Lexus' IS-F: Mellow bellow
November 4, 2008 |11:34 | Lexus By : Team X
The formula is fairly simple: shove the LS600 Lexus model's 5-litre quad cam V8 under the bonnet of the much smaller IS model, keep the LS's eight-speed transmission, too, for good measure, and get Yamaha to make the whole plot a little quicker revving and responsive by using a new valve train, free-flow intake ports, a new oil cooler, and an extra "scavenger" pump to help cope with cornering side-forces.
Easy really, but as well as giving the car 311kW and 505Nm, Lexus' engineers also made sure the chassis would cope with the inevitable stresses, while much larger brakes and more capable chassis electronics are also included, so it handles and stops as well as it goes.In order to keep the IS-F solidly on the ground at high speed, and to guide cool air into the engine bay and allow warm air out of it, there are body appendages, splitters, scoops and vents around the front and side of the car, and a vestigial spoiler on the boot lid.
Okay, okay, Williams-Toyota is in fourth place on the season, but for this F1 observer that only suggests that F1 racing is as exciting and unpredictable as Question Period here in the nation's capital.
In-car entertainment is nothing new, but Lexus has raised the standard with their new ICE package for the RX-range SUVs. The premium ICE comes rocking two eight-inch widescreen WVGA monitors. These monitors are securely mounted on the back of the front seats and come with an integrated slot-loading DVD, RCA inputs, USB ports and SD card slots.
Nothing compares to the Lexus GS450h Hybrid, it does the driving for you.
Lexus Malaysia, the luxury division of UMW Toyota Motor Sdn Bhd, expects the new model it is launching today – Lexus IS250 – to boost its sales of 300 units of Lexus vehicles next year. UMW Toyota managing director Datuk David Chen said the model, the fourth and smallest of the Lexus range, would potentially account for 30%, or 100 of the 300 units it hoped to sell in 2008.The car would compete in the compact sedan segment of the luxury car market, against top marques like BMW 325i and Mercedes C-class, Chen said, adding that the segment typically represented one third of the total luxury market.The local luxury market now sells 7,000 cars annually. “I think the market is ready to share with another new brand,” he said after a sneak preview of the car on Monday. The newly introduced Lexus IS250 compact sedan With Lexus IS250 representing it in the compact sedan fray, Lexus Malaysia now boasts a complete range – Lexus LS460L representing the limousine segment, Lexus GS300 the mid-sized sedan and Lexus RX300 the sports utility vehicle.Lexus IS250 is powered by a 2.5-litre V6 engine that gives a maximum of 205bhp. According to Chen, Lexus Malaysia has set a conservative sales target for the new model next year, knowing that its operations were limited to its only outlet – the Lexus Centre – a RM35mil 3S centre opened in Mutiara Damansara in January. Nevertheless, sales for the first nine months exceeded 150 units and Chen said the company was on track to achieve the 200-unit target this year.“The Lexus GS300 and the Lexus LS460L (the two top-selling models) sold in almost equal quantity. I'm pleasantly surprised at the strength of both models,” he added. 
The only thing setting this SUV apart from its rivals is the hybrid system.Warning luxury SUV drivers. The following article contains words and images that may disturb some readers. You see, we did something that many owners of luxury “soft-roaders” would never contemplate. We actually took the vehicle off road.After all, the Lexus RX400h is classed as a Sports Utility Vehicle: sports meaning sporty I suppose, and it has a bit of that about it, because it looks sharp and goes great, and utility meaning all-rounder I would imagine.OK, you wouldn't throw your tool box in the back, or haul a bogged cow from one paddock to another, but sport and utility surely mean that this vehicle is meant for fun and that means getting off the beaten track occasionally.When I first learnt that I was taking the new RX400h for this trip, I logged on to the Lexus website to get a brief rundown on what I could expect when I got behind the wheel.What really grabbed my attention, though, were the options, it didn't have any.This car has everything as standard; there's power everything, heated leather seating, sat-nav, a DVD system, dual climate-control airconditioning, airbags everywhere and the list goes on and on.But what sets this vehicle apart from its rivals in the luxury SUV class, is its hybrid drive system.It really is a wonderful piece of technology. In a nutshell, it has a 3.3-litre V6 petrol engine, supplemented by three electric drive motors (two up front, one in the rear).Using electrical energy generated by the petrol motor, it then powers the two electric front motors, and when needed, the rear electric motor, for a combined output of 200kW.
