Late20 Guide: Zoidberg Edition - IS300

"Bob Loblaw Made Me Make a Phoney Phone Call to Edward Rooney" (braddelaparker) 02/04/2019 at 13:00 • Filed to: late20, late20guide, is300, lexus, is, altezza

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Lexus IS300
2000 - 2005

Drivers: $3-6k
Garage Queens: $10-15k
High sale is a 72k mile ‘02 SportCross (wagon) for $15.5k on !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! in August of 2018

Lexus’s timing couldn’t have been more fortuitous with the first generation IS. The sport compact scene was in full swing when the first MY 2000 IS300s hit US shores, but the first wave of tuner kids were now tuner guys, maybe even working professionals with a family, and the IS300 was the perfect way to sell out without, well, selling out. Lexus took an all-or-nothing approach with the IS in the US: one engine option (the 2JZ-GE), one transmission option at launch (5-speed auto), and minimal options, the most notable of which was a limited-slip differential ($390 extra). All told, a fully loaded IS300 cost the equivalent of an entry-level BMW 328i. What you got in return was exactly what the IS300 looked like on paper: a razor sharp, responsive compact sedan that your wife would ride in and could carry a car seat.

Pundits at the time complained about the harsh ride and kitschy interior, but that’s exactly what Lexus’s target demographic was looking for. Even if the IS didn’t possess the intangibles that the 3-Series did, it had all of the specs on paper to win a benchracing argument. And at the end of the day, is there anything more emblematic of the early 2000s tuner (and wider car) scene than spending 10% of your time driving and working on your car and the other 90% benchracing on internet forums?

Fun fact? A HomeLink garage door opener was a $1,750 option. For a garage door opener. Seventeen hundred and fifty dollars. Unreal!

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Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Bob Loblaw Made Me Make a Phoney Phone Call to Edward Rooney 02/04/2019 at 13:21

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“harsh ride” the amusing part is that the ride is too soft to really compete with Ze Germans. A little suspension tweaking and an IS300 will walk all over an E46 330CI, but from the factory it seems like Lexus was a bit too timid to fully commit to the “sport” side of the “sport luxury sedan” scale.  

Bob Loblaw Made Me Make a Phoney Phone Call to Edward Rooney > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 02/04/2019 at 13:25

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Yeah I don’t have a ton of experience in ISs, but I think your comments ring a little more accurate than my assessment of “harsh”. It feels very much in a grey area; not LS-pillowy, but not 3-Series responsive either.

Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo > Bob Loblaw Made Me Make a Phoney Phone Call to Edward Rooney 02/04/2019 at 13:32

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I like how whoever ordered that thing I have got the home link, but couldn't spring for the LSD or heated seats. Shrug dot pee en gee

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Bob Loblaw Made Me Make a Phoney Phone Call to Edward Rooney 02/04/2019 at 13:42

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I personally think it’s an excellent middleground for a daily driver, but most publications don’t care about the middle ground, they want the MOST SPORTY or the MOST COMFORTABLE and the IS is an awkward middleground that does just what you want a somewhat sporty daily driver sedan to do, and nothing more.

A set of stiffer sway bars would definitely not go amiss, however.

djmt1 > Bob Loblaw Made Me Make a Phoney Phone Call to Edward Rooney 02/04/2019 at 14:07

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I miss the days when pretty much any Lexus from 20 years ago was a Ł1K special. sigh... I bloody hate drift tax.

Bob Loblaw Made Me Make a Phoney Phone Call to Edward Rooney > djmt1 02/04/2019 at 16:14

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Look, you bastards in the UK have had it ridiculously good with your used car pricing for a long time, you won’t find anyone here shedding a tear on your behalf!

But it’s the same story here in slightly different magnitude. More than anything there are just so few clean ones left because, well, drift tax.

Bob Loblaw Made Me Make a Phoney Phone Call to Edward Rooney > Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo 02/04/2019 at 16:17

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The LSD was a $390 option! That’s it, and instead t hey sprung for a $2,000 IR remote? Insane.

Stopcallingmesir > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 02/04/2019 at 21:54

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Yes to all of this! My 2008 GS awd is nowhere as sporty as the BMW ( ive always liked italians over germans for fun, 3 dds) But not as lux as an E-Class. Funny thing is my 2008 GS was cheaper than both when new, and worth more than either now.