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First Test: 2008 Lexus IS F
Naughty by nature: Polite, upstanding Lexus uses the F word

By Arthur St. Antoine
Photography by Julia LaPalme



What does the "F" in the name of this new four-door, 416-horse velocityraptor from Lexus stand for? Company boss Jim Farley doesn't much care. "Maybe 'Fuji,' our racetrack," he says (the F logo is shaped like Turn One). "Or 'Circle-F' [the original code name for Lexus Division]. Or 'Flagship.'"

Allow us to offer a suggestion, Jim: "Fenomenal."

Based on the platform that underpins the IS 250 and IS 350 sport sedans, the IS F is a carbon-spewing, tire-vaporizing mutant, the gentrified Lexus family's black sheep (and you know how much fun black sheep can be). Given Lexus's carefully cultivated reputation for civility, the rip-snorting IS F shouldn't even be here. And yet, by sheer force of will (see sidebar), it is. Lucky us.

For sure, nothing else in the Lexus stable has the IS F's street-bruiser look. Two inches wider up front than the IS 350, the F also sports a larger grille (improved engine cooling), fat brake ducts in the front air dam, 19-inch, dark-gray BBS forged-alloy wheels, quad tailpipes in a dual stacked array, and a pronounced hood bulge that hints of something menacing lurking underneath.

It's in there. The engine, based on the direct-injection 5.0-liter V-8 that serves in the LS 600hL, was codeveloped by Yamaha; it's upgraded with new high-flow heads, hollow cams, a head-scavenge oil pump (to help maintain even lubrication during high-g loads), titanium intake valves, a dual-inlet air intake (the second intake opens at 3600 rpm for enhanced high-rpm breathing), and other performance goodies. The net result is 416 horsepower at 6600 rpm and 371 pound-feet of torque at 5200.

The IS F doesn't offer a manual transmission--and nobody's going to complain. Instead, standard is an eight-speed automatic with manual mode and paddle shifters. While the transmission uses a conventional torque converter in first gear, in manual mode the lock-up clutch remains engaged from second through eighth, directly connecting the engine's output to the rear wheels (lift off the gas, and the engine compression is immediate, as with a conventional manual transmission). Adding to the "manual" feel is ultra-fast shifting; Lexus claims the tranny can change gears in just 100 milliseconds--as quick as the Ferrari F430's F1 box.

From the company that's synonymous with a cloudlike ride comes a suspension that's as cushy as a manhole cover. Front spring and shock rates are up 90 percent; the rear rates have climbed 50 percent. Larger anti-roll bars front and back minimize body roll even more, as does a ride height lowered about an inch. Inside the huge forged-alloy wheels (said to be 40 percent lighter than cast-aluminum wheels of the same size) lie six-piston Brembo brakes up front (the vented and drilled discs are an inch larger than the IS 350's) and two-piston vented and drilled Brembo rotors (up 1.4 inches) at the rear.

If by now you think Lexus has forgotten everything it knows about coddling its buyers, the cockpit will immediately put your mind at ease. It's a racy place--shift paddles behind the wheel, four deeply bolstered sport bucket seats, oil-temp gauge, aluminized composite trim--yet it's still very Lexus. All the typical amenities are standard or available, including heated seats, navigation, Mark Levinson surround-sound audio, and radar-guided cruise. Our tester also featured the optional (and gorgeous) high-contrast interior, with dramatic white-on-black leather.

Acknowledging that their new IS F offers higher-performance limits than any public road can handle, the Lexus team unveiled their new black sheep at Laguna Seca racetrack. There, it took about, oh, two or three turns to realize the Nrburgring-tuned IS F is going to make serious trouble for the likes of the new BMW M3, the Audi RS4, and the Mercedes C63 AMG. The car is, quite simply, a monster: Acceleration is brutal, the brakes are wicked-strong, and handling grip is immense (a Sport mode for Lexus's VDIM stability-control system increases steering weight, boosts throttle response, and allows the tail to step out usefully before the electronics step in; Lexus says Sport produces faster lap times than switching off the system altogether). You could easily convince yourself you're driving a track car. The engine note completes the illusion. Given that Toyota runs its own F1 team, you expect the V-8 to scream like Jarno Trulli's single-seater. Wrong series. Instead, the IS F bellows like a Nextel Cup Toyota Camry (redline is a relatively low 6800 rpm).

Back in L.A., senior editor Kiino grabbed the keys and came back from a sprint through his favorite canyons all but frothing at the mouth: "This may be the best Japanese car I've ever driven! Under normal driving, the 5.0 feels like a typical Lexus V-8--super smooth and quiet--yet stomp on it and all of a sudden it's like there's a honkin' Hemi on-board--one that got its Ph.D. at the University of NVH. Shift speed is remarkable--feels like a DSG. And you can flog the suspension and it never gets upset. This car is a riot."

The test gear confirmed our giddiness. The IS F blazes to 60 mph in just 4.7 seconds and stops from the same speed in only 106 feet. It'll also churn up a nice, warm, vibraty feeling all through your gutty-works: Max grip is 0.91 g. Got a long driveway? Top speed is electronically limited to 168 mph, making the IS F the fastest Lexus ever.

How much? Lexus won't say yet, but there's a special Neiman Marcus Edition IS F set to make its debut soon for $68,000. Subtract $5000 for the N-M edition's included Skip Barber Racing School package, and another couple thou for some special goodies on that car, and you're probably looking at a base sticker of around $60K when the IS F goes on sale in late February or early March.

We don't plan to wait that long to drive the IS F again. Memo to comparo-test coordinator: Bring on the M3.

F Troop

Lexus didn't want the IS F. Yukihiko Yaguchi, formerly in charge of brand strategy at Japan's Lexus Center, did. Though Lexus was already producing world-class luxury sedans and several impressive sporting cars, Yaguchi dreamed of a Lexus that would run with BMW's M, Benz's AMG, Audi's RS Quattro division. He pushed his idea to the conservative higher-ups--and won. Like that, he became chief engineer, Lexus IS F.

"Most chief engineers have development teams of between 1000 and 1500 members," the quiet, unassuming Yaguchi says. "I had 200 to 300." But like Kelly Johnson's famed Skunk Works team at Lockheed, whose skeleton crew designed such ground-breaking aircraft as the SR-71 Blackbird, Yaguchi's enthusiastic F troops often worked on the IS F on their own clocks. Yaguchi enlisted the help of long-time friend Takaai Kimura, senior officer at Yamaha, to develop the IS F's engine and borrowed engineers at Toyota Technocraft (which builds everything from police vehicles to race cars) to design the chassis.

"The luxury market is going to change dramatically in the next decade," says Lexus general manager Jim Farley. "In six years, 50 percent of our buyers will be 30 to 40 years old. The IS F is an experiment for us. I don't know if it'll steal buyers from BMW and Mercedes, but we've learned that prestige buyers like to be surprised. If the IS F does well [Lexus hopes to sell 200-300 cars per month], you might well see a wider application of F-branded cars."

"In Japanese," Yaguchi says, "'go' is a word that used to describe a large ship, moving forward and unstoppable." No wonder, then, that this radical new Lexus owes its existence to a team nicknamed "Yaguchi-Go."

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Bruce

Would you have a look at this photo..



Ohhh... I'm getting excited. Can't wait to see one in the flesh, though I hope I'm not disappointed. Thanks for the post Chris.

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Bruce

Indeed!

Quote:

The IS-F looks pretty good in red too. Much better than that tacky blue color IMO.

Yup, it's called "Matador Red".

Couldn't agree with you more on the blue; I hate that blue!

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Sunny

I promise to post this pic in every thread bout IS-Fake, lol.

ateekt

^^^ Dude, you are mean, lmfao ...!

Bruce

Agreed 100%!

Amo

Me too. The photos are getting better and better, hopefully it looks as good in real.

Haha, this is one thing I hate Toyota for. They did this on the Corolla Compressor too with the dual exhausts. On one side, you could see the exhaust silencer box, on the other, no box.