2009 Lexus IS 250
What first comes to mind when thinking about Japan? Sushi, samurai, haiku, sake, Sony, and the easiest flag in the world to remember. It was the setting for the most ridiculous of Tom Cruise’s movies. Washington DC during the month of March is one of the most beautiful things you will ever see thanks to Japan’s gift of cherry trees. Dance Dance Revolution was fun a couple of times, but has since fallen to the American grown Rock Hero or Guitar Band or whatever. Japan introduced the world to animé and consequently epileptic seizures. Japan’s engineering prowess built the bullet train. One would only expect high build quality and craftsmanship from such a country and it’s exemplified in the rock solid brands of the native Honda and Toyota. Lexus is the luxury division of Toyota and Lexus builds the IS 250.
So what is the Lexus IS 250. This car is Lexus’ contender in the highly competitive entry-level luxury car category. It is going toe to toe with the likes of the Audi A4, BMW 3-series, Saab 9-3, Acura TL, Volvo S60, Mercedez-Benz C-class, Infinite G35, … and the list goes on. As an American it worries me that my country does not have a car in this category that readily comes to mind. (I had to think a bit before I came up with the Lincoln MKZ.) These are the cars the MBA students buy 30 seconds after they are offered a job.
The three digits in the nomenclature indicate the displacement of the engine. With some very careful math we can calculate that this Lexus IS has a 2,500,000 microliter (V6) engine. During my test drives I found this engine to have just the right amount of balance between power and fuel economy. But not enough to justify having the paddle shifters. (If you’re really into the idea of shifting with your pinkies, definitely spring for the 3.5 liter engine…and then move to Vermont.)
Lexus is renowned for their styling around the instrumentation display. It seems to me that they are intent on mimicking those chronograph type watches in fashion magazines that cost $50,000 and are worn exclusively by well endowed Italian male models. The first generation Lexus IS came with a gorgeous and daring arrangement but the instrumentation has since become more conventional. Though it’s still stunning and you may find yourself pondering the precision of Olympic swimming pools while driving at highway speeds. The illumination color scheme is predominantly white and my only gripe is that it’s too much at night. After having driven many different vehicles at night I have decided that the red and blue illumination schemes always seem easier on the eyes and are less distracting.
The Lexus IS has very distinct styling. There is no mistaking this car when it approaches you from any direction. (Kudos for this to the Lexus styling team.) This is the car for the professional because it exudes careful taste and decisiveness. You can almost hear it calculating and managing the risk of your hedge fund in it’s on-board computer’s spare processing cycles.
On the snow covered roads of Maine this car was very sure footed, even with the stock all-season tires. The Traction Control computer would sound an alarm the moment a wheel started to slip, as if it were begging you to put the world back together again. Contrast this to my Subaru which stays obediently silent during slippage. (I prefer the latter.) In the morning I woke up to a temperature of -12F and the push-button keyless ignition had no problems getting the engine to roll over.
On the highway this car will threaten the ego of a minimum-wage adolescent. They will then feel compelled to assert themselves by pulling alongside and downshifting emphatically . The Lexus IS does not have enough power to put away even a slightly modified Honda. Beware.
This car does exactly what you would expect it do. It seats two people very comfortably in entry-level luxury, and two additional people with a modest amount of knee-space. It will reliably get you from A to B with an entry-level amount of sophistication.
Finally this brings me to the inauguration of my rating metric: the Automotive/Celebrity Similitude. I liken the Lexus IS 250 to George Clooney. The Lexus is good at exactly what it was meant to do, but it may never carry an award winning show. The Lexus IS is dependable and has the staying power to ensure that this is a good choice no matter the role it is playing.
2009 Lexus IS 250 AWD (base MSRP $34,395)
Engine: 2.5 liter V6
Drive: AWD
Transmission: 6 speed automatic (w/ paddle shifters)
Category: Entry-level Luxury
