeered when her car died!

jngjng

thanks for all the info everyone. I would've liked to test drive an IS with a manual tranny, but the dealer doesn't keep them in stock (they only get one or two a month, and they are already pre-ordered for immediate deliveries). I had an 01 325 manual and it was quite fun to drive. But if the current IS isn't quite the same, then maybe I will just wait and see if Lexus improves their manuals with a newer IS model.

06-IS250

yea..your def gonna wanna wait and at least test drive it. Its...different. I still prefer mine to a auto, but sometimes its just frustrating when you just cant get a smooth shift to save your life. and its not me...I drove sooooooo smoothly with my friends old prelude..and its like a 92.

love the car...hate the transmission.

rroy

iTrader: (1)

Comments like "It's not me because I have driven a manual smoothy before" are just plain retarded, because it IS you... Sure, you may have gotten use to a clutch feel of another vehicle, albeit better then the IS250's clutch as well; but thats no excuse for not shifting a car smoothly. Before my IS250 manual I drove a 1988 Ford Ranger 5spd which had a clutch that took some getting use to before I could naturally shift the car smoothly; but I got use to it. To put it in simple terms, your brain is having trouble learning the different feel of the IS250's manual transmission in order to shift smoothly all the time. The clutch engagement point is not changing positions at each intersection...

Just test drive the car before you make a decision... I buck'ed mine many times on the test drive; in fact, the first thing I said to the salesman was "wow, this is different". I was a bit embarrassed. However, after a few months of driving, I had it down; and now I enjoy it.

iialcii

iTrader: (3)

despite the complaints about the notchy gear box and marble jar sounds, its very fun to drive, but i do agree its not the best mt out there. but however its very fun to drive just wish it had a lil more ump to it. the clutch did take a couple months to get use to

06-IS250

Your logic is false.

This car is my first manual car ever. I learned manual on it. After a year, it is still sometimes annoying cause its hard to do smooth shifts.

So its me? Then how come when i drove my friends 92 prelude, my friends integra, friends BMW 3 series (after having learned manual on MY CAR)...I was PERFECTLY smooth the very first time, in EACH car?

I am well aware of my motor learning skills, and its above learning how to clutch a damn manual car. Its not me. Im smooth 95 % of the time, but from time to time, its just annoying going from 1st to second.

I am not saying I know how to shift perfectly, but it does not take much to learn how to do it smoothly, and I have, yet its still frustrating from time to time on the IS.

I am practicing rev matching and heel/toe right now...hehe, its making it a lot more fun.

so sssssh

MCL1

i have a 6sp mt.

gears 1 and 2, less rough than before, but still a little jumpy.

I looked at the 3 series and decided on the is. I don't drive fast, don't need a race car. I wanted luxury over the "driving experience"

therefore, I'm happy. If i was a german on the autobahn, i'd go 3 series.

since im in socal, it doesnt matter. having a fast car just means you can go 0-30mph faster than the next guy.