It's a peaky V8. Unless you're getting above 4000 RPM, it's understandable why it didn't feel like a V8.

 

Got to give it a rev!

 

Take it out on the open road with minimal/no traffic volume and rev it out - then you will know it is a 5.0L V8 and not some small engine with some turbines & compressors pumping air in it.

 

That part. 👏🏽

 

I test drove a IS500 last weekend and would like to pen down my initial impressions. To give a preface of my sporty vehicle history, I have owned 2016 GTI, 2019 GTI, 2022 M3 in the recent past and 2023 ZL1 is my current vehicle. This is the first time I am getting into a Lexus and considering a IS500 as I am looking to get back into the sedan world to fulfill family needs.

Let me start with the core of this vehicle - the engine. Power delivery was linear and I had to get used to it coming from my previous turbo / super charged vehicles. Transmission shifts were fine at least in the sport plus and manual modes. Exhaust was a bit muted on the outside and suspension was a bit softer for my liking, even in the most sportiest mode. I felt home with physical buttons in the interior as I hate the big screen / tactical button trend. In terms of the colors, I had high expectations on Cloudburst Grey and Grecian Water but came out really impressed with the metallic finish on the Ultra White. If I move forward with a MY24, Incognito exterior & Circuit Red interior will most likely be my choice. Also I prefer the clean look of the BBS wheels. To summarize, I have mixed feeling after the test drive. Engine & reliability are the key features on this vehicle and looking forward to see what the future holds.

 

This sort of mixed bag seems to be common with first test drive on these. Don't despair. A little bit of soul searching + community support did the trick for me.

 

@DeepBlue99 is right, a few have had mixed feelings after the test drive. From what I’ve seen, most were/are completely satisfied with the car after living with it. You will not experience the full magic after one test drive or a week of testing. (Talking to you, YT Reviewers!) If you truly understand the mission of the car is to be a fast cruiser with spirited-ness sprinkled in, then you’ll fall in love. For those who just couldn’t shake not owning a track weapon, they were never happy and sold the car.

Good luck!!

 

100%. Really hard to appreciate what this car offers after only 1 or 2 test drives. You need to live with it for a week or so before you can full grasp what this car's all about. For example, with everyday casual driving, the car seems quiet, the suspension is soft, is very comfortable, and actually has decent gas mileage. Then, you put in sport+, take the corners hard, keep the RPM's up there, the adaptive suspension stiffens up, the transmission is suddenly taking instructions from a different set of algorithms, and the car feels like a different beast altogether. Unless you cycle through these different modes a few times over, its understandable that you will get a mixed review of the car. It really seems the harder you drive it, the more it responds. But it's just as happy if you cruise around and do your A to B uneventfully. A bit of the ultimate jackel and hyde car, imo.

 

+1, this car is not designed to wow and shock you on the test drive. It is designed to be realistically daily-driven. It has a wide bandwidth of traits, but it will only show you the dark side of its personality if you really ask for it. But, what this means is that it is very smooth to drive around normally, say, with elderly passengers and stuff like that. But, if I go ham on it, it responds in kind! I think a lot of modern cars, especially the Germans, try to make the throttle super touchy in Sport mode, so rather than having to adjust your throttle for more sporty driving, many drivers simply expect the car to do that for them based on drive mode. It is kind of frustrating. It is laughable how touchy the throttle in our non-M-Sport X3 is when in Sport Plus mode. It will hold gears to like 5,000 RPM with 25% throttle. Truly stupid. The X3 is a great car, don't get me wrong, but that one aspect of the car is a good example of why a lot of people are like "Wait, where's the power?" meanwhile the engine is at like 2,200 RPM in 5th. We all know this is a peaky engine - it loves to rev, and its comfort zone is 4,000+ RPM. But then, when the fun is over, it settles right on down, which is what I love about it. It can do both.