FL FS: X-Package Sport tuned suspension
11-30-12, 11:24 AM
#5
From Edmunds.com:
"X" Marks the Spot
Sport packages are all too often more about style than substance, so we didn't expect the addition of the X Package to assure instant handling credibility for the IS 250. Sure, you get 225/40YR18 tires in front and dramatically wider 255/40YR18s in the rear, plus a firmer suspension setup, but lighted door-sill plates aren't going to give you more grip in the corners.
Surprisingly, the sport package doesn't degrade the IS 250's ride quality, which is the essence of what Lexus is about, after all. On the street, the IS 250 remains forgiving over most surfaces.
And once you toss the IS 250 into a fast corner, the sport package really shows you something. The car settles quickly on its suspension into an effective cornering attitude and the stiff-sidewall tires help the steering react to subtle inputs more responsively than you'll find in an all-wheel-drive IS 350.
In tight-radius corners, the bumps that momentarily upset the IS 350 barely faze this buttoned-down IS 250. Given that the rear-wheel-drive, 3,527-pound IS 350 and rear-wheel-drive, 3,455-pound IS 250 have the same weight distribution of 52 percent front/48 percent rear, we're surprised the IS 250 feels so different.
Slalom Superstar
The X Package improvements also translate to the track, as our slalom test confirms. Although it's down over 100 hp on the IS 350, the IS 250 is nearly 4 mph faster through the cones with a 70.4-mph result. This is blazing speed, and it puts the IS 250 ahead of the BMW 335i, not to mention about a half dozen very capable sports cars.
The rear-wheel-drive IS 250's overall grip on the skid pad is a fraction less than that of the rear-wheel-drive IS 350, as the IS 250 manages 0.84g versus the 0.87g we recorded for an IS 350 with 18-inch wheels and tires. The two cars are also about the same in braking performance, with the IS 250 posting the shortest stop from 60 mph at 113 feet.
And we discovered that the extra margin of driver command afforded by disabling the IS 250's stability control system doesn't translate into performance you can measure, as Lexus already has the electronics dialed in quite precisely. But we still appreciate the choice.
"X" Marks the Spot
Sport packages are all too often more about style than substance, so we didn't expect the addition of the X Package to assure instant handling credibility for the IS 250. Sure, you get 225/40YR18 tires in front and dramatically wider 255/40YR18s in the rear, plus a firmer suspension setup, but lighted door-sill plates aren't going to give you more grip in the corners.
Surprisingly, the sport package doesn't degrade the IS 250's ride quality, which is the essence of what Lexus is about, after all. On the street, the IS 250 remains forgiving over most surfaces.
And once you toss the IS 250 into a fast corner, the sport package really shows you something. The car settles quickly on its suspension into an effective cornering attitude and the stiff-sidewall tires help the steering react to subtle inputs more responsively than you'll find in an all-wheel-drive IS 350.
In tight-radius corners, the bumps that momentarily upset the IS 350 barely faze this buttoned-down IS 250. Given that the rear-wheel-drive, 3,527-pound IS 350 and rear-wheel-drive, 3,455-pound IS 250 have the same weight distribution of 52 percent front/48 percent rear, we're surprised the IS 250 feels so different.
Slalom Superstar
The X Package improvements also translate to the track, as our slalom test confirms. Although it's down over 100 hp on the IS 350, the IS 250 is nearly 4 mph faster through the cones with a 70.4-mph result. This is blazing speed, and it puts the IS 250 ahead of the BMW 335i, not to mention about a half dozen very capable sports cars.
The rear-wheel-drive IS 250's overall grip on the skid pad is a fraction less than that of the rear-wheel-drive IS 350, as the IS 250 manages 0.84g versus the 0.87g we recorded for an IS 350 with 18-inch wheels and tires. The two cars are also about the same in braking performance, with the IS 250 posting the shortest stop from 60 mph at 113 feet.
And we discovered that the extra margin of driver command afforded by disabling the IS 250's stability control system doesn't translate into performance you can measure, as Lexus already has the electronics dialed in quite precisely. But we still appreciate the choice.
