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DETROIT — Twenty years after the "Circle-F" project jump-started Toyota's upscale Lexus division, the luxury Japanese brand is getting ready to roll out its first F-badged performance model, the new IS-F sport sedan.
Lexus insiders tell Inside Line the IS-F is likely to be priced in the $50,000-plus range and will be the first of a series of F-badged vehicles to make their debut in the next few years.
The IS-F, based on the existing rear-wheel-drive IS sedan, is equipped with a 5.0-liter V8 and an eight-speed automatic transmission that replaces the V6 used in the base IS. Thanks to special heads fed by a two-stage intake system, the V8 is expected to churn out more than 400 horsepower and more than 350 pound-feet of torque.
Other performance goodies include coolers for engine oil and transmission fluid, plus a system that bolsters engine lubrication during high-G-force driving.
Lexus lowered the standard IS suspension by more than half an inch and added heavy-duty Brembo brakes. Wheels are custom 19-inch alloys.
What this means to you: Some much-needed performance excitement at the once-staid Lexus brand.
DETROIT — Twenty years after the "Circle-F" project jump-started Toyota's upscale Lexus division, the luxury Japanese brand is getting ready to roll out its first F-badged performance model, the new IS-F sport sedan.
Lexus insiders tell Inside Line the IS-F is likely to be priced in the $50,000-plus range and will be the first of a series of F-badged vehicles to make their debut in the next few years.
The IS-F, based on the existing rear-wheel-drive IS sedan, is equipped with a 5.0-liter V8 and an eight-speed automatic transmission that replaces the V6 used in the base IS. Thanks to special heads fed by a two-stage intake system, the V8 is expected to churn out more than 400 horsepower and more than 350 pound-feet of torque.
Other performance goodies include coolers for engine oil and transmission fluid, plus a system that bolsters engine lubrication during high-G-force driving.
Lexus lowered the standard IS suspension by more than half an inch and added heavy-duty Brembo brakes. Wheels are custom 19-inch alloys.
What this means to you: Some much-needed performance excitement at the once-staid Lexus brand.
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