Lexus is f | Ph Heroes

The designation was of course in the name. Or more precisely the letter F, which everyone was told, stood for Fuji Speedway, the circuit that Toyota acquired in 2000. But it might as well have been for ‘fast’ because it was what it meant when it was first applied to the IS for the Detroit Auto Show in 2007. Where was there a by -the -numbers compact now is an F -and to prove that it was serious about the F -bit, there was a naturally sucked bonnet.

Smash Cut until two decades later and the engine, recently retired at the RC F, seems to be a ridiculous choice for another modest salon – until you remember that the E90 M3 would later launch that same year with an atmospheric 4.0 -Liter V8, and the W204 C63 AMG (which really waited the wings). So in fact Toyota had perfectly understood the Playbook: bigger was better. And ideally noisy.

To call this a deviation from the existing strategy of Lexus – the one who produced the game -changing LS400 earlier – it is to the attention. The brand previously had about the same to do with sportiness as a maker of glaucoma glasses. The values ​​were based on quality and comfort and unparalleled refinement. Adding the F did not necessarily mean throwing away all those things, but if the cars succeeded against the European opposition, something should clearly give.

The first generation model showed how this could be done. It was well received for his Rev-Happy V8, but the critical opinion at that time suggested that it was less pretty running than its Germanic rivals, not least because it did not have the right back difference. Lexus is always alive in this kind of suggestions and went properly with something mechanical and limited slip from Torsen in 2010, followed by a fairly liberal tweak from the chassis institutions. The later models, such as the one you see here, also move the REV counter to the center of the instrument cluster. He helped set the tone.

The styling -make -over, however, remained almost the same. Some people at the time suggested that Lexus tried too hard – usually while staring at the vertically stacked quad outlet. But in this respect, time has been remarkably nice for the F. Who, after all, could have foreseen the size and wild with the ugly stick that the most large OEMs have taken over since then? In contrast to the Gallery of Roque, 2025, the venerable Lexus, carefully swollen to the arches and on very modest looking 19-inch BBS alloys, is a tender beauty.

Nobody, that’s how it should be said, looked at it twice while it was visiting PH. Except US Lot, of course. We stared and stared. Usually with the compactness of the car and are old -fashioned proportions. Less the recess of his hood, which nowadays hardly seems worth mentioning. In an amazing age of extensive DRLs and meaningless flat lights, the IS FEs feels in inconspicuousness as a super power: you almost certainly have to know what it is like to understand why it might be interesting to look at – making the Q -car royalty standard.

Moreover, affection for the exterior design is important because it is unlikely that you will feel the same about the interior. If the boasting shape of his exhaust pipes was the evidence of Lexus that expands an experimental toes outside the box, the IS F’s interior is a grim memory of its conservative instincts. Most of the standard model was transferred, which was considered a Demerit at that time and appears double, so if you now take into account the type of Datesness that cannot avoid a Saloon from 2011. Somewhat inevitably you are too high. And you probably forget to loosen the pedal-operated handbrake for the first pair. I did it.

To his advantage, there is a brand-specific firmness to admire: the fit and finish continue to stand, especially when you consider the enormous amount of plastic switch gear-recording, and the in-depth, old-school lexus atmosphere of everything that is assembled into fine tolerances and dressed in slippery leather is still made to be tastable. Admittedly, the British heritage car from Toyota has not yet covered 15k miles, although you get the feeling that even with six digits under the belt, the quality of the door of the door would not have decreased.

Good, in any case, to make this feeling of handing up over you, because the F requires considerable manhandling at low speed. At the time, the car was relatively new to show electric power steering – and it quickly reminds you why people so much like to stick to a hydraulic solution. It is not refined. Leaving a parking space is tiring; Three-point turns, a mission. Predictable, it gets better as you go faster, but it remains a one-off affair and ultimately the IS F of the kind of nuance that an E90 M3 owner would take as a matter of course.

Pushing on the accelerator pedal, it must be said, experience does not modernize immediately. The eight -speed automatic transmission may have benefited from tailor -made relationships and a locking mechanism in any gear, except first, but this does not prevent the gas response to appear mild elastic in 2025. You will notice a small test balloon of Revs before you start, just like you notice and actually notice the fractional delay between asking for a paddle-shift change change. Not because of a certain lack of efforts of Lexus’ side; Transmissions have just taken a long way since 2007.

The fact, however, is, if you ignore the lower half of the pedal travel, you will find that you are waving the spot like a Tokyo -Taxi driver, Blithely worries everywhere very quickly. Lexus may have reworked the chassis extensively -reducing the non -recognized mass, thickened anti -roll bars, increasing the spring percentages, changing bumpstops, etc. -but it did not completely lose sight of the sophistication. In general, the flagship catcher and quiet, and the V8 is very civilized under 3000 rpm. Only the resonating hum, as hot and blurry as the womb, reminds you of what leaves you unused.

Accordingly, and probably deliberately, it feels like the IS has two speeds. One could be suspected if ‘in the city’ where you are indifferent about the place, the automatically looking for the longest possible relationship with the Hoop 20 mpg. The second, ideally from the neighborhood of passers -by, means that you keep the V8 above 4,000 rpm almost all the time. Because once you have taken off the heights of his pleasure zone, accessible via the sports button on the steering wheel but not dependent on it – a place that is completely distinguished from the Woofy lobby – you are never inclined to leave.

Predictable is a considerable part of this experience to the sound that uses the opening of a secondary intake at 3,600 rpm to harden considerably. It opposes a full-throated yowl, but it is nevertheless expressive and unprocessed enough to make a modern equivalent sound as if it is being played under water. Moreover, it must of course constantly chase: the torque does not peak up to 5,200 rpm, the power, 6,600 rpm. Elsewhere in the Lexus Line -Up, the V8 was electrically helped; In the IS F are a very necessary part of the insistence.

And want to push you. Lexus quotes 4.8 seconds to 62 mph, and in full flight it feels as fast as that. It helps that the chassis meets halfway through the Rawboned V8. In fact, it starts to look like the most old-school thing: passively created and deceptively non-advanced that it could be, but the vertical control is usually well answered and does not suffer for a lack of balance. Of course it helps that the IS F is half a ton lighter than it would be if it were built today; As soon as it learns with a road, there is nothing compulsory or punishable about the relationship. You really buy in.

Even the one -dimensional control is essentially good. Never should be said in feedback, but the faster you go, the more the blurry weight starts to feel like directness, helped by a front -end that is easily reliable enough to make the shortage. The back is also reliable; Usually every loss of traction is the result of the fact that you consciously push the limit, and it is then progressive enough not to leave a dent in your self -confidence. Or to prevent you from leaving it almost everywhere.

In short, there is a lot to be found. Admittedly, with the advantage of retrospect, it did not change the world. Lexus had set his sights on beating the Germans in their own game; Just like Jaguar did with the XFR. Both were launchy efforts, not only because of their frankness in throwing away the glove, but also for retaining a personality, even when simulating the competition. This was certainly simple for Jaguar: the DNA of fast saloons that are elementary to its existence. For Lexus, initially felt his way to what F should mean, more difficult.

But the resulting car, especially the later derivative, proved richly what the brand was capable of – a young reputation that it doubled in 2009 and introduced the sensational LFA in an unsuspecting world. The IS F itself was packed in 2013 and not replaced correctly (the conceptually comparable RC F was launched a year later, but exclusively as a coupé). Nevertheless, the place under an iconic generation of compact execs is insured, not least because it helped when establishing the high watermark of enormously thirsty, naturally drawn V8s before the configuration was reversed. Faster, more economical cars would come to the fore to take their place. But for Lexus fans, we among them, F stands for only one thing.

Engine: 4,969cc, V8
Transfer: 8-speed automatic, rear-wheel drive
Power (HP): 421@6.600RPM
Couple (LB FT): 371@5.200RPM
0-62 MPH: 4.8sec
Top speed: 168 MPH
Weight: 1,700 kg
MPG: 24.8
CO2: 270
For sale: 2011
Price new: £ 51,105
Price now: C £ 25,000