CBG

Lexus does make a high horsepower car the ISF. That car puts out like 415 hp or something close to that.

jimmer!

no, don't do it man!
step away from the ledge!

0nePutt

what ever you decide to do stay away from Benz. their reliablility is awful. im surprised you want to switch companies. you wont be as satisfied with BMW either.

here these are the latest JD Power Vehicle dependability ratings. (click on the overall dependability arrow and scroll down. it goes from worst to best downwards)

http://www.jdpower.com/autos/ratings...tings-by-brand

LeslieRC

Horsepower was the deciding factor for me when I switched a few years ago from my `04 SC430 to a 645cic, and I was impressed and pleasantly surprised to find that in addition to the exponential power (as compared to the SC) the BMW actually had more luxury features. Although the SC was very faithful to the Lexus reputation for quality, I haven't looked back since then and in fact now own an `08 M6 convertible. I think all of the talk about brand quality is meaningless and even disingenuous for the generation of cars on the market today. Cars made by the luxury and performance car manufacturers such as Lexus, Mercedes, BMW, Audi, and Cadillac are ALL brilliant. To place one car or manufacturer over another in this class is nuts. So, if one is considering between an SC430, M3, M5, or CTS-V, I would say great choices all, test drive them, and determine which one suits you best.

Dan_K

iTrader: (1)

I just went through the same thing and pulled the trigger on a M3. I thought about an M5 especially the lease returns but I was told that the '06s are the worst production year of the E60 M5s. Otherwise, at the time of shopping, no dealer in the area had brand new M5s. I'll admit, there were plenty of '08s in manual but I felt that an M5 should be a blend of performance an luxury and wanted the SMG. On top of that, the '09s had not come in yet. As for the CTS-V, they did not want to deal with me unless I was willing to pay over sticker. Same story for the C63.

I'm still breaking the car in but more than the power, the difference in handling is significant. I will admit however, that the interior quality and comfort is MUCH higher in the Lexus. After driving the M3 for a week, I drove the Lexus and all I could say was "wow"! It was so much more inviting. It was like sitting in a Barcalounger as opposed to your average office chair.

As btwanky stated, consider the M3 convertible if you still want the open top experience. There are plenty of '08 M3 convertibles still around and you can get them for a great price.

0nePutt

IMO the BMW leather is very stiff compared to the Lexus leather too

pagemaster

I would keep the SC.