Like he said, Meade tore out the Mark Levinson stereo components, keeping only the Lexus head unit and 6.5-inch touch screen. There's no need for fads like boy-racer wings and stick on eyebrows a handsome sedan like this never goes out of style. What it lacks in racing pedigree it makes up in aggression with a long nose (and V8-encompassing hood bulge) and short rear deck. The IS-F body needs absolutely no external changes to accentuate its strong lines. Case in point: the oversize Brembo 14.2-inch front and 13.6-inch rear brakes. This is a case where the manufacturer got it right from the very start. And the rest of the world wonders why we love V8 engines so much!Įxterior modifications are limited to VHT Night Shade coating on the rear tail lamps. There's a stout 454 rear-wheel horsepower on tap, along with 443 lb-ft of stump-pulling torque. Additionally, an A'PEXi throttle controller boosts power delivery and makes engine response programming that much easier. ISS Forged built a stainless steel catback Track exhaust system with four Magnaflow mufflers to replace the four OEM diffuser exhaust tips. Upping the ante in the engine bay, Meade turned to Gearhead Garage for the installation of a Holly Nitrous Oxide 100-hp wet-shot kit and a Takeda polished cold air intake. A word to the wise when a rear wheel drive car is lowered this far, adjustable toe and camber links are necessary to keep from grinding the expensive rear donuts to dust.
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The rest of the suspension is finished off with a GTSPEC front strut brace for stiffness and FIGS Engineering rear lower control arms and toe links for precision alignment. They're definitely not soccer mom, focus-group approved. His custom AZA Forged three-piece wheels are color-matched to the gloss black finish and sized at 20 inches to help impart a sinister look. Fender gaps were eradicated, and the wheels are tucked so hard you'd need a floor jack to read the name of the Pirelli P-Zeros hiding within. The OEM suspension parted ways with the chassis in favor of a KW Variant 3 coil-over package set for a driveway- scraping ride height.
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He said 'Okay, well the new 2011 IS-F has all new suspension upgrades over the previous years.' I looked at him and said 'This thing isn't low enough, I am gonna rip all that out too.”Īnd true to his word, that's exactly what he did. “My dealer, who was great, was bragging about how nice the factory Mark Levinson 7.1 system was,” Meade said. Meade had not even left the dealer lot before making plans in his head. It is – and has always intended to be – the Toyota equivalent to BMW's mighty M5, the long-time ruler of the sport sedan landscape. Rumored to be the love-child of some overly enthusiastic Toyota engineers in Japan who realized that, with a little effort, they could stuff a V8 into the IS 350 chassis, the IS-F drops all pretense of being a family-friendly machine.
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Once the insurance payments were handled (thankfully he had not been badly injured), Meade picked up the keys to a new 2011 IS F. They promised to help out when he was ready to replace his car. Within a day he received a call from the Lexus USA headquarters asking if he was okay. With his IS 250 crushed, Meade made a video of the damage and uploaded it to YouTube.
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Those plans changed in a blink of an eye one afternoon. Meade planned to step up to an IS 350 as soon as he could, to the point of doubling up his car payments in order to have his ride paid off as soon as possible.
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The IS Series has always been of interest to US buyers and, for California resident Steve Meade, when his IS 250 got slammed from behind while sitting at a stop light, he knew right away what he'd be buying next.
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Competing in the luxury arena is always a bit of an uphill battle and one that Toyota chose knowing full well the Lexus brand would have to go beyond consumers' expectations in order to establish the lineup on American soil. Every manufacturer strives to craft a following of enthusiasts of a certain sort: people who are well-enough off to be able to afford its vehicles, thus ensuring the company's continued success. Brand loyalty is a coveted asset in the automotive marketplace.