Lexus Australia Announces Lexus-F Range
June 19, 2007 by Alborz Fallah
Earlier this year we mentioned the new range of performance cars from Lexus, named the F-range, were getting ready for an assault on the BMW M cars and the Mercedes-Benz AMG range.
Back then we pleaded with Lexus Australia to bring these performance cars to our shores, and today Lexus Australia has come through with the goods. Lexus Australia’s Divisional Manager John Roca confirmed the good news today, pointing out that Lexus is ready to take on the Germans at every level.
“Just by looking at the vehicle you know that it is something special. It will be the ultimate in performance cars and Lexus’ first performance-specific model. Mr Roca said
Much as the LS 400 did in the luxury market, the IS-F will challenge performance rivals in its field – providing a level of performance and on-track ability unlike any previous Lexus.“
Before we give you the juicy details, its important to have some history.
Lexus has now successfully penetrated the German luxury brands market share, as is recognized worldwide as one of the top three premium luxury manufacturers.
However Lexus has always lacked one thing, dedicated performance cars. While Mercedes has arguably the most well known range of performance cars with AMG and BMW is also up there with the M cars, Lexus has, well, nothing.. yet. So comes along, the Lexus-F range.
Lexus says the “F” symbol is derived in name and design from Japan’s Fuji Speedway – the home of Lexus performance vehicle development. Although many might simply take the F as a “Fast” – Lexus says it is more than just a first letter of its namesake – it also depicts the first corner of Fuji Speedway, commonly known as 27R.
The first of the new Lexus-F range will arrive in Australia mid next year, the first model will be the IS-F sports sedan. Are you ready for the details?
- a 300kW five-litre V8 engine,
- estimated 475Nm of torque
- eight-speed transmission,
- lock-up clutch and limited slip differential.
300kWs coupled with an eight-speed auto? We imagine the Germans are a little worried at this stage.
With less than 12 months before the Lexus-F range will land in Australia, rest assured we will be camping outside Lexus headquarters prior to the arrival, the Lexus IS-F will be one hell of a car!
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It’s only just beginning :) , about time the marketing sector of Lexus and Toyota figured out that they ‘need’ to bring in such cars to battle the whole ‘oh look at me I drive a base model bmw,audi,merc etc’ but hell its EURopeAN …
happy days ….
I simply.. cannot wait.. to drive this thing
it looks like a monster.
saw this ages ago, very nice, but whats with the weird quad pipes?
Does this mean no chance of the IS350 coming here?
Looks like a scorcher for the race track. Lovely styling too. Hopefully it handles and has the torque to match. 300kw from only 5 litres screams to me that they may have forsaken torque/drivability for a ‘headline’ power number. I hope not as it should kick the performance of the 3 series in to the weeds. And probablt for much less money and compromise.
I have just read estimated torque at only 350 !!
But there will be Coupe too.
Still trying to find the cost estimated else where, but no luck.
toyota lexus same thing forget about it…
yeah i agree about the tailpipes, its all german-business up front and then they couldnt resist the japanese quirk at the rear, cheapens the effect, guess some will like it
Tony, when you tell other people to forget about it, most people will just forget about you.
Norakism , well said
also , it’ll be easier to forget the badge on your car Tony and Smokin R32 especially when one has passed you in something looking like this Lexus and offering what it has. (gonna go look up some more aftermarket parts are we now aye? , imagine what a couple of aftermarket mods would translate to on a powerplant like that)..
:) snap.
duly noted
This car is going to be amazing. This car is the love child of an Audi and a Beemer. You get classy styling that is a Japanese take on Audi, and the performance to better the new M3, whilst you still retain the reliability of a Toyota. MMMMMMM… Lexus
So what is the cost going to be ?
Will be it classed as best bang for your buck in this country ,sadly no. Mods ,schmods we could go on forever there.
Did I mention torque is only 350 ?
excuse me but when you’re paying for a car in that sort of price range, I’m not sure if exactly you’re thinking with best bang for your buck .. I’d be thinking that in the case of what Corolla or Honda Civic to get.
also Bavarian Missle, having admitted you watch TopGear, I’m pretty sure you’d know that having figures is not the whole deal, its about the chassis, the tune, how the car is putting that power down..i.e remember the episode where the Porsche being 100bhp less than an M5 was 5 seconds quicker on a power run.. and I could go on about a few more similar tests.
bang for buck and oh 350 torque, do you feel like a motoring journalist now for having put forward your pathetic remarks? what may I ask do you drive? does it offer you best for buck ?
look I’ll let it to you bluntly, where you’re not going to get checked out ok , you could drive this ^^ car and probably then start getting some attention.
Mods, shmods was just in reference to seeing the nickname of R32, (assuming he’s fairly into car mods, as you would be if you own something like that).
Powertrain
Engine: 5.0-liter V8
Horsepower: 300kW (more than 400hp)
Torque: 475Nm (more than 350 lb.-ft.)
Transmission: 8-speed gear box (paddle sport shift)
quoted from webwombat, jus a quick search.
:)
oh christ, dont ask what she drives, she only screams it at every given opportunity. its an m3 and thats why shes doubting the rival lexus, go figure
Where would you pull torque at 350 out of!!?? A friggin family car Aurion has 340… this is a 5L performance orientated V8.
the car has 475Nm of torque
not 300, i will edit the article i must have forgotten to add it!
Gee I don’t know what do you guess I drive?
Car mods,mate I am getting to old for it now.
You would have to talk to my son he does that now! He does the ricer thing!!!
No your right no idea about mods either ,even though we do own one of the best modified GT’s in Australia, and have the trophies to prove it,but I guess that don’t count !!!!! Porsche against a BMW right thats the same ! I have had both,they both didn’t seem to drive the same though,but hey what would I know , I just watch Top Gear,havent been involved with cars for over 20 years either,husband and I didn’t have a mechanical workshop for 15 years and havent owned anything worth owning . So I will let you ramble on. So what is it going to cost???? Any idea? Is this a site for males only ?? Starting to feel like it this end!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And mate your no different you quote what you read too!! Is this become a site where everyone has to agree with each other ?
My search http://www.leftlanenews.com/2008-lexus-is-f.html
What dumbass mistakens 350 pounds of torque for 350nm? I knew something was up as soon as I heard this. That is just depressing for somebody to misread that. We all know this car is going to fly, well Paul, jdm, alborz, sam, BDH, and myself seem to, and most of our posts actually seem to make the ost sense.
this is going to be a weapon
the only test will be handling, Lexus cars have so far never enjoyed a reputation for proper balance and good handling, you’d hope they get it right with the F series
No you all assumed that , I mentioned nothing but 350!! What you don’t think I know the difference ?Right! You are all clearly looking for something to get me on. Set you up!! LOL!!!!!!!!
But what is it going to cost???????? Still nothing on that ha? Just trying to pull me down! I must be the most watched name here! Very sad people .
haha
i think it would be roughly 20k cheaper than an RS4 which is about 160
but u never know, lexus might go crazy and start at 100k for this thing
then it would dominate big time
ok so we’ll compare bmws to holdens, but not bmws to porches, thats different.. christ you spit some bullshit
Why would I watch your posts? They usually tend to stand out, most likely because they are annoying, and stupid. Hence, the reason why I was oblidged to comment on it in the first place. Seriously, why would you intentionally use the imperial system? Use some flipping logic.
Ok, so now coming down to your level of ‘debating’
Firstly, yes I am quoting what I saw on TopGear, which happened to be a test to show (as I mentioned) about how figures aren’t everything ok.
Again you bring up car mods, when I already mentioned that I was pointing out with reference to smokinR32 (because thats a car associated with modifications due to the impressive figures obtained from even mere bolt ons). Nothing to do with you. 2nd detail you missed out
I don’t care how many cars you’ve owned, be it modified ones or stock luxo ones, I can sure as hell say that your mentality level never grew to that stage where you can appreciate the engineering behind it all. All I see is someone blabbering on jibberish how just because they have some trophies and have had bmws or mercedes, that their point of saying that a well engineered car (forget the badge, look at the engineering aspect) should be considered less exclusive than what it is.
Not for males only, but when you come in with statements, without doing research. Well then go figure.
We should all just say that oh because it will cost xx amount, we shouldn’t applaud the technology. Well done bavarian missle, made me realize so much aye :D
Hey I drive a bmw or merc, hell yeah I should be snob attitude and be able to say that other cars (even though better in certain aspects), because of their price are shit :D
And yes I have all the time in the world to watch your name, only because I can have that laugh when I read your ignorant statements.. keep it up
this is gonna get interesting
You were atacking like Andrew and the other cocktards I ake it? As I was attacking Bavarians smart arse somments. I agree with what you say jdm.
Lets get back on topic aye. I wish this info came out earlier when the Holden bogans were talking up their 307kw V8 our of a 6L engine… now Lexus brings out this baby with the same power (albiet less torque) out of a whole litres less displacement! And Im going to go out on a limb, I bet my house thats its not a shitty pushrod and will actually enjoy going beyond 5000RPM!
Yeah, I was laughing at the bogans. Even when the 6L came out, I said an Audi 4 litre V8 engine could produce over 300kw. Torque isn’t as big of an issue for OHC engines as these pushrod/OHV P.O.S engines waste about 30% of the torque anyway. At least Ford’ new Falcon quad cam engine might produce some decent power from the still to large 5.4 litre, maybe 317kw, not a fan of Ford but I still want to see something local whipe the smile from that Elizabethian bogan’s face!
This baby is going to be very quick the IS350 has recorded 0-60 in 4.9sec. so this car should do very low 4sec bracket easy.
A very high tech engine scavenger pumps direct injection
It’s about time lexus shits over German cars, since the lexus IS250 won the award for the most luxurious car under $60,000. Lexus in the United States also won ten consecutive times in a consumer survey as the most luxurious and most reliable car in it’s class. BMW was rated as the worst German car.
it also got world car of the year with the LS460
Lexus has established itself as truely being one of the world’s most remarkable automotive brands. Although Lexus quality and refinement is of the highest order thier presance has been quite bland until recently. They are now offering very powerful cars combined with presance and a sporting motion while thier hybrid offerings are nothing short of being spectacular. Infact, i believe the new LS600hl mates 5.0 v8 with a hybrid drivetrain with a combined output of 325kw’s and 800NM of torque… that’s right 800NM of torque – crickey!!
The new LF series supercars will surely be a great offering by Lexus combining all the Lexus qualities that it has become highly regarded for with performance and this will undoubtedly strengthen Lexus’s recognition. The new IS-F and LF-A will be nothing shy of being remarkable.
no doubt this will be a quick car but taking on some of germanys finest may still prove to be a tough task
japs are really stepping it up a notch now with their car industry, on performance car scene and luxury segment. i doubt the germs are going to roll over and play dead though with audi proving it can really put on a show when it comes to performance like r8, s6, rs4 and hell ill even put the bugatti veyron in there for good measure as its an audi/vw car
lexus are great but they hardly show me innovation and advancements in technology that deserve respect like the germans. BUT, im seriously liking lexus’ toyota reliability and theyre pursuit of making a perfect product.
time will tell i guess, but im waiting with baited breathe to see this new f range!
Pfft… S6, wait for the RS6. In the car tests the S6 took 6.4 seconds to get to 100km and yet it has a Gallardo V10. I don’t get it, this baby has an 8 speed ZF, amazing power to weight, reliability, great handling characteristics, great aerodynamics, and many would rather it than an RS4 or M3 and yet it’s still not up to German spec in most’s opinion. I’d say it’s better!
I think ive read enough about performance and knowing lexus the quality will be there. Its alweays a dream of mine,a mong many other car fanatics, to own an M3 or an RS4 but living in Aus means that we have to pay 150K+ for these cars while i would have bought one along time ago if i lived in the US where an M3 is about 58K USD which is about 80 or so Aussie!! so i do wanna know where the heck an extra 80K is coming from?
Anyways
Comparing The LS460 to the same spec S Class (so we are looking at an S500 with all extra options). The LS460 costs 184K while an S500 basic costs 240K I believe then add extra bits to make the specs same as the LS460 then ur looking at about 270K atleast. So if we translate this to a comparison between the IS-F and the M3 (M3 costs 150K), the price of an ISF should be around 102K which sits way higher above the highest spec IS250, which is a good thing cause you dont want an IS250 costing 90 then trying to bring the ISF for 100K.
So fingers crossed my analysis is correct but gut feeling, we will be looking at 120K price. grrrrr I want one!!
I LOVE THIS NEW CAR ALREADY,I AM A LEXUS FREAK AND I CANNOT WAIT TO GET MY HANDS ON THIS NEW IS F,I ALREADY OWN AN IS AND ITS AWSOME…..ALL I HAVE TO SAY IS….IN YOUR FACE BMW!!!!!!!!
Looks good on paper…
But we dont know yet how it will handle and if it can deliver the power to the grnd effectively.
However it’s good to know that other manufacturer is making the market more interesting. Competition between manufacturers is always good for us consumers :D
But then again, at this point in time I still prefer the new M3 I sat on my mate’s and man I love it! .
Maybe wait for it to be released and have the journos / pro drivers test it out then my opinion might be changed.
Rear pipes are “interesting” but considering only 2 of them are connected…why
I would expect pricing in the 120-140k range for Australia. That being the case give me a c63AMG any day of the week IMHO
Straight from Lexus:
311kw and 505Nm
5.0L V8 VVTiE DOHC (quad cam)
can this car beat new nissan GTR ?
Get real blue – soggy bag of saloon car versus a taught race bred electronic filled rocket. What planet are you on?