Merry Christmas, says Lexus, which announced today that its hopped up entry-level luxury sedan will go on sale Christmas Day in Japan. Also unknown until now is the exact horsepower rating of the car's 5.0L V8, which has been revealed as 311kW, or 417 horsepower when converted from kilowatts, at 6,600 RPM. Meanwhile, torque is pegged at 372 ft-lb at 5,200 RPM. The 4.968L engine features variable valve timing on the intake side of things, as well as both direct and port fuel injection systems, which is interesting and a little confusing. We'll leave it to an engineer to explain that one. As we already knew, however, the engine's power will be divided up into tiny pieces by an 8-speed automatic sourced from the Lexus LS 460. Pricing starts at ¥7,600,000 or $65,170.00 USD when converted. Perhaps if you've been good this year, Santa will drive an IS-F all the way from Japan and park it under your tree. If not, you'll have to wait for its impending U.S. arrival like the rest of us.
Despite Lexus showing off its new sports sedan back in January at the Detroit Auto Show the company has been surprisingly tight-lipped about the number of horses kicking under the hood. However, today’s Japanese launch of the IS F allowed to officially state the figures as well as other details it hasn’t revealed before. The 5.0L V8 will develop 417hp (311kW) at 5,500rpm and 504Nm (372lb-ft) of torque, putting the IS F squarely in the same region as the BMW M3 and Audi RS4, its main competitors.
The engine will be mated to an 8-speed paddle-shift gearbox based on the one found in the LS460. Lexus has modified the transmission to offer a “M” mode for fast acceleration in first gear, while potentially limiting any damage caused by careless driving. The gearbox will also blip the throttle during downshifts to avoid jolts. The IS F has also had numerous suspension modifications, including new springs, shock absorbers, stabilizers tuned for the performance car. Sitting on 19in tires, the IS F uses large-diameter, wide 225/40R19 tires at the front and 255/35R19 tires at the rear for gripping the road and also gets a performance brake package.
Top speed is estimated by Lexus to be over 185mph, though the IS F will be limited to just 180km/h in its home market. Tellingly, the company forecasts just 500 sales a year in Japan but expects to sell over 5,000 in the U.S.
