You know what I find the most interesting about this article? The magazines always talk about “The other car companies need to step up to the BMW performance level”. If the numbers were in fact true for the IS350 then how in the world could C&D justify picking the BMW 330i over the IS350 in this comparison. The IS350 annihilated every other car. It isn’t even in the same class! It just goes to show that BMW is still paying the magazines more money than anyone else. They continue to end up in first place despite the fact that the 330i only accels in one thing “This mysterious subjective Steering feel”. This article is a joke. The IS350 is a great car and it will sell far better than any of these other cars(except maybe the 330i) even though it finished in second place. The BMW 330i is an over priced fun car to drive that will continue to sell well only because it finished in 1st place. The G35 is an outstanding value and it will continue to do well because the people who buy it don’t care about what the magazines think. The Acura TL is an excellently designed car that will continue to do well until they make a Hybrid AWD vehicle. Then it will dominate the market unless there is a Hybrid IS350, or a Hybrid G35! The other cars really don’t matter now do they?

 

Yet R&T rates the IS at 6.0 to 60 and 14.5 in the 1/4. Something is way out of whack with the numbers the IS posted at C&D, or Lexus sent them a preview of an IS430.

 

That's all good, but um, when I stomp on the gas and make a hard right, I DO NOT want my car telling me what to do. I'm like "hell no bitch, you will turn and squeal, not tell me to let off".....eff that.

 

A lot of numbers from the article are all wacky.

Not to mention (from the scans), I did not see any "as tested" prices - how convenient. Load up a 330i like my G, and it somes to $43K. $8K+ more than I paid for mine. That's a lot of fun vacations and travel, and I'll have less problems down the road.

I doubt the IS will be much cheaper with similar options. I think it's a nice car, but I have a hard time believing the numbers, especially the sprint to 60.

And no, the VDIM can not be disabled. Sux0rs! And yes, the 330i had MULTIPLE electronic problems during the test. One of which almost threw them into a spin at 70 MPH! And it gets first.

OH, OK.

I'd take an IS over the 330 if they put in a manual and got the suspension sorted out. But then again, I would just save the $8K and get a G.

Oh wait, I already did.

 

A rolling start of 5-60 in 5.3 sec is enough to make me believe that that statistic is wrong also. All of the other cars but the Audi were at almost twice that time. I looked at the gearing and the IS350 had pretty similar gearing to the other cars. How in the world could it be so fast for C&D on this particular day and so much slower for everyone else on every other day. The answer is that it never did a 5.1 0-60. These numbers are corrected for Atmospheric conditions. The article shows pictures of all of the cars outside temp gauges. The Infiniti one read about 116 degrees Fahrenheit! That means that the correction factors must have been huge to get the comparison fair when compared to STP(Standard Temperature and Pressure). The IS350 probably pulled a 5.6 or 5.7 and that got reduced to the 5.1 by the fudge factors. The thing I don’t understand is why these calculations would favor one car more than another? Do the calculations use anything factors that are specific to the car like engine displacement or are they solely based on Atmospheric conditions? If the other cars had the correction factor that the IS350 had then they would have been running in the upper 6s for 0-60. That is just terrible. All of the other cars seemed to be right in line with their normal numbers and the heavier and only slightly more powerful Lexus IS350 seemed to do the impossible. According to C&D the IS350 is only a couple of ticks away from keeping up with an STI and an EVO. There is no way that is possible those cars are a whole lot lighter and they have just about the same power numbers. This article has conspiracy theory written all over it!

 

Here is the article scanned in. Post #s 81 and 82.

http://www.clublexus.com/forums/show...=1#post1466783

 

The latest Motortrend got a 5.5 to 60 and 14.0. There is no doubt the IS350 is the fastest class in its segment. It also uses the new SAE revisions so the horsepower isn't comparable to the G35 and BMW 330. The new TL with "258 hp" did 5.9 to 60 and the G35 with similar weight tied it. This leads me to believe the Infiniti may be overrated at 298 hp. Even if you take the Motortrend numbers, it still gets 5.5 to 60 with an automatic producing only 9 more hp than the supposed 298hp and weighs MORE than the G35.

Either Toyota is seriously underrating these engines or the new revisions have a significant impact on Infiniti's hp numbers. Nonetheless, the G35 is still a very nice car and we should be happy that we don't have BMW reliability

 

I'm very comfortable in my G35 but I hate it when car magazines come up with weird numbers, ignore certain facts, and appear biased. The biggest problem I have is cost. These vehicles appear to be in the same class, but "as tested" prices can put them in a whole different league. It would be like comparing a C6 Corvette to a Ferrari 360. Both are sports cars that make around 400hp and perform very well. It would make a fun comparison but if you do not consider price in the argument, everything else is meaningless.

 

I don't buy into the notion of mags influencing numbers just to make a car look better because of advertizing. I do agree they're BMW blind though and it does get annoying, especially when the BMW in question breaks down during the tests.

As for the IS350's performance, I'm inclined to believe it. Sure, the numbers have been largely corrected, but so have the other car's numbers. As far as I know, there aren't any other published times for this car other than estimated times by the mags. The IS350 has very strong gearing compared to the G. Factor in the torque multiplication of the torque converter and you've got a car that leaps off the line. Next is the power, the IS350 is rated with the SAE guidelines. It's quite possible that this motor is making more than the advertized 306hp and it's also possible and likely, that the IS350 is making more power throughout the powerband compared to the G. Both cars might make around 300hp, but if the IS350 is making 30whp at all points under the curve, it's going to be a hell of a lot quicker. I think this motor is making around 325hp with a larger powerband than the G. Factor in the additional gearing and there you go.

Another thing to consider is the factory "ringer". Lexus has been guilty of this in the past when the GS400 was introduced. These cars were posting 14.2@100mph however most people at Club Lexus are only getting 14.5-14.8@96mph out of them. Even my friend's stock 99 GS400 went 14.8@96mph and his friend his a 15.0@95mph. I've witnessed two other GS400s doing 14.6/14.7@96mph. Later tests of the GS400/430 revealed consistent 14.5s@97mph. Same goes goes for the 300C. When it was first tested it was getting 13.9@101mph. Later on it was getting 14.5@96mph. Then there's the M45. 13.8s@101mph and later on 14.4@98mph.

 

Car and Driver always seem to get the best tested time for a car than the other magazines.

The vast majority of the mags got anywhere from 5.8 - low 6 seconds for 0-60 for both the G35 6MT coupe and sedan.
The best tested time is 5.5 sec. for the G35c 6MT by Car and Driver & has not been matched by any other magazine tests, but I'm not complaining

I don't think there's necessarily anything wacky about this test either for the IS350 just because some people don't want to believe it.
Motor Trend got 5.5 sec. 0-60 for the IS350, & based on comparing their test results of cars in the past tests by these mags, it's not too surprising to me that C & D got the fastest times again.
The Lexus IS350 has the highest hp/torque rated under the stricter new SAE standards that the vast majority of other manufacturers has not adopted yet, and has a 6 speed auto transmission. It should be the fastest car in this class right now.

 

Anyone else notice the price as tested? Hah.

TL $35,870
A4 $41,520
BMW $42,390
Caddy $36,515
G $34,760
IS350 ~$40,000
9-3 $34,445
S60R $47,600

So ok, the G was the second lowest as tested price to the 9-3, which got *last* place. The TL is only 1k more, which is good for Acura owners, same with the Caddy. Shame they scored 4th and 6th respectively. The real "surprises" are the S60R at over $12,500 *more* than the G (If I'm not mistaken, you can get an M35 for less than this with most options since base is $41k), the BMW at 8k more than the G (called that one) and the A4 at 7k more. Oh, and the mightly IS3500 at approx. $6k more (probably closer to 8 in the real world).

OK so listen. I am all for mag tests, reviews, winners, losers, arguments, whatever - but these cars aren't even in the same class anymore. I consider a 12-33% price difference (in this case $6 to $12k) to be a different class, sorry. Maybe that's just me, but at $35k as tested versus $43k as tested, the BMW 330i and (probably) the IS350 should be compared to an M35. Hell, the S60R should be compared to an M45.

 

If you are disappointed with C&D for picking the BMW which was a defective car that didn’t accel at any of the performance categories and it cost more than any of the other real competitors then write to them. Submit your letters to editors@caranddriver.com and let them know that we want an explanation as to how the IS350 achieved the 5.1 sec 0-60. Ask them what the actual measured 0-60 time was. The more letters they receive the more likely we are to get a response. At the very least you might win a prize if you can write well. Also I suspect that this weeks episode of C&D TV will have this comparison on it. I for one will be watching and recording it!

 

How in the world did the BMW get a 5 for Brake feel? It would only get a 5 for brakes if you felt like dying! The car nearly crashed at 70 MPH due to faulty abs! It is not like the new 330i is still in development. This thing has been out for months now. This wasn’t a pre production test mule that had been worn out. This is a car that anyone could drive off of the lot and die in! I can’t believe that C&D would spend the whole article saying how bad and dangerous the BMW 330i was and then come back and say other than that it was great and it should finish first.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v434/BAHILL99/13.jpg

 

I believe the new MT tested the auto G, which would be 280 hp, not 298

 

GET A GRIP! The G35 had a respectable showing for one of the older designs. If numbers were the only measure than the IS350 would have won. For Car and Driver it is all about finesse. The G35 remains a stunning performer with some rough edges. The G35 drivetrain is simply not as smooth and easy to to shift as the BMW, the ride is not as smooth and the interior as well executed, but for $8K I will take the G35. Car and Driver remains the best magazine out there