New practical weekend car
 

Hey everyone,

I Just wanted to share the new more practical weekend / good weather commuter car I picked up last week. It’s a 2012 Lexus IS-F with the 5.0 v8 8 speed automatic. The 2011 and up have the factory lsd and suspension upgrades on top of the 416 hp v8. My wife and I are trying for our first child so I figured it was time to get a fun 4 door. With some basic bolt ones we should be around 500 crank hp.

We picked it up in CA, drove to Vegas for the weekend then home to Colorado. Great drive averaging a bit over 25mpg. We hit some snow driving Raton pass which made for some white knuckle moments before making it home
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1551579695.jpg


http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1551579695.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1551579695.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1551579695.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1551579695.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1551579695.jpg

Very nice. I do hear that a >400hp V-8 rwd on summer tires is the best for snowy mountain passes. :D

Enjoy, looks like you've got a really snoozy stable there.

Very nice, congrats and good luck!

Great Choice Levi......Looks fun........

Very nice choice.

I have a 2015 IS 350 and it's a rocket with the v6. Can't imagine what the v8 is like.

REALLY WANT AN F, but in the RC form.

Have fun with your new ride.

Driving an ISF during the winter through Raton Pass deserves a gold medal...takes big brassy ones to do that.

Wow, fantastic!

Very nice! Summer tires, RWD, and snow do make for an exciting drive, been there!

How would you rate the overall driving dynamics of the car compared to something similar like an M5 or E63? I’ve always liked the looks and Lexus reliability of the ISF but have never driven one.

Power, performance and incredible reliability. Great choice! Nice stable too.

Raton Pass? Quite the circuitous way home from Vegas.

Looks like a nice one!

_

And the color combo, including the seats.

There is nothing not to like. Congrats.

Sort of... I-40 east then I-25 north, maybe?

A little longer, But you avoid Vail Pass and the Tunnel; just under and over 11,000 feet...

Raton Pass is really nothing compared to those in the winter...

Shoot, it's only about 7,800 feet.

freeform911
I had a is350 a few years back, really loved that car. I ended up putting around 150K trouble free miles and had a lot of fun with it, that experience made the IS-F an easy buy. those RC-Fs are really coming down in value fast, should make for a great car coming up.

peteremsley the daily driver is a 4runner. not as exciting, but great all around

Tcar is right, from Vegas, Denver is around 11 hours if you head through Vail pass. going through new Mexico is around 15 hours but you avoid the big mountains. we were hoping to miss the snow storm that hit but got caught in the middle of it. but all is well that ends well I suppose :)

Sweet... Congrats! And good luck! Not to jump the gun but those leather seats need protection like this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00B7M7BKW/ref=oh_aui_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Is it just me or do the wheels look too small for the body? I've seen some of these on autocross and that's what I noticed. Still, wouldn't mind having one.

I love the interior!

Indeed, very sharp.

Not a fan of grey cars, despite the fact that is the color of my current daily driver.

I wish I could comment on this, but I have 0 seat time with a e63 or the m5. I really wanted a c63, big power, perfect interior and they seem fairly reliable.... however, a major engine problem could set you back north of $10,000 much like the porsches in my garage. I wanted a car I could drive hard, drive often and not worry about big bills when something went wrong.