• News
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Media
  • About
  • News
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Media
  • About
Sign up Now (For Free)

Sign up for our newsletter and receive the latest automotive news in your inbox!

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Thanks for subscribing!
News
Read Now
  • All News
  • Automakers
  • Automobiles
  • Auto Shows
  • Business
  • EVs & Environment
  • Guides
  • Lawsuits/Legal
  • Regulatory
  • Ride-Sharing
  • Safety & Recalls
  • Technology
Recent
  • Sen. Manchin Threatening to Sue Over New EV Battery Rules
  • Ford Bolsters EV Supply Chain with $4.5B Nickel Processing Plant
  • Unified UAW Talks Tough Before Contract Talks with Detroit Three
  • Faraday Future May Have One: Production Begins
  • Automakers Face “New Era of EV Price Wars”
  • Revuelto Ushers in New Era for Lamborghini
  • New Vehicle Sales Edging Toward Some Normalcy in Q1
  • How Fast Can a Tesla Model 3 Be Hacked? Two Minutes
  • First Look: Kia Pushes Boundaries with New EV9
  • Lucid Moves to Cut 1,300 Employees
Editor’s Choice
    Reviews
    Read Now
    • All Reviews
      • Feeder
    • Classic Cars
    • Concept Cars
    • Convertibles
    • Coupes
    • Crossovers/CUVs
    • Diesel
    • Hot hatches
    • Hybrids
    • Luxury Vehicles
    • Minivans
    • Muscle Cars
    • Pickups
    • Sedans
    • Sports Cars
    • Super Cars
    • SUVs
    Recent Reviews
    • A Week With: 2023 Kia Soul GT-Line
    • A Week With: 2023 Ford Maverick Tremor
    • A Week With: 2023 Volkswagen ID.4 AWD Pro S
    • A Week With: 2023 Infiniti QX80
    • A Week With: 2023 Genesis GV80 Prestige 3.5 Turbo
    • First Drive: 2024 Dodge Hornet R/T
    • First Drive: 2023 Dodge Hornet GT
    • First Drive: 2023 Genesis Electrified GV70
    • First Drive: 2023 Nissan Ariya e-4orce AWD
    • A Week With: 2023 Jeep Compass Limited
    Editor’s Choice
      Guides
      Car Warranty
      • Endurance Warranty Reviews
      • BMW Extended Warranty
      • Extended Warranty For Cars Over 100k Miles
      • Extended Car Warranty Cost
      • Subaru Extended Warranty
      • CarShield Reviews
      • CarShield Cost
      • Aftermarket Car Warranty
      • CARCHEX Warranty Reviews
      • Reputable Extended Car Warranty Companies
      • Used Car Warranty Companies
      • Best Car Warranty
      • Is CarShield A Scam?
      • Mercedes Extended Warranty
      • CarShield Plans
      Insurance
      • How To Identify A Car Insurance Company
      • Geico Mechanical Breakdown Insurance
      • How Far Back Does A Car Insurance Company Look
      • Mechanical Breakdown Insurance For Used Cars
      • State Farm Mechanical Breakdown Insurance
      • Mechanical Breakdown Insurance From Progressive
      • Dollar A Day Insurance
      • Auto Insurance For SSI Recipients
      • Car Insurance Rates After A Suspended License
      • Auto Insurance For Salvage Vehicles
      • Average Cost of Dodge Ram 1500 Car Insurance
      • Car Insurance Florida
      • Full Coverage Auto Insurance
      • GrubHub Insurance
      • Amazon Delivery Auto Insurance
      Shipping
      • Car Shipping Companies
      • uShip Reviews
      • Auto Shipping From California To Hawaii
      • Montway Auto Transport Reviews
      • Cheap Car Shipping
      • Easy Auto Ship Reviews
      • Auto Shipping Miami
      • Auto Shipping To Alaska
      • Car Shipping Cost
      • Auto Shipping Hawaii
      • Auto Shipping Puerto Rico
      • Sherpa Auto Transport Reviews
      • Auto Shipping Atlanta
      • Auto Shipping Boston
      • Auto Shipping. Chicago
      About
      • About Us
      • Contact Us
      • Terms of Use
      • Privacy Policy
      • Affiliate Disclosure
      • Sitemap
      TheDetroitBureau.com

      More than just “another” place to find news, reviews, spy shots, commentary, features, and guides about the auto industry. TheDetroitBureau doesn’t stop with the press releases or confuse a few lines of opinion with insightful, in-depth reporting.

      Contact Us

      Like what you see? Have some ideas for making The Detroit Bureau.com even better? Let us know, we’d love to hear your voice.

        Media
        Listen Now
        • Headlight News: All Episodes
        More from TheDetroitBureau
        • Guides
        • Latest News
        • Auto Reviews
        • Podcasts
        Headlight News

        TheDetroitBureau.com’s Headlight News offers a look at the past week’s top automotive news stories, as well as what’s coming up in the week ahead. Check out the week’s top story and our latest review…along with a dive into the past with this week in automotive history.

        home > reviews > A Week With: 2021 Lexus IS 350 F Sport

        A Week With: 2021 Lexus IS 350 F Sport

        Fares well against its competitors, but could use a substantive update.

        Larry Printz
        Larry Printz , Assistant Managing Editor
        April 29, 2021
        The 2021 Lexus IS 350 F Sport offers plenty of performance and style, but the package is about due for a substantial update.

        Need a compact luxury sports sedan? You have a tempting array of options, including the BMW 3 Series, Mercedes-Benz C-Class, Genesis G70, Alfa Romeo Giulia and the Cadillac CT4.

        And then you have the Lexus IS, last re-engineered for the 2014 model year, and given another nip and tuck for 2021 to keep it competitive. Yes, it outsells its American, Italian and Korean competition, but the Lexus still trails its German antagonists. Is this makeover enough for it to prevail in a class where German marques predominate?

        Overview

        The answer is no. While the IS receives a host of welcome updates for 2021, they don’t change its fundamental personality, although that’s not a bad thing, far from it. Offered in IS 300 and IS 350 models, buyers get a choice of rear-wheel or all-wheel drive.

        All models get V-6 power except for the base rear-wheel-drive IS 300. It makes do with two fewer cylinders. For 2021, for the first time, the athletic F Sport trim will only be available on the IS 350. Lexus supplied an IS 350 F Sport with rear-wheel drive for this weeklong test.

        Exterior

        The new model’s design modifications are subtle but effective. The grille is larger, the headlamps slimmer, and there’s unique front and rear bumpers, rocker molding and updated side vents. The whole look is aggressive and perhaps the best iteration of Lexus’s aggressively angry, angular, animated design language — and perfectly suitable.

        There’s nothing demure about this sedan, something that can’t be said of its it visually quieter competition. It’s compact, but boisterous. The 19-inch wheels and carbon fiber rear lip spoiler add the perfect touch. Eighteen-inch wheels are standard on most models.

        Interior

        The test car’s optional Circuit Red F Sport pleather (aka faux) seats were a classic contrast to the car’s silver exterior. The front seats are standard heated and ventilated, and are offered alongside a heated, leather-wrapped steering wheel. Special F Sport trim is so befitting of its personality, you’re surprised it isn’t offered throughout the line-up.

        The interior is largely unchanged, and the overall appearance, fit and finish are commensurate with the car’s $42,995 starting price but feels somewhat dated. The F Sport seats firmly hold you in place without being punishingly stiff.

        The instrument panel and console snugly envelope you, although head and leg room are good. Rear-seat leg room is adequate, and dependent on the kindness of those up front. The trunk is an adequate 10.8 cubic feet, and plainly trimmed. There are no fold-out cargo hooks, and the gooseneck trunk hinges rob the interior of what would otherwise be useable space.

        Powertrain

        The base IS 300 is fitted with an intercooled 4-cylinder engine that produces 241 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque through the rear wheels. Adding all-wheel drive to your IS 350 brings with it a double-overhead-cam 3.5-liter V-6 rated at 260 horsepower and 236 pound-feet of torque. But the big dog on the block is the top-of-the-line IS 350. Its double-overhead-cam 3.5-liter V-6 produces 311 hp and 280 lb-ft of torque and your choice of rear-wheel or all-wheel drive. An 8-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters is standard on all models except the IS 350 with all-wheel drive, it gets a 6-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters instead. All models require premium unleaded fuel.

        Safety and Technology

        Driver assistance safety systems include a pre-collision system with pedestrian detection, lane departure alert with steering assist, road sign assist, lane-keeping assist, radar cruise control, automatic high beam, and blind-spot monitor with rear cross-traffic alert.

        Technologically, the most welcome news is that Amazon Alexa, Android Auto, and Apple CarPlay compatibility is finally standard. An 8-inch touchscreen is standard, a 10.3-inch touchscreen is optional. Lexus’ infotainment user interface remains largely the same and is badly in need of an update in look and function. It lacks the simplicity and appearance one expects in a luxury ride. But at least you are no longer forced to use the car’s haptic touchpad to operate it.

        Driving Impressions

        In an era where preposterous gobs of horsepower are now common on luxury vehicles, and roads are clogged with slow-moving traffic, the IS 350’s 311 horsepower seems sufficient. But the V-6 doesn’t seem all that powerful lower in the rev band. Stomp on the throttle, and it wakes up, but it shouldn’t be necessary given the IS 350’s place in the line-up.

        Similarly, the 8-speed automatic feels far more responsive when you flick the console-mounted gear lever manually rather than using the slow-to-react paddle shifters or leaving it to its own devices. For the power hungry, most of this should be addressed when the 2022 Lexus IS 500 F Sport Performance model appears in the fall, powered by a 472-horsepower naturally aspirated V-8. However, only 500 of the IS 500 will be produced.

        The IS 350 F Sport has unique suspension tuning, which makes it a far more fun proposition than its more plebian compatriots thanks to the test car’s optional Dynamic Handling Package with an adaptive suspension and limited-slip differential. This produces the behavior you expect in a sports sedan, albeit with an incredibly refined demeanor typical of a Lexus. It’s a very easy car to drive quickly with a lack of body roll, sharp reflexes, and accurate, linear steering. Its dynamics are exemplary.

        And while the different driving modes are appreciated, including ones unique to this trim level, would someone at Lexus rewrite the code so that it’s not in Eco mode every time the car is started? This does nothing to help your street cred, bubby.

        Wrap Up

        While the 2021 Lexis IS 350 F Sport features some welcome improvements in performance and a better looking exterior, the interior’s increasingly dated appearance remains unchanged. And although its performance is commendable, its competitors are more dynamically compelling than this angular athlete. Although far from a bad choice in a luxury compact sports sedan, it’s not at the top of the list.

        How to Care for Your Car

        Cheap Car Warranty

        Editor's Choice

        Best Extended Car Warranty

        Editor's Choice
        Recently Published
        2023 Toyota GR Supra 3.0 manual front driving

        A Week With: 2023 Toyota GR Supra 3.0 Manual

        March 10, 2023
        2023 Nissan Altima SR 2.0 VC-Turbo best

        A Week With: 2023 Nissan Altima SR 2.0 VC-Turbo

        March 01, 2023

        A Week With: 2023 Acura Integra A-Spec

        Feb. 24, 2023

        What Are You Looking For?

        See More
        Buying a Sedan? See our recommended reviews and guides.
        Buying a Sedan? See our recommended reviews and guides.
        Reviews and Resources When You Are Looking For a New Car
        Collection
        Car Reviews and Guides
        Collection

        Car Reviews and Guides
        Recommends
        The Best Car Insurance Companies in 2022 (with Costs)
        Recommends

        The Best Car Insurance Companies in 2022 (with Costs)
        Recommends
        Best Car Warranties – 2021 Comparison (Factory & Extended)
        Recommends

        Best Car Warranties – 2021 Comparison (Factory & Extended)
        Recommends
        7 Best Car Shipping Companies: Consumer Guide (2022)
        Recommends

        7 Best Car Shipping Companies: Consumer Guide (2022)
        Close
        Reviews and Resources When You Are Looking For a New Car
        Collection
        Car Reviews and Guides
        Collection

        Car Reviews and Guides
        Recommends
        The Best Car Insurance Companies in 2022 (with Costs)
        Recommends

        The Best Car Insurance Companies in 2022 (with Costs)
        Recommends
        Best Car Warranties – 2021 Comparison (Factory & Extended)
        Recommends

        Best Car Warranties – 2021 Comparison (Factory & Extended)
        Recommends
        7 Best Car Shipping Companies: Consumer Guide (2022)
        Recommends

        7 Best Car Shipping Companies: Consumer Guide (2022)
        Close
        Share this article:
        © The Detroit Bureau 2023
        • Guides
        • Privacy Policy
        • Terms of Use
        • Affiliate Disclosure
        • Contact Us
        • Sitemap
        Follow Us: