2014 Lexus Is 250 F Sport 4dr Sdn Auto Rwd on 2040-cars

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2016 Lexus IS 200t Quick Spin

When Lexus revamped its IS sedan for the 2014 model year, the car polarized in terms of design, and offered bipolar driving experiences, trim to trim. The entry-level IS 250 used a 2.5-liter V6 that felt like a lightweight for the segment. The stronger 3.5-liter six, especially when tied down to a car with the F-Sport package and subsequent handling improvements, was more of a sporting thing. Thankfully, Lexus has replaced the base powerplant for the IS with an up-to-snuff turbo 2.0-liter four. I drove the newly christened IS 200t for a week – with that enhancing F-Sport pack – and found it to be a vast improvement. Modest-budgeted buyers with eyes for Lexus' edgy styling seem to be in good hands. Driving Notes If the "200t" part of the model name looks familiar, you've probably seen it affixed to the rear end of Lexus' new NX small crossover. Of course the IS is lighter than its crossover sibling. Meaning the directly injected turbo engine's outputs of 241 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque are more thrilling in this application. At more than 3,500 pounds, the IS 200t still isn't exactly rapid – Lexus rates the 0-60 time at 6.9 seconds – but the torque pop is enough to jet around town authoritatively. Being a newly minted engine and a Toyota-brand product, you'd expect the IS 200t to be class-leading (or right there) in terms of fuel economy, too. With ratings of 22 and 32 miles per gallon, city and highway, it isn't. Both the BMW 328i (22 City / 34 Highway) and the Mercedes-Benz C300 (25 City / 34 Highway) do better, and while making similar power. The eight-speed automatic transmission is quite well suited for the brand and the car, I'd say. It mostly stayed out of my way, while in D, shifting unobtrusively during normal driving. The paddle-shift option is great for the occasional flights of motive fancy, but it's not lightning-quick, nor super engaging. Handling is nippy with the F-Sport package, at least within the normal boundaries of public roads. The car stays neutral and flat under cornering loads, and the front end feels rather light and quick to turn in. Of course, take the same corners more aggressively, and you'll feel the car default to understeering, with power cut on exit until all four wheels are fully set and gripping. Don't expect to slide the IS around, in other words. The chunky steering wheel feels good in the hand, and doesn't have the unsettling lightness I remember from the last-generation IS 250.

TMG still developing Lexus LS Sports 650 [w/video]

If you're going to make a super sedan, you'd better do it in Germany. That's where Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz do it, along with third parties like Alpina, Brabus and G-Power, among others. Deutschland is the epicenter of the movement, regularly churning out the most powerful four-door rockets in the world. It's also where one of the racing divisions for Toyota has been hard at work on the TMG Sports 650.
Toyota Motorsport GmbH started with a Lexus LS and turned it into a 641-horsepower, twin-turbocharged super sedan it revealed late last year at the Essen Motor Show. But though we haven't heard much about it since then, the team behind Toyota's F1 and Le Mans efforts are apparently still hard at work on the project.
Speaking with Lexus' own UK blog, TMG chief Alastair Moffitt revealed that the project started way back in 2010, shortly after Toyota shut down its F1 program and left the racing team with nothing to do. The 5.0-liter twin-turbo V8 was initially producing as much as 800 horsepower, but has since been refined to 650 so that it could theoretically be put into production and onto the road.

2016 Lexus GS F is a .22 in a .357 world, and that might not be a bad thing

In Max Brooks' zombie epic World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War, the author envisions an apocalypse where the living dead necessitate a rethinking of societal behavior. One such change, among many, was the replacement of large-caliber, automatic weapons with smaller .22-caliber rounds and semi-automatic firearms that promise better accuracy when battling the undead. We're hoping Lexus used this as its inspiration when finalizing the numbers for its 467-horsepower, 4,000-pound GS F sedan. Lexus may not have brought a knife to a gun fight, but it's fair to say the firepower of its new GS F is lagging behind that of its German rivals. While BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi and most recently, Cadillac, are playing with force-induced V8s and power figures that are well north of 550 ponies, Lexus' kiddy table approach belies a significant weight savings against some of its rivals. At just 4,034 pounds, the Lexus is some 350 pounds lighter than the BMW M5 and nearly 400 pounds lighter than the Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG S 4Matic (that said, the Lexus is only about 100 pounds lighter than the 640-horsepower Cadillac CTS-V). We won't know if this weight advantage is enough for the 2016 GS F to outrun its competitors until we're able to drive it, though. Beyond that, Lexus has fitted the sort of tinsel typical of its high-performance models, with an even more wildly gaped fascia and vertically staggered rear exhausts. Meaty wheels and tires hide under flared wheel arches, while the cabin features far more aggressive sport seats and stylish upholstery. Take a look at our live images of the new GS F, fresh off is debut at the 2015 Detroit Auto Show.