The Peak goes under the hood of a Lexus IS Turbo that’s kitted out with the F Sport package.
We’ve all had to learn: The lady you take to prom may not be the one you want to marry. When Lexus dolls up an already refreshed IS200t, dubs it the IS Turbo, and slaps on an F Sport package, the end product is a real looker that you want to get into right away.
Sleeker headlights, massive 18inch wheels and aggressive air intakes along its flanks make it look hungrier for road than its predecessors. The inviting interior features plush leather upholstery in a reserved shade of rose, sporty aluminium foot paddles, and a nifty instrument gauge that whirs into different configurations at the driver’s behest. The piece de resistance? A leather steering wheel. Luxurious to the touch and comfortingly substantial, no matter the manhandling it receives. First impressions don’t get much better.
Let’s consider the second date. Contact with the wheel is compromised as we try to tweak certain settings on the fly. The culprit is a carry-over from the earlier IS iteration: a notorious joystick-button hybrid called the remote touch interface (RTI). It makes navigating the generously sized infotainment screen an arduous finger-control exercise – the lightest excess of pressure and your cursor will overshoot its intended mark. Now, imagine spelling out a road name, letter by letter.
The 8-speed automatic transmission does an admirable job when building into a cruise, but it hesitates even when a heavy foot is applied, often delivering unintuitive ratios that a driver will have to master.
Only by going Sports+ does the turbo lag reduce to negligible levels.
Thankfully, the paddle shifts are world-class and the IS Turbo’s response to them is crisp. Pity there isn’t a manual option for a vehicle that otherwise delivers excellent road handling. It’s feature-packed, too, particularly in the safety department: A host of electronic aids such as lane-departure warning and collision mitigation are now default fixtures, and 10 air bags stand ready to cocoon all passengers on board.
Do these redeeming points a good marriage make? Perhaps. Take this nugget of relationship advice: Opt out of the satnav package if possible.
