my is350 review
04-28-06, 12:39 AM
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my is350 review
Overview
My is300 was totaled on February 18th this year. She was barely 3 years old and hasn't seen a real race track. I got my new Onyx Black is350 April 13 nearly 2 months after that accident. The transition to the new car fitted like a glove. I still cannot believe I am driving this car because it was very hard to find it with Onyx Black with black leather. Even though this car is more luxurious, I think in every way this car is an improvement over the outgoing car. Lexus had taken it's first shot with the is300 6 years ago and missed, but this time they got it right on the money.
Smart Access
A feature to be standard on all Lexus vehicles is the Smart Access. I love this new feature since I am a lazy person and it is really cool to show this off. Just walk up to the door and put your hand on the handle and the sensor will unlock the door. The button outside the two front doors locks the doors so you don’t have to take the key fob out of the pockets. I am usually carrying equipment for work to my car everyday and not having to put stuff down and digging in my pockets to grab the keys to open the doors or trunk is very convenient. The engine start button is quite nice too. Just pressing that button is a joy everytime I start the car. I wish there was a way to just turn off the engine and leaving the electronics in the car on because I find myself stopping somewhere and waiting a couple minutes. I don't like to turn the car off and pressing the button again to listen to the radio while waiting for somebody. A nice little feature is the outer foot lights and the lights above the license plate turn on when the sensors pick up the key fob. Also if you hold down the unlock button the key fob, it will roll down the windows and open up the moon roof.
Exterior
Everything in this car has been improved. It seems like lexus stuck the original is300 with tons of steroids because the car looks like it has put on some muscles and it is three inches wider and longer and the wheelbase has stretched a little bit. The high belt line gives the car its aggressive looks that really makes the car stand out. The projector headlights give the car a more appealing look. It is also nice that Lexus always has fog lights as standard equipment. I do miss the yellow fogs but I think the white ones will do. Gone are the ricer trend setting taillights for the aerodynamically sloping LED lights in the back that help air pass more quickly. I also would like to say that Lexus should have not placed the reflectors on the rear bumper. It destroys the flow of the back of the car and looks tacky to me. The front end looks aggressive and it says rawr. There are no side moldings so the car looks sleek. I really like where Lexus is going with the L-Finesse look. The washer fluid shoots out from under the hood instead of having the nozzles on the hood like the original. When cleaning the windshield, the wipers will do a final pass after about 5 seconds to get the excess fluid off the glass. I thought this was a very smart feature. One little detail that I appreciate since I detail my car a lot is that there is no lining around both front and rear windshields. Applying wax around this area has always been a pain for me and this was really nice.
Interior
I think Lexus stole some top notch cows and skinned them to use in the new IS. The leather is so much nicer this time around compared to the hard brittle leather found in the original car. I could fall asleep in these seats without knowing it. I have also heard complaints that people have been getting wear and tear only after 2000 miles of owning the car so that might be the trade off for the soft leather. I think I would have preferred the escaine from my original car because it holds me a lot better than the leather seats, but the new seats are have better side bolsters than the is300 that hold the driver well in place. I also wish the front headrest would tilt. I usually have it forward in the is300 because my head is not comfortable all the way back. I drove this car back to Atlanta and there was no discomfort for the 5 hours of driving. The only thing on my mind during that time was what music to listen to. The other half of the drive I had one of my buddies drive and I drifted into a nap at times. I also have heated/ventilated seats as part of the premium package. I haven’t tested the heated option yet because it has been a little too hot, but ventilated seats feels like you are peeing in your pants. It’s a weird feeling, but you get use to it. The LED interior lights are very nice in this car. Whenever you turn it on, it doesn’t distract anybody else in the car which is a plus.
The steering wheel feels great. It’s a little thicker, smaller than the outgoing model and is soft to the touch this time around. The steering is heavy just the way I like it. It is not too soft where you can jerk it around or too heavy where your arms will get tired. Lexus is right on point with this point and I prefer this over the BMW’s 3 series. The paddle shifters are also in the right spot. They do not get in the way when you are in “D” mode and they can be easily reached when you are in “S” mode. The steering wheel controls are also a plus in the convenience department. I don’t use the audio controls that much but the Bluetooth function is a winner with me. Looking past the steering wheel are the new Electroluminescent Gauges. I do miss the orange backlit gauges in the is300, but the new optitron gauges are more luxurious. The lights are not bright enough that it will strain the eyes either. The moon roof controls are nice this time around since it has preset positions, but I always find myself pressing the auto button most of the time. All the windows are auto so they can go all the way up and down. It is better than having to hold the buttons to roll them up all the way. The dash looks nice until you get to the passenger side. It looks very plain like the designer’s mind went blank and just left it alone. The rearview mirror shakes with a little bass or even with the slightest uneven pavement. The lights under the dash are a nice amenity too. The visibility through the rear glass seems more limited in the new is350, but I have back up camera that comes on when shifted into reverse. The pillars in the car are also huge so looking back to check for vehicles in the blind spots is very hard. The A-pillar is very blinding because I have been in two situations where I cannot see a car coming when I get up to a stop sign with objects in the way. I would have to slowly inch up until I can see the road clearly. The mirrors are bigger than the original is300 so you can see what is behind you and the design makes it look very sporty. The puddle lamps come on under the mirror as you walk by the sensors. I wish the steering wheel was more adjustable. It just doesn’t seem high enough for me. My right leg always has to squeeze under the steering wheel every time I get into the car.
I did not get the Mark Levinson audio package like I should have, but I got the navigation package. It is true that once you get navigation you have to get it in every vehicle you own from now on. I am always finding myself using the navigation even if it is just going to McDonalds. Sometimes the route guidance is way off, but for the most part it is on point. I still have not used the AUX port yet, but it has to be better than using an FM modulator. One of biggest gripes is that most of the controls cannot be used while driving. An in-dash 6 disc CD changer is standard equipment, but it also plays mp3/wma CD’s. The car also has 13 speakers which is an upgrade from the 6 that the is300 had. All the doors have 3 speakers, but then I don’t know if the last one is located in the front or in the back. I use the Bluetooth feature a lot and it is better than the $120 headset I bought for my phone. I have a Motorola H700 headset that looks nice but I get a lot of static with it, but when my Blade is paired with the car, there is no static. I wish my phone was supported so I can see the status of my phone on the screen but I will live. The back up camera is very useful for parallel parking because I am not so good at it. I got this quote from Kermee from clublexus.com and found it funny:
“Speaking of things we *like* and the new 5G NAV, POI Icons are scary... I turned on "Restaurants" and while randomly driving... A "Krispy Kreme" logo appeared on my screen. 15 minutes later, I was about $6 poorer and was looking for the "Gym" POI list.
Performance
Lexus keeps the winning formula and improves it.
The original IS used the straight-6 that has been in the Toyota family for a while. The new IS has a 3.5l v6 that has aluminum head and block and is so sophisticated that I don’t understand it all. They finally got rid of the engine prop stick for gas struts to support the hood. This was one of my major complaints for a luxury car. Under the hood is 306hp and 277lb torque that is plenty for the average person. I thought a v6 would free up some room, but it looks really cramped up in there. There is plastic covering everything under the hood. It is suppose to help the air flow through the engine more efficiently. Once you take off the engine cover, it looks really complicated. The intake assembly is made of plastic so it will not absorb heat and there are plugs poking out of the head everywhere. At idle, the new engine makes more noise than the original, but as the revs climb over 3000rpms the engine purrs all the way up to redline. The old inline-6 was way too quiet and hums to redline. Step on the pedal from a complete stop and this car hauls ***. The power delivery feels like my supercharged is300 but less of a rush. Throw on intake, headers, and exhaust and the is350 will probably have as much power as my old is300.The weight distribution is 52/48 now. That is two percent more towards the rear for more balance than the is300. Fuel economy has improved too with the new v6. It is rated 21/29mpg which is a lot better than the 18/25mpg that was with the 3.0 inline-6.
The brakes are huge on this car. The brake sizes are 13.15/12.2in for the front and rear for the is350 while the original has 11.65/12.09in. All four corners have ventilated brakes this time while the original had solid brakes in the back. These brakes bite hard but sometimes it bites whenever I don’t want it to. I am having a hard time modulating the brake pedal because when I am coming to a stop I don’t feel nothing while depressing the pedal then all of a suddenly it is nose diving into the pavement. I have let a couple of my buddies drive my car also and they complained of the same issue also. I have owned this car for two weeks and I am not use to them yet. There is also a lot dust coming from the brake pads in the huge four piston calipers up front. I seem to be spraying it off the wheels every week since it turns my rims black during the week. I really hope it does not mean I have to change the pads after 10,000 miles like on a certain competitor. I have not changed the ones in my is300 yet and it had 40,000 miles on it before the accident. I have made one emergency stop in this car and it stopped on a dime. The brakes on the is300 were good, but the ones on the is350 are even better. The only complaint is the 'feel' of the brakes needs to be improved to me.
The handling in this car is almost like the original is300 even though I have the non-sport package model. There is a lot less body roll than the is300 which can be felt even on slow corners. The ride height of the sports package and the is300 is the same. The is350 weighs about 300 pounds more and I can feel that extra weight around the corners, but it still feels very nimble on its feet. There is plenty of grip with the tire package with an extra inch of width in the front and one and a half inches in the back than the is300. I have also made the Dunlops squeal quite a bit on hard cornering. VDIM has only kicked in on me a couple times and it didn't feel like it intruded on me too badly when I took a corner too fast. When I did try to kick the back end out on myself, the car would begin to slide and VDIM stopped me before I could have any real fun. I do plan on taking this car to a road track in June to test out the capabilities of this vehicle.
I do not like auto transmissions. This car is no exception. The paddle shifters are slow at their job and the shifts in either mode are jerkier than I would do with a manual transmission. The car also starts in first gear instead of second in the E-shift is300's. When using the paddle shifters, I wish the transmission would blip the throttle when I am downshifting. I always end up jerking the car right before the corner downshifting from 4th to second. I do like having six gears though. In the old is300, traveling at 70mph was at a little above 3k rpm. The new model at 70mph is just under 2.5k rpm. It is great to have the engine purring instead of screaming while on the highway this time around. I wish an aftermarket tuner will come out with something to make the shifts more aggressive so I can enjoy this car more. The transmission is completely sealed so it does not require service and can only be done by a Certified Lexus mechanic.
Closing statements
The lack of a manual transmission was a big turn off for me. Also the vehicle should have came with stock HID’s like the original IS. The moon roof panel is making a lot of squeaking noise that is also annoying. The TRAC and ECT switches are behind the steering wheel which is inconvenient to make changes while driving. I also would like a hand brake instead of the foot brake. This is a sporty car so pulling those 180’s would be a lot easier with a hand brake up near the center console. VDIM isn't bad for everyday driving, but I think it will get in the way when I take it to the track in June. The rear seats like the original is300 are pretty cramped. It is suppose to have grown by about half an inch, but I do not see it. Tire pressure monitor is also new this time around. I wish it would give an actual reading than a warning for being low. The car also comes with a donut instead of a full size spare. I guess that's a good thing we have road side assistance to come to the rescue because I don't want to ride around with that yellow donut. Other than the empty bank account and the few minor quirks, this car has been good to me. Like the original IS I hope this car puts a smile on my face everyday because that feeling never went away like it has for some people with other cars. My car and I are still in our honeymoon stage, but I don’t think there will be any other problems.
My is300 was totaled on February 18th this year. She was barely 3 years old and hasn't seen a real race track. I got my new Onyx Black is350 April 13 nearly 2 months after that accident. The transition to the new car fitted like a glove. I still cannot believe I am driving this car because it was very hard to find it with Onyx Black with black leather. Even though this car is more luxurious, I think in every way this car is an improvement over the outgoing car. Lexus had taken it's first shot with the is300 6 years ago and missed, but this time they got it right on the money.
Smart Access
A feature to be standard on all Lexus vehicles is the Smart Access. I love this new feature since I am a lazy person and it is really cool to show this off. Just walk up to the door and put your hand on the handle and the sensor will unlock the door. The button outside the two front doors locks the doors so you don’t have to take the key fob out of the pockets. I am usually carrying equipment for work to my car everyday and not having to put stuff down and digging in my pockets to grab the keys to open the doors or trunk is very convenient. The engine start button is quite nice too. Just pressing that button is a joy everytime I start the car. I wish there was a way to just turn off the engine and leaving the electronics in the car on because I find myself stopping somewhere and waiting a couple minutes. I don't like to turn the car off and pressing the button again to listen to the radio while waiting for somebody. A nice little feature is the outer foot lights and the lights above the license plate turn on when the sensors pick up the key fob. Also if you hold down the unlock button the key fob, it will roll down the windows and open up the moon roof.
Exterior
Everything in this car has been improved. It seems like lexus stuck the original is300 with tons of steroids because the car looks like it has put on some muscles and it is three inches wider and longer and the wheelbase has stretched a little bit. The high belt line gives the car its aggressive looks that really makes the car stand out. The projector headlights give the car a more appealing look. It is also nice that Lexus always has fog lights as standard equipment. I do miss the yellow fogs but I think the white ones will do. Gone are the ricer trend setting taillights for the aerodynamically sloping LED lights in the back that help air pass more quickly. I also would like to say that Lexus should have not placed the reflectors on the rear bumper. It destroys the flow of the back of the car and looks tacky to me. The front end looks aggressive and it says rawr. There are no side moldings so the car looks sleek. I really like where Lexus is going with the L-Finesse look. The washer fluid shoots out from under the hood instead of having the nozzles on the hood like the original. When cleaning the windshield, the wipers will do a final pass after about 5 seconds to get the excess fluid off the glass. I thought this was a very smart feature. One little detail that I appreciate since I detail my car a lot is that there is no lining around both front and rear windshields. Applying wax around this area has always been a pain for me and this was really nice.
Interior
I think Lexus stole some top notch cows and skinned them to use in the new IS. The leather is so much nicer this time around compared to the hard brittle leather found in the original car. I could fall asleep in these seats without knowing it. I have also heard complaints that people have been getting wear and tear only after 2000 miles of owning the car so that might be the trade off for the soft leather. I think I would have preferred the escaine from my original car because it holds me a lot better than the leather seats, but the new seats are have better side bolsters than the is300 that hold the driver well in place. I also wish the front headrest would tilt. I usually have it forward in the is300 because my head is not comfortable all the way back. I drove this car back to Atlanta and there was no discomfort for the 5 hours of driving. The only thing on my mind during that time was what music to listen to. The other half of the drive I had one of my buddies drive and I drifted into a nap at times. I also have heated/ventilated seats as part of the premium package. I haven’t tested the heated option yet because it has been a little too hot, but ventilated seats feels like you are peeing in your pants. It’s a weird feeling, but you get use to it. The LED interior lights are very nice in this car. Whenever you turn it on, it doesn’t distract anybody else in the car which is a plus.
The steering wheel feels great. It’s a little thicker, smaller than the outgoing model and is soft to the touch this time around. The steering is heavy just the way I like it. It is not too soft where you can jerk it around or too heavy where your arms will get tired. Lexus is right on point with this point and I prefer this over the BMW’s 3 series. The paddle shifters are also in the right spot. They do not get in the way when you are in “D” mode and they can be easily reached when you are in “S” mode. The steering wheel controls are also a plus in the convenience department. I don’t use the audio controls that much but the Bluetooth function is a winner with me. Looking past the steering wheel are the new Electroluminescent Gauges. I do miss the orange backlit gauges in the is300, but the new optitron gauges are more luxurious. The lights are not bright enough that it will strain the eyes either. The moon roof controls are nice this time around since it has preset positions, but I always find myself pressing the auto button most of the time. All the windows are auto so they can go all the way up and down. It is better than having to hold the buttons to roll them up all the way. The dash looks nice until you get to the passenger side. It looks very plain like the designer’s mind went blank and just left it alone. The rearview mirror shakes with a little bass or even with the slightest uneven pavement. The lights under the dash are a nice amenity too. The visibility through the rear glass seems more limited in the new is350, but I have back up camera that comes on when shifted into reverse. The pillars in the car are also huge so looking back to check for vehicles in the blind spots is very hard. The A-pillar is very blinding because I have been in two situations where I cannot see a car coming when I get up to a stop sign with objects in the way. I would have to slowly inch up until I can see the road clearly. The mirrors are bigger than the original is300 so you can see what is behind you and the design makes it look very sporty. The puddle lamps come on under the mirror as you walk by the sensors. I wish the steering wheel was more adjustable. It just doesn’t seem high enough for me. My right leg always has to squeeze under the steering wheel every time I get into the car.
I did not get the Mark Levinson audio package like I should have, but I got the navigation package. It is true that once you get navigation you have to get it in every vehicle you own from now on. I am always finding myself using the navigation even if it is just going to McDonalds. Sometimes the route guidance is way off, but for the most part it is on point. I still have not used the AUX port yet, but it has to be better than using an FM modulator. One of biggest gripes is that most of the controls cannot be used while driving. An in-dash 6 disc CD changer is standard equipment, but it also plays mp3/wma CD’s. The car also has 13 speakers which is an upgrade from the 6 that the is300 had. All the doors have 3 speakers, but then I don’t know if the last one is located in the front or in the back. I use the Bluetooth feature a lot and it is better than the $120 headset I bought for my phone. I have a Motorola H700 headset that looks nice but I get a lot of static with it, but when my Blade is paired with the car, there is no static. I wish my phone was supported so I can see the status of my phone on the screen but I will live. The back up camera is very useful for parallel parking because I am not so good at it. I got this quote from Kermee from clublexus.com and found it funny:
“Speaking of things we *like* and the new 5G NAV, POI Icons are scary... I turned on "Restaurants" and while randomly driving... A "Krispy Kreme" logo appeared on my screen. 15 minutes later, I was about $6 poorer and was looking for the "Gym" POI list.
Performance
Lexus keeps the winning formula and improves it.
The original IS used the straight-6 that has been in the Toyota family for a while. The new IS has a 3.5l v6 that has aluminum head and block and is so sophisticated that I don’t understand it all. They finally got rid of the engine prop stick for gas struts to support the hood. This was one of my major complaints for a luxury car. Under the hood is 306hp and 277lb torque that is plenty for the average person. I thought a v6 would free up some room, but it looks really cramped up in there. There is plastic covering everything under the hood. It is suppose to help the air flow through the engine more efficiently. Once you take off the engine cover, it looks really complicated. The intake assembly is made of plastic so it will not absorb heat and there are plugs poking out of the head everywhere. At idle, the new engine makes more noise than the original, but as the revs climb over 3000rpms the engine purrs all the way up to redline. The old inline-6 was way too quiet and hums to redline. Step on the pedal from a complete stop and this car hauls ***. The power delivery feels like my supercharged is300 but less of a rush. Throw on intake, headers, and exhaust and the is350 will probably have as much power as my old is300.The weight distribution is 52/48 now. That is two percent more towards the rear for more balance than the is300. Fuel economy has improved too with the new v6. It is rated 21/29mpg which is a lot better than the 18/25mpg that was with the 3.0 inline-6.
The brakes are huge on this car. The brake sizes are 13.15/12.2in for the front and rear for the is350 while the original has 11.65/12.09in. All four corners have ventilated brakes this time while the original had solid brakes in the back. These brakes bite hard but sometimes it bites whenever I don’t want it to. I am having a hard time modulating the brake pedal because when I am coming to a stop I don’t feel nothing while depressing the pedal then all of a suddenly it is nose diving into the pavement. I have let a couple of my buddies drive my car also and they complained of the same issue also. I have owned this car for two weeks and I am not use to them yet. There is also a lot dust coming from the brake pads in the huge four piston calipers up front. I seem to be spraying it off the wheels every week since it turns my rims black during the week. I really hope it does not mean I have to change the pads after 10,000 miles like on a certain competitor. I have not changed the ones in my is300 yet and it had 40,000 miles on it before the accident. I have made one emergency stop in this car and it stopped on a dime. The brakes on the is300 were good, but the ones on the is350 are even better. The only complaint is the 'feel' of the brakes needs to be improved to me.
The handling in this car is almost like the original is300 even though I have the non-sport package model. There is a lot less body roll than the is300 which can be felt even on slow corners. The ride height of the sports package and the is300 is the same. The is350 weighs about 300 pounds more and I can feel that extra weight around the corners, but it still feels very nimble on its feet. There is plenty of grip with the tire package with an extra inch of width in the front and one and a half inches in the back than the is300. I have also made the Dunlops squeal quite a bit on hard cornering. VDIM has only kicked in on me a couple times and it didn't feel like it intruded on me too badly when I took a corner too fast. When I did try to kick the back end out on myself, the car would begin to slide and VDIM stopped me before I could have any real fun. I do plan on taking this car to a road track in June to test out the capabilities of this vehicle.
I do not like auto transmissions. This car is no exception. The paddle shifters are slow at their job and the shifts in either mode are jerkier than I would do with a manual transmission. The car also starts in first gear instead of second in the E-shift is300's. When using the paddle shifters, I wish the transmission would blip the throttle when I am downshifting. I always end up jerking the car right before the corner downshifting from 4th to second. I do like having six gears though. In the old is300, traveling at 70mph was at a little above 3k rpm. The new model at 70mph is just under 2.5k rpm. It is great to have the engine purring instead of screaming while on the highway this time around. I wish an aftermarket tuner will come out with something to make the shifts more aggressive so I can enjoy this car more. The transmission is completely sealed so it does not require service and can only be done by a Certified Lexus mechanic.
Closing statements
The lack of a manual transmission was a big turn off for me. Also the vehicle should have came with stock HID’s like the original IS. The moon roof panel is making a lot of squeaking noise that is also annoying. The TRAC and ECT switches are behind the steering wheel which is inconvenient to make changes while driving. I also would like a hand brake instead of the foot brake. This is a sporty car so pulling those 180’s would be a lot easier with a hand brake up near the center console. VDIM isn't bad for everyday driving, but I think it will get in the way when I take it to the track in June. The rear seats like the original is300 are pretty cramped. It is suppose to have grown by about half an inch, but I do not see it. Tire pressure monitor is also new this time around. I wish it would give an actual reading than a warning for being low. The car also comes with a donut instead of a full size spare. I guess that's a good thing we have road side assistance to come to the rescue because I don't want to ride around with that yellow donut. Other than the empty bank account and the few minor quirks, this car has been good to me. Like the original IS I hope this car puts a smile on my face everyday because that feeling never went away like it has for some people with other cars. My car and I are still in our honeymoon stage, but I don’t think there will be any other problems.
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11-15-05 06:11 PM
