What do you NOT like about your IS500?
01-29-24, 10:18 AM
#408
drives cars
I think people are missing the point of this car and what Lexus is all about, in my opinion this is first and foremost a LUXURY sports sedan designed to give one a comfortable daily drive, not to be confused with an M3 or AMG (also designed to outlive them). When spirited driving is desired I find sport + pretty good and paddle shifting excellent when you want to be very aggressive. But again 90% of the time I'm commuting and I enjoy the comfort and solid feel, also I rarely turn on the excellent ML sound system because I so much enjoy the V8 sound. As far as the brake feel I think that is a matter of getting use to, I've unfortunately have had a couple of opportunities to hit the brakes hard due to the usual "idiots" on the road and they did do the job quite well!
I totally agree with you on the intended use of this car - it is not meant to be a track car. I would bet that it can be track capable with some choice mods, but out of the box, it's a daily.
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HighRevs (01-29-24)
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arentz07 (01-29-24)
01-29-24, 11:17 AM
#410
drives cars
If I am driving spiritedly, I prefer the paddles. Now, even THOSE are not perfect, since there is a little bit of lag, but I do enjoy getting to call up a downshift when I want it. Sounds and feels great every time.
01-29-24, 11:29 AM
#411
Right, but I don't understand why people assume the trans tuning to be different from the RC F. They literally just dropped the engine and trans from the RC F into this car. From what I've seen, the shift logic in Sport S+ is actually quite excellent when I am on mountain roads. In fact, sometimes I have to take control so that I can short-shift it to help keep the oil temps down. If I let it do its thing, it'll just hold the gears to over 6,000 RPM in every gear... which is actually what you'd normally want when driving aggressively! If you don't see that behavior when you are driving aggressively, try giving it a bootful of throttle and brake through a couple corners, and it should "wake up".
I totally agree with you on the intended use of this car - it is not meant to be a track car. I would bet that it can be track capable with some choice mods, but out of the box, it's a daily.
I totally agree with you on the intended use of this car - it is not meant to be a track car. I would bet that it can be track capable with some choice mods, but out of the box, it's a daily.
01-30-24, 06:00 PM
#412
Pole Position
Right, but I don't understand why people assume the trans tuning to be different from the RC F. They literally just dropped the engine and trans from the RC F into this car. From what I've seen, the shift logic in Sport S+ is actually quite excellent when I am on mountain roads. In fact, sometimes I have to take control so that I can short-shift it to help keep the oil temps down. If I let it do its thing, it'll just hold the gears to over 6,000 RPM in every gear... which is actually what you'd normally want when driving aggressively! .
All synthetic oil is a must to control that heat.
Last edited by DLPTony; 02-01-24 at 02:50 AM.
01-30-24, 08:49 PM
#413
Intermediate
I don't like when I get in the car, drive off and notice something is off, it feels sloppy and slow and after a few miles realize I didn't put it in Sport S... my usual driving mode .
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01-31-24, 03:01 AM
#414
Lead Lap
^^ who likes riding things sloppy eh?!?! 
I agree - It is Sport+ for me any chance I get unless I am going to church (which the last time I was there was when I was baptized (lol)
I agree - It is Sport+ for me any chance I get unless I am going to church (which the last time I was there was when I was baptized (lol)
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01-31-24, 05:01 AM
#415
Being a fairly new owner, even the ECO mode seems super fast to me! What an amazing car!
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01-31-24, 05:24 AM
#416
Same. I drive in normal pretty much always. in the somewhat infrequent times I use sport let alone sport +, its like driving a different car. Its nice still being surprised by this car.
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02-01-24, 03:08 AM
#417
Pole Position
At almost 2 years, it’s an unconscious habit to click over to Sport S+ before the car is in gear.
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Benibiker1558 (02-01-24)
02-01-24, 04:14 PM
#418
Sucks you feel that way…sounds like you haven’t beaten one yet. 🥹🥹🥹
02-01-24, 06:01 PM
#419
The steering doesn't give as much road feedback compared to other sports cars I own, but I think it fits the nature of the car really well. It is still plenty direct and sporty and go where I want the car to go.
People need to have the right expectation and then they will learn to appreciate the car.
Speaking of expectation of a luxury sports car, what I do NOT like is the missing of heated rear seats. Even Kia and Hyundai have heated rear seats nowadays, it is embarrassing that a luxury car like Lexus doesn't have this. My other car (Integra Type S) has the exact same problem (no heated rear seats, and no rear ac vents too. Lexus is not much better; it has vents but it doesn't allow temp control). I feel bad for my kids sitting in the back seats.
02-01-24, 06:07 PM
#420
Instructor
Not bad =/= good. Like you said, it's a luxury sports car. I think the criticisms are valid. The transmission is a let down. I still like my car, but Lexus absolutely could have done something to make the transmission better. It's not a good luxury transmission or sporty transmission relative to what else is out there.
