2008 Lexus IS-F

The Lexus V-8 sounds and feels like a thoroughbred. It's a low revver with a 6800-rpm redline. It's quiet at part throttle, but sharpens and deepens as your foot flattens, especially above 3800 revs. The eight-speeder makes more gear changes than do the others, but seldom feels like it's hunting. Put it in Sport mode and the shifts come with a firm wallop. Downshifts include an electronic rev blip to avoid shocking the chassis.

Lexus equips the IS F with electric power steering, which isn't as organic as a good hydraulic system. It's fine for normal to moderate driving, but loses sensitivity when you're really honking it. The IS F's cornering abilities are impressive, but the car understeers heavily at the limit, and the wheel feels disconnected at that point.

We pegged the IS F's lateral acceleration at 0.95 g, and the car feels aggressive yet poised unless you're pushing it. It stays neutral right until its cornering limits and then plows hard. High-speed mid-corner bumps will unsettle it a bit, but again only when really on it. As you'd expect of any Lexus, it has a polished ride, but it's not dumbed down or mushy, either. Wind noise is minimal, and it's the quiet in the cabin.

The Lexus V-8 also sounds and feels like a thoroughbred. It's the lowest revver of the bunch, with a 6800-rpm redline versus the Mercedes' 7200 and the BMW's sonorous 8300-rpm rev limit. It's quiet at part throttle, but sharpens and deepens as your foot flattens, especially above 3800 revs. The eight-speeder makes more gear changes than do the others, but seldom feels like it's hunting. Put this one in Sport mode and the shifts come with a firm wallop. Downshifts include an electronic rev blip to avoid shocking the chassis. With displacement and horsepower in between those of the Germans, the IS F's midrange punch feels about midway as powerful, too.

Compared with its competitors-namely, the $69,785 Audi RS 4, the $58,625 BMW M3 sedan with DCT, and the $57,275 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG-the $56,765 IS F is competitively priced, especially considering it's the only one, save the costly Audi, to come standard with forged 19-inch wheels, a $1200 option on the M3 and unavailable on the C63. Our well-equipped example, loaded with such features as front knee airbags, bi-Xenon headlamps, fiberglass-and-aluminum composite interior trim, two-tone leather-wrapped sport seats, and 10-way power front seats, came with four options-headlamp washers ($100), a nav system/Mark Levinson audio package ($3990), a precollision system with dynamic radar cruise control ($2850), and a trunk mat ($73)-that pushed the tally to $63,778.

"This thing is a chum bucket full of torque," says Truck Trend art director Thomas Voehringer. "It seems you could keep diggin' in for more and more. It's responsive without hesitation and fully governable without reprisal. The only back talk you get is a superior exhaust note that ranges from a choir of friendly pit bulls to a pack of rabid howler monkeys, depending on pedal pressure. It doesn't growl in a foreign language, either-the sound is pure, homegrown grunt coming from an import."

"I don't get all the 'it's so stiff' comments about the suspension," says editor at large St. Antoine, who disagrees with Jurnecka's assessment -- "Driving on L.A. freeways feels like a roller coaster ride, with each bump, dip, and irregularity having ill effects on stomach and head."

"To me," notes St. Antoine, "the damping is pretty tight, but the springs aren't overly harsh at all. Compared with our previous long-term Mini, the IS F rides like a cloud. Never does the suspension crash into its stops. St. Antoine, who took the IS F to the Pebble Beach Concours, observes the Lexus's star power.

The first thing that any skunk works hot-rod team-factory-backed or not-does is shoehorn a big engine into a little engine bay, and so the IS-F received a V-8 transplant. The 5.0-liter unit produces 416 hp, which is right in the range of the IS-F's competitors: the 414-hp BMW M3, the 420-hp Audi RS4, and the 451-hp Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG. The IS-F's 0-to-60-mph time, at 4.6 seconds, is also right in the middle of its peers' times.

You'll also have to pay for the performance of the IS-F with a punishing ride on the not so impressive Midwestern roads. This is the strongest complaint in the logbook thus far. The M3 and to a lesser extent, the C63 AMG, ride much better than the Lexus. Other comments include questioning the need for eight gears in the standard automatic transmission. When cruising in eighth gear, a stab of the throttle doesn't bring the needed ratio for maximum acceleration quick enough. Downshifting four or five gears in one go just isn't quick enough. Yes, the extra ratios help fuel economy but they can sometimes frustrate in aggressive driving. Also, while we love the thrust of the powerful V-8, many have commented on the somewhat contrived change in engine tone as the intake system changes paths around 3500 rpm. We prefer the more natural sound of the high-revving V-8 in the M3 and the NASCAR meets German high-tech song of the Mercedes powerplant.

"I love the sound of the V-8 when the secondary cam profile kicks in and all hell breaks loose," he opines. "But the IS-F is not the most relaxing car to drive because of its performance-biased damping, ultra-low-profile tires, and inevitable really big wheels." He reports that the IS-F does cause a stir in New York City - I've noticed the same thing where I live. "Parking attendants love it. One guy in midtown told me he'd gone on the web to check it out. People seem to know they're looking at money and speed, which is surely a big part of the equation for those who purchase IS-Fs."

Driving it around Laguna Seca's elevation changes and turns, it is the suspension that really comes into play. Stiffer springs and shocks (an increase of 90 percent in front and 50 percent in the rear from the IS350), thicker stabilizer bars and firmer bushing give this Lexus an uncharacteristically solid ride. Switch the electric power steering into "Sport" mode and you'll swear the IS F was, gasp, Bavarian.

As titillating as the IS F was on track, it's on the street where you come to really appreciate the sporty Lexus for what it truly is. Comfortable and refined, the only thing separating the F from any other Lexus is the much-welcomed growl of the V-8. Under normal driving conditions, the ride is slightly stiffer but more than bearable. Cut race springs on stock shocks, this is not. A sleeping giant, it's only when you drive into the canyons and flip off some of the VDIM electronic controls does the Lexus stir to life: And what a joyous, raucous life it is.

On normal roads, the IS F is great to drive: quick, responsive, eager to transition from left to right and with absolutely dependable brakes. Weight distribution is 54/46 front to rear, so the car feels well balanced. The cabin has four leather-covered bucket seats. Being a Lexus, construction, fit and finish are otherworldly good.

In this sector, the new BMW M3 and Audi's RS4 are tough competition, although the IS F beats them with its power numbers. It should also look tempting when the checkbook has to come out. No price has been announced yet, but Lexus traditionally has an impressive standard equipment list, filled with things that are costly options on German machines. An MSRP of somewhere around $63,000 would be a sensible guesstimate.