2001 - 2005 Lexus IS 300 Pre-Owned

The BMW 3-series is the benchmark for sports sedans. Sure, there are faster four doors; that Audi's new RS4 handily beats anything from Regensburg, Dingolfing, Leipzig or even Rosslyn is hardly a point of contention, but there is simply no other sports sedan on earth that is as scintillating to drive, nor as popular as the Bimmer. With an inline six, rear- or all-wheel drive, and impeccable chassis dynamics, the 3-Series really came into its own in 1999, when the last generation debuted. That even the lowliest 325i possessed the same chassis as the vaunted M3 showed how capable it was, and that performance pedigree combined with BMW's relatively excellent construction made every model in the 3-Series lineup an excellent buy. And try as they might, numerous attempts at dethroning the little Bimmer failed, with everything from Cadillac's Catera and CTS to Jaguar's ill-fated X-Type failing miserably by all comparisons (but the CTS-V is pretty intense - Ed.), to Audi's A4 series being criticized for one too many dips into the VW parts bin. Infiniti's G35 has done a pretty good job offering a larger car with more power and deft handling, and then there was Lexus' first-generation IS.

A brand that holds perfection as the goal, Lexus had been targeting BMW's market for quite some time, and in some segments had even had moderate success in doing so. Offering a similar luxury experience and arguably superior quality, Toyota's upper echelon brand lacked but one thing: an attainable entry-level model in the sport sedan segment. Sure the well-priced ES 300, 330 and now 350 has long been a best-seller, but a youthful market is not what the front-drive four-door attracts. Contrarily, BMW's entire North American business model relies on the 3-Series, and has done so since the demise of the 2002, with the aim of using it as a vehicle (no pun intended) with which to introduce the brand's products to successful, financially secure, and (most importantly) impressionable young buyers. Thus, as the subject's tastes and bank accounts matured, he or she would logically and predictably move up the product ladder, purchasing a 5-Seriesand eventually a 7-Series (with the 6-Series slotted somewhere in between the two as a sort of mid-life crisis-mobile). Unfortunately for Lexus, not having that all-important entry-level, sport-oriented model meant that they remained out of sight and out of mind for younger buyers.

So to remedy that situation, Lexus introduced the world to its diminutive IS 300 sedan in 2001. As the brand's first entry-level sport sedan, it was greeted with open arms by the media and public alike, its aggressive shape being welcomed as an alternative to the relatively conservative styling offered up by its German counterparts/competitors. With a unique front fascia that reflected the IS 300's youthful nature, the car had an almost bulldog-like quality to it, with a blunt nose and powerful fenders. Wraparound, angular headlights imparted an extroverted, sporty image that the A4 and 3-Series' hooded lenses didn't, and the deep-set, blacked out grille added to the illusion. A tall greenhouse and reasonably upright windshield retained a modicum of stateliness, and a thick, tapering C-pillar gave it a real aura of strength.

Out back, the Lexus' most telling features were its taillights. A multi-element design, the IS 300's chrome taillights soon became all the rage, and it wasn't long before the Fast and Furious crowd started putting what they referred to as "Altezzas" (the Japanese domestic market variant of the Lexus IS 300 was the Toyota Altezza, and everything from Japan is far cooler so of course the moniker had to be taken from the JDM car) on their cars. Sort of like a tattoo on the lower back, the clear/chrome taillights let the world know exactly what age group this car was aimed at, so imagine everyone's surprise when Lexus followed up the IS 300 sedan's 2001 launch with the IS 300 SportCross (read: wagon) in 2002.

With a slightly revised and softened face, and of course a remodeled derriere, the wagon version also sported wider tires out back to better handle the added weight. Hardly successful, the SportCross' weird blend of Impreza-like hatchback-meets-wagon styling relegated it to a world of sales failure, and the SportCross remains a rarity today.

Inside,the IS 300 offered up much of the same luxury as the Bimmer, albeit without the same staid design of das Germans. With a myriad of textures including (but not limited to) rough pewter, chrome, stainless steel, plastic, and fabric, the IS 300's cockpit echoed the exterior, paying homage to the 3-Series' blend of sport and luxury but with a healthy infusion of youthfulness. Drilled aluminum pedals and a big cueball shifter settled amongst various chrome trim rings and bezels, while the traditional Lexus waterfall console housed what some believed to be too many buttons and switches.

Likewise, the gauge cluster received poor reviews for its odd layout that placed the speedometer above the tach and useless analog instant fuel economy gauge. While making the speedometer relatively easy to read, this layout left the ancillary gauges with nowhere to call home, so they moved inside the speedometer, on the right hand side. As a result, they're tiny and almost impossible toread. Interior room is much the same as the BMW, although the IS 300's shorter wheelbase means there is less rear seat room. Interior comfort was also comparable, although the IS 300 did fall down in a few places. It's surprisingly loud, for example, and both tire thrum and wind noise penetrate the interior quite easily. Additionally, leather wasn't available until 2003; a boon on any car costing over $30,000, and the navigation system was poorly integrated, with the screen motoring very niftily out of the dashboard but the controls being placed down at the bottom of the console. The stock audio system, however, was stellar for an OEM stereo - critical for its target market.

Driving the IS 300 exposed some of the car's idiosyncrasies. With an inline six that had its roots in the Mark IV Supra, the 215 horsepower sedan targeted somewhere in between the lower- and mid-point of the 3-Series scale. The choice of a steering-wheel-mounted, button-shifted automatic or a traditional, and vastly more effective five-speed manual made power delivery sufficiently sporting, and the car's acceleration times are competitive with the BMW, with 60 mph coming up in 7.1 seconds. The nifty automatic was a good idea, but being a regular old slushbox it is equipped with a torque converter, and some thought the push-button transmission too slow of thought and shifting to be predictable, and the steering wheel buttons are admittedly difficult for most people to use.

Pressing the "power" button firms things up somewhat, but the cog swaps still take too long for real performance driving. The manual, on the other hand, earned kudos for its light clutch and solid feel, and allowed the driver to make better use of the inline six's VVT-i supplied balance of high rpm power and torque, not to mention it also let the driver wind the lusty inline six out to the upper end of the tachometer's sweep, where the Supra-sourced motor sounded best.

The suspension was quite capable, trading Lexus' soft and quiet ride for a more stiff and nimble feel. For their first attempt at a sports-tuned suspension, the IS 300 excelled, and was only moderately thumpy over hard, sharp hits. Broken pavement, rough roads, potholes and any other urban obstacle never upset the IS 300's poise, and the ride instilled confidence in the car's ability to round corners at speed. Unfortunately, that confidence wasn't wholly deserved, and the car's electronic nannies cut in far too early to be any fun at the limit. Even more dismaying was the nannies' necessity; turning them off resulted in early tail-out slides that, while fun for some are downright dangerous to most. Finally, while certainly offering up an excellent ride and a good level of sporting capability, the IS 300 never quite bests its European rivals, with slightly inferior road feel and balance. There have been many, however, mostly of the "Altezza" crowd, who have taken advantage of its smaller size and correspondingly lighter weight, by tuning both the suspension and engine for optimal performance, ending up with a seriously impressive sport sedan. Actually, given the widespread knowledge that the IS 300 relies on the famed Supra's motor for motivation, many IS 300s have been modified,with power outputs well over 500 horsepower. While some can provide excellent bargains for those looking to go really fast in a relatively unassuming car, modified cars are generally a no-no when it comes to used car ownership.

For those looking for a good used sports sedan for a slightly more conservative purpose, mind you, the stock IS 300 offers up a long list of benefits. Usually a few thousand dollars cheaper than a similar 3-Series, the Lexus has earned a reputation for being quite reliable. With many examples immaculately cared for, and no National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recalls issued, buying an IS 300 is a pretty stress-free exercise, although one should look out for a faulty in-mirror compass and a chirping noise upon clutch depression (in the manuals only, of course).

All in all, an IS 300 will give you a sporty yet luxuriously appointed ride for a reasonable price, get you where you're going and back home again with Lexus' legendary dependability, and do so with an air of exclusivity that no BMW 3-Series owner can hope to enjoy. Buck up for an Altezza badge and you'll even get respect from the tuner crowd.

Specifications: