It was a banner year for the Lexus IS sport sedan as it edged out its rivals for the top spot in the luxury compact passenger car segment of the year-end 2022 sales report of the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc (Campi).
Since the debut of its first-generation IS in 1999, the model has pursued the thrill of driving unique to compact rear-wheel-drive sports sedans. The IS has captured the hearts of over a million enthusiasts worldwide, and the number is growing.
That thrill has been thoroughly enhanced in the new IS. The model was born and bred at the Shimoyama Test Track. Every facet of its performance was developed on that extremely challenging on-road course, all for the sake of delivering an experience like no other to drivers around the world.
“With an aim to pursue the fun of driving, and based on the philosophy that ‘roads make cars’, we brought the new IS to life by thoroughly driving it in harsh environments, including at the Shimoyama Technical Center, which opened in 2019,” says Lexus International’s Takumi Yoshiaki Ito. “We paid particular attention to aesthetic and emotional values, which cannot be measured using numbers alone, so as to pursue linear operation that is faithful to driver intention, such as during successive driving operations and in terms of driving rhythm.”
Available in the Philippines are the Lexus IS 300h Executive (P3,038,000), Lexus IS 300h Premier (P3,398,000), and Lexus IS 350 F Sport (P4,178,000). Of course, a considerable part of the performance equation is what is under the hood. The F Sport variant boasts of a 300hp normally aspirated V6 engine that delivers 380Nm. This is mated to an 8-speed automatic transmission for power delivery worthy of a proper sports sedan. Meanwhile, the IS 300h Premier and Executive are powered by 2.5-liter inline four-cylinder hybrid power plants mated to a Lexus E-CVT intelligent transmission for optimum efficiency during every driving condition.
To inspire even more driving confidence, the IS comes with LSS+2—a suite of the latest Active Safety features, such as the Dynamic Radar Cruise Control, Lane Tracing Assist, and Automatic High Beam. The F Sport model comes equipped with the upgraded Pre-Collision system which detects oncoming vehicles and pedestrians, even when turning left or right at intersections. (Story and photo courtesy of Lexus Philippines)