Lexus IS-F 2011 Review

IT'S all very well coining your own equivalent to the fabled M and AMG performance badges of the German marques. Laudable even. And it's more than possible that the Lexus "F" line will come to be written in the same sentence as these.

Certainly it's deserved. Still, that'll be then and this is now, and I can't help wondering whether the consonant "Q" isn't more apt - as in that old buffer's term for performance cars whose blazing light is hidden beneath a mild exterior.

Visually it's almost as innocuous as your common or garden IS250. Indeed, to a very certain point, the revised and upgraded IS-F drives in the excessively polite manner of Toyota's luxury marque. And then ...

VALUE

In this context - as a rival to BMW's M3 and Merc's C63 - we can begin to talk of a bargain.

As is the case with even the humblest $56K IS, the F is priced considerably to the south of the nearest equivalent German and stuffed with standard spec, not least of which is a reverberating Mark Levinson stereo and a brilliantly intuitive touchscreen through which to operate all systems from satnav to aircon.

TECHNOLOGY

This is a one-vehicle expo of drivetrain tech, sophisticated but sans the needless complications of the M3's myriad drive modes. You won't soon tire of the thrumming 5.0-litre V8. Fettled with dual VVT-i, dual injection (port and direct) and a dual-intake air system, it achieves 311kW at 6600rpm and 505Nm at 5200rpm, dispatching the 0-100km/h dash in 4.8 seconds.

If ever you've wondered at the point of certain DSG-style transmissions, to say nothing of their (dys)function, the Lexus's eight-speeder clinches it in favour of the torque converter. Barely perceptible changes in Drive are sharpened when sport mode is activated.

A meaningful manual mode - as in one that holds gear selections on redline - is accessed by flipping the gearstick sideways and going to it with the shapely paddle shifters, which also provide temporary manual overide in Drive.

Let's hear it for the mechanical Torsen limited-slip differential that last year replaced the electronic device. This one actively redistributes torque instead of stifling power.

Previously the IS-F's ride has been a boon to the dental and osteopathic professions. The suspension's been revised in a manner that acknowledges real-world conditions, and makes for a ride that's much more than tolerable even on Australia's third-world roads. Oh, it's still as firm as it must be but it's forgiving with it.

DESIGN

We take a back seat to but a few when it comes to praise of the IS series, which is wise in the F model, because there's but two pews back there. No loss this -- the centre position is token. But for that, and what a colleague calls the "Ginza boy" carbon-fibre accents, this could be a much lesser IS with optional bling.

Bespoke bits run to unsubtle quad exhausts and lovely smoky 19-inch alloys. The seven-year-old design means there's not a lot of room, forward or aft. The bloody sun roof leaves next to no space between a tall driver's skull and the ceiling. And why is there a driver's grab handle if not to bruise the right side of his fine, shiny cranium?

SAFETY

Consider the safety acronyms, active and passive, present and correct and the five-star crash safety rating a given. More pertinently, given there's 1700kg of 270km/h-capable sports sedan to stop, are massive Brembo brakes, six-piston calipers up front acting on 360mm x 30mm ventilated discs, and twin-piston calipers aft doing their thing on 345mm x 28mm ventilated discs.

DRIVING

And, as we were saying, then ... But before just that, this year's IS-F is as amiable a commuting companion as could be wished for in a performance car. The pleasantly persistent engine growl is most unLexus-like and most welcome.

You can live with it every day without arousing the inner beast. Indeed, the first time you introduce the throttle to the floor, there's a throat clearing pause, and then the fluorescent blue needle reaches 4000rpm, the engine roars, your passenger shouts "s---!", and you're leaning on the brakes at the end of the road  where you spend the next 10 minutes digging an iPhone out from under the seat whence its flown.

With Sport engaged and the open road before you, this exercise is a bit more linear. Gears are held longer, the exhaust report is crisper and throttle response is livelier. The Lexus engages our favourite hillclimb of 15-25km/h indicated corners as though developed specifically for this stretch, sitting flat and true. The stability control cuts in deftly and aptly at such extremes as your humble servant is prepared to chart on public roads.

VERDICT

It's quiet and capable then roaringly rapid, like a respectable salaryman given to 'roid rages. It's hard to find logical reasons not to want this Lexus.

LEXUS IS-F

Price: $126,800
Warranty: 4 years/100,000km
Resale: 56 per cent
Service interval: 12 months/15,000km
Safety: 6 airbags, ABS, EBD, BA, TC. Crash rating 5 stars
Engine: 5.0-litre V8; 300kW/505Nm
Body: 4-seat sedan
Dimensions: 4580mm(L), 1800mm(W); 1425mm(H)
Weight: 1700kg
Transmission: 8-speed auto, rear-wheel drive
Economy: 11.4L/100km

Also consider

AUDI S5

Price: $138,900
Engine: 4.2-litre V8; 260kW/44Nm
Trans: 6-speed auto: AWD
Body: Two door coupe
Thirst: 10.8L/100km
"Looks good, feels good, but limited. A German muscle car"

BMW M3

Price: $149,000
Engine: 4.0-litre V8; 309kW/400Nm
Trans: 7-speed automated manual: RWD
Body: sedan
Thirst: 11.9L/100km
"The most capable here but about to look old hat"

MERCEDES-BENZ C63 AMG

Price: $150,980
Engine: 6.2-litre V8; 336kW/600Nm
Trans: 7-spped auto: RWD
Body: sedan
Thirst: 13.5L/100km
"Wagnerian noise. Pass anything except a petrol station"