It’s time to test drive and review the 2024 Lexus IS 500 F Sport!
The IS 500 F Sport is a rarity. It’s a mid-tier performance sedan with a naturally aspirated V8 engine that makes 472 horsepower, paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission, rear-wheel drive, and a loud, proud, and lovely exhaust sound. All of that takes the car from 0-60 mph in about 4.4 seconds.
The IS is Lexus’ compact sports sedan, and the IS 500 F Sport this video costs $67,610 after options and fees. But honestly? I thought it was going to be more expensive - mid-$70,000s, at least. It feels grand.
Automakers just don’t produce cars like the IS 500 anymore. Naturally aspirated V8s are a dying breed, with turbochargers, superchargers, hybrids, and electric cars becoming the norm. For many companies, mid-tier sports sedans like the IS 500 (think Audi S or BMW M Performance models) are a step between a company’s normal car lineup and its top, most hardcore performance cars, and the IS 500’s direct competitors just don’t have V8s anymore.
The IS has been around since 1998, when it launched in Japan as the Toyota Altezza. It came to America not long after as the IS 300.
The idea was for the Lexus IS to be a competitor to other smaller sports sedans, like the ever-popular BMW 3-Series, and the original American-bound IS 300 came with rear-wheel-drive and a 2JZ-GE engine - a naturally aspirated variant of the VERY popular fourth-gen Supra engine. The original IS 300 made 215 horsepower with it.
The IS evolved over the years to become what it is today: a car that mixes performance with luxury. Not only is the IS 500 a unicorn in its class, but its also benefits from Lexus' existing reputation for vehicles that are reliable, premium feeling, and pretty good-looking.
Is the Lexus IS 500 F Sport the most hardcore vehicle out there? No. Is it the most luxurious? No. But that’s the line you walk (and the sacrifice you make) with a luxury sports car: The luxury somewhat detracts from the sportiness, and the sportiness somewhat detracts from the luxury. You can’t be the best at both, and that's by design.
But overall, the IS 500 is a special experience and a special car. The IS 500 F Sport doesn't gaze toward our electric future; it celebrates our past, and that’s a beautiful thing to do.
Thanks for watching my KZfaq channel. Enjoy the drive!
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