What Could Have Been

It's Time To Make A Case For The Lexus IS F

I think about cars a lot, as it is my job. But I’ve found that I think about this car more than I do most: a 2008 Lexus IS F. I think about this Lexus roughly twice a week, which is a lot for a car that’s 10 years old. But with rear-drive and a dirty V8 bark, how do you not think about it?

I like the IS F for a couple of reasons, with the first being that it’s a Japanese sport sedan with a fat V8 in its nose. From its 5.0-liter engine, you got about 420 horsepower lighting up the back wheels. Sure, comparable sedans these days have 100 to 150 more horses than that, but it doesn’t change the fact that 420 is still fun in its own regard.
I personally found the IS F’s design to be uninspiring in 2007, but after seeing how things took an unpleasant turn to favoring spangly LED running lights and hyper-aggro design today, the Lexus’ understated looks are refreshing. But also maybe because I’m not a teen anymore. Really, if you weren’t paying attention, an IS F could easily pass you by and you’d be none the wiser. You’d just have to look for the bigger wheels, beefier front bumper and stacked exhaust tips.

Even the eight-speed auto was decent. Yes, it’s a shame a manual was never made, but at least the car came with paddles so you could shift some stuff on your own.

All of that, objectively, should have meant that the IS F would be an easy home run. But it wasn’t. How do I know this? Because I hardly hear anybody bring up the IS F today. In fact, I’d wager that the only mistake Lexus made with the IS F was launching it alongside the BMW M3 and the Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG. That poor timing made it the true underdog.

(Jalopnik.com)