In parts 1-3 of this series we explored the expected protagonists of the small supersaloon sector: the Germans.
Audi, BMW and Mercedes locked forever in a three-way Mexican standoff; it has pretty much always been this way, but occasionally an interloper emerges. Like a juddering tectonic plate, an unexpected rival shakes things up and helps add some much needed variety into the mix.
In 2008 it was Lexus that arrived in the sector to cause some disorder.
The 2nd-generation Lexus IS was a decidedly different car to its predecessor, it was less of a JDM sports-saloon and was instead a more mature, more upmarket offering, but this change in tack left the IS staring down the decades-old barrels of the Germanic trio.
Amongst this company the IS was typically Lexus-y. It was beautifully built, but a little dull – vehicular conservatism at its all-time high.
But sometimes, just sometimes – when a group of right-minded people in the right positions get together, at the right time – magic happens.
So emerged the Lexus IS F.
Like most cool things, the IS F began life as a skunkworks project, from which it quickly became a serious contender in the supersaloon sector. With a help-from-Yamaha’s-F1-bods tuned 5.0 Litre V8, the IS F came to play, hard.
With 417bhp and 372ft lbs, the IS F had the E90 M3 and the B7 RS4 well-covered in terms of power and torque, and with a chassis development regime that saw the IS F spend its weekdays at Fuji Speedway and its weekends at the Nürburgring, the IS F could also handle like no other Lexus before it.
The IS F was far more mysterious and exotic than its German rivals. The Lexus is still, to this day, relatively unknown and it looks so subtle that one could easily sneak by unseen. That’s not to say the IS F is dull. Its unique body kit and wheels help it cut a sharp figure, and its brutalist blunt-nosed bonnet ridge was a necessity to house that big V8.
Back in ’08, the IS F was quite controversial.
Its world’s-first eight-speed automatic gearbox was seen by many as crass profligacy, and its faux stacked exhaust tips upset people so much, that in retrospect, it is hilarious.
In this day, we are so numb to the heavy-handedness of automotive designers that only the worst from BMW, or brazen self-aggrandisement from Lamborghini seems to upset people. Now the IS F’s cheeky quad tips now elicit more of a self-aware, “oh yeah, I’d forgotten about those!’
The IS F was a brave car to intrude on a difficult sector, but its left-field and lack of established brand association meant it was never as popular as its rivals.
In 2022, the IS F is the best looking of these cars, and is Kerbsider’s personal favourite.
It’s just one of those cars that you get or you don’t.
One day.
Kerbside 