2005 Lexus IS300- My (slightly biased) review

"Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur" (velocity860) 11/18/2013 at 20:12 • Filed to: Review

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So, this is my car. Technically my dad owns it, but I DD it and am slowly paying it off. Time for a review I suppose!

Exterior 8/10

I think this is a very good looking car, but in a more subtle way than other cars. It just looks like a sports sedan should. The yellow foglights compliment the white HID headlights very well. The "Altezza" tail lights look good on this car, unlike ricers who copy it. Besides that, I have nothing to say other than the lines are "clean".

Interior 9/10

For the early 2000s, the quality of the interior of the IS300 is phenomenal. No terrible plastics where you'll actually bother touching, and the hard plastics that it does have feel like they are made of quality stuff, not water bottle plastic. The gauge cluster is famous for being like a Chronograph and looks freaking awesome. My car has the full leather package, and the leather is amazing. The front seats have decent bolstering, but I do find myself sliding a bit when taking hard corners. In the back, where people haven't sat very much, the leather feels brand new, extremely soft and luxurious. One of the gripes I have with the interior is the stuff they used to cover the dash. It melts over the years, so I have a slightly sticky dash (especially on the passenger airbag) that picks up fingerprints and dust like nothing else. Luckily, if you wipe it down with a damp rag it all goes away. The other gripe I have is the lack of rear legroom. Luckily, they made up for this by making the rear seats and armrest the most squishy, comfortable things ever.

Acceleration 7/10

The IS300, stock of course, was never a fast car and never will be. 215hp and 218 ft lbs of torque definitely makes the car peppy and fun, but nothing you'd call eye-peeling speed. 0-60 times for the automatic generally reside around the 7.3 second range, while the manual seems to put up 6.9-7.1 times.

Braking 7/10

Nothing wrong here. Brakes stop the car and do so pretty well. The pedal has a nice feel, although a tiny bit too much travel, maybe.

Ride 8/10

The IS300's ride slots right between soft and hard. Its medium. Just enough harshness to tell you that you actually just hit a bump, but not enough to break your back when you do. Very comfortable car for daily driving.

Handling 8/10

Let me just say that this car handles very well. The steering is just heavy enough, and definitely not too heavy. Its just about perfect, really. You can feel every little bump in the road transmitted through the wheel, but it doesn't ever get annoying. You can throw the car around and have a ton of fun without ever getting close to its limits, which is awesome.

Gearbox 7/10

I've never driven a manual IS300, so I can't tell you first hand if they are any good or not, but from what I've heard they are a little vague and notchy. All that can be fixed with a few mods, though. Now, the auto, which I have, is just alright. In full auto mode, the car shifts a little less smooth than it should when the transmission is cold, but once it warms up it's smooth as butter. The "E-shift" mode works well for downshifting, but it's not a true manual shift mode. Basically, its telling the transmission "Oh, you have 2 gears to work with" *shift up* "now you have 3" *shift up* "4" *shift up* "and now 5". If you are in, say, 4th gear, and accelerate too hard it will shift down without your consent. Also, it doesn't let you select 1st gear, probably because 1st is so small.

Audio 7/10

The stock radio is actually very good. Nice bass, not overpowering, crisp treble, and smooth mids. The engine growls when you rev it, and it can put a smile on anyone's face, if you are in the car. Outside of the car, it's disappointing. The stock exhaust is "Lexus'd" so that it is totally silent. It doesn't sound any better than a corolla from the exhaust. Slap an aftermarket exhaust on there though and you have one amazing sounding car.

Toys 6/10

For a Lexus, the IS300 really doesn't have much when it comes to toys. Mine has navigation, heated seats, and a full power sunroof. That's about it. Even for 2005 that wasn't much when it came to luxury cars. The navigation is also a little annoying to use, with its tiny little selection button.

Value 7/10

For 30 grand you got a very nice sports sedan with a legendary 2JZ and heaps of fun. For just a few grand more you got leather, navigation, and heated seats. That's a decent value, even in 2005.

Total- 74/100

Engine: 3.0 L 24 valve I6
Power: 215 HP @ 5800 RPM, 218 lb-ft @3800 RPM
Transmission: 5 speed automatic
0-60 Time: 7.3 Seconds
Top Speed: 144 mph (limited)
Drivetrain: Rear-wheel drive
Curb Weight: 3,285 lbs
Seating: 5
MPG: 16 city/23 highway/18 combined cycle on premium gasoline
MSRP: $30,000

PRBot II > Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur 11/18/2013 at 20:29

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Nice review. I've always liked the IS300.

Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur > PRBot II 11/18/2013 at 20:31

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Thanks! I have too. From the first time I saw them in Gran Turismo as a kid I always knew I wanted one.

GoliathRex > Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur 11/18/2013 at 20:42

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I pretty much agree with your review. I have driven a manual car a few times, and road tripped in one. I would add to the review that the ergonomics are spot on for smaller people- but its very tight for for anyone over 6ft. Gas mileage sucks for a car that sized- Under 20mpg combined should be expected. Driven similarly my (much quicker) mazdaspeed3 got a few MPG more in the city, and about 10 more on the highway.

Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur > GoliathRex 11/18/2013 at 20:43

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I'll agree with all of that. I'm under 6ft so I fit perfect in the thing

dropthatclutch > Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur 11/18/2013 at 20:44

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Love that it has a simple 3 dial/button hvac controls.

Burrito de EJ25 > Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur 11/19/2013 at 04:38

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Curious how that old navigation system is working out for you. Does it get map updates?

Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur > Burrito de EJ25 11/19/2013 at 07:29

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It's a DVD based system, and Lexus still makes new DVD updates luckily, but the DVD I have in there is from 2009 because it came with the car. I could get a new DVD but I have better things to spend my money on lol.

Burrito de EJ25 > Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur 11/19/2013 at 21:49

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It's good to know they're still supporting these old systems, though.

Nisman > Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur 11/23/2013 at 17:11

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I've always loved these cars. I'd like to own one at some point, it seems like there is always a plethora of low mileage/clean examples on Autotrader. It has aged so well!