the interior of all places is where you're focusing? do you like to smother yourself in a sea of candy apple red plastics?

 

While the color of the new red interior is arguably a bit too loud for a normal IS, I think the attention to detail and quality of assembly in the interior will remain. You can always order it in black.

With my IS, I was really spoiled by the interior. I remember getting in my buddy's 335i, and another's Stinger, and feeling a bit "meh" about the BMW and only mildly impressed with the Kia, mainly because of the badge. I expect the IS to continue to have a decent interior, though some years have come and gone since its introduction, making it somewhat more dated than the more recently-refreshed competition.

 

oh, i have no doubt that the fit and finish is going to remain excellent. what bugs me about the interior is the loss of a more subdued wine-colored red (it is called rioja red for a reason) to this extremely bright fire engine red for who knows what reason and also it's ALL over the place.

aside from that, i disagree that the new IS looks better than the new TLX - between the front ends of both cars, the IS isn't to my taste. again, this is subjective, that being said, the TLX has been widely positively received by automotive journalists, the IS, not so much.

also, lexus' inability to innovate or inability to innovate quickly enough is going to be a total detriment as you just can't get on on reliability/dependability and fit and finish alone. younger people who are going to want the latest tech and great performance are going to switch brands. at the very least, the IS could have been released NOW with the NA V8 but for whatever reason lexus may or may not release the car in this configuration in the future when the model is already ancient and the drivetrain is prehistoric.

so going from the best of the best in terms of reliability and dependability to just the best in terms of reliability WITH innovation doesn't pose as a problem for me at all.

don't get me wrong, i love lexus. i love my IS, but i don't love it enough to keep it forever. if i had an LC, sure, i might keep it forever, but the IS is an entry-level luxury sedan. millions are made. not special, not worth keeping in my case. what i don't understand are the super fanboys who won't at all accept any criticism of a product or a brand. i mean, the product is just that, a product, and a brand is just a manufacturer - sometimes manufacturers get the products they make wrong pretty much universally regarded. i think it's pretty much universally regarded that lexus didn't go far enough. it's still essentially a reworked version of the same car with the same drivetrains. we aren't talking about the holy grail here.

 

Am i forced to get a red interior? 🙄

I'm not a fan of most red interiors to begin with. It's why I always get black interiors. This wouldn't be any different. But the layout, materials are far superior imo.....I mean, it's still an Acura

 

red or black, buddy.

i'd prefer an additional choice than just black given that the red is so gaudy.

also, owning an acura isn't something to be ashamed of. acura makes and historically made some of the finest cars on the road. have they lost their way in recent years? yeah, but are they back on track? yeah.

 

Ironically as Acura is climbing back from the performance graveyard, Lexus is jumping head first into it. Killing the GS and cancelling / delaying the LCF and powertrain stagnation seems like throwing in the towel. I hope the TLX is very successful. I hope they surprise and beat the pants off the Germans. Maybe Lexus will take notice and try to up their game.

 

The heyday of Acura, at least in marketing and product and brand perception, was 1999 when they had the TL, Vigor, RL. Satellite-linked navigation? Stock xenon lights.. Exotic in those days. As a kid, riding passenger in the new TL and RL. Reading the brochure as the fresh smell and lustre of the pages greeted your nose, it was magic. The quality, design, fit and finish of the interior was top notch too.

 

Totally agree, I’d never buy one with only those choices.
Never had black seats, never will.
Had red once, but it was a pleasing deep red velvet cloth with a nice contrasting pattern in the middle of the seat, going up the seat back.
Not that cheap plastic red in the new IS.
I prefer a light color interior, white, light grey, or light beige.

 

How are they back on track? Because the new product is proven?

And red/black aren't the only choices.

 

Oh god half of this thread is going to be about freaking Acura?

 

Yeah, I've discouraged this already. It'd be great if those who want to discuss Acura or the TLX could create a new thread in Car Chat and resume the conversation there.

 

not an f-sport option.

 

Well that's stupid. Myself, I have a black interior and prefer that. I think it ages better than red or beige/tan. But to not offer all interior options on the f-sport packages is a big mistake imo.

 

This is exactly how all their interiors should look like (including the F sport) when it comes to the color scheme. If the red in the F sport was where the brown colors in the non-F Sport were, I would be happy....there is WAY TOO much red otherwise.

Lexus - If you read this, please adjust your final product, for GOD SAKE, tone down the red!!

 

Call me when they build the ISF, until then I have no interest in anything Lexus does. Also, I have zero interest in any other Asian manufacturer except Lexus. Otherwise I shall remain with the Germans. ISF should start at no more than 60K to remain competitive, my current car decently optioned was just over 60K. If they build it, I shall return in a heartbeat.


PS. We want Lexus to succeed and not get overthrown by that Korean maker and as many has voiced their displeasure here it's all because we love the brand. Some fail to realize that Lexus needs those of us who lease/buy new cars since we keep the lights on. Not the guys who buys preowned and hold for 2 decades. You'll notice the displeasure is from those of us who change cars often.

Anyhow, Lexus must remain competitive to succeed. Please don't kill the IS....