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Track Day Fun In A Lexus IS350? You Bet!

Agent009 submitted on 03/26/2008 Official Bell & Ross Timestamp: 10:25 AM
from: www.clublexus.com

[48] user comments | category: Misc News

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Track Day Fun In A Lexus IS350? You Bet!

As most of you know I am not exactly a fervent Lexus fan. However I do like to think I can view all cars on the merits they possess. So when my good friend combfilter decided to take a shot at driving on a real road race track with his slightly modified IS350. I was all on board to see just exactly how his car would stack up. After all events such as this, the driver can make a substantial difference, often beating cars that score better on paper.

Location

The location was Texas World Speedway, an older NASCAR track built in the 1970’s complete with a road race circuit. Today the track is mainly regulated to SCCA, private events and motorcycle races, but is still an excellent venue for car clubs to let it all hang out. This event would be hosted by a Texas group on Supraforums.com with several highly modified cars in attendance. However this event was it was not solely limited to Toyota based vehicles. Staged on the 2.9 mile road race circuit layout and utilizing the front portion of the huge 2.5 mile banked oval, speeds should easily approach 130 mph. With this in mind it was pretty obvious that my buddy had his work cut out for him.

The Driver

Now combfilter isn't a neophyte to the race circuit, regularly tripping the lights fantastic at the Texas Motorplex just south of Dallas. His IS350 consistently takes on and defeats BMW 335i's with ease with consistent low 13 second passes.

combfilter's IS350 vs BMW 335i at Texas Motorplex

However since this was his first time on a true road circuit at such high speeds, and he wisely opted for an instructor to sit with him until there was a comfort level for the track. If an instructor is available then by all means take advantage of it, because they can assist you in choosing the correct lines on the track making it far easier to drive quickly.

The Car

The 2007 Lexus IS350 is known as more of a touring sedan rather than by a track pedigree. The 306hp V6 has ample power to keep up adequately with most of the competition, but the suspension is geared more for a soft ride rather than track prowess.

The solution, to that was a set of Eibach springs with the stock struts to firm up control and at this time the stock sway bars were kept intact. A free flow Borla exhaust was added to lower back pressure and allow the V6 to sound a bit more authoritative. Since the track is pretty abusive to tires and this is more of a learning day, off came the custom rims and tires and back went on the stock tires.

The Event

The rules of the event dictated you must run the track in groups contenting with traffic all of time. While this keeps times down a bit, it also creates and awareness of your surroundings. No superman antics here or you may collect your neighbor and end up in the guard rail. The groups consisted of 8-10, with combfilter’s lineup featuring a Mini Cooper, a Z06 Corvette and even a turbo Supra sprinkled in for variety.

After the first ½ day the instructor had completed his assignment and the group was allow to dice amongst each other. For those of you contemplating such an event you need to take it easy for the first few laps, because there can be tremendous differences in the way you car handles at speeds over 80 mph, this is something you have to learn on your own. You will also need to inspect the tires thoroughly after each session noting wear and looking for defects. A tire failure over 100 mph can be catastrophic as you can see below from a Z06.

Speed can be deceiving believe it or not this is 130 MPH on the oval

Combfilter's first 130 mph pass Texas World Speedway

And again in traffic:

Combfilter in Traffic at 130 MPH

Overall Impressions And Observations From The Driver

Quick notes on what I disliked about the is350 on the road track.

1. it has quite a bit of body roll when you really push the car hard into the turns. A lot of this is the weight of the car and the roof. Unlike 3 series, our roofs are actually safe if you roll it over, but they are heavy because of this. We know the IS isn't really a track car but they could improve on this.

2. this isn't really Lexus fault, but the car should really come with some pilot sports or something better than the potenza/and even worse the turenza's. They did an ok job, but i know that after the driver, the tire is the 2nd most important thing when it comes to track days.

3. The car seems to have quite a bit of understeer. This surprised me.

Quick notes on what I liked about the car

1. I've always loved the power of the IS. Vettes, Supra, WRX's etc could not pull on it unless we got into the oval bank section. Matter of fact I found myself passing quite a few Supra's and Vettes during the sessions.

2. I was actually kind of impressed with the way the car's automatic transmission adjusted to very abusive driving conditions. It was great

3. braking on the IS was absolutely great. The brakes never faded or gave any fuss. They were amazing. Big surprise there, I figured after the 3rd lap they would be fading like a sumbish, but that wasn't the case.

Conclusion

While the IS350 may not be a road race car by any means it is pretty obvious if you address the soft suspension and body roll issues with a good aftermarket kits you have just resolved 50% of any issues you might have on the track. Driver and tires are almost always the major factors in driving fast, without competence in either category you can lose up 10 to 20 seconds per lap on the 2.9 mile road course.

BTW, combfilter’s lap times ran right at the 2:10 to 2:13 mark per lap which is quite respectable and in the middle of the pack.

Not a bad job at all for the first time ever on a road course.

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Track Day Fun In A Lexus IS350? You Bet!

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NISSANINFINITI - 3/26/2008 11:18:07 AM

+8 Boost

Pretty car and nice rims

reply to this comment

dlin - 3/26/2008 8:46:00 PM

+2 Boost

Why be surprised w/ understeer? All stock cars did so. Stock BMW also understeer a lot when you corner it in high speed.

That's why I'm surprised w/ the stock sway bars were kept intact. You should up a stiffer rear sway bar at least, if not the front.

I kinda wonder what set of Eibach springs you have.

adamsaf723 - 3/27/2008 1:16:55 AM

+1 Boost

Yeah, G-Spyder Rims are pretty badass.
I personally think the Tanabe Medallion exhaust sounds better than the Borla, but to each his own.

SHOWTIME - 3/26/2008 11:27:31 AM

+4 Boost

Great review. I had almost bought one 2 years ago.

reply to this comment

SenSpeed - 3/26/2008 4:48:44 PM

+1 Boost

whats with 335's slow ass R/T? The number are much closer when you take the driver out of the equation.

SHOWTIME - 3/27/2008 9:12:36 AM

+1 Boost

ehhh, who knows...the IS350 did have exhaust though so that could've made a lil difference.

07G35J - 3/26/2008 11:28:25 AM

+8 Boost

Now, that's what I call a great weekend!! Great looking car, too.

reply to this comment

xdrive_ - 3/26/2008 11:31:39 AM

+6 Boost

Must be a great experience getting track time like this. I wish here in New England we had more road course events open like this.

The IS350 does seem an odd choice for this though, especially with its 6AT. I know he upgraded the suspension, but the IS always seemed more like a boulevard cruiser to true sports sedan. Kind of like giving running shoes to the chubby kid and then putting him on the varsity track team.

By the way, where did this come from? "Unlike 3 series, our roofs are actually safe if you roll it over, but they are heavy because of this."

reply to this comment

macker83 - 3/26/2008 12:20:20 PM

-7 Boost

agent 009 this just showes how biased you are against lexus. i think as a independant reviewer you should Be completely unbaised and just convey the facts and let your readers make their minds up.

stash84 - 3/26/2008 12:27:24 PM

+8 Boost

i didnt read anything bias against lexus

bmwman1963 - 3/26/2008 12:43:12 PMView My AgentSpace

+8 Boost

GoObama08 comments on this forum just to stir up crap. He knows that BMW kicks Lexus' butt with every model.

Agent009 - 3/26/2008 12:57:49 PMView My AgentSpace

+8 Boost

macker83- What do you mean?

KZ258 - 3/26/2008 11:34:56 AM

+2 Boost

wow i didnt expect the IS350 to beat the 335i by that many tenths in the quarter mile.

reply to this comment

JRobUSC - 3/26/2008 12:13:08 PM

+8 Boost

two things. First that isn't a stock IS350, as stock IS350's don't run 13.24 1/4 miles. Second, the 335i driver screwed up. He cost himself over two tenths of a second in reaction time, fell behind two tenths more by the 1/8 mile mark (where he was 4mph slower), and never recovered. The fact that the mph were almost identical at the end of the 1/4 mile indicates the two cars are capable of running similar times. Since the 60ft times were similar I don't think it was off the line traction. My guess is the 335i was a stick and the driver either screwed up a shift, spun the tires between gears, or didn't turn the DSC off (which would have intervened and cut power during that shift).

Agent009 - 3/26/2008 12:16:51 PMView My AgentSpace

+7 Boost

The only mods are stiffer springs, better street tires and a catback exhaust. Not substantial but they do make a difference.

stash84 - 3/26/2008 12:28:31 PM

-2 Boost

a is350 (completely stock) can run 13.5

stash84 - 3/26/2008 12:29:19 PM

0 Boost

correction : AN is350..

Need4Speed - 3/26/2008 12:41:08 PM

+5 Boost

And its faster than Corvettes!!!

Agent009 - 3/26/2008 4:03:44 PMView My AgentSpace

0 Boost

No one ever said it was faster than anything else.

BMW995 - 3/26/2008 11:55:14 AM

+1 Boost

I bought the IS last year after selling my BMW due to potential transmission issues (cost). I was very impressed with the IS handling, not as good as my son's '06 3 Series with the sport package, but close. You can now buy suspension performance items through the Lexus dealers. The Bridgestone RA090s are really good for a high-performance street tire. I saved $9,000 over the cost of a new 3 Series equipted as mine was.

reply to this comment

Htay7500 - 3/26/2008 12:00:47 PM

+1 Boost

damn, lucky. must be fun.

reply to this comment

EL34 - 3/26/2008 12:46:20 PM

-9 Boost

Park the IS350 next to a Toyota Corolla and people would think they're the same car.

reply to this comment

_43LE - 3/26/2008 3:48:54 PM

+8 Boost

Yeah, I could see that too...if I were on acid.

audirevolution - 3/26/2008 4:47:34 PM

+4 Boost

The IS350 and Corolla look nothing like eachother.
On the other hand, the Camry and the ES do.
So do the Camry and LS and the Land Cruiser and LX.

tattedtwice - 3/26/2008 9:48:21 PM

+1 Boost

I wouldnt say NOTHING alike, since they both have those stupid looking slashes on the lower front air dam, and look to be roughly the same size.

Notjustlex - 3/27/2008 11:16:00 AM

+1 Boost

Your comments are so predictable and redundant. Give credit when credit is due.

Every time you write a comment you must become more and more afraid that everyone sees you for what you are. A true Lexus lover. It's okay you can admit it, you have been in the closet long enough (in more way than one we are sure).

Need4Speed - 3/26/2008 12:47:00 PM

+1 Boost

"I've always loved the power of the IS. Vettes, Supra, WRX's etc could not pull on it unless we got into the oval bank section. Matter of fact I found myself passing quite a few Supra's and Vettes during the sessions. "

Honestly, there is no value to this article other than reading enjoyment. If your take after reading this article is that the IS350 is truely a performance match for Corvettes, of all things, then you really haven't done your share of driving! As the submitter mentioned and it should always be the first consideration is the driver. A Corvette in the hands of someone inexperienced could easily have their a$$ handed to them by an experiened driver in a car such as the IS...modded or not.

reply to this comment

Agent009 - 3/26/2008 1:07:24 PMView My AgentSpace

+5 Boost

LOL you obviously have never driven an event such as this, now have you? I personally have seen Integras beat Corvettes, due to a better setup and a far more competent driver. BTW I have raced for over 10 years and have won several regional events, so I may know more than you think.

It is all about not making mistakes and driving to the fullest potential you can. In the hands of a competent driver a lesser car can easily beat a more capable vehicle. It is proven every weekend.

The article is strictly for entertainment value no doubt, so what harm is there in that?

I do agree if all things were equal then a Corvette would hands down win, however the driver NEVER stated he beat any Corvette. But when in life is everything equal? (never) You are getting caught up in the paper facts and ignoring the real world reality thus you have reached a very wrong conclusion.

combfilter merely stated how the engine in the IS350 made him feel similar to those of a type of cars. It was a compliment to everyone.

Htay7500 - 3/26/2008 1:14:01 PM

+4 Boost

"BTW I have raced for over 10 years and have won several regional events, so I may know more than you think."

SCCA? I love these track and auto-x events. pretty fun an amazing.

Agent009 - 3/26/2008 2:20:09 PMView My AgentSpace

+3 Boost

SCCA and a local club around here that generally use SCCA rules to a degree but no limits on top speeds.

In general your first event is a humbling one, there is a hard reality to face, that while you thought you knew how to drive fast you really have no clue.

I alway laugh at the BMW's power sliding through corners. Great for TV but typically bad for times in general. Sometimes what see isn't what you get, just watch a Speedworld Challenge race and you see what I mean. They are always in control and rarely sliding around.

Need4Speed - 3/26/2008 5:16:24 PM

0 Boost

“LOL you obviously have never driven an event such as this, now have you? I personally have seen Integras beat Corvettes, due to a better setup and a far more competent driver”

-Exactly what I was alluding to in my comment.

“BTW I have raced for over 10 years and have won several regional events, so I may know more than you think.”

-Yes but my comment was not directed to you personally but to the general audience who sometimes take things way beyond their face value.

“It is all about not making mistakes and driving to the fullest potential you can. In the hands of a competent driver a lesser car can easily beat a more capable vehicle. It is proven every weekend.”

-Once again, it was what I was alluding to in my comment.

“The article is strictly for entertainment value no doubt, so what harm is there in that?”

-None whatsoever, but again, there are those that take things way beyond their face value.

“I do agree if all things were equal then a Corvette would hands down win, however the driver NEVER stated he beat any Corvette.”

-What’s the significance of mentioning that ‘I've always loved the power of the IS. Vettes, Supra, WRX's etc could not pull on it’, without some type of implication of the fact that he was too fast,…or ‘Matter of fact I found myself passing quite a few Supra's and Vettes during the sessions’….I mean I pass M3’s, WRXs, STIs, Charger SRT8s, ..you name it but it is of no significance to mention something like that unless your implication is you were faster! Other than that why mention that at all.

“But when in life is everything equal? (never) You are getting caught up in the paper facts and ignoring the real world reality thus you have reached a very wrong conclusion.”

-My conclusion was not wrong. A lesser driver at that the helm of a very capable machine makes a winner not….see what I’m saying.

“combfilter merely stated how the engine in the IS350 made him feel similar to those of a type of cars. It was a compliment to everyone.”

-Capable machine yes…but it’s no Corvette dude!

jeeka715 - 3/26/2008 1:36:26 PM

+3 Boost

Fair is fair 009, I slammed you in another article, but this one was great. Kudos. I don't think the intention was to be 100% journalistically unbiased as some are complaining above, as this was more of a "this is what I did and the impressions I gathered" article.

At least you are honest in your like/dislike up front.
Great read. Kudos again.

reply to this comment

Agent009 - 3/26/2008 2:26:04 PMView My AgentSpace

0 Boost

You gotta give credit where credit is due.

combfilter has a sweet ride, and he is on the right track. most of the issues like body roll and understeer would require minor modifications to resolve. Nothing beyond the realm of what he already has done.

He is only beginning to sort the car out and this was the first high speed outing.

gsh23 - 3/26/2008 8:08:20 PM

+2 Boost

I raced my 06 IS350 and it was alot of fun. Its true, suspension upgrade practically solves half of the cars problem. Mine was equipped with Tein CS suspension and tires were RE01R.

reply to this comment

AE86 - 3/27/2008 1:56:11 AM

+2 Boost

WTF?? "Unlike 3 series, our roofs are actually safe if you roll it over, but they are heavy because of this."

reply to this comment

Agent009 - 3/27/2008 9:25:46 AMView My AgentSpace

+1 Boost

Actually I never heard of any issues rolling a 3 series, but he said it not I.

tattedtwice - 3/27/2008 2:50:41 PM

+1 Boost

Dont be surprised, it came from a lexus owner, you know they dont feel better unless theyre making a jab at BMW.

Besides, all he showed was his ignorance; a heavy roof=high center of gravity=slower handling responses.

AE86 - 4/4/2008 11:54:29 AM

+1 Boost

You wrote it...

bazoonga - 3/28/2008 1:46:14 AM

+1 Boost

>This wasn’t some parking lot or abandoned airstrip but
>a full bore NASCAR track complete with banking and
>speeds up to 130 mph.

You Americans have low standards.

130MPH is what middle aged German drive to work at.

130MPH is what HEAVY traffic sometimes moves at in Paris (not everyone of course)

I've been in bumper to bumper traffic at almost 120mph and you dimwits brag about 130MPH on an isolated track?!

Spend a couple thousand kilometers at over 150MPH on busy freeways (in Europe) and we can talk about fast driving.

On a trip once from Paris to Berlin I drove a 4cyl turbo diesel Mercedes at over 145mph (website said top speed was 137mph so maybe car exaggerated because I'm definitely not) and we're supposed to be impressed with a Lexus going 130mph on a race track?

Downright pathetic.

reply to this comment

tattedtwice - 3/29/2008 1:00:49 AM

+1 Boost

"You Americans have low standards."

Considering which car and luxury car company is considered best selling here and other things like allowing a complete and utter idiot to remain president the last 8 years, I would have to agree with this.

lexusrox123 - 3/29/2008 12:32:49 PM

0 Boost

ever heard of "electronically limited" speed limit?

bazoonga - 3/28/2008 1:47:31 AM

0 Boost

I meant to say I've seen middle aged women drive 130MPH in Germany.

reply to this comment

lexusrox123 - 3/29/2008 12:35:28 PM

0 Boost

thats sad. and dangerous.

reply to this comment

bazoonga - 4/1/2008 2:28:49 AM

+1 Boost

Hi lexusrox123,

As for "ever heard of "electronically limited" speed limit?" it should be limited to 55mph for most American drivers.

What's thats sad and dangerous? Bumper to bumper traffic at almost 120mph?

lexusrox123, I'm not trying to be a jerk but you really have to expand your horizons. Bumper to bumper RUSH HOUR traffic at almost 120mph is perhaps dangerous in most American cities but it sometimes happens on European freeways which are much better designed then what Americans have.

Only once was I in danger when I went around a corner at full speed and there where couple of redneck American soldiers in the fast lane in their V8 Chevy station wagon with Oklahoma plates. Yes, ignorant idiots like that are a danger.

Germany for instance, has the safest freeways in Europe (I can send you the statistics), because of excellent roads and excellent trained drivers who know how to maintain their cars.

I mention all this because it's really pathetic seeing all the yahoos on these boards bragging about their driving prowess that is below the standard of a German middle aged female commuter.

Drive all over Europe and you will come back with your tail between your legs.

I'm not trying to be an @sshole (enough of them on this site), just being realistic.

Alec - 4/15/2008 11:00:08 PM

+1 Boost

great car

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