carcounsel.com |HID|

I’m referring of course to the Motor Trend long-term update that has a lot of people talking…

Now granted, automotive journalists are an agressive bunch, but I can’t see how a company known for products that don’t require much in the way of care and feeding can spec brakes and tires that wilt so easily… Not that soft tires and brakes are a bad thing – they usually bring with them better handling, stopping and feel from the driver’s seat. It’s just that in the LS’ case it has no excuse – no one’s every penned a flattering word on the car’s handling or braking; it’s not the car’s M.O…

Not even a Lexus is immune to the laws of physics…

As long as the road is smooth, it’s a serene ride, but sealed cracks and potholes in the pavement kill the serenity. Even in its soft setting, the adjustable suspension can’t compensate for the reinforced sidewalls of the Dunlop run-flat tires. – Car And Driver

Seen on MPH’s site:

The electric-assist (as opposed to conventional hydraulic assist) steering feels strangely artificial in operation. It doesn’t feel heavy exactly, as you’d expect a car with big, sticky tires like the 18-inchers on the 430 to, just sort of like it doesn’t really want you to turn it. The electrically activated brakes are touchy, making it hard to stop smoothly. But it’s an impressive handler even if it feels a bit like the car is driving itself—at least it’s a good driver. The GS300, which is powered by an excellent and all-new direct-injection 245-hp V-6, is, oddly, the better driver’s car of the pair. Its steering also uses electric assist, so it should feel as odd as that of the V-8 car’s, but it doesn’t. It feels light and accurate and requires fewer midcorner corrections. The suspension is nonelectrically controlled, and while the V-6 car rolls a little more, it feels more natural—sort of like a car. Lexus also adds an optional all-wheel-drive system to the GS300, turning it into the cleverly named GS300 with AWD. We know what your uncle told you, but he’s lying. You don’t need allwheel drive. The AWD version is also the least fun to drive of the otherwise rear-drive GS lot.

‘It’s like the design brief was, “Can you just get everything a bit wrong?”’ – evo’s Ten Worst Cars

For a car that some of us thought might win going in, [last] place seems astonishing. the variable-ratio steering was… cited for its uncommunicative nature… and the electrohydraulic brakes were similarly peculiar in operation, producing longer-than-expected stopping distances. Persuading the Lexus to negotiate our famous lane-change test was akin to driving a coach. When the vehicle-dynamics system (VDIM) is switched off the LS460L indulges in long, wide slides. Leave the system on, and it still allows the car to get well out of shape before stepping in to confuse the driver. – Car and Driver

Commentary: The original LS was comfortable, yes, but when you whipped it it shrunk around you and cleaved resolutely to its intended path. But perhaps most surprising: after the flack BMW’s received for its Active Steering and Mercedes’ headaches with electrohydraulic brakes, Lexus pursued these imperfect technologies anyway…

seen in Car and Driver Forums:

Q) Why doesn’t Lexus offer a manual transmission in the IS 350?  Any plans to do so?

A) The IS 250 is our core model, representing over 80 percent of sales. With this volume, we believe the IS 250 with manual transmission (M/T) will meet the needs for those consumers desiring a 6-speed manual and provides a very competitive value.  The volume of M/T sales within the segment the IS 350 will compete is very small, and we do not forecast enough demand to warrant production of a M/T choice for the IS 350.  If the market should change, we will, of course, consider a M/T for the IS 350.

Commentary: A driver who choses a manual is generally an enthusiast, so we’re surprised that the more powerful car comes as an auto only. That said, manual transmissions are a relative afterthought to Lexus and Mercedes-Benz. Proof: the foot activated parking brake makes it impossible to keep the car from rolling back when starting off on a hill in a manual…

(BMWs and Hondas tend to make better manuals, Benz and Toyota better autos).

UPDATE: AutoExpress has driven the manual IS250, and find it the weakest link in an otherwise compelling package…

...the engine’s tendency to hang on to the revs means making smooth progress requires concentration – and this isn’t helped by the clutch’s heavy action at the top of its travel, or the fact that the gearlever is angled, and takes some getting used to. Thanks to the auto’s closer gearing, the manual car is thirstier…

UPDATE 2:

you can opt for a manual IS. That said, you probably shouldn’t. Lexus’s command of super-smooth auto transmissions is unquestioned, but it doesn’t have a good manual. The shift lacks the positivity and involvement of the 3-Series, feels notchy and cheap and is set at a weird angle that, although arguably ergonomic, upsets the otherwise effective cabin symmetry. And this isn’t an option that does any favours to that fabled Lexus refinement… [buy] the manual and you end up with a hell of a lot less car. source: Top Gear

Unlike the BMW’s 3.0 liter, the Benz’s 3.5… has the low-end grunt to pin your ears off the line as well as the high-rpm horsepower to pin your grin as you chase the horizon. As Walton noted about the Teutonic sixes, “The BMW I-6 is, indeed, smoother than the M-B V-6; however, it takes what feels like twice as long to reach the redline and only begins to make power above 4000rpm.” The Lexus 3.5, similar to the Mercedes’, has power on hand throughout the rev range – just a lot more of it. source: Motor Trend, 02.06

(One could argue that rivals focus on their engines to make up for BMW’s clear lead in chassis feel, but this torque deficit is another reason BMW inline sixes tend to be better when paired with manual transmissions while competitors do just fine with an auto).

The Lexus IS 350 is generating a lot of buzz these days, as does any car that sports an absurd amount of power. No magazine has tested a IS250 yet – apparently Lexus prefers to show off the 350’s class leading power and torque. The IS350 is a bit of a one trick pony, however – journalists love the adrenaline rush a 5 second to 60 time provides but as with many of today’s Nissans the engine overwhelms the rest of the car.

In this piece, one of the few automotive critics who’s at all critical explains further. Here’s an excerpt:

The erstwhile sports sedan bumped and jiggled over surface imperfections like a tied-down tunermobile. It rolled through directional transitions like a luxobarge, helming with unacceptable imprecision and unwelcome lean. While the powerplant provided more than enough shove for the work at hand, the IS 350’s dynamics drew a definitive line between “doable” and “enjoyable.”... The IS 350 is only slightly less hard-riding than a Skyline GT-R—with none of the corresponding car control. Woe betides any hard-charging enthusiast who finds an expansion joint or a big old bump in a tight corner; the little Lexus will hop, skip and jump like a colt struggling to get out of a horsebox… I pity the poor bastard who bought an IS 350 thinking he could cruise through an urban landscape without an overly-intimate exploration of the concrete topography. In short, the IS 350 is a bad BMW, rather than a great Lexus.

(We’d like to point out that the car doesn’t ride as poorly on the standard 17” wheels but then again that car feels even more like trying to aim a firehose while standing in rollerskates. The IS250- like BMWs of yore – has more chassis and brakes than engine, less impressive on the test drive but far more compelling as an ownership proposition. The IS350 is more like too many modern BMWs: more motor than the chassis and brakes can handle).

Skeptical that the IS250’s engine is powerful enough? Consider that one of the best sport/uxury sedans ever created – the W124 Mercedes benz E-class had 177 horsepower. (It also handled with uncanny precison despite 195mm wide, 15 inch tires, recirculating ball steering, and twice the suspension travel of most cars today…)

We recently evaluated the IS250 with optional all wheel drive and were surprised at how much the system detracted from the overall driving experience; we expected the acceleration to be slower but what really suffered was ride quality.

While looking over the specs for the new 3 series’ xDrive all wheel drive option, we noticed the following disadvantages beyond the expected increase in weight:

– the turning circle is 2 feet larger – the front suspension is made of steel rather than aluminum – the transmission itself is heavier

Given that all wheel drive only helps when your foot is on the gas (e.g. when climbing hills or when accelerating from a stoplight) and hinders braking and turning, we strongly suggest you consider spending your money on tires optimized for inclement weather (which help you get going AND avoid an accident) instead of all-wheel drive.

(One exception – if the choice is between front wheel drive and an optional all wheel drive we’re tempted: better weight distribution, less torque steer and sometimes even a more advanced rear suspension are the benefits. In these cases we’d get the tires AND all wheel drive).

the pay-off for impressive control over roller-coaster roads is a stiff and unsettled feel around town and on the motorway…Usually you can take the quiet refinement of a Lexus for granted [but] there’s too much road noise – especially over coarse surfaces. source: What Car? on the Lexus IS