MamadIS

Hey guys,

I just joined this forum and this is my first post. Currently I have a 2002 BMW 330ci and I am looking to buy a used IS350 (one of my top options, the other one is 2006 bmw 330i). so last i test drove a 2006 obsidian black IS350 with some nice 18" Tenzo mono block rims. The car was fully loaded with greyish interior in very decent condition. In this thread i am going to compare it to my 02 330ci. Everything that i am going to mention here is my opinion and you guys might have a different one.

first let me start by going over the exterior stuff. I loved the look on this car with those rims and i prefer it over my car even-though mine is a coupe . IS just looks more muscular cause it is quite a bit wider than my car. ride height was very nice and overall looked very aggressive. so in this category it wins hands down compared to the options that i am considering.

Now lets get into the interior. Again there is no doubt that lexus interior is one of the most well thought designed interiors. material was very nice, leather was way better than my bmw, seats were a lot more comfortable, tons of features, and everything was within reach. I loved the steering shape and design with the paddles, it felt very sporty. one thing i noticed was that under hard acceleration the cabin was not as quite as my car. Again, interior goes to lexus,no doubt about that.

now its time to get into the real stuff and that is the drive and performance. I noticed that the throttle was quite a bit more responsive on low speeds which is nice but the first time i floored it (going about 40km/h) it took quite a bit of time for it to pick up. I think the transmission didn't down shift properly for some reason which was disappointing. did I do something wrong here? in my 330 when i am in the right gear and i punch it, it jumps aggressively. i think this is because of the auto transmission that is veryslow in changing gears. After this i switched to the paddles and i really liked those even-though everyone thinks they are useless. however, overall it didn't feel it has 306 hp. when i drove my friends bmw 335i it felt quite a bit faster than the IS. this might be due to turbos and available torque through the curve band on the bimmer. Overall performance wise it was nice and i know it is faster than my car for sure but i was expecting a bit more. May be i need to learn how to drive an auto properly but any tips in this area would help cause i am going back to test drive it one more time.

Finally, lets talk about the handling and feedback that you get from steering when you're driving an IS. Now you might not understand what am i about to tell you unless you've driven a bmw before. this is where the bmw wins by hugeeeeeeeeeeeeeee margin. absolutely no feedback from the steering in the IS. I never understood this point until last night when i test drove this car. as soon as i got back into my bimmer i noticed this point. i dont know what lexus did to this steering that it just feels so isolated from the road. is there anyways this can be improved with aftermarket parts? i really don't know what to say anymore but spend some time behind a bimmer steering and you'll get my point (i am gonna get flamed on this ).

In conclusion, i liked everything about this car except handling and steering feedback. if i was comparing this to a 335i, 335i was a clear winner in my book. however i am comparing this to a 330i and IS wins in every category except the feedback. if this car had a manual or dual clutch transmission things would be quite a bit different when comparing to 335i or other cars. so i am going to test a drive a 330i very soon and will make my decision by the end of this week. I am going to test drive this again so any tips would be appreciated. I am %90 sure that i'll buy this car due to the following reasons:

1) it looks great and the interior design and material is excellent
2) its a lexus so it is more reliable than a bmw when you're out of warranty
3) it will depreciate less compared to a bmw

hope to see you guys soon cause once i get this bad boy the modding will begin

xnfsx

iTrader: (3)

Comparing from my 250 against my sisters 328, the responsiveness of the throttle is definitely a factor. BMW has more of a response even when i shift it to sport more and use the shifters. The ride on the BMW is a bit rougher but its stable and keeps the car to the floor with minimal body roll. I upgraded my stock suspensions to coils and installed a rear sway bar, the ride now is almost like the bmw, EXCEPT for the throttle responsiveness, and steering wheel feedback. But the mods gave the car less understeer and a lot less body roll. Try the car with ECT Pwr on. I drive with it all the time. It gives more of a responsive kick when you step on the pedal.

BLexodus

iTrader: (1)

The three reasons you mentioned at the bottom are good ones.

Driving with the ECT PWR on should fix the throttle response issue.

I dont understand the BMW experience so the IS350 wins out for me. In the end its up to you!

yangster

You're absolutely right on with your analysis. I don't know about the older cars, but I had an '09 335i and my wife has an '11 IS350C. Both cars are great cars. The way I would compare them is that the Germans are more about the "driving experience" whereas the Lexus is more about luxury. I know when I had my 335i, it felt like it was on rails. Great handling and feel. Check out the 0-60 times and you'll be surprised. I know I was. There are several threads here comparing the two cars.

xnfsx

iTrader: (3)

^he is right, the germans are all about performance. i know a handful of people with 335i put a jb3 in and abuse the crap out of their 335i's, in the end, they have to spend a few thousand to replace the high pressure fuel pump cause it cant handle the extra power that the engine produces. If you keep it well maintained, its a great fun car to drive. Lexus on the otherhand is all about luxury. It shows exterior and interior, even in the engine, its quiet. But if your looking for better handling and still want the luxurious look and feel, do what i did, upgrade the suspensions and add a sway bar. I use to have an e39 528i, i loved the handling/response on that car, it had 190 hp but it felt way more than my is250 (204 hp), most likely because it had more torque.

cloo7

welcome to the forum... nice 1st post... it's very logical and not bias.

dmk08

So I know what you're talking about coming from an Audi S4. The "german feel". After putting my f-sport suspension on I'm close to that but still not quite.

Turning on ETC PWR and turning off traction control (hold the button for 7 seconds) will give the car new life. I thought it was a turd at first too until I did those two things. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong but I think it's over 1/2 a second in the 1/4 mile times difference. The car is quick as they run low 13s and right at 5-seconds to 60.

kannon

iTrader: (1)

You can improve the suspension of the is but even then the steering feel will never come close to some of the better German cars.

Kurtz

iTrader: (1)

It's that much a difference for traction control.

ECT-Power actually slows the car down in a floor-it-from-0 drag race. ECT-Normal is faster.

ECT-Power is useful in part or on/off throttle driving though, which seem to be the conditions the OP was concerned with.

MamadIS

thanks for the tips guys, i'll try the ect next time see if it makes a difference. i gotta be honest, if i had this post in a bimmer forum i would have been flamed by now . i like the fact that you guys are logical and not biased like most bimmer fans. regarding the throttle response, it is funny that in bmw throttle response is horrible at low rpm but good at around 4000rpm. in the lexus i felt it was the other way around; although with paddle shifters as long as i am in the right gear the response was pretty good.

dmk08

Why is it slower from the start in ETC-Pwr? Just wondering.

Kurtz

iTrader: (1)

Because ECT-Power will shift at a lower rpm than ECT-Normal will, as proven by datalogging the car.

For exactly what ECT power actually does see here- as you can see it's only really useful in higher gears and coming on/off the gas... not drag racing:

calvin2376

iTrader: (2)

Check out this thread for potential buyers of used IS350s: https://www.clublexus.com/forums/is-...e-threads.html

At the bottom it also includes links to threads that compare the IS to other cars, including the 335i.

sr20mofo

iTrader: (10)

throttle response... switch to ECT-pwr mode

handling... get rear fsport sways, coils, steering damper

MamadIS

Very nice thread;that is exactly what i have been looking for. I just called the lexus dealership where the car was originally bought from and they are not giving me any info on past service records. do you guys know how i can get that stuff? the car was traded in at hyundai dealership and those guys don't have the records (that is what they're claiming).