Hi guys, it has been a while since I was last in this forum. I am finally in a place where buying a face lifted IS (2017+ 300/350 AWD) is in the cards, and boy have I been waiting for this. Can't afford an LFA as a university student, and so an IS will do just fine. I have been following this car since the day it debuted in 2013. My current car is a 6spd manual Acura TSX and she has been nothing but amazing if I am being honest. I put 167,000km on her in the last 4 years LOL. Decent on fuel (~28mpg 70H/30C, 8.4l/100km) and has been very reliable with over 350,000km on it - and still going right now and doesn't even burn oil. I have no concerns over the lexus reliability and I know I will have to take the hit on the fuel economy - although I am already used to premium fuel prices here in Ontario but certainly not used to getting less than 650km on a tank of gas. Getting rid of the tsx mostly because suspension components are going to need changing soon. She's a highway queen but nonetheless.

While I am very privileged to be able to get this car, maintenance costs are something that need to be considered - especially because I am not footing the bill. I have read that these cars "eat" tires. I have also read some mixed reviews basically saying that the original tires are dog **** but once you put on something else and drive normally you should not have abnormal wear. Just how bad are they?

What I am looking to gain from this post is some current owner feedback on the long term cost of owning this car, anything to be mindful of, stuff like that. You can even share links to other posts if they will address my concerns as I know these questions can sometimes annoy regular members. I do have some apprehension mostly because I do not want to get the lexus and wish I hadn't. I will be paying more on the insurance for this car as well so all in all, this car is going to cost me more going forward. For someone like me, I am looking to get a solid 8-10 years out of this car. To me this is like getting a brand new car so I am both excited and scared as this is the most I am spending on a car. I am not used to opening the hood on the TSX often, and I would like to think the lexus may be even better.

For members in the Toronto area in particular, I commute from the Halton region into the core or from Halton out to niagara a lot. So if you have some fuel economy numbers for such driving distances (either in mpg/l per 100 or km to tank), feel free to share. I am fully aware that driving characteristics affect these values but I just wanna ball park.

Thanks for reading!

 

Also, how reliable is the AWD system in these cars? My acura is FWD so there is nothing that needs to be done to it.

 

I live in Alberta and have ownered a 2017 IS 350 F-Sport AWD for 6 months. Here are some of my thougts:

1. Average fuel consumption ranges from 10.5 to 13 depending how I drive and city/highway conditons. That's the number showing on the dash, and I never calculated the actual fuel consumption though. The 3.5 V6 is not very good on fuel consumption for sure...
2. My car has run 26000 KM so far. The last maintenance was done at my local dealer. What was done was only some "piece of mind" checks - oil was not due to change, fluid and filters are OK...so there was no actual work, and the total cost was about $90 CAD. Previous owner changed oil at 17000KM, and the next time for oil change is 32000KM (if I remember correctly). The actuall cost on maintenance is $90 CAD so far. The previous owner said it took him about $200 CAD for oil change and maybe other regular parts like filters etc, but I don't know yet.
3. AWD indeed helps. We had very heavy snow during the last Christmas, and the chassis did touched the soft snow for some moments, but the car never got stuck. I saw many FWD cars and RWD trucks were struggling at some icy intersections, but my IS just ran as normal, even with lower ground clearance.
4. The only thing that bothered me was it had some compatible issue with after market TPMS sensors. I and the tire shop both thought it is just like a Toyota and can use generic TPMS sensors, but the car decided not to show readings from the sensors (although it shows up in ECU). It was solved by replacing aftermarket sensors with OEM ones. Not an issue if I choose to use OEM sensor from the beginning but that's one lesson I learned.
5. It doesn't pull like some turbo cars, but you can rev it to red line and it feels consistent, and the sound at 4000 - 5000 RPM is way better than most 2.0T cars.

2017 IS 350 F-Sport

 

Well first, the IS software is really poorly designed. And it took a while for me to work out where to stash a few pair of glasses. But it drives like a dream and well worth the having.

 

The AWD system is a robust unit, it has a center geared differential to achieve the default 30% F / 70% R torque split and a clutch pack that can modulate that up to 50/50. You won't have any issues with it.

As for the car itself, I have a 2019 IS350 AWD F-Sport and it's hard to go wrong with the IS350 if you want a sporty and reliable AWD sedan. The fuel economy isn't awesome because of the V6 and the AWD, but it's still pretty good for highway driving all things considered. The 2018+ models got the 2GR-FKS engine, which adds a simulated Atkinson cycle when the engine is under low load and it seems to be working quite well ( if you stick close to 100 - 110).

The AWD is fantastic, as mentioned. Slap on some winter wheels and tires and it'll get going with minimal slip even on snowy roads. All of the wheels will grip even under moderate throttle and the car will go in a straight line with no drama at all.

The power is good - more than enough for the street, if we're being perfectly honest. It won't have the kick that turbocharged engines get at low RPM, but the power builds linearly all the way to redline at 6.6k. Throttle response is immediate. The V6 sounds way better than any turbo 2.0L could ever hope to sound. If you get the car over 3k - 3.5k in 1st gear and floor it at that point, it'll get going pretty quickly. Manual paddle shifts happen much faster when you're going for it.

Other things worth mentioning - turning radius is really tight, the Mark Levinson stereo system is worth getting, the car is made in Japan (a big plus, IMO), and it still looks sharp even though the design is a few years old.

It's not a perfect car. The cargo capacity isn't the best, although it's doable and at least the rear seats fold down. Infotainment sucks, and there is no AA/AC (not that I care very much, as long as my phone can be mounted over an air vent using a Proclip). I want more power, but I'm not really willing to give up that reliability - not yet anyway, maybe for the next car after the IS.

 

Thanks for the response, I appreciate your feedback. I am glad to hear that the car is good in the Alberta winter given how much more snow you guys get than me here in southern Ontario. Happy to hear you haven't had any issues with the car and maintenance costs are more than reasonable. I went looking at some the other day after some snow fall and my parents were on me about the ground clearance for winter driving. or as my dad calls it, a **** scraper LOL. We had about a foot of snow the last few days. My tsx got stuck coming out my street and I have snows on. I imagine the lex would keep going since it was a loss of traction more than ground clearance.

Thanks for the response. I am glad to hear your favourable review of the car. I, too, have to figure out where to stash my sun glasses when I get the car haha. Also not a fan that it doesn't have memory seats as I have them in my acura but I know if I buy 18+ they have them.

Thanks for your feedback. I am glad to hear the positives of the car. I test drove one and the power is great, especially coming from my current TSX. I plan to eventually put on the invidia q300 axle back and mid pipe. That sounds great from what I have seen on YT. Definitely don't like the small trunk size and I have two subs from the acura I was hoping to use in the lexus but the box is too big for the space - so I will have to look at addressing these pet peeves later.

I am with you on cars being built in Japan. My acura was built in Japan and it still runs great at 355k km on it as we speak. So it's definitely a plus in my eyes as well. ahaha.

Thanks for the responses everyone!

 

Also consider swapping out the front lower control arm bushings for the RCF ones, which will extend the life of the tires by quite a bit.
The inner front tires wear out quickly otherwise. Easy job regardless if you do it yourself or have a mechanic do it.

 

Haha funny, I went from a 14 is350 to an 08 tsx 6mt with 185k miles on it. My situation is different than yours though! Had 3 cars and the IS resale value is kind of ridiculous right now. Pocketed 24k for a 7 year old car and my tsx is still on great condition. Invested that 24k in the market hoping to get enough for a used gs f or e350 wagon.

Long term reliability on the is is great. No major failures

 

The car is really good, had it for a bit over a year and I didn't go light on it from the beginning and its been perfect ever since the start. A couple things your gonna notice will be the really bad brake dust build up after cleaning the breaks, the cup holders were thought of the last second and the car is very happy at high speeds, i have a 2020 IS350-Fsport RWD tho, wished I went with the AWD, my brother had the 2is 250 AWD and it never lost traction in heavy rain at all

 

Noted, I will do that. Thanks for the advice! That's the only thing I don't like about this car - oh, and the staggered set up which I feel is overkill for this car but I digress.

haha, wow! honestly, I think I will miss my stick. From 16 to now (24), I have been driving only stick and nothing else. Only a lexus or electric car would I give up the clutch. Driving in traffic with a clutch pedal was seldom an issue. I hope you are green in these market conditions! I will also miss the cheap insurance on the tsx lol. 368k km (~230k mi) and she runs like a top - I actually feel bad upgrading because it's literally wasting money lol. Glad to know the Lexus was reliable for you. I am hoping that rings true for me as well.

Thanks for your input. I am glad to see you are enjoying the vehicle. I will have to try and restrict myself from driving fast with that 3.5 gobbling fuel LOL.


Sorry for the late reply. I have been very busy between work and school. I am glad to report I closed the deal on a 2016 IS300 AWD Fsport series 3 with 80,000km. White on red. One owner off lease. Great condition vehicle with full service history. Scared to take delivery but excited too. It was priced a little to the high side, but at least I know what I am buying. These used car lots...some of them are questionable.

 

Congratulations, you got it from a Lexus dealership? They tend to have the best examples of lease returns, the less stellar ones get thrown into auction.

Look in the service history and see if the transmission fluid has ever been changed. If you're in the GTA, I can refer you to a place run by a former Lexus Master tech.

Nevermind I see you're in Halton region (ie. Georgetown area) and commute to Toronto. It may be a bit out of the ways for you (but not really if you're returning to Halton region and you want to avoid the highway) but Mecano Autoworks in Brampton is the place I go to.

 

Thanks man. Yes, I bought it from Lexus of Oakville. Northwest lexus in Brampton sells a lot of cars with accident histories for some reason, so I checked with the GM of the dealer I was once employed at. Apparently, Oakville doesn't mess around with the quality of cars they have on the lot. He actually told me that their cars are worth their price because of their condition. The only thing I didn't like about Oakville's experience is the snobbiness from sales and they were a bit pushy. St. Catharines lexus has stellar customer service, no rush from my experience.

Overall, it was a good experience. it's the first dealer purchased car for me. Has balance of factory warranty and first free oil change. The previous owner also outfitted it with the trunk liner and the factory spoiler so I am glad I don't have to purchase those items.

Thanks for the suggestion of the shop. If they are good and trusthworthy, I have no issues going to them - and to save on lexus charges. There is also Georgetown import that I went to for my Honda. They're good guys as well.

Oh by the way, what size winters are you guys using? I need to shop for a set for the coming season

 

I'm using 17 x 8 wheels all around, 225-45-R17 winter tires. Once again, at 80000 km, consider getting the transmission fluid done now, or at least when it hits 100k.

 

Thanks for the heads up. I am picking up the car Thursday, so I will arrange to see the service history before pickup and try and get it done before then if it has not been recently completed. Looking forward to getting the car. I am already budgeting to purchase the rcf/gsf LCA if I notice inner tire wear on the car after 3 months of ownership. Hopefully, I am one of the lucky ones who gets normal wear on the tires, though I doubt that given the number of threads on the topic - but one can hope.

 

Hey bud swing that contact my way for the Lexus tech if you can thanks!