What is so great about the is350
02-23-11, 04:04 PM
#47
Lead Lap
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: MI
Posts: 562
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
from what i've read and seen on here, i don't think so. Mainly bolt ons like intake, exhaust, headers, midpipe. There have been a few supercharger kits though, but they've been either one-off or out of production or just too expensive that it's not worth it for most.
Last edited by raptor22; 02-23-11 at 04:17 PM.
02-23-11, 04:21 PM
#48
Lexus Champion
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: California
Posts: 1,832
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I really can't do comparison from IS350 to Audi S4 because I haven't driven the latter one. But I can tell you why IS350 is so great. First, it is soooooo good looking stock. Second, it would be super good looking after modifying. Third, it has excellent fit and finish and very well built so don't need to worry about leaving it at shop more often than at home. Fourth, it is sufficiently sporty except a bit of light steering feel at very slow speed(parking lot speed). Fifth, it is quiet and comfortable enough for a sports sedan, only a bit bumpy on bad pavement. Sixth, Lots of features inside the car so not much to ask for. Seventh, it is a Lexus so feel good driving it, and wouldn't get jealous even seeing a new Benz on the street. Eighth, fast. Ninth, you can get a relatively good deal since it is almost the end of its life cycle. Final, oh yeahhhhhh it is very good looking from the front, from the rear, from the side, from the top, from inside, from close or far away from it, from real life or in picture, from Mars and from Neptune.......
02-23-11, 04:33 PM
#49
11.8:1 compression is a *****.
In a couple months the 2IS will have been in production for 6 years, and there remains pretty much 0 available beyond the basic bolt ons... all of which combined only add 25-30 hp.
You'll still occasionally see the one-off $6000-8000 supercharger or nitrous application that adds 40-60 hp (and honestly there's some money to be made for anyone who develops an idiot-proof bolt-on nitrous kit for the car... not a ton, but some)... but that's about it.
I'm sure one COULD made some more power tearing open the motor and using custom low-compression pistons and whatnot, but you'd end up spending twice what having simply bought an IS-F instead would cost, and possibly a lot more from blown motors since nobody knows what the cylinder walls will hold and nobody is sure on the proper shape for a LC piston to work with the DI system, or how to muck with the fuel system much... so don't hold your breath for much of that either.
The 350 is already a quick car for its initial cost. If it's not quick enough a used IS-F ain't a bad deal either.
Last edited by Kurtz; 02-23-11 at 04:36 PM.
02-23-11, 06:17 PM
#50
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
S4 pros:
-availability of performance mods
-slightly more powerful acceleration 0-100, even in stock form
S4 cons:
-relatively poorer reliability
-aesthetics (to you, at least)
-poorer gas mileage
The IS350 is a low to mid 13 second car (1/4 mile), 0 to 60 = 4.9 on average. That's what you're going to get. You won't get any faster than that.
The S4 is probably a tenth of a second quicker in both fronts (1/4 mile and 0 to 60), but like you said there are performance modifications available.
The IS350 gets better gas mileage and is going to be a more reliable car. The IS350 only comes in automatic transmission. The paddles aren't shifters. If you want the ability to shift your car (with paddle shifters) you need to look to the ISF. If that's out of your price range, then you're out of luck. The IS350 is a fully automatic car for all intents and purposes.
The IS350 gives you better gas mileage, superior reliability, and better aesthetics (for you). Maintenance and cost of ownership will be cheaper with the IS350.
The S4 gives you slightly more powerful acceleration in stock form, though you have the ability to significantly increase performance later on if you want. You also have the option to drive a manual car if that matters to you. The reliability is poorer and the cost of ownership is greater than that of the IS350.
It's up to you to weigh those factors. Performance and modification potential might far exceed the benefits of superior gas mileage/reliability/cheaper cost of ownership/aesthetics for you. It's totally up to you to decide.
-availability of performance mods
-slightly more powerful acceleration 0-100, even in stock form
S4 cons:
-relatively poorer reliability
-aesthetics (to you, at least)
-poorer gas mileage
The IS350 is a low to mid 13 second car (1/4 mile), 0 to 60 = 4.9 on average. That's what you're going to get. You won't get any faster than that.
The S4 is probably a tenth of a second quicker in both fronts (1/4 mile and 0 to 60), but like you said there are performance modifications available.
The IS350 gets better gas mileage and is going to be a more reliable car. The IS350 only comes in automatic transmission. The paddles aren't shifters. If you want the ability to shift your car (with paddle shifters) you need to look to the ISF. If that's out of your price range, then you're out of luck. The IS350 is a fully automatic car for all intents and purposes.
The IS350 gives you better gas mileage, superior reliability, and better aesthetics (for you). Maintenance and cost of ownership will be cheaper with the IS350.
The S4 gives you slightly more powerful acceleration in stock form, though you have the ability to significantly increase performance later on if you want. You also have the option to drive a manual car if that matters to you. The reliability is poorer and the cost of ownership is greater than that of the IS350.
It's up to you to weigh those factors. Performance and modification potential might far exceed the benefits of superior gas mileage/reliability/cheaper cost of ownership/aesthetics for you. It's totally up to you to decide.
02-23-11, 06:47 PM
#52
02-23-11, 07:42 PM
#55
Practically speaking, they are almost entirely useless for daily driving, so you shouldn't really consider the paddles as a potential positive or negative for the IS350. You might as well just imagine that they don't even exist when determining whether or not the IS350 is a right fit for you.
The paddles are gear limiters. They give you the capability to set the range of gears (1 through X, where X can be 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6) that you want the automatic transmission to work within.
If you paddle down to "5", the IS350 is now a fully automatic car where the maximum allowed gear is "5." That's it. That's all the paddles do. If you paddle down to "5" and cruise at 70 MPH, you will be in 5th gear (by the automatic transmission's choosing, not by your choosing). If you then stomp down on the accelerator, the automatic transmission will automatically shift you into 3rd (from 5th). The only thing the paddles let you do is set the maximum allowed gear. For 99% of daily driving, the paddles are utterly worthless because having the ability to set the range of gears simply isn't useful or practical.
The paddles are gear limiters. They give you the capability to set the range of gears (1 through X, where X can be 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6) that you want the automatic transmission to work within.
If you paddle down to "5", the IS350 is now a fully automatic car where the maximum allowed gear is "5." That's it. That's all the paddles do. If you paddle down to "5" and cruise at 70 MPH, you will be in 5th gear (by the automatic transmission's choosing, not by your choosing). If you then stomp down on the accelerator, the automatic transmission will automatically shift you into 3rd (from 5th). The only thing the paddles let you do is set the maximum allowed gear. For 99% of daily driving, the paddles are utterly worthless because having the ability to set the range of gears simply isn't useful or practical.
02-23-11, 07:59 PM
#56
Lexus Test Driver
Practically speaking, they are almost entirely useless for daily driving, so you shouldn't really consider the paddles as a potential positive or negative for the IS350. You might as well just imagine that they don't even exist when determining whether or not the IS350 is a right fit for you.
The paddles are gear limiters. They give you the capability to set the range of gears (1 through X, where X can be 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6) that you want the automatic transmission to work within.
If you paddle down to "5", the IS350 is now a fully automatic car where the maximum allowed gear is "5." That's it. That's all the paddles do. If you paddle down to "5" and cruise at 70 MPH, you will be in 5th gear (by the automatic transmission's choosing, not by your choosing). If you then stomp down on the accelerator, the automatic transmission will automatically shift you into 3rd (from 5th). The only thing the paddles let you do is set the maximum allowed gear. For 99% of daily driving, the paddles are utterly worthless because having the ability to set the range of gears simply isn't useful or practical.
The paddles are gear limiters. They give you the capability to set the range of gears (1 through X, where X can be 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6) that you want the automatic transmission to work within.
If you paddle down to "5", the IS350 is now a fully automatic car where the maximum allowed gear is "5." That's it. That's all the paddles do. If you paddle down to "5" and cruise at 70 MPH, you will be in 5th gear (by the automatic transmission's choosing, not by your choosing). If you then stomp down on the accelerator, the automatic transmission will automatically shift you into 3rd (from 5th). The only thing the paddles let you do is set the maximum allowed gear. For 99% of daily driving, the paddles are utterly worthless because having the ability to set the range of gears simply isn't useful or practical.
Yes, from the operation point of view, the way the paddles are designed by Lexus is the extension of the idea of the traditional automatic with the overdrive gear. However, once you get use to it, you can actually make it like it stays on a gear. To me, if staying in "D" for the IS350, the power/torque is not fully and properly utilized as the car up-shifts too quick for smoothness.
Of course for people who switch between "D" and the "S", the paddles are not practical. It sucks when you are in "D" mode, crusing and want to down shift to 4th gear when you shift to "S".
So it works well for people like me who stay in paddles all the time.
02-24-11, 06:31 AM
#57
I beg to differ as I have been using the paddles every day, 100% of driving time since I got the car a few years ago.
Yes, from the operation point of view, the way the paddles are designed by Lexus is the extension of the idea of the traditional automatic with the overdrive gear. However, once you get use to it, you can actually make it like it stays on a gear.
Yes, from the operation point of view, the way the paddles are designed by Lexus is the extension of the idea of the traditional automatic with the overdrive gear. However, once you get use to it, you can actually make it like it stays on a gear.
Unless you leave it in 1 all the time anyway.
The only thing you can ever do with the paddles is lock out higher gears entirely.
It won't "hold" any specific gear within the range the paddles allow it.
(ie you can't ever make the car "hold" 3rd gear... it'll use 1, 2, and 3 automatically if it's in S-3).
The IS-F has actual paddle shifters, and if you put it in M-3 it stays in 3rd gear. The ISx50 is incapable of this sort of behavior.
Now, if you're rarely going over the speed limit you could just leave it in S-3 all the time I guess and you'd avoid the wait to downshift from 5-3 when you floor it to pass at 40 mph or something... but your mileage would suck if you drove like that all the time...and it'd be revving awfully high on the highway too...and it still wouldn't ever "hold" a gear....
02-24-11, 11:44 AM
#59
my wife actually likes driving in S mode because the extra engine braking allows her to modulate her speed using the gas pedal i.e. take your foot off and the car starts slowing down. In D, you take your foot off going 60km/h and it stays at that speed for at least 50 meters before it starts slowing down. Good for gas I guess but she felt like she was going to rear end somebody someday. Now she puts it in S, then upshifts to 6 and it feels more like our old acura (decelleration wise) which we drove for 14 years...
Last edited by embolism; 02-24-11 at 12:10 PM. Reason: incorrect usage of the word torque
02-24-11, 11:58 AM
#60
my wife actually likes driving in S mode because the extra torque allows her to modulate her speed using the gas pedal i.e. take your foot off and the car starts slowing down. In D, you take your foot off going 60km/h and it stays at that speed way for at least 50 meters before it starts slowing down. Good for gas I guess but she felt like she was going to rear end somebody someday. Now she puts it in S, then upshifts to 6 and it feels more like our old acura (decelleration wise) which we drove for 14 years...
you get exactly the same hp and torque to the wheels in either mode.