Harsh, but warranted I think. The fact that the AWD versions are saddled with an ancient 6-speed... Lexus needs to update them to be more competitive.

 

He has really good reviews but I didn't like the fact that he said that people at a certain price point ($40-50K+) don't care whether a car is reliable or not, they want something faster with more tech. I had the option to buy a 3 series, Audi A4, or a C class and went with Lexus purely because of it's amazing looks and bulletproof reliability.

Most people buying a Lexus buy it because of it's high interior quality and luxury. Everyone knows Lexus has always been behind the game on tech, but when they introduce it.. it's seamless, amazing, and never breaks. Kind of like how the iPhone with Apple, come out with things later than an Android phone.. but always do it better.

 

Hahaha and Apple marketing makes the old stuff sound like a new genius idea. But I digress.

One thing he said (or rather, implied) towards the end was how he felt the cars are overpriced for what you get, except for reliability. Not really true if you compare IS 350 RWD pricing with the 330i.

 

If qualified with the AWD version especially, I do have to agree with the overall message of this review. The fact that a luxury sedan still has a 6-speed auto, and not just any 6-speed auto but one that's been in production since 2005, is worth talking about.

However, I do feel like Mark just sorta wrote this car off before he started due to the transmission. That's just the way it looks to me.

 

I would write the car off too if I was given the 6 speed auto as the tester. It's sad Lexus even offers that in this market. At least he admits that the RWD 8 speed gives a totally different driving experience.

I don't really care for this guy's reviews but his video production quality is top notch so still watch them anyways.

 

Wow, some brutal quotes.

Well, we heard a lot of this before.

The part about you don’t need AWD in snow
country…….not buyin’ that.

 

^^ Well, I live in Canada and in snow country and I will be the 1st to say that you don't need AWD here. The key word is NEED....I certainly agree that AWD is certainly an advantage or nice to have but to say that a vehicle must have AWD, I tend to disagree. Case and point, I also drive a little Chevrolet Spark as one of my daily winter driver (Hyundai Elantra is my other) since the IS350 is my nice summer/weather car. Both cars are FWD and with winter tires, I have never been unable to make it to destination. You do recall that in the late 1970s and early 80s, most cars were RWD only and people got around back then too. Roads tend to be cleared up as soon as the snow end and salted/sanded heavily so they get bare pretty fast as well. Now I am not disputing the fact that AWD will provided added traction not just in snow but on icy roads and such, but I think to say that we need AWD is not truly accurate either. That is my opinion only and the fact that I never drove an AWD vehicle in the winter and always got around, confirms that you can manage without it

The key point is here is to have good winter tires and drive according to the weather conditions. I have seen idiots driving like 120km/h with their AWD SUV in the middle of snow storm and then end up in the ditch - I keep saying, its not what you drive, its how you drive it! And for the record, I live in Atlantic Canada where we get major Nor'Easters and such

 

I understand your point. It does depend on the car, as noted in the
review. You didn’t say explicitly…..your 350 is RWD?

Here in the northeast corridor, dealers don’t seem to carry the RWD
version. How did you find one?

Also, the winter tire thing is just not appealing
to me. I would obviously use a second set of rims.
No place to store them. AWD is a simple alternative.
The one time you get stuck….could be avoided with AWD vs RWD.

 

I am in Canada and you can't get a Lexus RWD, I have the AWD but not because I want it, but because Lexus Canada will not offer a 350 RWD or I would have ordered one - I don't drive my Lexus in the snow or rain so I don't need an AWD. I agree that winter tires are not appealing but I would argue good winter tires will do more than AWD will but I hear the challenge in finding a place to store them

 

Getting back to the review…..

For me, the IS looks and reliability were the
selling points. Funny how they don’t rank the high reliability
as a deciding factor. A fun car is no fun when it is in the shop.
My only other draw is to the S3……but a 4cyl turbo
vs a muted but reliable V6.

I’m looking forward to their IS500 review.

 

Basically if you want good power, not great power + reliability this car is a no brainer. If you have money to burn and lease a new car every 3yrs but prefer more power get a German car or maybe the IS500. He's not saying anything new here. RWD is more fun, this engine power train is ancient......wash, rinse, repeat.

 

We discussed all of this before, many times over, but….

Regarding the AWD version…..

I imagine the engineers sitting around the table:

“Well, it’s heavy, not much low end torque, muted V6, and a gas
guzzler”……….”Perfect! Let’s go for it!”

 

^^ But again, people that shop for vehicles all have different things they look for. I couldn't care less that it has a 6 speed! I stayed away from the TLX and its god horrible ZF 9 speed unit despite what most would believe that more cogs are what we need. I tend to like SavageGeese's reviews but not because of his actual recommendations/opinions, but because of the in-depth information he provides to then help me decide what I want/need. In the end, a person who buys a vehicle based on what others think is not doing himself/herself any favors. What is important or matter to one may not be important for another. Lexus is offering a fine vehicle for those who value a great styled car, with more than enough power for 99% of the population, who will handle perfectly for 95% of the population and will be very reliable. In the end, we keep forgetting that most people on these forums are people that lower their cars, modify the tunings, put spacers etc....so of course, such people will find the IS old style but for the most savvy people who wants to buy a well put together car and is reliable, Lexus offers a great option. Have you guys driven in the new Mercedes lately?!?! They are nothing but creaking and cracking.....No thank you! Oh, but they have 8+ speed transmission so that is all worth it right??!