umm..... i don't really agree. if you talk about stock form is300, yes it handles very well, but a highly modded gs can definitely outrun it on corners.

but once you modify the suspension on the is300 that's a different story

my gs4 full suspension mod it handles better than my is300 stock. but after i put sways and coilover on my is300 it was incredible on corners

 

I will disagree w/you as well. If you were to put both cars on the same road course with a good amount of twisties. The IS will prevail in stock form because the IS was designed as a sports sedan from the start. You don't need the flattest and stiffest suspension to outhandle around corners. Having all the stiffest sway bars with stiff coilovers doesn't translate to best handling. All that stiffness actually negates the point of having 4 wheel independent suspension. You need to have some kind of give somewhere, so the idea is to have the optimum balance of suspension. A great tuned suspension translates to keeping the wheels down on the pavement for the best tire contact patch which is what independent suspensions are designed for.The GS is too heavy for athletic movement w/any sort of suspension setup whatsoever since the chassis was not meant for that type of driving. The car is too big for that type of athletic driving. It's just like having someone trying to drive a Dodge Viper through a twisty road course or auto-x as fast as a Dodge Neon SRT4. It's not going to happen.

I'm not here to start a flame war, but the GS is a bigger car and not designed to be driven in the twisties and perform like a smaller vehicle w/a suspension and chassis tuned for a specific purpose. The GS is a luxury vehicle w/sportier appeal compared to the LS. The IS is a sports sedan w/a little bit of luxury appointments.

 

Point well taken, but have you actually timed this on a road course or ran in an auto-x to prove the stiffer components will hang with an IS? You can pay for all the stiffening components in the world for any car but just because it rides flatter around a corner doesn't mean it will match out handle a car w/a chassis that was specifically designed for sporty driving from the start. Maybe hang, but not by much.

 

Let's not forget the original point of the thread.

1. The GS can EASILY be made to be more fun to drive than an IS
2. Yes, a GS can be made to handle like the IS

We are not talking about just driving twistys or autocrossing. I think the poster meant everyday in town driving.

 

john , again you and i agree on this point


flipside , debate and different points of view is healthy in discussion forums , so no ill feelings here but some point that you made again are not quite correct


no i dont have time slips for time slips in a salom has alot to do with driver skilss then machines capilbilities. i know when we had our orlando meet and about 30 of us drove from south florida up there we owned the turnpike . most of who drove were is and sc with modded susp. we were dodging each other and traffic (safely of course) at triple digits and every move they made i was right there with no effort in fact when we got to orlando some of the is owners came to check out what i had for a susp . i have taken on/off ramps at incredible speeds i have weaved in and out with acuras , hondas , bimmers and each time the looks on their faces was priceless when i just sit on their bumpers


i am not interested in times nor do i have int in 1/4 mile runs , thats not my game , i am a pure driver that knows how to exploite the limits on this car.the is and gs have the same desgined susp the only real diff is the is has a shorter wheelbase which can help or hamper the handling char depending on the driver


in fact instead of quoting another member heres his thread , his own words

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=115769


the toms braces removes all unwanted movement which is the primary cause for distortion esp the 6 piece links within the subframe, the the front and rear lower control brace help to prevent arms and bushings from moving outside their designed operating parameters then a properly match mated coilover system will give the right bal of susp control to in fact keep the wheels planted and using a aftermarket sway will control excess body roll

 

What I love most about the GS4 is it's ability to be fast on the street with such little drama.

I had to merge from a light today and had a Grand Prix (with the #3 on it and a Mullet behind the wheel) and right next to him was a late 80's Z28... (yes, another Mullet too)

Out it in M mode, 2nd gear, accelerate briskly from the line and then progressively dropped the pedal while still in 2nd, shift 3rd... 10+ car lengths... and they didn't even see it coming.

Accelerated the same way next to a Chrysler 300 and a Merecedes earlier today... same thing... to little, too late for the other Automatics...

I should drive my car more often...

 

If I can make an SC handle good enough to be more fun to drive than a mid engined car I used to own, I'd imagine that a stock IS would be possible to match with the GS.
I'd stick with the coilovers to maintain close to stock ride height and proper suspension geometry.The Tein literature describes a 1" drop, this will work well to create a fun to drive car with no regrets.
A smaller car with a shorter whelbase is just going to have a different effect at different speeds, regardless of the weight difference.
A GS will be cabable of the same fun levels, maybe just not around town as much as on the highway.

 

Agreed...somewhat.

There's no doubt in my mind a car with a very stiff suspension can stay flat and be pushed fast around offramps or weave in and out of traffic nicely. But spending that amount of money on suspension to freeway race and drive fast occassionally decellerating or accellerating on the freeway offramp seems over justified. Have you ever been or driven in an IS with a very balanced modified suspension? I've driven/rode in several and I have ridden and driven some GS w/mild to wild suspension setups. There's no doubt in my mind, an IS with the same exact extreme setup of a GS will out handle it. Sure the GS can probably hang, but not when you're pushing the suspenion as far as quick lane changes or short offramp banks only. No one is asking you about time slips for 1/4 or skidpad numbers. But overall driving even after amount of money you've spent on your GS on suspension mods, it will never be as fun as driving a car with the same amount of money spent on a vehicle that was specifically designed w/sport driving in mind. I love both the GS and IS. If I owned a GS as well, of course I would mod it to my tastes, but if a canyon run comes about or a nice brisk cruise down a moderately twisty back road, the GS is going to stay in the garage.

Ask RMMGS4, he has his RMM tuned suspension setup GS and his wife's IS which has the exact same suspension components as myself (Tein CS and L-Tuned Sways). Since he has experienced and does own both GS and IS, he would have the real qualification to say and can honestly tell you how much more fun it is to drive the IS in spirited canyon runs and etc.

 

point taken , you cant make a even comparison of the is and gs when both are modded , the is ultimately will outhandle it but lots in that equation is still left up to driver skills and input all that i am saying a properly done susp on a gs with no more then a 19in stagg setup will give as much fun as a modded is diff being the is is lighter hence making it more tossable and the is has a shorter wheel base making reaction times abit quicker but both will do what they are supposed to do.. remember the is susp is almost identical to the gs up front and out back


the real point of this thread as i read it is the guy does not like float that a stock gs gives , again with coils , upper and lower braces , good tires and either 18in stagg or 19in stagg you can hang with the best of the best , and that is not fiction that is fact , i know for i do just about every day



the other point about justifying costs of susp mods just to do some freeway spirted driving is not quite fair , i mean why else do we mod our cars , to look good , go fast stop shorter and handle like a go cart wherever and whenever, the like to reggie post is for real and that is how i drive each and every day,,, ask freelance, teelex, alsiverbullet, bluelex,johnee78,wayne,and countless others how well a modded susp gs can handle and yes i do lots of sudden death lane changes and other things which is why reggie compared driving with me to space mountain and in fact i had 3 other guys in the car with me , indio was there as well remember that ride eric


i push my car to its limit all the time , i work on ity myself , i climb underneath it weekly to keep things trq properly , so i do enjoy pushing the limits quite frankly i have reached the limits of my dunlap sp9000 before i can reach the limits of the overall car itself

 

Now if I only had your V8 in my IS, then it would be a whole different story.

 

now there brother you have got a idea

i have fought with yself countless times with getting a 5 sp is and boost it mod it right with susp stuff nice 18stagg wheels but all of the guys i talk to down here refuse to let me part ways with my beloved gs , they say they just cant see me squeeze ( i am 6ft about 225 lbs) into the is vs the roominess of the gs

 

Don't do it ED, hold out for FI...



Ditto what Ed said, the intent of the post was comparing a stock GS4 to a stock IS. We are only saying that you can change the handling characteristics of the GS to match or better the IS quite easily and have more power to come out of the corners to boot.

 

john

i am trying to bro trust me bro , i am hoping luxury motor works comes out with a properly designed kit , you know the points i made in the other thread


if they do i will step up to the plate the money is set aside already

 

There are quite a few boosted and highly modded IS' there in Florida. One guy I know out here and LXOGOOD can vouch...he's about 6'4 and fits into his 5 speed GGP boosted LMS S/C IS300.

 

been there done that already , i have driven in freelances 700hp beast before , i have raced with him before so i know but the is is too small for me