sc430 needs an update bad...it looks so much better with the top down than up .....top up it looks like a bubble on wheels
plus its just flat out OLD Looking...

This car just looks well eh...its new and cool but has no WOW to it.
Not to mention its slow --

If buying today, I would go for the SC. Here is my rationalization. The SC is very dependable and great car. They are somewhat unique and it is being discontinued this year and they are really not all that common out on the road. I do like the new IS but there will be plenty of time in the future for a new IS as Lexus continues to develop that model line. By the time my warranty runs out on my my current 05 SC430, perhaps they will have added some more power and manual shift to the IS. Then I would be a serious buyer.

BB

hate to break it.. but once this comes out.. the SC will be virtually extinct.. this is suppose to be the last model year

I will wait till I see one in person, but I am not hopeful from the pics as the IS has nowhere near the uniqueness of the SC. It will surely be a nice car overall, just not the sheet metal. Once the SC is discontinued Lexus will have nothing of style left in their stable except the IS-F. The IS pictured above is a huge disappointment and another typical Lexus release that will only excite the ad agency. The side and rear are alright, but the front is the plain jane boring IS sedan front end. But it will have push button start and a few other amenities that a few crave so much myself included now that I experience them everyday. Long live the SC430-just with some updates.

I am considering trading my SC for a new IS-C. I don't think the IS is nearly as sharp, classy and exotic looking as the SC. I don't think the IS will be nearly as posh and respected as the SC. The SC was a status car.

For me, it's filling unmet needs with the SC.

The IS offers to me: Paddle shifters, ipod integration, cooled seats, much better acceleration, up-to-date ergonomics (seat belt, compartments), gas mileage and a new warranty.

I would dearly miss the SC and there is no doubt there will never be another SC like this one, so I am essentially letting go of a future classic. I don't know...I will have to see one and drive one in person to report more.

For now, the SC represents the past...the IS is the future.

I think I read this wrong, but did you say the IS250 has MUCH better acceleration?

He is most likely referring to the upcoming IS350-C variant

The IS pictured here looks like a boring Volvo! If it weren't for the IS sticker on the front I thought I was looking at a C-70.

Lexus nailed it when that designed the SC. The fact that the design is still admired after 8 years is amazing. People never ask me what model year the car is. If it weren't for the tape deck, it would be hard to tell. Something to be said for timeless, classic design! Kind of like great stylish clothes, they may not be the trendiest, but always get the looks!

Looks like I will be driving my SC for a long, long time. Which is just fine with me.

Agreed on the toyota manual cars... I had a 07' Corolla XRS with an ok 6-speed, but it occasionally jammed on downshifts from 3rd-2nd and the like. Upshifts were real smooth! But what good is a stick if you can't downshift? I miss my BMWs just for the slick clutch alone...

same here, my is300 was manual, and i have to say it's pretty sluggish. nothing like the honda or bmw i have driven, those are much better

and on the new IS convertible? blah......

Don't forget the Supra 6 speed which was awesome and built. I believe it was a Getrag product.....Of course we are talking in house.

yes, supra 6 speed was getrag. that's one nice setup

It is apple to orange, the SC430 is the top of the line flagship, the IS250C is the base model, bottom of the line entry level.

I'll take the dated flagship over the latest base model.

Even if they make a IS-F convertible, the SC430 still wins.

Well, now we might have an argument

The gap is closer, but still a few levels differences.