Lexus has been in a brand renaissance for about a decade now. They have gone to great efforts to show that they are more than just a vanilla flavored luxury brand. Previous to this, there was nothing particularly offensive or negative about the brand, but it was seen to cater to more of an older demographic with cars that weren’t particularly exciting.
One of the best things to happen to Lexus was the introduction of the F Sport sub brand. This injected some much-needed passion for performance into the brand. Lexus showed that they were completely committed to this shift in focus by producing the LFA about a decade ago which is still highly coveted today.
With much having been proven and much more to still prove, the LFA was the start of Lexus’ performance journey, and now it is continued on by vehicles like the IS 500 F Sport. This newest iteration of the IS shows that Lexus still knows what its younger clientele wants. The 500 F Sport blends what is necessary in a compact sports sedan and leaves out everything that isn’t smile-inducing.
Here are the most important details about the Lexus IS 500 F Sport.
Just The Right Amount Of Everything
It helps to know Lexus’ naming scheme for the F Sport sub brand when talking about the IS 500. In the past, the sub brand has been broken into two separate categories: F Sport and F. F Sport has mainly been an appearance package that has given more of a sporty flair to many Lexus vehicles. The F category has been the one that adds more powerful engines and other performance enhancements to the vehicle.
The IS 500 splits the difference between these two categories. That is why Lexus has differentiated it by calling it an “F Sport Performance” model. It has more sporty visual enhancements as well as a bigger V8 engine. But beyond the engine, there are not many other mechanical performance changes in comparison to a normal IS. But this is not necessarily a bad thing. Lexus has given us what is truly important and left out what may not be appreciated as much. They realized that enthusiasts for years have been calling to bring the V8 back to the IS – and they finally delivered.
The V8 fitted into the IS 500 F Sport is a naturally aspirated 5.0-liter and sports a healthy 472-hp. This is paired to an eight-speed automatic which has been common for new F Sport Lexus models. Although not amazing, the IS 500 should still get credit for maintaining a decent fuel economy rating of 17 mpg in the city and 25 on the highway.
Lexus started offering a V8 in the original IS F in 2008. This spec of the IS was definitely a niche model but was the first model to help bolster Lexus’ credibility in making fast and exciting cars. It lasted through the 2014 model year and then was discontinued. The IS 500 uses a very similar engine and with comparable output without going all out as it is normally the case for the F models. A highly suspected reason that the IS 500 isn’t a full-on F model is that people mainly cared about the V8 and less about everything else that comes with being an F model.
What Makes The IS 500 F Sport Unique
When announced, it was a slight shock that Lexus would unveil a new car with an engine that is very close to extinction. Many of competitors of the IS 500 have been moving to electrified engines and ones with less displacement and cylinders. But this does not negate the fact that so many still like the sheer power and deep grunt that only a naturally aspirated V8 can bring.
As performance becomes more important in the automotive market, there is a possibility that Lexus could push the envelope even more by still bringing out an IS F at some point. We know that Lexus’ parent company Toyota is quite proficient at electrification in their cars and could benefit a performance IS like the 500 down the road.
The IS 500 was never positioned to go up against top tier performance rivals like the Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG or the BMW M3 but rather the next tier down. But regardless of this, the IS 500 F Sport has been reincarnated of what made small performance sedans great in the early 2000s – a big engine in a small car. This has been an art that has been lost for some time now. Thankfully Lexus knows that we don’t need more selectable drive modes or turbochargers but rather a big V8 in a decent car that makes more horsepower than anyone would ever need. This can’t be called anything else other than performance perfection.