Auto Trader Blog

It’s big, it’s black, and it’s got a 5-litre V8 engine. This should be fun.

Auto Trader has just taken delivery of an all-singing, all-dancing, brand-new Lexus IS-F – the car Lexus hopes will tempt buyers away from the German trinity of the BMW M3, Audi RS4 and Mercedes C63 AMG.

First impressions? Awesome.

On the car’s launch, insiders said the car was engineered to sound somewhere in between the howl of the old BMW M3 CSL and a NASCAR racer.

We took it out for a quick spin…and within the first few feet were utterly flabbergasted as the 5-litre 411bhp V8 woke up to the sound of a heavy right foot – and blew our socks off.

And while the press shots and hyperbole may suggest the IS-F is subtly styled, make no mistake – this car turns heads.

Its imposing presence is a world away from the super-smooth executive cruisers Lexus usually builds, and the car oozes menace from every angle, including the massive alloys, sharp bodykit and huge powerdome barely containing the V8 underneath.

Assistant Web Editor Stuart Milne was at the IS-F’s launch – where he was won over by how far Lexus has come with its first properly sorted small super saloon.

Check back with Auto Trader next week as we unravel the beast from the east, and give our definitive verdict on the new Lexus IS-F.