EZZ

The IS350 is probably the most reliable of the models but has the highest cost due to tires and brakes being replaced frequently. Of course this can be remedied by using ceramic pads like Akebono and using all seasons with longer tread life vs summer tires like MPSS or PS4.

dizlex

The paddles are of limited use. They are out of reach, mid-corner. When I really want manual control, I always use the floor shifter.

PlPete

Thanks everyone for the feedback and advice so far. Doing more research and some soul searching I think I'll be happiest with the RWD set up. I may end up investing in some winter tires at some point for the little bit of winter that I typically deal with. We will see.

I found what seems like a decent car and will go to check it out this Saturday. Looks clean, has just about all options that I wanted - 2014 350 F-Sport with red interior. 48,200mi on the clock. Even though black is not my favorite color I can live with that. The price has been dropping on it slowly and it's down to $23,400 now. If I could negotiate it down to $22,500 including paperwork fee I would be content. Is that realistic?

Looking at the Carfax things look fine except for one thing. 07/30/2015 the car was exported to Turkey for about a year and half. Next record for service is on 04/03/2017 and back in the US. I'll try to see if the dealer knows anything but what does everyone think of this? Red flag? Reason for additional negotiation? I did a good amount of research on the dealership as well. It's a smaller family owned business and they have nothing but solid 5 star reviews. Either all customers get fed some cool-aid as they leave or they are genuinely an honest dealership. I realize how that sounds and how rare that is! Either way, I'm going in to take a look for now and do not intend to make any decisions just yet but will certainly update with my experience.

HOMER350

I think it sounds like a good deal, good mileage for that price. Probably realize that as you've been shopping.
And black on red interior sounds really nice. Just more upkeep for that car to look nice (mine looks dirty in about 36-48 hours after wash)

PlPete

This Saturday I had a chance to finally see and drive the car. The dealer experience was very low pressure and great overall. I was on the road in about 15 minutes and they even abided with my request to raise the car on a lift to see the underbody. Overall the car is great shape although rims had some minor rash. Said it will be fixed before a sale happens. I still want to see at least another car or two before I settle as they say, you shouldn't buy the first thing you see. These cars are quite common so it's only a matter of time before a new option pops up and I'm not in a rush. If the car is still there in 2 weeks I may pull the trigger. RWD cars don't typically fly off the lot during winter where it snows. But if it's meant to be it will still be there. One thing I noticed is that tires are mismatched for front and rear. Front has better Bridgestones where the rear has cheap Summitomo tires. Typically rears would wear more given RWD but I've read about the front inner wear issues so who knows. Price is quite competitive so there isn't too much to negotiate but that won't stop me from trying, within reason of course. Don't plan to lowball as it's disrespectful. One thing I forgot to check if the spare tire is there and if any service records are available since Carfax is pretty modest. Thanks for all the tips thus far and I'll keep this updated as I make my decision.

AtomicAWD

We got our first snowfall yesterday, and have to say that my IS was awesome! Drove conservatively, but was doing everything from stopping on hills to taking sharp turns and the tach didn't spin up nor back end go sliding around. Beautiful -- first time with AWD and although we don't typically get much snow here (at least compared to the east coast) it sure was nice to have. As for drier weather, I've yet to really push it but she hooks up right smartly off the line from whatever I've asked.

Htony

AWD, RWD has different driving dynamics. If one is good driver, RWD with studded winter tires is more than enough. Many Mustangs running around in the winter here in Alberta. Today it is minus 25C with roads as slick
as a sheet of glass. I drive 4 Matic SUV with good set of winter tires. Solid as rock on the road. B4 I had Audi SQ5 which I had a blast with it's supercharged 3.0 giving little over 300 horses, My SUV has more that 400 Hp stock.
Even AWD has ones with front wheel biased or rear wheel balanced, different again between two.Tried new Acura RDX with SH-AWD?

arentz07

Do you know which Bridgestones? The OEM Bridgestones (all-seasons) are frankly not great at all. Decently quiet but certainly lacking in performance and treadwear.

Sounds like a pretty good dealer experience to me. Curb rash isn't terribly expensive to fix - the people my dealer uses are between $100 and $150 USD per wheel. I have a Tire and Wheel Road Hazard package, so I haven't had to actually pay for fixing curb rash on mine (aside from the $900 I spent on the package itself, lol). Or you could just live with the curb rash. 99% of people will never notice.

Best of luck.

AtomicAWD

My F-sport rims were curbed most of the way around by the previous owner. For now I used the 1E3 Phantom Grey Pearl on them and they look a lot better. Because they're dark the curbing shows up a lot more than on silver or aluminum-coloured rims.

PlPete

Now that I think about it they were actually BFGoodrich G-Force tires hah. Looks like the GForce Comp 2 A/S model specifically. Have not had experience with them before but they looked to have 85%+ thread left and even wear.

The dealer said they have a guy that regularly comes in to fix wheels as needed so I won't fight it Not sure how regular this is as the cur has been on the lot for 3 months now...unless someone test driving curbed them up, although I doubt it.

arentz07

I have those same tires on my car. I like them a lot. Highway noise is a bit higher but man, do they grip a lot better than the OE tires! They are also pretty decent in snow and ice. Did some snowy parking lot drifting this weekend actually to test them out. The car handled notably different with these tires in the snow. Seemed a bit more reluctant to break traction - obviously, that's a good thing.

swaangin

Apparently 8 speed transmission shifts faster

Pittsy

RR has recently said that the AWD driveline is tougher than the RWD and would suit supercharged needs better.

dizlex

Studded? Not legal, in most of the US. Not needed, either. Unless there are steep hills to deal with, or snow so deep that the front air-dam is plowing, RWD is fine with any good Winter tire. There are some pretty serious "studless" tires available.