Lexus IS F | Spotted

You know the world’s gone mad when you can pick up a V8 saloon for the similar cost as a joyless supermini. You have your choose of E90 M3s, B7 RS4 ands W204 C63 AMGs with £20,000 burning a hole in your pocket, supplying you all the V8 thunder you could at any time want with practicality to boot.

There is one particular outlier amid the super saloons of the late noughties, nonetheless. No issue how several instances you spam the refresh button the PH Classifieds, Lexus IS F values just won’t budge. Whilst the rest of its contemporaries had been strike challenging by depreciation and have still to succumb to the sort of rate rises that are influencing, very well, rather a great deal every little thing in the environment, the IS F carries on to hold regular. 

Exceptional what solid create excellent and a good dependability document can do for a performance car’s price. Several PHers will know the sensation of getting a low-cost V8 in the hope that the horror stories will not befall them, only to be slapped with a maintenance invoice so crippling that you are left thinking no matter if to promote the detail or remortgage the house. But the IS F is just one of the few V8s saloons in existence that possibly will not give you reliability-similar night terrors, with Lexus proving that its effectiveness cars are as bombproof as top quality barges and SUVs.

Probably it is simply because the IS F was reasonably lower on frills in contrast to its rivals. The expertise is dominated by the engine, a 5.-litre obviously aspirated V8 creating 423hp, 372lb ft of torque and one hell of an exhaust take note. Performance was on a par with its rivals, also, with -62mph coming in 4.6 seconds, assisted by a snappy eight-speed automatic gearbox – a world initial for a production vehicle. That staying explained, it was close to 35kg heavier than the E90 M3 and came with passive dampers, meaning there was no way to slacken off the notoriously company journey.

That’s the place this specific car or truck arrives in, even though. It’s 1 of the past of the line, acquiring been registered in 2012, and is for that reason one particular of the sought-just after facelifted cars and trucks. Though visible adjustments were being retained to a minimal, Lexus reworked the suspension with a softer front stop, stiffer rear and beefier anti-roll bars, along with a Torsen limited-slip differential. Granted, it didn’t transform the IS F into a keep track of demon – retaining the laid-again angle Lexus is acknowledged for – but it did insert a layer of precision that was arguably missing on pre-facelifted automobiles.

Now it is time to do the maths. The IS F by now carries a quality thanks to its trustworthiness, with the more recent types commanding even a lot more owing to its several chassis enhancements. Increase in the 50,000-mile odometer studying – barely operate-in for a Lexus – whole vendor company historical past and pretty a great deal each and every solution underneath the sun, and you are seeking at a cost of £29,495. A brave person can conserve £10k and choose up a leggy M3 or C63 to scratch the V8 itch – but for these hunting to stay away from the dread of pondering irrespective of whether their car’s dashboard will hold their personal Christmas lights switch-on celebration, glance no additional. 

Motor: 4,968cc V8
Transmission: 8-pace automated, rear-wheel generate
Energy (hp): 423@6,600rpm
Torque (lb ft): 372@5,200rpm
MPG: 24.8
CO2: 283g/km
12 months registered: 2012
Recorded mileage: 50,000
Rate new: £55,995
Yours for: £29,495