2017 Lexus IS 300 AWD Review

Lexus is playing catch up in the sport sedan segment and one way it is trying to be more competitive is by introducing new trim levels in its popular IS series.
For many, the base IS 200t would be a great choice, but it’s only available with rear-wheel drive. On the other hand, the range-topping IS 350 drives all four wheels but can be expensive and fuel thirsty. To try to alleviate this issue, Lexus has recently introduced a model right in the middle of the lineup that can only be had with all-wheel drive. Called the IS 300 AWD, this in-betweener might be the Lexus shoppers are looking for.
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[@bg1379]

The combination of upbeat, happy music w/ complaints confuses my brain

[@ARentz07]

I don't think a car that goes 0-60 in 6.1 seconds is slow. It does have a fairly tall second gear however, which can make it "feel" slower. The IS 200t is actually going to be slower 0-60 and in everyday driving thanks to its lower horsepower and its turbo lag (just ask users on Club Lexus).

[@venom5809]

That music needs to go, you are a car reviewer not a DJ.

[@theghostofyoutube8178]

venom5809 LFDKSKFFJD LMFAOOO

[@jalmonte0414]

kill that music.especially while talking

[@ericchang5217]

21 mpg? Holy cow my Camaro SS with a 6.2L v8 gets 19 combined.

[@TheWOWRichardqian]

Picked the wrong reviewer, just like picked wrong trim. Messed up from the beginning.

[@hoosierhugh53]

Keep your eyes on the road man!

[@chrisdooley6468]

255hp from a 3.5 V6 these days? Not smart esp for that price. They should've put an upgraded turbo motor in it with adequate torque imo

[@santinamorris5035]

Chris Dooley it's actually a 3.0 that why it's called the IS 300

[@hy77281]

Santina Morris It's still the 3.5 V6 but detuned, they just called it the 300 since they already have the IS350

[@markus11chung]

Val Pan You're the one talking crap here. If you even bothered doing your research you would know that the IS300 is using a V6, and not the NX300's Turbo 4.

[@jamesmin2837]

You are incorrect sir, it is a 3.5L. The days of # matching to displacement days are over. Same reason why there is "GS450h".. it's not a 4.5L. But supposed to have "4.5L N/A" like power, due to the hybrid system. To your credit though, Toyota has been very inconsistent with this. They have an IS200t, which actually is a 2.0L, but of course makes more power than an typical N/A 2.0L motor.

[@tigerskone2945]

Turbos don't last and lexus is about longevity.

[@kevinalan1335]

It has always seemed absurd to me that journalists pin a vehicles lack of acceleration on minimal weight gain like 150lbs. A passenger would likely weigh nearly that or more and you'd be hard pressed to notice a difference in acceleration with someone tagging along in the seat beside you. Lack of hustle on on-ramps and a heavy feeling is likely due to the detuned engine that has lost over 50 ponies and chunk of torque that went along with it, combined with drivetrain power loss from the awd system.

[@chooseymomschoose]

"...slow car..." In comparison to what?

[@aaronrodriguez1410]

Other luxury brands and direct competitors. I mean aside from Germans infinitis are faster

[@laraallen4193]

I have one and I love it

[@HH-qt5bh]

Heavy because of 150lb? Bruh I hope this is not your day job.

[@InvestBetter.]

Definitely looks better than the competition, but is a step behind in the rest, except the driving experience in 350 F-Sport which is top-notch. The car needs to go on a serious diet.

[@ryanmatzelle9377]

I think Lexus should give the is300 the engine from the is350 and the then throw a turbo on the is350. 255 horsepower and 236 lbs. of torque from a 3.5 liter v6 is unacceptable in 2017.

[@JesusIsLord7773]

Ryan Matzelle tell that to the owner of Lexus lol

[@Luminary2024]

Ryan Matzelle agreed. I have this car and I really wish I had that extra torque

[@Lsutton04_]

Get a tune and you’ll make the same as the normal 350, it seems to be the exact same just detuned

[@cancercell1]

Mazda 3 looks better on the outside and on the inside, the only fault that mazda may have is that it doesn't have that much power.

[@hectorb1921]

Mazda 3 ugly asf

[@AD-eq4kn]

I'm sticking with Subaru.

[@Danielgarzar]

Nice corolla

[@rudfil]

You can call this Lexus IS the anti-snob luxury car unlike a European luxury car... : )

[@iennguyen1954]

just one one thing on this I don't like is the grille the f-sport model 350 is look more fanstatic grille

[@HodsBroo]

so many haters oh man. I appreciate lexus' effort. that being said, drop this engine. id like to see 2.0t awd and a new 3.5t.

[@Tully3674]

You made a six minute video (often talking in circles but with indecision) of which your conclusions can be stated in 30 seconds: Great reliability, fit and finish but engine is anemic. Better option is the IS350 AWD model. Both identical cars but you get better performance with the IS350.

[@nennemesis3004]

You might not know what a review is if you think a 30 second assessment can replace a 6 minute segment that gives you the positives and negatives of the vehicle. I don't mind the simplicity of your conclusion, instead calling on the ignorance of you statement.

[@rogerthat24]

More $$$ tho

[@ARentz07]

The engine is not anemic, and you'll only notice the power difference if you go to the top of the rev range. It's only 0.4 seconds slower 0-60.

[@ecbcbm]

I drove the 250t the other day. Hated it! Turbo lag felt like an eternity. Push the gas on the street and literally nothing happenes; car barely moved for a full 2 seconds.

[@ARentz07]

*200t Do drive a 350 or 300, and the lag will be gone. The 300 is not that fast but feels much faster than the 200t.

[@andreakatickles3131]

I'm not sure if I was paying more attention to the Lexus or his lisp

[@b.f.378]

Front end looks better, but the new tail lights look horrible. They shoulda just kept the tail lights from the 2014-16 model

[@2583060]

41k for 255 horse power. What.

[@tahsin28]

Try ur best NOT to review a Silver car. the colour makes it look Toyota

[@HungLuigi]

Tahsin Faiyaz it is toyota

[@JerkVegas86]

Tahsin Faiyaz Sheesh hold that L sir lol

[@ivan44443332210]

I prefer the rims of these than the f sport ones.

[@jamesmin2837]

Leave it to Toyota to stuff a 255HP 3.5L V6, when they are putting in 268HP 3.5L V6 into Camrys, Venzas, Siennas, Highlanders and Avalons. Should the premium car buyers really deserve less and get penalized? I understand the concept of detuning something, so you that can charge more for the IS350--almost everybody employees this tactic in the market. But they seriously had to go out of the way to actually DESIGN a 255HP engine. No other car in Toyota/Lexus line up has a 255HP 3.5L. They did the same thing for last generation GS460. While LS460 was making 380HP, they decided to bespoke the GS460 with a 342HP. Did BMW do this with their 550i vs 750i? Did Mercedes with E550 vs S550? It is a stupid idea. A GS will not cannibalize sales of an LS, because it has the same horsepower. The only logical thing that I can think of for the IS300 is that the claimed 255HP is a lie. In reality, it might have 268HP... it's just such a small gap against the 306HP IS350, it could just be a marketing thing. Until someone dynos it, it's just a speculation.

[@pastapastatv]

James Min Modern under-stressed engines last longer. One of the reasons why the Toyota Century with a 5.0L V12 only makes 280PS (481Nm).

[@jamesmin2837]

Agreed, but this is not why they put this engine in there. They did not build the IS300 and market it as a more durable car than IS350. It's Toyota being Toyota. And the true reason why Toyota stopped giving a shit about the Century is because Lexus became a global brand, even in Japan. As in, they no longer R&D it.

[@AB-coyote]

Why continue to talk about how slow it is without any data such as 0 to 60 times to back it up?

[@toddmediumwellingtoniii478]

Anthony But Google?

[@yvsevyse4562]

Todd Medium Wellington III but review?

[@ARentz07]

I agree, if you're going to review it you might as well take 3 seconds to say a time... Or even, you know, demonstrate it!?

[@AkramJamlAlLailJ87]

Rain drops on the seats, no paper towel to clean them?

[@malleablecurve311]

1st gen is300 was better imo. Better engine imo and it can be found with a 5 speed manual

[@jamesgjt]

the tail light are made in Australia? it looks upside down....

[@JDMHaze]

backup camera is standard

[@eamonnmcdermott1939]

Trying to copy everyman driver Dave Erickson with the music. LOL!

[@bernyeric]

48k is crazy, rather go TLX or Q50 for less money

[@ecbcbm]

eric b And more space...

[@theghostofyoutube8178]

eric b but less reliability?

[@bernyeric]

I wouldn't consider Acura much less reliable than Lexus, Infiniti and new engines so it's a wait and see at this point with them

[@edweagle]

Or a Genesis G80

[@thanhbinhnguyen508]

eric b used to think like u before owned a lexus 😂

[@AliPawan]

No CarPlay?

[@MrDefeater94]

Really?

[@unknownnando63]

Can someone comment the song's name?

[@infiltr80r]

Those panel gaps though...

[@unknownnando63]

Nvm, I found it. Ever Felt, Part 2 - Otis McDonald

[@RavagHer]

for 41K+ u can buy soo many better overall cars....hell a fully packaged civic would be better

[@Avrelivs_Gold]

0.5x squad where you at

[@shopwithaaron]

Too ugly to consider for any amount of money...and that reliability means you'll have it forever! No thanks!

[@troysmith9007]

not this guy ugggggggggggggg

[@ashy_ghost]

troy smith omg right?! his lisp is so irritating and he's boring as hell

[@exit07]

That's a bit too much just for a compact luxury car. I used to have the 2015 IS 250 model the side bolsters wears out quickly going in and out of the vehicle even when leather is conditioned.

[@Unplugged704]

Can the 300 be tuned to get more HP?

[@2583060]

might as well buy a WRX STI. sheesh

[@thanhbinhnguyen508]

Rangmaltv intro lol 😂

[@gigi9467]

toyota getting to big for their own good

[@IndyFlick]

Ga...Ga...Ga...Ghastly Ga...Ga...Ga...Ghastly

[@alisadiq7595]

nice show ..good luck.

[@toddmediumwellingtoniii478]

The new tlx is a better buy.

[@chukamakalaka]

Great Review!

[@ducatil-twin3379]

Alrighty then.

[@KCMrecordings]

"Lets get beyond the sheetmetal and see what this car is all about"....i'm sorry, i just cant do that, it's too hideous

[@lizardgreen2121]

wow that interior is horrible. shit I would never think of saying this but the new genesis interior looks way more upscale then this .

[@GloXum]

For winter which model do you recommend? I live in Minnesota so I’m not sure if an FWD would be good

[@trilingualkid]

Lexus fanboy be liked: "but reliability"

[@COTTERO]

Lexus has great quality, but its car have to many strange ugly lines.

[@DripExplains]

ugly front, great tail lights.

[@hasanal-habbobi4018]

thr front lights don't look good

[@krayzel]

It uses thix thpeed tranthmission. Thhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

[@juliusjones5302]

y window cleaning/pressure washing company in North East Atlanta/Brookhaven

[@bryantaylor2427]

You don't thay.

[@HungLuigi]

damn that thing is ugly

[@NZsarge1]

Yeesh that's an ugly car

[@revaholic]

Every single reviewer on this channel has some speech impediment. Every single one.

[@franciscovlzqz17]

LISP

[@snakehandler87]

your reviews are unbearable..

[@SShorsepower]

He sounds like a snake

[@JayJohnPaul]

Nice Toyota Corolla.

[@Fussinated]

LOL! what a miserable hater remark is this LOL!

[@Kev50027]

JayJohnPaul I would agree with you, but it's not even nice, it's just a more expensive Corolla.

[@RoninWalker6]

Kev50027 I didnt know the have RWD or AWD Corollas, thanks man. I am going to look into that.

[@jimmypena2442]

didn't know Corollas could get to 60 under 5 seconds

[@toddmediumwellingtoniii478]

Jimmy Peña well they actually can

[@Acc0rd79]

Eye catching??? eww no!

[@underdog9785]

"Eye Catching"? Yes... Cause it looks ugly af? Also yes

[@DRose2Fast]

The Story of Ai I think you are being harsh and ridiculous. You wish you could afford this car.