AtomicAWD

Fold the entire company, or sell it cheap to Chrysler and just have a Japanese version of the Hellcat.

SSworks

well maybe i should have been clearer the entire IS line up.

Flash5

JNP1227

iTrader: (1)

I think 350hp with forced induction would be a HUGE improvement for the IS line up . Full bolt on would make 400HP easy.

E46CT

It will be interesting to see if Lexus pairs the BMW B58 with the ZF 8 speed auto or their own 10-speed Aisin. The B58 would definitely put some ***** into the 4IS. It would give it an awesome performance characteristic being a straight six. Also BMW is phasing that engine out soon presumably as they always revamp their engines every few years so Lexus may be getting a deep discount as production costs are more efficient. So this may be a win/win for BMW and Lexus all the way around. And people probably don't cross shop a Lexus vs. BMW as one would a Mercedes vs. BMW so I don't think BMW would be terribly worried at giving their engine away eating at their 3-Series. Especially if BMW ends up putting an even BETTER redesigned engine in the 3 Series.

So I could see this playing out very well for everyone. And again the B58 is a refined mature reliable design. So it's possible Lexus wants something mature and developed in such a high volume performance oriented car vs. their own TT v6 which is kind of new to be throwing around en masse. Another reason this news could be true.

SSworks

Even that is acceptable but to have nothing in the IS line that is at or above 400 will be the final death nail.

Burrcold

The final nail for the entire IS line? No it won't. It may be to a bunch of enthusiasts (who represent like 1% of the buying market). Nobody else will care if the IS has a model that is ~ 400hp...nobody. Hell it's even a hard stretch to get the vast majority of people to opt up for the IS350 now.

HOMER350

Those were my thoughts as well.
And partly because as you mentioned, +95% of the IS's I see on the road are not 350s, and there are a lot in my area.

​​​​​​

arentz07

Not to overgeneralize, but yeah, most ISs I see are 300 AWD and 250. I've only seen a couple of 350s in my area, and one of them was not an F Sport. The bulk of the buying market remains. I think the folks that do buy them still see the value in it. If they didn't, they could just as easily buy the larger and more comfortable ES for the same money.

Flash5

E46CT

If anything I'd put the ZF 8 Speed (cool read) on par with any Lexus transmission in terms of reliability, if not beyond. ZF is an old classic German company. They also supply legendary suspension and steering components as well. They basically make it all. If you hear of any BMWs with transmission problems in the past, those are usually GM-supplied 4L30E and 5L30E units which didn't have the best track record. Not uncommon for an old ZF to go well beyond 300k without hiccup.

Here's a list of the current customers of the legendary ZF 8 speed.

• Alfa Romeo
• Alpina
• Aston Martin
• Audi
• Bentley
• BMW
• Chrysler
• Dodge
• Haval
• Iveco
• Jaguar
• Jeep
• Lamborghini
• Lancia
• Land Rover
• Maserati
• Ram Trucks
• Rolls-Royce
• Toyota
• Volkswagen

Aisin is good too. Believe it or not, some of the BMW FWD models use an Aisin 8 speed if I recall correctly. Everyone is mixing and matching these days. There's no fanboyism there. Only dollars.

EZZ

I'd rather have the ZF 8 speed. Its been proven reliable in high horsepower applications such as the RS4 and the shift speeds are probably the best in the industry for a torque converter unit. Its simply the best conventional automatic sold.

E46CT

Yep! The article says the ZF 8 can handle 770 lbs of torque. Does duty in Rolls Royce and Ram Trucks as well as sports cars. So definitely a masterpiece of engineering!

Noeh

iTrader: (3)

The BMW ZF 8 is one of best out there. Smooth, responsive, and always on the right gear.

Flash5