Getting old is a part of life but let’s face it, it kinda sucks. Your joints creak in protest when you bend down to tie an errant shoelace, you find yourself forgetting things with alarming frequency and you no longer have what it takes to run with the young’uns out there on the ice or the baseball diamond. It also means that you get that wistful look in your eyes as you think back to simpler times, times when things that didn’t matter much to you back then become more relevant and interesting. Perhaps you didn’t have time for classic rock vinyl records back in the day but now a copy of Led Zepplin you stumbled upon on eBay piques your interest in a way you would have never imagined.
Viewed through the lense of wisdom and nostalgia, cars are not immune to the curmudgeonly tainted trope that “they don’t make ‘em like they used to.” There is some truth there- witness the undying love for Muscle Cars, for example- but when you look closely at those brutes, you see them for what they really are: heavy, fuel swilling, cumbersome things that would be embarrassed by your average family crossover in acceleration, braking and handling. That said, it isn’t likely that someone will be fighting back the pull of reminiscence when thinking about an Audi Q5 in 25 years in the same way they mention the Pontiac GTO and Mustang Boss 302 in revered tones.
The pace of progress and technology waits for no one, and so instead of the machines of yesterday which promised a more intimate connection of drivers to their oily bits, presently we have cars that are whisper quiet and insulating, all while packing increasing computer power and electronic complexity that would make a Microsoft engineer frown.
But what if there was a car that you could buy that perfectly exemplified a throwback towards cars that didn’t have turbochargers or could virtually drive themselves? Lexus believes they have just the car for you: the new IS 500. Before the automotive industry fully embraces electric power, there are a few last-of-the-breed examples that are being trotted out which represent a last gasp towards capturing the good old days. The V8-powered IS 500 sports sedan is one of those special cars.
Walking up to the IS 500 in the Lexus carpark, it sure didn’t look like your average IS. Huge brakes peered out from behind beautiful black wheels that are staggered in size, front to back. Stacked quad exhaust pipes and a subtle rear spoiler are what we noticed out back, and the car is painted in a stealthy Incognito paintjob (we are not making that up) that is exclusive to the IS 500 Launch Edition cars like our tester. This is a car that fully embraces the sleeper philosophy.
Climb aboard and the first thing you notice are the sport seats. Thrones that are aggressively bolstered as these are might ring the alarm bells that anything longer than twenty minutes in the saddle will bring soreness and general discomfort but not so with the IS. They are just at proficient holding you in place when you decide to get playful as they are keeping you fresh on long journeys. The other defining feature that we noted is the discreet plaque that rests just ahead of the gear shifter, letting those in the vicinity know that you have a very limited production car (500 units, naturally.) Other than those two details, it looks just like every other lesser IS which is to say that quality and attention to detail are first rate. Yes, the annoying touchpad for the infotainment interface is still around but at least there’s touch screen capability allowing for a much easier way to tune radio stations or enter a destination in the navigation system. We would be remiss if we didn’t call out the Mark Levinson audio components for supplying a truly wonderful listening experience, thumping out your favourite tunes in crystal clarity.
As nice as the IS 500’s cockpit is, that isn’t why you find yourself drawn to this car. It’s the part of the spec sheet that delves into the drivetrain and chassis that has captured your attention. And with a masterful, naturally aspirated 5.0 V8 with a screaming 7,500 rpm redline as the main headline, who could blame you? We have sampled this beguiling powerplant previously in the GS-F and it has not lost its ability to plaster a goofy, indulgent grin across your mug. It builds power in a long, linear rush- no low-end gut punch turbo toque here, thank you very much- and sounds incredible while doing so. It feels downright juvenile to run this car to the redline constantly but if you can summon the willpower to resist such behaviour, good for you. We’ll bet that you keep the engine spinning above 3,000 rpm even when running errands, so rewarding is the experience. And get this: despite a horsepower figure nearing 500 and a rev happy nature the V8 returned stellar fuel mileage over the course of a week spent with the IS 500 to the tune of 10.2L/100km. We drove a GMC Terrain powered by a 3.6 litre V6 with exactly zero nods towards performance the week before and it couldn’t manage to do better than the Lexus. Amazing stuff.
The chassis is a worthy foil for such an awe-inspiring engine, feeling like it could handle a lot more than the 472 ponies it is tasked with corralling. We were most impressed by the bandwidth the suspension has on offer, serving up sharp reflexes when necessary yet positively nailing the ride and handling balance for mundane commutes and lengthy highway slogs. A good amount of credit for that is surely owed to the expertly tuned adaptive dampers which change their character according to the drive mode you’ve selected. Even in full red mist Sport+, it never once felt jittery or harsh.
We could hardly contain our enthusiasm as we pointed the Predator-inspired prow towards our ‘secret’ bit of tarmac that we favor which is the perfect environment for allowing sports cars to show off what they can do- it’s a compelling mix of elevation changes, decreasing radius corners and high speed sweepers that never fails to scratch the itch of exploring the limits of a cool car.
It was here that the IS 500 kind of fell apart. Before you gasp in horror, allow us to explain.
The IS 500 is not a track car, but to be fair, it isn’t positioned as such. Yet another cursory glance of the spec sheet might lead you to believe that the IS can keep up with some truly pedigreed sports cars, but that isn’t the case.
The culprits holding this car back from true greatness are the steering and transmission. First, the steering: it offers a decent amount of precision and allows you to place the IS 500 exactly where you want it. However, it would be nice if it offered even a smidgin of tactility and feedback. Ramping up the drive modes only serves to increase the effort and not much else. Its aloof nature in the twisties made it feel ‘video game-y’, a criticism we have leveled at more than a few modern performance cars (cough-cough BMW M4.)
Despite our complaints, the steering feel, or lack thereof, is a demerit that we could learn to live with. It’s the Aisin 8-speed automatic that serves to hobble the IS 500 the most, especially at the speeds this car is meant to be driven at. Its the same gearbox employed in the GS-F years ago and nothing has changed since we groaned about it back then. If you never grab your IS 500 by the scruff of its neck and throw it around some sinuous roads or anything resembling a race track, you won’t find anything untoward. But when you start leaning on it, the transmission’s true colors are exposed and that it is not a willing dance partner. Even when you shift it manually, it doesn’t grab the ratio you asked for with enthusiasm and shifts feel clunky and unrefined. A manual gearbox would fix this issue and firmly assert the IS 500 as one of the greats before its spectacular engine is put to pasture in favor of a battery pack and electric motors. Since that wish will probably never come true, why not swap the Aisin for the excellent ZF 8-speed unit found in everything from a V6 Challenger to a Bentley? Parent company Toyota already uses just such a transmission in their Supra sports car; this not-so-insignificant hardware change would go a very long way in making the IS 500 more friendly doing the kind of stuff you want (read: hoped) it will do. The only other thing that we found mildly disappointing was that the exhaust noise is way too subdued. We get that it’s a Lexus and so it must adhere to the formula that has made the brand such a success in the luxury space, but with an engine sporting vocals this incredible it seems like a missed opportunity to really let it sing.
At the end of the day, those that are interested in this car- and there’s a lot to like here, ladies and gents- will be able to take these foibles in stride. This is not a track car, nor is it a bona fide sports car, and that’s OK. It wasn’t designed to be any of those things. It is a little car stuffed with a big, brassy, naturally aspirated V8 engines and feels properly muscular when driving it. Its reason for being begins to crystalize when you compare it to some of the cars it will compete against. Sure, you could drive an Audi S4 with its almost harsh ride quality, astringent dynamics and somewhat uninspiring turbocharged V6 engine. You would go faster and handle better in most situations than you would with a Lexus IS 500; but you’d also be missing the point that the V8-powered IS is making.
We love what the IS 500 is putting down. It is perfectly imperfect, and will some enthusiasts feel a little underwhelmed after a spirited drive? Maybe. But many years into the future, gearheads will get misty eyed when recalling the very kind of car that the IS 500 is. It truly embodies a heartfelt ‘so long’ to the internal combustion engine, and the fact that it came from a company who normally blushes in embarrassment when the subject turns to building cars that are meant to elevate one’s pulse makes it especially cool, not to mention rare. In so many cases, progress wins- but not this time. The Lexus IS 500 is an equally convincing and rewarding victory for all us automotive luddites out there.
2022 Lexus IS 500 – Specifications
- Price as tested: $79,925
- Body Type: 4-door, 5 passenger sedan
- Powertrain Layout: Front engine/rear-wheel drive
- Engine: 5.0 litre V8, DOHC, 32 valves
- Horsepower: 472 @ 7,100 rpm
- Torque (lbs.-ft.): 395 @ 4,800 rpm
- Transmission: 8-speed automatic
- Curb weight: 1,800 kg (3,969 lbs.)
- Observed Fuel consumption: 10.2L/100 km (23 mpg)