One of the first reviews for the IS 300, 5-speed manual
07-26-2001, 11:49 PM
#1
Moderator Alumnus
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Washington DC (NOVA)
Age: 52
Posts: 16,399
Likes: 0
Received 8 Likes
on
8 Posts
One of the first reviews for the IS 300, 5-speed manual
Now that it has a five-speed manual transmission for its IS 300, Lexus is getting a little closer to BMW. Not as close as Lexus would like you to think, not as close as it intimated at the IS 300’s introduction a year ago, but close. The BMW 3 Series is still king of the sport sedan segment and the Audi A4 is still a prince of a four-door, but the IS 300 is now hanging out in the throne room. By allowing us to shift by ourselves, this car becomes, as they say in California, whole.
It’s certainly a fun, stylish car with the five-speed electronically controlled automatic, but a manual gives drivers better control of the engine’s 215 hp and 218 lb-ft of torque. Loads more control. Clutch engagement is quick, not Tilton-racing-clutch quick, but faster than most manual transmissions. You almost have to pay attention to do it smoothly. The throws in the new gearbox are relatively short, closer to the throws of a Miata than a Corvette. And there is absolutely no ambiguity; the feel for each gear is clear, you never find yourself wondering if this is third, fifth, or, worse, first.
The transmission has a numerically lower final drive than the automatic (3.727 vs. 3.909) but higher ratios in first and fifth. It drives as if the engineers tried to make the most of the manual driver’s inclination to hold shifts all the way to the 6200-rpm redline. On our drive we found no holes in the transmission where one gear had run out of oomph before the next one was handy. This is not a drivetrain that cries out for a six-speed.
It’s not just the transmission that distinguishes this car from its stablemate. It gets a stiffer suspension than the automatic, though Lexus hasn’t said exactly how much stiffer. It certainly feels more responsive, offering flatter cornering and a tighter feel through the steering wheel. It still has double wishbones front and rear and four-wheel discs with ABS. Tires on our test car were the stickier, standard 215/45ZR-17 “summer” tires. The 205/55R-16 all-season tires are an option.
Lexus says the new transmission knocks off half a second in 0-to-60-mph times, from 7.3 to 6.8. We think the IS 300 manual is quick but we’ll withhold an endorsement of that claim. Lexus listed 7.1 for the IS 300 when it came out a year ago and has since backed off by two tenths. The closest we got when we tested the automatic was 7.99 seconds. Given that, our estimate for 0 to 60 mph would be in the low sevens. But it feels quick. Behind the wheel, flinging the car through twisting mountain two-lanes, riding low in the electrically adjustable, nicely bolstered seat, you almost feel like a touring car race driver. Indeed, just two days before we got into this bright red five-speed manual IS, a Lexus IS 300 won its first race, the Grand Am Cup in the Sports Touring class at Virginia International Raceway. Another IS 300 finished third.
But it wasn’t the Lexus press release announcing the win that made us think of this as a touring car. It was the car.
The manual arrives in showrooms in August and Lexus expects to sell 1600 in the remainder of 2001. After that the division is looking at 4800 a year. We think that’s conservative, but we like fun cars with manual transmissions. Whether there are enough people like us in this automatic transmission world is the big question. We certainly hope there are. Manufacturers are only starting to realize there is a large market of import drag racers who have been around so long that many of them are growing up, getting real jobs and can afford nicer cars. This is perfect for them and for the still-young ones with rich and generous parents.
Our experience on the streets of Southern California and Detroit is that younger buyers loved the IS 300, even when it first arrived a year ago with its automatic. If Lexus means what it says about trying “to attract younger buyers,” this car will do it. Its styling alone makes it appeal to youthful buyers, those who may have just blown up their last Civic Si.
A straight six, with five gears stacked behind it routing power through a Torsen limited-slip differential to the rear wheels is about as nice a setup as any young racer could ask for.
Except maybe that turbo-charged version offered in Japan. But let’s take this one big improvement at a time.
It’s certainly a fun, stylish car with the five-speed electronically controlled automatic, but a manual gives drivers better control of the engine’s 215 hp and 218 lb-ft of torque. Loads more control. Clutch engagement is quick, not Tilton-racing-clutch quick, but faster than most manual transmissions. You almost have to pay attention to do it smoothly. The throws in the new gearbox are relatively short, closer to the throws of a Miata than a Corvette. And there is absolutely no ambiguity; the feel for each gear is clear, you never find yourself wondering if this is third, fifth, or, worse, first.
The transmission has a numerically lower final drive than the automatic (3.727 vs. 3.909) but higher ratios in first and fifth. It drives as if the engineers tried to make the most of the manual driver’s inclination to hold shifts all the way to the 6200-rpm redline. On our drive we found no holes in the transmission where one gear had run out of oomph before the next one was handy. This is not a drivetrain that cries out for a six-speed.
It’s not just the transmission that distinguishes this car from its stablemate. It gets a stiffer suspension than the automatic, though Lexus hasn’t said exactly how much stiffer. It certainly feels more responsive, offering flatter cornering and a tighter feel through the steering wheel. It still has double wishbones front and rear and four-wheel discs with ABS. Tires on our test car were the stickier, standard 215/45ZR-17 “summer” tires. The 205/55R-16 all-season tires are an option.
Lexus says the new transmission knocks off half a second in 0-to-60-mph times, from 7.3 to 6.8. We think the IS 300 manual is quick but we’ll withhold an endorsement of that claim. Lexus listed 7.1 for the IS 300 when it came out a year ago and has since backed off by two tenths. The closest we got when we tested the automatic was 7.99 seconds. Given that, our estimate for 0 to 60 mph would be in the low sevens. But it feels quick. Behind the wheel, flinging the car through twisting mountain two-lanes, riding low in the electrically adjustable, nicely bolstered seat, you almost feel like a touring car race driver. Indeed, just two days before we got into this bright red five-speed manual IS, a Lexus IS 300 won its first race, the Grand Am Cup in the Sports Touring class at Virginia International Raceway. Another IS 300 finished third.
But it wasn’t the Lexus press release announcing the win that made us think of this as a touring car. It was the car.
The manual arrives in showrooms in August and Lexus expects to sell 1600 in the remainder of 2001. After that the division is looking at 4800 a year. We think that’s conservative, but we like fun cars with manual transmissions. Whether there are enough people like us in this automatic transmission world is the big question. We certainly hope there are. Manufacturers are only starting to realize there is a large market of import drag racers who have been around so long that many of them are growing up, getting real jobs and can afford nicer cars. This is perfect for them and for the still-young ones with rich and generous parents.
Our experience on the streets of Southern California and Detroit is that younger buyers loved the IS 300, even when it first arrived a year ago with its automatic. If Lexus means what it says about trying “to attract younger buyers,” this car will do it. Its styling alone makes it appeal to youthful buyers, those who may have just blown up their last Civic Si.
A straight six, with five gears stacked behind it routing power through a Torsen limited-slip differential to the rear wheels is about as nice a setup as any young racer could ask for.
Except maybe that turbo-charged version offered in Japan. But let’s take this one big improvement at a time.
07-26-2001, 11:58 PM
#2
Three Wheelin'
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Age: 54
Posts: 1,325
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
who's review is that?
0-60 in 7.99 for the auto????
It's not THAT slow!!! I've never seen a published time that slow for this car. Most times were in the 7.4-7.6 range.
At any rate, sounds like it makes the car even better. Give me another 30hp and get rid of that god-awful rear end and we'll talk!
0-60 in 7.99 for the auto????
It's not THAT slow!!! I've never seen a published time that slow for this car. Most times were in the 7.4-7.6 range.At any rate, sounds like it makes the car even better. Give me another 30hp and get rid of that god-awful rear end and we'll talk!
07-27-2001, 01:07 AM
#5
Someday pigs WILL fly!
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: Pequannock, NJ USA
Posts: 3,320
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Originally posted by z28typeSWRXkid:
<STRONG>i always hated autoweek...their articles are garbage and the magazine is all advertisements.</STRONG>
<STRONG>i always hated autoweek...their articles are garbage and the magazine is all advertisements.</STRONG>
Trending Topics
07-27-2001, 06:12 PM
#10
Pro
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: Southern California
Posts: 616
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
How are you timing your 0-60? I hope it's not with a stopwatch, being that I do not expect you to have access to a 5th-wheel. And everytime I bring up G-tech numbers, people get into huge debates about its accuracy despite the extensive precautions I take.
The only relatively irrefutable numbers are 1/4 mile times at a strip, and so far we've gotten it to run the gamut:
15.433@90.91
15.65?@90.00
15.23?@91.??
(There should be more, but I'm loathe to search through the whole site.)
So relative to what we can do in the quarter, 7.8s is way on the slow side. (This is of course said with the belief that 0-60 and quarter times are somewhat related, at least in production cars with no gearbox tweaks.) And any magazine figure over 7.6s we take with a huge grain of salt. Of course, those reviews are always those that volunteer the opinion (regardless of whether it actually relates to anything else in the review) that the 3-series is the indisputable king of the segment.
Anyways, we expect the manual to shave 0.5-0.6s off the 0-60 time.
The only relatively irrefutable numbers are 1/4 mile times at a strip, and so far we've gotten it to run the gamut:
15.433@90.91
15.65?@90.00
15.23?@91.??
(There should be more, but I'm loathe to search through the whole site.)
So relative to what we can do in the quarter, 7.8s is way on the slow side. (This is of course said with the belief that 0-60 and quarter times are somewhat related, at least in production cars with no gearbox tweaks.) And any magazine figure over 7.6s we take with a huge grain of salt. Of course, those reviews are always those that volunteer the opinion (regardless of whether it actually relates to anything else in the review) that the 3-series is the indisputable king of the segment.
Anyways, we expect the manual to shave 0.5-0.6s off the 0-60 time.
07-27-2001, 11:48 PM
#11
www.drippinwet.com
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Kingston, Pennsylvania
Age: 55
Posts: 2,028
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
i'll drive the first one our dealership gets, i'll let everyone know how it is, i'll also drive the cls 6-speed when we get it and report back on that as well
07-28-2001, 12:06 PM
#12
Senior Moderator
Originally posted by acura_service:
<STRONG>i'll drive the first one our dealership gets, i'll let everyone know how it is, i'll also drive the cls 6-speed when we get it and report back on that as well</STRONG>
<STRONG>i'll drive the first one our dealership gets, i'll let everyone know how it is, i'll also drive the cls 6-speed when we get it and report back on that as well</STRONG>
not just mister i work acura...seriously i hope .ihope,i hope we get some more upgrades than just the 6...lower,stiffer,etc...? hey acura-service i understand the order code is available does that reveal pricing???might give some insite to weather we can expect any thing more than just the manual???
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
rp_guy
Member Cars for Sale
9
07-16-2017 07:33 AM
Biggie_B
5G TLX (2015-2020)
12
02-26-2017 11:14 AM
