Lexus IS 350

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Lexus IS 350

The Lexus IS "Intelligent Sport" is a rear-wheel drive, compact luxury sports sedan manufactured by the Toyota Motor Corp. under the Lexus brand and originally sold as the Toyota Altezza in Japan. The model was introduced to slot below the ES in the Lexus lineup and to compete against the BMW 3 Series and the Nissan Skyline/Infiniti G. The first-generation Altezza (codename XE10) was launched in Japan in October 1998, while the Lexus IS 200 made its debut in Europe in 1999 and the IS 300 in North America in 2001.

See WikiCars' comprehensive (Your Make) (Your Model) Review.

Current Model Year (2006)

Safety

Lexus IS 350 safety should be an important consideration in your vehicle purchase. An important factor to consider for Lexus IS 350 safety should be crash test results which are conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Institute and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety(IIHS). NHTSA is actually part of the U.S. federal government and is overseen by the U.S. Department of Transportation. The organization rates vehicles on how well they protect drivers and passengers during frontal and side-impact collisions, as well as during rollovers. Performance is judged through a five-star system, with five being the best. If NHTSA crash results are available, you can view them below. IIHS is a non-profit organization funded by auto insurers. The IIHS performs various tests on vehicles, including frontal offset tests. Reviewing crash results when considering Lexus IS 350 safety should be helpful in your purchasing decision. IIHS test results can be viewed at their website.

Previous Generations

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Second generation (YYYY–YYYY)

The second generation IS was redesigned for the 2006 model year and was introduced in the fall of 2005. The Toyota Altezza name ceased to be used with the introduction of the Lexus name in Japan. A pre-production example of the model was shown in the 2005 Geneva Autoshow. The slow-selling SportCross station wagon version was dropped from the lineup worldwide.

For the United States, three IS models are sold by Lexus:

IS 250 - 2.5 L V6, 204 hp (152 kW), Rear wheel drive IS 250 AWD - 2.5 L 4GR-FSE V6 with all wheel drive, 204 hp (152 kW) IS 350 - 3.5 L 2GR-FSE V6, 306 hp (228 kW), Rear wheel drive In the United Kingdom and parts of Europe, 2 models are sold by Lexus:

IS 250 - 2.5 L V6, 204 hp (152 kW), Rear wheel drive IS 220d - 2.2 L Inline-4, 175 hp (130 kW), Rear wheel drive. Manual transmission only. The IS 250 RWD comes standard with a 6-speed manual transmission, and a 6-speed automatic transmission is available as an option. The IS 250 AWD and the IS 350 are only available with the 6-speed automatic. A precrash system is a novelty in the market.

The IS 350's performance has been admirable, and its acceleration is class-leading. Some say this marks Lexus' first foray into the "sport compact" market that compares fairly well with its German competitors. However, prevailing criticisms are that its steering is not as communicative as that of the BMW 3 Series, its stability and traction control systems cannot be fully disabled, and that the higher-performance IS 350 is only offered with an automatic transmission. ***The stability control system/traction control system can be disabled by using a code during engine start. Start the car with the parking brake engaged, release the parking brake, push the brake pedal twice, holding it on the second push, engage the parking brake twice, holding it on the second, ...repeating until the vehicle traction light appears on the dash. The systems will be disabled until you turn off the car*** [1]

There are rumors of a higher performance IS, likely with a V8 engine, but there have been no official announcements yet.

Awards

Calendar Year 2005

  Fastest in Its Class [1] 

-IS 350 2006, AMCI (October 2005)

Top Ranked Entry Luxury Car

-IS 300, J.D. Power and Associates (May 2005)

Mountain Climber: Lexus Unveils The Next IS Sport Sedan

-IS 350 2006, Autoweek Magazine (March 2005)

External Links

euro.lexusownersclub.com/forums/