Albo

First time over here on the IS side of the forums. Sorry if this has been talked about in a prior thread, but my gf is suddenly in love with the 3IS (because it is a beautiful car). Regardless of how I feel about it, I am going to try to find her the perfect one. Looking into 2016/2017 range, what options would be must haves. Most of the ones I see barely even have the safety features and any additional options on them. I don't think she'd be a fan of the f sport interior. Any assistance or other threads would be appreciated greatly.

athanato

Not sure what year the safety features were mandated (I assume you mean lane assist, collision detection, etc.) but I know its standard on 2018 and up so maybe 2017 has it as well?
If she wants the luxury features but not f-sport find a luxury package trim assuming that is an option in the US, the trims are more consolidated in Canada which makes selection easier and seems to end up making the car potentially cheaper based on what I read in the 2017 and 2019 US brochures.

Here are quick google search hits for those brochures.
2017 https://www.lexus.com/documents/brochures/2017/MY17-Lexus-IS-Brochure.pdf
2016 https://www.lexus.com/documents/brochures/2016/Lexus-IS-Brochure.pdf

m1919

I would look at 2017.

Has blind spot monitoring, rear cross traffic detection, radar assisted cruise control, lane keep assist, lane departure warning, backup cam.

Not sure if anything else is included. I believe those are all standard on 2017 and later.

Albo

Awesome the brochures help a lot. I def like how the 2017 comes standard with those safety features and that bigger infotainment screen is a plus. Also the actual leather arm rest. Like I cant believe some of the ones I have seen have what looks like a piece of plastic covered in suede or something.

m1919

The 2017 interior is definitely better than the 2016 interiors.

unioncorps

Just so you know, it's not 'real' leather - it's Nuluxe, which is Lexus' synthetic leather option.

Albo

right yes, I did know that, thanks though

E46CT

I believe ALL safety features were standard in 2018 but available in 2017.

2018 saw the latest and greatest safety updates as far as structural go. 2017 saw an update, but Lexus botched it and it had to be fixed yet again for 2018.

So 2016 legs chopped, 2017, lets partially chopped. 2018 legs sore. (in a nutshell)

crash safety is my bread and butter topic been studying 20 years+. so i tend to knnow all all the nuances between all the MFRs and models. fun stuff!

2018 is the year to go!

Also F SPORT IS A MUST. i would not even consider nor look at any 3IS that is not an f sport. does not even exist to me. F sport on all lexus models is a must.

why wouldnt she want f sport interior? the seats alone are worth the money. i'd throw the non f sport seats off a cliff!

Albo

I agree, the f sport is a great looking car and the options are worth it. She really is not a fan of the black or red interior, which limits the f sports drastically. She likes the flaxen/chateau color most, and also the stratus gray. I just want to find one that has the safety features. She wont be racing this car around so that is another reason why she probably wont need an f sport. Personally I'm trying to get her into a GS, but I am keeping all options open. I appreciate your input and expertise though.

ISTreeFidi

Mark Levinson is must have imo. For whatever reason the newer IS loaner speaker sounds worse than my 2014, not sure why that is, but Mark Levinson is the bomb. Also I highly suggest getting the 350 for the dual injection to keep away the carbon build up. Also almost 100 more hp for only 1-2 mpg worse fuel economy.

GS would be a wise choice also, since it tends to have full luxury features like powered steering wheel adjustment, memory seat etc for not that much more money. It's also bigger and more comfortable. However it sounds like your gf really likes the look of the IS.

premier3IS

Get the F-Sport in the IS, trust us. Just because its an F-Sport doesn't make it a potential car to 'race' lol, the IS is far from that actually. The package is mainly more for a 'sportier' look both inside and out. As mentioned above, the seats of the F-sport are amazing, one of the best in the industry. The seats in my current 3 series are nice, but I really do miss the seats from my IS (that's how good they are). Maybe you should just go check it out at a dealership and you'll see and feel the difference.

swaangin

if it's for your girl, cut the F sport (as you mentioned she wouldn't care), I would also go for the non turbo version (which is the IS 300 I believe), it's a watered down version of the 350, 2017 best option with all the standard safety features.

I personally would have wanted the F sport but I couldn't find any in decent condition because they were so heavily beat on. If you're trying to save money and she wouldn't care, save the $