The Lexus IS lineup came to the American market in 1999 and was one of the best-selling models from the Japanese luxury car manufacturer for quite a long time. The comfortable ride quality, unmatched reliability, and spacious cabin ensured that the Lexus IS was a preferred choice for families. With the launch of the F Sport trims back in 2010, this compact sports sedan received a bit more aggression too. The same qualities have been carried forward to the 2022 Lexus IS 350 F Sport, which is part of the third generation of the Lexus IS.
The 2022 Lexus IS 350 F Sport is offered for sale at a base MSRP of $44,625 for the RWD variant and $46,625 for the AWD variant. It comes with no major upgrades from the outgoing model year, apart from the addition of a new Premium Package and Memory Package. The 311-hp V6 engine comes mated to an 8-speed automatic transmission and the acceleration times are decent too. Competing with the BMW 330i, Mercedes-Benz C300, and Audi A4 45 TFSI, here are 10 things you need to know before buying the 2022 Lexus IS 350 F Sport.
10 Aggressive Styling That Turns Heads
The Lexus IS 350 F Sport comes with the quintessential Lexus design language that makes it look like nothing else on the road. We appreciate the beautifully crafted spindle grille which is blacked out along with the dual air vents, masculine and long hood design, and the LED headlights with LED DRLs. The eight color palettes are onboard too.
The width and height of the IS 350 F Sport are one of the best in the segment. The side profile also takes forward the sporty appeal with the 19" alloy wheels, subtle fender flares, and sharp character lines. The rear end looks exceptional with the single slab LED taillights, dual exhaust, air diffuser, and lip spoiler. You can also opt for the triple beam LED headlights and moonroof from the optional extras list.
9 Premium And Well-Designed Cabin
Like any of the third-generation model years of the IS series, the cabin quality is up there with the best of the segment. The cabin comes mostly filled with soft-touch plastics and leatherette accents, giving it a very premium appeal. The NuLuxe leather upholstery is plenty soft and offers excellent comfort to the passengers.
The other aspects like subtle aluminum and chrome elements, leather-wrapped steering wheel with F Sport badging, and the clicky switchgear adds to the upmarket feel. Even though the interior doesn't get a whole lot of changes from the older model years, the design doesn't feel long in the tooth. The well-integrated infotainment system makes the cabin look modern and the classy centrally mounted clock, beautifully laid out dashboard and top-notch ergonomics are some other plus points.
8 Beefy Brakes
Bradley Hasemeyer
The braking hardware hasn't seen any upgrades from the 2021 IS 350 F Sport, and it still retains the 4-wheel disc brake setup with 13.2" front rotors and 11.7" rear rotors. Other braking features included are front and rear ventilated rotors, brake assist, hill hold control, ABS with EBD, and electric parking brakes.
This top-notch braking system does help the 2022 Lexus IS 350 F Sport to come out with a 70-0 mph braking distance of around 155 feet, making it one of the best in the segment in terms of high-speed braking. Even though the 2022 C300 did the 70-0 mph in around the same distance, the 2022 3 Series did it in a higher 165 feet.
7 Rear Seat Could Have Been More Spacious
Even though the overall length of 185.4" of the 2022 Lexus IS 350 F Sport is on par with most of its rivals, the wheelbase of 110.2" is lower than the likes of BMW 330i, Mercedes-Benz C300, and Audi A4. This does contribute to a slightly lower rear room for the Lexus.
The rear row passengers would find the legroom of 32.2" and headroom of 36.9" to be a bit disappointing for a luxury sedan. The taller folks would have issues with the head brushing up against the headliner. The shoulder room is mediocre too. However, the front row offered best-in-class legroom and there are many storage spaces inside the cabin.
6 Not A Lot Of Upgrades From The 2021 Model
If you expect the 2022 Lexus IS 350 F Sport to be a much more enticing proposition than the outgoing model, you would be mistaken. Coming in with not a lot of changes and at a similar price tag, it is much better to go for the 2021 model, as you could crack a stellar deal.
The changes for the 2022 model come in the form of a memory package, and this offers the moniker with memory settings for the steering column, mirrors, and driver's seat. Being a $575 option, it is reasonably priced too. The regular IS 350 can be had with the premium package as well. Apart from that, it gets no major upgrades to report.
5 It Comes With A V6 Under The Hood
The 2022 Lexus IS 350 F Sport comes with the same 3.5-liter naturally aspirated V6 engine with DOHC and VVT-i, and it produces 311 hp and 280 lb-ft of torque. The transmission duties are handled by an 8-speed torque converter automatic transmission and the car can be had in both RWD or AWD drivetrains.
The staggered 19" wheels wrapped in Bridgestone Potenza tires help to put the power down effectively and the F Sport trim also comes standard with the limited-slip differential. The 0-60 MPH comes in 5.6 seconds and the quarter-mile run could be done in 14.2 seconds at 100 MPH. However, the 330i and A4 45 TFSI posted better acceleration numbers.
4 Has A Feature-Packed Infotainment System
The 8" centrally mounted touchscreen infotainment comes packed will all the bells and whistles that the buyers would crave from the luxury segment. This includes Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, SiriusXM radio, navigation, Alexa connectivity, Bluetooth, and voice recognition.
There is a console-mounted touchpad that helps the driver to use the infotainment while driving. The audio is provided by the 10-speaker Pioneer audio system as standard, however, you could also have the impressive Mark Levinson 17-speaker audio system as an optional extra.
3 5-Star Safety Rating
Like any other Lexus offerings presently sold in the United States market, the 2022 Lexus IS 350 F Sport gets all the safety techs as standard. With the Lexus Safety System+ 2.5 onboard, it gets lane-keeping assist, lane departure warning, collision mitigation, automated emergency braking, and adaptive cruise control.
All the basic safety features like airbags, ABS, stability control, traction control, side impact beams, and tire pressure monitoring system are offered too. All of these coupled with the solid build quality helped the IS 350 F Sport to get a 5-star rating in the NHTSA crash test and the 2022 top safety pick + title in the IIHS crash test.
2 Value For Money Pricing
The base price tag of the 2022 Lexus IS 350 F Sport makes it an enticing proposition for the segment. Even though the rivals like the BMW 330i, Mercedes-Benz C300, and Audi A4 45 TFSI turned out to be about $1,000 cheaper, you would need to opt for the optional packages in these offerings to get the similar features offered with the Lexus as standard.
Along with that, we also found the optional features and packages on offer with the 2022 Lexus IS 350 F Sport to be pretty value for money. This is not the case with the Merc and Bimmer, as the pricing seemed to be pretty steep. Also, the rivals miss out on some of the much-needed driver-assistance techs too.
1 Excellent Warranty And Reliability
The Lexus IS series has always been quite synonymous with its bulletproof reliability and excellent warranty coverage. The 2022 Lexus IS 350 F Sport gets an outstanding 4 years or 50,000 miles of the limited warranty and 6 years or 70,000 miles of powertrain warranty. There is 1 year or 10,000 miles of complimentary scheduled maintenance coverage as well.
When it comes to the recalls and complaints, the 2022 model received nothing. This shows how well-made this luxury compact sedan is. Even the outgoing 2021 model also showcased a similar report in terms of recalls and complaints. JD Power gave it an overall consumer rating of 86 out of 100 too.