Next Lexus IS 500 could debut new V8
Potent new twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 likely for Japan’s answer to the BMW 3 Series and Benz C-ClassLook out Mercedes-AMG C 63 and BMW M3 – Lexus is coming for you.
OK, so that may be a little presumptuous, but given news just in that Lexus parent company Toyota has filed a trademark application in North America for the ‘IS 500’ name, a high-performance version of the new Lexus IS sports sedan is almost certain -- potentially with V8 firepower.
Lexus has confirmed it is currently developing a twin-turbo V8 petrol engine for the upcoming Lexus LC F, and given engines are the single most expensive element of a traditional (combustion engined) model to develop, it would make sense for Lexus to spread the new engine around.
That's despite the fact it will ride on the same rear-drive platform as the outgoing Lexus IS, which was never available with a V8. The last V8-powered Lexus IS was the IS F version of the second generation produced between 2005 and 2013, which was followed by the RC coupe -- including the V8 RC F -- in 2014.
As we've previously reported, the new Lexus IS will come to Australia in late 2020 in three versions: Lexus IS 300 (2.0T), IS 350 (3.5 V6) and IS 300h (2.5 hybrid).
What’s not clear is what the new IS 500, which is expected to follow in 2021, will pack under the bonnet.
It could get the twin-turbo 3.4-litre V6 (3444cc) that bangs out 310kW/600Nm in the LS 500 limousine. Some reports suggest Lexus’ geriatric 5.0-litre naturally-aspirated V8 will be perched over the front axle of the 2021 Lexus IS 500.
Either way, the new Lexus IS sedan is 45mm wider at the front and 50mm wider at the rear, and underneath its all-new bodywork is a substantial chassis overhaul.
Upgraded suspension features new coil springs that are 20 per cent lighter, aide by new swing-valve shock absorbers with ultra-low-velocity valves designed to improve road-holding.
Boasting more torsional rigidity than before, the new Lexus IS will be one of the Japanese premium brand’s first models to be developed at the company's ‘mini Nurburgring’ test track in Shimoyama, Japan, which opened in 2019.
Stay tuned for more developments.
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